Since last Thursday evening it has been snowing off and on here in Sitka. Makes for sloppy bike riding and since my mountain bike is still suffering a broken front shifter, I haven’t really been out on the saddle…
So Friday, Pete and I decided to get out for a little cross training. We packed up the snowboards and a few snacks and headed for Verstovia to see how the snow looked up on the mountain. We hiked the 2000 plus feet up to Picnic Rock and strapped in. It took us just a little over an hour to make it up to the start point and then a quick ride down from the front side into the backside bowl. That first ride for me was pretty wild as I hadn’t been out on a board for a couple of years and we had some alpine scrub to get through. We then hiked back up the bowl to the South side of the untracked powder loveliness and made our second run down. The following is my attempt at a few graceful carving turns down the hill…
After working our way up to a sheltered spot in the trees and out of the wind, we had a bite to eat and left our packs for the next run. Stomping up one more time up the hill we cut in one more 600 feet of vertical down the bowl and our uncut 2 feet of powder. That last run was much better for me with turns coming easier and even a couple of launches off a natural half pipe. (of course the helmet cam footage didn’t work that run!) We had a quick bite before we packed back up out of the back bowl. One more quick run to the tree line and the hike back down.
All told with the hike up, three full rides down the bowl and the hikes back up and the final hike back down the mountain we figured at least 6000 feet of exercise! I am still feeling it a little in the hamstrings! Of course I am hoping to get back up there again… and with the snow falling here in town I am sure there is plenty up top again!
I rode the Chilly Hilly solo last Sunday. It was far from chilly with a high someplace in the mid 50’s and the sun shining down on the island. It all added up to a record crowd – I heard something over 6,000 people. Seeing the Bainbridge Island ferry full of bikes rather than cars was a sight to behold:
Once the ride started it was hard to work through all the riders to a place where I could set my own pace. I trust this was exacerbated by having to make a pit stop right off the ferry. Once there was enough of an opening I was able to settle in and only get stuck when we had to crunch into smaller packs for hills, intersections or car encounters. I had my video camera mounted on the handlebar drop so I’ll cut together some footage from the ride later this week. In the mean time here are the stats as recorded by my computer:
Distance: 33.5 miles
Average Speed: 15.8 mph
Top Speed: 45.7 mph
Average Cadence: 87 rpm
Not a bad way to kick off the season. I’ll definitely be back next year if nothing else for the chili feed at the finish.
So finally getting out there a little… Pete and I yesterday and today, Pete, Uncles Frank and Bill and I. not really long rides but good climbing and at times pretty quick pace. The ride yesterday was a new loop for Pete and I as we decided to head out towards the Halibut Point Road end of town. We hopped on the cross trail behind the high school and made our way up north via the extra wide gravel trail. Some parts of the trail are steep enough to necessitate a granny gear and others a pretty quick ride down the other side. The great thing about this ride turned out to be that we only had to ride about 1/2 mile of HPR and mostly stayed on the backroad trails of the Cross Trail and the Bench Land Road that isn’t currently open to cars. One unfortunate thing happened as we were about two miles from home, my 16 year old grip shift for the front derailleur bit the dust… was stuck in the little chain ring the rest of the way home.
Todays ride was a pretty wet one at times. We parked at Thimbleberry Lake trailhead and headed up the way to Blue Lake road. caught sight of the brother bears at Fortress of the Bear and then headed back to the truck via Sawmill Creek Road. Just as we hit the SMC Road it started to pour. Bill and I were riding in a pace line, me following Bill and hitting what seemed to be every puddle! Keeping up a good pace Bill decided to hit a huge puddle and drenched me in his spray! When we arrived back at the truck I opted to keep peddling and headed for the house by bike. I would guess that the entire round trip was about 8 miles at most, though always preferable over giving a cat a bath! Oh, from the ride from the day before you might have been wondering about my derailleur problem? Well I was able to rig the bike so that I could at least ride in the middle ring on the front gears. Made the up hill a little more interesting and the down hills I was forced to coast a lot more. Also the ride home on the road I was keeping a pretty high cadence, though I sometimes like that anyway. Its good spin practice, better than doing isolation drills!
The family made a trip over to Bainbridge Island for Valentines day and we took a detour to check out some of the the Chilly Hilly route. I think the featured climb would be this one:
From the looks of the route profile it’s 8.5% for about a mile. Not too bad and it’s straight as can be all the way up so no surprises. I don’t think too many of the climbs are that tough since they are short but in aggregate they add up to a lot of ups and downs.
I’ve been keeping my road bike in the trainer lately and commuting on the mountain bike. That is until yesterday when my pedal and crank had a falling out – more on that in another post. February training in Seattle isn’t the best but thanks to some drainage issues I now have a room in the basement all to myself. Check it out:
Note the fancy new drainage system where the wall meets the floor.
The stool in front is where the laptop goes to play the training DVD, it’s a nice setup really and the wintery breeze with the windows open keeps everything nice and cool. If you’ve never ridden on a trainer I’ll have you know it’s very hot since you aren’t actually moving meaning there is no air moving over you.
Pete and I decided it was about time I got out on a bike ride! Just over a week now and I had only ridden around town and back from my property last night. So we hit the road for a quick hour tour of Sawmill Creek Road to Thimbleberry Lake and Heart Lake trail. Up and over to Heart Lake and just beyond to the creek then turned around for the ride back to the house. It was just under an hour of saddle time and a great start to stretching the legs after not being on a bike for at least two weeks, maybe more!
I had the helmet cam on for the trail portion of the ride and have a short clip here (soon) for a little sightseeing for those not along with us. Absolutely beautiful day as you can see!
Until next time, enjoy! Kevin
Big day today! I registered for the Chilly Hilly, became a Cascade Bicycle Club member and… drumroll… rode my bike to work! I know what you are thinking: “don’t you always ride to work?” Now I normally make an effort to commute by bike, however I am furnished with parking downtown by my employer which is very tempting on chilly mornings. Over the last week I succumbed to the siren song and drove to work for one half-baked reason or another.
The highlight of the day for me is the short-term goal of the Chilly Hilly. While not actually very long at 33 miles it is quite hilly out on the island. For reference the 2600 (and change) feet of climbing is the same as the 2009 70 mile LIVESTRONG Challenge course! Commuting is a good start but I’m going to have to start taking the detour over Queen Anne hill to be ready.
I got out for ride with Marty last Sunday. We spun for something between 20 and 30 miles. I normally like to have detailed ride statistics and maps but I didn’t feel like bringing my phone to map the ride and somehow I reset my computer before recording the ugly truth. I’m not sure if you remember last Sunday so let me refresh your memory:
That about sums it up.
I would love to tell you we put the hammer down and mashed out 30 miles in an hour and a half but it was cold. And wet. It took a while but may have been a good preview for the Chilly Hilly. I’m planning to sign up as soon as it’s open to non Cascade club members on Feb 1.
Which only leaves one remaining question. Why am I not a Cascade member?
2009 was a year filled with some pretty extreme ups and downs. Team Bear formed up to ride and run in the Seattle LIVESTRONG Challenge as a way to show our support for Beth. Little did we know the gravity of that as June came and went. Just three days after Team Bear strode and rode across the finish line of our challenge, Beth’s battle with cancer ended.
The time after has been difficult for most of us, Team Bear members and supporters, and others who knew and loved Beth and her impact on our lives. Marked by a number of points in time that Beth and her friends and family cherished together, summer events, birthdays, gatherings, successes and challenges at work and in life, and sometimes just those moments we could look into her eyes and smile at each other.
October also marked a re-gathering of Team Bear’s cyclists and 4000 other LIVESTRONG supporters at the Austin LIVESTRONG Challenge. Thanks to our 2009 supporters, Kevin and Team Bear were invited to Austin after raising just over $28,000! Kevin and Michael started the ride in the front group of 140 riders, those who raised over $15,000 individually and an invited guest.
This year Team Bear is proud and excited to ride, run and walk in the 2010 Seattle LIVESTRONG Challenge and would like all of our friends and family to join us. Come along with us, or if you can’t please consider a donation to our team.
As part of Team LIVESTRONG, we are making a difference in the fight against cancer. We have joined with other people around the globe and across different events to raise money for LIVESTRONG. We may not all live in the same city or participate in the same sport but we’re united by hope, courage and determination. The money we raise will go to support LIVESTRONG’s programs and services, which inspire and empower people affected by cancer. If you or someone you know is diagnosed, these resources will help face the challenges of cancer, head on, and live life on your own terms.
2010 LIVESTRONG challenge registration is open! Kevin has Team Bear up and running already and the site is rolling with new links and fundraising thermometer. The 2010 team page is here: http://seattle2010.livestrong.org/teambear
The Seattle Challenge dates are June 19th and 20th, my and Melanthia’s birthdays respectively. Registration is discounted to $35 until the end of December so go get yours while you are thinking about it.
Personally I have no plans to stop doing these rides so this year I’m going to look into having a Team Bear jersey made or even a full kit – lots of spandex. Drop me a line if you are interested.
