Marysville to Wooster OH

103 miles today. Stunning scenery and great weather. We did about 4000 feet of climbing mainly rollers but some steep gradients sometimes over 10%. Most of climbing was later in the ride after the lunch SAG.

I felt sluggish all day. I also had bad attitude most of the day. So that didn't help. I think I was dealing with some energy low. I also had a bad gas bubble in my stomach for about an hour and that didn't feel good.

I managed to get myself over the big rollers late in the day. It wasn't pretty but it got me there. Got into Wooster about 2:30 for about 7 hours riding including rest stops. That's a little surprising given how I was feeling and pedaling.

I rode today entirely alone and it worked OK for me. I figured it was best too since I seemed to be having attitude problems.

The roads we're stunning. A lot of really green forested areas. We did hit some really bad road for a couple miles. But my bike held up well through it. We had a lot of turns to; two que sheets worth.

Tomorrow more of the same but we have a really rough section of several miles tomorrow and probably a light headwind. Only 98 miles too.

I made another handlebar video too.

Tuscola to Richmond IN to Marysville OH

Sunset after dinner in Richmond OH

Titanium tubeset for a Roark bike.

Didn't have time to post yesterday.

Did 120 miles to Richmond and then 105 to Marysville. Weather was good. Had big tailwinds to Marysville so made it here by 1 pm. Got a little warm in afternoon though.

My body was a little frazzled yesterday after that big finish to Tescola with George. My lower left back was tight and my right hamstring was hurting a bit the morning to Richmond.

But today to Marysville, I felt fine. So I took it pretty easy today and that was easy to do since we had 15-20 mph tailwinds most of the day. One rider decided he wanted to get a PR for a century. He did. He did a 4:30 century. In my mind though its a bit meaningless because the wind plays such a big factor.

Two riders had serious mechanical problems today. One had a failed freehub; he could turn the pedals but the rear wheel wouldn't move. Another rider sheared his cranks clean off! That could have been disastrous. But it failed when when we has pedaling easy. If it had happened when he was really pushing and or at high speed he could have been seriously injured.

We've been chased by a number of dogs. Sometimes I don't have it in my legs to out run them. So I take my water bottle and squirt it in their face and that seems to startle them and they back off.

I changed my rear tire yesterday. The old one had about 2600 miles on it and the tread markers were showing. The front tire still looks great.

We took a tour of the Roark bicycle shop. They are actually an aerospace machine shop but employ several cycling enthusiasts who manufacture phenomenal titanium bike frames. Pretty hefty price tag too, About $4,000 for a standard classic frame. But boy do they know their materials and craftsmanship.

Dinner in Richmond. Left to right: George, Joe, me, Ralph, Richard, Jan, Max, Gary and Eric.

We had a great Italian pasta dinner in Richmond and saw a great sunset.

I got another care package from Andrea and Terry with some organic raisons, foot and skin products and other goodies. I also got a nice card from Suanne. I've been getting a nice card from Sandy at every hotel too!

Had a Starbucks for the fist time since Balmy Springs. Saw it as I came into Marysville. Gary and I finally beat Ralph and Eric at 9-5s today.

Tomorrow has some steeper gradients in it. About 4000 feet of climbing. So should be a longer day.

I took a little video of myself while riding and some of Barry who was just ahead of me for several miles after lunch SAG.

Phillipe and me crossing Ohio state line.

Meeting manager/owner of Roark

Barry riding ahead of me to Marysville OH

Care package from Andrea and Terry

Dan's broken cranks

Bikes at Roark

Hello Indiana

We made it from Tuscola, IL. to Lebanon, IN. today. It was 120 mile ride but the weather was really pretty nice. It was a little on the cool side at the start, maybe around 40. But, as the day progressed, things warmed up nicely.

I got my first flat of the tour at about mile 20. My bike just seemed harder and harder to pedal and then I realized my front tire was pretty low. I carry a spare tube as well as a patch kit. When the hole in the tube is easy to find, I prefer to patch the existing tube instead of putting on the new one. I learned to patch a tube from some neighborhood friends when I was just a kid, maybe 10 years old. First, you have to find the hole, then you use a file or sandpaper to rough up the tube surface a bit. Then, you apply rubber cement and finally the rubber patch. The patch "fuzes" to the tube in a matter of minutes. I have patched many tubes while sitting on the side of the roads around Davis. So, I tried to patch this tube. But, I think the temperature was a little too low for the rubber to vulcanize. After several minutes of pressing the patch firmly against the tube, I could just peel the patch off. So, with Mike Munk's help (the SAG van arrived just after my tire went flat), I put in the new tube. But, not before carefully inspecting the tire for any flat hazards still sticking through it as well as the rim (sometimes a spoke pokes through the rim liner).

Due to the flat, I was bringing up the rear. So, I pedaled pretty hard to catch back up to the main group of slower riders. I caught them after 10-15 minutes and we rode to the first SAG stop at mile 43 together and then from their to the lunch SAG at mile 83. By the way, I learned something. SAG stands for "Support and Gear". But I ate quickly and left lunch SAG on my own and really pushed hard to get to mile 100. With help from wind and some descents, I think I averaged ~21 mph from 83 to 100 miles. Then, I caught up to George, the rider from the UK. We stopped at a convenience store for a bathroom break and then rode the last 20 miles together. But, when we started, George just seemed to sort of hammer it out of the stop. He was going maybe 24 mph and I was drafting wondering if I was going to be able to hang on and, even if I did, what good I would be when the time came for me to pull. But, I pushed pretty hard with George exchanging pulls and we finished the last 20 miles at a pretty high average speed, maybe 23-24 mph. My heart rate climbed to 160 for several of my pulls and my legs burned a bit. Probably way too much effort with 10 days left to go. But, I feel ok now after sitting in the spa and doing some stretches. None of that again though.

We had a quick shake and a "Steak-n-Shake" around the corner from the hotel before RAP meeting. I spent some time patching the tube I tried to patch earlier in the day so that I could have it as a backup in case I need it. I came with 4 tubes and have used 2 already. Also, its getting time to replace my rear tire. I will probably rotate the front to the rear and then put a new one on the front tomorrow in Richmond.


Thats Phillipe with me just after entering Indiana

 

Easy 77 Today

Easiest day today in terms of mileage. Just 77 miles. Slightly cold temps at start; sub 40. But had full sun today so that helped.

Winds were moderate and often tail winds. In some cases I could maintain 22 mph without much effort.

Richard's leg is on the mend. He completed today's ride without any pain.

I felt a bit sluggish early but finished strong.

We kidded Phillipe about drafting off his wife. Mike said he has to catch her first before he can draft off her.

I learned more about Norman one of the two Aussies here. He said this is basically a training ride for him to prepare for a national race in Australia later this year. He actually doesn't really like being here too much but understands it's part of preparing him for the race. He won the race 10 years ago but had it taken away from him on a technicality.

I learned a new card game from Ralph and Eric called "nine fives". We played for an hour and then I taught them polish poker.

Happy mother's day!  I called my mom and wife from lunch SAG today to wish them a happy day. I got Barbara Munk a couple of chocolate treats from a local shop as a Mother's day gift. She does mother us at the SAG stops. One of the other riders says that the last thing you want is to be stuck in the SAG van while Barbara mother's you on allv the ways you need to take care of yourself ;)

Richard used some extra time to demonstrate his training site to Norman.

Mike showed us his golf swing.

Jim Benson worked on another exotic bike.

Mike's leg. Look at those muscles!

What the roads look like here in Illinois.

Ever seen a pancake printer? The "ink" is pancake batter. You hit the print button and two minutes later two pancakes pop out.

Norman (left) and Greg

Eric's Departure

Watch "Eric leaving" on YouTube

New people

Watch "New people" on YouTube

Rest Day in Springfield

Today is our second rest day of the tour. Woohoo! I've got a massage scheduled for 10:15 am about 2 miles from the hotel. The hotel we are staying at is very nice. Good breakfast, free drinks at happy hour and just down the street from a Panera Bread. I haven't had a Starbucks since Balm Springs on day 2. Its killing me ;)

All my various ailments are coming along well. My legs are sore but not nearly as much as they were in Albuquerque. My saddle sore is healing well and not even much of a nuisance while I am on the bike. Though, it does remind me to get off the saddle every now and then. I wound up getting out of the saddle in Missouri more than I ever have because of all the rollers and steep gradients. Its just more natural to stand up and push a big gear over the next rise than to sit back on the saddle and spin up.

Plus Two Minus One

Two new riders have joined us in Springfield. One rider, Gary, will be completing the leg from Springfield to Amesbury. The other rider is Romita (did I get that right), Philippe's wife. She will ride with us for the next few days. I told Phillipe I am not going to be happy if she winds up making me look bad by blowing by me on all the climbs. Good women riders can have a very high power to weight ratio making them excellent climbers. But, they can't do nearly as well in the wind because it pushes them all over.

Another rider, Eric, has decided to leave us here is Springfield to get back to his family. We all tried to convince him to stay and finish the ride to Amesbury but he was really missing his family and wanted to get back to them. So, he is renting a car and driving 11 hours back to his home near State College Pennsylvania. He said he may try to rejoin us the last few days and I hope he does. He is a strong rider and has done some much work to get this far its a shame not to finish with us.

Spinning vs. Grinding

I have discovered I guess I am a bit of a grinder. At least, that is what my body is accustomed to now. Ever since the LA Grand Tour last June, I've noticed I like to take hills and push into headwinds with a low pedal cadence (60-75). I think it has something to do with the way I have trained. While on training rides, I learned to use a slightly bigger gear than I was comfortable with to strengthen my legs. In the weight room, I would do leg presses at high weight and low speed (3 sets of 30 at 450 lbs) to really push my leg muscles to their fatigue limits. But, all this has made me more or less of a "grinder" kind of rider. Most of the riders here are "spinners". Their cadence is 85-95. The rider from the Netherlends, Floris, rides at 100+ cadence continuously for several hours each day.

My understanding is that part of Lance Armstrong's big comeback to cycling after recovering from cancer was to change his cadence from a grinding style to a spinning style. He did all his Tour de France rides at 90+ cadence and his time trials above 100 cadence. Well, I guess we've learned quite a bit more about Lance's "techniques" for improving his cycling but a lot of cycling literature out there suggests that the higher the cadence you can tolerate the better.

What I have found is that while I can spin at higher cadences (occasionally I will do a 1-2 ride at 90+ just to work on my technique), my heart rate is higher than I would normally see for the same speed. So, for me, keeping my cadence low also means keeping my heart rate low which means I am not breathing as hard, etc.

I will probably have to learn to adapt my cycling style in the future to become more of a spinner because it will have the effect of reducing pedal pressure on my feet where I sometimes experience problems. But, I am not planning on changing anything about my riding style until after I finish this ride.

The Technology it Takes

Almost every one of the 24 riders here is blogging. When we roll into a hotel, I think we bring the internet down because the first thing we all do is get online and start blogging about the day's events. I've uploaded several gigabytes of video from my droid phone.

My roommate, Richard, is one of the more high tech riders here. He has a Garmin Edge 800 cycle computer and a power tap hub in his rear wheel to measure power output. His Garmin Edge measures his heart rate, power, pedal cadence, speed, calories expended, current temperature, current elevation and gradient and lat/lon GPS location several times a second (I bet he'd rig it up to measure electrolytes in his urine if he thought it was possible ;). It sends this data via wifi to his cell phone in his back jersey pocket. The cell phone then uploads the data continuously (live) to a web page. He sends everyone he chooses a link to that day's page. So, anyone he selects can click on the link and get live information about where he his in the country, what his heart rate is, how much power he is generating, etc.

So, on the day he first started experiencing problems with his left leg and jumped in the van, about 10 minutes later he got a voice message from his wife full of concern because it looked like his power output and plummeted. She was watching his data live on line and noticed a sudden slump in performance and was concerned what was going on. She then got on line herself and scheduled an appointment with a sports physiology lab while we were in Quincey. By the time he got the the hotel that day, he had an appointment with a physical therapist and doctor and they examined his leg, gave him a compression sleeve and told him to rest it for a couple of days.

One other funny note about Richard I hope he won't mind my sharing here... He has a wifi scale at his home in Roseville, CA. Whenever he stands on it barefooted, it measures percent body fat and his weight and wifis the data to his cycling performance web pages. Turns out a family member is in town visiting his wife. So, while Richard was online from our hotel room examining his performance data from the last several days, all of the sudden the numbers started changing on him right in front of his eyes. Someone was at his home in Roseville, standing on the scale and it was uploading different percent body fat and weight data. It did this several times in the space of 10 minutes. So, he had to get on the phone to Karen, his wife, to ask if she could remedy the situation.

Control that Ego

All the riders here are very strong. There are also a lot of type A personalities too. I would like to think I don't count myself among them in type-A-ishness but I had a bit of a setback yesterday.

For the most part, I have tried to ride this ride well within my limits knowing that often it means I am near the back of the group and last finishers each day. Hey, as long as I get through the day safely and ready to pedal the next day, its a good day. That is what I tell myself anyways. The first week involved so much climbing and I have a heavy bike and I make it even heavier with all the "creature comforts" I carry such as extra clothing, food, a misty mate for those high temp days, etc. so I knew I would just have to ride steady and consistently and I would make it through each day. That has worked.

More recently, we've been seeing more flats. That is where I kinda sorta excel. I spend so much time riding the flats around Davis that I am really used to just getting down into my aero bars and pushing through for long sections. So, I have noticed that I am starting to finish near the front of the group of riders now. I am frequently passing riders instead of riders passing me.

But, something happened to me yesterday that kinda perturbed me a bit. I left the hotel with a group and pulled for several miles yesterday morning. I was fine pulling for a long time because I was comfortable with the pace. I even reduced the pace on a couple of different occassions at the request of other riders in the paceline to ensure we weren't dropping anyone. Eventually, I moved off the front to rejoin at the back. But, the rearmost rider didn't give me anything to work with. He was wavering all over the shoulder never giving me anything to really draft from. On top of that, the road was wet and I was getting a face full of whatever the next guy's tire was spinning up into the air. On wet days like this, I have fenders on to prevent that. I thought it was somewhat purposeful too. Maybe that was my imagination.

Then, when we hit an uphill section, the rider at the front accelerated the pace and they dropped me. Ok, fine. I can live with that. I just didn't want to work all that hard going up hill. Eventually their gap grew to several hundred yards. But, then we hit a flat section. I got down into my aero bars and just cruised and quickly caught back up to them. I drafted for a few minutes but their pace seemed a bit slow to me at that point. So, I moved out to pass them. But, I was no longer in any mood to be charitable with my draft. The wind was coming a bit from the left and so I moved as far to the right hand side of the road as I could. Ordinarily, I will offset my line of track several feet to the left of the shoulder to give 2-3 riders space to stagger to the right behind me. But, since I was a bit perturbed, I decided not to give anyone behind me any space to work with. You couldn't fit a sheet of paper between my wheels and the edge of the road. I quickly dropped them.

I was the first rider after the fab 4 (Floris, Tom, Roger and Dave) into lunch. The riders I passed came in several minutes later saying they were sorry and hadn't realized they had dropped me. Yeah, right. They have mirrors and can see whats happening behind them. Again, maybe my imagination but they seemed ancy to leave lunch ahead of me. I needed to relieve my bladder but opted to leave just after them to keep them within a few hundred yards. The 4 layers of elastic banded clothing I was wearing didn't help the bladder situation either. I followed them from that far back for 10-15 miles hoping all along they would start to tire or I would gain some strength to pass them. Then, it happened. They came to a stop for a pee-break. As I sped by I asked "Everything Ok?" with a smug smile and pedaled on ahead. Yes, its sad that I derived some sense of accomplishment from strategizing a tactic and then having it "pay off" in passing them later on. I mean, who cares what ordered we all finish the day's ride in as long as we finish it? Thats my ego. But, after many days of hearing comments regarding how old and heavy my bike is, how odd my compression knee-high sox look or how much stuff I am carrying on my rear rack or the fact that I have fenders, I guess I took a little comfort in proving I can still be hard to keep up with. But, I paid a price too. By the time I reached the hotel, my bladder was ready to pop. But, I suffered through it so I could beat 'em in. Isn't that just sad?

Care Packages

At almost every stop lately I have had cards and/or care packages when I arrive. Its great! Some other riders get care packages too but mine are great. I just got another full of cookies from Andrea and Terry. Thanks. And, thanks to everyone for following this adventure and commenting on my blog. Its great to know you are thinking of me.

The Days Ahead

Tomorrow should be  the easiest day yet. Just 77 miles. And, we'll likely have a tail wind. My plan is to extend it to an active rest day and put very little stress on my already tired body. After that we have 4-5 100 mile days of mainly flat riding that should also be easy assuming the weather continues to cooperate. We have one really long 140 mile day but if the winds are typical, it should go easy too. The last two days of the tour are bigger climbing days with ~7,000 feet each day. Then, we'll hit the Atlantic ocean and I will get to see my wife for the first time in 31 days. That will be something special I am looking forward to sharing with Sandy. Please continue to send me well wishes and prayers for safe riding. There are still many miles to go but the end is coming into sight.

Using my bike as a clothes drying rack.

Care package from Andrea and Terry

Tiffany my message therapist. She did a great job.

A seriously warn cleat

Three of the fab 4 riders; Roger (far left), Floris (middle) small Tom (as opposed to big Tom)  (right)

View of some smoke stacks from Denny's around corner from hotel.

Phillipe and his wife and Jim Bensen (the mechanic) rear left and Jody.

We're in Illinois

More rollers today. They were a bit steeper than yesterday too. But the ride length today was only 97 miles. I try to keep my effort as low as possible.

I am finding I am rarely taxing my cardio system but my legs are often too tired to push. I went through a real energy low where my legs just felt like lead. I believe it may be a nutritional issue. It took about a half hour and I started to feel better.

The weather today was overcast but warm. We had occasional drizzle and some light rain. Wearing a rain jacket in this weather is pointless. You get wetter from sweating inside the jacket then you do from the rain. And it's just plain hotter to ride that way.

We passed through the tiny town of Colony at about mile 50 today. I stopped at a store which was basically a homeowners garage to buy a soda. The owner let me use the restroom to.

Our lunch SAG stop was just before a barge to cross the Mississippi. The area where we stopped for lunch was under several feet of water last week. The barge only started running this Monday. Our bikes got quickly covered with mud. Glad I had my fenders on. I made a quick sandwich at the lunch stop and carried it with me to the barge and ate it while crossing the Mississippi.

We feast headwinds after we got across the Mississippi. They weren't strong but we're constant. A group of riders that crossed with me immediately got a flat on the other side and then another one before reaching the hotel.

Today was another day of riding almost entirely alone. I left the hotel earlier than everyone else but was using low-effort and so expected everyone else to eventually overtake me. But I think everyone else had the same idea as I did. That is to take it easy and go slow. In any event when you face a bunch of rollers it's very difficult to stay together when your effort varies a lot based on how you feel. By the time I got into the headwinds in Illinois, I felt pretty strong and was able to cut through them with my aero bars.

When I got into Quincy, I stopped at a Panera Bread for a large meal. The hotel had a hose and rags for us to clean our bikes outside.

Tomorrow we face much the same weather. The ride is 106 miles tomorrow. And then we will have a rest day in Springfield. Woohoo I can't wait!

Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'

If I see one more roller I am going to cry. What is a roller? Its a small hill (up and down). We had a couple of hundred of them today. About 6500 feet worth of climbing. 120 miles too.

I did the first 100 in 6.5 hours including my rest time at SAG stops. That's probably a little to fast for me. The last 20 miles really were a struggle; steeper gradients on the rollers. You're at 45 mph on a descent then 15 seconds later you're at <10 mph on a steep gradient. And this happens over and over and over again. About 200 times today. The last 20 miles took me 1.5 hours.

To make matters worse my bike wasn't functioning properly. Although I've taken every precaution to protect my freewheel by changing the chain regularly I guess I've worn out the smallest 12 tooth cog. With the new chain on it skips on that cog. This is a common problem for people who fail to maintain their bike and let the chain wear out and then ruin the freewheel. But I've changed my chain every 1000-1,500 miles. So was very surprised to discover the new chain skips. I had to avoid that gear most of the day. Mike even drove the van back to the hotel to fish my old chain out of the trash there to put it back on. But I told him I would limp through the day. I am having Sandy FedEx another freewheel to Springfield. My freewheel is uncommon because its an ultra six. I could go back to a standard 5 too.

Anyways I got through the day OK with it as is. But this reminds me of an important rule I usually follow; if it ain't broke don't fix it.

On one of my last impromptu rest stops I talked to the local cows and they all started walking towards me.

We didn't get much rain to speak of. I put my fenders on just in case. Tomorrow we're likely to see thunder showers. Shorter day though. Just 97 miles. It was a gorgeous day for a ride and the countryside was beautiful.

My roommate had a really tough day with a muscle problem that forced him into the van early. Its been getting progressively worse and he's working to recover it now.

Topeka KS yesterday Cameron MO today

Didn't have time to blog yesterday.

We made Topeka yesterday after a cold temp start (about 40) and some light drizzle. Cleared after noon. We hit a lot of rollers into Topeka. Did about 4500 worth of rollers yesterday.

I included a pic of the route sheet for Topeka. It has a lot of turns. To make matters worse, I have a very bad habit of confusing left with right. I read "left" but visualize in my mind's eye right. Not good on a day like Topeka.

Over the course of this tour I have made several wrong turns but caught then within a few hundred yards. On the way to Topeka I stopped to check my Droid maps after passing a turn. But two riders followed me and continued on in the wrong direction. They got too far away before I realized what had happened. So I told Mike about it in the van and he chased then down. But they had gone so far at that point Mike just had them take a different route which in total was 3 miles shorter.

Today's ride was beautiful after a very foggy start in Topeka. Temps rose to mid-70s and light winds. This is what I came on this tour for! We did have close to 5000 feet of climbing rollers today. I didn't think I knew how to do rollers very well but I followed my roommate's advice t build power and n the descents and push over the next rise. It worked for the most part. A lot of folks had mechanical problems today. I was one of the first riders in today.

I worked in a great 7 man pace line today with Max,  Greg, Jan Ralph and Joe. We stayed together to the lunch SAG but fell apart when we hit the big high gradient rollers.

Needed work on my bike at finish. Me derailures needed adjustment, the bike needed a cleaning and my chain - which was brand new when we started in Costa Mesa needs replacement. I brought an extra chain along pre-cut to correct length. So it was short work. Jim Benson the mechanic says its a joy to work on my bike because everything is so easy. Another rider is riding with latest and greatest Shimano 11 speed Duraace components and he has run into several problems and neither Mine or Jim know how to service it. Mike was looking at manuals online today to figure out how to fix it.

We crossed the Missouri river today. Everyone left the photo op ahead of me and I had chase em down.

Got chased by some old dogs too. Just pulled my water bottle out and squirted them and that held them away. Also had some cows run towards me from behind a fence. They looked like they weren't happy I was there. Fortunately they were fenced in.

Also got a great care package from Sandy and Tara and a card from Andrea and Terry. Cookies, cleats m&ms and some TLC. Thanks Sandy and Tara.

Looks like some rain tomorrow. That and over 6K if rollers. About 275 roller s in all.

Great Bend to Abeline KS

130 miles today. Cold temps at the start. Cloudy skies and high humidity plus about 10 mph winds from the North. Went 75 miles due East on 56 then due north on CR 304 for 55 miles.

I went out pretty hard. Finished the first 70 miles in about 4 hours elapsed time. Then I slowed the pace quite a bit to deal with the headwinds. I worked with Tim for those 55 miles. We traded 1 mile pulls and worked very well together.

Tim does have a tendency to stand out of the saddle unexpectedly and once we rubbed wheels because of that. This is another aspect of working in pace lines. When you stand out of the saddle it is important not too slow because that just has a domino effect on everyone behind you. But not too many people can do this effectively especially late  in a ride. I gave Tim more room than usual to avoid further incidents.

At the lunch stop I saw some pretty purple flowers that reminded me of Sandy. So I took some pictures. Not much else to photograph other than that. A nice family near our lunch stop let us use their restroom and it had some funny instructions.