Jul-26: Black Creek 201

In June, a Facebook memory from 2-years prior popped up.
I had posted on FB about Bob and I bailing on doing BC when the high temp was forecast to be ~ 100.
When the memory thing popped up, I commented that I wouldn't do BC in June,
But maybe in July.

After the FB memory popped up, I had a couple good rides (consult previous posts), but
More importantly, the mostly stripped threads on the rear derailleur hanger gave out.

So, blah, blah, blah (see posts since July 9th), I'd be doing Black Creek on a loaner bike.
I decided I'd rather tackle the route solo than have to deal with others,
Probably not riding at the pace I'd need to ride,
Probably not wanting to pause for tweaks to the steed.


I had not done the Black Creek route since August-2014 -- that's 35 months.
Neither had anyone else done the route in that time-frame.
Partially because people prefer some of the newer routes,
Partially because of life and LIFE surrounding the route-owner.

Anyway, the route-owner and I arranged a paperwork exchange
And scheduled my solo adventure for a 6 am start on the 26th.


I didn't get the loaner bike back from my wrench until the day before the ride,
So there were still some tweaks I needed to make that night / the next morning.
One of those being getting the headlamp that had worked perfectly the night before
To work the morning of the ride.

So, as has often been the situation on this course, I started late.
Approximately 35 minutes late.


Forty-five or fifty minutes into the ride, approx 19 or 20 kms,
I was transiting Youngsville.

But I need to back up a bit.
The big traffic contributor between US-1 and Youngsville used to be
The huge church complex on Holden Rd.
However, now, or at least in the near future,
The main traffic originator is or will be the several housing developments
Already partially developed on Holden Rd.

Okay, back to transiting Youngsville,
I was surprised by the west-bound backed-up traffic in downtown Youngsville.
All the way from the light at US-1A to the light where NC-96 turns south.

The unexpected level of traffic continued for most of the next seven miles on Tarboro Rd.
The vast majority of the traffic was headed west whereas I was eastbound, but
The westbound traffic volume frequently / always affected
The ability of eastbound motor vehicle traffic to pass me.

All in all, I concluded that I can no longer recommend the Black Creek route
For a weekday 6 or 7 am start.
[Starting at 8 on weekdays has previously been a bit problematic 
Because of Wakefield High School located 1-km from the start.]


After Tarboro Rd and the two miles on NC-98, meaning after the turn onto Strickland Rd,
Traffic was in-line with what I recalled from the fourteen previous rides on this route.
After all, the route does pretty much go through "no where,"
With some nice-looking farms and homesteads,
But also some that have seen better days, and
Some that have been abandoned.


I may have mentioned above that I've never needed the cue sheet on this route,
Since the first time I rode it.
I know the roads and the turn when I get to them, but
I don't pay much attention to the name(s) of the road(s).

This ride, at approx the 60.5-mile-mark, about 2-miles before the turn-around,
I had to stop at the T-intersection and wait for traffic.
Only a few seconds, but for the first time that I can recall,
I actually noticed the name of the road onto which I was about to turn.
I decided to take a photo.

I never heard of, nor met, "Fixie Pixie" until 2013.  So, the only time I might have looked at the cue sheet for this turn, my first "Black Creek" ride in October-2010, the name of the road would not have popped-out at me.  But waiting for traffic, I noticed the name of the road and decided to take a photo -- hey, sometimes when riding solo, one doesn't need much of an excuse to pause and take a photo.  That Blalock family must have been quite prodigious -- there are Blalock Roads seemingly everywhere in central and eastern North Carolina.  To complete the vignette, the Mangums were also apparently prodigious as there are also Mangum Roads everywhere.  [Photo by me.] 

1.3-miles on the above-noted Blalock Rd, and a "zig" on US-117:   

Welcome to the Town of Black Creek, which has been around for quite awhile, by USA standards.  The town has seen better days economy-wise, and downtown (no pic) is pretty much a ghost-town these days.  (I think MikeD wrote about that once on "Research Trailer Park," or at least commented on it -- okay, I took a few minutes to search out a couple Black Creek ghost references -- click here for the other one, and skim the article, but definitely read the second comment to the blog post.)  [Photo by me.] 

Speaking of ghost towns and more or less abandoned storefronts:

Crappy, up-close photo of the door of the "business" previously known as "Black Creek Grocery."  The ownership has changed since MikeD created the route, the name of the store may have changed but I'm not sure 'cuz I didn't see any business name on the storefront.  Apparently the store is still in business, but was closed this day.  Also, looking through the window(s) at the insides, a dozen randonneurs might well completely clean this place out of merchandise.  I got my card signed at the City Hall -- the clerk told me that this store definitely seems to be on its last legs, but there is a Family Dollar store that is supposed to be coming to Black Creek the Fall.  Based on where the clerk indicated the Dollar store is supposedly to be located, the route might lose a half a kilometer each way, maybe a bit more, if one controlled there.  [Photo by me.] 

There had been no noticeable breeze the first three or more hours of my ride.
And after that, all the way to Black Creek, there may have been a very slight, mostly headwind.
I expected the breeze to pick up on the way back and to be a mostly tailwind.
Ha!!!
The breeze did pick up, seemingly both variable and mostly a headwind.
Ugh!!


I don't recall exactly where I encountered the immediately below, but 
Clearly, some folks were not having the best day.

Required turn appears to have been somewhat tighter than someone was expecting.  [Photo by me.]

The day was the least hot day in more than a week,
But even so, I may have become a bit over-warm,
Or maybe the loaner bike is a bit heavier and sluggish than my bike was,
And/or the fit needs some tweaking,
And/or I'm just not in good shape,
Perhaps aggravated by a breeze that was mostly in my face.

Anyway, my average in-motion pace slowly declined during the afternoon.


There is at least one new store on the route:
At US-401, there is a new(ish) Family Dollar store.
I stopped there on the return to get a cold drink.
Note that most gas-station / convenience stores are better stocked for rando purposes
Than are Family Dollar stores.


I finished the route, and if Mike approves the paperwork,
This ride will mark my renewed R-7.
I expect to complete my fourth R-12 in December.
IF I stay focused.
Which focus I lost in 2014 after getting to R-10 (after missing a month after R-41).

Since 2014, I haven't given much thought to maintaining the R-series.
I know I can get through them, even when in poor shape.
But I need to commit to getting back to where I rip off three or four R-rides in a month,
Including at least back-to-back 200's ("double-double" as JayJay referred to such).
(My work schedule is unlikely to allow a repeat of my 2011 "triple-double," but
I'd like to get to the point where I believe I could do a triple-double and
Still not be completely fatigued.)

I was certainly fatigued at the end of this Black Creek ride.
Locals may well understand:
There is a short but very steep ramp to get up to NC-98 at approx the 122-mile-mark.
On this ride, I took one look at that ramp, and
Dismounted and walked up it (I've done that before).

Well, I guess I should stop here, but not until after I type the following:
That's my story, and I'll be sticking to it.
======================================
xxxyyyzzz 

Reset -- Part A

The 2014 North Carolina Rando Year-End Party was held on Saturday, Nov-15th.  The party was preceded by a couple rides for those that could make it and were interested:  a 201k Perm and also a 103k Perm-Pop (a second group also did the Pop).

[Hmmn, it seems that some did some other rides as well:  Dean, Mick and Lynn all had errands to do so did rides closer to home before going to the party.] 

Anyway, I couldn't make it to either of the party-rides, nor even one closer to my residence, but I did make it to the party.  Shortly after I arrived, my friend Bob chided me about there being no Irregular blog updates since August.  Oops.

I suppose I could try to use the excuse that I've been preoccupied with some other stuff, but that's rather a lame excuse.  Besides, since the party, Bob has noted that, as the end of the year will mark five full years of rando for those of us in the North-Carolina-2010-rookie-class, it will certainly be time for an update on said rookie class.  [Bob can be such a slave-driver -- LOL!!!]

However, before I actually RESET and resume blogging about my rides, I need to write, er, type, I don't write these things, rather I just type whatever comes into my head.  So, before I RESET and resume blogging about my rides, I need to type something about a great ride I had back in August.

Aug-19:  Showdown at Black Creek 201k

It had been a year or two since I had last done this course.
I was having trouble with a completely worn out chain and cassette, and
It would also turn out that the 39Tooth middle chain ring was also worn out.
There were other issues with the bike.
So I contacted Mike requesting to do a ride on a conviently close Perm,
With not-so-much climbing, except for the first and last 12.5-miles (20-kms).

I got around a bit slowly that morning, and left the house several minutes later than intended.
Then immediately made a wrong turn in the nearby neighborhood ... and was a bit LOST.
Lost, on my cycle-commute to the start.  Aargh.

As a result of the above, I got to the start control five minutes or so AFTER the agreed start time.
However, rather than starting the ride in an agitated state of mind,
I decided to grab a couple sausage biscuits, sit down, and calmly eat them for breakfast.

I started the ride with a calm mindset, approximately 20 minutes late.
[The first time I did this route, I started approx 45 minutes late due to bowel issues. 
I once started this route approx 40 minutes late because I waited for the fog to lessen. 
(That fog-wait ride turned out pretty good as I finished the ride 8h59 after I actually started.) 
So, as you should guess, I was not concerned about starting 20 minutes late. 
AND I was calm -- one of the three keys to successfully completing a rando ride.]

Some seven or so miles into the course,
I encountered a typical problem when cycling in summer in NC:
"Road Closed" due to a bridge under re-destruction.  (Sorry, no photo(s).)

Luckily for me, the roads near and around that bridge closure are as the back of my hand.
I immediately knew the detour I was going to take,
Regardless of where the NC-DOT tried to direct me.
[Good thing, too, as the DOT detour would have put me on US-1 / Capital Blvd.  
THAT is definitely NOT a road to be ridden on a bicycle.] 

Sid Mitchell to Green to Long Mill to NC-96 into Youngsville and back on the course.
NC-96 was a slight decline all the way into Youngsville, and had little traffic.

From Youngsville to Black Creek, the route is generally a false-flat decline the entire distance.
And I, in the words of the Fixie Pixie, was feeling really good.
I arrived at Black Creek Grocery less than 4 hours after I actually started.  Woohoo!

Unfortunately, on the return trip, there was a headwind.
Just a slight wind; but still, I had to work a bit harder than I had outbound.
Also, I might have caught some post-Youngsville roads / traffic at just the wrong time.
Oh, well.

I finished the rando route in an official 9h15.
[One of these days, I need to start this route ON TIME and have a fast(ish) ride, and 
Get an official time under 9 hours.]

 
Rando ride finished, but the fun was not done.
As I left the control, my rear tyre was flat.  Huh!
I had noticed nothing wrong when / as I finished the ride.
I decided to hope that it was a slow leak.
So I just pumped up the tyre and got my post-rando commute ride under way.

I do NOT recommend riding, on a weekday, from the finish control back into Raleigh at 5-ish pm.
There was a constant stream of traffic passing me,
While I made sure to ride without rocking the bike while fretting the rear would go flat again.
[The vehicles generally gave me sufficient room, but a little more space would have been nice. 
Interestingly, the vehicle that came closest, too close, really, was a Raleigh Police car!]

After I finished my post-rando commute,
I showered and cleaned up and took my bike to the nearby bike shop,
To get the complete tune-up, etc. that was needed. 

Mar-02: The Air-Horn 204-km Perm

From time to time, one can find on just about any on-line cycling forum or Google or Yahoo cycling list-serve a discussion and suggestions about the best way to deter dawgs chasing bicyclists.  Obviously, the best cure-all would be for all dog-owners to train their animals to not-chase.  Unfortunately, that is extremely unlikely to happen in North Carolina (or, I venture, anywhere else in the United States).  However, yesterday, while riding MikeD's "Showdown in Black Creek" Permanent, I witnessed the most effective deterrent I've ever experienced.  Biker Bob recently added a small air-horn to the cockpit of his bike.  Every chase was cut short by a well-timed blast from that air-horn.  EVERY chase.  Cut short by a WELL-TIMED blast.  Thanks, Bob.

[from Bob:]  Searching for "Falcon SuperSound" will take you to various sources.  Falcon offers several models.  I am using a Nashbar clip for Halt! dog spray, along with a cable tie to secure it all to the handlebar (survived my crash on the ToC without coming off).  Unfortunately, Nashbar no longer offers those handlebar clips.

This photo shows the attachment clip better than the above photo.

 

I recently read that "there is no such thing as a tailwind in cycling. There are headwinds, crosswinds, or 'I'm feeling good!'"  Well then, Bob and Ricochet and I were feeling very good on the outbound leg, taking approximately 3h50 in-motion.  However, apparently while taking a little time to eat and drink and pee in Black Creek, an annoying NW wind popped up, because there was certainly a headwind on the inbound leg (it took approximately 4h40 in-motion, plus a couple extra short rest-breaks for Bob's legs and my lower-back).

For those that read this and know the cast of characters that did the ride, here is the most amazing comment of the day:  "This is the way a 200k route ought to finish!  This is a MUCH better finish that L-L-L or Egypt Mtn:  no Ghoston, no Peed, no Mt. Vernon Ch Rd, no Kemp, no Boxelder!"

What makes that such an amazing comment?  The speaker:  Ricochet Robert.
------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Mar-02:   

Showdown in Black Creek 204-km perm; 127.0 m.; 8h30 in-motion; 14.9 mph; elapsed time:  10h05.  

Jan tot: __3 rides; __288.9 m; _14h56; 14.9 mph; __313 RUSA kms.
Feb tot: __3 rides; __267.6 m; _19h15; 13.9 mph; __410 RUSA kms.
Mar tot: __1 rides; __127.0 m; __8h30; 14.9 mph; __204 RUSA kms. 
YTD tot: __7 rides; __613.5 m; _42h41; 14.4 mph; __927 RUSA kms. 


Looking at my Excel log, I find that I've now eclipsed 45-thousand miles in my recorded-adult-cycling-lifetime.  Another 388-miles and I'll have 40-thousand miles on the Pilot 5.0 frame.  

"Lifetime" Miles
10	756	45,025.5	2,973.6	15.14	59.6
year	# rides	miles	hrs.frac	pace	m./ride
2004	38	1,176.2	86.5	13.60	31.0
2005	37	1,265.5	91.8	13.78	34.2
2006	58	2,484.9	167.0	14.88	42.8
2007	79	3,530.5	221.3	15.95	44.7
2008	82	3,765.3	234.5	16.05	45.9
2009	126	6,216.7	393.8	15.78	49.3
2010	112	7,559.5	504.7	14.98	67.5
2011	113	9,204.8	614.3	14.98	81.5
2012	104	9,208.6	616.9	14.93	88.5
2013	7	613.5	42.7	14.37	87.6

  

Sep-02: Long Day on the Black Creek Perm

Long Day.  All Day.
It could have been worse.
A lot worse.
Karen's "worse" was "worse enough".

Rode out to the start.
9.7-miles in 0h38 + change.
Arrived 0735.
Deja vu.

Karen arrived about 0755.
Everyone knows the blah-blah required before starting.
We got underway at 0810.

On the way to Youngsville,
Pointed out the "ramp" back up to NC-98,
To be ridden, or walked, about 4 miles before the finish.
Karen exclaimed, "oh, my!"

There are 7 climbs between the start and Youngsville.
Some of those climbs are not nearly as tough as they used to be.
Karen, however, was facing most of them for the first time.
(She may have ridden Holden Rd through Y-ville with me a few years ago -- pre-blog.)

A pause at the gas station just east of Youngsville.
Onto the flatter and flatter NC Bike Route #2 east of Y'ville.
Karen liked -- remarking that it was like riding in Johnson County.
Johnston County?  Never can remember which it is.

Control at the County Kwik Pik at 1055.
Karen noting that the c'store is a usual stop on a century route she does,
With friends when riding from "home".
(She had previously described that century route as flat-flat-flat.
Karen likes flat courses.)

Stopped at the McD's on the west edge of Wilson for a short food break.
And ... what do you know ... we met Linda, and then her husband (?) DC.
Linda so excited regarding cycling, I had to ask:
"Do you know Tim L____?"
"Of course," she replied.  "Everyone in Wilson knows Tim."
"He's famous for what he can do on a bike."
 I commented, "he's famous in Raleigh, too."

From Linda and DC, I learned that Tim had bailed on the Taste of Carolina,
Claiming that he hadn't lost enough weight to handle the course.

I'm asking ya' -- who needs "crackbook" when there is the real world?
("crackbook" -- term provided me by one Bryan R.)

On toward Black Creek.
Karen starts having leg cramps.
Damn.

Arrived Black Creek Grocery @ 1 pm.
Nicely on schedule -- 5 hours after the official 0800 start time.
Surprise!  The store is OPEN; Mickey is behind the counter.

Karen gets what I thought was quite a bit of food and drink.
Eats all.  Drinks some; most of the water goes into her bottles.

We left the grocery at 1:30.
Pedaled the 2 blocks to the community wash-room.
I rinsed off my face and neck and arms.
Not sure what Karen did, but she was ready to roll before I was.

First overpass after leaving Black Creek, Karen disappeared.
She'd cramped climbing up the overpass.

Then, when she came zooming down to the turn where I was waiting,
She zoomed past!
Determined for bonus miles.
More likely just enjoying not having to pedal.

Trudged north, Karen trying to keep the cramps at bay.
Not always successful.

Executive decision by me:
We're stopping at the Burger King in Wilson.
Karen to get FOOD and eat it all.
I'll refill my water bottles with COLD water.

Karen got "food", not "FOOD".
Applied mustard to her cheeseburger and ate same.
Took McD's cheeseburger from earlier out of her pocket, and applied much mustard.
Then she started to put it back in her pocket.
"No," says I, "eat it NOW."
"Now," queries Karen?
"Yes, NOW.  You're behind on electrolytes and water and nourishment.  The only way to catch-up is eat NOW and keep eating, and drink now and keep drinking.  And if you have more of those electrolyte tablets, take some NOW and every hour until the ride is over, or they run out."

She ate the McD's cheeseburger.

Confident I was that things would soon be better.
After all, the storm from the west was coming in to the south of us.
Where we had just left.
How much better an omen of good things to come could there be?

Three miles up the road,
Three miles of Karen still trying to keep cramps at bay,
POP!

"Martin, something on my bike just broke!"
It was a rear spoke.
The rear wheel had immediately gone so far out of alignment,
That it was clear that no amount of careful riding would keep it from further trouble.
Seemed strange to me -- 1 spoke of 28 broke, and the wheel becomes useless?
Karen also informed that it was almost a brand-new wheel.

Considering our options.
Karen notices that the front wheel is stupidly out of alignment.
Aargh.
And, oh no, look at what is coming across that field toward us.
We need to find shelter NOW.
COLD, COLD raindrops thundered on us,
Almost as if some of them were small pieces of hail.
Double Aargh!

Under a carport where no one seemed to be home.
Hope they don't mind.
(Turned out they didn't.)

What are our options?
It seems we've been in this situation before.

Bob and I rode with Karen into Kittrell,
Where she set up camp at the newer gas station / c'store.
...
Bob and I continued on.
...
I drive Karen's car to Kittrell to collect her.   

It is too sad to do anything but laugh.
What other options?
I hate having to type this ...
Facebook.
Karen tried contacting Bryan R via F-book.
She apparently did eventually connect with Bryan.
Karen also left a message asking if any friend could rescue her.
That was what saved me from having to drive Karen's car back to collect her.
Maybe there is a use for Facebook.

I tried to ride as fast as I could, trying to cover the 50-miles in 3-hours.
I rode too fast, really -- the extra pace really took a toll on me.
Short-stop the control (5 minutes).
A 2-minute pause later to remove the wind-vest (using as a rain-shield);
The temps were climbing back up after the front passed.

I have to admit that I certainly do know that course like the back of my hand.
I can't recall doing any "navigating".
I can't recall certain roads.
A couple times, I found myself asking "where am I?"
I wasn't sure ... then I'd recognize the next farmhouse or something,
And realize that I'd done one or two roads without realizing it.

Watching the odometer, figuring how far to Youngsville, how far to Wakefield.
Sometimes the odometer never seemed to change.
Luckily, I guess, although I didn't think so at the time,
The clock wasn't moving either, but was stuck in the same slow-motion,
Other-world that the odometer was in.

I found myself on NC-98, recognizing the signage for an upcoming cross-road.
"Whew, Bethlehem Church Rd," I thought, "only 8-miles more to Youngsville."
"I've done this section before," I tell myself, "at 18-or-19-mph; I can do it again."

Dec-14-2008: I kicked his ass on the return on BR # 2 back to Youngsville. I like repeating this feat because . . . let's be serious . . . how often do you think I can figure on "putting a hurting on him" in the future? (Gosh, I was sure I had written up the incident where I was able to "put a hurtin'" on Snapper and the Iceman simultaneously, but I guess I haven't put a version of that story on the blog.  Oh, well, just ask me sometime, I give you a thrilling description -- well, a description.) 

But that ride had only been a 45-miler.
This ride, I was already well over 100-miles.
And I'd been pushing-the-pace for 2-hours,
And I had hot-foot something fierce in my right foot.

I had to take a few minutes in Youngsville.
I pulled into the new Hess station, and stopped near the corner of Main & US-1A.
About three minutes later, Karen,
Riding shotgun with "Rescue-Ranger" Todd and family,
Found me.

Exchanged some things with Karen
(including returning her keys -- thank goodness she remembered).
Then I took a proper break in Youngsville,
After having turned down a ride from Todd.
Karen and I each assured him it was only another 12-miles for me to complete the ride.

Here's a tidbit:
I was dreading those 12-miles with the 6 climbs (7 descents),
And especially the ramp up to NC-98.
BUT ... no way I was stopping.
NO WAY I was DNF'ing two days in a row.

Here's another tidbit:
Almost as soon as I was into / onto / in-the-midst of the rollers west of Y'ville,
My legs felt better, my tired butt seemed a little better,
AND ... the HOT-FOOT started to diminish.
Oh, give me rollers over miles-and-miles-and-miles of FLAT.
Especially if I happen to think that I need to push-the-pace on the FLAT.

Receipt obtained from the Wakefield McD's;
Card signed for a 1930 finish time.
I think 11h30 will be my slowest ever Black Creek.

I got some food and drink.
Got more drink.
Then, at about 1955, left the McD's for the ride back "home".
I could type about the road construction on Falls of the Neuse,
But I'll save that for in-person conversations.

Funny thing:
With all the slow miles,
And the fast miles,
My actual total in-motion time for the total ride,
Was only 13-minutes more than my algorithm,
Based on 2010 or 2011 rides,
Predicted.

That's my story, and despite things I've forgotten to include, I'm sticking to it.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Sep-02:  

--> Showdown at Black Creek 204-km Perm --> ; 147.5 m.; 10h07 in-motion; 14.6 mph; rando course time:  11h30 -- assuming it gets approved.

Q-1 tot: _22 rides; 1,610.3 m.; 108h42; 14.8 mph; 1947 RUSA kms. 

Q-2 tot: _29 rides; 2,711.5 m.; 182h48; 14.8 mph; 2700 RUSA kms. 

J-A tot: _19 rides; 1,591.9 m.; 105h29; 15.1 mph; 1599 RUSA kms. 

Sep tot: __2 rides; __226.8 m.; _15h03; 15.1 mph; _204 RUSA kms.  

YTD tot: _72 rides; 6,140.5 m.; 412h01; 14.9 mph; 6450 RUSA kms. 

I did do enough damage to my butt, etc., that I decided "no Bahama Beach on Labor Day."
So ... my plan for a 500-km weekend ... came up short by 300-kms.

[Edit]:
I had thought this 11h30 would be my longest official time on this route.  But when I checked the RUSA website, I found this:

Permanent Route Name	Distance	Date	Finishers	DNF
NC: Showdown in Black Creek	200	2010/10/10	1	0

Cert#	RUSA#	Name	Club / ACP Code	Time
RUSA-T12262	6218	S____, J Martin	Randonneurs USA / 933095	11:33

However, I happen to know that I started the above ride, the first I ever did on the Black Creek route, 45-minutes late, ... you draw your own conclusion.
(You may notice that the official distance is now 204-kms -- a change in the start / finish location was apparently necessitated after some destruction / re-construction shorted a road or two.)

Eddington Cycling Number: 

After this ride:  93. 
Meaning that I have completed at least 93 different rides that were at least 93 miles long. 

Feb-01: Blustery Day 204-km Perm

Q.:  On a flat, out-and-back course, when do you know you're in for some serious "fun" in the wind? 

A.:  When, on the outbound leg, you're zipping along at 3 to 4 mph above your normal pace ... and you're bare-ly pe-da-ling.


That pretty much describes the day.

Some details:

• 4 1/2 hours outbound, including the 16-minute intermediate control stop, 
• 1/2 hour lunch stop, 
• just under 5 hours to return, including the ~ 15 minutes intermediate control stop and the ~ 10 minute extra stop. 
• Wind at enough of an angle off the port bow on the return that there was no benefit to following -- the wind "shadow" was somewhere over in the ditch (a little too much traffic in certain places to ride the wide echelon that would have been required). 
• Easy to engage in conversation outbound.  More difficult inbound. 
• Very sunny most of the time.  Completely overcast some of the time. 
• Nice temps for Feb-01 (even by central NC standards). 

I've ridden in tougher wind (I am from NW Illinois, after all); MikeH has ridden in tougher wind.  But the SSW wind on the Showdown in Black Creek on the first of February was plenty enough for each of us, thank-you very much.

R-19 in the books for me.
R-16 for Mike.

---------------------------------------------------------------- 
Feb-01:  

Showdown in Black Creek 204-km Perm; 127.0 m.; 8h25 in-motion; 15.1 mph; official rando time -- 9h56 .  

Jan tot: __6 rides; __426.2 m.; _28 h, 52 m; 14.8 mph. 

Feb tot: __1 rides; __127.0 m.; __8 h, 25 m; 15.1 mph. 

YTD tot: __7 rides; __553.3 m.; _37 h, 17 m; 14.8 mph. 
---------------------------------------------------------------- 
In addition to being R-19 for me, this ride also made C-24 and M-36 for me. 
I.e., 24 consecutive months with at least one ride of at least 100-miles, and 
36 consecutive months with  at least one ride of at least 100-kms. 

Oct-21: Cotton Pickin' 204 km Perm

Better known as:  Showdown at Black Creek.

Don't recall any cotton fields in Wake or Franklin counties.
Although there was a great hay field in Franklin county,
Dotted with those huge round bales of hay.
In combination with the severe-clear morning light,
And the slightly rolling terrain ... it caught my eye.

But the main repeat attractions today were the cotton fields.
Some fields appeared to almost be covered with snow.
The cotton balls have come in very nicely.

Some fields were "completely" harvested.
The machines leave up to 20% of the cotton behind.
If you want to see a pic of a completely harvested field,
Go to "crazyguyonabike", and find a journal of someone that went through Central Asia.
Those fields appear to be picked clean.

Anyway, some fields as yet untouched by the harvest process.
Some fields completely harvested.
And some, and this made for two or three interesting moments,
Were in the process of being harvested.

I am from northwest Illinois -- corn and soybean country.
I am familiar with HUGE combines in midst of harvesting the crops.

At one field, I forget exactly where, a HUGE combine was just beginning
The harvest of a small field.
As I approached, the operator was jockeying the machine around
And began his first pass down the field as I slid past.
That was reasonably interesting.

More interesting was the field where a "hopper" from a not-quite-so-huge harvestor
Was being dumped into the ... for lack of knowledge and a better word ...
The bale-compressing machine.
They were filling the bale-compressing machine towards it second bale in that field.

I found that process interesting.
I didn't slow down, though.

There was also one field with three of those HUGE bales lined up,
Ready to be transported to ... I presume ... "Harvey's Gin and Mill".
I presume "Harvey's" because that is what it said on the plastic wrap
Across the top and around the top half of the bales.
Interestingly, the bottom half of the bales were not swathed in plastic.

For those that don't know how large those bales are ...
Those bales are designed to fit nicely on the flat-bottom of an 18-wheeler's trailer.
Yep, that big.

Great day to ride.
Despite the headwind for ~ 52 miles of the homebound part of the route.
I've done a really good job picking routes this week.
All three times -- headwinds the whole way home.

That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oct-21:  Showdown at Black Creek 204 km Permanen; 127.0 m.; 8h,00m in-motion; 15.9 mph (I had legs, today); rando elapsed clock time:  9h51 (too bad I started 45 minutes late).  

Q-1 tot: _23 rides; _1822.2 m.; 123 hrs, 05 min; 14.8 mph.
Q-2 tot: _30 rides; _2604.9 m.; 174 hrs, 22 min; 14.9 mph.
Q-3 tot: _29 rides; _2479.2 m.; 161 hrs, 05 min; 15.2 mph. 
Oct tot: __6 rides; __545.6 m.; _36 hrs, 53 min; 14.8 mph. 

YTD tot: _88 rides; _7451.9 m.; 497 hrs, 25 min; 15.0 mph. 

"Interesting" stat:  After today's ride, and after the approval signifying I did the course correctly, or whatever, I will have 7451 miles AND 7450 RUSA credit kilometers.  I doubt the miles can stay ahead of the kms for very much longer. 

Sep-29: Mid-week (?) Black Creek 204 km Perm

Clean, green, quiet, sunny with pleasant morning shadows, tailwind.
At least to Hornes Church outbound.

Homebound?
It was dry and mostly cloudy until around Daddysville or Pine Ridge or Sutton.
Then it was dry and sunny -- as the front had completed its passage.
Headwind the entire homebound trip.
It was work.
The rolling terrain from Youngsville to Purnell broke up the surface winds,
But the UPs on the valley crossings were still work.
At least I had to work them -- MikeH apparently not so much.

Oh, and the morning quiet?  ...  was replaced with quite a bit of traffic on 98 and Tarboro Rd.
I think an hour or two earlier (based on admittedly only one previous mid-week ride) ... less traffic.

Net summary for this ride?
See the Aug-21 write-up for this same route.
That applies more to this ride than last month's ride.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Sep-29:  Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Permanent; 127.0 m.; est. 8h,24m in-motion; 15.1 mph; elapsed time 10h,55m  +  however long I took to get a receipt. 

Q-1 tot: _23 rides; _1822.2 m.; 123 hrs, 05 min; 14.8 mph. 
Q-2 tot: _30 rides; _2604.9 m.; 174 hrs, 22 min; 14.9 mph. 
J-A tot: _23 rides; _1944.0 m.; 128 hrs, 29 min; 15.1 mph. 
Sep tot: __6 rides; __535.2 m.; _34 hrs, 36 min; 15.5 mph. 
YTD tot: _82 rides; _6906.3 m.; 460 hrs, 32 min; 15.0 mph. 
 

Aug-21: Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Perm

UGH !!!

That's the note that LynnL left in the zip-lock bag with her control card.
That about sums up her ride.
And mine.

Lynn finished 1h,20m before me. All of it, except 10m, on the homeward leg.
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Aug-21:  

Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Permanent; 127.0.; 8h,29m in-motion; 15.0 mph; rando elapsed clock time:  10h,31m.  

Career "Eddiington cycling number", E = 78. 
 _ I.e., I have at least 78 rides that were at least 78 miles long.  

Aug-14: Black Creek 204 km Perm

Not a single rain drop!

At "oh-dark-thirty", big rain finally passed through the north Raleigh area.
More storms were expected throughout the day.
Some possibly with hail and all the other stuff a thunder-storm brings.

Wakefield McD's by 0600.  It is empty.
0602, the staff with the key arrives.
0605, McD's lights up and comes to life.
So much for business hours commencing at 0600.
Their website still indicates 0530.

Long time thinking about whether to chance the weather.
And / or waiting to see if ChrisW would show.
He didn't.
0630 comes and goes.  (And quite a bit of time after that, too.)
But I finally got a receipt ... and decided it seemed like one of those days that
If you defy the weather forecast,
You end up with a great day for cycling.

Wet roads.  Damp roads.  Drying roads.  Dry.

Breeze from the south outbound.
Slightly off starboard bow until Hornes Church.
Then head-on all the way to Black Creek.
But only a breeze.

OVERCAST.  Clouds breaking up.  Partly sunny.  SUNSHINE.

Breeze from the southwest inbound.
Tailwind to Hornes Church.
Then mostly off the port bow.
But only a breeze.

Shoulder aches.  Elbow pains.
Most positions aggravate one or the other or both.
Enough ache that I sometimes feel nauseous.

Confuser okay at the start.
But on the first downslope on Purnell Rd, the humidity seems too much.
Confuser never stops pretending to record distance and time.
But ... I know it is dropping a lot of miles ... and some time-in-motion.

Somewhere around Hornes Church or Wilson,
Apparently there has been enough direct sun and heat to finally dry out the confuser.
The speed readings make sense, anyway.
(At Black Creek, I estimate the confuser has lost 12+ miles, but only 4 minutes of time-in-motion.)
I reset it for the trip homebound.

Black Creek Grocery closed.
Of course.
Black Creek a veritable ghost-town.
Saw nary a human on Center Street.
Pen handy to fill in the impromptu info control question at 1200.
Considering when I actually left McD's ... pretty good time.

Start back after eating from pockets and visiting the community wash / rest room.  1220.

It isn't that I felt tired per se.
But I didn't have a lot of pizazz in the legs or the guts.
Most of the day felt as if I was in 600 km pace mode,
Instead of a pace / cadence appropriate for a mostly flat 200k.

The occasional naseous feeling didn't help.
The aches and pains in the shoulder and elbow didn't help.

Finally, somewhere after the "climb" from Sutton,
It was "the heck with this" and I forced myself out of the saddle on an upslope
And forced some cadence.
Things seemed a lot better after that.

Sun was getting warm, and although I had found some guts,
I decided to visit Alan's favorite bench outside the Subway on the west edge of Youngsville.
18 minutes to rest the body and mind, and to chase the hot-foot away, were what was needed.
I actually did the last 12 miles or so, the hilly section, with a little bit of gusto.

R-13.
Also counts as C-18 and M-30.
 _ Don't know if I'll be able to get P-4 this month, though.
Career "Eddiington cycling number", E = 77.
 _ I.e., I have at least 77 rides that were at least 77 miles long.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Aug-14:  

Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Permanent; 127.0.; 8h,32m in-motion; 14.9 mph; rando elapsed clock time:  11h,08m. 

Jul-02: Showdown at Black Creek 204 km Permanent

Independence Weekend Fitness Test -- Stage 1 of 3

0700 official start time.
McD's staff really getting annoying. 
No one offering service for MINUTES, MINUTES!
Next time I have to wait that long while the staff is seven feet away
Happily engaged in private conversation
I'm initialling the card myself
And complaining to a manager at the end of the ride.

Prior to the ride, MikeO had enlisted me in the "Let's keep an eye on Alan this afternoon"
Alan had apparently had a heat related problem two weeks earlier on his previous permanent.

Alan did fine today.
He clearly got warm to hot ... his face and head were a bit pink at the end.
Oh ... that was probably just a touch of sun.
However, he did get a touch warm.  He wasn't the only one.

Between the start and the finish, I enjoyed several long chats with Alan
As we fell off the back of the other three.
Alan's ride stories are always nearly infinitely more interesting than mine.
After all, he has 30 years and 160 thousand miles to draw upon.
Me ... not so much.

Gnats were beyond annoying both times we stopped at the intermediate Kountry Kwik Pik control.
Occupational hazard of eastern North Carolina.

The dogs weren't too annoying.
Alan's shout at them seemed pretty effective.

MikeO complained that the only way he can take a CL any more is on a long break away.
Mentioning Mike ... he needs to use some bigger water bottles now that the HOT! season is here.

Poor Alan.
He was getting "are you drinking enough" from all sides.

RichardG reported that his hands felt better this time than last.
Last time was in May. 
Heat seemed to get to Richard late in the ride.
Only his second ever 200k.  Plenty of time to learn things.

Ricochet seemed to have pretty good legs all day.
He, however, was more conservative in the last 13 miles than me.

I hope I don't have to pay TOO big a price for letting the flywheel spin up several times on the day.
Including the last 13 miles.
Tomorrow will likely tell.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jul-02:

Showdown at Black Creek 204 km Permanent; 127.0 m.; 8h,13m in-motion; 15.4 mph; rando elapsed clock time:  9h,57m.

Q-1 tot: _23 rides; _1822.2 m.; 123 hrs, 05 min; 14.8 mph.
Apr tot: __7 rides; __793.8 m.; _52 hrs, 28 min; 15.1 mph.
May tot: _10 rides; __894.1 m.; _63 hrs, 45 min; 14.7 mph.
Jun tot: _13 rides; __917.0 m.; _61 hrs, 01 min; 15.0 mph.
Jul tot: __1 rides; __127.0 m.; __8 hrs, 13 min; 15.4 mph.
YTD tot: _54 rides; _4554.1 m.; 305 hrs, 40 min; 14.9 mph.
  _ 
 
Oh, btw, assuming paperwork gets approved, etc.:  R-12 for me.
Yep, Dean, DEFINITELY counting. 

Mar-29: Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Permanent

Another One Bites The Dust

R-8.
Also C-13.
M-25 was earlier in the month.
Still P-0, though.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quite foggy near the Neuse River, Wakefield and the start of the "Showdown in Black Creek" Permanent.  I decided to hold off starting to let some of the fog burn off.  Got a receipt from the McD's at 8:15, but held off actually starting until 8:35.  However, after covering (mostly climbing) the mile or so to get to Falls of the Neuse Rd next to the high school, I found the fog was still quite THICK.  Despite having two rear blinkies (one continuous, one blinking), I was wondering if the overtaking traffic would / could see me.  Only one fool gave the double-yellow more respect than s/he gave me; everyone else gave me plenty of room.  I wondered how long this fog would last.  Suddenly, as I cleared the golf course, it was as if I had gone through a door into a different room; there was only bright sunshine. 

Just east of Youngsville, I temporarily lost the bright sunshine as a thin overcast moved in from the south.  When the sunshine disappeared, it instantly felt about 5 or 10 degrees cooler.  I looked around at the sky and what appeared to be an increasing overcast, and thought, "great, there goes my pleasant, sunny day."  However, thirty minutes later I was back in the bright sunshine, which lasted all the rest of the day.  In fact, at one point during the return, I looked around the entire sky and to each horizon ... there was not even a hint of a cloud in sight.

Between Youngsville and Wilson, there seemed to be fewer cars on the road on this Tuesday than there usually seems on a Saturday or a Sunday.  Whether that is because of commuting and traveling patterns, or because of the increasing price of gas, I can't guess.

On the other hand, there were more dogs loose and taking an interest in me than I recall from Saturday and Sunday rides on the "Showdown".  Approaching "Jim Ray X-Rds" [I assure the non-locals that the official green NC DOT sign for the "town", "village", "community", "cross-roads", whatever actually "says" "Jim Ray X-Rds"], there was one dog following behind and beside, making quite a racket, and there were two dogs standing on the road between me and the stop sign at "Jim Ray X-Rds"; then the two ahead of me came running my way ... one of them a pit bull ... needless to write, I would not want to get bitten by a pit bull!!  (At least the pit wasn't a real fighter ... it had a full length tail.)  However, the two dogs that had come running toward me moved off into the ditch as the distance between us closed, and they never showed any inclination to chase or get close to me on the road. 

I wondered what would happen when I got to Frazier Rd and the dog that I had kicked in the head in mid-February.  I needn't have worried outbound -- the animal was busy with its family alongside the house.  However, homeward bound was another story.  I had forgotten about the dog as I was enjoying a bit of a following breeze, when suddenly, the large, long-haired menace was running directly at me, only about 20 or 25 degrees off from coming straight at me; my first thought upon seeing the large menace racing directly toward me was ... bleep; but that was followed instantaneously with anger and "I'm going to knock your block off!"  (I have found that since Aug-08 last year (see the paragraphs after the first break) I get suddenly and uncharacteristically angry and ready to be aggressive when menaced by a dog.)  I'm not sure what happened, but I never had to unclip to prepare to kick, and I was past the dog.

I arrived at Black Creek Grocery at 12:50.  I was pleased.  4h, 1m of in-motion time in only 4h, 15m of actual elapsed clock time.  I had been 9 minutes at the Kwik Pik control, and the other 6 minutes had been eaten by various stop-lights -- particularly the lights at NC-98, US-1, in Youngsville near the police station,  the light at US-401, and the couple lights "sliding" past the west edge of Wilson.  I'm getting better about not wasting time at controls.  Actually, I have always made quick stops when riding solo.  It is when I'm with others, either Irregulars or randos, that the-pause-to-refresh sometimes becomes the stop-and-chat-and-chat-and-chat.  Don't get me wrong ... I enjoy a slightly prolonged stop in a heated store when its freezing outside as much as anybody ... maybe more.

Anyway, I noted the time when I arrived at Black Creek Grocery, removed gloves, helmet, unzipped, and went to the door.  Surprise!  Mickey had taped a note to the door:  "Store will open at 3 today.  Mickey."  MikeD had anticipated that BryanR and I might encounter a similar situation when we had done this route in February, and that time he'd told us to note the name and address of the business next door; that is what Bryan and I had done.  So ... that's what I did again.  But I had been looking forward to a nice refreshing, energy drink ("Pepsi") for quite a few miles.  Instead, I ate a couple sandwiches I had packed and drank the rest of my first bottle of fluids, maybe a bit more.  (I had two large bottles and two small bottles with me; you may be interested to know that I finished all four bottles just before getting back to the finish ... i.e., my fluid intake increased on the homeward leg.)

The breeze / wind was confusing me on Boswell, Quaker/Lamm roads on the return leg.  Sometimes I clearly had a following (southerly) breeze, and other times the building breeze was clearly in my face.  [Boswell and Quaker/Lamm run essentially true north/south, and on the return leg, one is headed north.]  Just before reaching Hornes Ch Rd (NC Bike Route #2) for the turn to the west, I went past a flag proudly indicating a pretty good breeze coming from the southwest.  At Hornes Church, the house just north of the intersection was flyng a flag, and it indicated a paltry breeze from the northeast.  A few miles up the road, I went past someone burning leaves; the smoke clearly indicated I had a mostly following breeze.  A few mile further along, I think I bid adieu to any more following breezes and dealt with breezes slowly building into a slight wind from the southwest, i.e., not the helpful east (following) breezes that had been forecast for the entire afternoon. 

I did another quick 8 or 9 minute stop at the Kwik Pik control.  But ~ 12 miles later, I stopped in Pine Ridge (or atop Pine Ridge, if you prefer) to mix up more "koolaid", eat a little, and stretch / rest my lower back.  A building pain in my lower back / tailbone area is always a sure sign that I'm pushing my pace a bit.  7 minutes in Pine Ridge ... I felt refreshed for the next 16-18 miles to Youngsville and the final 13 miles from Youngsville to the finish. 

I was never cold on the bike the entire day (after the first few miles / probably after turning off Jackson onto Holden Road -- those that have done the route will understand), but I never felt warm on the bike, either (except when climbing on Holden Rd, late in the ride, up to the turn onto Jackson ... I was in direct sunshine, and the hill and the trees completely blocked the breeze).  I would say that I felt "cool" all day when riding.  It was warm enough, though, that although I never produced any real sweat, my tops were beyond damp when I finished.

It was nice to finish a 200k ride with some panache.  I reached the McD's at 5:32 pm ... so my actual elapsed clock time was 8h,57m (8h,4m in-motion).  I got a receipt and my control card signed at 5:34 ... official elapsed clock time was therefore 9h,34m.  That squeezes out last November's "Dean 10k KLL" (also click here for some more photos from that ride) for my second fastest ever "200k".  (Maybe several weeks away from rando 200k rides has been good for me.)
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The sub-title "Another One Bites the Dust" ... is because that is what was playing loudly enough on the radio inside Black Creek Grocery that I could easily hear it while eating my lunch seated outside the store.  (I found a you-tube video of the song, but ... decided to leave musical postings to MikeD over on Research Trailer Park (that's my story ... and I'm sticking to it).)
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Before I conclude with my usual "numbers" bit, here are some other interesting numbers from my cycling stats so far this year:

Fast rides:
 ____date___miles _hrs _avg mph

max _Mar 29 127.0 _8.1 __15.7
_2 __Mar 26 _55.7 _3.5 __15.7
_3 __Mar 20 _73.7 _4.7 __15.7
_4 __Mar 25 _78.0 _5.0 __15.6

If you are thinking that the above indicates that this "Showdown" ride is my fastest in-motion moving avg ride so far this year ... then you are understanding the above.

If you are also thinking that my next three fastest in-motion rides so far this year are the three rides immediately preceding this "Showdown" ... then you are completely understanding the above.
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Mar-29: 

Showdown in Black Creek 204 km Permanent; 127.0 m.; 8 hrs, 4 min in-motion; 15.7 mph; official rando time:  9 hrs, 34 min. elapsed clock time.

Jan tot: __9 rides; __671.4 m.; _46 hrs, 38 min; 14.4 mph.
Feb tot: __7 rides; __606.0 m.; _41 hrs, 18 min; 14.7 mph.
Mar tot: __7 rides; __544.8 m.; _35 hrs, 06 min; 15.5 mph.
YTD tot: _23 rides; _1822.2 m.; 123 hrs, 03 min; 14.8 mph.
 _