A blog for and by a group of certifiable and committed cyclists (aka, Cyclopaths) from the Puyallup, Tacoma, and Seattle area. Follow The Puyallup Cyclopaths' adventures as they ride in the mountains of the Northwest and beyond.
Cross season is here and with it comes a new addition to the race garage. This week I brought home a used cyclocross bike. The frameset is just right but the fit and some of the components are not. I'll need to marshal a number of parts to tune this machine into a winner. This is a call out to any Cyclopath who might want to clear out your unloved bike bits in exchange for some cash. I'll keep this list updated as my needs are met.
Need:
46mm wide handlebars
90 or 100mm stem with carbon friendly clamp and 10 or 17 degrees of rise
Campagnolo shifters 9/10/11 speed
Crank Brothers Eggbeater or Candy pedals
Lightweight saddle, 140 to 150 mm width
p.s. The image used above is an outtake from an Instagram photo session (https://www.instagram.com/p/Bawl9n4AXHB/). Expect the full reveal when the new bike is ready for prime time.
The
last Vicious Cycles Gran Fondo of 2017 was a tough one. The elevation
profile included ascending and descending and little else. The ride was
basically four climbs followed by four descents; a 5000 feet climb, two
1000 feet climbs, and a final 4000 foot climb. Those 11,000 feet of
climbing were compressed into about 55 miles of gravel roads and 35
miles of pavement.
Elevation profile shows lots of up and down and not much in between.
A late family schedule change resulted in my choice to leave our tiny
travel trailer at home and spend Friday night in my pickup truck. Camp
Nissan was not perfect but my rest was adequate and I was coffee'd up by
7 a.m. Most riders arrived after 7 and 'The Barn' parking lot, which
served as our staging area, was hopping with activity as we readied
ourselves.
Tire selection and pressure are always important at these events. The
Maxxis Ramblers in 40mm width worked well in a previous Gran Fondo and I
chose to run 39 and 42 p.s.i. this time around.
Without much extra time I wasn't able to warm up before the 8 a.m.
start and hoped for a long and slow neutral roll out. I probably wasn't
alone in hoping for a chance to warm up. Race promoter and neutral
driver Jake let us loose just a mile or two up the road and the peleton
did not respond. The speed increased only slightly over the first six
miles with a large number choosing to ride up front.
At about eight miles the course started to steepen. I chose an easy
pace and quickly watched the front of the peleton go up the road. Over
the next two miles I watched riders go by and estimated to be in about
50th position. At about twelve miles my legs were warm, my pace was
steady, and I found myself chatting it up with others.
By mile fifteen I had started to see a pattern that would continue
for the entire day. My climbing pace was just a tiny bit faster than
those around me. Slowly, one by one, I started to regain some of the
positions lost in the first five miles of climbing.
Over the next seventeen miles I climbed and descended and repeated.
The views were wonderful even on an overcast day. Each mile up was a
slow speed dance to avoid the loose soil and sharp rocks. The descents
were balance acts between speed and chain shaking bumps.
At 32 miles I crested the third climb and started the first long
descent. This descent started on gravel and transitioned to pavement,
included having to pass through an 'on road' cattle drive, and ended at
an event food stop in the two stop sign town of Conconully.
For me, the ride, until Conconully, had gone well. My legs were still
feeling fresh, I had avoided a puncture, and my water and food intake
was on schedule.
At the food stop the workers offered to fill my water bottles to
which I happily obliged them. I learned that there were only about a
dozen riders ahead up the road. This surprised me and also explained the
workers' sense of urgency. I grabbed food for the road and remounted
for the final climb.
The final climb starts paved and ends gravel. The final climb is 18
miles. The final climb is roughly 4000 feet of vertical. I estimated two
solid hours of work.
Only after climbing for an hour did I realize my mistake. The food I
chose in Conconully was mostly real food which generally is preferred by
my stomach. But I ate too much. Yes, I'd need those calories but my
system couldn't handle them all at once and it told me so. I also
realized that I didn't send adequate water after the Conconully stop.
Previous experience had informed me that my discomfort was temporary but
that it would last for much of the final climb. I saddled up for the
suffer.
Previous experience didn't prepare me for the cramp that started to
form in my right vastus medialis, a member of the quadriceps femoris
muscle group.
I nursed that cramp for 45 minutes. My right thumb went numb from
kneading the muscle. My right arm was sore after using it to assist my
right leg's down stroke. I dared not pedal out of the saddle as this
shortened my quad which invited more cramping. I slowed my pace and spun
a high cadence. I watched a strong rider go by. I didn't so much nurse
the cramp as I survived the cramp.
The first five miles of descent were on smooth gravel roads and I was
able to collect myself. I descended moderately and was able to exercise
a few quad stretches from the saddle.
The remaining gravel road descent miles were not so smooth. The
stutter bumps were, at times, dangerous. I passed a couple riders during
this section only to see them go back by when I stopped to remedy a
dropped chain. This process was repeated a second time, with the same
two riders, and when we reached the pavement just seconds separated the
three of us.
When the road straightened a bit we immediately began to work
together. Both riders were stronger than me and I thanked my lucky stars
that I was invited to the party. Their pulls were faster and longer
than mine. I gave everything I had as I knew I was getting the better
end of the deal. My goal was to earn enough 'cred' that they would let
me stay in to the finish.
The finish straight was flat, about two blocks long, and followed a
tricky downhill left hand cross traffic turn. At about four tenths of a
mile to go I warned the group that we were near this tricky corner and
then faded to the back. It was my intention that, if they needed to
sprint for the finish, I would be well out their way.
Leading up to the final turn our road was mostly quiet of cars. At
the tricky left we did encounter an oncoming pickup truck. The lead
rider slowed to let the truck pass and made a slow left hand turn onto
the final straight. The second rider needed to slow only slightly. The
truck was well past for me and, as I completed the left turn, we found
ourselves on equal position.
Only my good luck and their generosity placed me on par with just a
few hundred yards to go. I decided in that moment I would not initiate a
sprint. In that same instant the stronger of the two riders did
initiate the sprint and held that position to finish seventh. I trailed
the group to earn ninth of about 95 finishers. Quite respectable.
Sprint finish for 7th position. No tactics at play. The stronger riders just earned it. Photo courtesy of Vicious Cycles.
Since the finish I've reflected on my day and have been mostly
smiles. My pacing, not too fast on the first climb, worked well for me.
My comfort with riding gravel roads was invaluable. Too much food at
Conconully was a mistake. Knowing my body allowed me to adjust for the
mistake and salvage my first Gran Fondo top ten.
I've also had time to reflect on my Gran Fondo season. I completed
three of the five events in this series and enjoyed all three. This
reflection also revealed a pattern; the more gravel and climbing the
better I finished. I guess you can't take the dirt biker out of the
cyclist.
