[I'm violating all "my rules" about timeliness of blog posts, however ... ]
“If I never see NC-73
again, it will be too soon.”
That’s what I told RBA
Tony Goodnight at the end,
But that is getting ahead
of the story. LOL.
I had not done a 300 since
April 26, 2014,
Without looking to verify,
I had previously done
300’s in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and the above-mentioned 2014.
All had been the same
Raleigh Region 300.
Same, except that most
every year there has been a detour
Caused by bridge
re-destruction on the route.
I didn’t do the Raleigh
Region 300 in 2015,
Even though I had helped
car-scout the route with RBA Alan.
Instead, on the day of the
Raleigh 300, I did my 103k ‘free-route’ perm-pop,
Bahama Beach, reversed,
with the popular “3-Hayes” variant,
With my friend Lynn.
Lynn didn’t want to do
Alan’s 300, claiming she didn’t want to do that much climbing.
I didn’t want to do Alan’s
300 because, at the time,
A couple recent 200 perms
had decidedly been NOT fun.
In the event, Lynn and I
were quite glad we did a 100 instead of the 300,
As we had gotten more than
wet enough by the finish of the 100.
In particular, it felt as
if I were on the edge of going hypothermic.
A result of a poor choice of
jersey and jacket.
Good thing I didn’t do the
300 ‘cuz the kit I would have worn for the 300,
Which turned out to be a
rainfest, would have been the one I wore for the 100.
If I had almost gone
hypothermic by the end of the 100,
Can you imagine what might
have happened on the 300?
I shudder at the thought.
Anyway, although I had
hosted some Highpoint Region 300’s for RBA TonyG,
I had never ridden one of
Tony’s 300's.
This year, 2016, has been a difficult one.
In 2015, my friend Lynn and I did 36 perm rides together.
Most were 100's (plus) routes that we started at 6 am (during the warm months),
And perhaps we started a bit later than that during the chillier months.
We also did a short non-rando route one morning when we expected rain by 10:30 am.
It didn't start raining until about 5 pm.
Aargh.
And I also wimped out on riding at least twice, and
Lynn rode the intended rando perm-pop solo.
Riding solo was something Lynn no longer liked doing,
Because she's lost strength in her hands and arms / shoulders,
[Read that the loss has been concentrated in her right hand and arm / shoulder,]
And usually cannot manage to change a flat tyre (should she get one).
Anyway, the usual readers, or informed RUSA members, are likely to know
That on Feb-20 of this year (2016), Lynn and three others were plowed into by ___ --
I'll fill that blank by typing "a woman driving a car."
Since that Feb-20th afternoon, Lynn has not done a single rando ride.
Many mornings, instead of leaping out of bed to go ride a 6 am perm-pop,
I just rolled over and went back to sleep,
Using low temperatures, or hot and humid weather, or just no reason at all,
As an excuse to not ride solo.
Stupid, really.
I enjoy solo rides.
At whatever pace they pass.
I guess one could say that I was a "bit" unmotivated.
Having a regular ride partner would have overcome the lack of motivation.
But the only dependable rando ride partner was Bob Bingham,
And Bob lives 45 or so miles from me.
Bob kept me going, doing at least one populaire and one 200 a month,
Until a very sore achilles led to me NOT doing a 200 in July.
Mostly I did not ride the first half of July, and
During the second half of the month, I mostly did much shorter rides.
I did an easy populaire on July 31st, but
That isn't enough to approach regaining cycling shape.
You get the idea: I have not been in good rando cycling shape this year.
My friend, Bob, on the other hand,
Has been in good, no, make that great cycling shape for over two years.
The result of getting in shape to do a 1000, a 1200, and
From mid-July through mid-August of this year, he rode the PacTour Northern Tour.
Doing those rides isn't what has gotten or kept Bob in shape.
Well, Bob would tell you that he did get in better shape during the Northern Tour.
But those rides aren't what has gotten and kept him shape;
The training rides to prepare for those rides have been what got and kept him in shape.
By mid-September, Bob claimed that he could tell that he was losing some of the
Finely tuned shape that he had by the end of the Northern Tour.
However, if one were to ask me, I couldn't tell that he had lost anything.
So, with all that background, and me thinking I should ride at least one 300 this year,
And maybe, if the 300 went well, there was a bit of a long-shot "plan"
To ride a late season 400 and a late season 600,
To complete, er, struggle through an SR.
Anyway, I talked Bob into doing the captioned 300 with me.
For a link to a RWGPS map of the route, click here, or look at the embed immed. below.
[Note: that is Tony's map; I copied it into my RWGPS routes
To guard against Tony possibly re-purposing his map.]
The ride started at 6 am.
I stayed at my place in Raleigh the night before.
Because I didn't get off work until 7 pm, and was tired and dirty,
As I knew I would be when I turned down an offer to stay in Salisbury the night before the brevet.
When about 20 minutes from the start location,
I texted Bob and RBA Tony that my ETA was 5:45.
I hit that on the nose.
Tony rushed over with the waiver, cue sheet, and control card.
Everyone else was already signed in, and their bikes were ready to roll.
I finished putting my bike together,
Putting on cycling shoes, gloves, helmet, hi-vis vest, etc. while Tony gave last minute instructions.
I was easily ready to roll out with the group.
I knew almost everyone there for the two brevets (300 and also a 400).
However, in the dark, there were one or two I didn't recognize.
One person I had never met was there, from Pennsylvania.
Amusing aside, though some may not think so.
Said Pennsylvanian was leading the combined peloton (only 2 were doing the 400),
He had a GPS unit of some sort.
But he missed one turn after 3 or 4 miles.
We traveled less than 100 yards before others caught the miss.
More on this humor front.
Somewhere in the next 6 miles or so,
There was a left and then a quick right,
The 400 rider on a bent had made the correct turns as he started to drift off our front,
But Pennsylvania was intent on turning right at the aforementioned left.
Bob had done the 300 route a few years before,
And began shouting from the rear of the group, "wrong way."
It took several shouts, and more, to get the whole crew on the correct route.
Around the 10 1/2 mile mark, while going up a nothing incline,
I decided, or perhaps, my legs decided, it was time to let the group go.
From there on, except for getting to the first control at the same time as Joel,
Who had arrived late and had started late, (that's a re-occurring theme with Joel),
Bob and I were without other rando company.
To complete the amusing aside:
While at that first control,
We saw the aforementioned Pennsylvanian rapidly returning to the five point corner
Where that first control was located,
And just as rapidly getting back on to the correct course.
He had apparently left the control and taken the sharp left instead of the second, slight left.
We gathered that he had either left before the rest of the crew,
Or left the control after the rest of the crew.
We thought the former the more likely, though I can't recall ever confirming that with anyone.
Anyway, to completely complete the amusing aside:
Said Pennsylvanian was a candidate for the late in 2016 election for RUSA board members.
I thought about sending him a note
To the effect that I wasn't sure of his leadership abilities,
Because the only time I had ever "ridden" with him,
He had tried to lead the entire rando crew astray.
Three times.
I never did send the note, or mention to anyone other than Bob.
Until now.
After that first control, the route skirts the southern edge of the Uwharries.
A hilly remnant of an ancient, ancient mountain chain.
RBA Tony does not agree with that description,
But I'm sticking with that description / story.
We must have gone through Mt. Pleasant in daylight,
But I have no recollection.
Maybe that was where the first control was located.
[You don't expect me to check out the cue sheet, do you?]
I recall making a comment to Bob when we transited Red Cross.
White Cross is about half-way between Raleigh and where Bob lives.
I recall passing through Mt. Gilead.
We made a wrong turn and had to back-track half-a-mile or maybe more.
Back on the course, we stopped at a small store for some extra snacks and drinks.
Bob might not have needed to, but I certainly did.
Yep, 58-miles into a 188-mile course, and I was already nearly toast.
Then we left Mt. Gilead, heading southeast on NC-73, on those dang rollers!
A couple of those rollers might have been as much as a 300 foot climb,
And the steepness seemed the same as the Blue Ridge Parkway climbs.
I could not apply pressure to the pedals in a biggish gear,
Nor could I maintain a decent cadence in a smallish gear.
So I climbed a lot in my granny gear,
SLOWER than I climbed the BRP climbs in 2010.
SLOW enough that I would occasionally be unable to hold my line.
If the PBP officials had been there, they might well have pulled me from the ride.
Bob graciously waited at the top of every climb.
Well, not every climb.
I recall a couple times when I pulled over at the summit,
Leaned hard on the handlebars, and breathed very heavily for half-a-minute,
A whole minute,
Maybe more.
I thought NC-73 was never going to end.
It did finally end.
Actually, the course turned off NC-73 to go through Ellerbe.
First time I had ever been in Ellerbe.
Which might seem strange to you if I let you know that
One of the brevet-couplets I hosted for Tony, that started/ended in Lumberton,
Transited Ellerbe.
AND, I actually own a permanent route, a 200+ km route,
That starts/ends in Lumberton, and turns around in Ellerbe.
How can I own such a route, and never have been in Ellerbe?
I adopted the route after the original owner no longer had interest, and
I just haven't been able to make it down to Lumberton to ride the route.
[See above for why I didn't make it to that route this year (2016).]
After Ellerbe, my recollection is that the course flattened out a bit, but
Looking at the RWGPS profile, that is not the case.
I'd like to put in that I received a text while at the 89-mile "turn-around,"
That a friend had completed 60-miles solo that morning,
But I probably shouldn't.
So I'll just note that I sent a return text that I had completed 89-miles so far,
That I was TOAST, and
Had another 99-mile to cover.
I struggled back to Ellerbe, Bob still being patient.
I struggled to the 115-mile point, Bob still patient.
I was grateful for the flat stuff between the 115 and 130 mile marks, Bob patient.
[Yes, I'm looking at the RWGPS map for these mile marks.]
There was a control in Oakboro.
We chatted with some locals.
Oh, how I wanted to quit.
We continued.
Although the inclines got less severe, I could barely make the bike get up anything.
There were many, many pauses at the side of the road, to try to catch my breath.
Sometimes Bob stopped at the same place, to wait.
Sometimes, he would realize that I was no longer visible behind him, and then he would stop.
There was another control.
I don't recall where [and I'm not looking at the cue sheet to figure it out].
I drank quite a bit of extra fluids, and took a lot more time than Bob wanted to take.
But he was patient and waited.
Then, just as we were leaving, Tony called or texted to check on us.
At least that is my recollection.
It was hard getting the bike going again, again.
Somehow, we trudged toward the finish.
Bob patiently reading the cue sheet.
We finished at 1:01 am, for an elapsed time of 19h01.
Record slow time for a 300 for each of us.
Bob could have finished HOURS earlier.
After the ride, Bob, Tony, and I had "breakfast" at the Salisbury Waffle house.
Then Bob did the hour or so drive home,
While I followed Tony to his place where I collapsed
And Tony returned to the finish to wait for the two 400 riders.
Next morning, before I left for home,
I helped Tony review the entire upcoming Taste of Carolina 1200 course,
Checking the NCDOT website for possible road closures.
And ... I ultimately agreed to drive one portion of said course where a detour was required.
At least, I think that is why Tony wanted me to check it out.
Oh, if you didn't know, Hurricane Matthew cancelled the 2016 Taste of Carolina 1200.
