August 19, 2006
Blue Ridge Brutal 100+ mile ride

The winding roads of the Carolina mountains never fail to astound with their beauty but when you're trying to get somewhere in a hurry they can certainly put a damper on things. I rolled into the starting point about four minutes after the start. Almost a dozen other riders were getting ready at the time.

15 minutes late and I was off. I asked an officer which direction and he said "Thataway and make a left". The actual turn was two miles down the road but I made an immediate left which put me on course for Mt. Jefferson Park, which was to be a bonus climb at the end of the century ride. It seemed a bit fishy climbing so much so early. When I got to the park entrance, I descended back to the start. One other rider was just leaving so we rode together. We didn't plan on pushing it too hard to catch up with other riders. It would be a long day with an abundance of climbing.

Jim, the other late departee, was fresh off a multi-day riding trip in June in Colorado, his home state, but hadn't ridden since. The differences in our climbing were immediately apparent. He excelled at long climbs and I excelled at rolling hills and descents. The rides out west don't have many rolling hills. We caught a rider in the first ten miles and several more before the first aid staion. The ride entered the Blue Ridge Parkway and stayed there for about 15 miles. The Parkway is a bit different in Ashe county than around Asheville. You're riding on top of the world with scenic mountain vistas on both sides simultaneously. I hadn't ridden this portion before and hadn't driven it in many years.

At the exodus of the Parkway, I thought I spotted a friend, Bridgette, that I was going to ride with had I showed up on time. It wasn't her and I rode past. I looked back and she recognized me. It was Bridgette's stepmom. She told me Bridgette was 17 minutes ahead at the last aid station. Normally, this wouldn't be insurmountable but she is a very quick rider. I slammed on the gas to try to catch her but to no avail.

On an easier stretch, I experienced a near disaster when an enormous insect collided with my eye. Fortunately, I got my eyelid down in time but the impact jarred my contact and I thought my eyelid was bruised. I guess there isn't enough blood in the eyelid to bruise.

I did run into someone else. I heard a woman tell rider her name was Annette. I looked over and immediately recognized her as THE ultrarunner. I mentioned that my wife's name is Annette and that we missed her at Laurel Valley for the ultrarun. She inquired who I was and we rode and chatted until the 75/100 mile split. I guess I should be used to it by now but I'm still amazed at how friendly and accesible the elite riders and runners are, trail runners in particular. Annette is probably the top female trail runner in the country and she's as amiable as an old friend. In professional sports, egos tend to take over but not in the amateur circuit, where athletes hold real world jobs and still train just as hard or harder than the professionals.

We met up with another ultrarunning veteran, whom I met at the Mitchell Challenge this year. We discussed upcoming runs. He was trying to recruit runners for Iron Mountain and I was trying to recruit for Pitchell. Unfortunately, they landed on the same day. Iron Mountain is a 50 miler that uses a former section of the AT. Pitchell is a 67 miler on the MTS.

The ride climbed and dropped consistently. Level stretches were a rarity but so were steep climbs, until Buffalo Mountain. Annette warned me about it, saying it was a little like Snake, from Blood, Sweat and Gears. It started out innocuously enough but soared to a 13 or 14% grade and stayed there for a mile. Even Snake changed grades a bit but this was relentless and I was passed by two riders on the ascent. Thoughtfully, an aid station was placed at the top.

The ride continued on easier stretches but still climbed a good bit. Last year's ride took an old railroad grade but this year's added some hills. One of them was rather steep and the sun did get stronger by that time. I rolled across the finish in just over 7 hours. But the day wasn't over yet.

As a bonus, 25 riders would get to ride up to Mt. Jefferson. I was #9 on the waitlist but I figured my chances were pretty good at making the climb. As it turned out, only 12, including myself actually made the climb. It wasn't particulary steep but added 1454 ft. of climb. The published climb total was 12,250 + 300 I did accidentally + the 1454, for a total of 14,000 feet! I'm not sure their measurements are correct. It appears they overstated the climbing significantly.

I finally saw Bridgette just after I started the climb to Mt. Jefferson. She was being shuttled down so I had no chance of ever catching her. I'm not sure why they didn't allow riders to descend the mountain as it really wasn't very steep. If I do this ride next year, I'll be certain to make it there a bit earlier.

Raging Bull