Copper Triangle Ride

It is no secret that biking is my weakness when it comes to triathlon. I haven't been riding it for very long and I have been enjoying it for even less of that time. I have been riding just over two years and not until last summer did I real find a joy in riding, and mostly that is when I am in the mountains. I found that out a little more with all of our training for the Triple Bypass. Give me a spin ride - no fun. Give me a long ride up a few mountain passes - I can't wait to do it!

So when the RMTC announced they were going to do a self-supported ride of the Copper Triangle, I put it on our calendar as a must do. The Copper Triangle is a "classic Colorado ride" that goes over 3 passes - Fremont, Tennessee and Vail, totaling 80ish miles overall.

What a good looking group we have. Who's that handsome fellow in the gray?

 As we got ready for the ride, we were briefed by Peter, who was going to ride along with us, take pictures and be a sag. (Check him out, he is an awesome photographer and all-around nice guy!) We were instructed "not to smile" the whole day, but I wasn't really good at it.

There I am, accidentally smiling. In my defense, so is Julie.

Up Fremont Pass was good. I was worried I might be chilly, as I had forgotten a riding coat, but you start of climbing right away, so I warmed up almost immediately. Fremont is just plug, plug, plug. I was amazed at how well everyone stuck together at the beginning and there was loads of conversation all around - always makes time pass quicker. As the pass got longer, it thinned out a little bit.

At the top of Fremont we regrouped, but I couldn't find Ross. As almost everyone was up, and the group started off again as Ross rode up. He had twisted his ankle a few weeks ago and this was his first real exercise since and he wasn't feeling it. We talked and he decided to go back down Fremont, get the van and follow us as a sag. {This turned out to be a tremendous help and mental relief for the ride.}

Left without the group, I had some serious catching up to do. I went down to Leadville, turned and started up Tennessee Pass. I climbed and climbed, probably pushed harder than I would have had I been with the group, but I just didn't want to be left behind. As I got part way up Tennessee Pass, I started catching some people and that was a relief, plus it was fun having people to talk to. At the top of Tennessee, I found the masses. Yay!

What an awesome picture of the group climbing. Me = still trying to catch up.

Arriving at the top of Tennessee (I think)

Hey! Hey! The gang's all here. Top of Tennessee Pass.

Then it was down to Minturn. Along the way, there were some mechanical failures, a couple cables broke. Joe came along and fixed one, Julie ended up jumping in the Peter's car and along came Ross. I was happy to see him. But I was even happier to be descending!

It's always fun going DOWN!

You can't beat views like this. I LOVE CO!

Once we were in Minturn, it was time to refuel and we descended on a gas station. I am not sure they knew what hit them with that many people coming in, buying Gatorade, using the restroom, refilling water bottles, etc. 

We also took the opportunity to do a group shot for Honey Stinger,
one of our sponsors who gave us plenty of fuel for the ride.

After Minturn, we were off and rolling. Everyone kind of was at their own pace, and I was loosely following Michelle, Bill and Matt through Vail. We came to a roundabout and I lost sight of them. Since they weren't directly ahead, I assumed that they went around the roundabout to the north frontage road. (Side note: I had told Patty I just *knew* I was going to get lost in Vail and she told me to "just stay on the frontage road".) So when I got to the roundabout and saw a sign directing me to the north frontage road, I thought I was money. Took it and off I went, looking for more RMTC'ers. Aways down the north frontage road, I looked over and saw a bunch of jerseys on the SOUTH frontage road. THE OTHER SIDE of 70. Zoinks! How was I going to get over there? Back to the roundabout, around and up. I was certain I was REALLY far behind everyone now. Oh well.

On the east side of Vail, I came across Ross waiting for me. :) I stopped to talk to him and made sure I was on the right route. He said I was. As we were talking, another Michelle passed and I hurriedly kissed him goodbye as I told him "I need someone to follow so I don't get lost". (Have I mentioned how much I HATE getting lost?)

So from there on out, it was plug, plug, plug up the mountain. Now, this was my second time up Vail Pass. The first time was on the Triple Bypass in the rain and I flatted twice on it - it was horrible. This time I was on tired legs and feeling a little down nutritionally, but determined not to make it so bad.

As I made my way up Vail I realized how I really don't like it, but in honor of the promise I made to myself to make it better this time around, I had to learn to love it. Love it like an annoying little brother (which I can say because I don't have a little brother). Vail is a bike path so it is not graded like a road is graded. It has very steep pitches at points, which makes for the "annoying" part, but in learning to love it, I had to realize there is a fair share of not so steep pitches that allow your hear rate to settle down after climbing those steep pitches. So... you take the good with the bad. And I did. I used this opportunity to look around, take some pictures and enjoy what I could. It was hard, but definitely worth it.

View going up Vail Pass.

Could it be? Am I leveling out? Is that the top in sight?

I reached the top of Vail, happy and little depleted on the salt (note to self: TAKE SALT, even on overcast days/not-so-hot days). From the top of Vail it is alllllllll downhill, which is precisely what I like. Ross and I always call it our "reward" for climbing the mountain- the descent!

When I got to Copper, Ross was waiting for me with a cup of soup and a sandwich. I immediately wanted the soup, he told me to wait a minute and I told him, "no, NOW!" (normally not so rude to my husband - I swear). He handed it over and I drank the broth straight from the soup - no spoon or anything. It was the salt. I needed it. And I felt amazingly good after it. Enough to sit around, chill and have a few recovery drinks - Mix1 and Sierra Nevada's - both club sponsors... I ask you can this club get any cooler? Oh, wait, yes they can. Because then it was dinner and drinks at Old Chicago with not only Sierra Nevada, but 109 other beers. :)

Learning to climb

I have to admit, the best part of being in Colorado is the mountains.
They are pretty and fun to play in and to ski in. What they aren't fun to do in is train in. (Well, not at first, anyways.)

So, last year, we pretty much avoided them.
We had plenty of excuses NOT to ride our bikes up in them.
- We didn't know any good routes.
- Cars/road riding scared us.
- In general, we were worried about doing the amount of mileage we were training and we didn't want to make it harder than it needed to.
- Mountains were steep. And hard. And that altitude. Geesh!

I know, I am a wimp.

Anyways, I guess there are no more excuses this year. I see on my schedule that we are supposed to ride up Deer Creek Canyon-- TWICE. The first time I rode that was last week and, I will admit, there was some swearing involved. Now, to ride it two times in a row-- Eeek! Granted, it is only 18 miles of climbing, but that is 9 more miles than I have ever done.

So I try not to think about it too much and just treat it like any old workout.

Starting off, I lead because Ross has a tendency to go out too fast and I want to set the pace. This works, and helps. But, for some reason, the first 5 miles are unbelievably hard for me. Not because the terrain is that difficult, but Steve (my coach) thinks it may have more to do with anxiety and I hope that as I get more used to this, this goes away. Here's hoping.

Miles 5-7.5 are not too bad for me. I have settled into a groove and am working on my climbing skills. At mile 7.5 there is a sign and I know that sign all too well. The first time I rode DC with Ross he told me that the top was only a half mile away. He was wrong, and I paid for it.

This time I know that I still have a 1.5 miles to go of probably the worst part of the trip and I try to take it in stride. It doesn't really work. At 8.25 I tell Ross that I don't think I can make it. So, he tells me we can stop for a break, but we should go to the top. So we stop.
Here is where we came from.
And here is where we have to go.

After we rest, I conquer the last three-quarter mile no problem. Yay! We are at the top. 58:11 it takes us (not counting rest). Now, the fun part. The downhill. It flies by. We make it down in 22 minutes.

Quick wardrobe change to stay dry and warm. Yes, if there is one thing I need, it is coordinating biking clothes. And now to do it all again.

Second time, not so bad. I figure, if I am going to go this slow, I should take some pictures. It IS beautiful after all...Over the shoulder shot... didn't really work.
Amazingly enough, we made it to the top for round two in 56 minutes! It's not so much that I am impressed with our time as the fact that we did it faster than the first time. And, with no stops! (Even though I desperately wanted to.) So, we were quite proud of ourselves.

I know that it is a long way from where we are going to be, but it is a start for us. I am hoping to look back at this blog and see how far we've come and how, even though it is a big deal for us now, it will be nothing for us in the future. And hopefully, that day will be sooner than we think!

A beautiful day for a 5 hour ride...

Yes, that's right, I look on my schedule and see: 3-5 hour ride, lsd.

At first I am not sure if that means 3 hours on the trainer OR 5 hours outside. OR if it meant I get to choose how long I ride between 3-5 hours. Either way, I am riding 5 hours.

So, I do the math. 5 hour ride @ ~ 15 mph = around 75 mile ride. Making this my longest ride since... well... Ever. Hmm?

Another dirty secret about me: I don't know where to ride around Denver. When we first started biking, Ross and I bought a map and tried to do some experimenting with routes. Every time we tried, it ended horribly. For the sake of our marriage, we decided to stick only to routes we knew or were shown. That left us with A LOT of riding this summer on the Cherry Creek Trail. I now know that trail like the back of my hand. Think you can't do 70 miles utilizing the CCT? Think again.

When I talked with my coach last, here is what he said: "No speed. Work on increasing your cadence. It's lsd (long slow distance), so it is not about the miles, just the time on the bike. Look around, enjoy it."

So, with that in mind, I talked to a friend and got a new route to try heading east out of Denver, looking for new sites to see. And here's what I saw:
Lots and lots of land. At first it was very mind-numbing and I was thinking "I came out here for this?".

But as I rode along, it turned more methodical, beautiful, simple. It was nice to be away from the city. Out on the plains. I just let my mind go.

It was also fun to come upon some small towns. And I mean small. Here is how you know when you are in Bennett.That is about all there is there. Across the way from here are a few local businesses, but that is about it.

Leaving Bennett, you come upon a really neat tree grove. It was a definite shift from the farms I had been seeing and I just thought the trees here were way old and WAY cool. You don't really get a sense of it in this picture, but see those two cool trees in the foreground? Now imagine a valley of them behind them. I imagine it looks even better in the spring/summer. I guess I'll find out next year. :)

And then more cool things you can see only out in the open
So, I kept plugging along. At one point, I made a turn north (I believe) and the headwind picked up. I didn't mind this, as it meant a tailwind on the way back-- or so I thought.

I kept going and came upon Strasburg. Very cute, quaint town with decorations everywhere. I didn't get many pictures, but each of the little businesses was decorated from the general store to the gas station to the propane center(?).

It made me wonder what it was like to live in a small town. I mean, we bank here:
And, if we lived in Strasburg, we would bank here:Quite a difference.

Anyways, I kept plugging along. By this time, it was getting a little long, but I just told myself "only 'x' number of minutes till I can turn around."

And then I cam upon probably some of the coolest thing I saw on the ride, What, oh what, could this be? It looked like a ride from Disneyland, but realized it was part of an old mine shaft-- or so I think. Here's more track:And the entrance to the shaft:

And, I continue on... until my watch hits 2 hours 22 minutes and I decide it is time to turn around.

And WHAM! Headwind. Serious headwind. My speed immediately slows. And it stays slow for probably 10 miles. I look down at my Garmin and see how slow I am going. I do the math. If I continue at this pace, I will be out here for 7 hours. Ugh. I start to think of how to explain to Ross how to come and get me. Umm.... "Honey, go to this one place and take a highway east and follow it until you find me"??? That won't work. Especially cuz we can't fit my bike in the car he has. So, I continue.

Luckily, I turned a corner and TAILWIND! Relief. And so my pace gets better, and faster, and I think I can make it. By the time I hit Strasburg, I am confident I don't have to call Ross and I am happy.

Then I see it, in the distance:
The mountains. The one thing I love about riding out east is coming back and seeing the mountains. Biking towards them, I feel like I am going home. And I never get tired of seeing them, either. Maybe it will wear off after living out here for more time, but so far it hasn't. :)

So, I make my way back home. Tired, but happy, looking at the mountains.


There you have it. My longest ride ever. (So far.) Here's proof.
5 hours 15 minutes (ish). 78.25 miles.

Riding in Circles! Ok, ovals.

A couple months ago, Ross and I were invited to go up to a velodrome in Boulder. We kindly declined the invite citing that fact that Lincoln had his first soccer practice. First, we had no idea what a velodrome was, and the more research we did on it, the more scary and intimidating it sounded.

According to Wikipedia, A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate easement curve. It looks something like this:
Although the velodrome in Bolder is smaller and STEEPER. It looks more like this:See that rider? He is approaching a curve and will be riding on a very slick wall that is banked at 45 degrees.

So, when we got to the track, I was more than a little intimidated and wondered exactly how I got here.

See, the one thing about me is that, given the opportunity, I will try to face my challenges head on. So when we were invited to come this time, we accepted. For me, I look upon my biking skills as a BIG weakness and I thought that this would be a safe environment and opportunity to work on that skill set.

Seeing the track and some of the experienced riders on the track, I began to doubt the safetiness of it all and if I would be able to do it. The riders were zipping around steep embankments and taking the curves with ease. I immediately felt out of my comfort zone, but decided to stay there and face the track head on.

At first I wanted to just jump in and give it a go, but I am so glad I didn't. Tim, the instructor, showed the newbies around the track and explained how it worked, what the various lines on the track meant, the angles of the track, how to stop (did I mention our bikes had no brakes?), how to enter/exit the track, etc. After, I was glad I got the information before just jumping on.

It was a lot to intake, so here is what I took away:
- If I went too slow, I would fall off.
- Beware of others around me.
- If I went too slow, I would fall off.
- If someone was passing me, don't veer laterally.
- If I went too slow, I would fall off.
- When in doubt, ACCELERATE!

And after being explained the basics, we were off.

For the first 2 minutes straight, I said over and over to myself "Accelerate in the curves. Accelerate in the curves. Accelerate...". I was convinced that if I did, I wouldn't fall off. And I didn't.

Secondly, I realized that the previous riders were so speedy on the track because if they WEREN'T speedy, they would've fallen off. So, I kept up my speed.

I just continued to ride the track, keep up my speed and worked on my bike handling on the track and especially in the corners. The corners were the steepest and the tightest. The further down the track you got, the harder they were. So I tried to go down to see how far I could get.

The next challenge, getting OFF the track. Exiting the track actually required slowing down to a speed where you were fast enough to stay on the track and then making an exit right before you were about to fall over (from riding on an angle slowly) and then continue riding on level ground until your bike slowed to a stop. Mind you, we had to do this without brakes and while we were being aware of those around us. Scary, but we got her done.

Here are some picts from the ride.Some riders warming up on the "straights" (14 degrees)


Riders taking the curves (45 degrees)

Along with simply riding on the track, (crazy-fun as it was once you got going), Tim also led the groups in various exercises to practice cornering, speed, and other bike handling essentials. I was really surprised how fast I caught on and how much I enjoyed it. To think, I was improving one of my weakest skill sets and enjoying myself at the same time! Just the thought of being able to ride on an 45-degree angle was enough to make my money worth it!

So, there you have it. One scared Randi. One crazy riding experience. One happy rider (and many others - pictured below!).