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I've Got Something to Say
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| Ride Stats |
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Time: 07:15:20
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Distance:
116.99 miles
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Max Speed:
28.90 mph
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Avg Speed:
16.10 mph
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Route:
PAC Tour Central Transcontinental
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Weight:
0
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Category: training: general -
solo
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Terrain: Road: Hills
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Bike: Fuji Newest Road
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| Club: Commuter Cycling Century |
| Weather Conditions: |
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Our route today was fairly simple, as far as ‘maneuvers’ go. Starting in Blythe, CA, we were to head east on Hobsonway – the road our hotel is located on – for 4.4 miles. Follow the road as it bends right – more like a u-turn – that goes under I-10 and heads west about three tenths of a mile. Take the on-ramp to get onto I-10 East, go just over 31 miles and take the exit for Route 60. Stay on Route 60 for 80 miles until you arrive at the Best Western Hotel.
Right after getting onto I-10 we crossed the Colorado River and entered Arizona. The river was not as picturesque as you might think – like on a brochure for white-water rafting. Riding along the shoulder of I-10 was not too bad. Traffic would pass in spurts. The most un-daunting part of it was as we came across exits – do you take the exit and re-enter the other side, or dart across the exit lane and go under (in most cases) the crossroad’s overpass? Part of my rationalization for not taking the ramps was that it would mean more climbing (hills) – either on the exit side or the re-entrant side, either way there would be climbing. As I approached the first exit there was not traffic on I-10 behind me, so the choice was easy, but there was still the need to cross over the entrance lane on the other side, and as it turned out there was no merging traffic to negotiate – SUCCESS! The only exit I did take was exit #11 where a SAG vehicle was parked at the bottom of the off-ramp to refill bottles, etc.
The second rest stop was after we exited I-10 onto Route 60 and rode for about 4 miles. The road surface was not smooth – one of those roads where you would say "Ahhhhhh" and hear the vibrato in your voice forced by the vibration of the bike rattling down the road. It wasn’t real bad, just bad enough to impede smooth cycling. The rest stop itself (mile 40) was just out side a Country Store. Another cyclist, that went into the store to use the restroom, said that the attendant inside stated that the road is scheduled to be resurfaced – not soon enough. The rough surface only last a few miles after the rest stop. I took a couple pictures of a bird – probably a vulture – circling over the store and surrounding area.
The terrain was deceptive in determining whether we were ascending or descending, because it was so long (you could see the road for miles) and such a gentle slope. Some times the down slope was so gentle that I still had to peddle in order to keep my speed from declining. The winds were pretty much from the East (from my right), and were hampering for the first dozen or so miles after the second rest stop. Then the road curved to our left, and became somewhat of a tail wind, improving the speed of progress. About 7 miles after the second rest stop, I came across Howard (my roommate) on the side of the road changing a flat tire. I stopped and waited for him and we then worked together to get to the third rest stop. About five miles before the stop, my rear tire started loosing air – so we stopped and fixed it. About the time I was ready to start airing up the tire with my frame pump, the SAG vehicle from the second stop came by. Don, the driver, stopped and let me use a floor pump to air up the tire – much less work!! Then Howard and I made our way to the third stop (mile 61.5).
About five miles after leaving the stop, my rear tire started loosing air again. We pulled of into a gas station, and as I was finishing getting the tire back together to start airing it up, the SAG vehicle was coming by – they stopped, I used a floor pump and Howard got a couple of spare tubes in case we ran into trouble again, further down the road.
We had a good pace going (18-20 mph), making our way to the fourth stop (mile 82), which was also the lunch stop. Now I have heard some wonderful stories about PAC Tour’s Transcontinental lunch stops – the last two day’s have been good, but today was almost over the top. They were fixing grilled cheese sandwiches on a butane grill. They throw in a slice of tomato during the grilling process, and boy was it delicious? So delicious, Howard asked for and got a second one. Howard went ahead and left the lunch stop before I was ready – he didn’t want his legs to tighten up. When I left the stop I was the last one through (i.e. I was bringing up the rear).
My mental game, to help keep my pace going, was to see how far I could get before the SAG wagon from the lunch stop passed me. My first goal was to reach the 100 mile point, then when I passed that point, my goal was to make to the rest stop before they did. Didn’t quite make it. They came flying by me when I still had about 2 miles to go. The rest stop (mile 104) was a couple hundred yards from the highest point of the day. After a good descent (about a half-mile long and I didn’t have to peddle to go 20-25 mph), there was another slight ascent – the last of the day. Then it was all down hill from there! In the photo album, there is picture of the city limit sign for Wickenburg, and the hotel is on the other side of town – I coasted all the way, for 3+ miles.
Tomorrow’s ride will be along the same lines as Sunday’s (day 1) going 120+ miles and 8000 feet of climbing – not sure how my legs are going to respond. My quads (thigh muscles) are a little tight – it usually takes about 5-10 miles for the blood to really start pumping through them, so they can warm-up and loosen up. So I guess I will take it slow & easy. I will let you know how it goes – and hopefully will get some great pictures along the way!
Today’s riding stats:
Got on the bike starting at 6:50 A.M. – still getting a late start, even after setting the alarm 20 minutes earlier
Got to the hotel in Wickenburg at 4:30 P.M.
Total travel time: 9 hours 40 minutes
Distance traveled: 116.99 miles
Amount of climbing: 3480 ft (thanks to my roommate Howard’s computer)
Actual time on the bike 7 hours 15 minutes and 20 seconds
Average speed (on bike): 16.1 mph
Max speed attained: 28.9 mph
In the next few days, I am planning on building accumulative stats, including my average speed for the trip.
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