PROLOGUE
Below is a story about how I survived the "Seattle to Portland"
bike ride. Most of the excerpts are taken from a journal I kept
during my training and the rest of the material is filler placed
where applicable. You will soon come to realize that I am not
an expert in biking or in bike training. I am, rather, your average
"joe" except I have a tendency to think too much or
maybe it's that I over analyze situations. Without further delay
I know present to you the long version of my story.
ARE YOU NUTS!
Earlier this year I was searching the WEB for fuel injector cleaner
since my cars idle was a little rough. I remember someone telling
me "STP"(not sure what it stands for) made a good product.
So I searched the WEB using my favorite search engines Yahoo
and Lycos. I never found an STP product site but I did find something
called the Seattle to Portland bicycle ride. Since I've always
wanted to see the area-especially after a movie like "Rambo"-I
actually gave great though into taking part in this bike ride
even though there are rides like it close to where I live (Fort
Lauderdale, Florida).
Over the next several weeks I though about the ride. I even went
so far as purchasing "Bicycling's New Cyclist" magazine
which had an article on training for a century. Even though I've
never ridden a bike any long distance before the idea of doing
STP actually seemed manageable-all I had to do was follow a simple
training program I now had from my new magazine. After telling
some of my co-workers, friends, and family I pretty much got a
lot of funny looks. However, I guess after my drive to Las Vegas
earlier in the year they didn't have to wonder if I was crazy
cause obviously I had already proven it.
You know those people you see training on their thousand dollar
bikes for the next big race? Well, I am not one of those people.
I don't believe I've ever owned a bike that cost over two hundred
dollars. When I look at a bike I think transportation. That
is how I got around during my grade school, high school, and college
years. A good analogy might be Forrest Gump runs and I bike.
I never rode very far or very long. After stoplights a three
mile or fifteen minute journey would be about the longest stretch
I would ever ride at any one time. If I rode hard I tended to
be out of breath. In fact, during high school I would typically
go home for lunch (not many friends and all). The ride home was
a little under two miles and I would do my best to ride it as
quickly as possible to allow for a longer lunch. Even after two
years the ride never got any easier-it always took a lot out of
me and I usually made it home huffing and puffing. Course on
the plus side I rode back to school at a more relaxed pace.
At 5'8" and 145lbs I am a far cry from being defined as a
"jock." I wouldn't consider myself an athlete by any
definition of the word. My slight advantage over a complete couch
potato would be my regular (3 days a week for about 1 hour) exercise
of minor weightlifting. I also do a little bit of inline skating
but not enough to make me a physically fit person. I considered
and tried to change my diet but never succeeded during the training
period. I continued to eat my normal meals. I still ate candy,
drank sodas, and pretty much didn't do anything differently for
my diet while I trained.
My program consisted of riding six days a week (according to the
schedule above) with Thursday being my day off. Monday was my
"easy" day, Wednesday my "brisk" or ride fast
day, and Saturday was my distance day. After several rides I
discovered 14mph to be a good pace. The bike I used for my training
is a Raleigh Technium that weighs about 25-30lbs and is a cross
between a hybrid and mountain bike. Sure it would make the ride
tougher but I didn't feel like going out and buying a new bike
for one ride.
All during the training time I was still working a regular 8am-5pm
job which made training all the more difficult to fit into my
schedule. However, I did manage and was able to do all my riding
during daylight hours.
WEEK 1: April 22-28 (103 miles)--To train or not to train
I've been thinking it over the past couple of weeks. About this
Seattle to Portland ride. It has been hard. I can't really explain
anything like "where am I to ride?" or "do I really
want to do this?" I go over and over it in my head. It
is difficult to commit. I've been making a few strides like riding
our stationary bike over the past couple weeks and inline skating
on the weekends. So, in that respect I've been training for several
weeks but am at this point unsure of whether or not I will take
part in the STP ride. I guess you could say my confusion is real.
On Monday, April 22, 1996 I completed my first day of training.
I rode 10.4 miles in 51 minutes and averaged 12.1mph. I Rode
at TY park which is a local park in Hollywood, FL just west of
our major expressway I-95. Had a pretty easy ride. I did not
get tired or out of breath. My pulse was in the 120 range. This
park is about 1.5-2.0 miles around depending on the path taken.
At 6pm there were only a few people. The trees blocked my wind
and the paved bike path is smooth. My right leg seemed to get
"numb" at times, my hands got a little tired, and my
butt hurt a tad. Only time will tell if anything will be my weakness
(knees?). I'll see how I do in the next couple of weeks before
I commit to the ride. Should be interesting.
Once a week (usually Tuesday) during my training I decided to
stay home and ride the stationary bike. It broke up the routine
and allowed me to watch TV while I rode. As I continued with
my program I decided riding the stationary bike wasn't such a
bad idea. I eventually put batteries in the bike computer so
I could tell my speed, distance, etc.
There is a 2.8 mile coarse or circular road with a paved walkway
behind the Aventura mall in North Miami Florida. It is a pretty
nice ride with lots of big buildings in the background. Course
today the ground was wet and it was breezy so the elements slowed
down my anticipated 16mph brisk pace. I rode around the coarse
five times. It sort of gets boring after awhile but the new faces
you pass make it a little more interesting. The first several
miles were okay then it started getting a little tough and near
the end I was leveling out and doing fine. My hands and butt
hurt a little. I've been advised to get road slicks (currently
riding on moderately knobby tires) to make the ride easier. Maybe.
Plus I also need a helmet.
Completed today's (Friday) ride at the same place as Wednesdays
ride. It is a very good course. I do have to learn to pace myself
better and look at my bike computer less though. Checked out
some stuff at Sports Authority. They had some good bike clothes
but some of the prices were a little high.
One thing is for sure and that is there are plenty of roads to
ride out in western Broward County. I had to battle the wind
a bit but nothing too difficult. The first hour went by pretty
easy along Flamingo Road. After doing that stretch I was on about
23 miles and stopped to eat and drink a little. The ride wasn't
too bad until about the last 10 miles. I can't explain it. I
thought I drank a lot of water but yet I'm still drinking and
it is 5 hours later--I have yet to piss since this morning. Hum.
Well, looks like I'll make it through the first week okay. Just
a small ride tomorrow.
I'm in Quiet Waters park today. They have a beach like a pool,
a place for water skiing without a boat and a bunch of trees with
picnic tables everywhere. Rather than a circular path around
the park there is one winding road. I followed this up and back
(3 miles) several times. One way I had the wind to my back and
the other direction I had to battle the wind. This made for a
hellish ride but I survived. And what doesn't kill you will make
you stronger right? Maybe not. On the injury front my left knee
is a little sore and my left Achilles tendon is starting to give
me a little pain. I'm not sure why but I think it is a result
of yesterdays ride. So, other than those injuries I'm doing okay.
Time will tell whether or not things will get better but I have
a bad feeling about the Achilles tendon. [The tendon discomfort
went away after a couple days and never reoccurred].
WEEK 2: April 29-May 5 (112 miles)-Thinking about other things
I purchased some bike and compression shorts this week. Both
of these helped make the ride a little easier on my butt/groin
area. This weeks Wednesday (brisk) ride was tougher than last
weeks ride and it felt like I went slower when in fact I actually
rode a tenth of a mile faster.
One thing I hoped for when I started riding was that I would be
able think more. To think about life, things, ideas, the future,
etc. By the middle of the this week and throughout my riding
I discovered it was very difficult to occupy my mind with anything
but riding. I was hoping for this ability to also help in the
blocking of pain and discomfort. Maybe all the television I watch
has weakened my concentration level.
Supplies I still need are a helmet, tires, another water bottle,
a patch kit, and a pump. I still have not made up my mind whether
I will be taking part in STP.
On an unrelated note I finally got an axle bearing problem on
my Nissan fixed. It wasn't an easy problem to reproduce for the
dealership either but they found and fixed the problem under warrenty.
This made me very happy considering several months ago another
Nissan service shop told me the problem was in my tire. Though
this has nothing to do with bike riding-except the car transported
my bike everywhere-the story does deal with following through
on a task (what this bike training is all about). Ever feel the
anxiety of the task is harder to deal with than the task itself?
I often do so I was very happy to have things going my way this
week.
My Saturday ride lasted slightly over three hours and I forgot
to bring something to eat (like fig newtons). My left knee started
to hurt and I had to battle some tough wind. Hey, you do 30 miles
and then do the next 5 against the wind and it will almost kill
you-but only when you are just starting out. I have seven more
rides like this (but more miles) before the real thing if I decide
to "do it." Things are going well and I have confidence
I can do STP though wind is a surefire killer for me. I still
need to get supplies for the bike.
On Sunday I took my ride to John U. Lloyd state park in Dania.
The park stretches two miles in length so a ride up and back
is four miles. The cost to enter the park is only $2 for an individual
in a car and you can park all day. After riding the park I rode
up to Hollywood Boulevard and finished off week two by cruising
along Hollywood beach which offers a lot of interesting sights.
WEEK 3: May 6-12 (123 miles)-One hell of a rainstorm
After the weekend my knees were aching (hurting) a little. It
seems my recovery is not that great. I even got some new tires
and installed them on Sunday ($25 each) evening. And, since someone
on the net recommended it I also bought Cytomax (drink mix) to
aid in my recovery.
I put batteries in the stationary bike for my Tuesday ride and
noticed that it made things a little more difficult because I
now had a speed readout I had to maintain. But still, the stationary
bike is easier than battling the wind.
My right ankle (Achilles which was a problem before I started
riding) started hurting like hell about half way through my Wednesday
ride. I almost had to stop. The Cytomax and powerbar probably
helped me maintain a great 16mph pace even tough there was a tough
wind.
When I got up Saturday morning (6am) I knew it was going to be
a bad day-the sky and ground told me rain was in the forecast.
I traveled out west to my ride location and waited a bit for
the rain to slow down. After about three miles of riding in the
rain and puddles my TREK bike computer went dead. I unfortunately
could not fix it and after a few rainy rides learned the TREK
device doesn't handle rain very well. It rained on and off the
whole day with some massive down pours. About three quarters
through the ride I was completely soaked. That along with the
wind made the ride almost impossible at times. There were even
a few other brave bikers riding-talk about dedication. When I
got home I dried out my bike and the computer came back to life.
WEEK 4: May 13-19 (135 miles)-I have committed myself to
riding STP
I had a few scrapes on my right forearm and was not sure how I
was getting them. On Monday I discovered the scrapes were gotten
from putting my bike in the car and having the brake cable end
cut my arm (nothing serious). I solved this by being more careful
about how I got my bike in and out of the car.
My Wednesday performance where I increased my average brisk pace
proved to me I was getting better and stronger. I even felt good
during and after the 19 mile ride even though my left knee hurt
a little later in the ride and I had some chest cramps when battling
the hard wind. I felt really up especially since I sent in my
STP registration a couple days ago.
I did my first half century on Saturday. My ass hurt later in
the day but hell, I survived. The wind was not too bad and there
was a bit of pain-butt, knee-but I rode through it. I finally
got a helmet after the ride today (BELL). I guess talking to
another rider about helmets and people getting hit convinced me
I better protect my head.
For my Sunday ride I went back to Dania and John Lloyd park.
As I exited the park I noticed bike signs telling people to watch
out for bikers. I later found out that people were doing a 275
mile (Orlando to Miami) AIDS ride over a couple days. I saw some
of the 275 mile riders as I was leaving for home. I was impressed
with their dedication cause that is one hell of a ride especially
with the sun, heat, and wind.
WEEK 5: May 20-26 (149 miles)-The halfway week
It is now my fifth week of training. I've got five weeks left
including this week and my last week includes the STP ride. So
far, so good. Unfortunately the next five weeks require a bit
more miles and dedication. I just hope I can stay out of harms
way long enough.
I heard it is recommended to train 1000 miles for STP. My odometer
says 394 miles and has not included one of my long rides (rain
killed computer) nor any of my Tuesday miles. On that note I
should easily break the 1000 mile training recommendation in the
remaining weeks.
Today, Monday, I booked my airline tickets after calling around.
The cost of flying from here (Fort Lauderdale) to Seattle is
slightly less than $400. However, with all the time, equipment,
hotels, and food I expect this trip to run into the $1000 range
but it should prove interesting. It rained most of the day and
I almost did not ride. I worked up the courage, put on my rain
clothes and rode the necessary 12 miles. When I began I only
saw 1 jogger in the park and a few cars. After a few miles all
I saw was the park ranger. The rain suit helped a little but
not enough as I ended up being soaked. Only had to ride twice
in the rain so far. Considering this is the rainy season in Florida
I feel pretty lucky.
Tuesday I tried to reserve a room in Castle Rock-first days stop-but
all the rooms were sold out. I eventually got on the reserve
list for the high school gym ($10).
On Wednesday I rode a little slower than normal because of the
wind and talking to another biker named Tim. Tim had a heart
monitor and seemed to be a serious mountain biker. Talking to
him helped make the few laps or so go quicker.
I missed my Friday ride because I attended the Consumer Electronics
Show in Orlando, Florida.
Sometimes I wonder how I survive these rides. On my 4 hour, 59
mile Saturday ride my knees started feeling tired about half way
through. It was also hot (sun and no clouds) with a bit of a
breeze coming from what seemed like all directions. At times
it seemed like the ride would never end. It is a good thing I
only have three more of these before the big ride.
WEEK 6: May 27-June 2 (162 miles)-Memories of old vacations
A little less than four weeks till the big ride. I still have
to arrange places to stay in Portland and Seattle. I also need
to determine how I am going to get my bike up and back. Plus
what I want to see in each of the cities.
Today, Monday May 27, is Memorial day. Several years ago when
I was in college and high school we (family) use to go over to
Fort Myers on the west coast of Florida. We did this for many
(6-8) years in a row. The last several we haven't. Today's ride
in Tree Tops park remind me of those days-many of which were wasted.
There were people riding horses, doing cook outs, and exploring
the trails. There is not much to this park-about two miles of
riding all the way through.
I sweat a lot on the stationary bike. My pulse averages around
120 and my legs and butt get a little uncomfortable. Bad thing
about the stationary bike is I don't get full leg extension plus
it has a different resistance than riding on the road.
I've noticed I have been hungrier lately. In fact, it is strange
how after all this training I still weight the same and haven't
really lost any "fat."
Ever so often I pump my tires up to 60psi but today (Saturday)
since my tires still had 50lbs of air I decided not to pump them
up. That and the fact I broke the foot pump last week or actually,
it sprang a leak because of the high pressure. This ride was
an extremely hard ride especially the last several miles. It
becomes difficult to maintain the 14mph pace with or without the
wind. It is like I don't have any energy to continue. I guess
after 66 miles and almost 5 hours of pedaling with little food
that is to be expected.
WEEK 7: June 3-9 (177 miles)-Same place, same time, same people
I really need to start making final plans this week for STP-where
to stay, what to see, etc. Also, how to ship my bike. I know
the airline charges $10 for a box and $45 to ship.
I was going to attend a demo party in Montreal last weekend but
decided to skip the party for training. I missed meeting a lot
of computer pals but I believe this decision helped me survive
up and coming rides (and STP) better.
It is interesting riding in the same places because over time
you notice the same people showing up around the same time as
you to do their "thing." In the parks, Aventura, the
beach, and even out west I have noticed several people on more
than a few rides.
Riding on a stationary bike for 20 miles (1 hour and 30 minutes)
can be quite an experience and even more so with the seat at the
wrong height. Tuesdays ride on the stationary proved to be an
endurance in pain ride. I hurt quite a bit in the right leg groin
area/muscle--I wanted to stop. However, I kept myself going till
I completed the 20 miles and unfortunately the price of pain was
that some of the hurt carried on into the next couple days.
On Wednesday I decided to go with water instead of my regular
Cytomax. Tim, in an earlier ride, mentioned that Cytomax is good
but you don't want your body to get use to it to the point that
it expects it. He said Cytomax should be saved for when you really
need it. These rides can get a little boring going around in
a circle all the time. If it weren't for all the rollerbladers,
walkers, and joggers on the path around the circle in Aventura
I probably wouldn't have made it this far.
My chart for training is based on a ten week program but because
I only have nine weeks to train I have to skip a week. I have
decided to skip week eight on the chart because the jump in miles
from week seven to nine is only seven more than week eight.
Saturday, June 8, my longest ride (71.3 miles, 4 hours and 53
minutes) thus far. I rode about 13 or so miles before I noticed
my bike started feeling different. I figured I was imagining
things and kept riding until I hit a red light. Something convinced
me to check my tire-front-and sure enough it was almost flat.
Luckily there was a Shell (gas) station with air since I did
not have a bike pump at the time. I used my tools and patch kit,
put air in the tire and rode away after taking 10-15 minutes to
patch the tire and let it cure. Sure enough it held for the entire
ride-surprise, surprise. The days ride was a bit easier than
last weeks even though it was longer. Probably due to less wind
and the long stop to fix the flat. I completed the ride but felt
like I was going to throw up when I finished and drove away.
Later in the day I decided to do a smart thing and buy a pump
even though I never got another flat.
WEEK 8: June10-16 (194 miles)-The week of long rides
This will be my toughest week because 1) it will be the most miles
and 2) I skipped a week on the training schedule-went from week
7 to week 9.
Monday marked my third time of riding in the rain. It did not
rain very hard but it left lots of puddles. The ride seemed like
it would never end even though I was only doing 17 miles. I keep
trying to get my mind off the riding and onto something else to
help pass the time easier but it never worked out.. Even my stationary
bike ride seemed to last forever and I had the TV on except nothing
interesting to watch.
Today, Wednesday, it rained during the afternoon but not during
my ride. In fact, the roads were dry. Very little wind and overcast
skies made for an easy an cool ride. I do have to worry about
the coolness in Seattle [more so than I ever anticipated]. I
was able to complete this ride in time to make it home for a good
show on television-A history of computers entitled "Triumph
of the Nerds." It was on PBS.
I'm not sure what it is but the rides seem to be getting tougher
in that they have seemed to last forever these last couple of
rides. They are getting a bit longer but wow, I doubt I could
go more than a couple weeks if things keep going like they are.
I finalized my Portland plans on where I'm to stay so all I have
to do is settle my Seattle plans ASAP.
Got my bike box from a local bike store today [Thursday]. No
charge.
For my final big ride before STP I decided I was going to ride
the 38 mile Everglades National Park road to Flamingo (on the
west coast of Florida). I had the idea ever since talking to
Larry (a biker where I work) and learning they had a road that
stretched 38 miles. It took about an hour and fifteen minutes
for me to get to the entrance of the park. I made it and was
riding by around 7:41am. I didn't notice many people in the park
either. I brought lots of fig newtons and ate a lot during the
first 38 miles but felt my legs were getting tired. I'm not sure
if this was because of my eating, mental, or what. I did make
it all 38 miles to Flamingo without stopping. At Flamingo I took
about 15 minutes to eat, drink and see a little bit of the bay.
I felt pretty good and was amazed I was doing so well-had a very
good average. The way back was a different story.
Occasionally a bug or dragonfly would hit me as I rode. It did
not bother me too much except I did jump a little on occasion.
Good thing I used some "Cutter" bug spray.
The humidity and heat (85+) played a factor in the ride especially
when I started battling the eastward wind towards the end of the
ride. Life was tough as hell during the last 15 or so miles.
I made two stops-one to recover from riding and the second because
I was so drained I couldn't battle the wind; plus my water was
running out. I did make it even though I though I might not.
The last 5-7 miles I rode around 11-13mph but still came out
with a 14.6 average. This WAS definitely the most difficult ride
I have had to date and made me wonder if after 76 miles I feel
like this how would I feel doing 126 miles on day one of STP.
Too late to turn back now. When I got home I decided to use
some Ben-Gay to aid in my recovery because my knees ached and
felt weak.
WEEK 9: June 17-23 (258 miles including STP)-The STP ride
week
This is the final few days of riding before STP. I've been doing
steady riding for nine weeks but have been weight training for
a few years without missing too many days. A few weeks before
committing to STP I did start riding the exercycle so essentially
my training has lasted over two months and less than three with
only one day missed due to CES. Thank heavens I have not been
sick during any of my training.
I disassembled my bike on Sunday for a packaging check-to make
sure it fit in the box I picked up and in the car for the airport
ride. I reassembled the bike for my final ride of the week on
Tuesday. I decided to do my Tuesday ride in Aventura where they
have a three mile loop. I did a hard ride (30 miles, 16.3mph
average) with no eating and only occasionally stopping for stop
lights-one of which I would always stop for and the other which
I would typically ride through since it was a three way stop with
no road on my side. One guy did honk but I ignored him and laughed
because I knew this was my final ride. I had a record pace for
this ride but somewhere along the way the bike computer dropped
a tenth so I tied a previous record.
Wednesday I took a day off and packed up my bike and supplies.
My legs were aching a little from the previous days ride.
SEATTLE
The first day of summer, Thursday June, 20, I began my journey
to Seattle.
So, hear I am. It is 9:30am and I'm in Houston, Texas waiting
to board my 9:55am flight. I'm just trying to catch up on this
journal and get all the details in.
I checked my bike in through the airline and paid the $45 fee
to have it transported with me rather than sending it via UPS
or FedEx. My bike computer shows 1006 miles and this does not
include the stationary bike. That is a pretty good amount of
training. Hopefully it is enough. I probably should have done
another week or two of training but I don't know if I could have
lasted that long. Guess I'll know the correct answer on Sunday
after the ride.
It is now 5:16pm Pacific daylight savings time and 8:16pm Eastern
daylight savings time and I'm in my hotel room (Seattle Inn) writing
this. I rode 12.6 miles (round trip) today to the "STP"
package pickup place, near the University of Washington. I picked
up a jacket and a package that contained my ride number for bike,
helmet, and self, road map, and a pretty good bike pump. I have
to admit there were small but difficult hills to traverse. I
was actually out of breath early on and needed water BAD. WOW!
I stopped at a nice park [later learned it was called Gas Works
Park] and took in some sights. I've got tomorrow to see the rest
of the city even though there are only a couple things I want
to see/visit.
Sometimes I wonder if I'm doing the right thing. Hey, it was
in the low 70's today and riding with my backpack made me sweat
a little but at 5:00pm some of that wind had a slight chill to
it. I will have to get up early tomorrow to see how the weather
is. I know I can manage midday to late afternoon but don't know
about that morning cold. My right knee hurt a little today, hopefully
the rest over the next day or so will help it recover. Ate dinner
with a computer buddy I met over the internet/NAID last year.
My final training for STP ended today with a 2-3 mile ride. I
didn't really consider it much of a ride but rather transportation
to a place where I could take a "lake" cruise. I made
sure I got some water and supplies on the way back. In fact my
butt is slightly sore after the ride. It is probably due to taking
a crap before riding not to mention all the walking I did today.
I did do everything I wanted: Monorail, Omnidome, Pikes Place
Market, the Underground tour, Space Needle, and a ferry ride.
The final thing I did tonight was meet with another computer
pal who is doing an internship for Microsoft. I got to bed by
10:30pm in order to be well rested for STP in the morning.
Seattle To Portland-Day 1: June 22, 1996
After a restless night my day began at 4:00am with a little bit
of a bagel, some water and a shower. I was able to check out
just after 4:30am and hauled my stuff (big duffel bag and sleeping
bag) two miles, downhill, to the Kingdome. I dropped off my stuff
and began my ride just after 5am. There were not too many people
at the starting line either. I must have just missed all the
hoopla at 5am when the ride actually started. Eight hours thirty-five
minutes and fifty-two seconds later I arrived at Castle Rock High
School. That made for a 126.9 mile journey at an average pace
of 14.7mph. I amazed myself by the speed I was able to keep-just
a bit above my training average but there were many times where
I was doing 16+mph. I guess that offset the 8mph hills.
Stopping and eating/drinking at almost all the food stops seemed
to help a lot. But little sun, lots of cold (head wind!) breezes,
and rain didn't help. There were about five killer hills too.
But I survived and with decent strength (i.e. I did not suffer
as much as I figured I would doing 50 miles more than I ever have).
Amazing. I even felt better when I finished then I did last
week riding in the Everglades. However, I don't think I could
have made it much further on this day especially with the head
winds.
I had the spaghetti dinner for $6 the organizers of STP arranged.
The food was okay; it reminded me of what they served in junior
high. I did witness one wreck I was about 42 miles into the
ride and had just finished the first hill (tough) of the day.
We were close to Spanaway and I was trailing two girls and a
guy to reduce the head wind. All of the sudden the girl about
five fee in front of me does a wicked swerve (she hit her friends
tire), over corrected and went down in the middle of the road
at about 15mph. Me and a few other people stopped and helped
her and her bike out of the road. It looked like a pretty bad
spill to me-she hit her head and had a bloody knee. I have no
idea if she finished nor do I remember her number. I hung out
for a couple minutes then when it looked like everything was under
control wished her and her friends well and took off. I'd be
really surprised if she completed the ride considering her knee
would probably stiffen up on her and she probably had a headache
the rest of the day if not week.
It is sleeping in the High School Gym for me tonight. From what
I have heard it won't be too bad. I'm hoping I sleep real good
tonight because the last couple of nights haven't given me enough
sleep. And while I'm hoping and wishing I also hope for a tailwind
tomorrow.
Seattle To Portland-Day 2: June 23, 1996
After heading to sleep, or trying to sleep anyways, at an early
7pm I noticed they turned most of the lights out around 8pm.
The rest of the night was a blur. I don't remember sleeping very
well though. I heard a few alarm clocks go off around 4:30-5am
and they turned the lights on around 5am, so after a bit I figured
I better get up. I ate the STP special $3 pancake and sausage
breakfast and washed it down with some Snapple ice tea. Outside
it was raining and very cold (seemed like 40's). I was getting
board and did not feel like waiting too long (till 7am so I could
make any and all food stops as they opened) so I departed Castle
Rock just after 6am.
I put on both bike jerseys Larry (bike guy where I work) let me
borrow and decided to forgo the STP jacket because it made me
sweat too much. Well, that was a HUGE mistake I later came to
find out. There was a ton of cold rain for the better part of
the trip (first 3-4 hours) and unlike here in South Florida the
rain in the northwest never seemed to stop. I trained for head
winds and rain but not cold rain and head winds. I was lucky
to find a couple of people leaving at the same time as me who
did about my pace so I stuck with them till the Goble pit stop
at mile 152. It took about an hour for enough rain to penetrate
both of my jerseys and make me extremely cold. The rain also killed
my bike computer about the same time I started getting cold.
So cold that I enjoyed the hills because they warmed me up. By
the time I reached the Goble pit stop I though I was going to
die. I was hoping for something heated but no such thing existed
on the STP ride. At the stop I got a couple cookies and some
hot chocolate. My clothes were soaked and I was starting to shiver,
even with a blanket covering most of my body. I hung around for
what must have been 15-20 minutes and a couple big rain downpours
hoping to warm up. I never got warm though. Some girl, many
thanks, offered and provided me with an "emergency"
poncho. It wasn't much but it protected me from the rain/wind.
I didn't have much faith in the poncho but knew I couldn't stick
around at Goble much longer because I wasn't getting any better.
So with the poncho on and still shivering I jumped on my bike.
I was amazed at how well the poncho actually helped and it wasn't
before long, about 5-10 miles, till warmed up and did not feel
cold anymore. Now all I had to do was battle the wind and resistance
the poncho added!
The last big pit stop-Saint Helens in Portland-I noticed myself
cooling down a bit still hoping for a heater but not finding any.
I grabbed everything I could, ate a little and took off for the
final thirty miles. The final two hours I found riders few and
far between-almost no packs-and I was passing more people than
being passed. The thing that amazed me most were all the riders
fixing flats on the side of the road-there must have been a couple
dozen in the last couple hours.
The cold, rain, and wind really made the ride tough and much less
enjoyable than I was hoping for. It was even difficult to take
in all the unique scenery. Back at Goble where I was sitting
under a tent on bails of hay shivering with a blanket I had no
idea how I could continue. I was so cold I didn't think I could
go on. This was definitely the toughest thing I have ever done
I kept thinking. Even wondering why the hell I was doing this
crossed my mind a few times that second day. There wasn't suppose
to be a head wind and it doesn't rain much in June in Washington
or Oregon-why today! I couldn't understand how things could have
changed so drastically from the typical weather patterns. I can't
explain how I did it but I got up off my ass and my great training
provided me the strength to finish the ride feeling pretty good.
I didn't get sick and stayed well during the whole journey-no
headaches and only slight knee/butt/cramping pains, none of which
compared to the cold rain. At times the wind was very strong
but it never seemed as bad as and average wind I faced in Florida
during my training.
I finished the ride slightly before noon. That is about 70 miles
in less than six hours including stops. I figured about 30-45
minutes for all the stops I made so my average speed for the entire
ride would probably be in the 14mph range-my goal speed. My bike
computer stopped working around mile 143 due to rain and I didn't
bother checking the average at that time.
I moved in front of a pack near the finish line and crossed several
seconds before and after other riders. They announced your number,
people clapped, and you got a patch. Later in the week I got
a letter from Marathon Foto with a picture of me crossing the
finish line. I decided to order a photo (proof shown) even though
the price was slightly inflated.
I moved myself and bike to the bike check area, got a little to eat, bought a T-shirt, and searched out my baggage-which took about 10 minutes to find. I unfortunately did not take any pictures at the finish or starting line so these last two pictures are courtesy of Sam Churchill. The pictures and additional STP coverage can be seen at Sam's STP web page.
As I was departing the celebration area I noticed a couple cops
catch a bike thief. STP did provide a secure area for bikes but
not everyone seemed to utilize it and thus a few people made off
with other peoples bikes. One guy actually asked if the STP people
moved his bike to the secure area and to his surprise they said
no. I'm sure quite a few bikes turned up missing that on this
day.
I called a long time pen pal in Portland and he picked me up.
It is now Monday and I am at his house jotting down these
final notes in my STP journal before I leave to check out the
city of Portland. It was a great ride and my only complaint is
the weather I encountered.
EPILOGUE
STP goes down as a great accomplishment in my book for all the
riders and especially so for the one unicyclist I saw even though
he didn't ride all 200 miles. I talked to quite a few cyclists but two
teenagers (high school I believe) surprised me the most
by saying they didn't train for STP. I can recall my first week
of training where I had difficulty riding 40 miles so I couldn't
imagine what riding 126 (their day one ride) miles without training
would have been like. I'm sure there were others like these two guys
most of whom probably struggled like hell on the second day.
I don't see myself doing STP or any long distance ride in the
foreseeable future. Not because it was difficult but because
of all the training and time required in preparing for the ride.
The Cascade Bicycle Club
(organizers of STP) did a very good job in
mapping out the route, placing road markers (painted on the road),
providing support, and last but not least having great rest, bathroom, and
food stops every 15-20 miles.
I came home a couple or so pounds lighter than when I started
my training but after about a week I leveled off a pound or so
under my regular weight. Strange thing is I still have about
the same amount of body fat as when I began, but maybe that can
be expected consider my diet remained the same. So my advice
to you would be not to tackle a ride like this expecting to lose
weight because you will probably end up being disappointed.
Well, I can probably continue writing another couple thousand words (there has been over 7,000 up to here) about the trip and training but I'm going to stop here. Thanks for taking the time to read this far-if you really did read the whole thing. It took me the equalivent of one weeks training time to get this all typed up and laid out with HTML. I hope you can leave this page a little more wiser about STP and bike training--at least through one persons perspective. Maybe the most important point is one can gain from an experience like STP is that you don't know until you try.