Sandblasted!

Friday, Feb. 24 2011














It started out as the perfect day for a ride - clear blue skies, mild temperatures. I was psyched for our long-awaited 50-mile ride out to Stovepipe Wells and back.

Jill, even stronger than last year, pushed the pace into Stovepipe Wells: 25 miles in about an hour and a half.

Remembering the windy onslaught that made us end last year's Century ride only 4 miles from Furnace Creek, we knew to expect a decent headwind. There's ALWAYS a south wind in Death Valley, and we know that it picks up in the afternoon. So we figured it would take us about twice as long to get back to FC, with the three of us working together.

Turns out that what happened today made last year's ride look like kite-flying weather. I'm estimating 40 mph wind gusts. We were pummeled. It was tough to keep the bike upright. At one point, a strong gust caught my front wheel, turning me into the center of the highway and into the oncoming lane. Luckily there weren't any vehicles at that moment (it's a 55 mph road, which means everyone is doing at least 70...), but it kind of wigged me out.

Dave was struggling, and Jill was a good sport and tried to wait, but the winds were picking up speed and force, and I convinced her to just go on ahead. Dave and I had to get off the bikes when the gusts and blowing sand got to be too much, and with about 4 miles left to FC we were walking our bikes more than we were riding.

I resolved to finish the ride under my own volition, even if I had to ride/walk all the way in. I turned to see how far back Dave was, and saw him getting into someone's car! One of tomorrow's riders stopped to pick him up (I was happy for it), and they pulled over for me but I waved them on. I figured I could try to make up time, and get back to FC within a half an hour.

But that didn't happen. Nearer the salt pan, the winds were the most ferocious. There's a paved bike path connecting Mustard Canyon to FC, a distance of about 2 miles, and I opted to use it. I figured I could ride safer on the path, because if I was pushed over in a wind gust I would only fall onto some spiky, noxious desert plant, but not into oncoming 70 mph traffic.

I reached the top of a hill, and could just about see the oasis that is Furnace Creek. But then a sand devil caught me, and I had to hop off the bike and turn away from it so I wouldn't get my contact lenses sandblasted out of my head.

At that moment, an approaching car made a U-turn in front of me. It was Jill, and Dave was riding passenger. I threw my stubborn streak out the window and my bike in the car.

I guess I'm a little disappointed that, for the second year in a row, I was forced to cut short a ride within the last few miles, both times because of the wind. There's not much you can do, though, when you're riding into it.

I guess this means that there's going to have to be another attempt next year...

Here's Dave riding through the fury, with me barking words of encouragement:

ARTIST F**KING DRIVE

Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011

Great reunion last night with Jill and Tim! Had lots to catch up on, but mostly we focused on...
ARTIST DRIVE
Last year, the 25-mile Artist Drive loop was the first ride of our weeklong camp. It was cold and raining, which was bad enough. But the short distance lulled me into thinking that it would be a relatively easy ride.

It wasn't. The first part of the one-way loop climbs for about 2 miles, starting at 4% and ending in a quad-burning 14%. Then it kind of flattens out for a teaser reprieve, which lasts just seconds before the route suddenly turns into a hairy, screaming roller coaster ride. Steep dips, crazy hairpin turns, and descents so fast your hands lock up on the brakes. A sign points out another switchback turn, but not the wall o' 12% that greets you on the other side. End this ride with a steep, straight downhill run back to the highway (with or without car traffic dangerously up your ass, just for the added excitement).

(Photo above is the view when you stop just before the road turns up 14%. It's a great place for a photo op - and a good excuse to catch your breath)

This year was at least warm and dry. Jill, Dave, and I got out early to tackle 'our nemesis' (Tim, Mr. Ultra Endurance Maniac, decided to go for a little jaunt up to Dante's View, which makes Artist Drive look like the bunny hill).



Me at the start of Artist Drive loop. I wore my Summit Freewheelers kit, just so you guys would have an idea of how COOL it looks in Death Valley (hint, hint). Something to consider for next year?









Dave starts down the first of a series of serious swooping descents.




















Below, Jill captures the moment.














I video'd Dave coming up over the steepest part of the first climb:

Arrived in Furnace Creek

Wednesday, Feb. 23

It's really cool to be back here at Furnace Creek Ranch. It's starting to feel like our home away from home, only with more mountains.


Our bikes, which had arrived here late last week, were delivered to our room. Dave got busy putting them together.









I did my part and stayed out of his way.







Been in contact with Jill and Tim, who left Minnesota early Tuesday morning. They'll be in tonight, and we're meeting them up at the Inn for a drink later.








Not as hot here as I had hoped, but for now it's fine. The forecast is making me a little nervous, though: Saturday (Century Day) is supposed to be on the cool, rainy side. I hate riding in the rain, but we've got lots of gear and should be OK.

Back to Death Valley!

For any of you who want to follow me on my AdventureCorps Furnace Creek Century, I'll be posting and loading photos whenever I get the opportunity and a good internet connection.

Here's the agenda for our Death Valley adventure.

Wednesday: Fly into Vegas, drive to Death Valley/Furnace Creek Ranch. Should be there early afternoon. The bikes arrived there last Thursday, and are waiting for our arrival. (It kills me thinking that my bike may be having fun without me...)

Thursday: Meet Jill and Tim Marks, who are driving in from Minnesota. The plan is to ride Artist's Drive, a 25-mile one-way loop with a couple of killer hills. This time, I'll take pictures (last year, when we rode in the cold and rain, I was too miserable to pull my camera out. Or maybe my hands were numb. I don't remember.)

Friday: Longer ride out to Stovepipe Wells and back, about 50 miles total. Yoga out on the FC lawn in the afternoon. Maybe a dip in the hot-spring-fed pool?

Saturday: Furnace Creek Century, the event I've been waiting/training for! Jill and I will ride together, in the same wave. Dave is kinda on his own. Tim is doing the Double Century, so we'll be waiting for him somewhere with a cold drink in hand, presumably.

I sent most of my bike gear with the Bianchi, but I'm packing some extra stuff in my suitcase so I'm ready for anything. Just read in Bicycling mag about why you should carry things like duct tape, safety pins, and rubber gloves on long rides. Any other suggestions please bring 'em on, but hurry as I'll be packed up and ready to leave by Tuesday night.

Check back sometime after Wednesday for updates and stories from the road.

And the winner is...

...Bianchi!

Thanks to all of you who took the time to vote in the poll.

I rode the Bianchi one last time on the trainer today. Then I took it down, gave it a bath, and disassembled it for shipping. The bikes will begin their journey to Death Valley tomorrow, via FedEx.

The next time my bike and I will be reunited will be on Feb. 23rd, at Furnace Creek Ranch. I'm getting a chill just thinking about it.

Dave is getting pretty good at this

bike box thing.

Decision, decisions...

Death Valley is less than THREE WEEKS away! Sometime around Feb. 12, Dave and I have to get our bikes ready to ship, so that they'll arrive a day before we do.

Here's my dilemma: Which bike should I bring?

My choices are my Bianchi road bike, or my Jamis CX bike. I need you to help me decide!

Before you vote, consider the details.

• The AdventureCorps website suggests a bike with clincher tires of at least 25mm wide, and with LOW GEARING at least 39/27.
• Last year, I brought the Bianchi. I didn't have enough gears for one of the climbs that I intend to do this year.
• However, the Bianchi was PERFECT for the Century ride last year, and that's the main focus of the trip this year (the 2011 Century is a timed event, the other route mentioned above is optional)

And here's the 411 on the bikes:















Bianchi:

• My steady, tried and true bike, which I ride all the time
• I've been training on it all winter
• I'll have to change to wider tires
• Low gearing is 39/25
• The highest gear (53) is perfect for flying descents

Jamis:

• New bike, SRAM shifting that I'm not quite used to
• Haven't ridden it since my last CX race in October
• Have to change to thinner tires!
• Low gearing is 36/32
• The highest gear (46) is a little weak for those long, flying descents

So now what do I do?

Any suggestions would be most helpful! Please vote your choice in the POLL in the top right corner of this post before I pack it up next week...

Indoor Cycling that rocks???!!!

Imagine racing the Killington, VT, Stage 1 course in a 3-man time trial in the middle of January. Oh, the weather outside IS frightful, but there's a way to avoid all the ice and wind and darkness and temperatures in the low teens.

Welcome to the wonderful world of CompuTrainers!

My race club, the Summit Freewheelers, staged 2 separate indoor races last week at Ohio Indoor Cycling, our newest sponsor.

The course was 18.5 mile of rolling terrain. I competed in the 2nd wave, and my teammates and I soon began to work together to chase down the lead group. By the time we hit the section of 5.2% grade, we were starting to narrow the gap a bit. We crested the hill, and hung on until the last couple of downhill miles, but by then I was spent. My teammate, Stew, pushed on ahead, and I couldn't hang onto his wheel.

This was my first introduction to a Compu-Trainer workout, and I have to admit that I was blown away. This is so different than any other indoor cycling workout - a difference that was most noticeable at the end of the 'race'. I actually felt like I had ridden on a club night, complete with that satisfied, endorphin-charged, burned-my-last-match tired, not "windtrainer" tired (leg-cramping, ass-bruising, bored senseless - you know what I mean...).

It's the next best thing to riding outside.

Wave 1 (from left):

The Young Guns (Steve, Wes, and Matt) vs. The Dream Team (Ted, Bob, and George - with 180+ years of life and racing experience!)

A huge screen shows the course, the positions of the riders, and all the fun stats like speed, power, elevation, etc. The Compu-Trainers are just windtrainers with a computer interface. A special skewer through the back wheel interfaces with the system somehow. The tension on the wheel is automatically adjusted according to elevation gain, simulating climbs and descents.

Oh, and the best part: you can draft off of other riders!

Thanks to Brian Ray and Ohio Indoor Cycling for sponsoring the Summit Freewheelers in 2011!