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Great River Road Bike

May 14, 2009 (Morning)

Exercise Type: Bike

Weather: Start: 45F, WINDY; End: 65F, breezy

Comments:
Up at 0545, packed up, had breakfast, and hit the road at 0715.

The first 25ish miles were boring: south out of RF to Hagar City/Red Wing airport. I could immediately tell that Dan had a faster bike, as when he got ahead of me I had to work my ass off to keep up. That would prove to be really annoying as the ride went on.

Stopped at around 25 or so for a pee break/water, then for a snack break after our only big climb out of Bay City.

Mile 25-60ish went by without incident; we had a longer stop at 50ish in Pepin, where we got more water, did some stretches, and ate a bit more. I was doing a pretty good job of keeping hydrated at this point. During this segment there were a few slight, rolling hills, but even those proved to be annoying, as Dan would immediately DROP ME the moment we had any incline at all. At the Pepin stop I compared our tires, and mine were at least 4-5mm wider. Eek.

We had a nice, long food stop in Alma, WI, roughly halfway there. I found this place online called "Pier 4", where they're a smokehouse/BBQ + cafe-style restaurant. I had the "Pulled Pork/BBQ beer omelette" and we both had potato pancakes, all of which was incredible. I think it was good we stopped there, because that allowed us to salt the shit out of our food to "re-up" on sodium! Terrific chow, and I hope to make it back there.

Interestingly, from Alma to Trempeleau -- the GUT of the ride, 65-100 miles -- was by far the worst of the ride. The food sat fine, but we were both tiring and it was difficult for me to keep pace, even drafting behind Dan. We pressed on, though and did pretty well with a partial tailwind (NNW).

The only truly awful segment was 95-100, when the road turned due south and we got a swirling cross/headwind in those last miles into Trempeleau. Dan dropped me completely and my pace went from 20mph to around 14! Just AWFUL. It was tough to keep pedaling, but I persisted and we made it into Tremp at almost exactly 100-miles, a bonafide Century Ride!

In Tremp, we stopped at a gas station for a pee, re-hydrate, and re-fuel. I ate a bunch of fruit, raisins, AND about 600mL of Mtn Dew! I bought a Slam and Dan & I shared it. We were there for maybe a half-hour, taking in a long break after going 35 miles without stopping!

From Tremp into Onalaska we decided we'd take the Great River TRAIL, which is a crushed limestone bike path, rather than the roads, figuring (A) we'd cut a mile or two off the trip with this more direct route, and (B) we'd escape some wind swirl in the woods.

I'm not sure how much was the change of scenery, or the wind-dodging, but in this last segment I felt TERRIFIC. The biggest thing, I think, was the high intake of salt/simple sugars (Thanks, DEW!). In retrospect, I think those last miles into Tremp was a bonafide "bonk", because my energy was tip-top with a huge "3rd wind".

Even though the trail was a little rough and soft, we still rolled around 18mph. My "cinderblock" tires actually came in handy, as the wider tire did better in the dirt than Dan's skinny. We hammered the 13 from Tremp to Ona, with a quick stop in town for me to doff some clothes, as it really warmed up by then!

The last 7ish into La Crosse from Ona went FAST! A couple more dirt miles, then onto a paved path that took us to the Myrick Trails, and into campus! It was a terrific feeling to have finished, and we were both in good spirits.

After taking some finishing pics, we locked up the bikes, hit up the car, and hit the showers in Mitchell. Post-ride activities included a few beers with Dr. Greiner at "Eagles Nest", then me hitting the new track to watch the Last Chance meet. Kudos for Dallas and Megan running well, and props to Logan on his last-ever collegiate race.

For some reason, my "cold/allergies" really flared up post-ride, as I began to get hoarse, to the point that after the meet, I could barely talk. This SUCKED, as I wanted to talk to a million people. So instead of hanging out with tons of people, Dan and I went to TRR for a pitcher, some 'zza, and a pretty one-sided conversation!

Despite the voice-loss, it was a GREAT DAY! :)

Stats
Miles: 121
Ride Time: ~6:30
Real Time: ~9:00