My brain was a no-go yesterday and I was reflecting on how there is no substitute for being out riding or running or camping. Nothing approximates and one of those things, let alone the combo of bikepacking.
So it was with elation that I woke this morning to clear skies and happy brain and headed down from our house to the Pikes Peak Highway turn-off to climb back up again. Wow! Did it feel good to be pedaling my way up the highway. Early on after the toll booth I switched to my low gear of 32-22 on the flip-flop side. The ride to Crystal Reservoir is steady climbing but relatively easy as it's in the woods, protected mostly from the wind, and still at the altitudes I ride frequently (8-10,000 feet). Things got interesting a bit after the halfway point (9.5 miles). The road was much more exposed to the wind, and it was steady at 30 mph with gusts to 40. The grade of the road was such that I may have been able to ride it sitting down without wind, but it would have been pushing it. Of course, standing make me a huge wall for the wind to blow against, trying heartily to send to backwards downhill. The next three miles to Glen Cove were very challenging. I stopped about ever half mile or so for a mini-breather, kicking into high-altitude climbing mode 3-4 miles before I figured I would. There was brief respite from the wind on occasional short sections of switchbacks, and I made it up these with relative ease, so perhaps on a less windy day that estimate would hold. I steadily made it to Glen Cove, 7 miles shy the summit. Of course those seven are likely doubly harder than the previous 12.5. Being near treeline, there was nothing to stop the wind, and the direction of the highway was mostly into its teeth. I tried standing pedaling and was able to inch my way forward. That, and me being wimpy, all combined to make the decision to turn around an easy one. The descent. Sublime. Wow. Smooth, curved flowing road. Amazing! Then I caught up with a vehicle and had to slow way, way down. On a straight-away I was able to pass, and did this several times. Passed bike tourists on the "we drive you up, you bike down" tour. The support van driver had cheered me on on the way up (in a good, didn't startle me way). The 4 mile section from the base of the PPH is a very familiar 4 miles of gentle climbing I usually do in 40-16t. Since I was already in that from the descent, I decided to stay in it and see how I did, to get a benchmark of if I was out of shape, or if the wind was a big factor. I had a headwind back, but rode it with ease. Hopefully that bodes well for the next time I give this a go, which I look forward to doing! https://www.flickr.com/photos/32311885@N07/sets/72157648378500158/ With abandon, Patrick www.MindYourHeadCoop.org www.OurHolyConception.org -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
