More paddling. Quick trip down to Charleston with Tom for a group paddle. First time in a sea kayak. Fun.
Monday, October 28, 2013
Monday, October 21, 2013
Thursday, October 3, 2013
3 October 2013
I rode the inaugural Hellhole Gravel Grind over the weekend near Charleston. It's a 3-day stage race, including a Friday evening short TT for time bonuses in the GC, followed by ~65 mile dead flat stages on Saturday and again on Sunday. I stayed at a super nice KOA in Mount Pleasant, lakeside, for a measly $30/night. Cabins were also available for about $55.
I didn't race the prologue since I wasn't really in it to win it, but I did race both stages. Both days I got dropped from the bunch immediately and wound up TTing alone pretty much the whole way. Being the only singlespeed has certain disadvantages. I picked a gear I knew I could turn all day, but as a result didn't have any high end to match accelerations. So I spent the days riding mostly alone, reeling in folks one by one who'd been shelled off the back of the bunch.
Lost time on day one helping out an injured rider (he and his buddy had jumped on my wheel unbeknownst to me, and gone down when I slowed for a corner unexpectedly -- there's a lesson there)
and on day two by missing a turn three miles from the finish. Other than that the most notable event was hitting a downed tree at about 20 miles an hour. Normally not a problem, but I totally lack the skills to bunnyhop on the bike I was riding. Managed to get the front wheel over and unweight the back when it hit, but lost one pedal and damn near dumped it in the aftermath. Definitely got my heart rate up.
Overall there were 47 starters in the stage race (you could also just race a one-day 32 mile or the full 65 mile course on Saturday -- day 1 had 82 starters) and 31 finishers. The main danger was hitting a pothole at speed. The potholes caused multiple crashes and flats, and one guy even snapped his frame in half --. Finished the weekend in 8th place in the 40+ class. I'd have loved a 50+ class, but in its first year I think the organizers did right to keep the number of classes down. Hopefully there will be more next year.
http://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=13680
http://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=13725
http://03200a3.netsolhost.com/WordPress/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/General-Classification.pdf
I rode the inaugural Hellhole Gravel Grind over the weekend near Charleston. It's a 3-day stage race, including a Friday evening short TT for time bonuses in the GC, followed by ~65 mile dead flat stages on Saturday and again on Sunday. I stayed at a super nice KOA in Mount Pleasant, lakeside, for a measly $30/night. Cabins were also available for about $55.
I didn't race the prologue since I wasn't really in it to win it, but I did race both stages. Both days I got dropped from the bunch immediately and wound up TTing alone pretty much the whole way. Being the only singlespeed has certain disadvantages. I picked a gear I knew I could turn all day, but as a result didn't have any high end to match accelerations. So I spent the days riding mostly alone, reeling in folks one by one who'd been shelled off the back of the bunch.
Lost time on day one helping out an injured rider (he and his buddy had jumped on my wheel unbeknownst to me, and gone down when I slowed for a corner unexpectedly -- there's a lesson there)
and on day two by missing a turn three miles from the finish. Other than that the most notable event was hitting a downed tree at about 20 miles an hour. Normally not a problem, but I totally lack the skills to bunnyhop on the bike I was riding. Managed to get the front wheel over and unweight the back when it hit, but lost one pedal and damn near dumped it in the aftermath. Definitely got my heart rate up.
Overall there were 47 starters in the stage race (you could also just race a one-day 32 mile or the full 65 mile course on Saturday -- day 1 had 82 starters) and 31 finishers. The main danger was hitting a pothole at speed. The potholes caused multiple crashes and flats, and one guy even snapped his frame in half --
http://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=13680
http://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=13725
http://03200a3.netsolhost.com/WordPress/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/General-Classification.pdf
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