(Better Pictures than I can take are usually posted here: http://www.planetultra.com/HB100/index.html after the event) Some pre-ride pictures are here: http://www.socaltrailriders.org/forum/roadie-hangout/50446-heartbreak-hundred-2010-a.html So...after reading the weather forecast I figured today would be a long day...but after throwing on the BMC-Hincapie-USA Kit and sticking that weird timing sticker on my helmet, I started out around 8:30 in the am and felt great with the cross/tailwind climbing out of the start. I stayed in the big ring most of the way up to Apache Saddle, enjoying the speed on some of those twisty downhill sections before the final climb to the 1st SAG stop. Blasting through Apache Saddle to get a clear shot on the anticipated long downhill to the Cuyama River Valley, I was soon caught by those I had passed at the Apache Saddle SAG stops. Spectacular scenery...I don't think pictures do the road justice. The long downhill was interrupted by a few small-ring climbs, but nothing too savage. Yo-yo-ing with the group from Canyon Velo and two guys in Road Bike Action kits, we hit the 166 and set up a paceline with a few others, quickly rotating and pushing 30+ mph until the turnoff to 33. Again great tailwind and great rotation among the riders. Dialing back the pace along the 33, with a short stop to refill water and "empty" other containers, we sort-of reset the paceline, but a few of us just weren't feeling it and skipped a few of our turns. Lockwood Valley road...the wind here was blowing up the valley, and I thought the ascent was going to be easier than advertised...until I went swimming at the creek crossing the road. That didn't suck at all as I went down quicker than an Italian Soccer Player (I'm a soccer fan...so I know what I'm talking about). I was dropped by the group as I tried to reset my chain, see if I had any new holes on my knee or if those that were a few weeks old had just re-opened, and check my shorts to see if they had any holes. Nothing hurt but my pride and I set on trying to catch up to the group. No dice. So keeping on keeping on up to the last SAG stop and through what looked like a cross between the "badlands" off the 60 and Kamloops...I could see lots of epic MTB lines and drops waiting to be carved, but probably off-limits. Past the last SAG stop, through the rest of the twisty road and into the teeth of a headwind that would have been much easier if I'd been able to hold onto that group...or if I'd been using aerobars like just about everyone who either passed me or caught me by the finish. Onto the last 8 miles of downhill, again into the wind, and caught/passed by a few more with aerobars...I like to think it was the equipment and not my failing legs that kept me from a better time. Finally, the end. A sub 6-hour time (5:45) easily beat my expectations, and even with the wind, the different directions on the course meant it was more often a tailwind than anything else, so that helped a bunch. A special shout out to the Canyon Velo/RBA group mentioned above for almost 50 miles of group riding...that helped the time as much if not more than the tailwinds.
Sounds like you had a good time, minus the crash. My ride was just ok; had drivetrain issues and kept stopping to adjust derailleur and I had a sore back from a new fit position. Spent most of the day riding solo and came in at 6:06.
I loved this ride! How come nobody says anything about how beautiful it is? I couldn't get over the beauty of the high meadows, flowers, rock formations from the fault line, the old, remote farm houses, the views of the valleys below on either side...PLUS, that section along the Bitter Creek Wildlife Preserve. Those curvy steep downs and ups were like riding a roller coaster. So fun! The impromptu race I joined the last 10 miles just topped it off. The ride was great. I ruined any chance I had of having a good time by missing a turn and spending about 45 minutes climbing 33 to Ojai (another beautiful route). I was saved when a local pulled his truck over and told me I was off course. The best part of finishing the KOM is that I'll never have to ride Mulholland Challenge again. I'd be happy to do Heartbreak 100 again but maybe I'll do it earlier in the spring when there are even more flowers.
Yeah this was a great route! Made me wish my wife and I followed through on getting motorcycles. The route would have been an awesome motorcycle ride as well. My performance dropped off a cliff after Breathless. I felt unstoppable on Breathless but not in great form yesterday. I managed to get through the ride without incident in just under 7 hours total ride time but never felt like I had much power throughout the day, with the exception of a few sections when I was pushed along by a nice tail wind. I managed to ride with the two others I went out there with, Sean and Krisztian, for all of .7 miles and never saw them the rest of the day. I did get to meet and ride with FFW for most of the day. I don't normally just hook up with new people on rides and ride with them for most of the day - call me a loner that way. However we stuck together nicely through most of the day and I talked more on this ride more than I think I ever have, especially with just one person. This made the day quite enjoyable. On the Heartbreak hill I could tell I needed to settle in to my own little world and grind the climb out. I turned on my book, Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, and banged what turned out to be a shorter climb than I was expecting. After the Heartbreak SAG FFW and I got separated as he thought I was ahead of him on the descent and I had little left in my legs on the rollers after Heartbreak. I am very happy with completing all three KOM rides and look forward to ordering my KOM jersey! I am also looking forward to taking a week or two off from any serious riding. I want a little time to repair before moving on to preparing for The Death Ride and other big events later in the year, along with starting the P90X program this summer.
I love the scenery on this ride. The air was remarkably clear, cool and crisp and the colors of everything seemed more alive and vibrant than possible. On the way out, riding past the parking lot where we usually stage for McGill ride all I could think about was I should be riding singletrack right now Thanks to MTBMaven for keeping me company, it was great to meet you and good talking and riding with you. Finally met Endoverendo who has an amazingly cool bike. I think the best part of this ride was the last 12 miles where I towed a couple female riders over the last few miles of rollers and the final downhill to the end. We were flying and they were whooping and hollering all the way! Great ride
This year looks like we had more people from here doing the KOM series then ever before. You all ROCK. Out of the 3 rides this was my favorite although I did the double for this one. I thought this was the best ride and even though I typically like the higher elevation around Big Bear I really liked this area the most. I rode today with a guy who finished his KOM yesterday so I got his point of view also. What bothers me most though is the times you folks are clocking. I took almost 16 hours to finish my double and almost all you folks are sub 6 for your centuries. Congrats to all the KOM folks!!! That's a hard jersey to earn.
This was a great ride. I was surprised how hot it got later in the day. It felt like the UV index was 15, I cooked out there. I was happy to finish it without any problems. I'm still trying to dial in my nutrition and hydration. I think it was just super hot and I was try to stay cool by drinking more during this ride. I had over hydrated on this one during the day. At least I didn't get sick like the last two. I finished around 6:40. I'll try for the Jersey another year.
Pictures of the ride from Victory John / Rock Store Photo are on Flicker: http://www.flickr.com/photos/victoryjon/sets/72157624042076207/ I found some of me but Flicker will not let you save the photos even with the watermark. Need to take a screen capture and crop. Page 16 starting at image 1523 is me on the descent.
