Went long this weekend
Last Post 07/16/2014 10:29 PM by 79 pmooney. 9 Replies.
Author Messages
ChinookPass

Posts:809

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07/16/2014 11:25 AM
I like to do STP (Seattle-To-Portland) every 3 or 4 years, just to see what the kids are up to and how the ride has changed. The part I dislike though is the logistics of getting home. Biking all that way and then climbing into a car and sitting in traffic for 4 hours is a big turn-off.

I had decided get a hotel room and ride back on Sunday, or at least get close to home before calling the wife for a pick-up. Then I decided I could do much better than the STP route, which is mostly flat and does a lot of navigating through South Sound communities that I am unfamiliar with so I mapped out this route which threads the volcanoes and skirts the majority of the Seattle megalopolis.

https://www.google.com/maps?saddr=Portland,+OR&daddr=45.8437362,-122.5297722+to:46.1354975,-122.0090321+to:47.3327464,-121.919311+to:Issaquah,+WA&hl=en&ll=47.197178,-121.522522&spn=1.554559,1.853943&sll=47.357432,-121.920776&sspn=1.549858,1.853943&geocode=FfyhtgIdERyw-CkndKl9CwuVVDGRhdH25rk2HA%3BFRiFuwIdFFiy-CnVRXRvx0qUVDHkuo6j50ktWQ%3BFcn4vwIdOEq6-Cm7KPnWcYWWVDF2GX_I1D-w9g%3BFYo90gIdsai7-Cnb7LH6vIuQVDEFkEEgFSTWLQ%3BFXVA1QIdFe65-CmjgofJf2WQVDE8I_CEcoZk5w&oq=iss&dirflg=b&mra=dpe&mrsp=3&sz=9&via=1,2,3&t=m&z=9&lci=bike
Saturday went well despite a fall onto my shoulder due to a sudden turn in a group. I got into a lot of fast groups and got to Portland at 3:30. The hardest part of the return trip was deciding whether to go or pull the plug. Forecast was for very hot. Saturday had hit 108F on my bike computer but I woke right at 4:15 and decided to give it a go. The other difficulty was navigating out of Portland. I spent a half hour or so trying to sniff out the access over the I5 bridge. It was very poorly marked and hidden inside a park, the antithesis of the rest of Portland's bike infrastructure which is ubiquitous and very well-signed.

The day was amazing. Miles and miles of quiet roads through all the fading logging towns of southwest Washington. The weather was unexpectedly overcast, perfect considering I was expecting to wither under the hot sun. I was nowhere near as fast however and ran out of daylight 15 miles from home. Sorry no pics, didn't think I'd have time so didn't take a camera.
It definitely gave me appreciation for the 24hr mtn bike racers and the rando guys who ride all day and all night. But I was pleasantly surprised that on the 2nd 200mile day in a row, the legs were still turning 20mph on the flats to the last mile, a special day.
79pmooney

Posts:3178

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07/16/2014 11:46 AM
My hat's off to you! I like that you rode back! That's a true cyclist.

Ben
Cosmic Kid

Posts:4209

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07/16/2014 12:02 PM
Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
Orange Crush

Posts:4499

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07/16/2014 01:03 PM
That is long...wicked good stuff, cudos!

We only hiked 14k last Saturday and my legs are still fried from the downhill, hobbling and needing to use my arms to get out of my office chair until today. Kids are fine of course although this one put them on the limit and frayed everyones nerves in the end (hot, steep, long). Worth it.
huckleberry

Posts:824

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07/16/2014 01:55 PM
Damn, Chinook... Nice!
SideBySide

Posts:444

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07/16/2014 03:02 PM
Fantastic!
vtguy

Posts:298

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07/16/2014 04:40 PM
Well done, sir!
ChinookPass

Posts:809

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07/16/2014 07:02 PM
The point was not just to go out and do a shyteload of miles, but more as a result of years of riding and just surprising the hell of out of myself that this kind of stuff is doable and if you are in shape, it can be even enjoyable and rewarding. All the stuff you have always thought was impossible or was going to hurt or just be unpleasant, you work up to it and can make it happen.

Really there's not a housewife on my block who can explain to me with a straight face why they are driving their middle school kid 0.5mi to school everyday. Not judging, but sometimes we have low expectations of what we can do.

The other thing I learned a while ago, no matter what crazy thing you are doing, someone is always out there doing something crazier.
Orange Crush

Posts:4499

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07/16/2014 07:25 PM
Posted By ChinookPass . on 07/16/2014 07:02 PM
The other thing I learned a while ago, no matter what crazy thing you are doing, someone is always out there doing something crazier.


Old friend of mine from riding back in NL days (way back when) sold his bike and just posted a pic of him after running up to the top of the Tourmalet. He passed 5 cyclists doing so (and got passed by two). Dtiching your bike to run, now that's crazy
79pmooney

Posts:3178

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07/16/2014 10:29 PM
Chinook, you've inspired me. I am going to do a (lot less) long ride tomorrow, fixed. Can't leave until I've seen the Tour results. I plan to ride to and around Hagg Lake, then up Patton Valley Road and back, then home via the backside of the Chehalem mountains (hills), over and home. Should add up to ~90 miles and 2000'. I'll ride it on the 43 x 17 and 20 (with a 13 for the last descent). Like you, I am in good enough shape and rested enough that this isn't a big deal. Mostly just need to plan well. Good thing is a college coffee shop with good snacks 20 miles from home and before the big climb.

Ben


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