Pre-Blog Ride Reports - Feb '09

Originally emailed on Feb 7, 2009, at 9:46 PM, under the subject, Put a fork in February - Ride Report

Today the God of weather smiled upon me and allowed a fantastic February day for the second installment of my Century a Month in 2009 bid, aka CAM09. I decided to try a 200k this time to make sure I'm ready for the first SIR 200k brevet coming up in March. I mean, how much harder than a century can a 200k be, right? About 1/4 harder, it turns out.

Temp at the start was about 38 degrees and the sky was cloudy. The sun broke through just before noon and the second half of the ride was under sunny skies with the temp in the mid 40s. Perfect.

My route took me through the standard list of backwater, white trash, hick towns in King and Snohomish counties. I passed through Woodinville, Snohomish, Arlington, Granite Falls, Sultan, Monroe, Duvall, Woodinville again, and then back to my own backwater, white trash, hick town neighborhood of Ravenna.

Here are some highlights:

Fales Rd between Woodinville and Snohomish. Obviously I need more practice taking pictures while riding since the focus sucks.


The trusty steed in downtown Snohomish looking down at the Snohomish river, which incidentally seems to flood every year, and still people insist on living on it's shores. Kind of like those folks who choose to live in trailer parks in the midwest even though they know it's just a matter of time before a tornado gets them.


Ah, the fabulous Centennial trail. A little boring, but a great way to get in twenty easy miles.


A barn between Arlington and Granite Falls that didn't fare well in the big snow storm last December. Incidentally, there is still snow along side the road in the shady spots in this neck of the woods, presumably left over from December's big dump.


Old Pipeline Rd between Granite Falls and Sultan. This is my new favorite cycling road. I saw about four cars in ten miles on this road, but plenty of big rollers, some with 10% grades.


Once again, the velo striking a pose in front of the Sultan Red Apple Market. Stopped in here for a couple of those Starbucks super sweet espresso in a can drinks. Those drinks may quite possibly be the perfect cycling fuel. Caffeine + Sugar = Vroom!

Also note the hillybilly saddle bag. It's a repurposed military surplus bag that is actually quite useful on these long rides. It easily holds my rain coat, a few Clif Bars, my wallet, phone, spare tube, and tools.


The home stretch! The bumpy Burke G trail near Lake City.

A bit more than the 200k I'd planned but with such a beautiful day, why not?

Ride Stats:
Distance = 133.7 miles (215 kilometers)
Riding Time = 8h 10m
Elapsed Time = 9h 20m
Total Climbing = 5,602'
Ibuprophen Consumed = 400 mgs (50% decrease compared to Jan century!)

Pre-Blog Ride Reports - Jan '09

Originally emailed on January 10, 2009 5:57:36 PM under the subject, One down, eleven to go - Ride Report

I set myself a cycling goal this year to do a century ride in every calendar month of 2009. And as if doing a century in January isn't punishment enough, I decided to do my first century of the year on my single speed Bianchi. I'm running a 46t chainring with an 18t freewheel cog in the back. For perspective, this gearing is basically equivalent to putting your chain on the small ring in the front and smack-dab in the middle of the cluster in the back (assuming you have a standard 53/39 double crank with a 11-23 cluster), and then wrapping duct tape all around your shifters so you can't mess with them for the rest of the day. In the flats it's a decent gear for spinning along comfortably at about 16 mph. But as we've all known since Columbus failed to fall off the edge in 1492, the world is not flat. I spin out at about 24 mph on the downhills, and have to stand up and grunt a lot if the uphills exceed about a 3% grade.

My route was pretty convoluted, part loop and part out and back. Most of my favorite routes for long rides are currently under water due to all the flooding we've been having. So I got a little creative. I started at 6:30am so I could get home at a reasonable hour and still have time to hang out with the family. Of course that meant I was riding in the dark for about the first hour. Starting from home, I went around Lake Washington counter clockwise as far as Kenmore, about 3/4 of the way around. From Kenmore I headed east and then north and then east again and south and west and then north (did you follow that?). My route took me through Woodinville, Maltby (wherever the hell that is), Paradise Lake, Novelty Hill, Redmond, Issaquah, Renton again and finally home.

Temperature was in the low 40s and it rained on and off the whole way. But I was dressed right, so I was pretty comfortable. Overall it was a fun way to spend an ugly day. I definitely didn't set any speed records. As a matter of fact, it was by far the slowest century I've ever ridden. I mostly blame that on the single speed, though it's possible the engine was partly at fault. Choosing the gearing on a single speed or fixed gear bike is an exercise in compromise at best. You give up speed on the flats and downhills in order to have a low enough gear to survive the uphills. After today's ride, I'm thinking I compromised a little too much on the low side. The hills were all manageable, but I could never do any better than about 16 - 17mph on the flats.

Ok, so that's my story. Who wants to join me for the February century? ;)

Steve

Ride Stats
Miles = 108.5
Ride Time = 7:28
Elapsed Time = ~8 hours
Ibuprophen Consumed = 800mgs