Tour de Cure 2010

Team CSH group photo

Tour de Cure Day 1

Early on Saturday morning, I met with Team CSH at the start. Most people were riding the 75 mile route, which was actually closer to 80 miles. Lisa, Stan, Jim and I were all doing the 100 mile route. The route went from Cary to the Pinehurst area. The 75 mile route went directly to the host hotel and the century route did a loop by Pine Needles and rejoined the 75 mile route before going to the finish area.

I started out riding with Stan and Lisa. At about the halfway point we here a ping and it turned out that was the sound of Stan's front spoke breaking. We were near a rest stop and he made it there. Fortunately Steve K. from Bicycle Chain was there. Of course he didn't have a spoke that was the exact length of the broken one! Steve K. managed to jerry-rig it so that Stan could finish out the weekend. Stan, Lisa and I continue together until about mile 60 and then, when it was my turn the take the pull, I was riding along on an incline and glanced back -- no Stan and Lisa. I slowed slightly and the decided to ride my own pace (the incline was not bad but it was about 5 miles long and we had a headwind) until the next rest stop and regroup.

102 miles done!

I got to the rest stop and Team Cheeta was there along with my TdC friend, Tracy. This is the rest stop where people turned off for the century or continued on for the hotel. The Cheetahs were waiting for a straggler and Tracy was ready to go. Stan and Lisa pulled in and I asked if they were continuing on the century. Stan said, "I'll let you know in five minutes." Tracy said, "I'm going." I told Stan and Lisa that I was going to continue on with Tracy. Tracy and I rode side-by-side and talked for the fist bit, which was downhill. Then I pulled for a bit and we got to a water stop. Tracy wanted to stop and I was good with that since we were rejoining the route in time to do the 5 mile uphill headwind section again. Tracy said when we get to the hills, let's go at our own pace and we did.

Happily, DH had already checked us into the hotel and turned on the air conditioner in our room. DH and I hung around in the afternoon and went to the TdC dinner in the tents outside of the hotel. They did a much better job with dinner this year and the beer was a major upgrade -- Fat Tire and Carolina Brewing Company!

Tour de Cure Day 2

Sandra, Mark and Doug from TdC before the start of the ride on Day 2

On Sunday morning, I grabbed some breakfast at the hotel and then gathered up my gear. A group of us met in the parking lot to head back to Cary. Today everyone that I knew was doing the 75 mile route. Jim and I talked and wanted to ride with Team CSH, if possible. We did hang with the team for about 10 miles and got frustrated. Steve L. was sitting on the front and holding the riders at and even pace, not an even effort. Both the pace and the effort were not what we were looking for.

Jim

Jim and I pulled off and three guys came with us so we had a nice little group going. We joined up with the Sandhills Cycling Club group for a while and then there was a split after Sanford. Jim and the others were in the first group and I was with the SCC group for a while. Then it started to feel disorganized and I went off on my own.

I was having a really good ride and generally enjoying myself. I was nearing "home turf" and almost to the last rest stop I planned to use to top off my water when it happened. My foot felt odd. I looked down and saw nothing abnormal. I decided to unclip and reclip thinking that something might be in my cleat. Much to my surprise, when I unclipped, the entire crank arm came off! Uh oh...

I am not experienced with this sort of mechanical problem. I called the TdC SAG number and left a message. Some riders passed me and I asked them to leave a message at the next rest stop. I put on my cleat covers and started walking. A few other riders passed me and I gave them all the same message -- rider with crank problem needs assistance. Then a group stopped. The had tools! We got the crank on but a part was missing -- the star bolt cover piece apparently came off somewhere along Lower Monrure Road. About this time the mechanic from the rest stop came and he said it looked secure enough to ride into the rest stop, do that and he'd look at it there. He tightened down the two screws on the crank. The mechanic reiterated that the star bolt wasn't really need and I was good to go for the next 20 miles.

A few miles out of the rest stop the crank detached for the second time. Rick, who got me on the road the first time, stopped and helped me again. The crank came off again a few miles later. A SAG vehicle was just behind me and I flagged it down. I asked to be SAGged forward since the mechanic at the rest stop behind me had been unable to help. Steve K. from Bicycle Chain was at the rest stop that we pulled into (yes, he of the jerry-rigged spoke the day before). Steve fixed me up and I was able to ride the final bit of the TdC. I was so happy to get back on the bike! I *really* wanted to finish! I am slightly disappointed that I didn't get to ride the whole thing without issues since I had a good ride going but I'm please that I persevered.

Tour de Cure

Last weekend I participated in my fourth Tour de Cure. The TdC is an annual bike ride and fundraiser for the American Diabetes Association whose mission is to prevent and cure diabetes. About 400 riders participated. This year they tried a new route that took us from Cary to Southern Pines. The new route was very nice. Some riders thought that it would be flat but I knew better -- after all, they are called the sandhills. There is sand and, well, hills!

The weather was great! It was rain-free but overcast so we didn't get too hot on the black pavement. There was a breeze but we didn't have to deal with any wind to speak of.

Team Type 1/CSH group photo

My friend Doug and I had decided to do the 100 mile route on Saturday and the 75 mile route on Sunday with David and Melissa. Since the routes were the for about 70 miles, Doug, David and I tried to stay together. Doug and I were more or less in the same group on Saturday and we ended up seeing David at rest stops. Speaking of rest stops, there were a lot of them and we ended up stopping every other time. The route was nice, especially when we got into the horse country around Pinehurst and Southern Pines.

After 70 miles, Doug and I said good bye to David and tried to hook up with a group of riders for the "100." Notice the quotes. We said that we wanted to ride 100 miles on Saturday. The queue sheet said 103. OK, not bad. Well, it was more than that. Anyway, I had not been paying attention to the details of the new route and did not realize that our special bonus miles were through Fort Bragg before looping back to rejoin the main route where we repeated the last bit before finishing. While the roads on Fort Bragg are not heavily traveled, it is not exactly scenic. I knew from previous TdC events that very few people do the 100. It was me, Doug, three other riders and that's it the entire time that we were on that leg of the route (I know of one other similar size group that did the 100 and a solo rider mentioned below). We did not see TdC support vehicles or anything. After getting off the base we had a rest stop which was several further than we expected it to be. At that stop I asked, "How much further is it really?" It was clear by this point that I would be riding more than 103 miles. The workers replied, "14 miles. Or 18." We figured that we'd take the pessimistic number and that it would be 106 miles to the finish. After a few miles the group of riders I was with fell off the back and I ended up soloing the last 15 miles or so. 105 miles. 106 miles. No finish line. 107 miles. No finish line! 107.75 miles there it is!

I felt that I rode strong on Saturday and several people made comments to that effect. I felt happy. My training is starting to pay off!

The hotel was nice and the event hosted a dinner (would not use that caterer again) and there was a band for entertainment. I stayed at the host hotel which had a pool and was very nice. I definitely liked the location a lot and the route was good but the queue sheets need some work and no one who did the "100" liked that leg very much. The event had a very major change including totally new routes, new Saturday evening host town and pretty much new everything and I thought they did a great job. There were surprisingly few problems.

One such problem is that they apparently did not sweep the 100 mile route. One women was still on the 100+ mile section when the volunteers started to turn around the signs for Sunday's return trip. When this rider got off base, she followed the now turned signs and turned toward Cary instead of toward host hotel. Some time later, another volunteer saw her and offered to SAG her back to the host hotel. The rider refused and rode in herself. She ended up logging 130 miles on Saturday. I don't know if she rode on Sunday or not!

On Sunday morning we left quite early for the return trip. Last year it was brutally hot so this year the organizers had us all leave at 7:00 for the return ride. The return route was the reverse of the Saturday. I don't think that anyone did the 100 on Sunday although my TdC friend Tracy rode 12 miles before the 7 am start so she'd get 200 miles for the weekend. On Sunday Doug, David and I added Melissa to our posse and we stuck together for the first 50 miles or so. We were all together for a while after that but the distance started to take it's toll. I felt strong on Sunday as well but was happy to see the finish line. DH met me at the finish which was great.

I enjoyed the event and hope to participate again next year!

Tour de Cure ride report

The Tour de Cure (TdC) is a two day cycling event to raise money for diabetes research. The main route is 75 miles each day and two other routes are offered as well. I participated in the "240k challenge" which is 150 miles.

This was my third TdC and I've enjoyed it each year. I think that this year was probably the best organized of the three years. The volunteers were great, the banquet on Saturday night was pleasantly to the point and the camaraderie was outstanding. I hooked up with a great group of Gyros, Qualcomm, NetApp and unaffiliated riders and on Sunday and we were all pretty good about staying focused at the rest stops and not lingering too long -- figuring that the as the day progressed, it would only get hotter.

The route was pleasant, crossing Falls Lake at about the halfway point, and I enjoyed the minor changes made to the Cary/Apex/Morrisville portion this year. The Masonic Home for Children in Oxford was a great host as well.

It was hot. I tried to ignore it when the weather forecast called for temperatures over 100 degree on Saturday and Sunday. I contacted fellow riders on Friday and they were already changing their plans. A coworker of mine, K1v1n, and I still planned to ride. Our strategy was to minimize our total amount of time outside by riding a steady pace and not lingering at rest stops to socialize. Some groups take a really long time at rest stops and that is never something that I enjoy because the longer I stop, the harder it is for me to get going again.

Both days everything was good until 11:00 or so and then I started to think, "It's hot." By noon both days I started to think, "It's really hot!!!" By 12:30 each day I was thinking, "Dear Lord, is it hot!!" Fortunately, I rolled in between 12:30 and 1:00. Even so, temperture was 97 and the heat index was 102 when I finished on Saturday and even higher when I finished on Sunday.

On Saturday's ride to Oxford I was with a the NetApp group until the middle rest stop and when I was read to leave, the Qualcomm group was leaving so I went with them. Unfortunately, I was dropped going into Creedmoor. I completed the final third of the ride as a solo effort. When I finished, I noticed that a lot of people were coming in alone and I was far from the only solo rider out there. In fact, after taking to K1v1n at dinner, I found that he had much the same experience.



On Sunday morning when we gathered at the starting line, those of us there noticed that we had lost half the riders. This was confirmed by the TdC organizer who also said that the riders alone had raised over $150,000. That's a lot of money.

At the starting area, I found found the Qualcom/Gyros group that I wanted to be with and lined up with them. As we rolled out of Oxford with our police escort, I noticed a girl wearing red shorts with CHE ER on the rear. These were not cycling shorts, just shorts. Wow, that had to hurt. After a few more miles we found out out that her she was a 14 year old high school freshman. The group I was with kind of took care of her and started to call her "Megan the Machine." She made it all the way back to Cary with our group. As someone else in the group said, she didn't know that it was supposed to be hard!

On Sunday morning the most unusual thing happened on my bike ride. I was participating in the Tour de Cure and it was the second day of the tour. I was riding with a group of about 15 cyclists and someone yelled out, "Slowing! Deer!" Then several other riders yelled out, "Deer! Deer!" It was a fawn running on the road in the same direction as we were going. We continued to slow as the fawn continued to run for its life and finally ran into the field to our right. It was still young enough to have spots along its back.

I've seen deer on bike rides before but never had one join the peloton before!



Up next, the Firecracker 100k.

Tour de Cure Fundraiser

As many you already know, I've training for the Tour de Cure to be held on June 7 and 8. In less that on month, I will be joining many other cyclists riding from Cary to Oxford and back, a total of 150 miles, to help raise money to end the devastating effects of diabetes. This month, I completed a 100 mile ride and I plan to complete a metric century this weekend as part of this training effort.

This fund raiser is very important to me because I have several friends that have been diagnosed with diabetes.

If you would like to make to make a donation to the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure fund-raising event, you can make a donation online by clicking this link. If you want to do even more to help, please consider joining me in this great event. Our efforts will help set the pace in the fight against diabetes.

Thank you again for your support!

Another day in the saddle!

Today was another good riding day. It was nice and sunny out and was in the high 40s when we started and about 60 degrees when we finished.

I rode just over 62 miles in preparation for the Frostbite Tour 100k in two weeks. I've been going to one of the local shop rides (btw, Emma stopped by to say, "Hi"). Today I wanted to add some miles so I went to and from the ride on my bike. I'm still loving the Madone.

I feel like I'm on track for my riding goals:

• 100 mile ride - entered Raven Rock Ramble 100 mile route and may do a 100 mile route at the MS150.
  
• Improved climbing - entered 3 Mountain Madness
• Tour de Cure (entered), MS150 (deciding which one)
• gain some speed
• mountain biking (need to become independently wealthy so I have more time!)
  

I'm happy. I wanted to share!


Note: The route is actually 51 miles. The mapping software does not seem to have the correct data for Horton's Pond Road.

Training notes...

(imported from FB, used original posting date)

I've been wanting to write a blog for some time now. The problem is that I just don't think that I have that much to say. What would be the focus of my blog? Who the heck would read it? Then it occurred to me that maybe I should blog just for me. If other people read it, great, if not, that's fine too.

While adding Notes to Facebook may not considered a "real" blog, it is a blog in the most literal sense. After all blog is just an ongoing narrative, an online dairy of sorts. Facebook is not as open as blogspot but what the heck. I plan to write about my training for the MS150 here, along with other things that are going on in my life.

This month, I begin training in earnest for the MS150. I signed up for it way back in January. The Tour de Cure is behind me now and I know that I can do the 150 miles. What I feel that I need to work on is consistency. I've been saying that speed is the problem but really, I'm pretty close to where I was this time last year in terms of speed. Well, sometimes I am. I just don't know how it's going to be from ride to ride.

I think of the Fourth of July as the real kickoff to my MS150 training. It's as if all of the riding done before that time was base miles. Part of the reason for this thinking is that when I rode my first MS150, my first ever 100k was the Firecracker that year. The other reason is that there are 100k rides to be had about every weekend from the Fourth of July until Labor Day, so the Raleigh area riding season is really in full swing now.

After my first MS150 in 2005, I had some back problems. In an effort to keep those problems at bay, I started working with a coach. Her name is Maija but after the McDonald's is healthy ad campaign with Maya the Virtual Coach, my husband started to refer to her that way. Maija lives near me but 99% of what we do is via e-mail. She sends me a set of workouts every two weeks.

This week was an odd one because of the mid-week metric century. Last weekend's assignment was three hours on Saturday and 90 minutes on Sunday. Saturday's ride went well. I averaged 17.2 which is spot on. I feel that I should be in the low 17s so I was happy with that. I rode comfortably. The route that I did was Beaver Creek-Mt Gilead Church-Mt Pisgah Church-Davis . It was a new route for me but kind of a variation on a theme. Sunday was a different story. I averaged only 16.5 and was pretty upset with myself about it. It was windy -- 12 mph -- but this time I year I feel that I should be a strong enough rider to not let that be a problem. Maija and Kevin both told me not to be so hard on myself. I ordered some brainwashing materials in an effort to get my head screwed on right. I've struggled with these weird off days since my surgery and I need to do something.

Training on Monday and Tuesday was spin class. Easy effort on Monday, steady pace on Tuesday with a core workout. The Firecracker was Wednesday and Thursday (steady pace) was spin and core again. Friday is my off day right now so I had "alternate schedule" which means more sleep and less gym.

This weekend Kevin is out of town doing some whitewater kayaking -- I don't do roller coaster or whitewater kayaking. I lined up have two On Call Team Car drivers -- Sydney and my mom. That way if I am riding and get into trouble I have someone to call. As it turns out, a friend of mine -- Sandra in the Firecracker photos -- is riding the distance that I want to tomorrow. I plan to join her. My assignment for this weekend is two hours on Saturday and 90 minutes on Sunday. I usually do about 100 miles a weekend this time of year but the mileage is lower due to the 62 midweek miles.

In addition to my training, I have been thinking a lot about my fundraising letter. I have rewritten it twice and it's still pitiful. I want for it to be very concise but I also would like to get some emotion into it. I do the MS150 because it is fun, that's true, but I truly was inspired by a friend of mine who was diagnosed with MS in about 2003. Cathy is very active and athletic and it broke my heart when she started to have health issues. I was shocked when the diagnosis finally turned out to be MS. I've known other people with the disease but they were more internet buddies or people that I knew in passing. Cathy is an agility friend who loves hiking with her dogs. She canoes with them and really would rather by hanging out the woods with her her canine crew than doing about anything else. I worry for her and with her and really do want to help support people with MS.

Tour de Cure

(imported from FB)

This weekend I participated in my second Tour de Cure to benefit the American Diabetes Association. On Saturday, several hundred cyclists rode a 75-mile route from Cary, NC to Oxford, NC where we had an overnight stop at the Masonic Home for Children and on Sunday, we cycled back to Cary.

On Saturday, I rode with a team of varying abilities and conditioning. This -- along with 95 degree heat -- presented some challenges. I got really frustrated with some folks on the team but in the end we all finished together in Oxford.

Many of the people on the team had elected to participate on Saturday only. As a result I did not ride with the team on Sunday. That presented its own challenges but the cooler weather on Sunday helped to make it a pleasant ride. For the return trip on Sunday I made awesome time -- 18.1 average which is great for me -- and that was good too.

In this area, the MS150 is the big ride and this is just a tiny baby one but I'll continue to support it. I'd like to see the Tour de Cure grow into a larger event and I would encourage any local cyclist to participate in future rides. The route is very nice and the volunteer and other riders help to make it a fun event.

I was the only member of the team to complete the route on both days.

Cycling across the country

(imported from FB)

On Sunday I needed to get a three hour bike ride in as part of my training for the Tour de Cure. Tropical Storm Barry was in the area and we had the associated rain throughout the day. I decided that there was not going to be a dry three hour window so I left the house at about 9:15 for my ride. As I got to Wilsonville and pulled into the gas station there, two cyclists pulled in behind me. They were each pulling trailers. We chatted for a bit:

"How are you? "

"Wet"

"Do you know if there are any hotels in Pittsboro?"

She said that they were from Houston and had ridden from Clayton the day before. I asked about their final destination. "Oh, I'm leaving him in Kentucky and meeting up with another group there. My final destination is Oregon." She said that she was picking up the TransAmerica Trail in Kentucky.

Now that's a bike ride!