cycling rocks

dblcentury monday raceday stp

I just got back from a massage at the Portland Center Spa. Christine put together a nice package of sports massage, shiatsu, relaxation and even a bit of reflexology to make my tired limbs, neck and back feel like new.

Well I’m still feeling worn out- probably will for a few days now. 204 miles is a long way to ride.

The BF group paceline was one of the best out there. At almost 20mph average over the entire ride, there were very few passing us. Remember, that’s an average, so most of the time we were really riding 21-23 mph… even though it’s generally a pretty flat route, there are certainly some rolling hills which aren’t too pleasant after you’ve already finished a century and are looking at 100 more.

To me the star of the ride was certainly bigskymacadam [that’s me]. He is such a smooth rider; very consistent, fluid pedal stroke, never making any arupt unexpected moves. The last 50 miles or so he pulled us in a majority of the time, often for 30 minutes at a time. Amazing.

The rest of the group were equally as impressive, all truly strong riders. I feel lucky to have been part of that group. - gonesh9

Gonesh is too kind; but it’s nice to get some props at the Bike Forum site. I put a lot of hard hours and miles working on things like fueling strategy, technique, speed drills and climbing repeats so when we have a superb ride and get compliments like that, it’s worth every pedal stroke. The group was surely amazing. I too am honored and it was a pleasure to ride with you all.

On Saturday, we took all the major stops and stayed for lunch in Centralia for an hour. While we weren’t the lead group by any means we passed every group in front of us. Jakey, who is usually with us on long rides would have been proud. No one was allowed to pass :)

I’ll elaborate a little on Gonesh’s comment of pulling for most of the last 50 miles. While that was very hard and took a lot out of me, the reason for this was simple; I was running out of options. Taking a two minute pull meant going to the back of the line where even the slightest acceleration took everything I had. Too much of that and I’d be a goner.

So. Struggle in the back? Or lead as much I possibly could up front at 22-23 mph? I opted to keep pace up front where the speed was consistent. There’s still lots to accomplish. One of them being able to withstand these constant accelerations. That will help on race day too.

Again, great ride, guys.

Stats:

Miles: 199.34
Hours: 10:05:34
Average Speed: 19.8
Total elevation gain: 7,079

p.s. My Garmin ran out of batteries a couple miles before the finish. I’m told of some portable battery chargers that can help remedy this. Boxwave, mintyboost and USB battery charger. These will recharge your iPod, too.

photos taken by gonesh9 07/15/2006

Sunday, July 16th, 2006 at 4:28 pm.
Filed under Cycling.
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