Sea Gull Century (101 miles)

20131005_SGCOctober 5th marked the 25th anniversary of the Sea Gull Century (SGC). Held on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, the SGC is probably the flattest 100 miles anyone can ride. Flat rides usually mean one thing: WIND. Past years reported plenty of wind and even heavy rain. This was my first time on this ride. The weather was PERFECT. The wind was very light for the first 90 miles. Temperatures started in the low 60’s and eventually reached the mid 80’s. Some felt that was a tad too warm. But I like riding warm. Sometimes I even like it hot. The ride offers three routes, all starting at Salisbury University: a metric century (100 km/62 mi) or one of two full centuries (100 miles). Over 7000 riders rode that day. Riders came from all over the Eastern U.S. I even saw a group from Texas. It was good to have us spread out over three different routes. Continue reading “Sea Gull Century (101 miles)” →

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Surprise Ride (85 miles)

I awoke this past Saturday to head out to what I thought was going to be a somewhat ordinary ride. A group of local cyclists ride from a nearby high school each Saturday. The ride is usually brisk. Sometimes I’m up to the challenge of keeping up. Mostly, I wind up regrouping at stops. I feel that I ride the normally flat-to-rolling 50 mile route a little better each time. Some in the group were preparing for an out of town ride in the mountains next weekend. Therefore, this Saturday ride was promoted as “LSD,” or long slow distance. That’s a ride I can do! They were planning to ride in Gloucester, VA. Expecting a relatively short ride, I opted to leave the extra bottles at home and I neglected to apply sunscreen. My gamble was that we’d be in the shade for this morning ride and that my 50-oz Camelbak would be enough to last me between rest stops. Things changed almost as soon as I arrived. Continue reading “Surprise Ride (85 miles)” →

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Wavorly-Smithfield 209 km Permanent – Run #2 (130 miles)

20130615_MapAlthough I’ve done a few big rides lately, my ride consistency has been lacking. I had ridden just three rides between the Two Rivers Perm on August 22 and this ride on September 15th. One of those rides was the Civil War Century. Although my local friends think I’m riding a lot, my saddle time has been really limited for a randonneur. Regardless, that was not going to stop my pursuit of an R-12. I planned this Sunday’s ride with good notice because my local bicycle club, Peninsula Bicycle Association, was hosting its annual Surry Century the day before. I had no plans to ride. Instead, I spent the day volunteering to support the ride. My Saturday/Sunday plan worked out well. In fact, it worked out better for a pair of co-riders. Jacob, Tom, Brent and I rode this run of the Wavorly-Smithfield Perm. Jacob and Tom rode a 400 km perm on Saturday, slept for about 4-5 hours and then joined Brent and me for this 200k. They are training for the upcoming 1200k Taste of Carolina grand randonee and needed to train under sleep-deprived conditions. Continue reading “Wavorly-Smithfield 209 km Permanent – Run #2 (130 miles)” →

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Civil War Century (104 miles)

CWC_2013The Civil War Century is an annual event which takes place each September from Thurmont, MD. The ride has commanded such excellent attendance that organizers were forced to limit participation to 1600 riders for safety reasons. Registration opened in April and quickly sold out. I had hoped to stay in Gettysburg. However, I waited too long to get the hotel rate I wanted. I’ll get it right next year. I took Friday off and drove up to stay in Hagerstown, MD. I took advantage of early ride check-in to avoid crowds the day of the event. I was joined by my good friends Todd and Jen. The 104 mile ride featured approximately 7000 feet of climbing. There was practically no warm-up. Riders were climbing a 7-mile long climb with a 1200-ft gain within the first 2000 feet. UGH! Continue reading “Civil War Century (104 miles)” →

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Two Rivers 200k Permanent (129 mi)

20130822-Map It’s been a while since my last permanent. I’ve been fighting a skin problem along with a bad reaction to medication. However, I was insistent upon keeping my R12 endeavor alive. My weekends have been shot. So I planned a day of leave to ride the Two Rivers 207 km permanent on Thursday the 22nd. I chose this route because it’s relatively close to home and because I had not ridden it before. I was not fond of the prospect of riding in the hills. Still, I figured it was a worthwhile trade-off for being near home. I had the added benefit of a surprise guest rider, my cycling buddy Jennifer. We’ve ridden thousands of miles together over the past two years. She joined RUSA two weeks ago and was tackling her first perm. Carpooling and loading bikes took longer than I planned. We arrived at the starting control point in West Point, VA at 6:50 am. The route organizer met us to deliver our control cards (thanks, Tom!). Continue reading “Two Rivers 200k Permanent (129 mi)” →

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Southern Sojourn Permanent – Run #3 (127-mi)

20130714-BandBIt’s been a week since my third run of the Southern Sojourn 204 km permanent.  My new job has kept me focused on things other than blogging.  My first two runs were in October where I encountered plenty of rain and November where I rode mostly solo and in much cooler weather.  This run was in the heat with dry, ideal weather.  This was also my first time to ride this route on my Domane.  Three of us rode: Jacob, Keith and me.  We left promptly at 7 am.  I was hoping to keep up and was confident the warmer climate would help.  The most obvious difference between this ride and the others was the temperature.  I think it was in the upper 70’s when we left.  I wore summer attire and plenty of sunscreen.  It was very humid. Continue reading “Southern Sojourn Permanent – Run #3 (127-mi)” →

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Inaugural Wavorly-Smithfield 209 km Permanent (130 miles)

20130615_MapMy attempt at a Super Randonneur award for 2013 did not end  successfully.  Sure, I could probably piece together another attempt by finding late season 400/600 km brevets.  But I’m starting a new job in July and may have large demands on my time, especially at first.  Therefore, I would rather wait, plan and make a new attempt in 2014.  That doesn’t mean I’ve abandoned my pursuit of an R-12.  Therefore, I had been waiting for a June permanent to be announced.  Sure enough, I saw an announcement to ride the newly-approved Wavorly-Smithfield route.  Despite a fantastic forecast, only three rode: Jacob, Ron and me.  This was also the “maiden permanent” of my new bike, a 2013 Trek Domane 4.5.  Continue reading “Inaugural Wavorly-Smithfield 209 km Permanent (130 miles)” →

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What is an “Unsupported Ride?”

RidingPartner
My only riding partner during many long rides…

I didn’t think I’d see a day when I’d consider 100 miles to be “just a century.”  Now I ride 200 km (>124 miles) rides every month of the year in pursuit of Randonneurs USA’s R-12 award.  I also completed a 300 km (189 miles) brevet while attempting to earn a Super Randonneur award.  I failed during the 400 km (252 miles) brevet.  But I will try again.  These rides are in addition to “regular” century rides ridden with local friends.  Some were surprised to learn I had to find my own way back to the host hotel when I abandoned the 400.  Apparently, some of  the things which make randonneuring different from other forms of long distance cycling had escaped them.  They know I carry a bunch of stuff, affectionately calling me “Captain Overpacker,” in my drive to be self-sufficient.  However, the full meaning “self-sufficient” may need further explanation. Continue reading “What is an “Unsupported Ride?”” →

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ACP Warrenton Firefly 400 km (DNF)

20130518-LombardyDC Randonneurs (DCR) hosted the Firefly 400k from Warrenton on May 18th.  I charged into my first 400 km brevet just one week after completing my first 300 km brevet.  I drove to Manassas on Friday and was asleep by 7 pm.  I awoke at 2 am, loaded the car, picked up breakfast and was signed in and ready to ride by the 4 am event start.  I was tired, but eager to go.  Little did I expect as I rode into what would become a wet and cold day that I’d have to terminate my ride, a “DNF” (Did Not Finish).  I abandoned to prevent my ride from turning out like this restaurant (photographed during my transit back to the start).  I’m inclined to have little to say.  But, as I posted in Why Read My Blog, I’m here to write about my shortfalls as well as my triumphs.  Here it goes… Continue reading “ACP Warrenton Firefly 400 km (DNF)” →

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ACP Suffolk-Lake Gaston 300 km (189 miles)

20130511-MapTidewater Rando hosted another ACP event, the Suffolk-Lake Gaston 300 km, on Saturday May 11.  It’s essentially the same out-and-back route as the Suffolk-Skippers 200 km with an additional leg to Lake Gaston.  It was forecast to rain with WSW winds.  I really didn’t want to spend up to 20 hours riding in the rain.  But this ride was among my last of chances to get a 300 km documented before attempting the 400 km and 600 km events.  I don’t mind being caught in the rain.  But I really don’t like starting a ride in it.  😦 Continue reading “ACP Suffolk-Lake Gaston 300 km (189 miles)” →

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