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

Rivertown Half-Marathon

New PR at the inaugural Rivertown Half-Marathon in Conway, SC! Well, it was going to be a new official PR anyway, since it was my first road half. Pretty good route except for a couple of miles near the start that were pretty steeply canted. I had to adjust my line a lot to find a flat (or flatter) part of the road. Support on the course was good, with plenty of police/volunteers on the route to keep us on course. I was able to consistently maintain my pace over the course (8:40) to hit my goal time of 1:55. Weather was very good...overcast with temps in the upper fifties to lower sixties. Wore my summer CWX tights and new North Face shirt. Ate one Gu on course about mile 7. Plenty of power left near end to run tempo for the last half mile. Overall, great run!

North Face Endurance Challenge Wisconsin Half Marathon

Ran the North Face Endurance Challenge Half Marathon on October 24, 2009. It was a COLD morning! Luckily for the half marathon runners, we did not start until 10 a.m. The 50 mile runners had started in the dark at 6 and the marathoners at 8 a.m. The half marathon course looped through the Kettle Morraine State Park, Southern Unit starting and finishing at Ottawa Lake. The course undulated quite a bit, but there were not many really big hills, just lots of up and down. The fall colors were close to peak, though the wind and rain over the previous few days had stripped some of the trees (and made for a few muddy patches). My favorite parts of the course were the sections of pine forests...very little of that on my runs at Des Plaines River Trail or Bong Recreation Area. The race was well organized and the route well marked. My only complaint is that the finish line are was too small. I crossed the finish line and had to come to an abrupt halt because the crowd was so thick I could not move. I liked the course for the Rock Cut Rendezvous 25km much more, and think I'll try the 50km race there next year. Finish time-2:12

Rock Cut HOBO 25 km Trail Run

The Rockford Road Runners put on three days (September 18-20) of trail runs called the Rock Cut Rendezvous, which includes a 10km night run, and 25 and 50km regular trail races. Since this was my first trail run, I opted for the middle distance. The course is a giant loop through Rock Cut State Park with a mix of wide horse trails and single-track, with the majority being single-track. There were about 200 runners in the race, a small enough number that we could get nicely strung out on the course. This is a very scenic route with the single-track so narrow in places that you almost have to turn sideways to slip through. Lots of switch back up and down ravines and even a couple of very narrow stream crossings. It's a great course and well organized race. Hope to be back next year for the 50km.

CANDISC 2009

Spent a week this summer Cycling Around North Dakota in Sakakawea Country (CANDISC), a 426 mile loop ride around eastern North Dakota from August 1-8. It was my first visit to North Dakota and I was struck by the emptiness. Roads stretch off in front of you until they disappear into infinity. The route was not flat. Most days we had nice gentle rollers and occasionally a decent climb. Traffic was mostly nonexistent (as was sunshine this week). It seemed like the towns we overnighted in had a smaller population than our tour group. We got lucky with the wind, having a couple of days of stiff tailwinds and only one day of really trying headwinds. Rest stops were well organized and occasionally very tasty. Bison burgers on day one was one of my favorites. Mornings were chilly. One morning it must have been close to freezing. Definitely the coldest I've ever been in August. Overall, a very well organized tour with very little variation in the scenery from day to day. A nice change of pace, but I sure missed trees by the end of the tour.