Jun-02/03: NCBC 600-km Brevet

With the non-brevet-like weather,
This almost turned into an event with no notable things about which to type ...
Almost.
[Note: all photos are thanks to RickR, unless noted otherwise.]

MikeD has a nice summary over on Research Trailer Park.
KeithS has an even shorter, yet comprehensive report on Doc-on-a-bike.


Notable things (from my perspective):

Tailwind.
Mild temps.
Mild humidity.
Pack of 15 still together after 38 miles.
Wrong turn onto "Rawls Club Rd".

Front-wheel magnet and sensor mis-aligned.
Attemtped re-alignment in Angier.
"TICK-TICK-TICK" as the magnet hit the sensor every time by.
Stopped again; adjusted again.
Foolish me ... I tried to bridge.

Ricochet and Byron in Erwin, Tar Heel control.
Fleche Team, minus Dean, plus JohnO + Geof.
Cyndy headed the wrong way from Godwin corner.
Geof + Byron following.
Geof, Byron and Cyndy tacked on,
Geof and Cyndy drifting off the front.
Founder's Day Parade in Wade.
Quick, early lunch at Strickland's Marathon.

The anticipated and much feared Turnbull Rd toward Ammon.
... had been chip-sealed within the last year.
Not smooth by any imagination, but not "Bump-ass Rd" (this year).

Ammon.  Blueberry Festival.

White Lake.  200k.  7h47.  A personal best.
Wilmington volunteer BobB at the control.
White Lake volunteer (and High Point RBA) TonyG at the control.

Fleche Team, minus Dean, plus JohnO across NC-53 and then NC-210 towards Rocky Point.
Battery in sensor dies.
Left calf cramp a mile before the control at Rocky Point.
Ease into Rocky Point.
A baked potato at the Wendy's,
Loaded with lots of mustard, butter, sour cream, ketchup, pepper, salt, more salt, more salt.

Keeping the legs and feet super relaxed from Rocky Point into Wilmington
Pat and Curt (the "Bee Team -- see MikeD's post for Pat's big excitement of the ride) joined us.
Pat took the lead, while Curt rode next to me.
Curt asked about Alan.
Response:  "as I understand it, he did his first series in 1983 or 84.
"And ... , and ... , and ... , and ... , and he has great 'war stories' from brevets past."

Wilmington control.  13h04.  A 300-km record.
My legs better, but still not great.

Byron understands all the unwritten rules.
E.g., sit instead of stand; lie down  rather than sit.
I didn't feel as bad as I looked.  Really. 

Robert looked cool, calm and collected.  Maybe too cool?

The Bee Team.

Pat and Curt. 

Volunteers RickR and BobB.

JohnO contemplated abandoning.

BobB quietly getting me to try to encourage John.
I did try, but without much success.
Ricochet took over:  deciding John was continuing -- period.

Robert, Byron, Curt, Mick/Mike - ready to leave. 

Me, JohnO - ready to leave.
BobB supervises. 

JohnO, guided by two lights, did continue.
Gotta' get that moonshot in the blog somehow.
Well ... it looks like the moon over his head, but I don't understand how it could be.
As we exited Wilmington, the rising near-full moon was a large, orange ball on the horizon. 

Al P and "Tidewater" Jacob arrived just as we left.
Almost certainly a 300 PR for each.
The half-way point of Jacob's first ever 600.
He looked to us as if he was still smiling -- he later informed that it was a grimace.

Daylight for half the trip back to Rocky Point.  Woohoo!!
The Bee Team gone off the front.
But not for long.
They missed the turn onto Dairy Farm / Blue Clay Rd.

All together into and through and out-of Rocky Point.
Several miles after Rocky Point, the Bee Team picked up the pace.
Byron and Mick/Mike went with them.
I did not.
JohnO did not.
Ricochet did not.

JohnO, Ricochet and I paused at the Currie Post Office.
Old times remembered.

Robert + me. Currie Post Office.
Backlit by the site of the best sleeping quarters in 2011.
Photo thanks to Ricochet, JohnO napped the pic. 

Benches in front of that convenience store across from the Kelly Post Office.
Somewhere on NC-53, an close encounter with a doe on the road.

Into the White Lake control at approx 1:35 am.  19h35 for a 400k.
Another personal record.
Byron and Mick/Mike had gotten there about 1 am.
The next control -- Strickland's Marathon -- store doesn't open until 7 am.
Can deal with with "open" control at a closed store, but
We want to eat breakfast there.
Might as well sleep here in White Lake.

[No one took any photos in White Lake. 
And there were a couple great opportunities. 
BTW, TonyG looked more tired than I felt -- he likely thought the opposite.]

4:35 -- leave White Lake:  on to Strickland's, minus JohnO.
We arrive around 8.
Keith joins us when we leave around 9.
Fleche Team, minus Dean, plus Keith.

Definitely a headwind before Erwin.
We pause in Erwin, at the Get 'er Dunn control.
600 meets 100 as
Dean pulls in to use the Get 'er Dunn control.

On to Angier.
Mick/Mike having increasing difficulties.
His body leaning further and further to the left.
Bike stays upright, but drifts to the left.

We split in Angier.
Byron and Ricochet and Keith in one group.
Mick/Mike and me as the second group.
Increasing struggles for Mick/Mike.
We have plenty of time in the bank.
We use the time to deal with and overcome struggles.

We finish.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First ACP SR for Ricochet Robert.  Congratulations!
[I guess I can no longer tease him that I have an ACP SR, but he doesn't.  Sigh...]

First SR for Mick/Mike.  Well done!