Counting Cars, Booty 50 prepping, & Hair-streamlining

Neighborly Trailer Trash:

As Erin and I got back from grocery shopping, I did a quick count of how many vehicles are in / around our neighbor's yard...and the magic number is..........9   There are a total of 9 vehicles in various states of dis-repair.  Some of these have been idle for months...others are works in progress as I hear the motors being worked out throughout the day...usually gas pedal being throttled hard so as to rev up the engine and generally make an all around nuisance. 

The irony is that some of the beater rigs have vanity plates!  The additional irony is that they can afford to have multiple cars and vanity plates but can't afford to pay for some bare necessities of life and tend to lean on our more than accommodating government.  I will not digress into political rhetoric here as it would just veer off course : )

so moving onto Booty Preppin'
The Butte 100/50 are scheduled for tomorrow.  I plan on doing the 50 as I just can't bring myself the mental anguish of persevering through the hundie.  It will be time to hit the Outdoorsman (local bike shop that will be race HQ) and sign up this afternoon.  There have been some Tinker Juarez sightings in town and as he is signed up to do the race this year.  
My bike still needs some final tweaking...as does my body and overall organization in prep for the race (figuring out what to leave at aid stations, what the fueling plan will be, etc).  Unfortunately it looks like it will be a little warmer than I had hoped but after surviving 90 degree temps during the Puff....the mere mid 80's here should be a breeze (will be dreaming of a nice cool breeze in the afternoon while watching the sweat pour off my face while riding tomorrow).  I have a couple of mental obstacles for the race...there will be some hike a bike sections that are posing as the mental barriers at the moment...it is about 10-15 miles so it will just be a matter of sucking it up and putting on the big boy pants.

As I got ready for the 'fiddy' this week, I figured it would be a good ideeer to give myself a haircut...although 'haircut' is a slight misnomer as I just take the clippers to my odd shaped head and whack away until the clippers cease to find long enough hair to sheer.  I feel 'hair-streamed' now and hope that it will help in staying a little cooler while riding.  The sad reality is that each time the clippers go to the head, there is less hair to trim...as it is I have more and more gray hairs on the chin each yr and it has come to the point where my vanity tells me not to grow the chinny chin chin out.  I blame it all on the wifer and tease her saying I had no grays prior to us meeting!  Speaking of...our 2nd wedding anny is coming up this next week...better be on my best behavior.........

Short Cuts, Doggy Acne & Moose'n Around

It has been an easy week training wise this week.  I have yet to make it over the top tube of any bike yet this week...that will probably change today as it will be good to get out and do a quickie easy spin...race day is Saturday so I hope the legs start to feel friskier than they currently do.  At the moment they feel a wee bit on the heavy side...2 more days to work the heaviness out.

The dogs have benefited from the light week on the bike because we have taken them on longer walks than usual.  As we were walking on Tuesday night, I noticed that Moby was getting tired.  Being the smart pup that he is, he made some adjustments.  We decided to go to our usual trail since it would be dry and mosquito free - the flip side is that it also meant it would  be hotter.  Moby knows the trails well and he made me chuckle when he watched Otis and I continue to walk the switchbacks and he very non-chalantly would take the short cut by cutting the switchbacks off completely and just heading downhill on another trail that weaves through the main trail that we were on.  Normally, I don't marvel and gush about how smart he is, but what was interesting was that he actually anticipated us this time.  He started down the alternate route/short cut as soon as we started heading down the long way.

Speaking of pups...yesterday I noticed that Otis had some bumps on his chin.  Erin googled what the bumps might be and it turns out our pup is going through puberty and them there bumps are pimples!  I had no idea dogs got acne...This  falls under the annals of I learn something new every day!

Even though I have been a slacker on the bike this week, Erin has not. She got out on Toll Canyon on Tues night and had a moose sighting!  If you enlarge the pic, you can see the moose up on the bank.  On a side note, Erin has been a little hard on her bike this year.  She is on her 3rd rear derailleur and hanger...I was not exactly amused when she told me that she fell on a couple of switchbacks and that her gears were 'skipping'.  It might just be cable stretch as the derailleur & cable are brand new but her history so far this year makes me fear for the worst and think that she might have bent her derailleur again...need to take a looksie and see what gives.

Productive Monday

To Do Lists, Pseudo Taper, Mosquitos, & Bouldering Recon on the East Ridge (and uber long blog titles)

So I am leaning towards doing the Butte 50 this weekend.  I just can't bring myself to sign up for the 100...The fitness is there but the mental fortitude is not so the 50 sounds like a good compromise.  It will still be a long day in the saddle but not as long as doing the full enchilada!  The singlespeed got a little lovin' yesterday...the bike has been cleaned and also replaced the mashed up pedal.  I still need to go through it a little more to lube the chain and make some micro-adjustments in prep for Saturday.

The 50 is mostly on singletrack and will have some hike-a-bike sections that are too steep to ride on the single-speed - it will be somewhere around 8,000 ft of vertical gain.  It should be an easier mental dialogue than the Cream Puff as the current weather forecasted for Saturday will be in the upper 70's (much better relative to the 90 degree temps at the Puff).  I am going to take it easy on the riding this week and do a quickie pseudo taper in prep for the 50 on Saturday.  I will be much better prepared relative to last year and will carry tons of endurolytes so as to not repeat last year's cramp fest which included both hammies and quads...when trying to stretch the quads, the hammies would lock up and vice versa - it was not a pleasant last 25 miles!

All in all, yesterday was a productive day.  I have tried to be better about creating to-do lists each morning of things that I need to get done.  It helps to have something to look at and more importantly there is something very cathartic about being able to cross things off the to-do list.

We took the pups up to the East Ridge CDT last night.  I thought it would be a good change of pace to take them somewhere new so they could explore and smell the scents of a different area.  They always seem to perk up when on a new trail.  We walked up the East Ridge on the Cont Divide and immediately started to get attacked my mosquitoes!  It was ugly!!!  We could at least swat at the pesky little guys...the dogs, not so much.  The poor dogs were shown no mercy at all........poor Moby had bumps all over his body but especially his head.  Both dogs picked up scents and tracked them for a while.  It was fun to see them use their natural instincts.

While up on the East Ridge, we did some reconning for bouldering and there are a few lines that are very worthy of trying.   We will have to wait until the mosquitoes are not quite so pervasive but there are some cool looking lines to check out.  It is amazing what you actually see when you are not blazing through on a bike!

Missoula Streamin', Skinny Flatting, and Pedal Trashing

The weather has turned HOT here in Montana...we hit the upper 80's the past couple of days and it is a good reminder of just how warm 90 is.  I have not missed these temps at all.

It has been a busy past few days with a trip up to Missoula to drop the Airstream (http://mintageairstreams.com/) off for the fridge installation & other sordid updates.  We are going to have them install the fridge, do a couple of cosmetic patches, re-do the cabinetry around the fridge/sink/stove.  The idea is we want a small 2 burner stove on top of the fridge (in order to save counter space), and downsizing to a 1 bowl kitchen sink (also an attempt to save counter space).  They will also be going through the tin can to give it a once over and see if anything else needs to be swapped out.  I got to take a looksie at some of the work they are doing on some other trailers and was very impressed.  I look forward to seeing how it will all turn out.

While in Missoula, I took the bike up with the intention of exploring the Rattlesnake Rec area.  I have heard great things about the riding up there and was anxious to see what in store...The intention was to take the main dirt road up for a while and then catch spurs & loops of singletrack along the way.  After 13 miles in, I saw some US Forest Service folks camped out and decided to ask them where the stash of great trails were and whether I was getting close.  They explained that the singletrack was all at the very beginning (contrary to a couple of maps I had been looking at).  So I turned the bike around, pointed downhill in search of the holy trail...I did see a couple of spurs on the way back and explored them for a while until they got steep and hike a bike was in order...After getting my fill of hiking I turned back around and headed back downhill to the next spur...more of the same.  At this point I had 20+ miles in and was coming to grips of it being somewhat of a bust of a day for trail riding...got back to the car and headed back to Butte...maybe the next Rattlesnake adventure will be fruitful!

I started Saturday with a nice road ride.  I rode up Hwy 2 over Pipestone Pass and then tucked and dropped about 2,000 ft into Whitehall...then it was time to grind up and over Homestake Pass and pay for all that descent...the 2,000 ft climb along the Freeway (I-90) was a good barometer relative to how the legs felt earlier in the season.  The climb felt easier, albeit still hard considering the 8 mile ascent.  It starts to let up towards the top couple of miles so it is a matter of finding your happy place for about 30-40 minutes of constant pressure on the legs.  I managed to hold a consistent wattage for most of the climb and was happy to peak and head downhill.  The speedometer ticked up to 48 mph on the way down...as I got close to home I went over a patch of gravel/dirt and quickly realized that in the process my rear wheel flatted.  Fortunately I was close to home and was able to ride all the way in...but the bike sits in the garage with a flat tire.  Both bikes will be requiring some lovage over the next couple of days so that they don't take out their hostilities on me...must take care of bikes so they take care of me (theoretically).

Erin's friend Nicole came up to visit from Denver on Sat a.m.  She flew in to Bozeman and then drove to Butte.  By the time I finished my ride, her and Erin were already out and about.  We miss our friends in Denver and it is always more apparent when we spend time with them. 

Evel Knieval Days were in full regalia this weekend in Butte.  We managed to avoid the crowds and mayhem by just avoiding the whole sordid event.

Sunday rolled around and the weather was supposed to tickle the 90's on the thermometer.  I made plans to get out early on the singlespeed with Sean and go ride part of the Nez Perce CDT trail.  We got out early enough such that the heat was not too bad, but the price to pay for the early-ish start was a battle with swarms of hungry mosquitoes.  We quickly got moving in order to avoid the little bastages!  Before we rolled I noticed that one of my pedals was toast...I must have hit a rock while riding in Rattlesnake and the eggbeater pedal now looks like a beaten up trashed piece of scrap metal.  We persisted and managed to ride regardless.  Sean was on his new Tallboy and was enjoying the trails.  It ended up being a nice mellow ride and it was good to get 3 days of solid rides in.

Time to head out to dinner with the wifer and Nicole - with a little luck there will be little collateral damage to the town from Evel Knieval's legacy and festival.

Puffery Schwag & CDT Therapy

We are finally getting caught up with laundry and as I pull things out of the dryer and see the schwag from the Puff, there are brief moments of nostalgia (it was all of 10 days ago but somehow suffering through an event like that makes it seem like eons ago - it might have something to do with repressing the agony and a touch of denial). 
The schwag was OK considering the entry fee - nothing special, nothing too disappointing...you get to a point where you have way too many event t-shirts and the fact is that living in Montana means you will not have a big window to wear said tee's. 

The schwag kit included the Puff T-shirt, socks, water bottle and if you were lucky enough to finish:  a finisher hat. 

The absurdity of it all is that you pay $200+ to endure the suffering (not to mention the countless hours training and suffering in fear of not suffering too badly on event day - notice the use of the word 'event' as opposed to 'race' as there are only a select few freaks of nature who are able to maintain 'race pace' for that long)....back to the absurdity though - the whackiness is you pay a high entry fee and then you somehow feel excited about minimal schwag that comes with signing up and finishing.  The reality is you could take the entry fee and buy yourself some nice upgrades on the bike...but instead we pay money to suffer...to each their own I suppose...

Once again the lovely backyardigans were in sesh last night...I got some much needed CDT trail therapy last night.  It was rather uneventful and was just a very very enjoyable ride...until you stopped at the car and the mosquitos swarmed. 

So why was therapy in order???  Our WT (white trash...although now that I think about it, calling them white trash might actually be insulting white trash) neighbors have been in rare form as of late.  Between the house getting egged and all around loud bufoonery late at night, it has been a little much.  The teenager's friends have been over the last few evenings and have been making themselves loud and obnoxious...the bag of tricks includes honking horns, setting off car alarms, yelling, cranking tunes, more yelling, throwing a basketball around...all this at about 11 at night.  Monday night finally wore me down and I went out to go talk to them.  I asked them to keep it down to which they promptly responded that it was not them it was their friends in the car....I told them they were part of the problem yelling, screaming, etc...I went over and knocked on the car windows and quickly heard this giggling and scrambling inside the car....me thinks they might have been acting a little naughty naughty!  Despite my frustration I had the internal giggle going as they were scrambling to make themselves 'presentable'. 

The noise subsided and all was good on Wall Street once again...until I woke up and let the dogs out...and noticed someone had dropped a chicken bone in our yard...normally I would not think twice about it but the fact was it looked like it was intentionally placed there...The scary thing is that chicken bones can do some serious harm to dogs if they chew them and swallow them (they splinter and end up puncturing things as it goes through the digestive system).  It might well be coinkydinky that I talked to the WT team the night before and the very next morning I found the chicken bone gift...or maybe not.  Given the repeat offender history, it certainly adds a touch of paranoia into the mix.

2 words: Surveillance Camera
2 more words: Short Leash

I did call the Butte PO-PO to inform myself of noise ordenances...they edumacated me about how they don't have a noise ordinance but they do have a disorderly conduct umbrella that this falls under...they get a warning the first time then a citation the next...hopefully it will be enough of a deterrent to stop the douchebaggery (doubtful though, hence the security camera strateeeegary)

Making Up, Thunderbolt Mtn, & Beached Jet Ski's

All in all it was a very productive weekend up here in Big Sky land.  Saturday was filled with errands, errands, errands, and errands.  I even managed to squeeze in a trip to Bozeman to pick up the floor for the Airstream.  We ended up going with vinyl planks that look like bamboo.  There are a few to-do's to get through on the Airstream this week so we can take it up to Missoula on Friday to get worked on (fridge, etc). 

Saturday morning started with getting on the trainer and doing a spin while watching the Tour Day France (Bob Roll impersonation - where is he this year on the Tour?)  The Bob-ski always used to provide some great insight and entertainment.

It feels as though there are several balls in the air of life right now.  The challenge is to keep juggling without dropping any of them. 

The bike and I are back on speaking terms and we made up in fine fashion yesterday.  I had been wanting to go up to Thunderbolt Mtn and do some exploring for a while.  Yesterday seemed like the prime window to get out and recon the area.  I had mentally prepped for a 2 hour ride...a nice easy pace, exploring new territory.  It turned into a 5 hour epic with some excitement thrown in the mix.

It started off innocently enough...got in the car headed up I-15 to the Bernice exit and the adventure began.  I searched on-line, through our guidebooks, etc and was not able to come up with where the trail-head started.  I figured it could not be that difficult right??  I ended up parking the car off one of the pull-outs on the dirt road.  I passed a few camp-sites and then saw a pull-out where a few trucks were parked that had trailers hitched with four-wheelers & dirt bikes.  In my mind it was a good indication that there were trails around.

I parked and then started the journey...in the spirit of true exploration (or ignorance) I saw a few dirt roads/4 wheeler trails shoot of the main road and decided to take those...I got turned around pretty quickly when I realized that could not possible be said Thunderbolt Trail...so back to the road and on to the next spur...repeat...  Whilst on the road I came upon a Caddy Escalade parked in the middle of the road...as I got closer I realized it had a trailer behind it with a jet-ski on it...but the trailer was not attached and the jet ski was on terra firma...I REALLY wanted to take a pic but the owner was in the car and it would have been a weee bit rude.  I stopped to ask if she needed help and she responded that her hubby was on the way...it was pretty funny to see the apparatus on dry ground - reminded me of a turtle on its back with its little legs walking on air trying to right itself...so onwards (although I have no idea how any through traffic got by given how her beached jet ski was smack dab in the middle of the road).

 I finally came to a larger camp-site and took what was a dirt road from there.  By sheer luck it put me at the Thunderbolt Trailhead...woohoo! 

The trail started off with a cool little bridge across the first creek crossing.  Everything was really green and lush.  The trail had a couple of spots where the ground was still soft from moisture but all in all it was in great shape.  About a mile or so in I came to an area where all the trees died...it was a little strange to see all those trees down like that...maybe some sort of down-draft or something?  I continued pedaling through some tekkie sections which smoothed out after about the first mile.  Another 3 miles in and you came upon Cottonwood Lake. 

Another mile or so in is where the options started to open themselves up.  There is a junction and it gives you an option to either take the CDT north or south.  I ended up taking the option that would take you up to Thunderbolt Mtn.  At this point, all the stars were aligned and everything still made sense....

After about another 4 miles of pedaling on what was now trail # 329, you came up on another junction...you could stay on 329 which would take you further north or divert off on 328 which would take you up to the junction with 330 which would take you to Thunderbolt Mtn peak area....but I digress....when taking the 328 trail, it dropped you about 1,000 ft back into the meadows and then the lonnnnnnnnnnng grind up would start....It was roughly a 2,000 ft climb from the bottom of 328 to the top of 330.  At this point I was out of water and calories and the heat was taking its toll. 

I passed a pack of 4 who were on mules and packed in a picnic...I asked them how much further to the 'top'...they responded that it was still a ways and asked me where I was going...they also volunteered that where I was going was a loooooong way away.  This was not what my feeble body and mind needed to hear as I was pretty much out of water and calories...it would be time to take the cautious approach.

At the junction to Thunderbolt, the sign said it was 4 miles to the peak...I rode 4 miles and still the trail continued to climb up up up...after about 5 miles I started to wonder if I was on the right trail.  At some point the Forest Service must have decided to change the signs on trail # 330 and to call it the CDT....hmmm

After much groveling, grumbling & whining I finally peaked Thunderbolt Mtn at about 8,400 ft.  At this point I thought my troubles were behind me and that it would be all downhill on the way back.  Little did I know that the map that I had and the numbering/naming on the signage would not match up!  DOH....DOUBLE DOH!  At this point I was pretty fried and was just looking to make it back to the car.  I was about 3 1/2 hours into the ride and the body was telling me it was not very happy.

I pointed downhill and came up on a junction that did not map to anything that I had on my map.  Apparently either the map was wrong, or they decided to change the numbers on the trails.  I took a chance and took the turn that 'felt' right to me.  After about 4 miles of dirt road descent it put me out on another junction that was also NOT marked on the map.  I stayed on what looked like the main road and eventually saw a road number that did match to my map.  At this point I had zero confidence that the map was right but had nada to lose.  Fortunately it turned out to be the right choice as it meandered downhill for another 1.000 ft of elevation loss and spit me back out on the main road where the adventure began...it was then a quick spin back to the car and all was well again.

When I got back home I weighed myself out of curiosity (knowing I had probably shed some serious water weight) and was a little shocked to see that the ride shed about 7 pounds of water weight!!! no wonder the body was telling me it was not happy.

I spent the rest of the afternoon trying to re-hydrate and wallow in my self-induced pain.

It ended up being a 5 hour ride, 36 miles, and about 6,000ft of elevation gain. 

The upside is that I feel like I barely scratched the surface of what is out there and there is a ton more to explore - although I would feel better exploring with someone else in the event anything happened as I can't help but think that no one would find you for months if anything were to happen...

Cascade Cream Puff Race Report

Race Day was on Sunday July 11th.  We arrived in Oakridge the Friday preceding and drove around trying to find a camp-site that would be quiet and give us a place to unwind for the evening.  We found a campsite by Salmon Falls - the actual established campsites were full but we were able to find a primitive site just down the road.

The idea was to camp out on Friday night and then make our way over to the school in Westfir where race headquarters were.  They allowed people to camp out at the school so we set up our new camp at the school.  We did not have a lot of privacy as people started to take all available lawn areas and converted them to make-shift camp-site.  It was a great way to meet your neighbors and get to meet new people.  I was originally concerned about the dogs meandering into neighbor's sites but they were so exhausted from the prior week's activities that they did not stray far and more or less just wanted to hang around our site.

I checked in for the race on Saturday and sat in for the obligatory race mtg...nothing earth shattering during the rider mtg.

I had geared up on the single-speed to a ratio of 33:19, thinking that it would give me a little extra wiggle room as I had been riding 33:18 all season.

Riders started to line up around the starting area at about 4:50 in preparation for the neutral start.  The race got off promptly at 5:05 a.m. on Sunday.  It was a mellow pace for the first couple of miles and then the neutral lead-out started to pick up which left many of the single-speeders spinning and bouncing down the road.

We hit the first forest service road which is when the race really started.  Once we hit the road the race was on like Donkey Kong!  The road signalled a long 10 mile climb with about 4,000ft of elevation gain.  The first 4 miles were steep and sustained and then it let off.  All those gearies that took off at the start were now getting reeled in for us single-speeders.  The legs felt great and I kept a comfortable pace where I could still hold a conversation while climbing.  I mention this because I ended up riding with a couple of other single-speeders on the climb and we got to find out a little about each other.  After 8 miles of forest road climbing we found the first aid station (which is actually aide station 2).  I left my drop bag at this station because we would end passing it 4 times during the day.   The climb to the aid station was long and sustained and I knew it was going to be a HOT day so I had made sure to start hydrating from the start.  It was a humid morning and the body got lathered up quickly with sweat......I quickly swapped out water bottles at the aid station and kept moving on. 

It was another couple miles of climbing and then some ridge riding until we hit the next aid station.  We were now close to about 5,000 ft  (having started at 1,000ft).  When we got views, they really opened up and you felt like you could a long way.  We hit aid station 3, I swapped out water bottles again and then it was into the single-track.  At this point we were still somewhat bunched up and we got a little bottle-necked in the singletrack.  Fortunately people were thoughtful and let you pass if you mentioned something.  The singletrack was tight so the only way to get around people was if they pulled over and let you by. 

We quickly got spit out into more forest service road and it was time to do more climbing up to saddleback mtn trail that we would loop 3 times over the duration of the race.
We did a small 7 mile loop and back to aide station 3 where it was time to swap out water bottles again.  I squeezed another bottle in my shirt pocket and then started on the larger 14 mile loop (which would loop back into aid station 3 again).  At this point my stomach started to tell me it was not very happy or settled so I quit drinking the Hammer Perpetuem and decided I would try to use what was at the aid stations - I would battle this feeling over the next few hours until the rest of the body ached enough to make me forget about the minor inconvenience of an upset stomach.

The 14 mile loop was more of a grinder as we would descend trail all the way back down to 3,000 ft and then have to climb back up to the race peak of 5,000 ft.  I passed a few people on the descent and then hit the forest service road where there was more descent...once the grade let up, the geared bikes started to pass again and I would play this yo-yo game with a small crew for most of the day. 

We grinded the 2,000 ft back up to the top of saddleback mountain and then back down to aid station 3 where it was time to re-stock on water and then hit my favorite trail of the day: Alpine trail!!!!!  Alpine trail had a couple of grinder climbs on it but then treated you to a few miles of fun, fast, swoopy downhill......MMMM MMMM GOODNESS!!!  When I was able to peel the eyes off the trail for a brief moments to take it all in, I was amazed by what I saw....imagine riding through old growth rain forest where trees are on average 8-10 ft in diameter with tight singletrack to boot!  It ranks up there with some of the best trail I have ever been on.  What a treat!!!  When it was not in lush rain forest, the trail took you through high meadows where the single track was 12 inches wide at its widest point and ferns and grasses constantly grew over some of the trail. 

Once you peaked at 5,000 ft it was time to point the bike downhill and descent 4,000 ft back down to the race finish area...the only problem was that Alpine Trail still had a little climbing in store before the long downhill.  At the end of Alpine trail, the race took us back to Aid Station 2 where I loaded up on water again and pointed the bike downhill for about another 9 miles of steep descent via north fork trail...still had about 3,000ft of downhill to enjoy.

I got down to the bottom and the lower in elevation I got the hotter and hotter it was getting.  When you got to the bottom of the trail at the next Aid Station it was scorching and the only thing I could think of was that long 10 mile climb back up on forest service road (same one we had started on) to the high trails....I stocked back up at the Aid Station and was in for a RUDE awakening when I realized all the liquids were warm!  DOH...all I was jonesing for at the time was something (anything) cold - no dice.  I quickly got over it and got moving.  The sooner I started moving, the sooner the I would get the long climb out of the way.

At this point I was 6 1/2 hours into the race and it was somewhere between 85 and 90 degrees.  This was brutal as I had been used to training in the 60's. 

The second time up the 10 mile grinder really put the hurt on me.  It was hot and I knew the first few miles were steep and sustained.  It was the heat of the day and we were in direct sun-light for big chunks of the climb.  This is when the mind games start to come into play!  I would pick visual goals of riding point A, B, C , etc....I would move over to the side of the road that was somewhat shaded.  Anytime I hit the direct sun my body would just start to heat up so I would dismount and walk the bike for a bit...this game continued and miles2-3 on that climb tested my will and I had to dig deeeeeep.  At this point my goal was getting back up to Aid Station 2 where I could re-load and get a little recovery before the next mental obstacle.  Now it was time for the geared guys to pass me as they could get into the light gears and keep spinning.  People would pass and ask if I was OK, etc...all in all people were very friendly and courteous.

Like a mirage, I hit mile 4 along the climb and saw a mini-aid station there!!!Woohoo!  It was so hot that the organizers had put in a mini-station 1/2 way up the first part of the climb to make sure people had enough fluids, etc.  I re-loaded up on water, poured a cup of really cold water on my head and it had an immediate impact on cooling me off.  I mounted back on the torture machine and motivated myself by reminding the body that the next 4 miles were not as steep or sustained as what we had just persevered through. 

Aide Station 2 came into view and surprise surprise I saw Erin there with the 2 pups.  I was BEAT BEAT BEAT at that point and took some time to load up at aid station 2 and swallow a few endurolytes tablets and stock up on more of those in my pouch for the next few hours. 

It has take me a full hour longer to get up that climb than it did the first time through - talk about suffering.

More grinding back up to Aid Station 3 and then onto the long loop to saddleback mountain...the major mental obstacle now the long, steep 2,000 ft climb back to the top of saddleback...more of the same dance of gearies passing me (same ones I had passed on the descent)...the yo yo dance continues until the top of saddleback at which point I knew I would be able to finish the race.  We got kicked back out to Aid Station 3 and then back on to my favorite trail Alpine...sorta' staggered through it and got through those 2 pesky grinder climbs and now it was time to have fun and enjoy the downhill!!!

In looking at my split times I got downhill 10 minutes faster the second time around.  My hands were so tired of braking that I would just let 'er rip downhill.  It was awesome to reel in the full suspension geared guys on my hard tail single-speed - just letting gravity to its work! 

I ended up crossing the finish line and was very satisfied to get through the day - it took 13 hour 39 minutes but was worth every moment.  Big Thanks to Erin for all the support - she had her hands full with 2 dogs all day!

I rode my singlespeed with the fork locked out all day so I was essentially riding a rigid bike (but carrying the extra 2 lbs in weight of the sus fork).  In hindsight I learned that I could probably afford to gear up to a 33:20 ratio on the bike as the only place I felt spun out was the beginning of the race and that would be more than off-set all the climbing. 

The race profile said there was about 17,000 ft of elevation gain over the 100 miles.  My Garmin ran out of batteries at about mile 70 but the data points say we had done about 16,000 ft of climbing to that point and as per my calcs there was at least another 5,000ft of climbing after that so either my Garmin was way off (known to happen in the past) or the race profile was a little off.  Regardless, it was a lot of climbing and a long day in the saddle that always provides a perverse sense of accomplishment for being able to suffer...and we pay for this to boot!

My bike and I are not currently not on speaking terms but I hope to kiss and make up by the end of the week....what to sign up for next??

Back in Montana

It has been a while since the last update and updates there are....

We got back to Butte on Monday night after leaving Oakridge early in the morning.  It turned out to be a 14 hour drive back from Oakridge.  All in all, the trip was a really nice break from the usual routine.  Oakridge has some unbelievable riding!!!  It ranks right up there with the best riding I have ever done.  Imagine riding through Oregon old growth rain forest where everything is green and old growth trees 10 ft in diameter.  The higher trails are at around 5,000 ft and the valley floor is at around 1,000 ft so when you get a panoramic view it really opens up into some awesome vistas...will come back to the riding in a bit (or maybe the next update).

Our drive through Montana, Idaho, Washington, & Oregon gave me a new appreciation for just how diverse our landscape is.  We went through these beautiful rolling hills in E Washington on the way to Bend.  As we got closer into South Eastern Washington we noticed that there were a lot of windmills that dotted the landscape.  We soon realized why there were so many windmills as the truck started to get blown around on the road.  We drove through 2-3 hours of high winds, worked our way through SE Wash and NE OR to get to Bend. 

Throughout, the dogs remained very patient and turned out to be great travelers...then again they had their home doggy beds and got to sprawl out in the crew cab.  This was Otis' first long roadie and camping trip so we were curious to see how he was going to do.  We stopped along the way so they could stretch their legs and smell the new scents of road trip!  

They quickly settled into their new digs and got comfy while doing some extended checking of their eyelids for leaks.  When we finally got to Bend they were anxious each time we stopped in the hopes that this was the stop that they were going to get out and finally be out of their car.  Unfortunately for them, our trip to Bend entailed several stops and they would hang in the car with either Erin or I (depending on who had to go into a store, etc)...Otis showed great concern each time Erin or I would disappear into a store, but like magic we would re-appear and his tail would start to wag joyously.  I am constantly amazed at just how different Moby and Otis' personalities are.  Otis is much more overt and bubbly while Moby was always much more subdued and more of a thinker.  I am curious to see how whether Otis will mellow out and be closer to what Moby is or whether is will always remain his goofy self.  Regardless, we are blessed to have them both and not a day goes by that they don't put a smile on my face.

While we were in Bend, the Och's came down to play from Portland!  We had a great time catching up and I am amazed how cool their son Connor is.  He is very sophisticated for a 3+ yr old!  We visited Powell's store while in Bend and were quickly all taken back to our childhood.  They have an awesome collection of candy that I have not seen in 20+ yrs (or since the last time we were in Powell's). 

After hanging in Bend, we bolted down to Oakridge for the Cascade Cream Puff...will post another entry on the race...the short version is that it was HoTT but I managed to survive and finish.

When we returned to Montana we unloaded and I quickly realized that our house had been egged yet again.  The little loser punk neighbor kid has nailed us twice now.  The first time was our new truck and our fence...this time it was our bedroom window and high up on one of the gables on the overhang of the roof.  It sure was a buzkill coming back from a nice vacation to discover the white trash neighbors had struck again.

HoTT

Apparently Summer has arrived and it broke from one day to the next.  We got to Bend in perfect mid 70's temperatures but it did not last for all but one day until it got dialed up a few notches.  It has been in the 90's the last couple of days and it is a drastic change compared to the 60 degree temps we came from.

We are slowly getting the lay of the land here in Central Oregon.  We went on a house tour yesterday with our realtor to scope out potential future homes...or if we are being honest with ourselves, we are really just filtering down the areas of town where we would want to move to.  It is easy to get excited about the future of moving here but the reality is that we still have some time before Bend comes calling our name.  However it is really good to do some homework and figure out where we want to look.

Tapering has been going well.  I got out on the bike on Tuesday and it felt like the bike was more or less pedaling itself.  It has something to do with the terrain too but the legs felt fresh and snappy - sure hope that  feeling holds until Sunday for the Puff.  It will be a long day in the saddle with high temps.

My intention was to come out and play while out here but unfortunately work has kept me at bay in the mornings.  It is all good though....as a consultant, you take the work when you can get it because there are no guarantees about longevity of contracts, etc...

Jon and Natasha and Connor all came down from Portland to hang for a couple of days.  They got to town yesterday afternoon and we promptly met up at Zydeco for some fine cuisine.  The dinner was great.  It was a little on the spendy side but we are on vacation and we don't get an opportunity to eat out much while in Butte so we want to take full advantage of the options for food.  After dinner we went down to Powell's where they have gobs and gobs of candy/toys from by-gone eras.  We got Connor a slinky and he quickly put himself to the test of figuring out what sort of fun stuff he could make it do.  The store definitely took my back a few years.  Erin spotted a Miss Kitty lunch box and snatched it up - this way, her sandwiches won't get squashed (or so she says).

All in all it has been a very pleasant trip so far.  We are looking forward to seeing the Och's again and hopefully also hanging with some other friends who live in town.  Tonight will be our last night here at our vacation rental which has been amazing!  We are in a great location and it will be a bummer to have to pack up tomorrow morning and hit the road to Oakridge.  I need to get my 19T cog swapped out before leaving though so there will be a couple of quick errands before pointing towards Oakridge.

tick tock tick tock - Cream Puff

Drive Time and Bend-Dreaming

After 2 days of long hours in the car, we made it to our primary destination: Bend, Oregon...woohoo!

The good news is the weather has been amazing...the bad is that it is going to get hot, which does not bode well for the Cascade Cream Puff...as of right now they are calling for mid to upper 80's on race day and that will seem like a heat wave compared to our cold wet spring in Montana.  I will have to be extra careful to make sure to stay hydrated and full of endurolytes....just another variable to throw into the wrinkle mix on race day.

We had a nice trip out.  We left on Saturday at about mid-day via Missoula, Spokane and then due south into SE Washington and NE Oregon.  There was fresh snow on the top of the East Ridge in Butte when we left on Saturday - in July!!!  The terrain through SE Washington was really cool - lots of rolling hills made up crops of wheat, dry peas, and lentils.  In some points, it almost felt like Kentucky...sans the white wooden fences and horses.  

We spent Saturday night at a State Park that had a few camp-sites open.  After we settled in, we figured out why all the open camp sites were bunched together.  The group closest to us had about 8 cars and soon enough started to crank their mariachi music - it was fun for a while but then it started to get old as the hootin' and hollerin' continued and the mariachi tunes were accompanied by bad out of tune voices.  Fortunately the camp host went over and quietened them down and it was somewhat uneventful for the remainder of the night.

It was Otis' first camping trip (and extended road trip stuck in the car).  All in all he is doing OK.

After our mariachi night, we decided we wanted a more serene camping experience for Sunday night so we went out of our way to find a camp site what was off the beaten path in the hope that it would thin out the herds.  We ended up camping in the Mahleur Wilderness and although we did have neighbors it was nothing of the sort like on Saturday.

We got up early and hit the road with Bend on our minds.  We carved our way through Eastern Oregon and the John Day Fossil Beds through multiple National Forests until we got to Prineville, then Redmond, and finally Bend.  We got here mid-morning and spent the day putzing around town and taking in the sights.  We currently have a 'short list' of places to eventually live, Bend is right up there - plenty of climbing, riding, snow sports, etc etc.  It has everything we enjoy doing and the economy has hit it with a sledge hammer so the housing prices have been hit especially hard.  The problem is that we are still 2 years away from that day but we are just continuing to do our homework so that we are prepped for when that time comes.  In the interim there is plenty to think about with tapering, stressing about the weather on race day, and exploring the area....onwards

Packing and Prepping

Friday....and it feels so good.  We are going to hit the road tomorrow and start our travels heading west.  The plan is to leave at leisure on Saturday morning and drive somewhere into Idaho/Eastern Washington/Eastern Oregon and camp for the evening...then drive a little further on Sunday and do the same somewhere in Eastern Oregon with the intent of arriving in Bend on Monday.  We will stay in Bend Monday through Friday and then leave for Oakridge on Friday to scope out a good camp site, etc for the race.  There is no hotel availability for the Cascade Cream Puff...
As for the race...

From what I have been able to figure out, the long climb in the beginning is mostly on forest road...am anticipating that the crux will be getting through that 4,000ft wall on the 2nd lap, as well as the next 2,000ft climb.  They still are going to add some mileage to the course to meet the 100 mile mark and it probably means it will add something to the already existing 16,000 ft of climbing for the day.

My bike currently has a 33 x 18 gear ratio and I will probably gear up to a 33 x 19 (will need to find a 19 tooth cog in Bend) in order to give myself a little extra wiggle room on that second lap as the legs get tired.  There does not appear to be much in terms of flat terrain so there is no concern for being spun out on the singlespeed.  I am shooting to finish it and if I get across the finish line, am hoping for a 13 hr day in the saddle...but who knows how the legs will respond

I have a little maintenance yet to do on the bike...will probably clean it up a little more and swap out the handlebars and grips with a carbon bar and the comfy Ergon grips that will reduce pressure on the ulnar nerve...

The race website does not yet have the course profile up but fortunately there are people who have ridden this year's course and have GPS'd it.  The course will be 2 laps on a roughly 50 mile course.

Some of the riding in the area looks really amazing and I am hoping the suffering will be less noticeable because of how inspiring the terrain is.
Puff - Winberry Trail
Puff - Alpine Trail
Puff -SaddleBlanket Trail

Now off to watch Brazil-Netherlands World Cup game...mmmm....coffee on a Friday watching the Cup!

"Why Hello There Taper"

Ride updates.....Monday was the proverbial day OFF!  Tuesday and Wednesday were supposed to be my last 2 somewhat hard efforts before the taper begins for the Puff.  Tuesday's weather foiled my plans when I got to the trailhead and the thunder/lightning/rain started to unload.  It ended up being a 1 hour effort on the indoor trainer trying to keep constant pressure on the pedals for the full hour...not fun, but necessary.

Wednesday also threatened with dark skies and spotty areas of rain.  As I drove out to the trailhead, I could see that it had just rained as the roads were starting to dry.  Fortunately the trails locally dry up very quickly due to their being made up of decomposed granite.  I headed out to the East Ridge and the plan was to ride the CDT to the ended where the trail fizzled into bushwhacking above Maude S trail. 

The beginning of the trail is really steep....especially on a singlespeed.  You gain about 1000 ft in about 2 miles and there are sections where you have to dig deep to keep moving and not dab the feet on the ground.  I kept tell myself this was the last hard ride before tapering and to keep moving.  I eventually made to the sign that indicated Maude S was 3 miles below us somewhere through brush, down trees, etc...Considering the return leg was 9 miles, and mostly downhill with about 2,000 ft of fast, swoopy singletrack, it was a no brainer to crest back up to the highpoint and then bomb downhill back to the car. 

The turn around point was pretty close to Our Lady (If you look carefully, you can see her on the right side of the pic). 

The sun was starting to set and my mind kept playing tricks on me reminding me that there was a Grizzly Bear (yes, a grizz!!) that was shot a couple of weeks earlier about 3 miles north of where I was....not to mention the cat sightings...I tried to put it out of my head and take time to enjoy my surroundings...

There is plenty of rock to explore in the area.  I am constantly juggling between trying to keep my eyes on the trail, and scoping out opportunities for climbing/bouldering.  The problem is most of the bouldering is not very easily accessible so it is always more of an fyi to store in the back of the file cabinet for the future.  It was a nice ride back to the car and once I loaded up I kept reminding myself how the Cascade Cream Puff is only 10 days away and not it is time to taper and reap the bennies of all the training.  It was an 18 mile day with a little less than 3,000 ft of climbing.  The legs felt tired at the beginning but seemed to warm up a little about 2 hours into the ride. 

I got home to see Erin leaning up against the cabinet in the bathroom and hugging the porcelain throne.  She must have gotten some nasty little bug because she looked really pale.  Her med students cooked her and her colleagues dinner last night as a thank you for all the mentoring throughout the past month.  I joked that maybe she got them fired up and they gave her some food poisoning as payback!  My attempt at humor quickly backfired as she quickly corrected me and told me food poisoning would not happen the fast...so I got paranoid thinking it might be a bug and the last thing I needed was to contract a nasty bug prior to race day (especially since one of her colleagues has been hit hard with a virus this whole week...including having to get fluids!)....it was time to hit the medicine drawer and load up on Echinaccea and Vit C as a precaution....and just to err on the side of caution I spent the night on the couch.  Fortunately Erin felt much better today so hopefully that bodes well for the immune system.

Did I mention it is time to taper????