Wow, who would have believed how quickly the last few months would pass. It was less than 3 months ago I promised to become a fundraiser and rider for the Challenge to Conquer Cancer. At the time, I was quite terrified of the prospect of raising $5000 in support of the Palmetto Peloton Project. I can still hear Jeni's advice - Ask everyone!. I did, I asked people I knew, I asked people I didn't know, I asked people I met for the very first time. Many of them responded in a very positive fashion. So positive in fact that I am much closer to my goal than I ever thought I would get in such a short time. I still have some fundraising to do, but I'm close.
What's left is some last minute fundraising followed by the final preparations and the ride. I am unbelievably excited about this little adventure. I've met some really awesome people, and done some really great rides. I'm glad to be heading into the main event feeling well prepared both physically and mentally.
The past week and this weekend was the big taper. We did some good rides even if they weren't of the same length or intensity. Tuesday we met a little early to get the long country loop before it got dark. I had a good time taking Taylor and Gavin to school as we rode perimeter road back to the parking area.
Thursday we rode out of Heritage park. I feel a little guilty about this ride, but not terribly so. The plan was to ride out at a moderate pace, then kick it up on the way back. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but Danielle went off the front, and that set in motion a series of events that ended with me and Perry putting a major hammer down for a pretty nice run to a stop sign.
I had just rejoined the group (after a nature break) when I saw Danielle off the front of the group. Nobody was chasing, so I didn't really think anything about it right away. I was paying attention when Jeni split the two guys leading the pack (later she said they were debating whether to reel Danielle in or not) and start bridging. Not to my surprise, Perry broke from the pack, followed by Taylor, a guy in Timkin kit and Ray (another of my P3C3 buddies). When I saw Ray break from the pack, I decided I would go ahead as well. I broke ranks from the back of the pack, and pushed hard to bridge. As I was approaching the breakaway group, I saw that Jeni had made the bridge and had pulled in behind Danielle. Perry and Taylor also pulled in behind Jeni.
The Timkin guy was another story. He might have made a brief attempt at letting up, but he pulled around the breakaway group and set off at a pretty good pace. Perry reacted quickly and I let my momentum carry me right into his draft. Taylor pulled out with us and held our wheel for a little while. It wasn't long before Mr. Timkin started to let up. Perry then took the lead, and I stayed on his wheel. See, I am learning something - I know how strong Perry is, so I'm going to let him do whatever work he wants to do. I held his wheel until I sensed him letting up slightly.
When I knew he had done what he could do out front, I pulled around and called to him "tuck in here Perry, Let's go!". He grabbed my wheel, and we continued to hammer. I could tell he was hurting by the sounds he was making. I was pretty surprised as I have never known him to display weakness! I kept yelling at him to keep it up as we powered along the road. We saw the approaching stop sign and he kicked into sprint mode. He came up beside me and I continued to yell at him - I was trying my best to provoke him. "You think you got something??" I yelled as I stepped up my cadence to hold his pace. We came across the line together and let up to coast in for the stop. It was a great time. I think the other riders in the group were marking us a little as there was some great friendly competition out there that night. I think we did somewhere around 28-30 miles.
Saturday was the last 'long' training ride for the P3C3 group before we head out next Sunday. We did the 'Sticky Bun Run' from Furman up to the Bakery in Saluda. I was a little concerned about the weather as the forecast called for 60% chance of thunderstorms throughout the day. We started out with a few sprinkles, but that was the worst we got.
After we crossed Hwy 25 in Travelers Rest, we were treated to an incredible sunrise. The sky appeared to be on fire. Plenty of clouds in the sky, but they were clearing out and the sun was reflecting off the clouds. Obviously my words do it absolutely no justice at all. I pulled out my camera to snap a photo and wouldn't you know it, the battery was dead and I didn't have my spare with me! No pictures except what I snapped in my head! It was beautiful.
We did the traditional Furman to Saluda route. This did not include any of the optional climbs. The highlight of this ride was the climb up the watershed. Not a terribly hard climb at all. It is sustained and that is what makes it difficult. It can basically be split into three separate climbs - Dividing Waters road, Old Hwy 25 and Saluda Road.
In this group we rode with on Saturday, I am the strongest climber. There are some very strong riders, but something about climbing gets me really pumped and I can ride a pretty strong pace. There was a guy who I had not met before riding with us that day. I wasn't sure what kind of a rider he was, so I had my eye on him. I know Perry, Jeni and Megan, I know Taylor and Bo, Nathan was an unknown. As we climbed dividing waters road, I found Taylor and Nathan riding right up front with me. It was interesting to see how it played out, but more interesting would be the climb up Old hwy 25.
As we turned right off of Dividing Waters, Perry and I were giving tips to Taylor - it was his first time up this climb so we were trying to share our experiences with him. He set out pretty strong and actually led for a while. I took a few minutes to find my pace and let him do whatever he wanted. It wasn't long before I came around him and took the lead. I could hear someone behind me, but I was getting lost in my little climbing rhythm and tried to ignore them. I wasn't sure who it was, but I did suspect it to be one of five people - Jeni, Perry, Taylor, Bo or Nathan. In fact, I wasn't sure that it was only one person. I wasn't going to let it effect my pace though, I just kept my cadence.
There is a section on Old Hwy 25 where you can start to open it up a little. I suspect that this is where we dropped Taylor. I pulled the little breakaway for a while before I decided to see who I was dealing with. I pulled to the left and signaled them to come around. It was only Nathan, so I pulled in behind him to take advantage of whatever opportunity I could get from his draft. He kept a pretty good pace and seemed to be pretty strong during that faster section.
As the grade increased, I saw the chink in his armor. He was a pretty good climber, but I could tell I was stronger. All the riding I have been doing this year has really paid off. I came around him as we approached what I'll call the switchbacks. These aren't really switchbacks in the classic sense, but they are the closest you'll find on this section of Old Hwy 25. Those who know this road will know where I'm talking about. The grade increases as you approach these turns.
It's probably less than a mile to the intersection of Saluda Road once you get through these turns. I know this and I also know that the climbing is done about a half mile or so before the intersection. As I approached the crest of the rise, I clicked up a couple of gears and started pouring on the power. I had already pulled a gap, but I wanted to open it up as far as possible. I pushed up into the big ring and pushed hard until I crossed the small bridge just before the intersection. It feels really good to feel strong at the top of a nice climb - I felt it on Saturday.
Nathan pulled up shortly behind me. Taylor followed not too long after that. Jeni and Perry were riding together and Jeni decided to continue rolling along. As I remounted my bike, I saw Megan round the final turn before the intersection.
Taylor, Nathan and I played king of the mountain on the next climb as well. This time it was Taylor who crossed the state line behind me. I turned around and rode back down to ride with Perry and Jeni. We rolled together for a while before I got sucked in again by Taylor's obsession with competition ;).
We had a really nice (and pretty long) stop at the Bakery. It was really fun just chatting and listening to the chatter amongst the group. Everyone is really stoked about how close we are to this big event. There are some lingering concerns about meeting the fundraising requirements. I'm not the only one who is still a little short. Others are further than I am. I really hope that we all can make our fundraising goals. We only have one week to go.
If you can help, please visit the donation page and help out this cause by supporting me, or Bo and Nikki Zimmerman. We can all use any support you can give. As I said early in my fundraising efforts, no amount is too small - $5, $10 - whatever you can afford. It all goes to a great cause and helps my friends and I meet our fundraising goals. Without your help, our ride is not possible. Thank you to those who have given and those who will.
I can't believe I forgot to mention this in my last blog entry. After making my descent from Caesar's head - on my way back home I had one of the coolest experiences ever while riding my bike.
I'm not positive which road it was on, but I think it was on a section of Hunt's Bridge Road, just after crossing over Earls Bridge Road (coming from Owings Road). There was a nicer house on the left side of the road, with a large fenced in pasture.
Out in this pasture was a beautiful black horse. Don't ask me any other details except (S)he was really a beautiful horse. (S)he was obviously feeling frisky as (s)he frolicked in the pasture. I'm not sure if (s)he heard me or what, but as I passed by, (s)he galloped toward the road and started running parallel to the fence - which ran parallel to the road. (S)he was as close to me as (s)he could get and keeping pace with me. I sped up a little, (s)he matched my pace. I called out to the horse and made what I perceive as noises a person might make to a horse. Can you tell I'm not a horse person?
(S)he matched my pace for as long as the pasture would allow - probably only about 1/8th of a mile or so, just a few seconds really. As I left the horse behind, I called out "Thanks, that was really cool".
Today is a big day. This day marks 2 weeks before our departure. According to our training plan this is the last long mileage / hours weekend before we head out (apparently I was wrong about this last week!). For the next two weeks, we'll be tapering to allow our bodies some recovery time before we really hit it hard.
In the last few days, I've had some great rides. Thursday evening, I met up with Gavin and Perry's son Taylor for a little jaunt up and over Altamont Road on Paris Mountain. It was a very straightforward out and back route that I have ridden numerous times. We did the optional climb on Lake Circle Drive and up to the towers before crossing the summit. It's always fun on the descent down the Furman side. At the bottom I turned around and checked my time. I was well rested and thought it would be a good time to see about a personal best on the ascent.
I quickly passed Gavin and Taylor. I was finding my little climbing zone and they weren't in it. I felt really good going past the water tower. There is a steep(er) section there and sometimes if I'm not feeling it, it drags me down. It didn't this time. In more than one spot I kicked up a gear (in one spot I kicked up several gears) to carry as much speed as I could. I pushed through the wall and checked my time - 13:20. This is my best so far. I'm very pleased about that. Our total mileage for the ride was just over 22 miles.
Yesterday, I decided to start with the Sunshine Bike Shop Hour of Power ride. This is a fun ride that ends up being about 30 miles. Usually, several members of the Piedmont Orthopedic Associates squad shows up to this ride. I never really have had a chance against those guys (in the sprints), but I was interested in pitting myself against them after all this riding I've been doing (it's a relative thing right - how far back from them would I be this time?). Unfortunately for me, they were out enjoying their last big event of the year, so none of them showed.
There was a number of regulars who always turn out a good performance. Most notably, Tyler and Art. Phillippe, A co-worker I had recently met was also there along with about 7 other riders. I was very pleased with this portion of my ride. In the sprint zones, I was right up there with Tyler and Phillippe (who is very strong) and Art. At the rock quarry, Phillippe showed how strong he really is by just motoring away from all of us. We had no chance to catch him.
After the Hour of Power ride, I headed up over Paris Mt again. Just past the CVS, I pulled over to check on a fellow rider and saw that it was my buddy Steve. My plan was not to ride too aggressively, so I decided to ride with him. We tacked on about 23 miles together, then the final 3 I rode home. The total on the day was 56 miles.
Last night, I was looking for someone to ride with, but alas, no-one responded positively. I decided then to go ahead with my plan to climb Caesar's Head. However with one small modification - I would ride directly from home rather than starting from Furman. I thought this would add about 20 miles to the total distance.
The great part about the route I would travel is it included three of my favorite climbs - Altamont Rd from the State Park side, Caesar's Head and Altamont Road from the Furman side. My goal was to just have a fun ride. I knew I wouldn't be setting any personal records as I generally ride a fair bit slower when I am by myself - especially on a longer ride.
I finally got out of the house at about 10 till 8. This was a bit later than I had planned, but the bike did need some maintenance and I had not done that the previous night. It was a great morning, albeit a little cool. I started off with my bib shorts, a jersey, arm warmers and the C3 wind vest. I was a little cool for a lot longer on the ride than I thought I would be. I think I would have been comfortable with my long fingered gloves.
I really enjoyed the ride up the State Park side of Altamont road. I pushed a little, but not near as hard as I have done in the past. I found out it is just about 11 miles to Furman from my house by this route. I didn't actually go onto the campus though, I went straight along New Roe Ford Road.
From there, I pretty much took the route we intended the first time I climbed Caesar's Head. It is really beautiful countryside with very little traffic. I had my new camera, so I had to take some photos to test it out....Ok, I'll have to download additional photos later, but here is the obligatory shot at the state park sign.
I checked my time at the base of the climb so I could see how fast I might climb today. I really wasn't feeling it, but part of that is because I didn't have anyone pushing me up the hill. I was surprised though, I still did the climb in about 45 minutes and 30 seconds. I felt good about that.
I took a break to eat half a clif bar and fill my bottles. Then I re-traced my route back to the house. Once you cross Hwy 11, it really is just rolling hills all the way back to Altamont road, but I was not pushing hard. I know I'll have to do better with my nutrition on the ride to Austin. although I did not bonk, I did put my body in energy conservation mode. I spun to take advantage of any downhill and pull my average speed up, but on the uphills, I really didn't push at all. I just kept clicking down on the gears until I had a nice cadence.
I made it to the Furman side of Altamont road, and I knew I was going to be slow. I was so slow in fact that I added about 50% more time to the personal best I set just a couple of days ago! It was good though, just grinding out the climb with a reasonable respiration rate and I'm sure a reasonable heart rate.
I finished up the ride home and looked at the clock on my cyclocomputer. It showed an elapsed time of 5h50m. It also showed a ride time of 5h8m. That means I spent about 42 minutes stopped. Hmmm, I'll have to improve on that. Finally, it showed a total distance of 75.9 miles. This little experience has shown me that even working together as a team, my Polka-dot team-mates and I are going to have a big challenge to travel significant distances in a 6 hour shift!
Here it is, Sunday, October 4th and we are two weeks away from our departure date. In fact, as I am sitting here, the clock had just struck 3pm. That is our official departure time on the 18th - at 3pm we will leave from the Greenville Hospital System's Cancer Center. The address to the Cancer Center at Greenville Memorial Hospital is 900 West Faris Rd, Greenville, SC 29605.
I ask that everyone - especially those who have donated to Palmetto Peloton Project's Challenge to Conquer cancer - come out and cheer us on as we make our departure. It is going to be a very high energy event. All of our support vehicles will be there, all of the riders will be fully outfitted in their C3 kit. We expect some television coverage as well. There will be parking designated for those who want to cheer us on. Come a little early and find me and my team and wish us well on our adventure.
At 3pm, the entire squad of 27(ish) riders and 8 or so support vehicles will take off for the first leg of our journey. My team has the first shift and we will ride for 3 hours (3pm-6pm). All of the other teams will pull off after about 3 or 4 miles, pack up their bikes and themselves and do whatever they need to do before their own 3 hour shift begins. The Polka-dot team (my team) will pick up the first 6 hour shift starting at 6am on monday morning the 19th. All shifts from then on will be 6 hour riding shifts with 24 hours before the team resumes with another 6 hour shift.
I'm really getting excited about the trip now. I'm still a little behind on my fundraising, but I am getting closer. To date I am just under $4000! I have 60 people who deserve a very special Thank You. These 60 are the people who have made this possible for me by donating some amount to this great cause. Your generosity is awesome.
If you are interested in 'watching' our progress and reading about our experiences, there is a special website set up: www.ridetoaustin.com. You can read about the riders and the support people, see where the riding team is currently located and most fun of all, you can read the daily blogs that each team will be writing. I'll do my best to post in both locations, but I encourage you to visit the ride to Austin site to read about all of the experiences.
P.S. There is still time if you would like to make a donation. Please make sure to select my name from the drop down at the top of the page. .
I'm looking at the calendar and I see we have exactly three weeks to go before we depart for Austin. I am really getting stoked about this trip! In the last few days, I logged 174 miles on my bike. This is to be our last long mileage weekend. From here we'll taper the mileages down to give our bodies some recovery time. The theory is that we'll fully recover over the next three weeks and be as strong as we are going to be when we leave from Greenville Memorial Hospital.
This weekend actually started for me on Thursday when I took a day off to climb Caesar's Head. It was a great ride and I really love the climb. I'm going to be looking for some other long climbs like that one, although I may not have a chance to ride them before our trip.
The next long ride was a night ride scheduled for 80 miles starting at 8pm Friday evening. Jeni, Perry, Taylor and I decided to log an extra 21 miles before the rest of the P3C3 team arrived. This of course so we would have a full century on the night - we would meet at 6pm.
It was raining pretty hard when I arrived at the Donaldson parking area a few minutes before our 6pm meet time. I was not looking forward to starting off in a hard rain, but we got lucky and it really let off as we waited for Jeni to arrive. I think she brought us good vibes because it let up just about the time she arrived.
We did the short Donaldson route at a pretty easy pace. Perry and I played around a little on some of the hills by pushing the pace, but mostly it was a relaxing ride. It took us a little over an hour and when we returned to the cars, the P3C3 group was assembling and getting ready to ride.
Of course, with an 8pm start time, it was dark when we left Donaldson. I won't even try to repeat the entire route from memory, but I did recognize the route for about the first 20 miles or so. Once we got to Possum Kingdom, we hung a right and headed into unknown territory (for me anyway).
One significant thing that came from this night ride - it was pretty surprising for me too. We saw at least 4 live snakes warming themselves on the pavement. One of them was a very large copperhead. I think Perry ran over that guy! Jeni also ran over at least one, and I about took Perry out (Sorry Perry!) when I swerved to miss a smaller snake later in the night. That is more snakes than all I have seen while out on my mountain bike - that's the surprising part for me! No-one was bitten, so they just provided some heebie-jeebies that eventually turned into laughter.
It was a fun ride. At one point, we did a brief stop where Joe and Big John decided to hop into the SAG vehicle. Tedd tells us - just a little ways up here and make a right on Dairy Road. Ok, so Dustin puts on his afterburners and takes off the front. I hold near him just so no-one is riding by themselves. We keep looking for Dairy Road, but alas, it doesn't come. The group comes back together and Jeni, Perry, Jerry and I were up towards the front. Tedd says 'just a little bit up the road'. Still, no Dairy road.
It continued this way for a number of miles - finally we stop at another stop sign and Tedd once again says 'Just a little bit more and then on the right'. So, we go a little bit - no Dairy Road. A little further, still no Dairy Road. Finally we smell the Dairy farm and we come to the intersection of Dairy Road. It was pretty funny. We had a good laugh about that 'just a little further'....
At one point, we turned left at a stop sign - Tedd calls out 'Look for [whatever] road on the right'. Ok, so off we go. Jeni, Perry, Jerry and I end up off the front a bit and I was out there leading the way. We're riding and riding...no [whatever] road. We keep riding and riding some more - maybe about 3.5 miles or so before we come to the intersection of Hwy 252. We stop and the others are not far behind us. Turns out we missed the turn. Seemed like our SAG team of Jennifer and Kim did realize the mistake and had managed to stop some of the group, but the rest of us were further ahead. They caught us right as we turned around.
So, what happened is we should have turned right at that stop sign. No biggie really, so we got a few extra miles in. We got back on track and continued our ride.
As we began to get back into recognizable territory, light batteries were wearing down and the rain started picking up. We still had 20 miles to go and it came down on us pretty hard for a while. I stopped to put my rain jacket on at one point - it was actually pretty cool once you got wet.
It rained on us for something just under an hour maybe - I don't really know how long. It did let up as we rode up Reedy Fork road. Perry and I once again played around on those rolling hills with our little friendly competition. He hammered me a few times, I hammered right back. It was really fun.
As we turned onto Perimeter road, we thought we would be heading with the wind. And we did for about 1/4 mile - then it became a crosswind that was quite hard when we went around the end of the runway! Perry and Jerry had gone off the front while Jeni and I rode together. Screaming something about Wind (and FIRE!). It was a fun ride with really good people. Perry, Jeni and I ended with something around 107.5 miles.
Saturday night we had a big dinner at Ron's place. It was fun, although it rained cats and dogs almost all night. There was lots of good food and of course the camaraderie. Ron and several others talked about the trip logistics, plan, etc. We'll depart from the Hospital at 3pm on the 18th. We have to arrive 2 hours prior to get some photos taken and other last minute things completed.
Throughout the night, the energy was really high. Everyone was in good spirits (and it wasn't because of the spirits either!). It was really nice to have a number of Veterans there (folks who did the ride last year). They shared some really good insights with us rookies. I left Ron's house really excited - and if you've been keeping track of my blogs about this event - this is part of the reason I changed my plans and joined this team.
To put you in the right mood for this blog, go ahead and let this video load. Just as it did when I rode the Assault on Mt. Mitchell earlier this year, The Eagles 'Hotel California' was running through my brain as I climbed up Caesar's Head today - Specifically, when home-boy starts up with the double necked guitar - that guitar riff is what is running through my head on a nice long climb.
It was a great ride. Courtney, Gavin, Perry, Taylor and I talked about doing a ride as we were having dinner after Tuesday's ride. Perry had suggested the climb up Caesar's Head. I knew I could not miss this opportunity as I had yet to make this climb. I checked my schedule at work and decided I could afford to take a vacation day to do this ride.
As you know from my last blog, I love climbing so for me this was going to be heaven. Others might think it a bit hellish. What better way to get a good climbing fix than to get out and do Hwy 276 up to the State Park. Perry wanted something around 50 miles and I thought I could put together a route that would give us just under 60 miles out and back to Caesar's Head.
Earlier this year, I had done the Greenville Spinner's 'First Fifty' and had a great time. I knew this route took us right to the base of the climb so I searched mapmyride to find the route - labeled here as the Final Fifty.
We met at the Publix parking lot (off old buncombe road, near Furman) at 8am and headed out shortly after. We cut through the Furman Campus and picked up the route. We weren't looking to set any records getting to the base of the climb, so we rolled along at a comfortable pace. The Upstate is a beautiful place, and this route takes you along some very beautiful rolling countryside dotted with some very incredible houses.
As we rode along, I was looking for the route markings that we used on that ride earlier this year. I thought I saw some faded orange hand-painted arrows I recognized and they were sending us along the planned route so I didn't argue. When we got to Hunt's Bridge Road, the hand painted arrows told us to bear right, but the planned route actually should have beared left. I followed the arrows and this got us into a slight detour.
When Hunt's Bridge intersected with Earls Bridge Road we did a stop for a map check. Our que sheet said to turn right on Earls Bridge Road, so we did. Unfortunately, this turned out to take us about 6 miles out of our way. Of course we didn't realize how far out of our way until we were headed back. Not a major problem, as we were able to get back on route easily enough.
We followed Pace Bridge road to cross over Hwy 288 and link up with Marked Beech Road. This took us to Moody Bridge Road and across to Pleasant Grove road. The views of the mountains from this road are truly spectacular and today was an exceptionally clear day. Someone had even painted 'WOW' on the road to wake up those cyclists who might not be taking a look around.
This road connected us to Hwy 11 and we made a SAG stop at the EXXON station. We all topped off our water bottles and had a little snack. We were now at the base of the climb and we were all looking forward to it. Instead of turning right on Hwy 11 and then left on 276, we went straight across Hwy 11 and connected some roads to put us on Hwy 8 just below it's intersection with Hwy 276.
As we made the left turn from Table Rock Road I checked the time on my computer. It showed 10:35am. This was our marker for the climb. As we started up the climb, Taylor's youth and enthusiasm had him going off the front. Even after we made the left turn onto Hwy 276, he stayed out front for a little while.
It was well understood that all of us would make the climb at our own pace. I was surprised at Taylor's early push. I did my best to ignore it so I could find my own pace. It was about this time when the guitar riff started up in my head. It seems that my pedaling pace and the time of that song fit well together. At least in my head they do.
Soon, I was on Taylor's wheel, and shortly after that I went around him. I had found my zone and the Eagles were my soundtrack. I know I was pushing myself, but I'm not sure if I was going as hard as I could. I have driven this road countless times, but this was my first time to climb it on my bike. It felt good and I was very happy to be there. However, although I knew the road from a vehicle standpoint, it is very different when I'm the horsepower (or the BillyGoat power as the case may be ;). I know I was keeping something in reserve - especially early in the climb. I didn't want to blow up.
A few miles up the Hwy, there is a pull off next to a little bald that offers a great view. I was feeling good as I passed this spot and I looked back and could still see someone (not positive but I think it was Perry). I tried to forget about competition and just ride for myself. Although that is a difficult thing to do, I think Don Henley and his boys allowed me to forget about competition and just keep with my rhythm.
About half way up, there is a false flat. I tried to keep my cadence solid and ended up shifting up to the big ring for a while. I still was holding a little in reserve - I think I missed the sign that says 'Caesar's Head - 4 miles'. I really only knew where I was because of my familiarity with the road.
As I neared the top and got into the switchbacks, I knew I was getting close. I tried not to dwell on the elapsed time, but I could see that I was making good time. After the switchbacks, there is a restaurant (not sure if it is still open or not), but it came into my view just after I passed the 40 minute mark. I felt good that I should make the visitor's center in under 45 minutes.
As I came upon the sign showing 1000 feet to the park entrance, I was still only at about 41/42 minutes (I was using only the clock with hour:minute so I could only be accurate to about 1/2 minute). I gave it a strong push and crossed the entrance at what I have to call 43 minutes (it could have been less if I had a more accurate time measurement, but it wasn't, so I am taking 43 instead of something less). I did a short cool down lap through the parking lot and went to the end of the parking lot to cheer everyone else on.
Soon, Perry came into view. He was pushing hard for the last bit and he crossed the line at 47 minutes. He came back to join me and we talked briefly about who was coming next. Courtney is a strong climber, but Taylor is an unknown. He has only been riding for a short time but has proven himself to be quite capable. Perry said the last time he saw anyone behind him, it was Taylor. Unless Courtney or Gavin caught and passed him, he would be next.
Sure enough, just a few minutes after Perry's arrival, Taylor came into view. We cheered him on and he gave a good push up to the entrance at a time of 50 minutes. Our little cheering party was now 3 strong and we didn't have to wait long before Courtney came into view. We yelled our encouragement and she pushed across the line at 53 minutes.
Gavin would be our rear guard for this climb. We couldn't know how he was doing on this climb, but he has proven himself a strong rider in the several weeks we have known him. As I watched my clock, the 60 minute mark was creeping up on him. At about 57 minutes (by my clock), he came into view. We yelled encouragement and he began his final push. I had one eye on my clock and the other on him. My clock had switched over to 11:34 shortly before he crossed the line. I marked him at 59 minutes, but he had also tracked his time and he had himself clocked at something under 59 minutes. He earned it, so he get's the 58 minutes as his climbing time.
We took a nice break at the visitor's center, refilled our bottles and had a snack before we started our way back. Gavin and I led the pack on the descent - we had a great time. I'm still trying to get a good feel for how much I can throw the bicycle around through fast turns. A 20 lb (or whatever it weighs) bike is a lot different than a 400lb motorcycle in how much 'throwing' you can do. It was fun and I reached a top speed of 44mph.
We re-traced our route back to the Exxon, and took another quick break. From there, the ride back was as beautiful as the ride out. As usual on a moderate distance ride, we were all a little quiet - well, except for Courtney. She started belting out 'The final Countdown'. It was awesome! It gave us a boost when we needed it. Obviously, she was feeling good about the climb. I think all of us were feeling really good about it as well. Since I'm in a youtube mood, I had to find this song for Courtney - so, here's the video. I've selected this particular one because of what she does for a living....
However cool it is to watch those guys, I have to post this one as well - dig that big hair!
I took a little more care with the map on the way back and trimmed off the 6 extra miles we did on the way out. We finished up at 66 miles. A few miles more than intended, but none-the-less a great ride. Topped off by a great lunch at Kerrie's Deli and Pub.
So, along with my fellow riders, I also have to Thank the Eagles. After all, they provided today's soundtrack for a great climb that was indeed heaven.
I love climbing. I need to get that out now - just so you can understand where I am coming from. I love climbing on my bike (road or mountain). It's on the climb that I experience the true joy of riding. While climbing is great even in a pack, it's absolutely best when it is just me, my bike and (preferably) a long climb up the mountain.
Labor day, my mom came in town. Family always trumps anything else, so I did not join either of two P3C3 rides on that Day. The larger group, led by Tedd, did an epic ride from Furman up to the back side of Ceaser's Head. They got in something over 6000' of climbing in a route just under 80 miles.
The other group was made up of my P3C3 team-mates Jeni, Ed and Perry. They left from Ed's place on an epic 107 mile route with over 7000' of climbing. Jeni texted me later that day to say 'my ass hurts'. I was jealous as that might be the biggest ride they will do before we depart for Austin next month.
I was fortunate to be able to get out for a great ride on thursday from Oakview. A great group for sure. At that time, I didn't know the plans for the weekend other than what Tedd had posted about Walnut Grove and the Little House on the Prairie. I knew they would get some climbing in, but they were leaving from Simpsonville and while there are some hills, I was fairly sure I needed something more sustained.
Thursday night, Courtney, Gavin and I talked about riding together. It wasn't until friday night (about 9pm) that we had a plan together. That plan was to meet at Tigerville Elementary at 630am on Saturday morning. I spent a few minutes reviewing routes I had ridden in the past from that location and made my decision.
The route we would take included: Packs Mt, Callahan Mt, The Saluda Watershed, Mine Mountain road and down to Pearson's falls road, up the Saluda grade (on 176) to a break at the Bakery. Also to be included was a loop I had read about on the other side of I-26 from Saluda. I had read this loop was about 20 miles. It included Holbert Cove Road and Green River Cove Road. On the map, Green River Cove Road had a series of switchbacks that I knew would satisfy any craving I had for a nice climb!
From the elementary school, we headed south on 253 to pick up some roads that would take us to the south side of Packs Mountain. I had never done Packs, so I was in for a surprise! It was dark when we left at about 645am so we were all running with lights. The fog was pretty thick in spots, but the traffic was very thin. As we rode through the beautiful countryside near tigerville, the sun was coming up. It really was an incredible morning.
There was no need for our headlamps any longer as we made the turn on to Bramlett Road and then the left onto Bomar Road. As we came around a turn, what a sight! It looked like the road went straight up! At first, I thought it was someone's driveway, but soon I realized that was our ascent up Packs Mountain. There was a time or two I was unsure if I was actually going to be able to ride up that road! It was tough!
All three of us were able to make that climb - thankfully it was quite short. We had a little more climbing to make it to the actual summit of Packs Mt but it was quite easy in comparison. The downhill on the other side was fast and fun, but ended at a stop sign that seemed to sneak up on us a little. Thankfully, there was actually enough road to get a full stop safely.
From there, we headed along South and North Packs Mountain road to tie us in to N. Barton road. We skipped back over to Tigerville road and headed towards Callahan Mt. I selected this route because I wanted to take them over Callahan mt, but I wanted to get that short climb that is to the right on old Hwy 11. The climb up Callahan Mt is always fun and I think everyone enjoyed it. Rocketing down the other side makes it worth it.
We took the right to make the climb up through the watershed. What a great morning. Very little traffic, still a little cool as the morning progressed. This is the climb I really needed - something that went on for a nice sustained distance. There are certainly more difficult and longer climbs in the upstate, but I really enjoy this ride through the watershed. As I climbed I really started to feel great - I wasn't sure I could feel much better after Packs and Calahan, but this climb really put me into a good place.
After crossing the state line, we made the right turn on Mine Mountain road. This is a fun road as well and has a couple of nice climbs and one killer descent as you make your way towards Hwy 176. This is a really nice climb that drops you right into the town of Saluda. I enjoy this climb and met Kip who had done a cross country bike ride with his wife last year. Great guy. He and I talked about the Austin trip a little before I went on ahead.
We made a quick stop at the Bakery for a raspberry thing (very tasty!) and to refill our bottles. We talked a little about the loop I had heard about. We decided to head under the interstate and see what Green River Cove Road was all about.
It was all about switchbacks for the first 2.5 miles! Unfortunately, we descended these switchbacks first, but as I rounded the first and saw the second, I knew I had to climb this road. We re-grouped at the bottom and decided to head down the road (which paralleled the river) until we felt like turning around. It's a beautiful road and it was a great relaxing ride for about 9 miles or so before we turned around.
We rode together most of the way back up the road until we got to the switchbacks. I think everyone was as excited as I was to do this climb. It was beautiful! As the road would make a right hand switchback, I would attack the very steep section in the middle of the turn. I had a great time on this climb. I'll have to go scout the route for the full loop that ends with this climb. That will be really fun to do.
Once again, we re-grouped at the top and rode back to the Bakery to top off the bottles. We decided to take the 'classic' Bakery route back to the Elementary school. It was great just riding along, chatting with my friends - very relaxing.
I as started this blog earlier this week, I had to get the route up on Map my ride. The distance is a little off as we went out Green River Cove Road and turned around - in my map, I didn't quite get the turn-around quite right. I marked what I think is pretty close to the Bakery, but it could introduce some error as well. None the less, the route described is pretty much what we did on Saturday.
Unfortunately, I'm a bit disappointed with total climbing on the route. It turns out that the walnut grove ride had about the same (maybe even more!) climbing on it. I was pretty sure we would have more altitude gain than 4200 feet! That said, I did get what I needed and that is some longer sustained climbing. The climb up the watershed is a true classic and it is about 7 miles or so of decent climbing. The other hills we hit were fun, but not quite as sustained. The real gem in this route is the switchbacks coming up Green River Cove Road.
Next time I do this route, I'll add some more into it. Coming up the back side (next to camp old indian) of Callahan mountain is a nice climb, plus there are a couple of other places I can add in some more altitude.
In the end it really was about 3 kids, their bikes and some really nice climbing - you really can't ask for a better day.
