Final Shakeout before the Grand Depart

Down to a week before flying out and 10 days until the Grand Depart. Had the most awesome final test ride this weekend. I’m ready, physically and mentally. Bike and equipment are tested and ready. Now comes the hard part; waiting. 

I had the pleasure of meeting Jameson this weekend. I posted a piece a few weeks ago written by his mother on endurance and decided to dedicate this ride and fund-raising efforts to Jameson. Jameson just graduated kindergarten and he will be going in for heart surgery shortly after the Tour Divide start. He is an incredible kid and he came out to see me off on my last big training ride. Just a super awesome kid, I’m so glad I got to meet him.

What a Pleasure to Meet Jameson

 This weekend was a full test of fitness and resolve. An overnighter with huge climbs, bike pushing, altitude, and heat. Left the house just before 7:00 am with full Tour Divide load and met Jameson at Garden of the Gods. He and his dad were on their way to Pikes Peak, then horse rides at a friend and co-workers place. I continued on to the Ute Pipeline Trail, to tackle some steep climbs that required getting off and pushing. Followed it West until it came out at Highway 24. My intent was to continue to Cascade then follow the “Ring the Peak” trail around the perimeter of Pikes Peak. 

Nearing the top of first Climb on Ute Trail

Memorial Day traffic was crazy, so I came back down the pass into Colorado Springs, then climbed Rampart to Woodland Park. 

North of Pikes Peak on Rampart

Once there, continued to climb Edlow to the North Slope Recreation area where I jumped onto the Ring the Peak Trail.

Back on Ring the Peak Trail

Ring the Peak is an awesome 60+ mile trail that, as its name implies, circles Pikes Peak. A mixture of flowing single track, double track, dirt roads, rocky technical sections, steep climbs, and steep descents. It is not 100% complete so there are two places that drop down to busy highways; Highway 24 out of Colorado Springs and Highway 67 going to the gambling town of Cripple Creek.

Once on the trail, I just enjoyed being on my bike and riding the remote parts of the Pikes National Forest. Fast flowing single and double track through mountain meadows, long climbs and descents through heavily wooded trails, creek crossings, and beauty beyond description. At times I felt like I was in a post card.

And Loving it!

At about 6:30 PM I came to a steep descent that dumps out on Highway 67. Although I wanted to ride for another three to four hours, I didn’t want to chance riding the highway with no shoulder and the Saturday evening gambling traffic. Found a place next to a creek and proceeded to make camp. I think this is the first of these trips that I wasn’t looking for a camp spot after dark. As the sun descended so did the temperature. At just over 10,000 feet the temp gets pretty cool at night. There is still traces of snow up here. 

Even though temps in the 90s down in the Springs there is still snow at 10,000 feet

I laid in my sleeping bag thinking about mountain lions and wondered if I made the right decision to stop here for the night. 

Making Camp

Eventually, I fell into a deep sleep and woke up the next morning still alive. Packed up my bike, descended to the road at 6:00 am and there was no traffic. I made the right decision.

Lunch Break at a Familiar Place

Eventually, I came to the climb I was really looking forward to. It’s long and steep. Barely climbable with an unloaded bike. Somehow, I managed to climb the whole thing in just under an hour and only had to get off and push once. The thing about this climb, is the top is not the top. At the “top” is a right turn that just slaps you in the face. Steep, loose, rocky, and not ridable, even on an unloaded bike. This was the part I was looking forward to. Climbing this section with a loaded bike goes like this: Fully extend arms, squeeze the brakes, take two steps, let go of brakes, fully extend arms, take two steps, repeat. Sometimes, after letting go of the brakes, I slid down several steps. Every couple of minutes, I had to stop, lay my head on the saddle, regain control of breathing, allow heart rate to settle, then continue. At 11,000 feet the air is thin. After 45 minutes of bench pressing while climbing a steep hill at 11,000 feet, the trail became moderate enough to ride. I chose this route specifically for that climb. I read that there are similar climbs on the Tour Divide. As hard as it was, I actually enjoyed it!

It's Steeper than it Looks

Pikes Peak from the South

 From that point, it was predominately downhill to Colorado Springs. As with other rides, after spending two days in the solitude of the mountains, coming back into town is a wake-up. The traffic, the noise, the political bumper stickers; back to reality. I was feeling strong and energetic, even though the temperature was somewhere near 90. I added an extra hill on my way home and really felt like I could ride for hours more. Needed to get to a birthday party so I didn’t. 

All Down Hill back to the Springs

In the end I covered over 120 miles and 13,400 feet of climbing, with ride time of just over 15 hours. I’m happy with that. Looking forward to this great adventure.

Thanks for reading, and again thanks so much for your support of Children’s National. As I stated in the past, my employer, Plus3 IT is matching donations up to $2,500. Last I heard, we are nearing that mark, and my employer may raise the ceiling on matches. 

-larry

  

Less Than Four Weeks!

Tour Divide Rig is Dialed in and Ready to Go

Geez it’s been almost a month since last posting and less than four weeks until the “Grand Depart”. A lot has happened in the last four weeks, and I thought I’d never say this, but I “think” I am ready for the Tour Divide. “Think” because, really, I have no idea what it is to be “ready” for a race like this. Anything can happen; however, I’ve done all I can do to prepare; trained like an obsessed mad man, tested my equipment over and over, had my wisdom tooth pulled, finger surgery, and finally got a saddle that works. One of my heroes, Tony O’Keeffe; RAAM, Ultra Ironman, Fighter Pilot, incredibly nice guy, among many amazing feats, gives a great presentation in this video.My take away from this, is Tony gets his confidence by ensuring he has done everything he possibly can to be successful before getting on the start line. I feel that’s what I’ve done. Although super nervous about the whole event, I am really beginning to get edgy and just want to get going. With work, training, High School Mountain Bike Team, Coaches Summit, logistics, household duties, running a business, and general life, things are pretty crazy.  I’m looking forward to being able to focus on eating, sleeping, and riding.

 

I Feel So Lucky to Live Here

Generally training is as follows: Strength training on Monday and 100 push-ups Wednesday and Friday. I learned from the Kokopelli adventure that I lack upper body strength. So, I’m really working on my core and hopefully improving that aspect. Tuesday and Thursday are rides with the High School Team. These young men and women are fast. We go 1.5 – 2 hours of hard fast riding that has me red lined. Some of the days I ride from work to practice, about one hour, 2 hours of pushing to the limit with the team, then an hour ride home. Sandwiched between those workouts is a Wednesday morning bike commute of 2 – 3 hours, then another commute home of 1 – 2 hours in the evening. 

Morning Commute

Friday, an easy recovery ride of low gears, high cadence. Then comes the weekend. 8 – 12 hours each day, with as many hills as I can find. Two weekends ago, I rode three hours before meeting the high school riders for a fast-hard loop on the Falcon Trail, then continued for another two hours after riding with them. I felt strong at the end and definitely could have ridden more but had commitments that afternoon. 

High School Team Ready to Hammer

The next day, with a fully loaded bike, rode 100+ miles and just under 10,000 feet of climbing in 12 hours. I feel pretty good about that. 

100+ Miles of Mountain Bliss

This past weekend just under 9,000 feet of climbing on Saturday, then another 6,000+ feet, mostly single track on Sunday. Saturday’s ride, during a climb up Gold Camp, a guy with two prosthetics from the knees down blew by me like freight train. No Excuses! 

My Back Yard - Blodgett Peak

Passing through the "Garden"

Overlooking Manitou Springs

I can’t explain this, but the more I ride the more I want to ride. Even when I’m tired, hurting, hot, cold, wet or just plain don’t feel like riding, I still want to find the next hill and climb it. I know on the Tour Divide there are going to be long sections that I will be miserable and hurting from every fiber in my body. I won’t feel like riding. That’s what I’m training for; to be able to push through those periods. It’s starting to get routine and I’m absolutely loving it. To be out in the mountains all day with friends and alone is truly a joy. Every day, I count my blessings and reflect how grateful I am to have this opportunity and ability to do what I truly love. And not only that, doing what I truly love to help those in need. Our Children’s National project for families with children’s heart defects is taking off and donations are coming in. I can’t thank everyone enough for supporting these kids and their families. As I’ve mentioned in the past, my employer, Plus3 IT Systems is matching donations up to $2,500. 

And through it all - Still find time to run with my bestest running buddy - Max

Just over three weeks to go. It’s going to be a great adventure!

Thanks for reading and your support of Children’s National.

-larry