HELL WEEK TEXAS - DAY 1
Saturday 9-MAR-13      63.26 MILES      16.3 AVG      2721 FT OF CLIMBING          TO DOSS AND BACK
 
First day of Hell Week but I backed off my plan to do 100 miles, thanks to an ominous forecast of rain and/ or hail, for the afternoon. Decided to do the B ride with Gloria, my friend who was visiting from California. The B ride was the "To Doss and Back" ride of 59 miles, made longer by our round trip commute from our hotel. It was a cloudy, windy day but not cold. I had brought my road bike and recumbent and was very much undecided about which one to ride. I have to say I was intimated by the climbing in the Hill Country. My only foray into the Hill Country on the recumbent was the Pedernales Double Century I'd done last year. No climb on that ride was greater than 13% and I didn't think I could do anything much steeper than that. But. I decided a shorter ride was a golden opportunity to see what I could do.
 
The ride started out from Fredericksburgh heading out on a counter-clockwise loop toward the Doss store. There were no towns out on this loop except for the tiny town of Doss but there was a great store out there. I had never done this route before, and we encountered some fantastic descents - perfect for a recumbent. I hit 45 mph on the longest descent and cruised steadily at over 30 for quite some time. There were some challenging climbs, as well, but nothing over about 10% - certainly no granny gear challenges. The amazing thing to me was that I could stay with most of the road bikes on the climbs, especially in the later stages of the ride. I was having a great time on the course and knew I would be out for more challenges on the recumbent on subsequent days.  
 
I saw 2 other recumbents at Hell Week - one was a long wheelbase recumbent ridden by a local who was joining friends on the first day. The other was a very slow rider who did some of the shortest rides, later in the week. I was the only one who took on the century challenge for the rest of the week - most of the road bike riders were in disbelief that I could handle those distances and climbing. I wasn't sure myself, but figured it wouldn't hurt to try. And the rain? It held off until about 8PM that night. Could have gotten a century after all, but it was good to join in with Gloria on her first Texas Hill Country ride and it gave me an opportunity to ease in to the routine as well.
 
Sunday 10-MAR-13      101.33 MILES      15.0 AVG      5062 FT OF CLIMBING                GOING TO CAMP VERDE
The previous night's storm brought a switch in the wind direction, just in time to go south with the wind and finish with a headwind. I was not deterred - I've fought big wind on the long rides I do so a mere century should not be a problem. There was very little actual tailwind. Fredericksburg to Kerrville was mostly crosswind and a lot of climbing. I did manage an 18% hill but I switched to my granny and had no trouble with it or the cattle guard immediately following, on a 10% angle. I remembered it though and was certainly concerned how that would go. I'd done the route before and as I progressed, some of it I remembered and some I didn't.  
 
Nick Gerlich, at the beginning, advised that there were a couple 20% hills on the course but I was determined to ride the recumbent all week and if I had to walk anything, I would. Before Kerrville there was a very steep, long downhill - it was a blast going down it but with the headwind at that point, I didn't top the previous day's 45 mph. I did hope I would never have to climb it - that would be a true test. On through Kerrville, had some slow ascents and great descents but nothing I couldn't handle.
 
We finally did the last 5 miles to Camp Verde and I remembered how tough it was with a headwind the last time I'd been down there. This time it was a tailwind, and the climbs were a piece of cake with great fun on the descents. Camp Verde was greatly expanded since my last trip down there with a large eating area, inside and out, and packed with people. I thought about getting a bite, but it would be a long time to get served. I decided to skip it. I sat down on the patio with some people I'd been riding with and chatted with them for awhile. Then we all left and headed for those 20% hills. They were monsters - long, wall-like grades and in my granny, barely doable. But do them I did. No walking today. Most of the road bikes did them too but a few were walking - they only had double chain rings. Of the several I left Camp Verde with, the group more or less fell apart and I was left riding with a kid from Iowa who'd been on the trainer since November, and a young girl from McAllen, who'd trained in balmy conditions all winter. The chill in the Hill Country was a bit of shock to her - she hadn't brought anything warm to wear! She had done well at the Florida Ironman but still had to walk the second 20% hill - that one was slightly steeper and her gearing was too high.  
 
I was using "Ride with Gps" programming to navigate and they stuck with me so they wouldn't have to depend on the cue sheet. In the last 20 miles I had to wait on them as they were flagging in the headwind and hills. This waiting for various people along the way added about an hour to my ride and as I was soft pedaling at times, also slowed my speed, but it was still fun - no regrets on this ride. Plus, I set a new personal best on recumbent climbing. The officlal ride was only 93 miles. I added enough extra for 100+ but my Garmin shut itself off at about 99.6. I did get it restarted but then forgot I had to turn the timer on again. My wired computer showed the full distance and that's what I used here.
 
Monday 11-MAR-13      100.76 MILES      14.6 AVG      4781 FT OF CLIMBING                LBJ Ramble
This was the toughest ride of the week - an early flat put me behind everyone (rear flats on the bent take a good bit of time to fix). It was tough because we had a cold start, a strong north wind once the day got going, and a lot of climbing on the north side of the loop, where the north wind was strongest. It was a counter-clockwise loop. The south loop was relatively easy rollers and a spin through the LBJ Ranch State Park, which is also pretty flat. Fortunately, there was only one hill in need of a granny gear - the 17% Gypsum Mine Road. Besides that one, just lots of fairly long, but not too steep climbs, hundreds of cattle guards, and negligible descent until I reached the last 20, southbound (tailwind) miles of the ride.  
 
Thanks to the flat and low average, I had a fairly late finish, but better than the day before. I did much more solo riding on this century and only 2 short stops, so nearer the goal of a 4 to 4:30 PM finish.  
 
Had some good scenery and up close and personal encounters with livestock - herd of buffalo at LBJ Ranch and another smaller herd on one of the ranches way up to the north. In the area with many cattle guards, the cattle or sheep would be standing on the road. The sheep would move but not the cattle. I had to thread my way between them and hope they wouldn't spook. I mentioned I was last at the beginning. Not so by the end - I passed many road bikes throughout the ride and probably finished somewhere in the middle of the century riders. So, a satisfying day in the end.
 
 
Tuesday 12-MAR-13      103.31 MILES      15.4 AVG      4920 FT OF CLIMBING                Looped before Luchenbach
I just realized on this ride that if you do the centuries day after day, you end up riding up and down almost every major hill on the courses, at some point on each day's ride. This ride repeats most of the miles of the previous day's ride, in reverse.
 
I got to go down the Gypsum Mine Road and I got to climb all those hills that looked so intimidating in my rear-view mirror as I flew down them the previous day.
 
We went through Willow City where the Volunteer Fire Dept was again putting out a food and drink spread for us (as they did the previous day) for a donation. This was necessary as the Willow City store was now closed. The Willow City stop was the only one I made on the entire route. The good news was that we had a tailwind for most of this part of the ride and it wasn't near as difficult as I anticipated.
 
This route diverted from the previous day's route before we descended to Stonewall, near the LBJ Ranch. Instead, we descended from the hills at a different point, headed for Luckenbach. I'd been there several times before, and as I was solo on this ride, I just rode right through and continued on the course. As usual, the official ride was short of 100, by 5 miles, so I picked an area to ride the extra miles, before heading back to the hotel, at the end. I got my century, and then some.
 
My legs by this time, 3 centuries in a row, were getting pretty tired by the end of these days, with all the headwind and climbing. The foam roller I'd brought was beginning to get a good workout after the rides and I was getting a good workout as well. It really did help, though. My legs felt almost as good as new each morning.
 
Wednesday 13-MAR-13      103.03 MILES      15.5 AVG      5165 FT OF CLIMBING                The Kendalia Kaper
This is another ride I've done before, although modified by Hell Week since last time, to make the distance closer to 100. It was still 5 miles short and I added miles near the end to make sure I got to my goal.  
 
The ride started off very fast, as we headed out of town mostly downhill. I stayed with the main group, not because I was interested in sustaining a fast pace, but because we would be on US HWY 290, for about a mile, with construction underway. I did not want to do that solo. Once we got past the construction, I let the the main group speed away while I settled in for the long haul. Most of the riders today weren't going for 100, so they could burn their excess energy knowing they wouldn't need it later.  
 
The ride does a counter-clockwise loop, heading first, toward Sisterdale in Kendall County. The climbs are a little different than those of the previous days. These are long climbs, not excessively steep, but requiring long sustained effort at a manageable pace. We climbed for about 15 miles, interspersed with short downhills before resuming more inexorable climbing. Finally, the interim reward: a long, steep, fast descent toward Sisterdale. There isn't much in Sisterdale - an old country store and some other ramshackle buildings. The chill was off the day by then and I sat down on the long porch to remove leg and arm warmers and slather on the sunscreen. Then, it was off in the opposite direction of where everyone else at the store was heading. I continued down the road, took a left, and headed for Kendallia. With the long climbs of crossing ridge lines behind me, we were now about to head along one of the ridge lines, meaning a return to shorter, steeper, roller type hills - good in a way as that type is more enjoyable on a recumbent. I rode 15 miles toward Kendallia and didn't see another rider. I was wondering if I would - that thought is often disheartening. Not seeing another rider because there are none is the problem. Not seeing another rider because they are in front or in back but out of sight, is somehow more reassuring. I noted how, on this side of the Hill Country, most of the oak trees are still alive, in spite of the drought. On the west side, where I had been riding the previous couple of days, 9 of 10 oak trees are dead, finally taken by the years long drought. That is a strange and ghostly view of a once beautiful oak forest. However, on both sides of Fredericksburg, the cactus are doing splendidly!
 
There are many fabulous estates and ranches along this stretch of roadway. Not 2 miles south of Kendallia, there is a huge mansion up on top of a hill, about an eighth of a mile from the road. There are beautiful oak trees on a manicured lawn between the house and the road. Along the road, nearly completed, is the most awesome fence I've ever seen. About 15 feet tall, it is comprised of Mesquite tree trunk horizontals, 3 high, with about 4 feet of space between them and nicely lacquered in clear coat to protect against weather. The uprights are massive "tree trunk" posts about a foot in diameter and 20 feet apart and lacquered as well. Anyway, a very impressive, expensive looking fence line, about 1000 ft long. Shortly after, I arrived in Kendallia and there was a ramshackle store there with about 15 bikes in front of it. I picked up a bottle of water and some cookies and went back out to the porch where I sat on a bench with 3 other riders. I ate the cookies and chatted with the riders on the bench. Then I stowed the water and went on my way.  
 
This was one of two stops I made. The next town, much more substantial in size, was Blanco. I rode on through the town as there was nothing I needed at the moment. I was primarily drinking my nutrition, one bottle with Perpetuem as my calorie replacement and one bottle of straight water. Each bottle of Perpetuem should last about 50 miles. I buy bottles of water as I need them to replenish my Perpetuem when appropriate, rather than waiting until I come across another store. Out in the Hill Country, stores are few and far between and may not be encountered when you actually need one. From Blanco I headed west and then northwest, crossing a ridgeline on a long climb, then enjoying a fantastic descent to Hwy 290, crossing, and passing by the LBJ Ranch once again, to Stonewall. Stopped at Stonewall, where there were more riders, had a chocolate milk for a flavor switch and more calories, and then got underway for the last leg of the ride. Once again I rode north from Stonewall, doing the long climb to FM 2721, a bear of a road with several long steep climbs interspersed by some nice descents that are unfortunately never quite long enough. I had been gaining on a rider from Indiana whom I eventually passed, and then rode with and chatted with for awhile. Eventually we headed south and rejoined our original outbound route. I decided this would be a good place to do my extra miles and he went on to conclude his ride. I enjoyed the ride and with nothing climbing-wise very steep, found it to be one of the easier rides of the week.
 
 
Thursday 14-MAR-13      103.07 MILES      15.9 AVG      5099 FT OF CLIMBING                Southern Comfort
This was a very tough ride, and not one I've done before. The ride goes from Fredericksburg, through Waring, Comfort, Kerrville, Morris Ranch, and back to Fred, in a clockwise loop. This was the first day of south wind since the previous Saturday and as we were heading south first, with a swing to the west and finally a northward finale, I was looking forward to enjoying tailwind at the end. As with most of the rides, climbing is the rule for the first 30 or so miles. Climbing with headwind has also been a regular feature of these rides. The first small town of note was Waring. There was a small store there with a few bikes in front. But I considered it too early to stop there and I continued on. I was thinking Comfort would be a good place to stop as that town is about half of the course. From Waring I continued west about 10 miles, crossed over Interstate 10 and had another 3 miles or so to Comfort. I did stop there, taking about half an hour to get done what I need to do. There were other bikes there as well. They left about 10 minutes ahead of me and I didn't see them again, although they could have been at the store in Kerrville, which I passed without stopping at. But before Kerrville, there is a road (Cypress Creek Rd) that roughly follows Interstate 10, just a little south and out of sight of the major highway. From Comfort to Kerrville is a significant climb and the road is all steep rollers trending upward with headwind and crosswind. It was very difficult.  
 
In this stretch, a RAAM contender joined me. I was feeling good and kept up with the RAAM contender with no problem. We rode together for several miles and I kept catching him if he got off ahead on a longer, steeper climb. This was his recovery day. The previous day he had ridden from Fred to Bandera, about 60 miles. Then he rode the Leakey Death Ride, 109 miles, and then rode back to Fred. So after 230 miles and loads of climbing, I believe he did deserve to take it easy enough for me to stay with him and ride an easier, recovery pace. Anyway, an interesting guy. I lost him I thought for good once we got into the outskirts of Kerrville. Then there was a very fast downhill into Kerrville, and there he was at the bottom of the hill, at a roundabout, looking lost. I had the map in my Garmin and led the way through town and a series of intricate turns. Once through town, he seemed to know the way and took off. No problem for me. I saw him turn off at the Kerrville store, where there were more bikes, but I went ahead and crossed back over Interstate 10, heading north. I'd been making good time and saw no reason to stop. He would catch me soon enough.  
 
On the "Going to Camp Verde" ride, the previous Sunday, there was a fantastic downhill right before Kerrville that I hoped I would never have to climb. Well, here it was right in front of me and there was no going around it - that very same climb and I needed to get up it - once again, one of Nick's rides had me climbing something I'd hoped I'd never see in reverse. I couldn't tell how steep it was, looking at it, but the approach was 9% so I figured the granny gear would be a good idea. So I switched gears and got ready for a slow climb. It turned out to be 15% for about half of it, and 14% for most of the rest, so my gearing choice was a good idea. I'd have been walking if I hadn't played it safe. The hill was a third of a mile long. About half way up, RAAM guy came by and we exchanged pleasantries. That was the last time I saw him until that night at the Pizza place. Once at the top of the climb, the road turned to the north, stayed up on a plateau for a few miles before starting a long descent toward Fred. This was a fast ride from this point on thanks to downhill and tailwind, and I ended back at the hotel with the best average for the century rides, during Hell Week. With official mileage at 98 miles, back and forth mileage from the hotel was enough to put me over the top for another century.
 
*** almost to the "word" limit - will post the last day on a separate topic.

You are in amazing condition, Dan...  those weekly century/200Ks are definitely keeping you in shape!  Thanks for the report, although I'm not sure it's going to serve as much of an "enticement" for other 'bentriders to head down there!!!  Glad you could do all the rides on the 'bent, and you were probably smart to walk what you did...   take any photos???

Daniel rides a CA2...

By the way, folks, if you don't know Daniel... he's in his 60s...    

That's true Greg - I had a blast! but you don't have to do A rides to have fun - the B and C rides are great too, and they're a little easier on the climbing and miles. I've done the brevets out there before, on the road bike. Next time maybe I'll see what Nick is offering on the brevets. This year Gloria was doing the B and C rides on her DF and was hoping I'd finish up by 5 PM each day. So I skipped the brevets - they would have taken a bit longer than 5PM I think.