WJW's Longest Night - 2008

Although this is generally reserved for randonneering items, I've been too busy fighting the weather on my daily commutes these last couple of weeks so I'll post this item from yesterday. The Western Jersey Wheelmen, (ACP Club Code: 930025), holds a "Longest Night" ride every year on the weekend closest to the Winter Solstice as a compliment to their "Longest Day" ride held on the Saturday closest to the Spring Solstice. The Longest Day is a 200 mile ride and the Longest Night is generally whatever distance the the group can make riding on a local bike trail leaving from Clinton, NJ.

Previous rides have encountered icy, snowy, muddy, freezing rain, and sometimes a nice clear trail under a full mood. The snow storm followed by freezing rain the day before last night's ride made for one of the more challenging rides. True to form, I rode my fixed gear commuter bike 12 miles to the start. This ride in itself would have been adventure enough to qualify for the Longest Night as once the freezing rains the previous night had ended, the temperature had dropped into the teens and had never risen above 25 degrees the following day leaving the roads pretty much a packed slush that had been coated over by a layer of slick ice. The photo is a representative photo that I took on my way back. The 700c Nokian Hakkapeliita W106's 35mm performed flawlessly on the ice, with the 106 nickel-carbide studs doing their stuff.

At Clinton I met up with four other riders and we managed to make it approximately 2 miles down the path before we broke out the celebratory "goodies." The conditions were so slow-going that slips and falls were minimal. One pretty pretty much came to a halt even while pedaling. The only observed fall occurred just after the turnaround and may have been attributed more to a little too much "holiday cheer" rather than the deep snow conditions. On the return trip, on some of the softer, deeper stretches, a couple of us found that we could make better time if we just got off of the bikes and walked. This was also a lot less work, as well.

While we all had a great adventure, and will remember the ride with fond memories, all of us were happy to see the ride end safely back in Clinton and rather than meet for the end of the ride meal at Pizza Como, we all opted to part our ways and head home for some warm recovery fluids. My ride back home was pretty much uneventful and I preferred the iced roads - including the 14% climb up out of High Bridge - over 0% grade of the deep snow along the bike path along the old railroad bed.

Dark Moon 200K - Saturday, December 6th, 2008

We had 12 riders start out the ride and eleven successfully completed the brevet.



The one rider who abandoned, pretty much figured they were under-dressed at the start but managed to use their DNF as a "learning experience' for future brevets. Several of the finishers, came to the realization that, although the conditions never got much above freezing and they'd probably had preferred riding in Florida to the "high teens and middle twenties" that they experienced during the brevet, had they had a warm place to sleep, they probably could have gone on to successfully complete a 1200K in these conditions. A couple are also contemplating working on a training schedule for this year's Iditabike!

Those who saw fit to use their full time allotment of 13.5 hours for the brevet were rewarded with a couple of hours of pelting ice and snow for the last two hours f th ride with approximately 1/2 inch of snow accumulation by the end of the ride. I had my own unique problems - which provided an excellent learning experience and as time permits I'll post a ride report.

Dark Moon 200K - Saturday, December 6th, 2008

Since I haven't been doing too well writing up my rides - I'm almost ready to post the one from LAST month "32.4 miles and a Tornado Short of an Epic" or "Tom Rides a Fixie" (a.k.a., The Eastern PA 204K November R-12 Series Ride Report, Saturday November 15, 2008) - I thought I'd post a "pre-ride" summary of tomorrow's PA R-12 "Dark Moon 200K"

The ride details including a map and cue sheets are posted at:

http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/R12ClubDec1.html

Basically this is a new series that Tom has created to promote participation in the R-12 challenge. It is also an excuse for fellow randonneurs and randonneuses to get together and ride through the off season.

Tomorrow's ride might be interesting as the forcast calls for temps in the high teens/low 20's in the morning with highs in the low 30's. The conditions were supposed to be dry with temperatures plunging in the evening with snow arriving late in the evening or early Sunday morning - well after the ride is complete. However, one forecast is calling for the cold front to arrive sooner - if it does, and conditions become "epic" I might have a ride report up sooner than later.

If not, I'll be looking forward to the ride up the Delaware Water Gap and over to Hope and then up to Newton before turning south to passing through Traquility and Allamuchy and up over Schooleys Mountain to Gladstone and back through Califon over Point Mountain and back along the Musconetcong river to Easton via Asbury, Bloomsbury, and Phillipsburg.

Not doing to well on postings

I realized that is it now October and my delusions of posting daily - or at least every other day - have been shattered, first by the realty of riding brevets and randonnees in the summer, and now just by work, and life, in general. Leaving the house at 4:30AM to ride my bike into work all the way or 5:00AM to catch the 5:51 train and not making it back to the house until 7:00PM doesn't leave a lot of time for the computer once one completes the other tasks of eating, sleeping, and general bike maintenance.

I got in a 300K over the weekend - in the continuous rain, thanks to Floyd. I rode my fixed gear RV (Randonneuring Vehicle) - and, needless to say, am finding the Lantiseptic medicated cream is a "gift from the heavens" in helping make the commute this week less painful (again, in raining or at least drizzling conditions on most legs.) As long as everyone else is doing it, I'll attempt to write an "Ode to Lantiseptic" sometime in the near future.

What constitutes an Epic Ride?

Having just returned from the Last Chance, I had some time to think about what constitutes an "epic" ride.

Merriam-Websters defines epic as: e-pik\ adj. 1: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of an epic 2a: extending beyond the usual or ordinary especially in size or scope 2b: HEROIC

Several riders I know have commented that this ride is a "classic epic" ride but, meaning no disrespect to the organizer or the wonderful volunteers, as a fairly experienced randonneur, I would be hard pressed to describe this ride as epic - i.e., extending beyond the usual or ordinary especially in size and scope. We had a little wind (including tail, head and crosswinds) and it rained for a half day but in general it was a fairly uneventful ride from Louisville, CO out to Kensington, KS to mail a postcard back to the RBA, and then ride back to Louisville, racing back to see if we could beat the post card. I found this ride to be pleasant with a great course (only a couple of bonus miles on this one - you who know the cue sheet, don't ask were they were. You wouldn't believe me if I told you.) with wonderful scenery (which I'll describe in the upcoming ride report) but I'd have trouble categorizing this ride as epic, and wonder if, perhaps this term isn't overused by many in describing the various brevets and randonnees.

...which brings me back to my original question, of what constiotutes an epic randonneuring even. After much contemplation (83 hours on the LC1200) I've concluded that as with most things a ride is "epic in the eyes of the beholder." I've ridden a 600K in 39:59 which, to me was epic, and some have ridden 200K's that start out sunny and in the 50's that have finished in an ice storm/blizzard with several iunches of snow, the riders fighting off hypothermia and the sno plows as they completed the ride. To many, the recent PBP would be epic, yet to me as one who enjoys riding in cooler weather and "soft" days, I thought the weather conditions quite pleasant ( the crowds at controls were a different matter. As a year 'round commuter, had I stayed at home and done my routine commute that week in August, I would have encountered MORE rain and much lower temperatures.

For this year's randonnees, I'd classify the Shenandoah as epic due to the heat which resulted in many "experienced" riders recording thier first 1200K DNF. This year's Cascade, while subject to warm conditions on the second day, was pretty much what everyone would expect, and although AT LEAST the one person who suffered extreme heat stroke might call this an epic ride, the condistions really were not as severe as the previous running of the event two ywars ago - can an even ALWAYS be epic due to it's difficulty or are there epic years and non-epic years? The RM1200 would be epic, in my eyes, at least to me as it was my first time experience riding in the Canadian Rockies and the ride from Jasper to Banff, to me, meets my criteria of the definitiuon: extending beyond the usual or ordinary especially in size or scope. Those who have ridden this event previously or live in Kamloops might not feel this same way - and one rider (to remain nameless) prefers riding in open plains with wide open vistas, and to this rider, the RM1200, while challenging, would not meet thier expectations of an epic ride. The Last Chance, while a great ride, and one that I hope to do again soon, for me was not epic this year. Perhaps the next time I ride it, I'll encounter less pleasant experiences, or more inhospitable weather and I'll refer to that event as epic.

...come to think of it, as much as I pretty much enjoy riding EVERY brevet and randonnee, it is my hope that NONE of them EVER present so much of a challenge that I'd refer to them, in hindsight, as epic - but then that is what make EACH event so interesting. They ALL present thier own unique difficulties and challenges and it is up to us to properly prepare for all contingencies that the event requires. :-)

Look for the Reports

Having returned form the 1000K at the beginning of the month I had all of the best intentions of getting out the ride reports - yes, you've heard that before, but getting up and out of the house by 4:45AM for the ride into work and not returning from the bike home until after 7:00PM, after eating dinner there isn't much time to get the writing done unless i do it at work - and with the time out for all of the randonnees this last few month's I'm still on catch up mode there, as well. Did a ride each weekend, including a great 200K RUSA Anniversary Brevet last Saturday which also limited my time but it DID give me another ride reprort to get behind on. I'll be teaching a bike safety course on Saturday and then its off to another week vacation (with bike) but I'll also take the computer to finish up the back-log of reports. I'm also working on a couple of other items.

Tuesday Recovery Ride

Haven't completed the ride report for the PA1000K - still digging out, doing the wash and generally recovering with a couple beers after work but thought you'd be interested in seeing a photo of the 19 starters taken just befor the 4:00AM start on Friday morning. It is interesting to see how the faces in the photos change as the day(s) wear on.

Since I didn't leave the Hostel in PA until 7:00AM on Monday I "woossed out" and just drove directly into work. Today I still had some saddle issues but by tomorrow things should be back to normak and I plan to do the normal commute via bike. It will be the abbreviated 9 ,ile bike to the train, fold up the fixie and get onto the train for a 55 minute ride, and then get off and continue with the bike for an additional 6 miles. I'll need to see how things go. Normally I need to do the train for bth legs for the first week or so and then I can again do my "normal" one-way 52 mile commute into work.

Even Fruther Behind

Back from the PA1000K over the weekend and now not only am I tardy in posting my write-ups on the Cascade and Rocky Mountain 1200K's I now need to get the write-up completed for the PA1000K.

For those looking for the previous items Randonnerd Technical Topics, they have been removed from this site and will be posted on the parallel randonnerd.com website.

Another Delay

I returned from the Rocky Mountain 1200 yesterday and had good intentions of posting the ride report with pictures over the weekend as I'd pretty much completed the write-up on my palm pilot and only needed to transfer it over to the computer. Unfortunately Randonneuring Adventures call and the Randonnerd if off to do the PA1000K starting tomorrow at 4:00AM. Got all of the laundry done from the RM and have packed the clean items back into the bike bags, the bike is now in the back of the car and I've done my pre-ride carbo loading (spaetzle last night/a pound of bucatini tonight. Now for a couple of beers to relax and get 5 hours of zzz's before I leave for the ride. Hopefully all of the rides can be posted when I return on Monday.

Inactivity - Out on a Ride

In addition to my computer suffering from heat overload, I've been negligent at posting as I catch up from the Cascade and prepare for the Rocky Mountain. I've been able to keep fit by continuing to ride into work these last two weeks and just use the train for the bike/train/bike commute home....only needed to buy a book of 10 tickets for the two weeks I've been back. Leaving the house at 4:30AM and returning at 7:00PM doesn't leave a lot of time to get on the computer and I'll also be out of touch starting today as I fly to Vancouver and make my way to Kamloops to ride the Rocky Mountain 1200K July 23rd to 27th. Doing the last minute packing and miscellaneous preparations like tightening the chain ring bolts, getting several extra seat binder bolts, cleaning the chain BEFORE I pack it into the bike bok, and making sure I didn't leave anything out, such as the headset bearings - I need to remove my fork each time to fit the frame in the bike box. It's a little hassle but not as much as what I needed to go through to ensure my Trico case made it to my final destination, and the airline "only" charges me $25 for the extra suitcase vs. $100+ to take the bike box and then they offer no assurance that the bike will even be on my flight.

Eventually I'll figure out how to post from my cell phone but for now I probably won't have an update until I return from the RM1200. I'm also attempting to figure out how to best include photos from the trip.

Cascade 1200

My most recent bike tour was the Cascade 1200 held June 28th through July 1st. My trip report reads pretty much like the one that I wrote for the ride in 2006...just as hot and just as difficult but the organizers changed the route somewhat and although the previous ride up the Yakima River valley was great, the ride up the route to Chinook Pass was great in that it went up hill gradually from Natches to the turnaround control so that the return trip was all down hill. Also, the use of the Natches High School as the first overnight saved the long gratuitous climb up to the top of the ridge. I'll be editing this as I figure out how to do a cut and paste. Anyway, the SIR is a GREAT club and they put on a showpiece 1200K. Thanks everyone from Mark, to Mark, to Don, to Mark to Bill, to ... .

While the conditions were quite warm for the ride, by Wednesday, it became overcast and temperatures returned to normal for Seattle and upon my return to the airport Wednesday evening to pick up my bike boxes at the airport hotel and pack for my return trip home thunderstorms returned and on Thursday it was in the 60's and raining. After recovering over the long holiday weekend I returned to my fixie and my daily 52 mile commute into work. I felt great on Monday, was a little tired on Tuesday and by Wednesday my legs were so beat that I was sitting heavy on the saddle and found that I was experiencing some discomfort, so on Thursday and Friday I "cheated" and rode the folding fixie (a Montague Bi-Fold converted to 700c with a 42-45 X 17-21 "geezer gearing" - more on this later) the 9 miles to the local train station where I fold the bike, get on the train for an hour commute and get off and unfold the fixie to ride the remaing 6 miles into work. After 2 days of this rest my knees and legs feel great again - I think I'll go for a ride over the weekend. There is a 600K that starts at 10:00PM on Friday but I think I'll pass. I need to get some things done on my RV (Randonnerding Vehicle) to prepare for my next 1200K in a couple of weeks - more on this later.)

For Randonnerds Everywhere

I've been a randonnerd all my life but haven't taken the time to post all of the ride reports and my musings. Seeing how easy it is to set up this blog, I'll begin to post some of my thoughts on a more regular basis. Initially these will be "real time" with a lot of catch-up. I wish I had the time to set up a real website and post all of my files but for now you'll have to settle for this.

Yes I am a randonnerd, and fortunately my wife accepts it. Actually she knew what she was getting into when she married me so I guess she has finally made peace with the fact that I am not willing to change and that allowing me some freedom is good for my physical and mental mental well being.

While I am a randonnerd, I am NOT a computer nerd or engineer nerd or any other type of nerd so what you see on this site is what is. I'll "calls 'em as I see 'em" but since it is from my limited perspective as a randonnerd, I may be off base and would appreciate others' input to steer me in the right direction.