2015 Gran Fondo Winthrop: The Climbing
The two big climbs would each be about 4,000 feet over 15 miles. Hard to beat the Methow Valley for biking and skiing. Excellent account of the ride found here and here.
Starting at the Barn in Winthrop, the ride would take us up a pass with, I think, excellent views to the North into Canada, and then down to the small town of Conconully. From Conconully, the ride would take us back up another pass with excellent views of Old Baldy Mountain and back down to Winthrop.
Some route details. Winthrop is at about 1,768 ft elevation. The high point of the ride, at about 27 miles, is about 6,799 ft. Conconully, at about 48 miles into the ride, is at about 2,315 ft elevation. From Conconully back to Winthrop is about 40 miles, 15 miles up to the top of the pass (6,284 ft elevation), followed by basically 25 miles down by to Winthrop.
How would I do? This is all and all fairly unknown territory. I wanted to see this part of the North Cascades, and see how I would do out there on the Super Course.
I took the fenders off, and I rode the Super Course with Continental Gatorskin tires (32 - 630) at 55 PSI. I went with the Continental tires because I thought they would be reliable. If I could do it again I would have tried the Club Roost Cross Terra tires (37-630) at 50 PSI. I do wonder how they would have done on the forest road gravel. A woulda, shoulda, coulda kind of thing (see previous post). What I really need are well-made 35-630 tires, but I haven't found such tires.
Training. I didn't ride much in August although when I did ride I would generally do intense short rides or interval workouts in hotel exercise rooms. In September I got in three good weeks of training, perhaps about 40 hrs on the bike. I did four rides of 4.5 - 5.5 hours, five or six hard interval workouts, and five or six easy rides. I also got lots of rest. I found that I could handle the training load quite well. (My morning resting heart rate was quite stable and a little lower than normal at 44-48 bmp, my weight was okay at around 157 pounds - 150 pounds would be better but I've found that target to be difficult - and my legs and back were fairly okay.)
Still, the ride would be a real challenge. Based on last year's results, I figured it would take 7 plus hours, which is a long time to do anything. Being on a bicycle saddle for seven plus hours - that's fairly ridiculous.
I did fine, breaking 8 hours and finished, in 30th, about 26% behind the winner took about 6hr and 15min. 27th would have been possible if only I had sprinted at the end, but that seemed a little crazy after a crazy day. Here are the results. About 130 people were registered for the ride; about 80 finished.
The day was beautiful, mostly sunny, with a few clouds in the afternoon, and a little chilly. Actually, for some reason I just couldn't get warm, and for most of the ride I felt cold. I wore my jacket and knee warmers. These seemed a little bit unnecessary at the start but the forecast was for a low of 40 degrees in Winthrop and I figured that as we climbed into the mountains it wouldn't be any warmer under clear skies. I could have done with a hat; still, I'm glad I paid attention to the forecast, and I was glad for the knee warmers and jacket.
Here are some superb photographs, which capture much of the spirit of the day.
The landscape and the views were incredible. Old Baldy Mountain stood out particularly with a old burnt area of forest, whitish-grey rock, and yellow aspen leaves, flittering in the wind. When climbing I frequently heard Chickadees and wondered how they might make a living in the burnt forests; up on the higher parts of the ride I heard Ravens. Those familiar bird sounds were encouraging.
On the way up the first climb, almost at the top, I had to walk for about 25 meters - the gravel was too steep and too loose for me. "Bummer, " I said to two riders who were also walking at the time.
Coming down after the first big climb at about 35 miles into the ride I got flat. I went by at least three other riders with flats, all within about a mile. "Try to be gentle," I thought, "go at a good pace, not too fast, not too slow, let the bike bounce, but not too hard." Then, bang-ping-bang I went over a stream bed in a gully too quickly (definitely not too slowly) and the back tire blew.
Unfortunately, my pump, which I carefully tucked away at the beginning of the ride, had fallen out of my jacket. As riders went by, I asked if I could borrow a pump and someone graciously said "here you go." I changed the back tube, pumped up the tire, and off I was again. I returned the pump to its owner at the end, with many, many thanks.
Here are some superb photographs, which capture much of the spirit of the day.
The landscape and the views were incredible. Old Baldy Mountain stood out particularly with a old burnt area of forest, whitish-grey rock, and yellow aspen leaves, flittering in the wind. When climbing I frequently heard Chickadees and wondered how they might make a living in the burnt forests; up on the higher parts of the ride I heard Ravens. Those familiar bird sounds were encouraging.
On the way up the first climb, almost at the top, I had to walk for about 25 meters - the gravel was too steep and too loose for me. "Bummer, " I said to two riders who were also walking at the time.
Coming down after the first big climb at about 35 miles into the ride I got flat. I went by at least three other riders with flats, all within about a mile. "Try to be gentle," I thought, "go at a good pace, not too fast, not too slow, let the bike bounce, but not too hard." Then, bang-ping-bang I went over a stream bed in a gully too quickly (definitely not too slowly) and the back tire blew.
Unfortunately, my pump, which I carefully tucked away at the beginning of the ride, had fallen out of my jacket. As riders went by, I asked if I could borrow a pump and someone graciously said "here you go." I changed the back tube, pumped up the tire, and off I was again. I returned the pump to its owner at the end, with many, many thanks.
The second climb steadily went on and on forever. It was a terrific climb but it was hard. At this point in the day, it was probably too hard for me. I had intrusive thoughts, mostly of a sleeping bag, being curled up on some warm rocks, in the sun. I was in some kind of death-march-survival-mode for what seemed like a couple of hours. I'm not sure that peddling a 34x28T in survival-mode actually counts as cycling. Anyway, the climb did end. The ride down from the pass to the pavement was, well, not so easy either. My arms, shoulders, and neck were not really up to the task of braking for 15 miles. It was challenging to be fairly safe on the steep sandy-plus-washboardy surfaces. I just wasn't interested in falling, and my ability to react to and adjust to the changing surface was not so good, so on some sections I think I was going at walking pace. Strangely and quite unexpectedly, once on the pavement again, I found that I had a good deal of energy to finish off the ride, though I recalled at the rider meeting that Jake said that there were dangerous potholes and crappy pavement. Indeed, I had seen as much on the way up. I remembered, and rode quite conservatively until the pavement improved.
What's next? Would I do it again? I think so. I like the challenge and the process of trying to get fit and trying to improve my skills. So much too learn. I like the vibe of these rides - an invigorating mixture of seriousness and fun. Vicious Cycle did a great job organizing the event and the course was really, really terrific.
I have concluded that the Super Course frame, bars, brakes, and gear changers are fine for these Gran Fondos. Basically, it's a reliable machine given how I ride it. It has enabled me to experience a superb form of riding.
That said, I think it is time to look at some new wheels and some new gearing options. Basically, I need new wheels, so that I can use more suitable tires. With 700c (ISO 622 mm) wheels, I'll get many more tire choices, and the 622mm wheels will give me more clearance in the back which would be a good thing. The extended brakes that I currently have should work just fine with 700c wheels.
In addition, while my 5-speed 14-28T freewheel and 34/48T chainrings were okay, a 7-speed, 14-32T would be better - an easier gear would be a good thing. So, I might just plan to build some new wheels next spring. So many options. I would want to use Swiss DT double-butted spokes, since I know how those feel, and I would want to use some kind of basic aluminum rim. But, what would be a good rim choice? The possibility of going tubeless seems to be a really, really, really good idea, though I have no experience with tubeless setups. (The tubular option just doesn't seem to be a practical without a mechanic and a team car.) And, what about hubs? I would need hubs that would fit the frame without too much "cold forging" and give me better gearing options.
Ideally, the spokes, hub, and rim would leave me with wheels that might be used on a newer, lighter frame. But, perhaps, I'll be up for a lighter frame in 2-3 years. I wonder if I could even learn how to make such a frame for myself. I don't know. Something to consider and dream a little about ...
What's next? Would I do it again? I think so. I like the challenge and the process of trying to get fit and trying to improve my skills. So much too learn. I like the vibe of these rides - an invigorating mixture of seriousness and fun. Vicious Cycle did a great job organizing the event and the course was really, really terrific.
I have concluded that the Super Course frame, bars, brakes, and gear changers are fine for these Gran Fondos. Basically, it's a reliable machine given how I ride it. It has enabled me to experience a superb form of riding.
That said, I think it is time to look at some new wheels and some new gearing options. Basically, I need new wheels, so that I can use more suitable tires. With 700c (ISO 622 mm) wheels, I'll get many more tire choices, and the 622mm wheels will give me more clearance in the back which would be a good thing. The extended brakes that I currently have should work just fine with 700c wheels.
In addition, while my 5-speed 14-28T freewheel and 34/48T chainrings were okay, a 7-speed, 14-32T would be better - an easier gear would be a good thing. So, I might just plan to build some new wheels next spring. So many options. I would want to use Swiss DT double-butted spokes, since I know how those feel, and I would want to use some kind of basic aluminum rim. But, what would be a good rim choice? The possibility of going tubeless seems to be a really, really, really good idea, though I have no experience with tubeless setups. (The tubular option just doesn't seem to be a practical without a mechanic and a team car.) And, what about hubs? I would need hubs that would fit the frame without too much "cold forging" and give me better gearing options.
Ideally, the spokes, hub, and rim would leave me with wheels that might be used on a newer, lighter frame. But, perhaps, I'll be up for a lighter frame in 2-3 years. I wonder if I could even learn how to make such a frame for myself. I don't know. Something to consider and dream a little about ...
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