The hardest 100k yet (P-6)

I had no idea when I chose the route for today how hard it was going to be.  Yeah sure, I knew there were going to be a few hills, and at least one big climb, but I'd been through that area a few years ago and didn't recall it being all that horrible.  Guess I had a short memory.

Pete and I met up at the Factoria QFC just in time to get some receipts and head out just after our published start time of 7:00 AM.   T-Mobile had their building all lit up for the Seahawks playoff game:

We rode on the I-90 trail and headed over Mercer Island, then over the I-90 bridge to Seattle. From there we rode south to Renton on the west side of Lake Washington Blvd S.  Along the way, my rear tire was starting to feel flat so I pulled over and it WAS nearly flat, so Pete helped me change the tube and we were back on the road in about 20 minutes.

When we got the first control in Renton at the Fred Meyer, we realized we were within 5 minutes of nearly missing the cutoff.  Lesson here: Don't have flats early on a 100k, it'll kill you!

Ok, from Renton we made our way, still on pretty flat terrain to and through Tukwila and then over to West Seattle/Alki where we had - or would have had - good views of downtown, had it not been so foggy/misty.

Along the way, going through the industrial part of Georgetown, we passed a whole bunch of guys parking everywhere and going to work - or something.  I noticed the sign on the fence: Lincoln Towing.  I guessed that they were preparing for a busy day of towing away cars illegally parked in lots around the stadium.

Anyway, back to the ride.  Everything was going smooth up to the lighthouse on Alki, where we had an info control, and shortly after that the pain began.  I knew there was a big hill but what I didn't expect was all the OTHER hills and how steep they were.  West Seattle, White Center and Burien are on a very bumpy plateau, like a washboard in two directions.  Hardly any roads go flat for very long, they're all up, down, and up again.  Two ups for every down is how it feels.  And these hills aren't gentile, they're killer 8% 10% and 12% grades, the kind that make you just slug it out.

OK,  Here's the route profile on the hilly part, if you don't believe me. It's kind of exaggerated here, but the grade percents are accurate:

See that big red part in the middle there?  25km of ups and downs.  My legs were screaming, and pretty soon the cramps started, one here, one there, they'd come and stay a while, then go.  I've found that stopping makes no difference, so might as well just bear the pain and keep going.  Slowing pedaling and pedaling a bit softer usually makes then go away in a few minutes.

And what of Pete?  He just flies up every hill.  On the biggest one, I lost sight of him.  Here's my view of Pete on every hill.  Find the red arrow if you can't see him:  (click on the picture to enlarge it)

Pete was gracious to wait for me time and again at the top of each hill , We'd regroup on the downhill and when the next up started, he'd be gone.

I had to walk a couple of steep sections just to catch my breath, but when the grade got flatter, remounted and kept slugging away.  Every hill tops out sooner or later, it's just will you get there before you run out of gas?

We got to Burien, with about 15 minutes to spare, so although we were gaining on the clock in spite of the hills, it wasn't all that comforting.  There were still a few hills left to conquer and Pete kept up with me more as we got to the end of the hilly part and dropped down to the Green River trail.  Now it was mostly flat grade to get home - 16 miles and 1:40 to do it in.  Yeah, that should be do-able.  We wound our way through downtown Renton, the way we had come, and then up the east side of the lake on the other Lake Washington Boulevard SE.  As we got closer to home, I was watching the miles to go and although we were making progress, our cushion of time kept shrinking.

By the time we got across the street from the QFC in Factoria, we had just 14 minutes to get through the light, park the bikes, get in and buy something - anything - to get a receipt.   When we made it to the parking lot, Pete went to his car, and I rode to the store, bought a small thing of Yogurt and then a candy bar to get each of us a receipt.  They were marked with just 8 minutes to spare!

Well, with Rando riding, it's all about finishing in time, no matter how close you cut it, and we made it.  Yay!  But I was so tired.

I live a half-mile from there, so I just rode home (arriving an hour later than I had told my wife!) and was ready to collapse.  I took a shower, and every part of me was hurting.  I would have loved a nap right then but oh no, we have people coming over in a few hours for the game, and there's things to do.  It took a glass of chocolate milk to get me feeling even remotely like I could do anything, and then a latte and most of a chocolate croissant at Starbucks (had to go the store!) to really feel human, and calm all the aching sore muscles.

Lesson(s) learned:  I was better at holding "my" pace this time vs. killing myself to keep up with Pete who is a much faster rider than me.  Lessons still to learn:  I need to figure out how to get these cramps to stop, or get them under control, and I probably should start some intensity training to be able to get up these hills a little faster.

Today had me doubting the wisdom of attempting the PBP or any Rando riding. If I can barely do 100k, what about 1200k?   Yeah, I know that blessed Randonesia will set in soon and it'll all be a wonderful memory.  Or will it?   Stay tuned for the next chapter.