As recovery courses through my body in the form of various over the counter elixirs, it's time to reflect on the week. Strong-armed into joining the Rapha Rising Challenge, which requires an entrant to climb 22,575 feet (or 6,881 meters, if you are continental about your measures), the contest left ME apprehensive. Why, you say? Let ME indulge you.
Facts about ME
1. 45 years old
2. went on vacation last week to Destin
3. brought the bike
4. Rode it about 200 miles
5. With cumulative elevation of 200 feet (like 70 meters)
6. Drank a lot of beer on vacation
7. Came home with extra 5lbs of souvenir weight
8. Generally not a Grimpeur
All whining aside, it was a lot of fun. If you define fun in masochistic terms. 50 shades of vert, with 50 shades of hurt. The suffering definitely arrived in different forms, some hills more subtle in their menace than others. Here is a brief summary of the week.
Sunday - 52 miles, 4700ft. - Stanton, ME, Tyler, Ullrich, Dr Vert and Dustin hit Lost Creek, Cuernavaca, Marly Way and the Haggis. First salvo fired, and it was substantial!
Monday - 31 miles, 3,243ft - ME, Ty. Lost Creek, Cuernavaca, Barton Creek West. Easy climbing!
Tuesday - 30 miles, 3,400ft - ME, Ullrich, Ty. Traded Cuernavaca out, added full Marly. Good pace left me very confident about the rest of the week. Hubris....
Wednesday - DAY OFF - Celebrated wife's birthday. Wine, steaks, etc.
Thursday - Here is where the pain began. Rode in the evening with Dykes (aka Dr Vert). He must be reading a lot of Edgar Allen Poe. Cuz he is looking superhero-ish on the bike. We met at Hat Creek. I rode from downtown, up and out from the river, worked in a side climb in Lost Creek. Then we hit Cuernavaca, and headed over to Courtyard. In the Mind of ME, Courtyard = Waterloo. I popped like Don Ho's Tiny Bubbles. Body began to revolt, with HR spikes at relatively low power outputs. Managed to climb the hill, which was in real doubt. Then limped home. 38 miles, 4,750ft.
Friday - 30 miles, 3,400ft. See Tuesday. All by ME-self.
Saturday - Big Group Ride - Hood, Ty, Ullrich, Scheibs, Stanton, Tim, MC, with a guest appearance by AEJC (4FN). Best line of the day "I don't think the F stands for First" Funny stuff AEJC! We did the dam loop, finding the low water crossing at mansfield dam. Then we added Big View. Scheibs, Stanton and Hoodie climbed Cuernavaca as well. I was content skipping it. The guys with fresh legs left ME in the arriere. Sacrifices must be made. Scheibs and Growleur, and of course the Badger all climbed great. Well done Fellas! Totals: 47 miles, 4,400ft. 106% of the target.
Legs are toast. Just about the time I started feeling pretty good about myself, I checked out the stats of the leader.His link is below. He is at 440% of target. Averages 465 miles/week on the bike. Wtf?
As of right now, here are the HCD that finished the Challenge: 1. Coppedge (honorary member, inflictor of low RPM pain) 2. 4FN 3. Dr. Vert 4. Ullrich 5. ME 6. Growleur Link to Leader- http://app.strava.com/athletes/2919
http://app.strava.com/challenges/rapha-rising-circle-of-death
Facts about ME
1. 45 years old
2. went on vacation last week to Destin
3. brought the bike
4. Rode it about 200 miles
5. With cumulative elevation of 200 feet (like 70 meters)
6. Drank a lot of beer on vacation
7. Came home with extra 5lbs of souvenir weight
8. Generally not a Grimpeur
All whining aside, it was a lot of fun. If you define fun in masochistic terms. 50 shades of vert, with 50 shades of hurt. The suffering definitely arrived in different forms, some hills more subtle in their menace than others. Here is a brief summary of the week.
Sunday - 52 miles, 4700ft. - Stanton, ME, Tyler, Ullrich, Dr Vert and Dustin hit Lost Creek, Cuernavaca, Marly Way and the Haggis. First salvo fired, and it was substantial!
Monday - 31 miles, 3,243ft - ME, Ty. Lost Creek, Cuernavaca, Barton Creek West. Easy climbing!
Tuesday - 30 miles, 3,400ft - ME, Ullrich, Ty. Traded Cuernavaca out, added full Marly. Good pace left me very confident about the rest of the week. Hubris....
Wednesday - DAY OFF - Celebrated wife's birthday. Wine, steaks, etc.
Thursday - Here is where the pain began. Rode in the evening with Dykes (aka Dr Vert). He must be reading a lot of Edgar Allen Poe. Cuz he is looking superhero-ish on the bike. We met at Hat Creek. I rode from downtown, up and out from the river, worked in a side climb in Lost Creek. Then we hit Cuernavaca, and headed over to Courtyard. In the Mind of ME, Courtyard = Waterloo. I popped like Don Ho's Tiny Bubbles. Body began to revolt, with HR spikes at relatively low power outputs. Managed to climb the hill, which was in real doubt. Then limped home. 38 miles, 4,750ft.
Friday - 30 miles, 3,400ft. See Tuesday. All by ME-self.
Saturday - Big Group Ride - Hood, Ty, Ullrich, Scheibs, Stanton, Tim, MC, with a guest appearance by AEJC (4FN). Best line of the day "I don't think the F stands for First" Funny stuff AEJC! We did the dam loop, finding the low water crossing at mansfield dam. Then we added Big View. Scheibs, Stanton and Hoodie climbed Cuernavaca as well. I was content skipping it. The guys with fresh legs left ME in the arriere. Sacrifices must be made. Scheibs and Growleur, and of course the Badger all climbed great. Well done Fellas! Totals: 47 miles, 4,400ft. 106% of the target.
Legs are toast. Just about the time I started feeling pretty good about myself, I checked out the stats of the leader.His link is below. He is at 440% of target. Averages 465 miles/week on the bike. Wtf?
As of right now, here are the HCD that finished the Challenge: 1. Coppedge (honorary member, inflictor of low RPM pain) 2. 4FN 3. Dr. Vert 4. Ullrich 5. ME 6. Growleur Link to Leader- http://app.strava.com/athletes/2919
http://app.strava.com/challenges/rapha-rising-circle-of-death
