2nd Hottest Ride Ever

I once rode in 113 degree temps in 1993 in Death Valley for the Whitney Classic, a 136 mile fun race from Badwater to the Whitney Portal trailhead parking lot.
Yesterday was a close second when I rode the 20 miles home from Seattle. There is a large outside thermometer in the middle of a mile climb and around 5:30 pm it read 110. My water was not enjoyable:)
But the shower was:):)
Stay cool my fellow 2 wheelers.
Ty (aka saddledancer)

The Heat Is On

You may or may not know, and may or may not care, but the Pacific Northwest is stuck in a very hot and smoggy stretch. Well over 100 now with no real relief in sight for several days. It really started last Sunday when I raced OUCH.
Tonight I raced the flat course out at Pacific and I really thought only a few riders would show. I was so wrong. A large field and consistent laps (4:30 for around 2 miles) meant I hung at the back a lot. It was a good workout in record setting heat. I could just feel the heat radiating off the drag strip as we headed down the back stretch.
I was thanked early on by my breakaway partner from last week. That was a nice gesture. It turns out he did not win last week, but was caught just near the finish. I also helped bridge a gap after a prime lap, bringing the rest to the front group of 6 or so and was thanked for my efforts. Another nice gesture. I did have 2 full bottles of h2o and my sleeveless alter-ego jersey, but I suffered nonetheless.
In any event another fun and safe event. Just 5 more Tuesday night races left!
Hope my teammates stay cool. Too hot to write more:) And it's 10:50 pm!
Ty (aka Saddledancer)

OUCH CAN BE A GOOD 4 LETTER WORD

There is nothing like getting up at 4:30 am, hitting the road at 4:55 for a 3.25 hr drive for a 16 mile hillclimb in record setting heat and smoggy conditions, then driving back in bumper to bumper traffic and getting home at 5:15 pm. Let me tell you the cold beer and even colder shower felt so good.
OUCH stands for the Oregon Uphill Championships, not to be confused with the Oregon State Uphill Champs. The race starts in Corbett, Oregon, just 30 minutes north of Portland in the Hood River area, or 3.25 hours from Issaquah, WA (including a stop at a Jack In The Box Drive Thru at 5 am for a Steak & Cheese Burrito (the perfect pre-race food:)) The race is put on by Ernie, the brain trust behind the Elkhorn Classic (a 4 stage 3 day race held in Baker City, OR in early June, which includes 2 LONG road races, a tt and a crit, and I was the proud Lanterne Rouge in 2007 (pre-53x11coffee days). I even earned a $20 cash award for my staying power. It was my first and so far ever stage race. I plan to go again in 2010).
OUCH is about 16 miles long and is held in tt format with riders going at 30 second intervals. I was in the Masters 45-49 cat and started about 1/2 way thru the order. There were 10 in mcat and I finished 9th. Riders can choose between a traditional tt start on the top of a ramp or a starting position on the ground. I went for the standing start and lost time getting clipped in.
I could not go all out for 2 reasons even though I felt good. First I did not know the course as I have never ridden the climb. A friend has and the only advise he could give was that "you will enjoy it." The website for the link includes an elevation chart and course description but they meant nothing as I have to experience a route first hand to know what is what. The 2nd reason was the heat. It must have been in the 90s with little or no wind.
I started sweating badly at 4 miles and experienced right eye irritation again. What is up with that? I did not stop though like during last week's training ride on Sunrise, but poured lots of water over my eye. I rode very even and finished in around 1:16:20, which I said earlier was good for 9th out of 10th in Masters Mens 45-49. Overall I was about 98th out of around 150 riders. The youngest was about 9 and the oldest in his early 60s. Yes I caught both:) I know I can go under 1:10 now that I know the route and given that MOST years the weather is more "saddledancer" friendly:)
The route started with a flat 1/2 mile followed by rolling 7 miles, with the last 6 or so a steady grade in old growth forrest. It was hard to tell I was on a mountain, as compared to the Crystal Mtn/Washington State hillclimb champs (held in late August), or the Mt. Baker Hillclimb (held in early September), or the Cougar Mtn 2 mile hillclimb (next week). The finish, meaning the final 200 meters, was a steep section into the parking lot at the top of the mountain). I finished strong after being passed by a guy who started over 16 minutes behind me (I heard him say he rode under an hour).
By the way, I inadvertently wore my Washington (WSBA) number on my jersey rather than my Oregon (OBRA) number. I heard the wrong number called out at the finish. However, I did have the correct OBRA frame number despite the fact that frame numbers are not required in Oregon. I had to clear up the confusion at the finish.
Despite that embarrassment I did get to spread the word about our team before the start while I talked to a few riders about my "plain wrap" titanium frame I bought 3 years ago on ebay. So many opinions on the brand.
They also gave out nice water bottles full of cold water at the finish and a "finishers" medal. , something to add to my collection of 51 marathon medals. I am thinking of making a wind chime out of them.
Not only was I the ony rider for 53x11Coffee, I may have been the only rider from Washington state.
In any case, I highly recommend this fun and low key event for anyone in the Pacific Northwest area in early July.
All the best to Evan, Owen and my fellow teammates.
Ty (aka Saddledancer)

My Sincere Apologies to Evan (not Ewan)

Must have been the shock over Jens Voight's crash as he is my favorite rider.
Sorry Evan.
Ty

Message For Ewan

This is a test message for Ewan. My emails don't seem to reach you of late. Anway, thanks for all you do for the team. Any news about awards for the Tuesday night series that ends in August?
Thanks again for all your efforts. I am honored to fly the colors (both alter-ego and red)!
Ty (aka saddledancer)

THAT'S RACING!

By now you know I really do enjoy racing the Tuesday night series out in Kent at Pacific Raceways. Tonight was a 50 minute race with a clockwise loop of the 2+ mile circuit up the escape route, my 2nd most favorite of the 5 courses out there. It was clear, hazy and HOT (low 90s). There were about 30 riders in the 4/5 group and we took it at a sane pace for the most part due to the heat. I am not a fan of over 80 temps and manage as best I can. I drank a lot tonight and never had cramp issues. I did ride near the back for the most part but did ride strong up the 400 meter ramp, usually being in the top 10 at the top. It is a beautiful course and we race in view of Mount Rainier.
Before the start I had thought of breaking away with 3 laps to go but as the race progressed I just wanted to feel okay in the heat. Unfortunately for me I did break away up the escape route with 2 laps to go. All I did was maintain my pace while the others eased up. Before I knew it I was crossing the finish line with 2 laps to go with about a 200 meter lead. One rider did join me and we worked for a lap. The group was not in sight and I had dreams of finishing 2nd and getting some points. Alas my legs were not as strong as my imagination and I had to let my "break buddy" go. I was caught with a 1/2 lap to go and then flatted (rear) at the base of the escape route, ending up walking through the finish. I did get a high five from the race director and I think my "break buddy" won.
All in all a very fun race as usual. And I took the flat (like my wrong turn 2 weeks ago) in stride-THAT'S RACING!
All the best to Evan and my fellow teammates.
Ty (aka Saddledancer)

Just What I Needed

I live in Washington state, about 10 miles east of Seattle. I have a training ride I like to do at least once a year out near Mount Rainier, about a 90 minute drive from home. It starts at the Crystal Mountain ski station, which itself is the location of the Washington State Hillcimb Championships held in August, a 6 mile UPHILL tt race. I like to scope it out at least once before the race, but due to snow and road conditions the roads are not usually opened til June. I descend the 6 miles from the ski lodge to Highway 410, turn left and climb steadily for 20 minutes before turning right onto Sunrise, itself a 14 mile or so climb up to the Sunrise park, one approach climbers take to Mount Rainier. I then turn around and go back to Crystal Mountain, finishing with the 6 mile climb to the parking lot. My race team shot is from last year's Crystal Mtn race. I love the climb but love Sunrise more.

I am also a clerk for the King County District Court and deal with DUIs, rapists, and all sorts of happy situations on a daily basis. My mental state had dropped of late and I desperately needed a pick-me-up.

I like group rides, and by group I mean no more than 4 or 5 (rides where it is acceptable to blurt out "This would be a good place to dump a body" and not be ridiculed or scorned or judged). I leave the pack riding to races. I do so enjoy my solo rides though, and I had not had a good long one for a very long time. Yesterday's solo ride took just over three hours, when you take out the 3 stops up Sunrise for severe sweat/right eye irritation (so bad I was riding blind at points).

So Saturday found me riding down from the Crystal Mtn lot at 8:05 am, a bit chilly of a descent as I was only in my alter-ego s/s/ jersey and bb shorts. The climb up to the Sunrise parking lot was a blast as there was very little traffic and the entrance to the national park was free (usually $5 for cyclists). However, as previously mentioned I had to stop 3 times for severe sweat.right eye irritation which just started this last week. We have had very warm and clear conditions and I always run hot since moving here from the Northern Virginia area in 2003. I am originally from Southern California but have had "heat" issues since 2003. I lived in NortherVirginia for 7 years (1996-2003) where I biked and ran a lot in hot and humid conditions. Since moving to the Pacific Northwest in July of 2003 I have had issues when exercise in "over 80 degree" temps.

IT was very warm and sunny yesterday, and I just could not stop my eye irritation. Anway, I did do the ride and finished in a respectable time. I even saw 2 of my friends climbing sunrise as I descended.

I felt so refreshed after the ride and am ready for another week of MIPs, DUIS, DVs and what have you.

Keep the rubber side down!

Ty (aka Saddledancer)