"As of last night, I'm averaging 200K per day for 2011." Ha! Anne, great write-up! Sounds like an epic ride and a great introduction to randonneuring. As I head into my fourth year of randonneuring I feel like I'm still learning a lot about packing, eating and how to pace myself. I've learned a lot so far but have a long ways to go. It's funny how much more there is to it than just getting on your bike and pedaling. I mean, that's a huge part of it, the most base part of it and yet there is so much more--packing and where and how to carry stuff (HB bag vs saddlebag vs jersey pockets, etc) and what to carry. Then there's the issue of what to eat and when! It's so easy to plan this stuff out while at home thinking about and upcoming brevet and so so different when you're out on the road.
I remember on my first 200k it was pouring rain and I just motored through the first half of the out and back course. At the turnaround I latched on to the wheels of some experienced randonneurs, one who kept a blog about distance cycling, and so rode back with them, picking the one guy's brain (Dave Rowe) the entire way back. He talked about going into open controls and seeing randonneurs just staring at food in the store and being too discombobulated to figure out what they wanted, something I had sort of experienced just a little while before. Dave was referring more to late night controls on longer brevets but I got a glimpse of the idea/experience. It's a phenomena I've experienced multiple times since. It's really baffling. I'll often chuckle to myself remembering the conversation with Dave. Anyway, that first 200k was a complete success--no bonk, no mechanicals, and I finished with a strong time (8:28). I've gone on to finish that same brevet in under 8hrs but finished other brevets pretty close the cut-off. I once finished a 600k with only and hour and 15 minutes to spare. I've had a few mid-brevet bonks but so far nothing that made me DNF. And as for mechanicals so far I've only had a fender come loose and a few flats. But back to you, again, a great ride report. Congrats on the strong ride. Looking forward to hearing your report about your 300k! Do it! That really is the best distance, it's just a good long time on the bike without being as torturous as a 400k. And in spite of the 400k being rather torturous, it's still something to experience. And you know, if you've done a 200k, 300k and 400k, there's really no reason not to do a 600k which is actually easier than a 400k because you hopefully get to sleep a bit and who doesn't want to long epic days on the bike? Oh, and as for lighting. I have yet to get a generator hub I've been using an Ixom IQ over the past couple of years and it's fine. As for mounting it, you have more options than you might think--on the h-bar, mid-fork with a Gino mount if you have a mid fork braze on or even down low with one of these VO gizmos: http://store.velo-orange.com/index.php/accessories/lighting/low-down-light-mount-type-i.html Hope you're feeling rested and enthused about your next brevet! --mike -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
