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https://rbentonline.org/YaBB.pl General Category >> Ride Reports >> Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent https://rbentonline.org/YaBB.pl?num=1244942696 Message started by Bud_Bent on Jun 13th, 2009, 8:24pm |
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Title: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by Bud_Bent on Jun 13th, 2009, 8:24pm Steve, Peggy, Nelson, Mark M, and I headed out of Lynn Creek Marina at Joe Pool Lake shortly after 7:00 am this morning to ride the Rio Vista Rumble 200k permanent. This route goes southwest out through Venus, Alvarado, and Rio Vista on its way to a control stop near Blum. Then it turns east to Covington, then south and east to Itasca, before a stop in Maypearl. Then it's on to Midlothian and down Lake Ridge Parkway to the finish. I decided to ride the Roadster today. I had never done a 200k on it and figured this route would be a good test for it. There are rough roads in places, and stretches of chipseal. It ended up being more of a test than I bargained for. Two miles of CR 401 on the other side of Alvarado is gravel right now, and thick gravel in places. A big dog on my arse while I fishtailed in the thick gravel isn't the most pleasant of my memories from the ride today. Come to think of it, there are plenty of memories from the ride that aren't that pleasant. If you do enough of these long rides, you are bound to have days when you struggle just to finish, and this turned into one of those days for me. The heat was brutal. Not only was it near 100 degrees, but with so much water on the ground from the rain this week, the humidity was also high. I usually do well in the heat, but on this, the first of the truly hot rides this year, I was plainly not well enough conditioned to the heat yet, for the effort I was putting out. I felt fine early. We made a quick stop in Alvarado, then at the second control near Blum at 57 miles. The heat was definitely making an appearance by then, but I felt fine until the short, steep hill coming into Covington at mile 68. I had to go to my lowest gear for this hill, just to climb it. I've ridden the hill many times, and don't usually struggle like that on it. I thought to myself that that probably didn't bode well for the climbs later in the ride. When we turned onto the chipseal on SH 171 shortly after that, I started falling further and further back, in spite of the fact that my heart rate kept going over 160. I felt like I was pedaling in mud, and not getting anywhere. Finally, just before the turn east at mile 73, I realized that I was riding on an almost flat rear tire. I stopped under a shade tree to fix the flat, and immediately realized that I was wiped out from the heat. Nelson had turned around and helped me with the flat, and we then pedaled on. I quickly realized that I was still putting out a lot of effort and getting not very much speed from it. I would be just turning the pedals the rest of the ride. I've been in this situation many times before, no strength left to do anything but turn the pedals, but not this early in a long ride, and not in this kind of heat. We made a quick stop in the shade in Itasca and had some water. I had my doubts about getting up Orpan Hill, just past Itasca, as well as the other remaining climbs. I was once again in my lowest gear on Orphan Hill, something I've never had to do on it before, but I did manage to climb it without stopping. When I pulled into the next control at Maypearl, Steve quickly handed me an RC (thanks, Steve), and I poured cold water on my head to cool off, then sat down to have a Nutty Buddy ice cream, the only thing that sounded good at the time. It occurred to me at that point that this was the most wiped out I had felt on a bike ride, ever. That distinction would not last long. I was reasonably sure that I would not be able to make the next climb, up Old Buena Vista Road, without stopping to rest. This hill is tough for me, even on my best days. As I made the climb, I kept checking out shade trees ahead, for a possible stop. But I never did stop, slowly making my way to the top of the hill. The next big hill, on Singleton Road, was also a serious struggle, but I once again made the climb without stopping. This hill really seemed to take it all out of me though, and I started to wonder how much further I could ride after it. Nelson fell back to ride with me shortly afterward, and stayed with me the rest of the way (thanks, Nelson). We had decided to stop at a Whataburger in Midlothian for a cool-off break, but about a mile before we got there, I decided that I could no longer turn the pedals, and turned into a circle driveway, and layed down in the shade. Thankfully, the homeowner did not come out with a shotgun to greet me. If I were a gambling man, I would have bet on a DNF at that point. But, after laying down for a few minutes, then sitting in the shade and drinking some mix and water, I felt able to ride, and Nelson and I rode on to the Whataburger. After a nice cool down, and cold caffeinated and sugary drink, I felt like I could finish the ride. There are no serious uphills going through Midlothian, and shortly after that, you hit the big downhill on Lake Ridge Parkway to finish the ride. I was feeble, but pedaled without a problem for the rest of the ride. We finished in 11 hours even. Not one of my finer days on a bicycle, but now and then you're going to have one of those days when you're definitely the bug, and not the windshield, and that was the case for me, today. With the shape I was in, it wasn't a good day for a randonneuring comparison between the Roadster and Corsa, but I did get a few impressions from the ride. The ride of the Roadster on rough roads and chipseal is surprisingly good. My feet did bother me some later in the ride, but no more than usual on a hot day on these kinds of roads. The Roadster, with its 451 front wheel, does seem to be slowed slightly more than the Corsa on chipseal. And the carbon CCK seat is not as comfortable for me on a long ride as the wider Euromesh seat. Another thing that I noticed was that the Cool Wings I had on my arms, which usually evaporate sweat so well that they stay dry to the touch, don't work nearly as well with this kind of humidity. Ah, the pleasures of riding... |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by Killer Bee on Jun 13th, 2009, 9:09pm Bud, truly an accomplishment ride! [smiley=vrolijk_26.gif]. You get the perseverance award for the day. It was definitely toasty. Congrats on finishing under tough conditions. Mark M ,Peggy, & I finished about 5:15pm. Sorry we could not ride with you after Maypearl. Peggy has family in town & she was actually questionable for the ride today. We had to get back to Frisco to spend time with them. The RC & water was the least I could. I wish I could have ridden for you too. Big thanks to Mark M , Nelson(as always the true randonneur & friend) & Peggy. This was really our first ride in the heat. As Bud documented, we all struggled in the heat. Peggy rode well & strong despite the heat. Very nice ride ,Peggy. Peggy called this ride her "Heat Training" ride. [smiley=wink.gif] This was the first time that I've really had the pleasure to ride with Mark M for an extended period of time. The 10 mile section from Orphan hill to Maypearl was fun, thanks Mark(I know you weren't feeling 100% & could have blown me away any other day). He's just a class guy. I loved the route & would really like to do it again. My Garmin showed 125.21 miles , & 4,956 feet of climbing. Oprhan Hill was around 10% grade at it's max, Old Buena Vista Rd was 8-9% & there were other climbs around the 7-8% climbs. Congratulations to all the riders today. Oh, Bud...are fishing tomorrow(more heat & sun)? The 300k next Sat. in Italy should be a real hoot. |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by FlyingLaZBoy on Jun 13th, 2009, 10:16pm Bud, do you think you had any heat effects from the differences in height from the road or wind-related cooling (or lack thereof) vs. the Corsa? Sounds like a tough day, indeed... I rode the Plano East ride, and we were definitely sweating it out due to the humidity, despite not really pushing hard. |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by jcsadowski on Jun 14th, 2009, 11:19am I rode the Collin Classic and there were people dropping out all over the place. Mike said that the sag rate was much, much higher that in the past. The high heat and humidity was catching a lot of riders off guard. |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by Killer Bee on Jun 14th, 2009, 12:01pm jcsadowski wrote:
Ah, summer. For us lizards ,this is our time of year. Anything below 60 degrees is COLD! |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by Kwijybow on Jun 14th, 2009, 1:43pm Bud congratulations on the strong finish, and coming back from near heat exhaustion! Not an easy thing to do. It was an honor and a pleasure to ride with you! I really enjoyed getting to see Mark for most of the day, he usually long gone by the first control, and always a pleasure to ride with Steve and Peggy. In case you were wondering I declare it now officially hot. John I can believe it about Collin Classic, I remember Alan and I doing it a few years ago under similar conditions and the attrition rate made it look like a war zone out there. People we splayed out all over under trees and porches, any place with shade. I think yesterday was even hotter than that day due to the high humidity. I know it was the first time I think I've ever had a tailwind on the finish of a perm, and I found myself cursing it, because it was just enough to take away all the evaporative cooling effect of my sweat. It was just pooling up and running off me. Got the R12 ride done for the month, so hopefully no more epics this month. Off to Alabama in a week for some good hill training though. Take Care, Nelson. |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by Killer Bee on Jun 14th, 2009, 3:16pm Kwijybow wrote:
Nelson, always good to see/ride with you. I forgot to mention that I was 3 for 3 yesterday losing/recovering water bottles(thanks to railroad crossings). On a day like yesterday, those water bottles are a cyclists best friend . Ride safe in Alabama(you should develop a perm route their & ride when you visit). We'll miss you in Italy next week. See you when you get back. |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by FlyingLaZBoy on Jun 14th, 2009, 4:01pm Those conditions yesterday (and today) reminded me of my first Rally, the Wild Ride back in 2005 -- it was the first time I had attempted a 40-miler. It turned out to be the first 95+ degree day of the year, and super-humid, and there were a LOT of people struggling to complete those last few miles westbound on Campbell Road through the hills... I reconfirmed the benefits of "induced air cooling" yesterday... while I was riding in conjunction with the Eastside ride and back home, I didn't mind the conditions all that much, although I was pretty sweaty when I got home (as evidenced by the "Ewwwwww...." from Terrie [smiley=lolk.gif] ), but not overheated. However, 15 minutes later, I was outside mowing the front yard -- and that was a REALLY sweaty time, not having a 15+ mph breeze blowing on me... (my mower is self-propelled, but not THAT self-propelled [smiley=lolk.gif] ) When I finished THAT, I was COOKED.... |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by bikerteam on Jun 14th, 2009, 7:25pm Bud_Bent wrote:
Bud - speaking from experience, I know too well what's its like to hit the wall. And Nelson was there to help me too. It was two summer's ago, and probably 125 heat index. I should not have finished, but somehow I did. I hope you're feeling better today. Congrats everyone. I did a 100k yesterday, then spent the rest of the day doing yard work, and using the chain saw to cleara the debris from the recent storm that ripped through Flower Mound. Today I did another 100k, pretty tough head wind for 30 plus miles on the return leg. The instant I got home, I grabbed Aaron and we did some trail riding on our moutain bikes. I'm wipped out, and you all did the hard work! I miss you all!!! |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by evblazer on Jun 14th, 2009, 7:38pm FlyingLaZBoy wrote:
I used to mow my acre with a push mower. Either a reel mower or a big electric one that wasn't self propelled. After a summer of that epic I gave it up and got a real self-propelled mower (mine didnt' come with a neat see through top though) http://www.bamabots.com/pic/lb3500-xray2c.jpg Due to the heat here I try and keep it out of the sun as much as possible so it mows before 11am mostly. Even my pet robot is scared of the texas heat. I'm glad some other folks are seeing the non joy of tailwinds. I didn't ride that far on saturday but early on I was trying to keep up with some faster folks on the 7am ride and I was overheating then. I don't know if I would have been making a 200k with how I am with heat right now. Congrats on finishing in that brutal weather. |
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Title: Re: Rio Vista Rumble 200k Permanent Post by FlyingLaZBoy on Jun 15th, 2009, 9:42am You've got a lawn mowing robot??? SWEET!!!!!!! [smiley=tekst-toppie.gif] |
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