svtmike

Unfortunately, he's shipping off to Colorado this weekend. I'll miss him but maybe that'll open up opportunities to go suffer at altitude.

Chrome Molly

Don't know, TC results not available yet (to my knowledge). Anything in the top 50 with that crowd and I'll be tickled. I was reviewing the individual results and this 63 year old guy did all my same distances at each event and was 1mph faster on each ride. I'll chalk it up to him being a half foot taller, as I have no other excuse. Nice guy, he always started later than me and was fun out on the road (we pacelined a couple times). Good people in the WTC, so you going to do it next year?

badger_biker 

+ 1 on Chrome Molly's accomplishment!

I think you and Tony finished right with my son and I in the list. Our goal going in was one of survival and we had no concerns of time so we didn't hurry out of the rest stops either. The main thing was to have fun and enjoy the beautiful scenery that you mentioned.

hodgykins 

Make sure you post your results...we are all cheering for you!

My current plans are a resounding yes. I knew I would not be up to it this year as a result surgery and rehab of my hip from July of last year. I had less than 100 miles on the bike (from June of 2012) before March of this year. I learned a lot (which was my hope during the Dare) about gearing, training, and survival. I now have a much better understanding of the challenge what I need to do to make the triple crown a reality.

I guess you are my ROLE MODEL

smontanaro 

I don't have any high falutin' GPS gear, but I did the 150 in (I think) roughly 8.5 hours. Plenty of time to even out my farmer's tan, which has gotten kind of lopsided commuting north/south this summer. I'll know my precise time once the results are posted on the DD site. I will just mooch off barrettcsv's results for the distance/elevation details. I know he's an accuracy kind of guy. :-)

I had better low gears than last year, but they were still not perfect. My knees would have liked a 28-24 low better than the 30-21 low gear I had. There's always next year. I already have a 28T ring, just need to add a countersink for the chainring bolts. A 13-24 5-speed or Ultra-6 freewheel shouldn't be too hard to come by. I was fine the next day, no knee pain at all, so it must not have been too bad.

I did have a couple problems shifting off my big ring (going in both directions). When upshifting, I would occasionally overshift, but it was easy to just bring the lever back a touch to reengage the big ring. Twice I waited too long to shift to the small ring and couldn't get the chain off the big ring. In both cases I avoided stopping by doing a little loop-de-loop on the hill, which reduced pedal pressure enough to allow the chain to move.

I tried something a little different this year regarding the rest stops. I stopped at every opportunity, but tried to make them short. I wasn't trying to beat the clock, but I think if you rest too long your muscles just get tight. I would pee, refill my water bottle, grab a couple quick things (nuts, pbj, orange wedge, etc), then just before setting off, grab a half a bagel and eat that on the bike as I pedaled slowly away from the rest stop, giving me a little active rest, and hopefully keeping my muscles warm. That tactic worked well every time except at the last stop which was followed by an almost immediate downhill segment. I just rode the (front) brake down that one. I also tried to take as much weight off my legs as possible on the downhill segments (save the one I mentioned above). That gave my upper arms and butt a little extra workout and let my legs rest a bit more before the inevitable crawl up the next hill.

RobbieTunes, sorry you couldn't make it. Thanks for all the work you did getting things set up. The Walker House is a cool place. I'll try not to lose my $10 discount key fob for next year. :-) Once I get your ride stuff from bibliobob, I'll make up a package for you.

smontanaro 

Why couldn't Mr. Moulton have written this blog post a couple weeks ago? Climbing out of the saddle

hodgykins 

Wow that was good. Thanks for sharing

Chrome Molly

Well, since you asked... 26th overall out of what looks like about 500. I'm happy with that. If you're up for the WTC next year, I'll probably be doing it also.

gomango

Holy smokes.

Congrats.

Pars 

^ Yeah... impressive! Congrats!

RobbieTunes

I'd still be floating above Cloud 9 with that....

as it is, I received my jersey, and it's a woman's version. maybe it's what I deserved, I dunno....

bibliobob

Sorry that I didn't catch that, Robbie! Pick-up for four was a bit like a Three Stooges episode, and I should've checked that they gave me the right schwag.....

Bring it back and exchange it next year?

bibliobob

Effing impressive! Congrats!

hodgykins 

That is fantastic. At this point....that is my plan.

Salubrious

Sounds like the amount of insurance did not change though, the only requirement is to have it.

Just like gummint to get involved though, on account of how bicyclists are all evil and stuff.

hodgykins 

I just signed up for the DD. Anybody else committed? Walker House again for sure, my kids had a blast and planning on staying the night of the ride as well.

bikemig 

I'm thinking of heading up there if I can talk a buddy into sharing the drive from IA. Sounds like a lot of fun and I have a road bike set up with a triple cuz I'm hanging out with the laughing group if I go.

iab

All the cool kids are doing this.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...19-2014-a.html

Same neighborhood as the dare but better food.

awfulwaffle 

Seeing about getting my riding partner to come with to this. Will be a few weeks after we do a 5 day mini-tour in the Kettle Morraine, so should be in decent shape for it. Don't know about the OP's vintage bike idea, though my commuter/tourer has some climb in it. If not, triple front 12-30 rear road bike will certainly do the trick

hodgykins 

It looks like fun. I am doing the Scenic Shore on the 19th and 20th, so I cannot join you all.

bibliobob

I'm doing both. Rooms are booked for both events, though I still need to register for the Dare. My wife and I will be riding, as well as a few other locals.... Looking forward to it!

Chrome Molly

Haven't booked rooms for either date yet, but will attend both events.

hodgykins 

I was able to book for Walker House for Saturday, but we had to stay at the Dairyland Motel on Friday...Walker house all booked up!

bibliobob

Well, that's that's the more important night of the two, as we'll be drinking more beer and telling lies about how we would've beaten Chrome Molly or iab if we hadn't had a mechanical malfunction....

iab

The sandbagging has already started?

Months before either event?

Saaaaawweeeet!


I was sick twice already this spring, severely inhibiting my training.

It is pouring here, severely inhibiting my training.

I have to do yardwork, severely inhibiting my training.

My hammie is acting up, severely inhibiting my training.


I'll have more later.