I am a slacker: It's been over a month since I've posted anything. I've done a couple local rides up Yokohl Valley Road, and also around town to get a little seat time logged in, but nothing too lengthy or remarkable. Since my last post, I've ridden a couple organized rides. I rode the metric at the Santa Clarita Century on April 2. I rode it last year, and had a terrible day. I set a personal record for climbing that day (over 3000'), but that achievement was confounded by fighting a pretty hefty headwind for the last half of the ride and a bladder infection that made the ride seem like it lasted forever. This year's ride had a slightly more interesting route, better rest stops, and a bit less wind. One of the things that makes the ride interesting is the short ride throught the tunnel. The ride profile is pretty much a consistent uphill for the first half and a consistent downhill for the second half. Not an outstanding ride, but a good way to get some miles and some climbing in.
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| The Tunnel on the Santa Clarita Century route. Gotta pedal fast, in case a car comes up... |
I also rode the medio fondo at the Gran Fondo Colnago in San Diego. I had delusions of attempting the century, but I didn't have much
polenta (the word Mrs. SockMonkey and I use for power) and opted for the metric instead, which was probably a good decision. The climb on the century would have been a significant challenge, and my knees were pretty much shot by the end of the shorter ride. This is a fun ride, with a great mass start in the Little Italy neighborhood of San Diego. I was able to fall into a group of riders that I hung with throughout the day, which kept my pace up and made the ride fun and challenging. One of the rest stops took place at the US Olympic Training Center, and the route took us through various parts of the facility--an interesting bit of scenery.
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| SockMonkey at the USOTC: Getting ready for the 2036 Games. |
I rode this one last year in the monsoon, and it was fun to hear folks who were there in 2010 trade stories about the horrid conditions that day. The 2010 Gran Fondo Colnago was an epic ride,and wearing the jersey from that ride is a real badge of honor.
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Mass start at the Gran Fondo Colnago. I started in the first group this year
because I am a BigTime cyclist. And because I am a geek and got to the start
30 minutes early..... |
But the real news to report is related to the Chico Wildflower Century. Mrs. SockMonkey and I made the trek to Chico (a 5 hour drive) this past weekend and took on Wildflower for the first time. Mrs SockMonkey rode 35 miles on the Flatflower, and I completed the full century. I'd signed up for the Mildflower metric, but decided a week before the event that I'd give the full hundred miles a go. My research had indicated that the climbing would push me well past my previous best, but I thought that the Wildflower would be a good time to take a shot at more elevation because the route loops in such a way that bailout routes are available in numerous locations. So off I went.
I started at 6:30, knowing that an early start was important so that I could finish ahead of the closing of the course, could avoid as much of the wind as I could, and could also ride as long as possible in the cool. The ride is composed of four sections: an initial climb up Humboldt Road, a climb up Honey Run Road, a climb up Table Mountain, and then the long flat section back to the start. Humboldt Road wasn't too difficult. The road was really rough, with thousands of potholes, and the climb was directly into the rising sun--but it was soon over and the route led to what I anticipated would be the telltale climb of the day: Honey Run Road. I was told by a friend that the road was steeeep, so I figured this climb would make or break the day. The climb was consistent and challenging, but also pretty, cool, and very do-able. I made it to the top without stopping, and knew I was in for an good day on the bike. Next up was Table Mountain. I had read that
this was the climb that presented the greatest challenge, even though it was shorter than Honey Run. And that was true information.
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| Table Mountain. Taken while trying to get my lungs back into my chest. |
The route to Table Mountain (actually, the climbing was all on Cherokee Road) included a few steep spots, but the biggest problem was some intermittent wind and heat: It got up to 80 degrees by the time the climb started. The climb lasted for four miles, and it was consistently challenging all the way to the top, with spots of 10-11% grade. I stopped to rest three times before making it to the top--but I got there.
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The Mexican Coke. A life-saving device found at the rest stop at
the top of the Table Mountain climb. A hot Coke never tasted better... |
The rest of the ride was a flat 45-mile ride back to the start. For 20 of those miles, a strong headwind/crosswind presented a serious challenge, but a pretty section through a series of orchards blocked the wind and created a very pleasant ride, particularly when I caught up to and rode with a small group of riders who established a 12 mph peloton of sorts for about 15 miles. Good pace for my tired knees and some entertaining conversation to make the miles go by faster.
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| Geeky me at the end of the ride. Time for the ibuprofen! |
This was a
great ride, and we'll be back next year. The rest stops were superb, the roads were generally in good condition, the climbs were challenging but pretty, and even though there were 4000 riders on the course, it wasn't nearly as congested as some much smaller rides that I've taken part in.
The numbers:
9.5 hours total time from start to finish
8:10 total ride time
4717' of climbing
96.4 miles
12.00 avg speed
The average speed isn't anything to get excited about, but the climbing represents a milestone for me: I can now look at rides with 5000' of climbing as possibilities.
Coming up: California Classic Century in Fresno on May 21, and the LA River Ride on June 5.
