C Law
08-27-07, 08:50 AM
Caution - Long
This past Saturday I rode in the D2R2, as it is known.
The D2R2 is primarily a dirt road ride that meanders through the beautiful countryside of northern Massachusetts and southern Vermont.
Some member posted information about this ride in the mountain biking forum last year as I was immediately interested. I have a vacation home in southern Vermont and know the types of terrain and roads that this ride would entail (here is a ride report from last year with an elevation profile (http://www.northeastcycling.com/d2r2_2006.htm)). Brutally steep climbs and lighting fast dirt road descents. Sounds like fun.
I come from a mountain biking background (rode the Hampshire 100k (http://www.efta.com/content/view/51/49/)last weekend) ride road a bit, and 5 years ago started competing in triathlons. So from a cycling perspective, I like to think I am pretty well rounded. I sneaked a peek at the riding times (http://newhorizonsbikes.com/merchant/401/files/D2R2_Results_2006.pdf)from last year and set a goal for myself of 10 hours for the 180k ride (which is advertised as a 100 mile ride but ends up being 116.2 miles).
Since my road bike does not fit any tires bigger than 25’s, I put 38 semi slicks on my Salsa Dos niner mountain bike, locked out the front suspension, put a little extra air in the soft tail shock, and fashioned a cue sheet holder out of binder clips and zip ties. I had flirted for a day or so with the idea of swapping out the suspension fork and putting on a rigid fork off of another bike, but decided against it. I have another race at the end of September and the fork has a lockout, so really, I would just be carrying an extra pound around all day. No biggie.
Stage 1 Fairgrounds to Heath (40.75 miles)
The Randonee started at 6 am but I started about 5 minutes after that due to my own lethargy. I was the beginning of a HHH day in the northeast (Hazy Hot and Humid) with temperatures forecasted to be in the low to mid nineties. There were heat and air quality warnings issued. At the time there was a nice heavy fog that persisted through most of the morning, delaying the onset of the real heat.
I have to say that the first 30 miles or so of the ride were less than remarkable. The hills didn’t hurt since I still felt fresh and the fog was limiting the vistas. The organizers threw in another water stop at mile 20, due to the weather. I spent most of my time with the occasional chat and checking out everyone’s bikes and tire selections. I think most popular were cross bikes with mountain cassettes in the back for a low gear of 34x34. I’d have to guess that 28-30 tires were most popular, although I saw people running tires ranging from 23’s to 40’s.
The most remarkable thing was that a fellow rider fell on a descent and was hurt. He was lying in a heap in the drainage swale. Everyone had stopped to ask questions, but there were 10-15 people there who were conducting traffic and had indicated they had called an ambulance. After a minute or so, I rolled on with a pack of people, hoping the rider wasn’t seriously hurt. The entire group was taking it slow on the descents from then on and I had come up with a strategy for the ride. I wanted to ride with one or two others but wanted to avoid fast descents with a large group.
Eventually the hills start to thin the herd and we came to a narrow, steep rutted and stony descent. I was riding alone at this point and decided to ‘let er run’. I passed a group sidelined with a flat tire on the descent, but otherwise no one was around and I felt safe flying down. At about mile 38, we began the first climb that really sticks in my memory. Starts with ¾ mile at 15%, then another mile of steep dirt, and then finally a small descent to checkpoint one.
Stage 2 – Heath to Green River Covered Bridge (28.6 miles)
I was running 2 water bottles (zefal Magnums 32oz each) . After refilling and grabbing a snack I was on my way. I was the 12th person into checkpoint 1, and probably the 14th out. I was feeling fairly strong and was having a good time. It still wasn’t quite disgustingly hot yet, but the humidity still made it feel like a steam bath at 9am.
4 things stick in my mind from the second stage.
1. I picked up a riding partner who seemed to be roughly the same speed as me nice guy and we chatted a bunch (sweet ti IF cross bike, and there were many IF bikes there). The interesting thing is that we were roughly the same speed climbing and descending. I was descending fast, and he was keeping right up. After chatting a bit more and he complemented me on my descending, I found out he used to race MTB also, and won his age group at the VT 50 (http://www.vermont50.com/). ahhh, a fellow MTB’er. That’s why we were so evenly matched.
2. the section right after the checkpoint contained a ‘road’ that was as technical as single track (washouts, rocks, roots etc )
3. the 27% grade of the Archambo road climb
4. the climb on Hillman road right after Archambo road.
To tell you the truth, I had heard of the 27% grade road before but was taken by surprise by the long Hillman road climb directly after. I’d have to chalk this climb up as the 2nd hardest of the day. Steep gravel and dirt. It might have been number one if it had come later in the ride. I should mention that for some reason, I had gotten in my head the idea that I didn’t want to use my granny gear on the ride, since most bikes were running compact doubles, I wanted to ride on even footing with them. I was using my 34x34 as my lowest gear and it seemed to be working. After some more up and down, we rolled into the Green river covered bridge (with swimming hole) (69.35 miles, 5:30 riding time)
Green River Covered Bridge to Patten Hill (33.9 miles)
Well, it was getting hot now, and a couple of riders were coming up from the swimming hole highly recommending going for a wade and a head dunk. My recently acquired riding buddy wanted to keep going, but I had to take a dunk in the swimming hole and wish him a good rest of the ride. I had a feeling he was stronger than I was anyway, and that trying to keep pace with him the rest of the way might have killed me.
After taking in some food and drying the feet off after the dip, I hopped on the bike and began a long steep climb out of the checkpoint. The climb was a good 20-30 minutes and I had already drained about half of one water bottle. I had estimated this stage to take 3 hours due to the fatigue, heat and climbing involved and I was beginning to get worried about the water situation. Riding on pavement sections was brutally hot and I was looking forward to the shady dirt roads that winded up into the hills. After more up and down (I think I hit my top speed for the day here at 46mph) there was a section of flat dirt road for 4 miles alongside a river.
About this time I was joined by another rider on an IF cross bike. I had ridden with him earlier in the day. I was fading in the heat and trying to conserve my water. I rode with him for while but he was faster on the climbs and slower on the descents so the only time we were in talking distance was on the flats, of which this course has little to none.
At about mile 90, I was increasingly concerned about the water situation. We were to pass a convenience store at mile 96, but I had not taken any money with me (I wanted to, but was an error on my part). Riding past houses every so often, I was hoping to see someone out in the yard so I could ask about using the hose. However, I never saw anyone. Finally, I came upon a 2 mile descent that seemed to make my day. It was fast and fun, and the breeze was welcome. I t dumped me into the town where the convenience store was, and there was a group of riders leaving that I joined. They were intrigued that I wasn’t stopping and that I was stretching my water, and I was close to asking any of them if they could spare a dollar or two, but that last descent invigorated me and we were only a few miles from the last brutal climb of the day, Patten Hill.
Patten Hill forced me to use my 22 tooth up front ring. 34x34 just wasn’t enough for me. This climb was very comparable to climbing the work roads at Killington or mount snow. Very steep, and tough to get out of the saddle because of the loose dirt and rock. The group that I was riding with dropped me like a bad habit and I struggled up most of the climb by myself. I arrived at the checkpoint satisfied and I was looking forward to some hydration
Stage 4 – Patten Hill to Fairgrounds (13 miles)
The water was less than enjoyable (no ice and inside the big water jugs were sitting out in the sun) and I really didn’t feel like eating anything other than my shot bloks. So after than a few minutes rest and 100 degree water, I was on my way. The group I was sort of riding with was still there because one of them was cramping. I took off by my own to ride the last bit. It was hot. I was tired. I was looking to get the ride over with at that point. Unfortunately, I think the heat really zapped some fun quotient from this ride. I would suggest to the organizers to move the event into late September, where you have a better chance of less heat. But, that’s probably me just whining. I heard last year the weather was perfect.
I can’t say I remember much from the last section except a mile or so descent that was a little bit ‘gnarly’ as it was described on the cue sheet. I was getting that happy feeling from being near completion, and got a feeling that I could have ridden another couple of hours. But in reality, I was spent and happy to ride up the fairgrounds. Total time was 10:10 minutes, so I was pretty close to my 10 hour mark.
All in all, that ride was equally as difficult as a 100 mile mountain bike race. What is advertised as a 107 mile ride with 11,300 feet of climbing ended up being a 116 mile ride with 14,000 feet of climbing. Add in the heat and humidity and it was a struggle, as I thought it would be.
I’d love to do this ride again if the temps are in the 60’s-70’s. The heat of the day definitely made it less enjoyable. The D2R2 was an experience nonetheless and a great way to get baptized into the world of randonees.
This past Saturday I rode in the D2R2, as it is known.
The D2R2 is primarily a dirt road ride that meanders through the beautiful countryside of northern Massachusetts and southern Vermont.
Some member posted information about this ride in the mountain biking forum last year as I was immediately interested. I have a vacation home in southern Vermont and know the types of terrain and roads that this ride would entail (here is a ride report from last year with an elevation profile (http://www.northeastcycling.com/d2r2_2006.htm)). Brutally steep climbs and lighting fast dirt road descents. Sounds like fun.
I come from a mountain biking background (rode the Hampshire 100k (http://www.efta.com/content/view/51/49/)last weekend) ride road a bit, and 5 years ago started competing in triathlons. So from a cycling perspective, I like to think I am pretty well rounded. I sneaked a peek at the riding times (http://newhorizonsbikes.com/merchant/401/files/D2R2_Results_2006.pdf)from last year and set a goal for myself of 10 hours for the 180k ride (which is advertised as a 100 mile ride but ends up being 116.2 miles).
Since my road bike does not fit any tires bigger than 25’s, I put 38 semi slicks on my Salsa Dos niner mountain bike, locked out the front suspension, put a little extra air in the soft tail shock, and fashioned a cue sheet holder out of binder clips and zip ties. I had flirted for a day or so with the idea of swapping out the suspension fork and putting on a rigid fork off of another bike, but decided against it. I have another race at the end of September and the fork has a lockout, so really, I would just be carrying an extra pound around all day. No biggie.
Stage 1 Fairgrounds to Heath (40.75 miles)
The Randonee started at 6 am but I started about 5 minutes after that due to my own lethargy. I was the beginning of a HHH day in the northeast (Hazy Hot and Humid) with temperatures forecasted to be in the low to mid nineties. There were heat and air quality warnings issued. At the time there was a nice heavy fog that persisted through most of the morning, delaying the onset of the real heat.
I have to say that the first 30 miles or so of the ride were less than remarkable. The hills didn’t hurt since I still felt fresh and the fog was limiting the vistas. The organizers threw in another water stop at mile 20, due to the weather. I spent most of my time with the occasional chat and checking out everyone’s bikes and tire selections. I think most popular were cross bikes with mountain cassettes in the back for a low gear of 34x34. I’d have to guess that 28-30 tires were most popular, although I saw people running tires ranging from 23’s to 40’s.
The most remarkable thing was that a fellow rider fell on a descent and was hurt. He was lying in a heap in the drainage swale. Everyone had stopped to ask questions, but there were 10-15 people there who were conducting traffic and had indicated they had called an ambulance. After a minute or so, I rolled on with a pack of people, hoping the rider wasn’t seriously hurt. The entire group was taking it slow on the descents from then on and I had come up with a strategy for the ride. I wanted to ride with one or two others but wanted to avoid fast descents with a large group.
Eventually the hills start to thin the herd and we came to a narrow, steep rutted and stony descent. I was riding alone at this point and decided to ‘let er run’. I passed a group sidelined with a flat tire on the descent, but otherwise no one was around and I felt safe flying down. At about mile 38, we began the first climb that really sticks in my memory. Starts with ¾ mile at 15%, then another mile of steep dirt, and then finally a small descent to checkpoint one.
Stage 2 – Heath to Green River Covered Bridge (28.6 miles)
I was running 2 water bottles (zefal Magnums 32oz each) . After refilling and grabbing a snack I was on my way. I was the 12th person into checkpoint 1, and probably the 14th out. I was feeling fairly strong and was having a good time. It still wasn’t quite disgustingly hot yet, but the humidity still made it feel like a steam bath at 9am.
4 things stick in my mind from the second stage.
1. I picked up a riding partner who seemed to be roughly the same speed as me nice guy and we chatted a bunch (sweet ti IF cross bike, and there were many IF bikes there). The interesting thing is that we were roughly the same speed climbing and descending. I was descending fast, and he was keeping right up. After chatting a bit more and he complemented me on my descending, I found out he used to race MTB also, and won his age group at the VT 50 (http://www.vermont50.com/). ahhh, a fellow MTB’er. That’s why we were so evenly matched.
2. the section right after the checkpoint contained a ‘road’ that was as technical as single track (washouts, rocks, roots etc )
3. the 27% grade of the Archambo road climb
4. the climb on Hillman road right after Archambo road.
To tell you the truth, I had heard of the 27% grade road before but was taken by surprise by the long Hillman road climb directly after. I’d have to chalk this climb up as the 2nd hardest of the day. Steep gravel and dirt. It might have been number one if it had come later in the ride. I should mention that for some reason, I had gotten in my head the idea that I didn’t want to use my granny gear on the ride, since most bikes were running compact doubles, I wanted to ride on even footing with them. I was using my 34x34 as my lowest gear and it seemed to be working. After some more up and down, we rolled into the Green river covered bridge (with swimming hole) (69.35 miles, 5:30 riding time)
Green River Covered Bridge to Patten Hill (33.9 miles)
Well, it was getting hot now, and a couple of riders were coming up from the swimming hole highly recommending going for a wade and a head dunk. My recently acquired riding buddy wanted to keep going, but I had to take a dunk in the swimming hole and wish him a good rest of the ride. I had a feeling he was stronger than I was anyway, and that trying to keep pace with him the rest of the way might have killed me.
After taking in some food and drying the feet off after the dip, I hopped on the bike and began a long steep climb out of the checkpoint. The climb was a good 20-30 minutes and I had already drained about half of one water bottle. I had estimated this stage to take 3 hours due to the fatigue, heat and climbing involved and I was beginning to get worried about the water situation. Riding on pavement sections was brutally hot and I was looking forward to the shady dirt roads that winded up into the hills. After more up and down (I think I hit my top speed for the day here at 46mph) there was a section of flat dirt road for 4 miles alongside a river.
About this time I was joined by another rider on an IF cross bike. I had ridden with him earlier in the day. I was fading in the heat and trying to conserve my water. I rode with him for while but he was faster on the climbs and slower on the descents so the only time we were in talking distance was on the flats, of which this course has little to none.
At about mile 90, I was increasingly concerned about the water situation. We were to pass a convenience store at mile 96, but I had not taken any money with me (I wanted to, but was an error on my part). Riding past houses every so often, I was hoping to see someone out in the yard so I could ask about using the hose. However, I never saw anyone. Finally, I came upon a 2 mile descent that seemed to make my day. It was fast and fun, and the breeze was welcome. I t dumped me into the town where the convenience store was, and there was a group of riders leaving that I joined. They were intrigued that I wasn’t stopping and that I was stretching my water, and I was close to asking any of them if they could spare a dollar or two, but that last descent invigorated me and we were only a few miles from the last brutal climb of the day, Patten Hill.
Patten Hill forced me to use my 22 tooth up front ring. 34x34 just wasn’t enough for me. This climb was very comparable to climbing the work roads at Killington or mount snow. Very steep, and tough to get out of the saddle because of the loose dirt and rock. The group that I was riding with dropped me like a bad habit and I struggled up most of the climb by myself. I arrived at the checkpoint satisfied and I was looking forward to some hydration
Stage 4 – Patten Hill to Fairgrounds (13 miles)
The water was less than enjoyable (no ice and inside the big water jugs were sitting out in the sun) and I really didn’t feel like eating anything other than my shot bloks. So after than a few minutes rest and 100 degree water, I was on my way. The group I was sort of riding with was still there because one of them was cramping. I took off by my own to ride the last bit. It was hot. I was tired. I was looking to get the ride over with at that point. Unfortunately, I think the heat really zapped some fun quotient from this ride. I would suggest to the organizers to move the event into late September, where you have a better chance of less heat. But, that’s probably me just whining. I heard last year the weather was perfect.
I can’t say I remember much from the last section except a mile or so descent that was a little bit ‘gnarly’ as it was described on the cue sheet. I was getting that happy feeling from being near completion, and got a feeling that I could have ridden another couple of hours. But in reality, I was spent and happy to ride up the fairgrounds. Total time was 10:10 minutes, so I was pretty close to my 10 hour mark.
All in all, that ride was equally as difficult as a 100 mile mountain bike race. What is advertised as a 107 mile ride with 11,300 feet of climbing ended up being a 116 mile ride with 14,000 feet of climbing. Add in the heat and humidity and it was a struggle, as I thought it would be.
I’d love to do this ride again if the temps are in the 60’s-70’s. The heat of the day definitely made it less enjoyable. The D2R2 was an experience nonetheless and a great way to get baptized into the world of randonees.