Monday, September 23rd, was a beautiful fall day here in downtown Buzzard’s Roost. The temperature at 2:30 p.m. was hovering around 71 degrees and there was low humidity. The sky was blue and the clouds could have starred in any TV commercial for clothes detergent.
(A brilliant fall day on top of Newfound Road)
After having dealt with the death of our dear Labrador Retriever, Orla, …
As day five of our 2013 annual retreat to Hilton Head Island continues, the Wood-Man and I continue to enjoy the riding opportunities in this League of American Bicyclists Silver level town.
(The bike path along William Hilton Parkway)
On Wednesday, the four of us took the opportunity to ride…
It is 10 days and counting until the 4th Annual Blue Ridge Breakaway on August 17th at beautiful Lake Junaluska in Western North Carolina. Our planning processes are ramping up for the final few days leading into another exciting event.
Planning for this event began at the end of the day of last year’s event, so it isn’t a stretch to say…
The 2012 Blue Ridge Breakaway has rolled to a close. The signs are collected and, in the case of Russ Roca and Laura Crawford of The Path Less Pedaled, the wheels are up! As I type Russ and Laura should be winging their way home to Portland.
(Laura Crawford and Russ Roca entertain the Blue Ridge Breakaway participants!)
We said our goodbyes at the Greenville/Spartanburg, SC jetport after a brief stop…
| June 3, 1944.. From the daily diary kept by S.Sgt. G.C. Watts, while stationed in Italy during WWII… “2 planes go out of squadron. Repaired but 2 come back in. one crash landed – other blew tire. Plenty of work.” |
I’ve been away. It has been 12 days since my last post. The Navigator and I have purchased her family home following the passing of her father this past New Year’s Day. Getting one home ready for market and one home ready to move in to has left me with limited time to write. Yet, much has been happening on the cycling front. Unfortunately, I’m acutely aware of more recently having been “talking the talk but not walking the walk” when it comes to riding…
On the day in which Levi Leipheimer was in the process of proving that he was the best rider in the USA Cycling Pro Challenge, I was once again, if to no one other than myself, proving that I am no Levi Leipheimer. For that matter…
Well, the Second Annual Blue Ridge Breakaway is now history and the reviews are starting to roll in. (Note: see links later in post.) My day started early, much earlier than I expected as I awakened at 3:00 a.m. I finally gave up any effort to get back to sleep at 4:00 a.m. and pushed myself out of bed so as to keep from disturbing the Navigator’s last 2 hours of sleep. Through bleary eyes, I managed to get a pot of coffee brewing and prepared myself to enter the darkness of pre-dawn. With a cup of freshly brewed Organic Guatemalan in hand, I headed out the door at 4:45 a.m. to begin placing my portion of the road signage on the various courses of the ride…
The past week has brought me into contact with two stories of “slow”. One of my own making and one simply shared by a co-rider as we “worked” the BicycleHaywoodNC booth at the Canton, NC “Mater Fest” this past Saturday.
Last Monday, “Cross Country Stan”, Don Kostelec, our Haywood County Comprehensive Bike Plan project manager, Claudia Nix, consultant and co-owner of Liberty Bicycles in nearby Asheville, NC, and myself enjoyed a ride…
Easter Sunday was gorgeous here in the mountains of Western North Carolina. The day dawned clear and warm with promises of almost summer like temps in the valley. I was pleased to be able to join up with Cross Country Stan for an afternoon climb…
Yesterday, March 29th,was tapped to be an excellent day wrapped between spring rains. It was to be the ham and cheese between the bread slices – the best and tastiest part of the week long sandwich of weather. It turned out to be exactly that as I departed my starting point at Bethel Middle School…
(Winds were keeping this flag in full display!)
Spring-like weather has continued to be our norm this week as we negotiate from February into March. With unseasonably warm temps, the riding has been quite nice. I’ve been able to get out and about on my Fuji CCR3 and continue trying to work off some of the winter insulating layer of fat that somehow accumulated since late November. On Thursday, I had a unique and startling experience…
Today, Sunday February 13th, was the good weather day that yesterday was supposed to have been. A spring-like weekend had been forecast for our area and everyone was all abuzz talking about it on Friday while we waited for the last of the cold air to move on out. A low pressure system moving in from the southwest was supposed to be bringing in temps in the upper 50’s yesterday under blue skies. Well, the blue skies were abundant but my thermometer seemed to hover in the low 40’s. Still, there was hope for today and that hope was well rewarded with today’s great weather. It was riding time…
(Beautiful skies behind Zeke’s Fuji CCR3)
| The Haywood Bicycle plan received a nice write up in a local paper on Wednesday, February 9th. The Smoky Mountain News highlighted the effort to bring a formal bicycle plan to our local community. Link to the article by CLICKING HERE! |
We are very blessed to live in Haywood County, which contains 14 mountain peaks exceeding 6,000 feet in elevation. This one county has more tall peaks within in our considerable border than anywhere else east of the Mississippi. It makes for some outstanding riding with some great climbs. I’ve written about many of them over the past 3 years and most of my climbs are fairly well documents on MapMyRide. The lack of winter riding has left me with plenty of time for thinking and one of those thoughts has now evolved into a project…
Monday, November 1st, turned out to be the best riding day of this week. It was the last dry, relatively warm day that we’ve enjoyed. I managed to get out and do a nice 20 miler before the sun set on Monday.
(The “before” image of a lovely riding day in late fall…)
As I had worked from home this day keeping with my effort to avoid the use of gasoline one day per week (at least), I had a nice late afternoon start from Bethel Middle School. I felt like some climbing might be “good for the soul” on this date so my route took me down NC 215 to Stamey Cove. Traffic was moderately heavy on the two lane road known as NC 215 as folks were making their way home from a Monday workday.
(Part II)
| This is part II of two parts covering Zeke and the Wood-man’s ride on Saturday, October 23, 2010 from Waynesville, NC to Newport, TN. To read Part I, CLICK HERE! |
In Part I, the Wood-man and I had just competed our 20th mile of the trip and were sitting nicely amidst the colors of Betsy’s Gap. We were ready to mount up and head down…
Well, the ride that the Wood-man and I undertook Saturday is hereafter named The Wood-man’s Betsy’s Gap Invitational” and should probably happen annually from this time forward. As the only invitee to this year’s effort, I was pleased to accompany the Wood-man on a 65 mile jaunt…
Some things have been on my mind lately. My recent metric century ride of a couple of week’s ago and this past Saturday’s 45 mile jaunt have provided some time and opportunity to consider the ways of the world and my place in it. This is, of course, a very broad subject and one I’ll narrow down quite considerably in order to make the retelling of the cogitation more efficient.
When one cogitates whilst spinning merrily along upon a racing saddle, certain things eventually come to the forefront of topics to be considered. I’ve discovered that after 35 or so miles, those things seem as if they want to take center stage and dominate your cogitation. Today, I need not dwell upon that particular topic other than to now begin to cogitate upon how much more central those topics might become on a century ride. I’ll have to make a list so I can check it twice when I set additional goals for this riding season. This one can go under the heading “To chamois cream or not to chamois cream?”
No, I was cogitating more on some of my knowledge acquisition over the past couple of years as it relates to riding. In my home dialect of the Southern Appalachians, I might say that I’d be reviewing my “new larning”. Briefly, here’s what I think I’ve “larned”…
1) The first year back to cycling I was more comfortable spinning along on mostly flat ground. I dreaded hills much less mountains. After all, they hurt! I created significant psychological barriers to climbing and would dread the very thought of going so slow that I’d start falling over and be unable to unclip and certainly would then fall into traffic or over the edge of the mountain. As my speed dropped on the climbs, the dread grew in direct proportion to loss of speed. In my 3rd year, I find myself seeking out things to climb. I feel comfortable on the mountains and couldn’t tell you when I last experienced a fear of falling over that paralyzed me and sent me running back down the mountain.
The first big moment in reducing this irrational fear came when I finally topped Rush Fork, which was my nemesis last year. Once I topped the mountain and realized it was in me to ride it, those fears were significantly diminished on future climbs. A great lesson I learned was from the Wood-man, who taught me to let the mountain come to me. Now, when I feel myself getting those butterflies in my stomach, I settle down and do exactly that – I let the mountain come to me.
2) When times got really tough and I was ready to give up, I would go to my “Lance spot”, which is a comfortable position I found on the bike that was unconsciously inspired by an image I saw of Lance Armstrong climbing in the 2009 Tour de France. Somehow, that image and a certain position I found on the bike with me out of the saddle and pumping hard coalesced in my brain and now gives me power when I need it. I haven’t needed it as much this year as last year. I think I’ve learned to accept a more relaxed manner in which to climb. I’m sure that I’ve also developed some climbing muscles that I didn’t have in my first 2 years of riding again.
3) A great, great lesson that I’ve learned comes from Kent “Mountain Turtle” Peterson and his slogan of “hasten slowly!”. Accepting that I have to go at my own pace and give up competing with the 25 year old riders in speed, has increased my ability to stay on the bike and to be more relaxed. If I’m achieving my own goal, whatever that might be, I don’t need to be overly concerned with what others are doing or not doing. So, thanks to the Mountain Turtle, I’m becoming better at hastening slowly. I still have to work on this one though because I am a competitive person. Truth be told, I let myself get away from the satisfaction of having met my recent goal of completing a metric century and got caught up in my order of finish resulting in less overall satisfaction. I temporarily lost sight of that fact that it was a ride and not a race.
4) If you can walk it – you can climb it! This has become my newest mantra and reduces my need to go to the “Lance spot” and I find it quite compatible with “hastening slowly”. This also complements the Wood-man’s lesson of letting the mountain come to me. No longer feeling the mental anguish of fear of falling over, I find that I can almost literally walk it up the mountain. I figure that my legs have to be doing somewhat similar actions on the bike as when I’m walking so that leads to “if you can walk it, you can climb it!” Granted, I haven’t tried this yet on anything above 12% grade but, so far, it works for me. I’ve cogitated upon the comments of the couple alongside the road Saturday as I was nearing the peak of the Blue Ridge Parkway. In my mind, I was concentrating solely on what was in front of me, spinning the crank one loop at a time seeing only what was in front of me, while these folks were viewing the effort in its fullest context of having climbed the whole mountain and were even kind enough to provide some positive comments as we made our way to the top. I recalled, in my cogitation, the times that I, as a motorcyclist, would ride by a bicyclist climbing the Blue Ridge Parkway or other road, and think “whew, those guys/gals are nuts!” Now, I embrace my “nuttiness” as I am one of “them”.
So, I find myself amused/happy/fulfilled somewhat that in my 3rd year of cycling at the ripe old age of 57 years, 8 months, and 1 day I’m finding joy in climbing things, i.e., mountains and such. How long will this last? Probably until I fall over somewhere along the line…
Until later,
- Zeke
| The first leg of our Saturday adventure was completed after having climbed from 2,678’ elevation at Bethel Grocery Store in Bethel, NC to the intersection of NC 215 and the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) at 5,337’ elevation for a net gain of 2,659’ over 18 miles… |
What goes up, must go down!
Ken’s inexplicable flat was fixed and there was a break in the motorcycle and auto traffic along the BRP, so we headed north riding from approximately mile marker 422. A short climb in elevation resulted in protests from my legs as apparently some part of my brain had sent the erroneous message to my legs that there would be no more climbing. Little did they know…
We were strung out in a pace line as the traffic moved around us steadily and frequently. The ratio of motorcycles to 4 wheeled cages (motorcycle parlance for enclosed vehicles) perhaps increased to 8 to 1. Numerous groups of riders were out on this great day. In fact, as the Navigator and I would discover later, the entire region appeared to be hosting a motorcycle rally over the Labor Day weekend.
Our merry band of self-powered cyclists continued the climb toward Devil’s Courthouse. The parking lot was overflowing as folks were making the hike to the 5462’ top. Our one and only tunnel on this leg of the trip came just yards after passing the hiking trail to the Courthouse. Going into the tunnel was an interesting experience as it was very easy to get disoriented trying to follow along the lines of the dark tunnel. One vehicle lit our way briefly until they decided it was important to pass us in the tunnel. This particular tunnel is relatively short with a very minor left handed curve in it so we were quickly able to literally see the “light at the end of the tunnel.”
The climb crested while in the tunnel and we were on a very nice downhill run as we exited back into the sunshine. The road made for a an excellent descent and let my tired legs recovery somewhat. After passing mile marker 420, we came upon the most congested area of the day at Graveyard Fields. The Fields were the site of a major wildfire during my father’s childhood.
We couldn’t get into the overlook due to the overabundance of vehicles. I didn’t really care to get into it anyway because we were still enjoying a great descent! We did make it to the next overlook and found some room to pull in and take a break plus get a picture or two.
While stopped at this overlook, we met a firefighter/cyclist from Rock Hill, SC, who was driving along the BRP with his spouse. (He graciously took the picture above.) We talked cycling with him for a few minutes and then spotted a lone cyclist making his way uphill going north to south. The fellow turned out to be an acquaintance of Ken’s.
Soon enough, our conversations had ended and we resumed our downhill descent past views of Looking Glass Rock (4493’ elevation). The excellent run downhill ended shortly and we were faced with another long ascent along the BRP. The sun was quite warm and I had a good sweat going as we geared down and made our way to yet another high point along the spine of the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Another short break was in order at a crowded overlook as our group reunited again for the final few miles of our day’s ride along the BRP. This particular overlook presented views back toward Mt. Pisgah and the Pisgah Inn. A church group and a large family populated this overlook during the time we were regrouping and catching our breath.
A very short descent from this overlook and a mild climb brought us to Wagon Road Gap (elevation 4535’) where our run along the BRP ended for this ride. We stopped briefly to put on windbreakers and to prepare for the 4 mile steep descent along poorly paved, narrow US 276.
Ken led the way carving out nice lines through the “S” curves as we negotiated the rough road surface at speeds that neared 30 mph at times. More than once, I struggled to remember to avoid braking while in the curves and to scrub off speed before getting into the curve. This was not a time time for sight seeing as a small error here could easily land you down the embankment or buried on the grill of an on-coming vehicle. Once into the rhythm, this was a fun descent that ended too abruptly for me.
The road opens up at the entrance to Looking Glass Falls hiking area. We came back together as a group and had a nice pace line going by the Blue Ridge Motorcycle Campground and the Cruso Community Center. The East Fork of the Pigeon was now our companion as we headed “home” to Bethel. A brief stop at a convenience store at Harley Creek was our final stop along the ride.
The remainder of the ride was spent sharing the pull as our pace line passed by Springfield Golf Course and numerous fields of tomatoes and peppers ready for the gloaming. In relatively short order, the East Fork of the Pigeon bore off to the north and we were soon again crossing the West Fork just above its confluence with the East Fork. Some 45 miles had been covered between the 18 mile climb up to the BRP, the roughly 9 mile transit of Parkway, and the 17 mile descent from Wagon Road Gap.
Tired and happy, we returned to the Bethel Middle School athletic field and our vehicles as the hundreds of parents and players were just getting underway with a day’s slate of football!
Was it a perfect day? Other than my slow start of the morning, I can’t think of a thing I would change. The weather certainly couldn’t have been better, the fellowship of the riders was outstanding, and another major goal for this season has now been checked off. Perfect day? I’d say it was darn near perfection…
Until later,
- Zeke
What a day! Saturday, September 4, 2010, may be as close to a perfect day as it gets here in the mountains of Western North Carolina. A touch of fall was evident in cool morning temperatures that made it hard to get out of a warm bed to go riding. Nevertheless, upon rising and getting that first cup of coffee in hand, I could tell that it was going to be a gorgeous day. The skies were already crystal clear with a brilliant blue sky and a full sun bathing the landscape.
Our plan was to ride the Cold Mountain Loop as it is known to local cyclists. This is a 45 mile run from Bethel, NC up to the Blue Ridge Parkway, north on the BRP, and a descent back to Bethel along US 276. The ride up to the BRP has been one of my goals for this riding season.
As we gathered at Bethel Elementary School, preparations were already underway for the day’s slate of midget/mite football games. Volunteers were striping the field and getting the sidelines ready.
(Trucks arrive with bikes!)
(“Climbing Jen” before the day’s climb)
Our group for the day consisted of 5 riders. I was the least experienced of the group. As we departed the school and headed toward the BRP, we were at our lowest elevation of the day. The climb to the Parkway begins immediately although the grade is slight for several “warm up” miles as you ride along the West Fork of the Pigeon. Traffic was mild as we headed south.
For the second time in 4 weeks, I found myself struggling to maintain the initial pace of the group. My fast twitch muscles must have been longing for more caffeine. Wolfpen Andy and I had been 4th and 5th wheel in the group and a gap had opened up between me (4th) and Climbing Jen (3rd) in the line of cyclists. I knew that I wasn’t going to make it to the top if I continued to try to keep pace. Wolfpen Andy reminded me that it wasn’t a race and that we’d go at our own speed. Thankfully, I settled in and let the heaviness left in my legs from Thursday ease out of my muscles on its own sweet time.
In short order, we were at the first climb of the day, which is a moderate climb beginning near the base of the Lake Logan dam. The climb is in two stages with a false flat giving the unfamiliar cyclist the wrong impression that the climb is over. Interestingly, the climb seemed to help my legs finally get warmed up and I felt much looser from that point. We came back together as a group at the bridge across the upper end of the lake. Another few miles riding mostly at river grade brought us to the Sunburst Campground along the West Fork. This is the beginning of the serious climb to the top. It is a little over 8 miles to the BRP from this point.
We agreed to go at our own pace and reconvene at the top of the mountain. I settled into my saddle for the ride. As we made our way toward the top, the group did indeed separate. With the number of curves in the road, I found myself seemingly riding solo because I couldn’t see the other riders. I had shed my wind breaker at the Sunburst Campground and had worked up a good sweat as I climbed along the road enjoying the views of the woods. Traffic was somewhat heavier than usual, which was to be expected on a Labor Day Weekend. Wolfpen Andy and I would agree later that motorcyclists outnumbered 4 wheeled vehicles by at least 5 to 1 and maybe more. It is pretty easy to share the road with motorcyclists as there was plenty of room for them to get by without pushing me to the edge of the road.
At the 1 hour and 20 minute mark of our ride, I arrived at the first bridge where the West Fork crosses under NC 215. I was joined there by Wolfpen Andy and we took a short break to refuel and enjoy the scenery.
The grade of NC 215, which had not been bad to this point, takes a significant jump to the next bridge above. The next section of climb also has hairpin curves and a long straight section that could be demoralizing. The curves at least give you the false hope that it will get back to a lower grade just around the bend! We struck out on the next section and I noted that the sounds of birds had become more frequently replaced by the sounds of approaching diesel engines and motorcycles.
I kept up my mantra “if you can walk it, you can climb it!” on this next section and soon found myself eyeing the road sign that I know indicates the second bridge is really just around the next bend – this time! Whereas I had been riding mostly in the shadows of the mountain and overhanging trees, I came out into full warming sun as I stopped on the bridge to grab a couple of images.
We were approximately 3 miles from the BRP at this point. After consuming a Shot Block and some more G2, we resumed our trek to the top. From this point, the road really opens up and abundant sunshine became our constant companion. To our left were some wonderful vistas of Balsam trees and other conifers still surviving the effects of acid rain that has so devastated the conifer forests of the Southern Appalachians.
(NC 215 from bridge #2)
(A straight climb to be made!)
(One of the rock faces along NC 215)
The many, many people out enjoying this area became abundantly clear as every roadside pull off was populated to the point of overcrowding with parked cars. Sounds of people off on the trails could be easily discerned. As I passed one such parking spot, I was greeted by a couple who said, “We sure do admire you folks climbing this road today!” I tried to reply with, “why thank you, it has been a joyous occasion highlighted by wondrous feelings of being included in this incredible environment.” In retrospect, what I think they probably heard was an out of breath “Thank you!” Soon after the encounter, I saw this very welcome sight!
One more short but very steep climb brought me to the top and a reunion with my fellow cyclists and their congratulatory greetings for having met one of my season’s goals.
Having reached the top, it was refueling time while Ken fixed an inexplicable flat that occurred while sitting alongside the road. The banana that I carried from home tasted mighty sweet and the Gatorade G2 was even more taste quenching than usual. One more goal could now be checked off. That’s two seasonal goals in two weeks.
But, wait – What goes up, must go down…
(Part 2 of the Cold Mountain Loop to be posted on Labor Day! Please check back!)
Until later,
- Zeke
(Of note: For clarities sake, please know that I do not receive reimbursement from Clif’s Shot Blocks or Gatorade mentioned in my writings. I simply use and like these products.)
To make a tax deductible donation to support Appalachian State University Cycling, follow this link:
http://www.give.appstate.edu/.
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