Driftless 200K/400K/600K June 4th

Our final brevets of the series (but not the season!) took place on June 4th with one rider doing the Fennimore Frolic 200K, two riders on a tandem riding the Scale the Mound 400K and three of us taking on the South then West 600K. The longer two rides share the same route giving us five riders on the longer course on Saturday.

When I awoke at 3:00 it was to the sound of a hard rain falling - oh no! By the time registration was done and we rolled out it had diminished to sprinkles and wet roads and after an hour or two turned into a pretty nice day. Because I was riding the 600K, I didn't have the opportunity to meet Juliet Droege who would be starting at 8:00 taking on her first brevet! My wife graciously handled the check in details for me (thanks!) and got Juliet on her way. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to finish but did complete 70 miles of the route and reported that she enjoyed the part of the course she rode.

Juliet taking on her first brevet!

400K/600K Day 1

As is often the case, the climb out of town "split the peloton"  so we arrived at the first store stop individually but regathered at the stop. This was to be the theme for most of the day with everyone riding their own pace over the many tough climbs in the middle 150 miles of the route. My barometric altimeter showed just under 14K feet of climbing for the first day and the route is such that the first and last 40 miles or so is flat to rolling so all of that climbing happens in the middle with a number of long and steep grades. Here's the profile of the middle section:

Alex Piotrowski and I rode together to the first store stop in Boscobel and at various times in the middle of the day until he, Jerry Christiansen and I grouped together toward the end of the day to ride together in the dark. Alex becomes the first person (beside the RBA) to complete a brevet series in SW Wisconsin!

Alex rolling through the morning

Following a number of long and steep climbs along with some stunning vistas from the ridge tops which almost made the climbing worthwhile we all arrived at the store stop at Cassville at about 80 miles in. Everybody elected to take a longer break and get something to eat since this was the last opportunity for "real" food until the stop at Belmont at 160 miles. There's a stiff climb leaving Cassville but fortunately it's a few miles out of town to give us all an opportunity to let the food settle before tackling the climb.

We then rolled through a nice section along the Mississippi on Great River Road, the day was heating up but this section offered abundant shade along with some nice views of the river.

The mighty Mississippi

Because of the warmth of the day, most riders elected to make a stop in Dickeyville to get something to drink but I was OK on fluids and feeling alright so I pressed on to the next control at Hazel Green. Alex caught me just before arriving at the control and the rest of the group arrived not long after. I cautioned everyone that the next stretch up to Belmont was a tough one and advised them that although it wasn't a control there was a store stop in Shullsburg if they needed to take a break or restock fluids. Nobody but me did (local knowledge) and everyone said how hard that section was. Pretty much straight north, not a tree in sight and a dozen or so "rollers" - not the "good" kind where your downhill momentum carries you to the top of the next hill, the "hard" kind where you grind up one 6%-9% grade after another.

About 5 miles outside of Belmont there's an ATV trail that crosses the road. I'd been through there a number of times and the ATV's fly on that trail (the speed limit is 60 believe it or not). As I was approaching the trail, one was coming from the right at a very high rate of speed and it didn't look like it was going to stop. Long story short, I was so busy watching it that I hit a pothole with sharp edges - instant pinch flat. Alex hadn't stopped in Shullsburg so he was ahead of me and Jerry came by while I was fixing the flat. I told him I had everything in hand, got it fixed and headed to the control into rapidly darkening skies.

Since this was the last food opportunity on the route, everyone stopped for a meal at the Subway with Paul and Jennifer Danhaus being the last to roll in (those hills are tough on a tandem!). While we were there a hard rain started to fall so we all decided to take a longer break and wait it out and probably stayed an extra 20 minutes or so before it started to subside. We all put on rain jackets and left in a steady but not hard rain but fortunately it quit about 5 miles out of town.

Paul and Jennifer rolling through ominous skies.

Alex, Jerry and I grouped up for the rest of the ride to the overnight. The period between when we left Belmont and before darkness set in was just beautiful: clean, fresh air with a scent of alfalfa and clover in the air and beautiful skies. We were rewarded with a nice rainbow.

Rainbow after the storm

The view across the fields was very nice and with the setting sun off to our left we were treated to a beautiful view across the fields.

Across the fields

We all made it into the overnight (finish for Paul and Jenn) in good order with Alex, Jerry and I arriving a little after 2 AM and the tandem team finishing a bit after 4 AM. A long day for all and a tough route but a beautiful day and all in all the weather was pretty nice.

600K Day Two

Q: Which direction is the wind coming from?
A: Which way you goin'?

Every cyclist has had those days: you do a route where you are riding against the wind no matter which direction you go. This was one of those on steroids. The forecast was for winds gusting 30 MPH from the NW. Looking at the route profile this would mean we'd have a long grind up to Norwalk then a nice push to Cashton and some help the rest of the way to Boaz where we'd only have 15 miles or so to go.

So much for the way it should go. We ended up riding against gusting 30 MPH winds for much of the day.

We'd agreed to sleep in and leave just at the control close time from the overnight. Because the first day was such a tough one, the RBA wisely made the first control an untimed info control so our first "on the clock" control was in Norwalk at 54 miles. We all made this with a couple of hours in the bank. We mostly rode separately all day, joining up at the control in Cashton for lunch then each of us riding at their own pace into the wind.

I left Cashton first and rode from there to the finish 70 miles away with only a few brief stops. I "dodged a bullet" just before the long climb up CR-I. I'd installed a larger cassette on my bike without installing a new chain. I knew "big/big" didn't work but thought I'd get "one more ride" out of the chain before I put a new one on. As I was approaching the climb I was going up an early part of the grade and shifted the rear derailleur all the way onto the biggest (easiest) cog not realizing I was on the big ring in the front. Fortunately, I didn't destroy the derailleur, just jammed everything up tight. I had to remove the wheel in order to dislodge the chain but after 10 minutes or so of fooling with it I got underway again.

Alex caught up with me not long after and he and I rode into Boaz together. He said he wanted to stop and get something to drink, I was smelling the barn so I told him I was going to ride on to the finish. I did stop just on the side of the road under a tree on the other side of Boaz for a little bite to eat and something to drink though. Fueled by an ice cream and coke, Alex caught me about a block from the finish and I was pleased we were able to finish the ride together.

Greg and Alex at the finish

Naturally, after successfully completing such a tough ride, refreshments were in order:

Earned it!

Jerry rolled in a short time later for a 3-for-3 finish of the 600K!

Jerry at the finish

So all in all, a great capstone to the series. A DNF on the 200K but an enjoyable ride just the same and all starters of the 400K and 600K got it done on a very tough parcours. Congratulations to all!

Off to Elkader 400K

Two weeks after our "Where Eagles Dare" 300K with temperatures in the 20-30 degree range we finally got some warm (and for some of us, too warm!) weather, unfortunately accompanied by thundershowers.

When I woke at 3 AM it was pouring and I thought "it's gonna be a long, wet day". It turned out to be a long day but not a totally wet one.

Seven of us lined up for the 5 AM start (sorry, no start photo) including Alex Pietrowski, Bob Booth, Dave Meridith, Tom McKenna, Lech Kiedrowski and Eric Peterson. In previewing the route, I'd discovered the Cenex control at Ontario closed at 9 PM and since I thought doing 216 very hilly miles in 16 hours was a tall order I changed it to an info control. Little did I know I had a couple of supermen (Dave and Tom) in the group! They pretty much dropped the rest of us in the parking lot and got there a little after 8 and finished together just after 10 - fast!

It was, as Bob Booth described it, a "perfect day for cramping" with cool temperatures at the start and super high humidity so you didn't "feel" hot but were pouring off water. The group (minus the speedsters!) got to the first control at Fennimore 40 miles in more or less together. Alex was the first one to leave the control along with Lech and Alex was on a mission! I left just after them and chased hard trying to catch but wasn't able to. I caught up with Lech on the long and steep climb on CR-C but Alex was gone.

Shortly after that Lech pulled up saying he was cramping. He had a V8 with him and drank it which he said helped. I thought "poor guy, awfully early to cramp on a long ride" and about 3 miles later I started cramping in both legs. I doubled down on Enduralite Extremes and the cramps eventually subsided but I was forced to soft pedal all the way to the control at Elkader at 106 miles. I was riding with Eric and Bob and we caught up with Lech (he passed us when we stopped at a store) before reaching Elkader.

I'm forced to turn the next bit into a personal ride report since that's all I have for the next segment. I've been struggling with heat for the last 3 years and after trying everything and beating my head against that wall with the same end result - me throwing up on the side of the road - I've finally concluded the only thing I can do that avoids that outcome is to just shut down in a cool place for a while until my core temperature drops.

I got to Elkader just behind the other three but was in "zombie mode". I bought a big plate of food since I knew I needed to eat but could only manage about 3 bites. I told the other three to go on and decided I was going to sit there until I started shaking from the AC which took about 30 minutes. The urge to quit was pretty powerful but I was at the extreme point of the route farthest from the start so I decided to continue at least to Monona where it wouldn't be such a long trip for my wife to come and get me. Fortunately for me, the extended break worked and I felt good for the rest of the ride.

As I made my way north (with a nice tailwind) I saw the skies darkening behind me. I tried hard to outrun the storm but it finally caught me at, poetically enough, Waterville. Unusually for me, I made the smart decision to stop and wait out the storm. 25 minutes of heavy rain, hail and lightning later the skies cleared and I continued on to the next control at Lansing. Had I tried to continue on in the storm I'd have had 10 miles on exposed ridge tops so although the urge to press on was powerful it really was smarter to stop. I hoped the others were more fortunate with the weather but learned later that Eric, Lech and Bob had heavy rain going into the control at Lansing but no lightning so they soldiered on through the rain. Alex had better luck, dark skies everywhere but no rain. He sent along a few pictures.

Although it was raining when I left the control at Lansing it quit not long before the long and steep climb up from the Mississippi river and that was the last rain I saw. I rode on to the control in Viroqua and stopped for something to eat at Culvers - the first "real food" on the ride for me - at about 8 PM then continued on into the descending darkness. I was riding strongly and thought if I were to see anyone else on the rest of the ride it'd be where the route did an out and back to Ontario and sure enough I encountered Eric, Lech and Bob on the retour about a mile out of town. I continued on to the control with only a brief stop and worked hard to chase back on. I caught Lech on the long climb up CR-P but really had to work to catch Eric and Bob - I found out why later when Bob said that rather than "soft pedaling" waiting for me "we were going 18 or so across the valley". I finally caught them just outside of Yuba and we rode the rest of the way together finishing just after 2 AM. Lech came in about 30 minutes later, turned out he'd gotten lost(?) in the "big city" and had to stop in a bar (surprisingly, he said it was "full of drunks" at 2 AM, who'd have thought?) to ask directions to the Ramada.

So a long, sometimes wet ride on a very hilly but very beautiful route. Although none of us wanted it to rain there was an unexpected upside to the threatening weather and that was significantly reduced traffic around areas that are busy on holiday weekends. Most of the route is on very quiet country roads but there are a few places, especially along the Mississippi river, where crowds can be heavy.  The fact that this wasn't the case was due in part to the less than ideal weather. As a result we spent the overwhelming majority of the ride rolling through beautiful scenery on quiet roads - randonneuring at it's best!

My barometric altimeter showed a little over 14K feet of climbing which, considering there are a number of runs through river valleys can only mean the climbs are long and steep! Dave and Tom were the first finishers followed by Alex about two hours later then the rest of us between 2 and 3 AM for 7 finishers and no DNF's. Great work everybody!

Three happy guys at the finish! Bob, Greg and Eric.

Where Eagles Dare 300K - Spring in the Midwest

 

Spring in the midwest

The forecast for today's ride was temperatures in the 20's at the start, "warming" up to the mid-40's, winds gusting 25+ MPH out of the WNW and occasional sleet. Hit it right on the nose. Including wind chill the temperatures ranged from the mid-20's to mid-30's and it was mostly overcast all day.

Tough conditions that seem to be all too normal this year.

Hardy souls at the start! Mike F., me, Eric P., Alex P., Todd H. and Bob B. (Lech K. missing)

Seven riders registered for the ride and, perhaps foolishly, all seven showed up! In addition to the "usual suspects" (myself, Alex Piotrowski, Bob Booth and Mike Fox) we had Eric Peterson, Lech Kiedrowski and Todd Hoskins. Todd was not only doing his first 300K this was his first brevet at any distance. Talk about jumping into the deep end of the pool!

The first 106 miles of the route to Spring Green can best be described as "steep climbs linked together by challenging rollers"! Here's the route profile:

Six of us rolled out promptly at 6 AM. It turns out Lech was waiting for us at the front of the hotel and didn't see us ride by. Fortunately, my wife saw him on the route and was able to give him his brevet card and cue sheet. Although we wouldn't see him all day, he successfully completed the brevet.

See that first steep climb on the elevation profile? The first control was at the top. Between the climbing and fumbling about at the control the group split up. It turned out that Eric missed a turn at the bottom of the descent and would end up having a long and adventurous ride that ultimately led to a DNF. Among other things, he'd forgotten to put his pump on the bike and as "luck" would have it he naturally got a flat once he was on his own where none of us could help. Several misadventures later we'd eventually see him at the control in Spring Green and from there he rode directly back to Richland Center where a hot shower and refrigerator full of beer awaited. Come to think of it, he might have gotten the better end of the deal as the rest of us soldiered on into the wind!

Speaking of which, the winds were really howling, especially on the ridge tops, as we completed the first 100 or so miles to Spring Green. As it happens though, we "mostly" had some part of a tailwind during that segment as we went generally eastward in the WNW winds. I was really dreading the rest of the ride onward from Spring Green though, anticipating it would be one of those "put your head down and grind to go 10 MPH" kinds of efforts.

We made a rather lengthy stop at Spring Green since it was the only opportunity for "real" food on the ride then headed out to face the headwind. Although I might give up a few "hard man" points by saying so, it actually wasn't all that bad. We were either sheltered somewhat by the hills and trees or by the time we got to Muscoda the wind had lessened enough that it wasn't such a terrible grind.

From Spring Green we'd whittled down to a group of 4 with Eric heading back to Richland Center and Todd and Lech making their own way. The rest of the ride was mostly uneventful with the most challenging stretch being up CR-X. For those who've never been there, the road is approximately 9 miles long and it feels like you're going uphill that entire time - and steep too! We stopped to collect ourselves at the final convenience store stop on the route in Boaz then pressed on toward the finish with Mike and I finishing about 10 PM and Alex and Bob about 15 minutes later.

Two happy guys at the finish!

Caption this!

Normally, I leave an envelope in the hotel lobby for late finishers to leave their brevet cards but by this time of night it was cold and getting colder fast with temperatures in the mid-20's. I'd not heard from Lech all day and only had a message from Todd saying he'd gone off route about 16 miles so I didn't know where they were. Given randonneuring is "self supported long distance cycling" I suppose I could have gone home, showered and gone to bed but the thought of those guys having a mechanical in the middle-of-nowhere Wisconsin with temperatures in the 20's would've kept me up so I started driving back against the route. I encountered Lech first and he was on pace to finish inside the 2 AM time limit but despite driving more than 50 miles against the route there was no sign of Todd.

I returned to Richland Center and met Lech at the finish at 1:25 AM. I then got a message from Todd that he was in Boaz which meant he had more than 50 miles to go so there was no way he was going to finish in time. I drove to Boaz and retraced the route and finally found him in good spirits and riding strongly. I told him he wasn't going to make the time cutoff and he said "it was more about the experience than checking a box" and was going to continue riding the route to the finish - cheers to him! He rode the entire route (and then some!) and finished about 7 AM, 25 hours after he started.

New randonneur Todd!

Despite a few misadventures all of us had a great ride on a challenging but lovely route. But next time - maybe a little less "epic" huh?

One for the hard men!

TLDR version: temperature never cracked 45, 4 hours of hard rain, 2 hours of drizzle, 2 flats, 15-25 MPH winds. Tough day but we got it done.

The forecast for the ride wasn't promising. As is usually the case, all of the online forecasts varied pretty widely ranging from "not very nice" to "really awful". Fortunately, although the weather was nearer the latter we were spared some of the more dire predictions (40 MPH winds).

Three hardy souls showed up at the start with ominous clouds and temperatures in the low 40's. Most forecasts agreed the rain wasn't going to start until mid-afternoon so we thought we'd get a few miles in before donning rain gear. About 30 miles later it started to rain....

We got to the first store stop at Soldier's Grove in good order. While there it started raining - not hard yet but enough to get the roads wet so we all put on the rain gear (except Mike F. who had a lovely Showers Pass rain jacket keeping his closet dry). After leaving the control, Alex P. got a flat in his rear tire, we all stopped to help and got it repaired pretty quickly. A looooong climb got us warmed up again and a few miles later Alex got his second flat (some guys have all the luck!). Our first thought was given the short interval between flats he'd not found what caused the first one but it turned out to be in a completely different place (some guys have all the luck!).

Patched and on our way, we rode into our control at the Co-Op in Viroqua for a nice lunch - hot soup on a cold day really goes down nicely! The rain started falling harder while we were eating giving us "encouragement" to get back on the bikes - not!

Leaving Viroqua in steady rain which would remain for the next 60 miles. Fortunately, the route was on quiet roads although shortly after going through the "town" of Avalanche a guy in a pickup coming the opposite way rolled down his window and yelled "get the f#%$ off the road". I don't understand people sometimes.

We rolled on past the Amish farms that dot the area and into the Kickapoo river preserve area toward our next control at La Farge. A relatively quick stop to regroup then up the long climb to West Lima followed by a rapid descent and then through the valleys to our final store stop at Rock Bridge. Mike was pretty cold at that point but my lovely wife was waiting there and had brought a couple of extra jackets for me "just in case". I offered one to Mike and he was good for the rest of the ride - thanks Marcia!

It finally quit raining while we were at the control! Leaving Rock Bridge we headed toward the last steep climb of the day on CR-D, a nasty 10% with a "sting in the tail" of 12% at the top. Then a couple of rollers, a nice descent and roll through Sextonville then the finish! A tough day all in all but great company and one of those "epic" rides that strangely enough are the only ones we randonneurs ever talk about.

Some hard men! Mike F., me, Alex P., Bob B.

Driftless Randonneurs 200K - Nowhere but Norwalk

What a difference a week makes!

Exactly 7 days earlier, several of us lunatics did a 300K permanent in Black River Falls. The wind chill at the start was 14 degrees and the air temperature never got above 35 all day long.

Fast forward 7 days: temperature at the start a positively balmy 55 degrees and forecast to get into the upper 70's. For most of the riders this was the first ride this year without jackets and tights - quite the contrast but enjoyable just the same.

We had a great turnout, 14 riders at the start of what promised to be a lovely day.

The route is a new one for 2016 and features as the "second day" of our June 600K so riders can get a taste of what they're in for. The route has a nice variety with lengthy stretches rolling through river valleys and a few challenging climbs up to the ridge tops to keep things interesting.

14 Riders at the start

We rolled out of Richland Center as a group and stayed together through the first info control. The route to Norwalk goes through lovely Amish farm country and the limestone bluffs of the Kickapoo river.

Limestone bluffs in the Kickapoo river valley.

Beautiful farms on the way to Norwalk.

Leaving Norwalk we were faced with the looooong climb out of Norwalk. Everyone made the climb without issue although a few riders missed the turn and ended up doing a few bonus miles before they discovered it.

John Thier and Matt Levy at the top of the climb out of Norwalk.

Bill N. at the top of the climb saying "was there a hill there?"

Dan and Steve top the climb. This was Dan's first brevet and he killed it!

After the control at Norwalk we had a little over 12 miles to Cashton where most of the group stopped for lunch although Dave Meridith would press on without a break (he was the first finisher). After lunch it was a long grind into a freshening SE wind for the next 60 or so miles. It was heating up so keeping the fluids going was critical!

John T. staying hydrated

A tough climb up the 11% hill on CR-I followed by a grind straight into the wind for a few miles then a nice descent on CR-E led us to Boaz. Although it wasn't a control, everyone was grateful for a chance to stop and get some fluids on board before the final 15 miles or so back to Richland Center.

At long last, the finish was in sight with most riders rolling in within an hour or so of each other and a few "extra value" riders a little bit later.

Team Greg at the finish.

Team John at the finish.

"Extra value" riders Dan and Bob.

Bill N. at the finish.

Matt Levy rolling in.

All in all, a great day of riding with glorious weather, good company and beautiful scenery!