Austin, NV to Eureka, NV
Today was a much better day than yesterday. After the terrible day yesterday, Don and I both were questioning our training and if we had done enough for this trip...but we came to realize that we can only train so much on 1,000 ft hills in Michigan and that only digging deep and keep conquering the mountains out here will whip us into shape. The 1/2 day of rest did wonders for the both of us and we felt ready to go today.
Starting out of town we had a 3 mile climb waiting for us at the driveway of the motel we stayed at but it was no problem. We pedaled away the miles and stayed together today for many of the first 70 miles of the trip; joking around and talking about whatever. We stopped a few times to take pictures because the views were the best yet on this trip. The mountains (still with snow) and the cloudless blue skies made for some awesome views. During the latter part of the 70 miles, I had to stop and make an adjustment on my bike and Don saw this as an opportunity to get ahead of me and make me chase him down. Well, I was up for the challenge and he gave it a great effort but after 6 miles of all out effort, I caught him and all he could do was laugh as I tried to catch my breath. We stopped in Eureka, NV for lunch (70 miles into the ride) and decided that we needed to stay here for the night since their was not another town for another 70 miles. Rod (driver) and Sal (Navigator) found us a nice hotel and Don and I completed the last 30 miles of the day.
As we climbed out of Eureka, NV we hit the headwinds straight on. This is one of a bikers worst nighmares becuase of the effort that has to be put into making any headway. The gusts knocked us all over the road, and at one point, I was only 4.6 mph and pedaling as hard as I could just to stay up on the bike. It was not as fun as the first 70 miles. Once we made a curve around one of the mountains, the wind turned to help us and we had a nice tailwind for the last few miles of the ride. It was nice to ride at a quick pace of 24mph with minimal effort.
After 100 miles, Don and I were picked up by our saviors, Rod and Sal, who transported us back to the hotel for food and a shower. We could not do this trip without them and it has been fun listening to them talk about the trip from their perspective.
I had to buy a seat cover for my saddle (at Walmart) since we have not seen any bike stores for hundreds of miles:(
Some have asked, so I will post it here: People want to know about what I am riding:
Giant OCR 2 (all carbonfiber frame and fork)
Ultegra Components throughout
Triple Crankset (52, 39, 28)
Cassette (11-27)
Allay Seat (Racing Pro)
Ksyzium S
Garmin 705 bike computer (this is the most important thing--it tells me the daily route and everything else I need)
Today was a much better day than yesterday. After the terrible day yesterday, Don and I both were questioning our training and if we had done enough for this trip...but we came to realize that we can only train so much on 1,000 ft hills in Michigan and that only digging deep and keep conquering the mountains out here will whip us into shape. The 1/2 day of rest did wonders for the both of us and we felt ready to go today.
Starting out of town we had a 3 mile climb waiting for us at the driveway of the motel we stayed at but it was no problem. We pedaled away the miles and stayed together today for many of the first 70 miles of the trip; joking around and talking about whatever. We stopped a few times to take pictures because the views were the best yet on this trip. The mountains (still with snow) and the cloudless blue skies made for some awesome views. During the latter part of the 70 miles, I had to stop and make an adjustment on my bike and Don saw this as an opportunity to get ahead of me and make me chase him down. Well, I was up for the challenge and he gave it a great effort but after 6 miles of all out effort, I caught him and all he could do was laugh as I tried to catch my breath. We stopped in Eureka, NV for lunch (70 miles into the ride) and decided that we needed to stay here for the night since their was not another town for another 70 miles. Rod (driver) and Sal (Navigator) found us a nice hotel and Don and I completed the last 30 miles of the day.
As we climbed out of Eureka, NV we hit the headwinds straight on. This is one of a bikers worst nighmares becuase of the effort that has to be put into making any headway. The gusts knocked us all over the road, and at one point, I was only 4.6 mph and pedaling as hard as I could just to stay up on the bike. It was not as fun as the first 70 miles. Once we made a curve around one of the mountains, the wind turned to help us and we had a nice tailwind for the last few miles of the ride. It was nice to ride at a quick pace of 24mph with minimal effort.
After 100 miles, Don and I were picked up by our saviors, Rod and Sal, who transported us back to the hotel for food and a shower. We could not do this trip without them and it has been fun listening to them talk about the trip from their perspective.
I had to buy a seat cover for my saddle (at Walmart) since we have not seen any bike stores for hundreds of miles:(
Some have asked, so I will post it here: People want to know about what I am riding:
Giant OCR 2 (all carbonfiber frame and fork)
Ultegra Components throughout
Triple Crankset (52, 39, 28)
Cassette (11-27)
Allay Seat (Racing Pro)
Ksyzium S
Garmin 705 bike computer (this is the most important thing--it tells me the daily route and everything else I need)
RSS Feed