.... ....stardude, you been dreaming again? looks like you win the 'horizon expansion' !
On Mon, Feb 7, 2011 at 10:29 PM, Tim & Susan <[email protected]> wrote: > You knew it was coming! > > > 600k (Feb.5, 2011) > > > > I had already bagged a 200K and a 300K brevet this year and > was planning on a 400K Saturday but there was a big party brewing for the > 600K as we’re having company from a couple of randos from Seattle. One > being Mr. RUSA VP himself! Mark Thomas. Also we have former VP Mike D. > from Raleigh. There were 10 of us total for this ride. 7 very seasoned > endurance cyclist and 3 rookie class cyclist. More on that later. > > We are gathered at the start, 7:30am watching the radar trying > to make sense of what we’re getting ready to do. Now there is no rain and > 40 degrees but the radar said “brace yourself”. We start out with like 20 > riders, half doing the 600K and the other half doing a 200, 300 or 400K. > John o. does the 300K. We stay dry for the first hour or so then the > showers start. Off and on for hours and hours and hours. Just before > reaching Wallace (mile 85) we run into this wall of warm air that is like a > 15 degree instant warm-up. It was like 42 degrees then 58 degrees 20 > seconds later. Everything fogged up instantly, glasses, computers, > mirrors. We all stopped for lunch at Andy’s in Wallace. I passed on the > milkshake but several were being delivered to hearty riders. The 10 of us > continue to stay together. All afternoon, it’s like raining, it stops, > rider calls out I think it’s clearing to raining again. This pattern > continues until bedtime. We stop for dinner at Subway in Garland at mile > 185. All rain gear sucks after 3 or 4 hours regardless of how much you > spend. From there we head to White Lake. (mile 197) Tony meets us there > with our drop bags. (A dry set of cloths never felt soooo good) Some > riders have gotten motel rooms there but I packed an air mattress in my drop > bag and find a corner in our common room, fix some warm noodles to eat as we > bed down. All the seasoned riders have beds. The 3 rookies sleep on the > floor. Too cheap to get a room or just lack of experience. Lights out at > midnight. Alarms set for 3:00am. I either over hydrated or just plain > waterlogged but I made 3 trips to the bathroom during that 3 hours. At > best I got a couple hours of sleep before someone’s alarm prematurely went > off at 2:45am. Light on at 3:00am. > > Well d…m it stopped raining. Temp is like 38 degrees. It > doesn’t take long to warm up as we cruise out at 3:30. Our next > destination is Shallotte. (mile 258) My legs are in good shape, but my > head is in a fog. I can’t focus, drowsy, and I need more sleep. I start > playing head games now, losing my confidence and wondering how I’m gonna get > through this day. Wearing wet cloths all day has created some major > chafing as well and it’s all putting me in a lousy mood. Sun comes up and > soon after Waffle House, a huge breakfast and several cups of coffee. Things > start improving. On to Sunset beach under clearing skies. It’s gonna be > a great day. 270 miles down and we start for home, only 107 miles to go. > This is the first time the group splits up. Bryan starts out first. I > follow just a few minutes later as some of the others are packing gear from > a motel room we had at Sunset in case we needed it, and the Seattle guys had > to visit the beach while there. > > I soft pedal for about an hour solo to clear my head while > waiting for the group. First group of 4 pass and I grab a wheel. Jimmy > is up front and he has dropped the hammer. The west coast guys and Joel > are still behind us. Bryan and Steven in front but we catch them quickly. > Jimmy and Steven are looking to get this finished and we’re cruising 20 mph > 300 miles into a ride. Now Ian and I are the last two left riding with > them at this pace to Tabor City as we cross briefly into South Carolina. > There > Ian and I wait for others as J & S head on. A longish break there as the > rest of us regroup. I enjoy just sitting outside basking in the sun. County > line sign up ahead, Mark and I both have our eyes on it as we pull out of > line. It’s west coast against east coast. My legs have just enough to > take the sprint. We’re now in Boardman. 47 miles to go. Tony is there > to see if we need anything. Claims it’ll take us 4 hours to finish > because we’re tired and rider John E. takes it as a personal insult and just > storms out down the road. He is on a mission and we are working hard to > keep the pace but it pays off. Finally Ian and I are the only ones left > riding with him. Ian takes me down on the next county line sprint. In > randoneauring sprints have little meaning unless you have a few hundred > miles in and then it gets serious. Last control, 350 miles down and 27 > more to go. > > We regroup again now hoping we can finish before the sun sets again…. The > last county line down the road. I here Joe encouraging Mark in front of > me. I check for Ian as well as he is also still riding strong. Mark goes > and I go and east coast rules. I pick up the pace a tad as I don’t have > my lights rigged up and would like to finish without stopping again to do > that. The last few miles we chill and start celebrating a bit. The sun > beat us home by just a few minutes but we’re delighted to put this one in > the books. 6:00pm. 35 hours later. And you thought this report was long. > We pose for a few bad pictures. I pack and change cloths, say my > good-byes to everyone. Bryan rides up as he took it a bit easier the last > few miles in. I drive home from Lumberton and catch the second half of > the game with my dad. Weekend over! Back to work! > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "CyclistsOfWilson-COWs" group. > To post to this group, send email to > [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/cyclistsofwilson-cows?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "CyclistsOfWilson-COWs" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/cyclistsofwilson-cows?hl=en.
