Thanks everyone! As it happens, the storm the blew in on the heels of my ride so buried the pass that we had to swap routes for Saturday, and I’m the lone Antelope Island 300k finisher for 2024. Hopefully everyone is blessed with tailwinds for Saturday.
Happy trails! BMS On Tue, May 7, 2024 at 5:29 PM RichS <rshannon6...@gmail.com> wrote: > Brady, I admire your fortitude. That's a ride to remember. Thank you for > sharing your story and the photos. > > Best, > Rich in ATL > > On Sunday, May 5, 2024 at 11:17:58 PM UTC-4 Brady Smith wrote: > >> A few weeks ago I wrote about my first brevet of the season, in which >> good training and great conditions produced a 200k for the ages, at least >> for me. >> >> Yesterday's ride was a challenge of a different sort. >> >> The real Antelope Island 300k sets off this coming Saturday. I decided to >> pre-ride the course because I'll be in Washington DC with 80 8th graders >> this coming weekend, an endurance test, to be sure, but of a somewhat >> different kind. >> >> We've had beautiful weather this week in the Salt Lake Valley, but it's >> been, quite literally, the calm before the storm. As I did some final >> planning on Friday, I started noticing winter weather advisories for the >> Wasatch mountains Sunday into Monday. At first I didn't make much of it, >> since I was planning on riding on Saturday, and since winter weather can >> happen all the way through May in this part of the country. But then I >> remembered what always happens when big storms roll through the valley--big >> winds come along with them. >> >> I noticed almost as soon as I started up Emigration Canyon alongside our >> RBA, who graciously volunteered to accompany me for the first twenty miles >> or so of the ride--a gusty, noticeable breeze from the east, the opposite >> direction that winds usually blow in these parts. It calmed a bit as we got >> to the middle of the canyon--a 7 mile climb or so--and then disappeared as >> we made our way up towards Big Mountain Pass, a 7400 foot summit that marks >> the end of the first big ascent on the route. >> >> Ken, our RBA, had wondered aloud about continuing on, but decided against >> it due to family obligations. He did not miss the fast descent that usually >> greets riders on the east side of Big Mountain Pass, because, as we had >> suspected, it had not yet been cleared by the UDOT, probably because, like >> us, they could read the forecast, and saw that a foot or two of snow was >> due to fall over the mountains in the coming days. It was not completely >> covered in snow, but there were five or six significant snowdrifts impeding >> progress down the mountain. A ten minute descent turned into thirty minutes >> of intermittent riding and hiking. >> >> It didn't seem to be a particularly big deal at that point, and the next >> 35 miles or so were nothing short of serene. From the base of Big Mountain >> one continues past East Canyon reservoir and along the vast expanse of the >> Morgan Valley, a 30 mile downhill section, at which point the 20 mile, 3400 >> foot ascent that greets riders at the start of this route seems to be >> redeemed. I blew through this section, finding myself in Mountain Green >> well before lunch, and then up and over Trapper's Loop Road, the second big >> climb of the route, in fairly swift time. >> >> After meandering through the upper Ogden Valley, I came across, around >> mile 80, what I hoped was the last big test of this ride--the North Ogden >> Divide. You can see it clearly as you approach the backside of the Wasatch >> Mountains, a tiny line etched precariously in the mountainside, only 2 >> miles long from where the climb really starts to the top of the mountain, >> but a 2 miles that proceeds upwards at a steady 10%. It's also narrow, and >> presaged by a sign saying something to the effect of "Steep grades and >> sharp curves. Not Recommended for Cyclists." (As if in penance, there is a >> "Share the Road" sign immediately after, but based on the angry shouts of >> one pickup driver heading down the mountain opposite, not one motorists pay >> much attention to.) >> >> I shifted immediately into my 30-32 low gear and started upwards, one eye >> on the road ahead, another in my mirror, making sure that the occasional >> vehicle coming up behind me looked like it was going to give me adequate >> space. It's fair to say that this was the hardest climb I've ever >> completed, at least when accounting for the fact that I'd already done 80 >> miles and 6000 feet of elevation at this point in the ride. It was >> borderline nauseating making my way up the mountainside, the stress of the >> ascent only partially atoned for by the stunning views of the valley off to >> the south. When there was space I occasionally started zig-zagging up the >> mountain, trying to relieve some of the strain on my legs and lungs, then >> getting over when traffic appeared in my mirror behind me. At long last, I >> made it to the top. >> >> The descent was exhilarating. The speed limit is 30 mph, but I had to >> lean on my brakes to stay at 35mph, and the cars lined up behind me seem to >> have no problem waiting to pass until we got to the bottom. In my head, the >> worst of it was over. I'd done almost 7000 feet of climbing in 80 miles. >> After 8 hours in the mountains, I was back in the Salt Lake Valley, with a >> flat 100 miles or so to go before I'd find myself back at home. For a few >> miles, it seemed like this easy prognostication was true. It's a long, >> shallow descent from Ogden to the shorelands of the Great Salt Lake. You >> can go really fast. I covered ten miles in a little over half an hour. >> >> Then I turned south, straight into a 15-20 mph headwind that would dog me >> for the next 90 miles. My 20 mph cruising speed turned into 12-13mph, then >> to 10-12mph as the wind got stronger. I had about 40 miles to cover between >> the end of the descent out of Ogden and the entrance to Antelope Island >> State Park, a beautiful preserve in the lake that is home to antelope, >> coyotes, and a sizable herd of bison. It seemed to go on forever. My >> progress ground to almost nothing. In suburban Davis County, it seemed like >> I was always being crowded by quad cab pickups or grotesquely large SUVs. I >> rode in the gutter, then got a flat. I took extra breaks, trying to relieve >> the monotony, but as I entered the park, I seriously considered calling it >> quits. It's maybe 12 miles from the start of the causeway across Farmington >> Bay to the control on the island, the historic Fielding Garr Ranch; if I >> omitted the island, it would be a mere 35 miles home. >> >> I was deeply tempted, but I figured I'd already ridden 120 miles, I >> should at least go see some bison, which I did, and after another hour or >> interminably slow grinding against the wind, I found myself at the far >> reaches of the island, able to turn around and enjoy some powerful >> tailwinds back to the causeway, though my spirits fell again when the turn >> back south and east had me facing winds even stronger than I did before. I >> actually texted my wife as I approached the mainland, saying that I'd >> ridden 150 miles at this point, I had an exhausting week ahead, and that I >> would not be opposed to being rescued at a Chevron about five miles down >> the road. She said she'd leave in ten minutes, and so I pressed on, turning >> straight south, and then finding the wind, all of the sudden, just barely >> tolerable. >> >> The 10mph I'd managed back to mainland suddenly became 13mph, not a huge >> difference, but just enough that I thought to myself, "If I can keep doing >> this, I'll be home in about three hours." I called her back and canceled my >> rescue request, assuring that I'd be home eventually. After some >> good-natured argument, she relented in her insistence that this ride come >> to an end, knowing, after fifteen years together, that I am capable of >> remarkable acts of stubbornness. >> >> The final three hours of the ride were not exactly pleasant. The wind >> never really let up. There were hordes of midges out pelting my face and >> flying up my nostrils. But as day settled into night and I started >> navigating by the light of my dynamo lamp, the frustration and fatigue I'd >> experienced for most of the afternoon turned into calm. It would not be a >> fast ride. This would not set any personal records. But after snow-covered >> passes, steep climbs, and hellacious winds, I knew at least I could finish. >> >> I rolled back to the start around 10:30pm, about 16 hours and 20 minutes >> after I'd started, having completed 185 miles and around 9,500 feet of >> climbing. I ate some pizza and drank a beer while my family slept, and by >> the time I got up this morning, randonnesia had already set in. The 400k is >> only a month away! >> >> BMS >> >> BMS[image: IMG_2589 Large.jpeg][image: IMG_2592 Large.jpeg][image: >> IMG_2593 Large.jpeg][image: IMG_2598 Large.jpeg][image: IMG_2602 >> Large.jpeg][image: IMG_2607 Large.jpeg][image: IMG_2609 Large.jpeg] >> > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the > Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this topic, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/A13FfTr7-Co/unsubscribe > . > To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/fa5d2eff-9d18-4861-b60f-0fd265a64073n%40googlegroups.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/fa5d2eff-9d18-4861-b60f-0fd265a64073n%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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