The Suitcase of Courage

Blackpoint Ride with Rich & Jay - 5/12/2014

Since the Saybrook Seaside Shuffle on April 26, things got especially busy at work and it was all I could do to keep up some semblance of training (I started training for a 10k now, natch) and riding some when I could.  But the 2014 legislative session adjourned midnight May 7th and, after a few light days of riding/running/sleeping, I was ready for a Long Ride.

The forecast for the following Monday, May 12 looked Spectacular and I decided to use some hard-earned comp time to take the day off.  I put my plans out on the internets to see if anybody could join me, and Rich and Jay texted that they could.

We'd planned on meeting at the Baldwin Bridge and heading over to Blackpoint, but when I got to the bridge, nobody was there.  I thought they might be at the other (east) end, and they weren't there either.  I waited a bit longer and when they didn't show, I texted them my regrets and continued on my own.

I'd only gotten about 1/4 mile further when my phone started dinging with texts.  Jay had been waiting for me at the VFW lot on the west end of the bridge.  We had literally been waiting for each other about 50 yards apart for about 10 minutes, a row of cedar trees obscuring our our seeing each other(!)

As we were laughing about this, we see another cyclist come barreling toward us - Rich, who had miscalculated his time and totally missed my text.  He'd figured he'd either try to chase us down or intercept us, but as it turned out, we were all together and able to head out as a group.

I'd planned on our first coffee stop to be at a little place on Crescent Beach in Niantic, but as we got there we discovered it was probably still a little too early in the season.  It was closed.  Fortunately, Rich Had A Plan and ended up introducing me to a NEW coffee shop, one that will quickly become a favorite: Cafe Sol in Niantic.

 

We had a really great time chatting over espresso and biscotti, all Euro-like, but - being only about a 1/3rd of the way through the ride - needed to get back on the road.  Click on the "Blackpoint" link above for an even-more-leisurely ride where I took more photos of this beautiful loop.

We continued up the east shore of the Niantic River to Rt. 1 and then north up the Grassy Hill Road climb in Old Lyme.  Given our long-ish coffee stop, we rode this section of the ride fairly "briskly" to make up some time, but by the time we got to Hamburg, the scenery was Just Too Pretty to blow past.

We continued to the next stop - Ashlawn Farm Coffee - but when we got there, we realized it was closed.  We still stopped though because it's such a beautiful location.

Despite a little bit o'hammerin', Jay and Rich needed to split off and get to some other appointments.  But we were able to jet down 156 to the Bridge (as we Always Must Do whenever leaving Ashlawn) and the guys continued over the bridge as I decided to stop for a much-needed breakfast at another favorite stop - Koffee Works.

 

Sitting there with a (relatively) healthy applewood bacon & egg panini and iced coffee, having just finished such a beautiful ride with good friends, I couldn't think of a better way to kick off the Post-Session Season.

5k Eve: Doubt & the Last Two Weeks

So this is when the doubt sets in.

Actually, it started this past Monday.  As I got within days, rather than weeks, of running my first 5k race, I experienced some feelings I hadn't had since before my first bike race (way back) in 2006.

What have I got to prove? Why do I need to do this?

Back in 2006, the answer was pretty clear - "Because I Can."  I'd been diagnosed with Crohn's Disease a few years before and my first bike race was the culmination of a period of health reassessment and discovering a type of exercise I didn't loathe.  The thrill of competition and the many friends I ended up making along the way were the surprising icing on the cake.

It's a bit different now.  I'm 8 years older and shouldn't have anything to prove.  Going from little/no physical activity to being a licensed bike racer is a bigger step than "just taking up another sport."  In a sense, I've already done the "big thing" so tomorrow's race shouldn't be all that big a deal.

But there will be a host of others for whom tomorrow's race will be their Big Deal - their personal triumph over whatever adversity had kept them from doing it before.

So I guess, in a sense, my reason for doing this remains the same.  Because I can.  And because I want to be around others who are discovering for the first time that they can.  That feeling is wonderful - and it's contagious.  And no matter what the weather turns out to be, nothing will quench that feeling.

Oh - and the hat.  I'm doing it for the hat too.  Yeah, it's a little bizarre how much I want that stupid green knit cap.

It's been a busy couple of weeks of training.  And, if for no other reason than just memorializing it here so that I don't forget when I'm old and gray (well, I'm already graying - ok, and I'm a little old too), here are a few random thoughts & pics since my last post...

3/4/14 - c25k week 5 #2

Another cold, early morning run.  This time it didn't get over 7 degrees.  Brrrr!

3/6 - c25k wk5#3

Longest run so far - 20 minutes straight.  As recently as this past January, I couldn't run for more than 3-5 minutes without my joints/ligaments screaming in pain.

Also, I finally got my butt back in the saddle & rode my bike on rollers while The Missus did her workout DVD.  I couldn't believe how sketchy I felt.  Just year before last I'd been able to ride the rollers no-handed.  Guess I'm a bit rusty.

3/8 - c25k wk6#1 & First Bike Ride of 2014

I did another 20 minute run in the morning and then took my bike out for a breath of fresh air.  Not only was I able to meet up with most of the usual Saturday Morning Ride gang, but EXPO teammates Jason & Steve joined us as well, insuring that I'd risk getting my road bike dirty instead of taking my MTB as I'd planned.  It was great to ride outside again (for the first time since December!)

3/10 c25k wk6#2

After the taste of Spring we got on Saturday and the look of Spring we got on Sunday, with the start of Daylight Savings Time, my Monday morning run was a bit of a shock.  Not only was I back to running in pitch blackness, but about 1/3 of the way into it, it started to snow.  The effect of my light shining ahead through the falling flakes really was like running through the stars.

3/11 Bib Arrives!

So I got my first running race bib.  This event probably could have merited a post all by itself, but probably not without wearing out a few cliches.  Still pretty cool though.

With the arrival of the bib, I discovered something else had started to arrive.... allergies - or a cold.  Whatever.  I was starting to feel SOMEthing coming on, and I didn't like it...

3/12 c25k wk6#3 - week 6 DONE

5/100ths short

For my "graduation" run - the last run I'd do before my first race - I decided to amp up my playlist by adding an additional song.  I'll probably get into a playlist discussion at some point, 'cuz I'm probably not the only one to find music so motivating (and sometimes the only thing, literally, that keeps me running).  In fact, not being able to use my earbuds during tomorrow's race is the thing I fear most - I suspect it's going to make the race much more of a mental challenge than just physical.

ANYway, my playlist is made up of my favorite, up-beat CCM tunes - all carefully calibrated to have just the right BPM for my pace.  But my musical taste is pretty eclectic and includes everything from CCM to Classical, Baroque to Bluegrass and Big Band.  And I do have some old Rock as well....

So, incongruously, I added Led Zeppelin's "Rock & Roll" to the end of my playlist.  I knew that my last run would be my longest, and I wanted to do well.  I also knew that I was at "diminished capacity" since whatever I was fighting, whether allergies or an actual cold, was still hanging on.

So at the bottom of my "warmup hill," I started my playlist and started running - intending to run until the music stopped.

Zeppelin was still playing when I got to the RR station parking lot (also where my coffee shop is), so I did a lap around the lot - much to the amusement of the local commuters.  I'm sure they couldn't miss me with my headlight bobbing up and down.

When the final drumbeat faded away, I stopped in front of the coffee shop and stopped my Garmin.  I'd run my longest run - 3.05 miles.  5/100ths short of being my first 5k.

Which suited me fine.  It would have been anticlimactic to run my first 5k all by myself.  At least tomorrow I'll be able to commemorate it with a few (hundred) others.  And there will be chili.  And a hat.

So now when I ask myself "why am I doing this?" my answer may just as well be - "why not?"

 

 

Morning (group) Ride - Perk on Main, Durham CT

Saybrook Cycling - 1902

In lieu of a Morning Ride photo, here's this from a traveler's diary about Old Saybrook, 1902 (thanks DLA). 

Some things never change, even after 111 years:

"An odd thing about the town, and one that rather offset its sentiment of antiquity, was the omnipresence of bicycles. Everybody, old and young, male and female, rode this thoroughly modern contrivance. Pedestrianism had apparently gone out of fashion, and I got the idea that the children learned to ride a wheel before they began to walk."

(from http://connecticuthistory.org/the-league-of-american-wheelmen-and-the-good-roads-movement-how-popes-bicycles-led-to-good-roads/#sthash.1m5JNPC7.ZvdwPk4g.dpuf)

Cycling Fun Friday: FMTD Pics

(Pic by Cannibal Team Trustee Mike Kozlik)

I've mentioned our little Friday morning ride before - otherwise known as the Friday Morning Throw Down (FMTD).  It's a loop of over 30 miles in the lower Connecticut River Valley and down along the coast of Long Island Sound.  It officially starts in Chester Center, but some folks (including me) get picked up along the way.  It's an early ride - departing at 5:30am - and there are plenty of bailout opportunities in case you have to get to work a bit early that day.

It's an absolutely beautiful ride through stunning scenery.  Only problem is, it's usually so fast that all you really see is the wheel of the guy in front of you.  And the fastest sections tend to be the flattest.  And the flattest tend to be the prettiest - down by the water.  See the pic at the top of the post for a typical view - moving flat out, single file, along the shore.  As you can imagine, if you're hardly able to take in the scenery while on the FMTD, you certainly won't be able to take any photos.  If you stop, you'll never catch back on.

So, in order to document and share some of the scenes along the way, I took advantage of a beautiful morning earlier this week, riding solo and leaving at the same time as the FMTD would, to show you what we see when we're not too cross-eyed.  Come along for a ride along the route at a leisurely pace so you can enjoy the view...

Those who follow me on Twitter will recognize this shot.  Before I got lazy and started waiting for the guys at the end of my driveway, I used to get out ahead of them by a few minutes to warm up which sometimes gave me just enough time to record this view over the tracks, looking toward the sunrise.

Once we turn right onto Great Hammock Road, the ride begins in earnest.  If you can pry your eyes from the back of the guy in front of you and turn your head to the right, this is what you'd see.

And if you turned your head to the left, perhaps looking over your shoulder to see if it was safe to peel off after your pull at the front, this is the view you'd see.  Hopefully, your eyes would readjust in time to allow you see the road again.

After going through the 4-way stop, we turn along the south shore.  Always the million-dollar view, along Knollwood Beach, this is the "leadout" portion of the causeway sprint.  No matter how fast you're going at this point, you can't help but see the stunning sunrise over our town's two lighthouses (which you can barely make out in the distance).

And this, my friends, is the Causeway - location of the Causeway Sprint (natch).  Like the tail of a comet, some of the guys start falling off the back at this point as the lead guys start drilling it even harder.  It's a LONG causeway (I should actually measure it sometime) and the "finish" is way out there on the horizon, when you get back to the mainland.  Wind is always a factor here, and when you get a tailwind, you can be cruising at 30-35mph and sprinting over 40.  Alas, this morning there was a head/crosswind that put most of us in the gutter and sapped the sprint (kudos to GS for drilling a hole through the wall for a decisive "win").

At the end of the sprint, we coast/cooldown past Saybrook Point Inn and turn left on College Street.  As we turn, we pass Fort Saybrook Park - also the site of the old Connecticut Valley Railroad yard and roundhouse.  That's the excavation of the turntable pit and engine bays.  Yet another reason I love it here, not only do we have great roads and scenery, but where else am I going to find a railroad archaeological dig by the water?  Unfortunately, even though we're cooling down from the sprint by this point, we seldom pay much attention to this site as we go by, so I'm especially glad I stopped this time to get the pic.

The little jog north up to North Cove (you can see the jog in the map above) is part of the extended cooldown/mellow part of the ride.  I guess you could stop along the way here to snap a few photos, but it was a lot nicer - being solo on this particular morning - to take my time.

Another shot of North Cove

And yet another - showing evidence of the ever-present wind.

Once we motor up Main Street and through town, we take a right back up and over the railroad tracks then another right to head east back toward the river.  This is the view just after that road turns left and heads north.  That's Old Lyme across the river, and the 1907 railroad bridge connecting the two towns.

After going "between the bridges" (the RR bridge to the south and the I-95 highway bridge to the north), we turn back west and head through Saybrook's Otter Cove section.  The pace is usually pretty brisk from the last time we cross the tracks up to the Otter Cove turnoff, but the area itself is usually pretty mellow, very woodsy and wind-y.  There is one clearing in the trees though, and we're treated to another view of the river - this time with a little fog burning off.

Once out of Otter Cove, we turn north again and head into Essex - literally right through the center of town.  It'd be fun to mount a helmet cam to an R/C helicopter and video us from above, going around the roundabout.  I'm not sure it would look as cool as those shots you see of 100+ racers doing it in the Tour, but I'd put this rotary in Essex Village up against anything in Europe for looks and charm (Paris & Rome notwithstanding).

The Loop continues north from here, along the river back to Chester Center but at this point, mostly because I'd taken a lot of extra time stopping to take pictures, and partly because I rode more of the route than I usually do before work (I usually peel off and head home right after Otter Cove), I was starting to run a bit late and needed to get to the office.  It was such a beautiful morning though, I couldn't help but turn right at the rotary and head down Essex's Main Street to the end.

While not actually on the FMTD route, it's not that far off and if you have time, it's more than worth it, especially at sunrise.  This is the dock next to the CT River Museum, right at the "Foot O' Main".  I could sit here for hours, watching the fog burn off and following the sun as it makes its trip up and over the water.  But I had to TT home to jump in the shower and get the workday started.  No matter what kind of day I'd have though, it had already been a great day.

I hope you enjoyed this little trip around (most of) the Friday Morning Throwdown Loop.  Maybe you can join us sometime, but if you do, don't bother bringing your camera.  No matter how beautiful it is that day, you probably won't get a chance to use it.

Ashlawn Farm, the Pity Prime, & the End of Spring Racing

The past couple of weeks have been quite a roller-coaster weather and riding/racing-wise.  The day after my last post - Tuesday April 9 (the day was that memorable) - it was so sunny and warm I rode outside in just shorts and a jersey for the first time since last September.  Then the weather was so lousy and windy by Friday morning that I skipped the FMTD.  More times than I can remember in April, I've been on the indoor trainer.  Usually that particular means of torture training is thoroughly banished way before now.

But Saturday the 13th ended up being a lucky day.  After my summer-like Tuesday night ride, I'd already put out a feeler/invite for folks to join me in my first Saturday Morning Clarke ride of the year.  While I'd really thought I'd made a mistake pulling that trigger so early in the week - especially given the weather as late as Friday - it ended up being a beautiful ride.  We stayed near the shore, mostly, riding out to Blackpoint in Niantic and then headed north by northwest to one of my favorite ride destinations - Ashlawn Farm.

You'll want to be sure to click here for a much more detailed post on the Blackpoint Loop, including some great photos and a route map.  I'm not bragging about the photos - the route goes through such beautiful scenery, you really can't help shooting some wonderful scenes.

It was great to get together again with some of my local riding buddies, some for the first time this season, and the ride was made all the more special by the guest appearance of a couple of teammates.

The leisurely "giro de caffe piano" was the perfect way not only to kick off the Saturday group rides (well, for me at least), but a great warmup for what would end up being my last race of the Spring Season the next day.

The Bethel Spring Series usually consists of six races, starting with the first Sunday in March, skipping Easter Sunday, and ending mid-April.  THIS year, however, there would be SEVEN races.  I'd fully planned to do all seven, but when scheduling conflicts started cropping up for the last race, I knew I'd have to stop at the usual six.  "No worries" I thought "There's a Ninigret on Saturday that I can do instead...."  So Sunday the 14th would be my last Bethel.

I had mixed feelings going into it, of course.  It was a little surreal knowing this was my last Bethel, but knowing everybody else would be doing one more.  Our team was out of the running for any podium spots, so we were all free to race however we wanted, with no real strategy going in. So I figured I'd make it the best of it.

SDC, JeffM, Joel and I lined up and took off at the whistle.  Joel got things started off by snatching the first prime in handy fashion with a decisive, take-no-prisoners launch that created an immediate gap and kept the hounds at bay.

Primes (sounds like "preems" but, gawd please, do NOT spell it that way) are to crits what stage wins are to Grand Tour races.  When your team is out of contention during a race series, or it's outgunned, or if you're racing alone, going for - and winning - primes are a nice consolation.  Usually the GC guys and stronger teams are focusing more on the final/overall result.  That leaves the primes prime for the picking.  All you have to do is listen for the bell announcing the prime and then be the first across the line on that lap of the race.

Even when the stronger teams aren't contesting the prime, winning one still ain't anywhere near easy.  But it's great fun to try.  Besides the finish, you have as many additional chances to sprint as there are primes in the race and - unlike just attacking during the race - you actually have a chance to win something for your trouble.

I didn't want Joel to have ALL of the fun so, when I was in a decent position the next time the bell rang, I started making my way up to the front.  As we rounded Turn Two, I started making my way up the left side and right about where the flagpole is (about 50 miles away from the start/finish actually, I don't know how far away from the S/F it is, but it's pretty far out) I starting sprinting like it was the end of the race.  For all I knew, it WOULD be the end of the race for me if I couldn't recover in time and got dropped.  But a "last" race when there's nothing at stake can be the ideal opportunity for taking a chance.  So I gave it all I had.

When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked back to see how close the pack was.  It was WAAAAY back - I couldn't believe how much of a gap I had!  I was so far off the front, I literally coasted across the start/finish and it took another 1/2 lap of soft pedaling before I got swallowed back up.  I even got an early reward for my effort when a couple guys in the pack said things like "great sprint" & "way to win it" - I'm just glad I could hear them through the throbbing of my heart in my ears.

Since I'd been able to coast a bit, by the time I'd drifted to the back of the pack, I was in good enough shape to hang on with no problem.  I saw SDC back there, tailgunning, but neither of us were prepared for any deep philosophical conversations.  Unlike SDC - who, no matter WHERE he is during the race, always seems to find a way to be at the front at the end - I have a morbid fear of being at the back, especially whenever there's a hill.  I like to drift back on hills to save energy, but they have a name for when you drift back when you're already at the back.  It's called being dropped.  So I started making my way back up through the pack.

After a bunch more laps, I checked and - yup - I discovered I had a few more matches left to burn so, having let a bunch of primes go by (read: I was nowhere near being able to contest them) and knowing there wouldn't be too many - if any - left, I started listening for the bell and getting closer to the front.

When the bell rang, there were a few guys up the road already - but not too far.  As usually happens during a prime lap, the pack will ramp up its speed and that often (though certainly not always) has the effect of gobbling up any escapees that might be dangling out there.  That happened in this case, thankfully.  Unfortunately though, about 50 meters before they all got caught, one them attacked and shot further out - at just about the same time as I launched my effort.  I chased/sprinted as best I could, but by the time I was part way up the hill, I knew there was no way I'd be able to catch him, so I sat up.

I still came in 2nd, but it was only a one-place prime.  Oh well.

What there was left of the race went pretty much as expected.  The teams in contention fought each other for position - with a fair amount of blocking - and it got a little sketchy during the final lap.  But everybody remained upright.  I chose the wrong line and got a little boxed in at the bottom of the hill, but I was still able to eek out 15th.  With the prime win, I was pretty happy.

And here's where it got interesting....

I did my cooldown lap and made my way to the official's tent to get my winnings.  Here's how that conversation went (roughly):

Characters: Me & Mike the Official (also one of the race sponsors and all-around good guy)

Setting: Near the start/finish

Weather: Sunny & dry

Me: So what do I get for my prime?

Mike: You didn't win any primes.

Me: Whattaya mean?!  I totally won a prime - and pretty decisively!  I was ahead by a MILE!  You couldn't have missed it!

Mike: Oh that?  Yeah, we were wondering why you were still sprinting and then sat up.

Me: I sat up because there was no need to sprint anymore.  I was ahead by a MILE!

Mike: Maybe if you'd kept sprinting you would have seen the guy up the road.

Me: AH!  Yeah, I DID notice him - but that was on the SECOND prime I went for.  When I saw I wasn't going to catch that guy, I sat up.  But for the FIRST prime I KNOW I was way ahead of everybody else.

Mike: Yeah, except the guy up the road that actually won the prime.

At this point, I felt like I was stuck in an old Abbott & Costello routine.  We went back & forth like this a bit - I was actually convinced for a while that Mike was pulling my leg - but the upshot was, yes, there actually had been a guy up the road on the prime I thought I'd won (as well as the one I knew I hadn't won).  None of us in the pack had noticed him.

Mike (seeing how disappointed I was, and clearly taking pity on me): Do you want a gift bag?

Me: I would LOVE a gift bag!

Racers are profoundly easy to please.  Well, at least this racer is.  I got a great hat and a waterbottle from Outdoor Sports Center.  Not prime winnings, technically, but a "parting gift" that nicely capped off my final Bethel race of 2013.

Ok - call it a Pity Prime.

Here's the REAL pity though.... After planning on going to race my Favorite Track Ever this past Saturday, and thereby put a punctuating period at the end of my spring racing sentence, I woke up Saturday morning and it was raining.  During a fun and spirited FMTD the previous day, friend (and fellow red/silver C'Dale R900 rider) ChrisW and I discussed Ninigret and he revealed that it'd be his First Crit - provided the weather was ok.  We promised we'd text each other in the morning, but when the forecast Friday night still made Saturday a washout, I emailed him to let him know I'd be sleeping in and would ride in the afternoon instead.

So the rain the next morning was a nice confirmation of my decision.  Until it stopped about the time I would have left the house for the race.  And then it started clearing.  And then it got sunny.  Worse of all - for me at least and the growing pity party I was having - I got an email from ChrisW.  He'd gone to the race and it was "awesome."

Rats!

I did get a couple of nice consolations though.  I sent out a pitiful plea invite for anyone that could join me for a pick-up ride Saturday afternoon (which was turning into a Top 5 day allofasudden) and CharlieV, Jen & Peter obliged.  It's so nice to have riding buddies to count on.  Though as it happens, I wasn't the only one to have bagged the morning - they were thinking the same thing and we all needed only a catalyst to get going.  And we saw a lot of other folks out riding too - including Cannibals El Presidente (ShawnM) and MikeK, both celebrating their birthdays, and Tim.  Tim joined us (perhaps figuring the ratio of guys to gal in our group wasn't quite what it should be, considering the one gal was "Mrs. Tim") and we headed past Rogers Lake up Grassy Hill and through a 1980s-era development of 17th & 18th century houses (I'll try to explain in some future post).

The other consolation was a beautiful Sunday morning ride the next day.  I got on the road in time to catch the sunrise over our town lighthouse(s!) and planned the route so I could at least meet the Cannibals for the start of their ride out of Chester - and congratulate ChrisW on racing his first crit.

So with a wimper rather than a bang, the last weekend of my Spring racing block came to an end.  I didn't get to ride again until this morning - luckily just missing the rain both before and after my ride -  but am looking forward to some great weather - and great riding - over the next few days.  FMTD tomorrow, Clarke ride Saturday, and another Cannibal-intercepting pre-church ride on Sunday.  My next race isn't until May 25th, but there's lots of riding to do in the meantime!

Plainville Win & Ninigret Victories Snatched

So it looks like I'm posting every other week or so - guess that's better than nothing.  And to the extent this is a web log ("blog" - get it?) of what all I've been up to and for my own documentation purposes, I suppose that's enough.  I understand the lack of race pics and video makes these posts a little less sexy, but I'll try to make it interesting.  If even only to me.  Actually, there have been a few fun things going on in SOC land since last I posted.  So, without further ado, here we go...

First FMTD

We had our first Friday Morning Throw Down of 2013 on March 29.  As the pic above indicates, this was the start of the year's Mailbox Tales.  This time I put the flag up just as the guys were coming down the road.  It was a small but select group and the sprint over the causeway - while spirited - wasn't contested.  Not too seriously anyway.  Which is to say, I lost it - to another Chris on another red Cannondale CAAD8 R900, strangely enough.  Ah well.  It's early in the season and he was headed off to Battenkill.  It being Good Friday, I was able to console myself with a BEC at The Villager before heading back south and toward home.

Sunrise Ride

I also attended my first of what I hope will be many Sunday morning Cannibal rides.  Well - if you count riding with them for only the first 20 minutes or so.  I split off after the swing bridge in East Haddam as they headed north into the mountains hills.  I told them I didn't have time to go with them since I had to get to Easter morning service at church.  Which was true.  But also provided a handy excuse for avoiding so much climbing.

 

It also allowed me to do a quick detour to one of my favorite places/views - Gillette Castle.

I caught my share of hills though, having to go over Joshuatown Road on my way home.

That first big climb was with the group, but the big climb in the middle was going past Goodspeed's up to the Castle and then the three peaks at 20-23 miles are the "Three Sisters" of J'Town.

But as nice as all that fun riding is, the racing is probably more interesting - especially because it includes a couple tales of winning...

Final Plainville - EXPO Wins All (well, in the Cat3/4 race, anyway)

I was going to race the first Ninigret of the season on March 30th, but since teammate Stan was leading the individual GC and EXPO was leading the team GC, my task was clear - skip Ninigret and head to Plainville to help insure victory.

 
(pic by SDC)

Given that we had Bethel off this weekend due to Easter, a large squad of EXPO was on hand to share the work of defending.  And defend we did.  We chased everything that tried to break free, but when a split happened that I, defending leader Stan, & Lance happened to be in, we drilled it.

It was a fairly large break of 8 guys, not all of which were sharing much of the work, but we opened quite a gap on the field.  Which made it even more surprising and impressive when teammate JeffM bridged up to join us.  I hadn't remembered him being with us when the split happened and - frankly - in my deprived state of oxygen I wasn't keeping all that close a track on attendance.  But at one point I'd drifted to the back of the break and there he was, apologizing for needing to recover.  I didn't realize til later what a herculean effort he'd put in.

(pic by SDC)

But that wasn't the end of the story for him or for the team.  We kept at our work and as the lap cards counted down it was clear that the now-9 of us would be scrambling for whatever points were left.  I'd missed out on one of the 2-place primes, but snatched 2nd to teammate Stan for one of them - stealing points away from one of Stan's rivals.

(pic by SDC)

But that was all the glory I'd get for myself this day.  The rest of the race belonged to the team and to JeffM.  As the laps of the race wound down and the speed of the race went up, I hoped to get in good position for Stan.  As we headed down the backstretch, I saw Jeff coming up my right and he was looking strong.  By the time we hit the final corner, he went past and opened up his sprint.  There was no holding him back and though we were all pretty close, there was only one clear winner:

(pic by SDC)

Yes, after making a huge effort to bridge, Jeff won the race collecting points that put Team EXPO way over the top in the team GC.  Stan maintained his position as leader of the individual GC and all the prize money went into a pot we plan to dip into for a future celebration.

This, of course, is one of the many things that makes bike racing So Much Fun.  Winning?  Sure.  But racing with so many teammates on such a gorgeous day was a huge win no matter the outcome.

But yeah, winning is pretty cool too.

Heading back to the truck with the pit wheels (pic by SDC)

Second Ninigret - But First for Me (this year)

The Mystic Velo Crit at Ninigret Park - Ah, Ninigret.  How I love thee.  I've gone on (and on) before about this great track located on an old airfield in Charlestown, RI.  I may not always do well here, but I always have a blast.  I've flatted and DNF'd here.  I've also done my longest solo breakaway here, staying away (actually in No Man's Land) for 8 laps and coming in 7th, just ahead of a charging pack chasing the 6 man break.  Last Saturday's race was a great example of that mixture of defeat and victory.

In a huge contrast to the previous weekend, there was only myself, Lance & TJ racing.  Lance's son Xander was doing his first crit - and another friend, CharlieV, did his first crit earlier in the day.  I don't know their respective ages, but suffice it to say they're on different ends of the age spectrum, and both racing for the first time.  What a sport!  And, interestingly, Lance was doing his first Cat3 only race.  He's been racing the 3/4s at Bethel for a while now and putting the hurt on, but he finally upgraded earlier in the week and was getting his first test of the 3s without the 4s.

 Me?  Like I said, I've been here a number of times, it's been a while now since I upgraded to Cat3 (despite the now-misleading tagline on this blog) and I have no interest in upgrading (i.e. doing the work required to become a Cat2).  But each race is its own thing - a clean slate and a new chance to do something different.

Well, I can't say I did all that much different - other than miss the break that finally stuck.  I have noticed that I'm racing more aggressively - or at least less conservatively - than I used to, finding myself at the front more often and even attacking just for the heck of it.  I've been pleasantly surprised that such antics sometimes - if not often - result in opportunities that you wouldn't otherwise get.  But this time I let a couple guys get away, figuring the pack would catch them considering the stiff wind.  Then another guy slipped away, then another.  Before ya know it, there's a break up the road and it's just a little bit too far away to try and bridge.

So for most of the race, I just hung out in the pack, hoping against hope that one of the bigger teams would chase and it'd all come back together.  But as the race went on, that looked less and less likely. So - figuring, like I did here a couple years ago, that I'd at least get a good workout - I went for a couple of primes.

I actually didn't mean to go for the first prime.  I actually had delusions of bridging up to the break - or die trying.  I actually thought I'd be able to reprise my 8 lap solo effort here from 2011 and get some glory.  Well, I attacked pretty hard on the finishing straight and as I crossed the line the bell rung for a field prime - the last crumbs of glory for a bunch of guys that let the race slip away from them.  By the time I hit corner 1, I had a pretty large gap and figured what the heck? might as well see if I can stay away for at least this lap (as you can tell, my 8 lap ambition evaporated pretty quickly).  If I'd had any delusions of grandeur, the building lactic acid burned them away - but I crossed the line before anybody else and won the prime - a sixpack of local beer.

And promptly let the pack catch me.

It was fun to stretch the legs (and lungs, and heart) a bit, so knowing that the break was well and good long gone - so much so that even the announcer said we weren't contesting the finish - I decided to go for the next, and last prime.  It was announced with only 3 laps to go (I think the announcer was desperate to animate the race at any cost) and I started moving toward the front.  As we hit the backstretch before corner 4 and into the headwind - the site of the start of my huge effort a couple years ago - I launched my attack and was able to hold it for the 1/2 lap it took me to get to the line.  I won another prime!  "Boy, that EXPO guy must be thirsty!" I heard the announcer say as I approached the line.  Yup - I'd won another 6 pack.

I was pretty fried at this point and knew I had to recover quickly in order to contest the field sprint.  It wasn't really "for" anything - all the money was already up the road - but I wanted to see if I could do a three-peat.

So I worked my way back to within 10 guys of the front and as we rounded the last corner, I went up the left side and launched my sprint for all I was worth.  I easily shot past the front of the pack and crossed the line decisively and alone.

But what was that ringing in my ears.  A BELL?!  A quick glance at the lap cards confirmed my fear and stupidity - there was still one lap to go.  In my oxygen-deprived state, I'd totally lost track.

And I'd lost what was left of my motivation.  As the pack swallowed me up around corner 1, I got briefly bumped - almost crashed out - by a guy shooting a narrow gap on my left side.  Good thing there are no curbs at Ninigret: I did some grass surfing and he bobbled quite a bit, but we all stayed upright.  That was it for me.  I drifted to the back of the pack and made a couple feeble efforts to hang on, but by the time the sprint opened up around the final corner, I sat up and soft pedaled in with a CLR rider.  One - or maybe both - of us were DFL.

But I didn't really care at that point.  Despite missing the break, I'd won two primes - and with pretty commanding gaps.  So, for me at least, I snatched a little bit of victory from what was otherwise a defeat.

Funny thing though - I don't drink beer.

 

But my teammates do and I was more than happy to let them share in the spoils.

Until next time!

Cycling Fun Friday:Blackpoint Beach Loop

While this blog focuses a lot on bike racing, you'll also find a lot of other posts that explore "fun" riding too.  As fun as racing is, like many others I find it just as fun to answer the call of the open road on a beautiful day and do some exploring at a slower pace.  Incidentally, it's good training too.  You sometimes have to go slow to go fast, and the Blackpoint Beach Loop is definitely a ride you want to take your time doing.

All these roads are familiar to me, so there wasn't much in the way of "discovery," but I'd never strung them together in quite this way before.  I think I've put together a pretty cool route though that includes a lot of neat points of interest and wonderful scenery along the way.  There's even a stop at a local bike shop where you can get your bottles refilled, a great used book store (in case you have some extra time and room in your jersey pocket), and - best of all - an out-of-the-way independent coffee shop where you can get a great snack toward the end of the ride.  So follow along on the map and join me for a virtual tour.  I'll point out the best things along the way.

The only way you can get from Old Saybrook across the Connecticut River to Old Lyme is by taking the I-95 highway bridge across  and its the first major feature of the ride.  Fortunately, the Baldwin Bridge has a bike/ped walkway on its north side so you don't have to dodge interstate traffic.

And as you can see, it affords some really nice views of the river valley from over 80 feet up.

Shortly after you cross the bridge, and on your way to Old Lyme, you cross the Lieutenant River.  You'll notice there are plenty of water views during this ride.

Going across the Baldwin Bridge is of course VERY noisy with all the traffic and the road from the end of the bridge to Old Lyme is a wide 4-lane main road.  But right after you cross the Lieutenant River, you take a left (being careful of the traffic) and head into the village of Old Lyme itself.

Old Lyme is the home of the Florence Griswold Museum and the "Home of American Impressionism."  The village hasn't changed much in the last hundred years and retains much of its turn-of-the-(last)century charm.  Certainly worth taking your time to explore.  Of course, the best way is by bike.

You'll enter town alongside this church and take a right.  You're well off the main roads by now and can enjoy the passing scenery without too much fuss (or dealing with traffic).

And there's lots of scenery to enjoy.  It's still relatively rural out this way and small farms dot the landscape.  This is one such farm between Old Lyme and Niantic.

After taking the backroads, you'll end up back on Rt. 156 - a fairly busy road that roughly follows the shore of Long Island Sound.  Fortunately, the road is smooth and the shoulders are wide.  If you don't get shaken by the occasional big oil truck going by (never too close - they're pretty used to cyclists around here), you can enjoy the big, swoopy curves and undulating terrain.

"Undulating" is one way to put it.  The topography in this part of the state is full of short, steep climbs and quick descents.  But there's one HUGE descent going eastbound, just short of Rocky Neck State Park, that if you have the redlight timed right has a nice long run-out and will likely give you your highest speed of the day (thankfully, it's a T-intersection coming from the left, so cross traffic isn't a problem).

You'll pass the entrance to the Park on your right (itself worth exploring if you have the time) and take a right onto Fairhaven Road toward Blackpoint Peninsula.

Just as an aside, one of the joys of writing this blog - especially "travelogues" like this - is that I end up learning more about where I'm riding.  I'd always thought of the Blackpoint section of Niantic as a refuge for well-off folks in old colonial homes - much like the Fenwick section of Old Saybrook.  But as with most things, there's a lot more than meets the eye.  And especially for the history-minded, you don't have to scratch the surface much before you discover something interesting.

In this case, literally.

Apparently, Niantic was named after the Nehantic Indians that used to live is this area and the Blackpoint Peninsula was their last reservation.  According to the best research available Wikipedia:

By 1870, the Nehantics were declared extinct by the state and their 300-acre (1.2 km) reservation, the Black Point peninsula of East Lyme, was sold. In 1886, their burial ground was sold and desecrated, and the Crescent beach community filled over it. As recently as 1988, Nehantic skeletal remains were uncovered by new construction.

Sometimes, learning history can be depressing.  But it certainly gives you a much richer view of the world and every time I ride around Blackpoint in the future, I'll think of what used to be and thereby honor the memory of those that were there.

But those ghosts of the past were nowhere in my mind as I rode the Blackpoint loop this day, especially not with scenes like these cropping up at nearly every bend in the road.

Given how much shoreline property is (over)developed, scenes like this - where the meadow goes right down to the sea - are especially rare.  I wonder how long it'll be before a house will be built here.  I wonder what the construction might unearth...

Just about every house in this area is worth photographing, but if I got to pick one to live in, it'd probably be this one, right at the point.

The (now-infamous, to my mind at least) Crescent Beach area.  A lovely spot, made all the more poignant by its history.  It was hit especially hard by the hurricane/tropical storm last Autumn.  But it looks like it's about ready for the upcoming season.

At the eastern-most point of our map, you'll find Niantic Bay Bicycles - a local shop which caters to the tourist and beach trade (natch), but there's a respectable number of racing bikes in the inventory as well.  It's run by nice folks (& former racers) who know their stuff - and will let you use the facilities and refill your bottles.

Heading back west now, but still in the Niantic section of East Lyme, you'll pass by The Book Barn.  It's actually a collection of four separate buildings and a number of sheds and offers a little bit of just about everything.

Randy, the owner, is a cyclist as well - though this business keeps him too busy to get out to ride as much as he'd like.  As much as I encourage folks to ride when they can, I have to admit I just about always drive here - all the better to haul more books away (at least until I get a bike trailer).

From here you continue to head west on Rt. 156 from Niantic back past the Blackpoint turnoff, but not quite as far as Rocky Neck.  Fortunately, you take a right and head north before having to climb up that great descent you bombed down earlier.

But what goes down eventually has to go up and though it's certainly not as steep, the northbound leg of this trip is a steady ascent.  Fortunately, you're treated to a lot of nice farmland scenes along the way.  (Un?)fortunately, you'll be going slow so you can thoroughly enjoy them.  At least you won't be slowing down many cars - there's little traffic on this segment.

Once you get to Rt. 1 you've hit one of the highest points of the ride - if not the highest.  You'll turn left to head west and will have to deal with trucks and general traffic until you can turn off just past Rogers Lake.  The shoulders are decent, but not as well-maintained as those on Rt. 156.

But being a much older road (the original "Boston Post Road"), you'll get little gems like this along the way.  I've ridden this section at least a dozen times before, but I guess I've either been going too fast - or, more likely, the foliage was too dense - to see this old milepost, marking 10 miles from New London.

Just past the southern end of Rogers Lake, you'll take a right and head northwest on Town Woods Road.  Unsurprisingly, given the name, it's pretty woodsy but the shade is nice and cool in the summer.  But this time of year, you can see more of the farms along the way.  As with all of these pics, you can click for a larger view and if you "embiggen" this one, you'll see the sheep napping in front of the barn.

Ah - finally - Ashlawn Farm, the home of Ashlawn Farm Coffee Roastery & Cafe.  A little over 30 miles into your ride, you're ready for a nice break - and this is one of the best around.

What started out as a working farm has diversified into one of the best little gathering places in the area.  It's especially popular on Saturdays in the summer (they're closed on Sundays), but luckily they're open year-round.  Just make sure you don't need a "natural" break in the off-season.  The portapotties are strictly summer only.

But no matter what time of year you go, you can't possibly beat this view from a table on the patio.  That's Town Woods Road coming in from the distance.  After you finish your coffee and biscotti, you'll head down the road that goes off to the right, past the stone wall.

Once you get back to Rt. 156 you have two choices.  Either take some more backroads by taking a quick left onto Saunders Hollow Road, or just continue south on 156 back to the bridge.  156 is certainly the busier option, but considering it's mostly downhill from here, you'll just about be able to keep up with any traffic.

Once you get back to the bridge's eastern approach, look for a small path leading off to the right.  It'll bring you down to this overlook, complete with many informative plaques.  Again, these will be of most interest to the history buffs (including natural history buffs), but you've probably come to expect that from me by now.

Incidentally, this view (especially if you enlarge the pic) shows how I outfit my racing bike for these more-leisurely jaunts: saddle bag (horrors!), lights (most of my weekday riding is at least partly in the dark), frame pump (in case you run out of CO2, or find a cyclist-in-need along the way), bombproof wheels (Mavic Ksyrium SL2s - which have never needed to be retrued even after literally thousands of miles).

After this shot, I got back on the bike and - eschewing the little path that brought me here - I practiced a little cyclocross, riding up the side of the hill back to the bridge's walkway.

And from there it was a quick 15 minutes back home.  I'd only ridden 37 miles, and was never more than 15 miles from home, but it took me 3 1/2 hours with all the stops.  Like I said at the beginning, it was a beautiful day and perfect for strolling.  And if you have to go slow to go fast, this ride should make me plenty fast for my next race.

Annual Fat Boy Turkey Day Ride

After two weeks totally off the bike, over a month since riding in daylight, and a large dinner planned for the day, I was really looking forward to our Annual Fat Boy Turkey Day Ride.  This despite the fact that it was on this ride last year that I bonked for the one and only time ever.  Too much trying to "pay it forward" calorie-wise.

This year, I had a GU on the way out and hooked up with everybody in "downtown" Chester.  In addition to seeing some faces I hadn't seen in a while, Team Mullaly showed up as well.  Great mild temps and wonderful mild riding made for a great time.  Thanks especially to Shawn & Chuck for keeping the tradition going.

BONUS: We got to ride all the "Turkey Day" roads.   What are those you ask?

Blueberry Hill Road

Roast Meat Hill Road

and of course - Turkey Hill Road

You can't make these up - they were all on this route (pic attached).

I would have rather had the Blueberry after the Turkey of course, but considering they were ALL hills, no order would have suited me perfectly anyway.

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

I Ain't Afraida No Ghosts

(As I was riding my bike one fall day a few years ago, my imagination was ignited by the passing scene of an old New England cemetery, lost in the woods.  This one of my favorite posts, and just in time for Halloween - though the fact that so many are without power after our freak October snow/ice storm is much scarier.)

If you want to see ghosts, ride your bike in Autumn along a lonely back road.  I don't believe in ghosts - at least not the kind you usually think about.  But I do believe in the ghosts of the past - the hauntings of a place by the memories of the people who were there.  Who were they?  Did they have dreams and plans like we do today?

My friend John and I rode past this cemetery a couple years ago.  It's a fairly typical example for this part of the state, where old farmland has been reclaimed by the forest just like the farmers and their families were eventually claimed by time.  It's a very quiet place out in the New England countryside, made all the more eerie by the sunless sky and cold breeze.

On a bike, you're not only closer to everything physically - you smell the fallen leaves and the wood fires burning and feel the cold wind on your skin - but you get closer mentally as well.  Out in the country on a bike all you hear besides the hum of your tires on the pavement are the sounds of the wind going by, the squirrels gathering their food for the winter, and the rustling of the trees.

If during your ride you stop at a spot like this and imagine, even for a few minutes, how these people lived, who they loved, what their hopes were and whether they ever achieved them, you might see some ghosts.  At the very least you'll appreciate more deeply what they went through and how privileged we are today.

And if you're especially quiet, you may even hear in the sound of the leaves floating by on the breeze a whisper of thanks from those people for not letting them be forgotten.