Apr 7/8 - a long one

... but that's what it's supposed to be !

The gang gathered here before 7am, Judith arriving in her car and Keith, Ruth and Bill by bicycle from a B&B down the road. Everyone completed their brevet cards and we set off for the 7-11 for an "official" time stamp. We all dutifully collected receipts at this and all other Controls although Jim didn't even want those at the end. If he's had any doubt about our route or timing, they would have been necessary.

We rode easy, chatting as much as we could although for much of the 24 hours we were in single file. We tried to maintain as close to a 12 mph speed as possible but it varied upwards to 15 mph with no effort as we spun west to DeLand with the NE wind showing most of it's "E" character at this point. We stopped at an IHOP in DeLand, getting signatures and time stamps -- our first Control on the road -- and headed north on SR 17.

I pulled a steady 14/15 for a long way, well, not really pulling but pace-setting. The wind was still mostly from the east, so going north wasn't an issue. Keith took over after we stopped for a break and upped the ante a little; I was continually worried that we'd be sitting around, making up time.

In KM's -- DeLand was at 44; Palatka next at 136; Brooker @ 217; Archer @ 271; Crystal River @ 356; and we wind up at Floral City @ 396.

Palatka was next, our northeastern most point. We experienced only a couple of bouts of headwind, that banshee-like wind suddenly in our face, but they only lasted a couple of minutes, exposed on a bridge or two. At my 20 kph planning pace, we were running a half-hour late coming into Palatka due to a couple of extra stops.

We made that up and then some half-way to the next Control. It doesn't take much effort to make up time at such a slow planned pace, especially with the wind at your back. That wind would push us along for the entire rest of the ride.

The half-way point was our planned non_Control stop at Keystone Heights, Johnny's Barbecue -- recommended by Jim Wilson. Prior to getting there, we opted to follow Jim's suggested route of a parallel bicycle path. It was great ! For about 20 kms we rode what seemed like a wide rails-to-trails path, all by ourselves, smooth, no single file, a real delight. That path ended at Keystone Heights and with a short diversion off our path, we were at Johnny's.

Johnny's was nothing special but certainly a hit with the locals. We'd have probably found it better had we been into a heavy ribs-or-something meal. As it was, three of us had the sliced pork with sides; Judith had chicken and Ruth -- the Pescatarian (vegetarian who eats fish) had a baked potato and salad bar.

We were back on track from a time standpoint, leaving Johnny's at 5:10 -- well, 10 minutes late. We continued to Brooker, arriving there a little before our plan of 7pm, dawdling there for a bit and donning our reflective gear. I also put on my wind vest and that kept me warm enough until we got to Archer.

We were due to leave Brooker at 8pm and left a little early. We got to Archer at 9:30 and the challenge was then on -- we couldn't arrive in Crystal River before 3am. That means that we couldn't leave Archer before 11 without having a real time problem on our hands.

The Kangaroo at Archer also had a Subway, so we all had more to eat. Bike-a-thon ? No, this was more like an eat-a-thon ! Normally I eat very lightly, when it comes to solid food, consuming more gels and liquids. An omelet in DeLand; barbecue in Keystone Heights; a sub at Archer ... but of course it was 10:30 and we had been on the move, even if not hard riding, for almost 16 hours. By rights we should have been finished a 400k ride though, not only 271 kms into it !

Keith wondered if he should don more clothing, but after sitting outside and eating his sub, he had everything on. I opted to add my long sleeved jersey but that was not enough. It quickly got colder and I was shaky by the time we stopped again at a closed convenience store so that I could put on my leg warmers and jacket. From that point I was toasty.

It was almost 11 p.m. when we left Archer and soon afterwards, the traffic died down and we had the road to ourselves. We stopped at that aforementioned closed convenience store and then another, in that four hour period, that one being the only other one open. It was cold, getting down to the low 40's in a couple of hollows but mostly just under 50, as predicted. After our second stop we rode harder for the last few miles to Denny's at Crystal River and I quickly was dripping inside my heavy jacket. I was perfectly dressed for an amble but not for a push.

We got to Denny's at 3:10 a.m., perfect timing. There were two other tables occupied - one with a couple and another very large table with a group of about 20. The 20 were nicely dressed; I wasn't sure if it was an early morning group or a late night group ! We told our waitress -- Courtney -- "no rush, we can't leave until 5am".

Before we placed our orders, three young guys came in and all of a sudden we had excitement ! F*** this and F*** that, yelling and then an altercation among the newcomers and the group of 20. Loud voices, a rumble in the Bronx ... call the cops ! I got around them and moved our bikes out of the way, not wanting to have someone tossing or kicking them in anger. One fellow dragged a girl out by her hair; the police arrived, things calmed down. Some of the 20 came back in and paid their bill; one lady came over to us and apologized -- a nice touch. One of the fellows who worked at the restaurant said to me, under his breath -- "welcome to Denny's" :).

Things calmed down; we all had oatmeal; I had a couple of large glasses of tomato juice; we stretched out on the benches and had a rest. I fell asleep for about 10 minutes, opening my eyes and realizing that more time had passed than I'd expected. We cleaned up, waited for 5am, had Courtney ring up 5 zero-dollar receipts with a time stamp of 5am, and hit the road.

Now it seemed that people wanted to get the ride over. I wasn't sure about the rules -- how early were we allowed to be ? I also wasn't sure about the route, stopping at a convenience store to check, since I hadn't remembered spending that much time on SR 44 heading east. Sure enough though, it was all east except for the 10 kms / 6 miles south. We rode at a 16 mph pace when I pulled; 18+ with Keith and 20+ when Ruth took the lead until Keith rode up and tapped her on the shoulder.

We got in at 6:45; two groups were already there, including the Tampa group with Paul Rozelle. Another group arrived and we headed in for breakfast; the Jacksonville group came in about 1/2 hour late.

Looking around, we were about the best prepared for the cold. My research had paid off. I don't know what I'd have done without my jacket. Perhaps I'd have been ok working harder, working up a sweat. Perhaps I'd have been ok with the leg warmers on sooner. I don't want to think about it. This is why I have my rack-pack. I've been out in colder weather. I did not have full fingered gloves or shoe covers. My hands and feet weren't cold. It was the ambling pace, the lack of work.

So ... I've now done a Fleche. Jim asked me if I'd do it again and I said "yes". He said that he wouldn't :). The ride straight through worked for me. I wasn't ever sleepy. That said, I hadn't ridden 600km either ! hadn't pushed hard all day ! hadn't started the ride at 4am.

Judith and I got back on our bikes, riding that 6 miles up to SR 44 to meet Sandy. We stopped at a Burger King, waiting there. I had a milkshake. We were back in NSB at 11:30 and Judith headed home. I had multiple naps over the course of the afternoon, went to Mass in Port Orange and met Sandy and Marda at the Riverside Grill for dinner. The food was good, as usual. I was a little restless -- it's hard to sit still after something like this -- unless you're sleeping, of course !

My liquid intake over the course of the day was very light. I drank one full bottle of water; a glass of tomato juice and coffee at the IHOP; a V8 somewhere else; diet coke a couple of times; two more glasses of tomato juice at Denny's. I did not get dehydrated, since a) we didn't work very hard and b) it wasn't hot. That said, I didn't pee a lot either. I should have consumed more.

From an eating standpoint, I had whatever nourishment was in those drinks along with the solid food that I mentioned, plus three gels. That's it. Speaking of gels, I was carrying those in my little top-tube panier. That little bag worked out well. I have to get a better strap to keep it closed tighter, but I like the setup.

For the time between Denny's and the end, my nose dripped like crazy. I actually kept my hanky in my hand the entire time. I'm not sure why it ran so much because it wasn't really all that cold.

I've now qualified for the R5000 medal, which requires 5000kms of riding; a full 200/300/400/600 series; a 1000k and PBP -- all within a four year period. I was only missing the Fleche. I'll need the homologation number, "officially" issued by ACP in France, posted on the RUSA website before I can submit the request.

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Back home, we watched the end of Uncle Buck. I hit the sack and so did, I think, Marda. Sandy came to bed at some point, didn't wake me up this time !

Today -- I hope to start the X5 rear suspension work but need both cars operational for Wednesday, so I'm not sure how far I'll get. I can't end up with the alignment so far out of whack that I cannot drive to Ormond Beach.

We'll see ...

Onward !