[Bulldozer]

I rode my first century in several years this past Saturday. Overall, it was easier than I expected. Here are the details of the route:

Beginning elevation 8,000ft in Buena Vista, CO
High Point was some where above 10,500ft on a bike path above Leadville, CO
Climbing total of 5,600ft
Total time was 5:50 (17.1mph average)

10 observations from the ride:

1. The hardest section for me was from mile 20 - 30. Uphill into a headwind and my legs were already hurting. Wasn't feeling good. I took 2 ibuprofen at the 30 mile rest stop and started feeling much better.
2. Starship aluminum frame wasn't all that harsh. I had the tires pumped up to 110psi and didn't feel beat up after all those miles.
3. I tried getting a paceline going early and even at what I felt was a moderate pace it disintegrated. I ended up with two other guys up to the first rest stop and didn't bother trying again to form a paceline.
4. Rain at 10,500ft feels like snow regardless of air temperature.
5. I did the last 30 miles in under an hour. It was downhill with a tailwind. I ran out of gears otherwise I would have been even quicker.
6. I'm a "cheater" by association because I have a triple crank. I had two guys pass me on a downhill just before the big climb of the day. They were now ahead of me and chatting with another rider whom I guessed that they had seen previously on the course. One of the guys notices that this other rider had a triple crank and playfully calls her a "cheater." I was now right behind them listening as the climb started. Even holding a moderate pace, I smoked them on the climb. I like my triple crank.
7. The hardest climb of the day was all of 50 yards long but after 65 miles and being in the wrong gear, it hurt bad.
8. I passed two guys on the descent into BV. I think I caught them off guard because a couple of miles down the road they went flying by me. I picked up the pace to see if I could hang and I soon caught them. I decided to draft them for a while and then passed them to take my turn so to speak. Apparently they didn't want visitors so they passed me again. I hung on to their wheel for a while needing something to break up the boredom. I was going to make my last move 3 miles from the finish but we soon approached what was a pretty steep hill. I got out of the saddle at mile 96 and passed them for the last time. I gave those last miles all I had. It felt good!
9. I didn't see anyone go down or needing assitance. That, to me, is a good day.
10. This was a very well run event and I enjoyed the route a lot. May is pretty early in my season so I was happy with my results. If you're ever looking for a moderately difficult century with beautiful scenary, be sure to check out the Buena Vista Bike Fest.

 

[JayTee]

Sounds like they finally had decent weather for that one. I've ridden all those roads and don't love the route, honestly. The grind up from BV to Leadville is just that, a bit of a grind and almost always a headwind, and too many cars. So I've never been that interested in heading down to BV. I do love the loop around Turquoise Lake, though.

Glad to hear you have fun, and hey, here in Colorado I most definitely do not consider a triple to be "cheating."

 

[Ridgetop]

Pretty amazing ride. My legs would be burning at that altitude also. I've visited Leadville but only in a car. That place sure has changed since I first visited in the 80's. My father was born there when my grandfather was a miner but he doesn't remember it at all. Just pictures showing him, the mines, and a lot of torn up rock and dirt.

PS: A triple is not cheating when riding the Rockies, Cascades, or Sierras IMO.

 

[Mel Erickson]

Don't mean to hijack this thread but......
J, do you have any good routes around Steamboat Springs? I'll be there over the Memorial Day weekend with my travel bike and will probably do a couple of rides. After that I'll be in Fort Fun until June 6 with a detour to Denver over the June 3-4 weekend.

 

[Woolbury]

Hey thanks for the review. I've been looking for a few more organized rides to add into my season, I'll keep an eye out for this one next year. BTW, I've got a compact with a 12/27, so nobody knows I'm cheating unless they look closely.

 

[Bulldozer]

Hey thanks for the review. I've been looking for a few more organized rides to add into my season, I'll keep an eye out for this one next year. BTW, I've got a compact with a 12/27, so nobody knows I'm cheating unless they look closely.

Register early. They cap the event at 800 and they reached that a couple of weeks before it started.

 

[ColoradoVeloDude]

Good report

I also did the BVBF over this past weekend. This was the first century that I ever did (last year in 2005).

Last year, the ride took me 13 hours to complete, the hills around Turquoise Lake were murder. The 12 miles on the Mineral belt Trail were double murder. The whole thing was murder. Calf muscles developed a weird cramp, body pooped out on every hill. Even the (downhill) return trip was murder. I felt like I got completely whipped by that ride. I started cycling in Feb. 2005, thought I had enough training to do this in May 2005 -- this was also the "checkpoint" for last year's Ride The Rockies. Well, I did it. It wasn't pretty. But, I did it and on to do Ride The Rockies.

This year, with another year of training under me, I did the ride in about 7 hours. The hills were flatter, the cranking a lot more comfortable. Hills were challenging, but not the death slog, stop and rest and wheeze like they were last year. Before I knew it, I was at the first rest stop, then the second, rest stop, then around Turquoise Lake and it was over much too quickly. Ride the Rockies will be a lot more fun this year.

Glad I was "rugged up" for the weather 'cause I got caught in a downpour for about 20 minutes while on the return loop around the fish hatchery. It was nice to finally doff all that extra gear (long gloves, beanie, arm & Leg warmers, the shell) at the last rest stop and ride into the warmer weather. I totally agree -- rain at 10,000 feet is not much different feeling than it snowing. The ride the last 15 miles was totally amazing -- what looked like flat was actually slight downhill. Big chain ring and little cog almost all the way back and doing 25-35MPH+ the remainder of the trip. Wheee! The beers at the end were good incentive to get back as quick as possible too.

This was a great event. Very professionally run and operated. And very well organized. Plus, you can't beat the scenery along the route.