Part Two: The Training
If you have been following this blog, you know that I have been training for a little event called Double Down 2 the Beach all year long. Why so long you ask? Because its a double century ride, that's 200 miles in a single day....on a bicycle! Its not something that you can just hop on and do. It takes many hours of training and conditioning. By the end of May I had done all that I could in preparation for this ride. I was as ready as I could be. In the week before June 8th, I didn't do any riding, but I did get on the stationary trainer twice to get the legs moving a couple of days prior to the event. I also drank so much water that I was getting as efficient at making clear water as the Brita in the kitchen. Hydration is an annoying thing when you have to make pit stops every hour on the hour, day and night. But I digress....
With two days before the ride I started to stock up on carbs which would be my fuel supply in my legs for what was promising to be a very long day in the saddle. Since Toni had to go out of town for a very important family event, I was left to fend for myself. I found out that the big cube thing in the kitchen was quite helpful in preparing food. After finding enough kindling to light the stove, I realized that it was actually electric and I could make heat with a turn of a dial....pretty cool, and Toni thought that I couldn't cook. Humph!!!!! I made pasta with chicken both nights and was actually quite impressed with my skills. The chicken really should have said remove from package before heating, I didn't really care for the plastic aftertaste at all! But I digress again.
While sitting around, not riding (saving my legs you know), I was paying attention to the weather. It seemed like it had been raining every day. Looking at the forecast, there was a high possibility of storms, and high winds all along our route. Hmmm, I hate riding in the rain. Maybe I'll just skip it. If I skip it, I've trained for nothing. If I skip it, I will want to do it next year, and will have to repeat my training. I guess I'll tough it out and give it my all, and see where it takes me.
I know that for a ride like this, its all about being in a group. This goes against everything that I know in cycling since I go out solo pretty much all the time. However, I didn't want to tackle this ride alone....To ensure the best possibility of success I knew I would have to latch on with other riders and share the work. I wasn't real sure how this was going to work since the two other riders I knew that were riding in this were comfortable at a pace that I wasn't ready to commit to with the time constraints at the rest stops. As it turned out, I was contacted by a man named Dennis Bryan who was trying to put together a group of about 10. He had been following me on Strava (hey, the emails say "I'm a big deal"), and felt that I would be a good match for his group. When I asked what kind of speed he was thinking he said 18-18.5 for an average. Considering my training centuries had been in the mid 17's I was doubtful, but in a group, my speeds would increase. So....I agreed to join in, and figured that if I had to drop back to a slower group I would. Nice to have options!
The morning of the event it was rainy, and in places it was more than a drizzle. But, I had pledged to do this ride, and Toni had to cut her trip short and miss out on time with her son to come back and SAG for me. I had no choice in the matter, I was going to get wet. Its amazing how after you come to terms with a less than ideal riding condition, it becomes a badge of honor to continue on. As they say, "fair weather rides are a luxury reserved for Sunday afternoons and wide boulevards. Those who ride in foul weather, be it cold, wet, or inordinately hot are BADASS. Period!" I was going to be a badass today regardless of how I finished. I was going to do it for me, and for Toni!
After signing my waiver releasing the organizers if I get lost, broken, or killed from any liability it was a matter of waiting for the bell to ring. After just a 2 minute delay, we clipped in and headed out at 5:32am from Cycles de Oro in Greensboro, NC. It was dark, rainy, and cold. It was my first ride in this kind of darkness and it took a few minutes to get used to how things looked. It went off without a hitch. I latched onto Dennis' wheel and refused to let it go. I was a member of his group...he had faith in me to be able to finish this ride, and I wanted to repay that with helping to pull him along as we rode to the coast.
Things went very smoothly for us all through Greensboro and out into the county. The rain stuck with us, I could feel my shoes filling with water and my clothes were soaked...but I'm a badass, and that was nothing to worry about. The rest stops were situated about every 30 miles, six in total to give us a break, and a chance to refill bottles and refresh our food stores. I was worried about this distance even though I did practice centuries with my breaks spread out similarly. It was that distance beyond 124 miles that I knew nothing about, but was going to learn very well before nightfall.
The first rest stop came at 35 miles and was welcome, no so much because I needed the break, but because I got to see Toni who was waiting on me. We figured out very quickly how to work a five minute break. She came up with the idea to have two fresh water bottles ready for me instead of just refilling what I had on the bike. While I was eating, she would refill my pockets with new food which would last me over the next stretch. It was something like a NASCAR pit stop in a way, and it worked just about as efficiently. The only problem was I didn't want to miss out on the peloton rolling back out without me, so I didn't take time to answer the call of nature. I let the answering machine get that call this go 'round.
After about five minutes we all clipped back in and headed on to Sanford. This was supposed to be one of the faster legs because we would lose much more altitude than we would gain over the next 30 some miles. it was a fast moving pace, we were all warmed up, and quite happy that the rain had stopped. Other than some wet roads, the foul weather seemed to have been left behind. We were all feeling strong. The peloton was adding and subtracting riders as everyone settled into their respective paces. We were as small as a dozen and as large as 30 at times. My friend Phil Horne even joined in for a while. That made for a really good time as we reminisced about our Fall ride in the mountains of NC, and made plans for another one this year. Hey, its a long ride, have to talk about something right? Progress was good, and I was feeling great considering the pace that we were rolling was creeping up into 19mph territory. Oh the power of the peloton!
We would have finished the second leg very strong at 67 miles had it not been for the deep rollers that we encountered in the last 10 miles of it. They slowed us down as we started with the climbing section of the ride. It was nothing too terrible, but for the sake of saving my legs for the last part of the journey I kicked down into the small ring, and just spun up the hills at a high cadence. No sense in stressing myself just yet...plenty of time for that later on.
When we pulled into the Sanford rest stop Toni and I had the pit stop thing to a science. I ate and drank while she reloaded me. We were a well oiled machine. A kiss and a quick assurance I was OK and we were off again. This was going to be the last section of rollers before we got into the flats. I needed to be easy on my legs because they were going to be needed without pause in the second 100 miles. We had finished a metric century at this point and our next stop would be at the full century mark. A mileage that usually marks the end of an excruciatingly long ride....it was to be only the halfway mark for ours...but wait, there's a bonus! (more on that in a moment)
The third leg went quickly without a hitch. The peloton fluctuated, and we started to find our core group in this stretch. We found the groups to stay away from, and found a steady pace line. We were in full swing, and I was feeling most excellent considering we were approaching my personal record mileage, at a quicker pace than I had achieved it before. At 101 miles we came to the lunch break rest stop. This one would be a longer stop than the others had been. Toni and I did the pit stop thing, and I checked my answering machine. Hmmmm, two missed calls. Both of them from nature. Better return those calls. Since we had some extra time here, I made my way to the little rider's room and lost about 5LBS of liquid weight. Ahhhhh, much better! It was also nice to be able to chat with Toni for a while who had just seen me long enough to hear sound clips from the ride. She was making friends too with other family members of those who were following this crazy bunch of riders. The riders and families alike have a very strong bond for an event like this. Everyone has so much invested in it.
It was at this stop that we got the good news about the route. It seems that with the heavy rains all week long there were several areas that were flooded. Wouldn't you know it....our route was closed by the state. They were nice enough to put up detour signs for the vehicular traffic to get around, but I don't think they gave cyclists much consideration. Not only did they send us through the center of town, they added....wait for it.....wait for it.....more miles. We just didn't know how many. On a normal ride, a few extra miles is not a big deal. On a ride of this magnitude, those few miles could mean the difference between finishing and not. We would have to wait for the next rest stop to see how much we were adding.
After Dennis declared this stop a waste without a supply of Coke's on ice he decided it was time to move onto the next one to see if there was any to be had there. Of course, Toni being the giver that she is, happened to have a cold Coke Zero which she promptly handed over to Dennis. Then Dennis did something that Really impressed me....after he took a sip, he shared with another one of the riders in our peloton...talk about a classy move!!! Now that our ride leader was all jacked up on caffeine, off we went.
Man, I was feeling great at this point. Sure, my legs were starting to get tired, but I was used to that. I was having no issues hanging onto the peloton and doing my share of pulls. Admittedly, it took some time to get the pacing right, since I'm a solo rider by nature, when I was out in front I wanted to ride at my normal pace....That just can't be done. I learned that it was much better to maintain the steady pace rather than to grab the speed where you can. The members of the group fluctuated from time to time, but there were several core riders that had been with us constantly. We were working very well together, but there was some signs of fatigue showing up. I was among those that were getting fatigued, but I still felt very strong considering the distance we had traveled.
The fourth rest stop was supposed to be at mile 122, however, it came at 128....six extra miles because of flooding. Not terrible, but it put our final mileage count around 212-213. Wow....I hope I have it in me. For the time being I was feeling pretty good considering the distance. I was still able to eat which was doing to keep my fuel levels up. I was getting tired, but my legs were still good. I'm even still smiling at this point. Possibly because I know that I have now officially broken my record for distance covered in a single day. If nothing else, I've accomplished that.
As you can see from the picture, the clouds were breaking up, and the sun was out in full force. Heat and humidity were on the menu at this point. There was still a chance for storms later on, but for now, it was a hot ride! The headwinds were also popping up from time to time. Our group of just under 10 were doing a great job of sharing turns pulling into the wind. Our pace, while slowing, was still moving along with a purpose....and I was still hanging on to Dennis' wheel!
Shortly after we left this short break we were back at it again. This leg was different than the others. Around 135 miles my left leg started to cramp. Not horrible, but I knew this was a bad sign. I wasn't able to put my all into a pedal stroke, and because of that, I hung back in the crowd. At one point, the peloton dropped the two riders in front of me which essentially cut me off as well. I did not have to power in my leg to bridge the gap. I was in trouble....bad trouble. The next rest stop couldn't get here fast enough! Fortunately, Dennis realized that the group had broken up. When they got to a stop sign they waited. Thank you for small favors! With the group all back together we continued on. I picked a place firmly in the center to ensure that I would be able to remain with the group until the next stop. I didn't do any more pulling on this leg to conserve what energy I had. I was even considering the potential of not finishing this ride. To come this far and run out of gas....oh how I didn't want that to happen....not today....not on this ride. But, I was in a bad way and at 155 I had never been so happy to see Toni....and the bike rack on the back of her car.
I was cooked....I was done. I could no longer eat food as my body was rejecting anything solid. I had no energy left. It was all I could do to stand up after unclipping. It made me feel better to see Toni and talk with her. I drank water and Gatorade to try and recover what I could. Toni then brought a gift over from Dennis.....a can of Coke. This is what he had been so mad about a couple of stops ago....so he found a way to requisition some cans and here they are. I drank it, and I swear it was like I had been hooked up to an AED device. What had been a flatline now had signs of life. I knew that it would be temporary at best, but it was something...and I had just a handful of miles left before this one was in the history books. Pain is temporary, quitting is forever.
I changed my tactics for nutrition. I had expected my body to reject solid foods on this ride so I planned ahead and had a pack of Hammer Perpetuum ready to go in a bottle of water. Again it was Toni to the rescue....she mixed it up for me, and we swapped out a water for Gatorade. I had nutrition and calories onboard now....all in liquid form. I was going to see this ride to the finish if it killed me!
We pulled out and I stayed in the middle of the pack until I knew how my body was reacting. I was feeling much better. The cramping was gone, although we had another rider who was also suffering from cramps and they weren't going away. Its a really bad feeling when you are on a bike to cramp like that. Over the next few miles I decided that I was in much better shape...a second wind of sorts. I started to share the workload again and did several pulls. I was stronger than I expected and that made me feel much more confident. I was going to finish this ride!
At 178 miles I was still hanging with the group. I was feeling good, but the pace was getting to be faster than I felt I could hang with. I was considering dropping down to a slower group, but Dennis saw that many of the riders were starting to suffer. Wanting us all to finish together he opted to slow our march to around 17mph. That....I could handle. Confidence in finishing exploded through me. I was going to do this! I could still not eat food, but the Perpetuum had given me the fuel I needed for the last leg, and Toni had an energy gel waiting for me at this stop. I ate it...drank it....absorbed it....whatever you do with that nasty stuff. Oh it was gross, but she made me ingest it. I knew it was a good thing and I needed it, but holy cow that stuff was terrible!!!!! I refreshed my hydration and we were off!
Since Dennis had said we were going to slow the pace, and that was instrumental in my staying with the group, I decided to make the lead pull from this stop. Dead on 17mph I rolled us down the road. This was an important tempo for me and several other riders, and I wanted to start the precedent. It went well, and we kept it slow and steady for a couple of rotations and then the speeds started to creep up. We were now at 18 again which was the overall average we had been riding at for so long. I kept checking on a couple of the riders not wanting them to get dropped. After one of my pulls I was moving to the end of the line and noticed that one rider was dropping away. He was not too far back so I went back with him and had him hold onto my wheel while I pulled him back up to the group. He would drop back again, and we would repeat this life line pull for him several times. The pace was not so bad that I was having any difficulty helping out, but it was sapping my energy every time I did it. I decided that I could help him more at the front, so I worked my way back through the line and took the pole position once again to slow the group. Then I head....he was dropped and out of sight. I was too late to help him, and I didn't have enough in me to go and get him. This started a strange chain reaction.
We closed in on 200 miles...almost there, almost done. The closer we got to the end the quicker we rode. We crept up to 19mph for a while and I was really feeling the pain but had come this far with the group, I wasn't going to let them leave me. I poured on the coals and absorbed the pain. We were doing 20 now coming into Wilmington.....I was pulling again....how did this happen? I should be completely tapped out keeping up with these guys, but the adrenaline from the morning was surging back into my body. It was go for broke time.....finish strong or not at all.
As we came up on another group of 15 or so at the base of a small climb to a bridge. We were overtaking them. I really figured that we would just pull in behind them and draft the rest of the way....nope....Dennis said we were going around them. What!!!!! in the last few miles we were going to overtake and pass another group, going up a hill???? Dennis was mad, but he was also an engine and he took the reigns. I thought about just hanging with this group getting passed, but that would mean that I would not finish with my original core group....not an option. I shifted the gears and passed the whole group. Some of them actually latched onto us and used our momentum to carry them on.
Funny thing about the finish...it was deep inside of a shopping center that was packed!!!! It was Saturday evening after all. We were plowing through the parking lot making our way to the final stop...the finish.....and having no idea where it was. We happened upon another cyclist, a young lady on a beach cruiser who saw the spandex clad foursome seen above and said "wow, you guys are showing me up". We then asked in our best tourist voices "do you know where the bike shop is?" From atop of her solid steel beach cruiser she points at an awning about 45 feet to our left and said "there it is". So, without the help of a local cyclist we might not have found our destination...but thankfully, we were there!!!! In just a little over 13 and a half hours we had made it. What a rush!!!
The best part was seeing Toni there waiting for me and seeing her cheer me on as I passed through. I had made her proud, and had done something that up until just a few minutes ago I questioned whether or not I actually could. It was a hard ride, and a learning experience for sure. I learned more about group riding in those 13 hours than I have learned in two years.
I have now replaced the statement "I'm going to ride a double century in June" with "I rode a double century that started at night, and in the rain. Yeah, I'm a BADASS!" There is something to be said for completing something like this. Very few people can say that they have ridden 200+ miles in a single day. I'm now one of those select few, and I'm happy to be counted among them. I've never considered myself an athlete, not even close. But as of June 8, 2013, I am an endurance cyclist....check that....an ULTRA ENDURANCE cyclist!
Garmin data from the ride
There is no prize associated with this ride short of a tshirt (that I am proudly wearing as I type this) and a window decal which will find its way onto my truck shortly. The jersey was purchased (well worth the money). So, what do I do to celebrate this milestone event in my life. I do something crazy that's what I do!
Speaking of water, both me and the bike needed a bath after this ride. I'll leave you with some pictures of what 212.21 hard miles will do to a bike and rider.
Nope....this is not tan lines. This is road gunk.
Blisters on my ankles from my shoes....but pain is temporary, and success is forever!!!!!!
