1000k (620 miles) bike brevet
65 hours 53 minutes
“if you can dream it, you can do it.” - Walt Disney
How do you summarize 3 days of ultra cycling? The adventures, the experiences, the people, the places, the highs, the lows…..it was an amazing experience and I loved every minute of it.
When you are having a bad day – or when you lay down at night – where do you go for your “happy place”? My happy place is my bike. And I just created 65 hours of memories that I can relive in my mind forever.
Rather than try to write out the full 3 days (it would take too many words), I thought I would share my experience through questions and answers………
Why do you do these events?
I find a peace on my bike, that I simply cannot find in ordinary life. I am finding more and more peace in the ordinary, but it’s not the peace I obtain when I am on the open road and exploring my heart content. I feel strong, confident, happy….. and longer distance = more of all of the above.
What is the route like?
The route consisted of 3 loops. All starting from a home base hotel in San Diego.
Loop 1 was 204 miles.
Loop 2 was 190 miles.
Loop 3 was 213 miles.
While I did have a hotel room at the home base hotel, I never slept there during the event. I used the room as a staging area to replenish food, drink, clothes, etc.
How many total riders participated in this event?
5 riders started (I was the only girl – love it!)
1 rider quit after 200 miles
4 other riders (including me) finished within the 75 hour cutoff
Where there any causalities?
Yes!
1 flat tire. I buy expensive Continentals that I absolutely love. These tires are tough and minimize my flats. I’m still not sure what caused the one flat near the end of loop 1 as I didn’t find glass or anything when I changed it. Good guess is a pinch flat when hitting a big bump. My fast tire changing skills came in handy here and was off and running in about 10 minutes.
I lost a drink cage. The screws came loose and it eventually was barely hanging on. I stopped near the end of loop 2 to trash it, but ended up giving it to a walker that wanted it! He got the water bottle too. Why didn’t I just take it with me? My backpack was busting at the seams, and I didn’t want to carry one more ounce of weight.
I left my gloves in a 7-11 at the start of day 3. Super bummer as I LOVED these gloves, but no time to retrace steps.
Where there any boo-boos?
Yes!
At the very beginning of loop 1, as I was packing up to leave after the first stop, I was multi-tasking by eating a bagel and mounting my bike. I lost my balance and felt into a concrete pole. I caught myself with my elbow and scraped it up. A cute little strawberry was the result.
Around mile 520, I stopped to take my “boots” (really warm shoe covers. Covers the entire foot.) off. As I was taking off again, I missed putting my shoe into my cleat and banged my shin with my pedal. A small bruise and bump resulted.
What do you eat and drink?
Energy bars are my base fuel – I like to mix it up with different kinds (powerbar, clif, tiger milk, odwalla…..)
Chocolate milk
Bagels (some with peanut butter, most plain)
Pretzels
Hot Chocolate on the morning of day 2 (it was COLD early)
Bananas
Each night, I would get a sandwich before crashing. Chicken sand from McD’s on night 1; chicken sand from Jack in the Box on night 2.
Oh yeah, you know those REALLY HUGE muffins they sell at 7-11….you know the ones where you are like, “wow, that is a huge muffin”….I found a reason to eat one! It was Day 3 breakfast. Probably why I forgot the gloves J
What are “highs” and “lows”?
A “high” moment is when climbing a 30 minute mountain feels easy. You are smiling visibly and cannot believe how lucky you are to be alive and have the ability to conquer such feats.
A “low” moment is when you are literally laying in the grass behind a bagel store wondering how in the world you are going to make it another 80 miles. You are exhausted, dizzy, and feel like one of those cartoon characters that have stars circling their head.
Do you sleep?
Every rider is different. The super elite can ride straight through. I hope to be closer to that level some day.
For me, this was my first attempt at this event, and my only goal was to finish. I mapped out a solid plan that involved a few hours of sleep each night.
Day 1 – I rode from 4am until 1:30am. Slept from 2-5am in a hotel on the route.
Day 2 – I rode from 5:30am until 11:30pm. Slept from 12:15-3:45am in a hotel on the route.
Day 3 – I rode from 4:15am until I finished the event at 9:53pm.
What was the weather like?
The weather was amazing. And as you can imagine, a lot of changes over 3 days. The best thing was NO RAIN at all. Shew!
Day 1 was the coolest day. I kept my arm sleeves on all day. I encountered high 30’s F when I climbed Mount Laguna reaching 6000ft elevation. We had some strong winds in parts.
Day 2 was a little warmer. HEAVY winds in parts.
Day 3 was the warmest day –reaching 70 F in some areas. VERY WINDY all day. Fortunately, I had a tail wind for the first 100 miles, then had some pretty windy sections until the wind finally calmed down and switched directions around mile 550.
Were you scared?
A little.
Day 1, I rode with another rider, Kelly. He is extremely strong and experienced and I enjoyed his company and learning from the best. Kelly and I rode in the dark together too, so no real worries on Day 1.
Starting on Day 2, I was solo. No fear during daylight, but I started getting nervous when I hit nighttime on my own. This was my first time to be alone during night. When I felt the fear rising up, I knew this was a perfect test of faith. I trust God – and leaned on Him to protect me. Don was also on call during the entire event (poor husband barely slept for 3 days keeping track of me). When I would encounter a scary or dangerous section, I would call and let him know when I entered and exited that segment.
What was the terrain like?
TOUGH!
Day 1 was massive climbing. Over 11,000 feet of elevation gain, with several sustained climbs of 30 minutes to an hour at a time. Day 1 took us to east San Diego county on quiet country roads. There were many big mountains on this day.
Day 2 was a good mix of climbing and flats. The route took us through beautiful vineyards, and then some not-so-pretty towns.
Day 3 was mostly flat – although by this time, the smallest rises feel like mountains! This route took us from San Diego into LA county (!) all along the coast. The views were amazing; the traffic was brutal.
How do you ride in the dark?
I have a light on helmet that helps me see my watch and bike computer.
I have lights on my bike to see the road.
I have reflective tape on my bike along with rear lights.
You definitely slow down a lot at night, but night riding is my favorite. It is so quiet and peaceful and NO TRAFFIC!
What do you think about for 65 hours?
Anything and everything….but mostly thinking about what is next. I did a great job of mini-goals during this event. “Just get to the next turn or next town”.
I think about how my fueling is going. Do I need water? Do I need electrolytes? I am constantly observing traffic. How does my body feel?
Sometimes I have structured thinking about my next goal races or what future events I want to conquer.
I do everything I can to push out any negative thoughts and do NOT think about how much I have left. Just be in the moment.
Do you have any assistance?
No. Brevets are self supported events.
The ride organizers did provide a “Sag” vehicle on Day 1 (a roaming car that makes sure you do not have a mechanical issue or need to quit for some reason), but after Day 1, we were on our own.
Don ran a command center from our home. I would call him at each checkpoint (checkpoints along the route to ensure riders do not cut the course short) to let him know how I was progressing. He did call around on night 2 to find me the best hotel to stop at.
Did you have any melt downs?
No real melt downs. No tears or wanting to quit. But I did absolutely reach my limit all 3 days, and I’m proud to say that I pushed past that limit each day and went farther.
What is your effort like?
The effort is moderate. Definitely not hammering, but definitely not strolling. I like to call it “relentless forward progress”.
There were times on day 3 and the end of day 2 that I was barely moving….. And I had moments on Day 3 where I really pushed the pace. Overall, I try to not fight the bike, I go with what feels steady and solid.
How do you deal with bathroom stops?
I do my best to watch the clock so I’m not stopping every hour. When I can, I push a little longer. Sometimes, you have to stop more than you want. I try my best to maximize stops by combining water/food replenish with bathroom breaks.
What is sore?
Everything and nothing.
Back from carrying a backpack.
Legs from…..um cycling 600 miles.
Hands, arms.
I got a headache on day 3.
Stomach.
Feet.
But most of time, I just felt good despite the aches and pains.
Will you do it again? What’s next?
Absolutely! This was just the beginning!!! This was mostly preparation and experience for the big ones…. 508 mile race in October. No stopping – ride goes through Death Valley and Mohave Desert.
And then there are EVEN bigger rides…..but I’ll save those for another story!
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