Author: Mike Hassur
I had done a lot of thinking about RAMROD 2018 before the event. The weather forecast predicted temperatures in the 90's which suggested that this had the potential to be a grueling (or gruesome?) experience. Given that forecast, there was no way this RAMROD was going to be about speed for me. It was going to be about making sure that I ate and drank at a frequent and consistent rate. For example, the first water/snack stop was Eatonville which was 36 miles from the start. My plan was to drink both bottles by the time I had reached Eatonville and to drink at least one to two bottles between subsequent water stops (depending on the time between those stops). Also, I planned to eat food/snacks at any stops that had food (in addition to the 16 "goo packs" that I was carrying).
Leon and I drove together to Enumclaw with the intention of meeting Les, John, and Adam at the starting line around 5:10 AM and beginning our ride around 5:15 AM. We arrived in Enumclaw, parked at McDonald Park, unpacked our bikes and rode to Thunder Mountain Middle School to find Les, John, and Mike Smith waiting for us - but no Adam. When 5:15 AM arrived, still no Adam. We started the ride knowing that Adam would catch up with us.
It wasn't long before we found ourselves in a paceline consisting of the five of us plus a rider, Brian, who had travelled from Indiana to do RAMROD. Brian had a very distinctive helmet with numerous small white lights on the front and red ones on the back. There was no missing him.
Our group proceeded at a brisk and comfortable pace through Buckley and South Prairie. I believe that it was between South Prairie and Orville Road that a group moving significantly faster passed us. Since I was in "energy conservation mode", I wasn't keen on following this faster group; but one of our group said "let's catch on" and away we went. We were moving pretty fast and passing other groups (sometimes passing those other groups with vehicles coming behind us). This went on until the left turn onto Oreville Road near Orting. Leon lost control and crashed while making the left turn (his crash was due to a front tire that deflated rather suddenly). Our group stopped to help Leon and to wait while his tire got changed. It was during this stop that Adam caught us. He stopped and waited with us until Leon was ready.
After Leon's tire was repaired, our group took off again. We stayed together past Lake Kapowsin, Lake Ohop, and into Eatonville. In Eatonville, Leon and Mike Smith kept going while the rest of us stopped to refill water bottles and hit the bathrooms. Les, John, Adam, and I rode together (sometimes with other groups and sometimes just our group) until we reached the food stop just east of Ashford. After a quick stop at the food area, we were back on the road.
When we entered the national park, John and Adam went on ahead while Les and I made our way up together. It didn't seem like we were going very fast, but we seemed to be passing a lot of people on the climb to Inspiration Point. During that climb to Inspiration Point, I was going a little faster than I should have been. Les and I had passed quite a few people when I realized that Les was no longer with me. I, also, realized that I was wasting energy that I would need later in the ride. I turned around, rode back to Les (who was only a short distance behind me), and made sure that I followed his pace the rest of the way up the climb. In retrospect, the decision to follow Les' pace may have been the difference between me finishing the ride and me not making it. Thanks, Les.
At Inspiration Point, we found Leon and Mike Smith. All four of us left together and headed to Reflection Lake and down through Stevens Canyon. The descent from Reflection Lake was uneventful though I didn't enjoy the scenery in Stevens Canyon as much as I usually do as I was intent on resting my legs and drinking fluids.
Les and I arrived at the Box Canyon food stop just ahead of Leon and Mike S. We hit the bathrooms, gobbled down some food and refilled water bottles. Leon and Mike S. left a little bit ahead of us, and we caught up with them just before beginning the ascent up the west side of Backbone Ridge. At this point of the ride, Leon was having significant problems with cramping in both legs and was talking about possibly abandoning the ride. I was certain that he was finished. Les, Mike S. and I rode together up Backbone Ridge and down the other side. Soon, we found ourselves beginning the climb up Cayuse Pass. Once again, even though we didn't seem to be going very fast, we seemed to be passing a fair number of riders and not being passed. Les and Mike S. seemed to be riding well, and I seemed to be doing okay considering the climb and the heat. We hit the water stop located about half-way up Cayuse which was none too soon for me as I needed the bathroom. I rushed into to "johnny on the job" and did my business only to discover - IT WAS OUT OF TOILET PAPER!! Shit (no pun intended)!!! I called out to Les to check the other toilet. It had toilet paper - whew!! We refilled our water bottles and headed up. At the top, it was a quick fill of a water bottle and we headed toward "the deli".
I believe that this descent of the north side of Cayuse Pass is the most dangerous thing that I do in RAMROD. We are tired and not processing information as quickly as usual after 110 miles and a ton of climbing, and we are heading off of a pass at close to 40 mph!! I thought about this as I descended and tried to be as alert and careful as possible. Thankfully, our descent was uneventful, and we were soon arriving at The RAMROD DELI. This stop was not quick. We ate sandwiches and cookies and drank V8 juice and soda. It was much needed. The whole time that we were at the deli, I had my eye on a group of riders in rainbow jerseys. I'm not sure if we arrived first or if they did, but I knew they were pretty fast and would be an ideal group to follow back to Enumclaw. As some of them moved toward their bikes, we got to our bikes and headed out. We got on the road ahead of them and soft-pedaled for a few miles before they caught us. We jumped in behind them, and things proceeded just as we had hoped. They were content to rotate through their group to lead the paceline leaving us to follow along at a fast (but manageable) speed. This arrangement could have and should have lasted all the way to the finish line, but it didn't. A couple of miles before Greenwater, we passed two riders who forced their way into the middle of the paceline. They, eventually, disrupted the paceline enough that the "rainbow jersey group" stopped to regroup with only their members leaving our group and the two riders who caused the problem to ride together. While following one of those riders, Mike S. and I hit a piece of debris in the road that the leading rider failed to point out. It caused Mike S. to blow a tire and caused us to lose probably 30 minutes. The silver lining to this fiasco was that Leon (who had not abandoned) caught up with us.
After Mike S. had repaired his tire, it was just the four of us all the way to the finish line. Even though I was tired and hot, it was enjoyable doing this last portion of the ride with the other guys. Before we knew it, we were on the Mud Mountain descent, and I knew we were almost done. What a nice feeling.
We crossed the finish line together. Instead of celebrating, all I wanted to do was get the van and head home.
Later, when I had a chance to think more about this ride, I realized how grueling this ride had been. Basically, everything had gone well (except for the flat tires in our group). I had done of good job of eating and drinking on a frequent basis, and I had no problem with cramps or bonking. Yet, in spite of things going nearly perfectly, I was really spent at the end of this ride and had very little left to give. In the end, I was just glad to be done.
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