20 May 2011 Fast America Day 27

Wooster, OH to Warren, OH

Mileage:                     100.88 miles incl. bonus miles

Riding Time:              6:55     Riding Speed 14.6 mph

Total Time:                 7:35

Climbing:                    4027 ft.

Flats:                           0

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/86869041

http://app.strava.com/rides/593257

I think that the new Chris showed up today, but he chose to ride an easy recovery day after the magic of yesterday. The terrain today was a mini version of Missouri.The weather was cool and beautiful and it was a good day to mentally prepare for the long day tomorrow.

Here are some pictures of the Roark factory and some BEAUTIFUL scenery from today (will give you a very good idea of the flooding in Ohio):

https://picasaweb.google.com/hoeberc/FastAmericaDays2127?authkey=Gv1sRgCMy7qLeNlo-8Zg#

There were some beautiful stretches under a green tree canopy. The only problem with this was is that it created mottled light and it was extremely difficult to navigate some of the worst roads that we have seen the entire trip. There were some potholes large enough to swallow both the bike and rider. I made it through rattled but unscathed. We were also on a bike path for three miles with beautiful pavement.

The day did produce a first for the trip – and it produced it twice; namely, I got lost. The first time I was simply sailing along and I forgot a turn. A half mile later I woke up and said to myself- “Did I make the turn?” I continued another half mile until I was pretty sure I had missed it and turned around and got back on track. The second time, I guess there was a fork in the road in the town of Niles (which lets you know that it was the birthplace of President McKinley) and I took the wrong fork. When it came time to make the next turn, I could see that I was not where I was supposed to be. I interrupted a guy in his backyard, made friends with his dog, and got things sorted out. The extra three miles got my century; the ride was officially only 98 miles. I will have to be much more on my toes tomorrow, as we ride along the southern shore of Lake Erie.

I wondered before the ride if I would get stronger as the ride progressed. The answer is an unequivocal yes. Riding the 100^th miles is no longer hard – it’s just another mile. You will also notice that I haven’t mentioned my foot in awhile. Once the weather cooled down that has not been an issue. The only physical issue I have is tingling in my left hand. Riding can be very hard on the hands; there is a lot of pressure on the nerves and vibration is absorbed in the hands. My left hand often goes numb during the ride, and that numbness is persisting afterwards now (makes it hard to type!). I am anxious to see if it goes away with a few days off the bike.

This was our last Friday on the road. And tomorrow, I feel like we enter our last state – NY (we still will have VT, NH and MA to go, but they are really small, so I am not counting them!).

19 May 2011 Fast America Day 26

Marysville, OH to Wooster, OH

Mileage:                     102.87 miles

Riding Time:              6:07     Riding Speed 16.8 mph

Total Time:                 6:30

Climbing:                    3657 ft.

Flats:                           0

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/86666528

http://app.strava.com/rides/588242#

WOW! I didn’t have Wheaties for breakfast, so it must have been the antipasti last night: thanks Patsy! I got to ride with the Big Boys today.

I was one of the first riders out of the gate, and soon found myself with a fast group of four. The first ten miles or so, which were generally downhill, was just a good fast warmup and then we cranked it up to race speeds (24-25 mph over rolling hills). I didn’t take my turns at the front, but I didn’t go away either. I was thinking “This is insane; there are hills in the second half of the ride and I will be toast.” It didn’t amaze me that I could stay with the group on the flats, but there were lots of little rolling hills and it did amaze me how I took those. Typically, everyone else got out of the saddle and started throwing their bikes back and forth to sprint up the hill. I just stayed in the saddle and increased the pressure on the pedals. Frequently, I had to do what is called “soft pedaling” just spinning nice and easy so as not to lose rhythm as I crested the 6-8% hills, going easy so as not to go flying off the front. I briefly lost contact with the others on a long 9% grade, but easily caught back on afterwards. People began to notice that this was the New Chris; not the same as the Old Chris. We shredded the group and Manny and I arrived together at the first SAG stop at mile 33.

But I didn’t blow up. After a quick SAG stop a group of four reformed (shedding a few others on the way). We stayed together until mile 68, when we hit a series of 16% climbs (serious stuff). I could not stay with the leaders on the climbs (my guess is that I have lost 10 pounds, but that still leaves me at 220), but I arrived at lunch at mile 75 no more than 2 minutes down.

I never blew up! The final 28 miles featured lots of small hills, so I rode them by myself, but I was almost always in sight of the three or four people that I had been with, until we ran into a problem: the road we were supposed to take was under water (I should have stopped to take pictures, but that is hard to do when the adrenaline is flowing and you are on a roll). We made an impromptu detour and sailed into Wooster. Wooster is the first city where our hotel is in the middle of town (lots of good restaurants) and I was the first one in to the local milk shake joint (did I tell you all that a milk shake makes a fantastic recovery drink?). Five of us finished essentially together, about 20 minutes before the van, which meant that we got to unload the van.

I remember the night that I won my first race about 35 years ago (Wednesday twilight criterium – a local training race). I fell asleep feeling all aglow. I think that I will have that same glow when I fall asleep tonight.

We are in to the countdown – 10 – 9 – 8 more days. I’m scared of Saturday, which is the longest ride of the trip (140 miles). But maybe if I feel like this every other day I shouldn’t be – that’s two days from now – the new Chris should show up.

18 May 2011 Fast America Day 25

Richmond, IN to Marysville, OH

Mileage:                     106.26 miles

Riding Time:              7:23     Riding Speed 14.5 mph

Total Time:                 7:55

Climbing:                    2365 ft.

Flats:                           0

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/86505891

http://app.strava.com/rides/583585

Today was cool and damp (as opposed to cold and wet). It started out looking like yesterday, but never got really bad. We did ride the whole day into the teeth of a gentle breeze, which was a relief.

The scenery is getting prettier and prettier. Green, hilly, nice homes. But you can see that the rain has been intense. Every little creek that we cross has become a wide muddy river. The fields are completely saturated; with lots of standing water. I am told that the corn should be a foot high by now, but it has not been planted yet.

On Day 23, I noted that very small variations in rider strength day-to-day made a big difference in relative rider performance. Here is what Ohio Steve said about me in his blog that day:

Not only was the wind giving me fits, for some reason my legs were dead. At one point before the first sag stop, Big Chris, 64 and the oldest rider in the group, was pulling away from me at a steady rate during a direct head wind on three mile long road. The next time I saw him, he was at Steak-n-Shake sipping a shake while I was just coming into Lebanon.

Of course Steve thought that he was having a bad day. I think that he was having a fine day, it was just my turn. Today was his turn. He passed me early on with two other riders in tow and instead of catching on to the last wheel, I just had to wave “Bye”.

The highlight of the day was meeting my cousin Patsy for dinner. I was hoping that, since she had a car, she could drive me to the best Italian Restaurant in Marysville. But the best Italian Restaurant in Marysville turned out to be 100 yards from the hotel, so we walked. We had a wonderful time and some real good antipasti, Chianti, and prime rib.

Why to people in Ohio put stars on their homes? As with the question about catfish heads on fence posts in Missouri, I have found lots of answers on line. They may originally have had a structural reason. They are found in Amish areas. They are good luck. Etc. One reference said that it was a modern fad moving to other states. Anyone who thinks they know the reason, please e-mail me!

17 May 2011 Fast America Day 24

Lebanon, IN to Richmond, IN

Mileage:                     108.82 miles

Riding Time:              7:23     Riding Speed 14.7 mph

Total Time:                 8:10

Climbing:                    2108 ft.

Flats:                           0

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/86348929

http://app.strava.com/rides/580440

I can say nothing good about today. It was pure misery.

We started early, with a small group of us visiting the Roark factory. Roark is a small aerospace metal manufacturer (we saw Inconel and titanium parts being built for jet engines and submarines) that also manufactures titanium custom bikes. Mike and Karen (staff members) both have them and love them. An interesting side trip, but it meant that the riding part of the day got off to a late start.

The Weather Channel said 10% chance of rain at our 9:00 AM start, and this was not a day to bet against the odds. The rain started the minute that we got back to the motel for the start, and it barely let up for the next 8 hours. The temperature was about 50 F, but felt much colder once we were soaked through, and again, with a strong N wind.

Because of the side trip that some of us took, the start times for the riders were spread over about 45 minutes, so we were quite spread out on the road. Even though I had started almost last, I was surprised to find at the first SAG stop that I was about the fifth rider to check in. The first issue that I had encountered was a closed road. I stopped and rang a door bell and asked if I could get through and the homeowner sadi “Yes, on a bicycle”. However, what she did not say is that when I got through I would find the connecting road completely torn up and impassable. One other rider and I managed to find an alternative route back to the road that we were supposed to be on, but I gather not everyone was so lucky. Some riders went ten or more miles out of their way.

Meanwhile, four of the faster riders had looked at their computer and the route sheet and said “We can find a better route”. So they called in after a few miles and said “Don’t look for us at the SAG stops; we will find our way to Richmond on our own.. Talking to one of them later, they also had not taken proper precautions with their route sheets and did not want to deal with soggy directions. They made it, but not without dealing with road closures on their own.

Dumb Move Number 3. The last ten or so miles through Richmond were on fairly busy streets, and at one point, there was about two miles of road construction where four lanes were squeezed down to two. Traffic was all backed up. After a mile or so, I said to myself “There is a very big wide sidewalk there; why don’t I just pull onto it via one of the driveways ahead and get out of this. (believe it or not, one motive was courtesy to the cars who were patiently driving behind me). I was already committed when I realized that there was about a one inch discontinuity in the height of the road and the lip of the driveway, that I was trying to take at about a 10 degree angle. When I realized this, it was too late for a bunny hop and I went down on the sidewalk. Minor damage to my clothing, my skin, and my ego.

I finally made it to the hotel registration where I was told “Hurry up and take your shower, the housekeeper has volunteered to stay late to launder your clothes. I felt like kissing her, but gave her a generous tip instead. The hotel had a bar and (sort of) restaurant, so I did not venture out again.

I just had a good night’s sleep and awaken this morning ready to do it all over again. The weather report is 10% chance of rain at the start, 30% at the finish, just like yesterday. There will be a headwind all day, but only about 6-7 mph.

16 May 2011 Fast America Day 23

Tuscola, IL to Lebanon, IN

Mileage:                     124.09 miles

Riding Time:              8:40     Riding Speed 14.3 mph

Total Time:                 9:10

Climbing:                    2822 ft.

Flats:                           0

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/86168223

http://app.strava.com/rides/576557

The day started with 20 of the first 25 miles due N into a 20 mph headwind. I soon found myself with a four person paceline, and I hung out at the back; getting a free ride – it included our least experienced riders and I was content to go at their pace. But soon we were passed by two faster riders and I latched on to them. Once the route turned E, however, I was on my own for the rest of the day.

Rain threatened, but it never came. It was simply COLD. One of the challenges in this kind of weather is keeping my fingers warm so that they remain functional.

Rider Observations: There are a half dozen riders who are at about the same strength level as me. Now that I know them better, I can see interesting day-to-day observations. One day I am stronger, another day it is one of them. I think that this clearly shows the effects of getting proper sleep, hydration, food; and keeping a good mental attitude. Today, I was on top.

Dumb Move Number 2. Dumb Move Number 1 was trying to ride in the sand in Palm Springs. Today, at the Indiana border, I found a small group of riders stopped on the very narrow shoulder for the photo op at the sign. I grumbled to myself “Hey guys; pull off the road” and slowed to a stop for my own photo. By habit, I unclipped my right foot, and prepared to put it down; when I realized that the grass fell off steeply from the road shoulder and I could not reach the ground. I tumbled down the soft grass covered slope. No harm, but pretty embarrassing (see tomorrow’s blog for Dumb Move Number 3).

Indiana Two Lane Roads. If you ever ride the rural highways of Indiana – keep your eyes open and looking ahead. A small subset of Indiana drivers think that it is OK to pass at 70 mph in your lane while you are on the narrow shoulder two feet away. This has now happened three times, scaring the Hell out of me. More than one of our riders has bailed into the grass beside the road, while fantasizing about throwing their water bottle at the car and smashing their windshield.

I finished this long, grueling, day tired but happy.

15 May Fast America Day 22

Springfield, IL to Tuscola, IL

Mileage:                     78.46 miles

Riding Time:              4:58     Riding Speed 15.8 mph

Total Time:                 5:30

Climbing:                    1114 ft.

Flats:                           0

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/85960609

http://app.strava.com/rides/572321

Mama said there’d be days like this. On paper, today was the easiest day of the ride – shortest and flattest. BUT – on the day that the opening stage of the Tour of California was cancelled because of a snowstorm, we rode on through 50 F weather in the rain. Once I’d warmed up everything was OK, but walking outside at the start and again after lunch (we cowered inside a convenience store to eat at the SAG stop) the 15 mph N wind just knifed through my jacket. Most of the ride was due E, meaning that the wind was a pure crosswind, but there was one two mile stretch due north at the end that was pure torture. It was also a precursor for tomorrow; a 120 mile day which starts out with 13 miles directly into the N wind which is predicted to be 18-20 mph.

But it was another good day for me. My average HR of 116 bpm was the highest since Day 2. I started out in an 8 person paceline, which soon sorted itself out to just five of us. After 16 miles, though, I wisely decided that the effort of concentrating on the wind and rooster tail of water in front of me at 21 mph was too much, and I pulled off and slowed down to about 18. The decision proved to be wise as a little later one of the riders (Lee) went down when he caught his tire in a seam between the road and the shoulder. I rode the rest of the day alone on beautiful car free country roads (but not dog free!). I did have a momentary scare, when I realized that most of the cross streets did not have stop signs in either direction. Visibility was two miles in either direction, but I am told that if I come back in two months, the corn will be ten feet high, and you will not be able to see a car coming into the intersections.

Yesterday’s off day turns out to have been necessary, as Clay used it to get a new bike. Remember Missouri State Road E? It proved too much for his Trek Madone, which ended the day with a cracked chain stay (Clay thinks that the crack may have started when he went down on Day 2).Judging by Clay’s performance today, the new bike is a winner. Shelley got a new bike on the Albuquerque day off so the America By Bicycle people seem to have things calibrated perfectly.

I have mixed feelings about the day off. I would have ridden20-30 miles, but the weather was just too awful, so I went for a 5-6 mile walk instead. Some people went to the Lincoln Museum, and gave it very high marks. But I just got caught up on my e-mail and was generally bored. I stayed up late last night (11:00) but still woke up 10 minutes before the 6:00 AM alarm this morning.

Safety: Mike facilitated an interesting discussion on safety this afternoon. It seems that a number of people are uncomfortable riding with more than one or two other people at a time. My opinion is that a number of the riders have very, very strong legs but limited paceline riding experience and, probably more importantly, they are unclear on their motivations for joining a paceline. Riding in an efficient paceline can significantly increase the average speed without burning anyone out. Some people want one for this reason, but others simply want to ride the same speed that they would solo, while using less energy, while others want to prove that they are stronger than the others. Because of these varying motivations, it is hard for an experienced person to coach the others, as happens naturally in the cycling clubs to which I belong. Mike is very sensibly trying to discourage people from riding with more than 2-3 others especially while riding unfamiliar terrain.

Roommates: The cost of the ride is a significant function of whether or not you want a single room. I have a single room because I snore loudly, and I read the instructions which said “Please do not sign up for a double room if you snore loudly”. Apparently, not everyone read those instructions. One roommate pair is under great stress because one of the guys snores and likes the room as cold as he can make it with the air conditioner, while the other is kept up all night with the snoring (Although ear plugs reportedly help) and tries to sleep shivering under a pile of covers. Anther pair consists of Oscar and Felix from the Odd Couple. The pair that seems to get along the best had a trial separation during the two days in Springfield; they simply each needed their own space. I can’t imagine sharing a room, because within five minutes of checking in, I have covered every available square inch with stuff, and of course I want the desk or table to do my blog.

Here are two more blogs:

Ohio Steve:      http://steveacrossamerica.blogspot.com/

(check out his Missouri Amish video; I exchanged greetings with several Amish during our time in Missouri)

Mark:               http://teammayflower.blogspot.com/

13 & 14 May 2011 Fast America Days 20 & 21

Quincy, IL to Springfield, IL

Mileage:                     106.45 miles

Riding Time:              6:33     Riding Speed 16.1 mph

Total Time:                 7:00

Climbing:                    2382 ft.

Flats:                           0

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/85395770

http://app.strava.com/rides/559769

Another easy day. Maybe it’s not really easy and I am just getting stronger. 100 miles no longer feels like a challenge, although the last 20 miles of the 130 mile days are challenging.

The motel we stayed in last night did not have much of a breakfast, so that was scheduled at Mike’s Diner 14 miles up the road. It made for a great break, and the food was great, but I got very antsy waiting for an hour for the food. The terrain has changed a lot, with gently rolling hills, lots of trees, and the sound of birds everywhere. Alerted by the honking, I did see some geese flying S for the summer(??). Everywhere I turned, there were historical references, starting with several historical markers indicating that I was traveling (in reverse direction) the Potawatomi Trail of Death.

[Wikipedia) The Potawatomi Trail of Death was the forced removal by United States forces from September 4 to November 4, 1838, of 859 members of the Potawatomi nation from Twin Lakes near Plymouth, Indiana, to the location of present-day Osawatomie, Kansas, a distance of 660 miles (1,060 km). Typhoid fever and the stress of the forced march led to the death of over 40 individuals, mostly children.

My foot didn’t bother me until the very end. I finally took a short break under a tree about 15 miles from the end, where I met a self contained cyclist going the other way; he had started in Minneapolis and was headed to Kansas. He covers about 50 miles a day, but has to worry about finding food (we’ve gone whole days without seeing a store) and campground each night.

We went right through downtown Springfield, passing the beautiful State Capitol and then the historic train station where Lincoln began his inaugural trip to Washington, wondering if he would ever come back (he didn’t). He made this trip against the advice of everyone, as there were numerous threats to his life at the time. (pictures in link below).

Here are photos from Days 13 – 20. Note the Cyclocross Course where the bridge was missing and the ferry across the Mississippi.

 https://picasaweb.google.com/hoeberc/FastAmericaDays1320?authkey=Gv1sRgCLOC4IDv492Bfg#

Several readers have asked about the other riders. Here are some of their blogs. All of them use pictures more effectively than I do (and you can scan them very quickly) but mine has more of a story line. It’s interesting to me to see how our experiences are recorded through different lenses:

Eric (aka Manny) from Brockton, MA:             http://www.ericpedalsamerica.blogspot.com/

Simon from Manchester, England:                     http://c2cmac.blogspot.com/

Lee from Richmond, VA                                   http://leestocks.com/homepage_003.htm

Mike’s blog has had some good photos of me on the last couple of days. I am easily recognizable by my compression socks. http://www.bamacyclist.com/BAMA/Fast/Fast.html

I’m writing this on our off day in Springfield (Day 21) and I don’t think that I will make a separate posting for today. Either we are lucky with the rain or today is a portent of things to come; as I look at the cold wet weather outside my window. Temperatures are predicted in the low 50’s for our VERY EASY ride of only 80 miles to Tuscola, IL tomorrow. We had a democratic vote, and all decided not to leave until 9:00 tomorrow. I hope that we don’t become spoiled by being able to sleep in two days in a row.

Most of our hotels have a laundry with one or two machines. They are probably unused most of the time, except when 25 cyclists want to use them at the same time. I have been able to keep up with laundry and mostly just use two cycling kits, until the last four days. All of my cycling clothes and most of my civilian clothes were filthy when we got here and I was prepared to trudge a mile up the road in the rain to the Laundromat; so imagine my surprise when I got up at 7:00 AM and found the one hotel washing machine free. All my clothes are now clean;  I hope that they did not shrink. I was able to do the Friday WSJ Crossword Puzzle while waiting. Note: I think that I have lost 5-6 pounds, but have not seen a scale in a long time.