Have not been part of this race in years. Is the event still going on? Still in Aug? Any info appreciated.
Have not been part of this race in years. Is the event still going on? Still in Aug? Any info appreciated.
It still goes on and it is still big.
http://www.hh100.org/
They have some race activity, but most of the people there are just riding, not racing.
"be careful this rando stuff is addictive and dan's the 'pusher'."
Already have my hotel reservation for next year. It will be my first time to go to the HHH.
I'm hoping to be in shape to do it this coming year. Any advice for a first timer?
1. Prepare for the heat.Originally Posted by Yo Spiff
2. Make sure your bike is in good condition prior to the event.
3. Stop at rest stops and drink plenty of water.
4. Watch out for other riders and ride such that you don't do something that gets in the way of other riders. It can be very crowded at times.
I can not emphasize enough #2 on bjtesch's list. Some of the chip and seal roads (should be outlawed) can be rough and I lost 4 spokes on my rear wheel this past year. I had recently purchased the bike and probably put fewer than a few hundred miles on the wheels before then. Was able to get some truing done, but long story short, it took a long time at a rest stop and I missed the 60 mile cutoff by 10 minutes a wheel that was just getting worse and had to call it a day. I was really annoyed. I'd do a full tuneup for the ride and only ride wheels I've already put enough miles on to trust.
As far as #4 on the list, the beginning is the worst. what worked really well for me in the first 5-10 miles was keeping to the left of the right lane. Slow folks were on the right and lots of people have flats right at the start (seemingly from riding in trash on the right side of the road) while the fast, or simply ambitious, folks will go around on the left over the yellow line. So if you're willing to let the pace set itself for the first 5-10 miles, that's a good safe spot until things spread out a bit.
EDIT: And new tires (a model you know and trust) along with a new spare tire and tube. You just don't know what might be thrown at you.
If you had that much trouble, your wheels must have been very poorly built when you got the bike. That's all I can say. What type of bike and wheel? Goofball "racing" spokes? Or traditional elbow bend 32 or 36 rear double or triple gauge spokes?
I've never had wheel problem on the HHH100.
Best get something that will handle chip seal, because it's coming to the whole world over the next few years except for the most heavily traveled roads.
The wheel was a traditional 36h built on a phil wood hub on my then new to me circa 1990 Bianchi. It was definitely a situation of only having the bike and wheel for a few months prior and only riding nice roads. Though I had already needed to replace a couple of spokes, so that should have been my first clue. The rougher roads just brought out all the weaknesses that were already there. Upon further inspection, it was clear that at some point in its previous life a chain had come off of the largest sprocket and considerably chewed up the spokes right at the hub.
As far as chip and seal roads go, they should be punishable by death. They are the worst surface to ride on and when they start to fall apart, they somehow manage to become even worse. As best as I can figure it's only cheaper and easier for the city or county. Goodness knows actually having to live with it is awful. Even before I picked up cycling I hated them. I've been toying with the idea of building a tubular wheelset. Maybe running some lower psi's without the rolling resistance penalty might make the chip and seal tolerable.
I rode it for the first time last year(Aug 2011). Since it was my first I rode I did the 100k. It was a blast. Some rides I've been on lately I was riding alone after about 20-30 miles. Not this one. There were riders the whole way. I might do the 100 mile this year. We are trying to get a bunch of people from work to sign up so I might only do the 100k again.
I've made a late decision to do this event but the issue is finding accomadation nearby. I know it's a longshot but does anyone know of any rooms, etc. available through cancellations, etc.
Thanks
I stayed at the YMCA downtown. You call and reserve a spot and mail in a check. It's definitely first come first serve as to where you actually sleep, though. There are quieter spots, but come late and you'll be sleeping in the freeweight room. My friend and I came REALLY late and paid on the spot. We had some little hideaway spot with lots of foot traffic and got like zero sleep. But it's real close to the start and of course there are the showers after the ride. They also have a bike lockup in the gym upstairs if you only have an exterior rack and don't want to leave it out overnight.
Not the most glamorous option, but it works. I'll probably do it again this year.
You can check the hhh website. IIRC they had a way to hookup riders with people in town that were willing to host them in their homes.
The Blackhawk baseball team in Burkburnett has a training facility that has dorm type rooms that they have made available during the HHH.
The last time I rode the HHH it rose to only 96 deg F. It was 106 Deg F this march when I rode the Cape Argus Cycle Tour in Cape Town. It is the world's largest bicycle race with about 3 times as many riders as the HHH.
This too will be my first year doing the hotter than hell. It is on Aug 25th, which happens to be my birthday, Ha ha. I think I will do the 100k this year to test the waters. I used to be the Fedex driver on highway 79 that a portion of the race is on, It can get pretty crowded.
Thanks guys, I'll look in to these options.
I did the Gran Fondo Texas yesterday. The Century is tougher than the HHH. I like the greater number of riders in the HHH. The HHH is more enjoyable and better organized except when I did the HHH there was essentially no signage at the start to ensure you started in the correct group. I recommend everybody do the HHH and then ride the Gran Texas Fondo next year.
I noticed on the HHH site that they have a Pace Group you can sign up to for rides that want to complete the ride in under five hours. This sounds like a good idea, has anyone done this, any thoughts or experiences?
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
