Colorado Rocky Mountain Bike Tour 2010

What an incredible tour!

Arrived a few days early because I was worried about the altitude (being a flatlander). We got a great condo at the Vail Racquet Club to get some light training in before the tour. This is a great place to stay! A right turn out of the club and you are on the climb to Vail Pass. My first day on the bike, I rode to the top of Vail Pass and back. This is a great pass to start with because it is mostly on a bike path. The next day I rode up and over, descending to Cooper and climbing from the other side. The ascent from Cooper is the easy direction.

The official tour began on August 1, leaving from Edwards and climbing Battle Mountain Summit (9267 ft), Tennessee Pass (10,424 ft.) , and then Fremont Pass (11,318 ft.). I felt good for my first tour day in Colorado. A little overcast for the start of our tour, but I managed to beat the rain into Frisco. The next day we headed for Idaho Springs via Swan Mountain (9,550 ft.) and Loveland Pass (11,992 ft.). Loveland is a LONG climb! Very cloudy/foggy day.

And then there was Mt. Evans (14,240 ft.). If this were a Grand Tour, this would be the Queen stage. We finally got some sun for the climb. Getting to the top ranks among my favorite accomplishments on the bike. Half-mile from the summit I was feeling pretty bonky. I couldn't tell if it was from the altitude or eating, so I stopped and sucked down the rest of my bottle and was revived enough to ground out those last few switchbacks. Off the top of the world and on to Golden.

From Golden to Estes Park via the Peak to Peak highway there are no great passes, but more of the rolling terrain I'm familiar with from the Midwest. There were a few very steep sections. Enjoyed my rest day in Estes Park by previewing our next day's ride: Trail Ridge Road.

Trail Ridge Road was a great ride. Very beautiful in the early morning, with a herd of deer grazing at the park entrance. We had another wildlife encounter just as we started our descent. A pair of Elk were standing at the side of the ride (somewhat too close for my comfort). I eased my camera out and took a few shots before finishing my ride down to Granby. And then the last day, over Gore Pass (9,527 ft.) and CO 131 Summit (8,250 ft.) and the fast ride back into Edwards.
Can't wait to get back to Colorado for another tour!

GRABAAWR 2010

Back to GRABAAWR for their 25th anniversary to relive my first bike tour and get some training in for the Colorado Rocky Mountain Bike Tour. The first time (in 2006), I rode it on a comfort bike and I was very interested to see how different the experience would be on my Trek Pilot. The climbs were definitely much easier after several years of cycling under my belt and a much lighter, faster bike. Father Menard hill was so much easier this time around. Same for the Devil's Lake climb which I had done a couple of times in 2009 on GLR brevets. Overall, the tour was pretty good though it seems that the new owners financially cut corners whenever possible (not marking the century route, for example.) It is still a great tour and I'll probably go back again in a few years.

Myrtle Beach Marathon 2010-CANCELED!!

It was going to be my third Myrtle Beach Marathon. Legs were great. No nagging little injuries. An extra long running season which included many fall trail runs had prepared me for (hopefully) my best marathon ever.

The weather forecast was getting worse every day before race day. After arriving in Myrtle Beach on the Wednesday before the race, I went shopping for a new jacket to run in since a cold rain had crept into the forecast. And then snow was in the forecast. It did snow. The night before the marathon the beach got several inches of snow with high winds. The city decided (controversially!) that it was too dangerous for runners and drivers to be on the roads together. In retrospect, I think they were probably right, even though the roads were fine by 10 a.m., the volunteers would have had to set up the course over night in miserable, dangerous conditions.

I was initially very disappointed when we heard the race was canceled. I slept in on race day (Saturday) and got up bummed. But then I saw runners on the course. Just a few at first, but then a steady stream. I decided to go out and run a few miles with them. We ran sad. We ran mad. But we didn't let all our training go to waste. I was so inspired by the resilience of the tribe that I ran the entire distance and nearly had a PR. It turned out to be my most emotional marathon finish ever. This was my third time running a marathon in Myrtle Beach and I will be back