Author: Mark Delrosario
On the morning of Saturday May 24th a merry
bunch of Cyclopaths and our friends embarked on our annual Alder Lake Loop
ride. The group started out 20 cyclists
strong enjoying good company, perfect springtime weather and dry roads under
our wheels. We were 2-3 bikes wide
stretching 20-30 yards in length giving the feel of riding in a peloton. It took cars a little longer to pass. By the way, this is the largest group that I
have encountered in my 3 years riding with the Cyclopaths.
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| Heading out past the old mill just south of Orting |
Our starting pace from Orting via Orville Road to the
Kapowsin Highway intersection was a steady rollout. After the little hump to the intersection, we
turned left and the pace increased slightly as the profile of the road changed
to undulating terrain. Luckily for the
rest of us Rob dropped his coat and had to turn around for it. For those of you who have not had the good fortune
to ride with Rob, Rob has the powerful ability to pull the entire group at
crazy speeds. We all know Conor is
straight up fast but many do not know that Les is a silent assassin on the
bike. If the three of them and one of
our friends started to pull away, to be honest we might not have seen them
again until the end of the ride.
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| Martin, Scott, and Conor leading the "pelaton" |
After the customary stop at the boat launch, we hit
Highway 161 (Meridian) up to the right hand turn onto Ohop Valley Road. We traversed this quiet country road thru the
serene Ohop Valley and past Pioneer Farm.
Along the way, we might have encountered a possible moonshine deal as
two trucks hogged the road and forced us to pass single file between them. I recall some talk that they might have been
Scott’s distant relatives. Jack I and
Jack II if memory serves me right.
The majority of the group was still together but starting
to string out as we turned left onto Highway 7 (Mountain Highway). On Highway 7 the profile of the road starts
as an incline up to the Eatonville Highway T, then a small fast descent and
right hand bend before turning towards La Grande where the real climbing of the
ride begins. From there it is a 3-4 mile
stretch to the lookout point with a view of the La Grande Reservoir Dam. There happen to be several Strava segments in
this section. I see that many of us
either set personal records or had some of our strongest times. Congrats on the strong riding everyone. I used to worry that the fast GC guys would
be waiting at the top for a long time.
Riding with the Cyclopaths I have come to realize the quality of the
group makes you stronger and whether you like or dislike climbing you are
forced to embrace it and improve. 17 of
us survived the ride to this point and we took our traditional mid-ride
picture.
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| Viewpoint: Alder Lake Dam |
From the lookout point there is a descent to the left
hand turn onto Alder Lake Cutoff Road.
The peloton split up after the immediate rise and before I knew it the
GC guys took off in a paceline on the rolling terrain. I was caught in no man’s land for a short
while before Erik came charging from behind with his comrade. Erik was a monster and pulled us at 26mph for
a long stretch to Eatonville, where the GC guys were waiting, Rob had rejoined
the group and where the rest of us chasers reformed the peloton.
The unity was only to last so long on the return trip on
Orville Road as the paceline eventually dropped those of us not able to hold
the wheel. Mind you I am not fond of
Orville Road because of the chip seal.
Before we knew it we were back at the Orville Road – Kapowsin Highway
intersection for a stop and regroup.
Orange Shoes (Dr. Nick) and I started off early towards ‘The Climb’ up
Camp One Road. Speaking for myself if I
waited mentally I would not have stayed motivated. Best to start before you think about the
choice of going up the 5 mile Category 3 climb after 50 miles and tired
legs. We hit the base and progressed
upwards with a steady manageable pace where we could talk and not go into the
red. In our absence, we missed partaking
in the candid camera picture of the group's nature break. Our camera man always seems to sneak in one
of those pictures.
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| "Pee break" at the base of The Climb |
We encountered extra traffic for a Saturday morning. One in particular, a black truck with rims
was too nice to be a utility truck for the logging or gravel company. We would, eventually, come across the truck parked at the top. The driver, Travis, was out to enjoy the nice
day and the beautiful view of the valley and lake below. Later, he would be nice enough to be our
camera man and take a picture of the 18 of us still left in the peloton and a
selfie of his own.
Our breakaway survived thru mile 3 when I spotted
two
Cyclopaths in my mirror. Knowing we
started early, I had to give it a try to hold on to the end. Les and Rob caught me at mile 4 (aka Leon’s
mile). Les might not get as much
notoriety but he is up there in all the rides.
Conor was right behind with a half-eaten bacon maple bar doughnut he
stashed away from the bakery in Eatonville.
Watch out because when the sugar kicks in Conor gets a boost of
energy. Next to follow was Andy, Mr.
Randonneuring himself, who PRed on the Strava segment. The week before Andy did a 250 mile ride from
Seattle crossing into Canada and back.
That is an incredible feat of endurance.
By the top of ‘The Climb’, I could see Mike and Jim closing in
fast. Jim bought himself a new sleek
carbon fiber Cervelo. The new bike is a
stark contrast to his old school purple steel bike with down tube
shifters. I will miss seeing his old
ride. I can imagine that Jim now feels
like he is riding a state of the art Ferrari.
Like a mountain top finish, Cyclopaths and our friends trickled up to
finish at the top of 'The Climb.' While
the rest of us took a break, Leon and his OCD (Obsessive Climbing Disorder)
continued to ride around and gain additional elevation.
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| "Travis selfie" with Cyclopaths (and view) in backgroun |
A short story about ‘The Climb’ and the beginning of my
adventures with the Cyclopaths. I started cycling in the beginning of
2011. It was in December of that year
that I was out trying to get base miles in ahead of the upcoming season. As I humped over the Shaw road overpass I saw
two cyclists (Leon and Mike) turn towards the Orting Trail. It took me until McMillan to catch these
guys. We started talking and they asked
if I would be interested in heading out to Kapowsin with them. Little did I know that they were taking me
out to ‘The Climb.’ They shepherded me
up like Super Domestiques. Looking back
at Mike’s Strava time we did it in 33 minutes.
The time is not particularly great by any standard but the journey up
the hill is indicative of Mike, Leon and the rest of the Cyclopaths. At times it may feel discouraging to be
dropped and be the Lantern Rouge but when you ride with the group be assured a
Cyclopath is there to look out for you.
At the end of a ride there are always words of encouragement. ‘The Climb’ is a special place for us. It is like the Cyclopath's equivalent version
of a pilgrimage to Mecca or Jerusalem.
Mike and Leon paved the foundation for the rest of us to partake in a
brotherhood and face challenges together.
When I ride with our jersey I feel a great power from wearing our Orange
and Yellow colors.
Getting back to the ride, we hammered the descent and
began forming pacelines to head back to Orting.
I recall seeing Scott flying down a parallel road to join the fastest
four or five strong riders. They took
off and averaged 27mph from Electron to Highway 162. Amazing that he could do a 70 mile ride with
literally no recent miles under his belt.
The larger paceline that pursued was split by traffic with the lead
bunch averaging 25 and the handful of the remainder 24mph. We tried in vain to bridge the gap. However, there is something about seeing
bright colors up the road and knowing they are a carrot in front of you. Must be like a Bull seeing the color
red. By Orting we caught the tail end of
our original paceline rolling into the parking lot. By UCI rules we'd received the same time if
there is no break in the line of riders as they cross the finish line. Ha ha, been watching too much world tour on
the internet.
It is official.
Our second ride of the year is in the books. It was a fun time had by all. Thank you to everyone that joined us. You are welcome to our next Cyclopath
adventure.
To view this ride's video, do the following:
- Click on this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYqEo9eKuZQ
- Click on the "gear-like" icon at the lower right hand border of the video screen and select 1080p
- Take the video to "full screen" by clicking on the rectangular icon at the lower right corner of the video screen
- Turn on your speakers and enjoy
To view the photos associated with this ride, click on the following link: https://plus.google.com/photos/103821724300588557330/albums/6017533882576551905?banner=pwa
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