2009 Ride

As I mentioned in the opening section of this blog, I rode the first leg of this journey in 2009.  That portion ran from Costa Mesa, CA to Albuquerque, NM.  It was seven days and 840 miles.  This year I will be starting again in Costa Mesa and retracing those seven days before continuing onto Georgia.  As I am training here in Bermuda, it is the memories of those grueling seven days that keeps me motivated and out on the road when I'd rather be at home (or pretty much anywhere else, for that matter).  We average 120 miles per day on those first seven days and climb a total of nearly six vertical miles.  There are a few descents in there as well, but I seem to mainly remember the endless hours spent grinding up those southwestern mountains.

I must admit that last year I did not complete all of the 840 miles.  I had problems on the second and fourth days.  On day two, I was suffering from dehydration and stomach cramps; I only rode about 40 miles that morning and the last 18 miles in the afternoon (which seemed like another 40).  My legs gave out on me about halfway through on day four, which has around 8700 feet of climbing.  Beginning on day five, I felt better and was riding stronger.  The last two days were about 135 miles each (back-to-back double metric centuries) and I was feeling like a pro by then.

The leader of the ride, Mike Munk, does an outstanding job of taking hundreds of pictures each day.  He then edits them down onto a CD and sends it to you after the ride.  Below are a few of his pics along with a description of the action (or lack thereof) in the picture.

Day 1

This is me being pulled up the hill by Linda, a very good cyclist from Tuscon.  I'd love to show you a pic of me setting the pace and Linda drafting behind me; unfortunately, I could find no such pic (mainly because that never happened).

Day 2

In retrospect, I can see the problem with day two.  We have to GET OVER THOSE FREAKIN' MOUNTAINS!

Day 3


We rode from Blythe CA to Wickenburg AZ and the scenery was pretty much like this the whole way (in other words, we went from nowhere to nowhere-else without a whole lot in between).

Day 4

Again ... what is the deal with all these mountains?





















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Day 5

Best day of biking ever!  I love this pic.  Note that the mountains are behind us (we climbed them earlier in the day).  Also, check out how much room that truck is giving me.  In Bermuda, I'd be the guy in between the semi and the Budget rental truck

Day 6

In case you hadn't noticed, we did a whole lot of riding along the interstate.  Out west, when it is the only road connecting two towns, cyclists are allowed to ride on the shoulder of the interstate.  Personally, I liked riding along the interstates.  The road surface conditions are usually pretty good and the climbs are somewhat gentle.  My top speed along the interstate was about 45 mph (downhill with a tailwind).

Day 7

This is "Ten-Mile Hill" just outside of Albuquerque.  I'm one of the riders way back in the distance.  I'm not sure the picture does a good job of conveying the steepness of the climb, and I was more than a little freaked out at this point.  I mean... I had just ridden 116 miles and now had to contend with ten miles of this?!  However, the hill is considerably shorter than 10 miles.  I subsequently learned that it is called "Ten-Mile Hill" because you can see it from at least ten miles away.  Seriously.

Along those lines... you should see the forty-foot TV in my living room.

Training

As has been the case all over the East Coast of the US, this winter in Bermuda has been terrible. The worst we can remember. Every storm coming off the States has picked up speed over the Atlantic and hit us hard. It actually started back in December when, on the 19th, we actually had a small tornado come over our house (see the article at www.weather.bm under Misc for details). Since then, it has been a relentless series of wet, cold days with gale force winds - a few times we have even reached hurricane force gusts.

The difficulty in training in Bermuda is not only the small size (about 21 square miles), but the narrow, twisting roads. Bermuda has a per capita road fatality rate that is twice that of the US and about three times that of the UK. That statistic is even more remarkable when you consider that we have a national speed limit of only 35 kph (22 mph). Our roads have no shoulders and are usually bounded by walls. I've had full-sized buses throttle pass me on a blind curve with me next to a 14 foot wall with only inches to spare on either side. Almost every long ride includes at least one close call; fortunately, I've only been hit by one car. I will say that the drivers in Bermuda are very friendly... just a bit reckless. If they hit you or you crash, they will always stop and check on you.

[Warning - excuses ahead]. My training has also be hampered by several trips to the US in January and February, as well as both the swine flu and strep throat. The bike was sidelined at the local bike shop for two weeks while critical parts had to be shipped in for a repair. The parts actually arrived on the island within a week... it just took another week to find where they had been delivered (hint: it was not the bike shop).

But now things are looking up. My bike parts have arrived, and I'm getting a full groupset upgrade (crank, gears, derailleurs, brakes, levers, etc.). The weather has improved. And while I've managed to put on a 10 pound layer of "insulation" since December, I feel good on the bike. My training rides typically vary in length from 36 miles to 71 miles. If you've ever wondered what a 71 mile bike ride looks like in Bermuda (and I know you have), then this map should help. It is my Garmin Edge GPS Cycle Computer data uploaded to Google Earth. You have to retrace your steps several times to get the 71 miles in a single ride.

The cross-country trip begins on April 17th - just a little more than a month left to go.