Knoxville Double Report
 

OK. I will start a new thread, as all the pain from yesterday has me awake at 6 anyway.

Knoxville started off GREAT. Seriously, I took the week off before the ride, and I hadn't felt that fresh in months. The first 100 miles flew by for me. I was able (with a few friendly soft-pedeling moments from Chris) to keep up with NY Chris, and the two of us kept leap-frogging Rydaddy and his crew at the rest-stops.

The first 100 was definitely my fastest century ever, clocking in at 6:12, including something like 7500ft climbing.

The night was cool, and putting in about 40 miles in the DARK was a new experience for me. I learned that my $40 "headlight" performed just like you'd think a $40 headlight would. It sucked. I tried to stay behind folks with the real lights, but I did catch a few bumps that I didn't see. If I do DV double I will have to upgrade.

From mile 90 to lunch, we were on this crazy remote road with very broken pavement and many dry creek crossings. It was during this stretch that I started getting my hotfoot in the left shoe, and weirdly, my left ankle started to REALLY hurt. Every pedal stroke felt like stabbing pain.

I gave in at lunch (mile 107) and took some ibuprofen. It seemed to help for a bit, but at mile 135 I had to take more. This was recurring, the pain in my ankle wasn't going away, but after putting in like 10 hours and 155 miles, I would have cut my foot off and pedaled with the stump before I let the double get away from me. Today though, I'm paying for it. My ankle is swollen and discolored. I hope it's some sort of sprain from the crazy bumps and not a torn ligament or something.

Back to the ride: After lunch it got HOT. There was a crazy climb at mile 120 or so that was a sustained 12% for 2-3 miles. It took me about 45 minutes to get up the hill, and there were many people pulled over resting in what little shade could be had. Many people ran out of water here, so there was a busy convenience store in the town at the top.

...more later. someone else write the final 75...

Great job Chris - looking forward to the rest of the reports as they trickle in. Hope the ankle is OK - riding 100+miles on a dodgy ankle sounds like a nightmare.

I was really looking forward to this after Mt Tam and Death Ride. Since I'm not a very good climber I liked the idea of the relaxed time cut-offs for this one.

Chis and I started out at 4:30. I was surprised at how warm it was. I felt strong and comfortable and we were quickly into Napa Valley where the temps dropped a good 10 or 15 degrees. The rest of the morning went very smoothly and it was looking to be one of my stronger doubles. Until the stretch before lunch. Everyone talks about Seigler Canyon as being the 'big climb' on this ride. For me it was the pre-lunch climb that almost caused me to DNF.

I was grinding up slowly when all of a sudden my heart rate went to just a few beats less than my max. This is usually caused by the heat. Since this is an exposed climb and the temps were in the high 90's (anyone know what the temp actually got to?) and 96% humidity I guess I was over-heating. This has happened before on Mt Dablo when it is over 106. Usually if I stopped for my heart rate to recover all would be well. I tried that but got very dizzy. I sat down in the road (nothing but goat head thorns off the road) and was quickly on the edge of throwing up. Head in hands for five minutes gave me enough strength to get up past the tunnel and into the water stop, It took lunch and grinding up Seigler Canyon before I felt well again but my leg strength never came back (of course that could just have been the 12,000 feet of climbing too.)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2481/...3224ea6d9c.jpg
Chris and me at the top of Seigler Canyon preparing for the last push up Cobb Mt.

I loved some of the later descents. I never feel more alive than while descending a medium 5 to 6 percent twisty canyon with creek and overhanging trees at dusk.

The last 75 miles of the ride are an endless series of medium to big (400-600 foot) rollers. Nothing near the climbing already done but by then I was ready to have it over. This was the stretch on this ride where I quit the sport and swore never to do a double again. I do that on every ride over 100 miles though.

Rolled in to the finish strongly after an 18 hour ride.

Pros:

- double riders are well represented in the volunteers so the rest stops are well run with a lot of focus on what a rider needs (Saw Marco and Ruth at the reservoir)

- best marked course I've ever done - Mt Tam could learn A LOT from the Quacks

- food at the end was very good and hot - on par with the food that Davis puts on after their double

- the scenery is stunning (though I didn't pay much attention to the middle third while recovering)

- SAG support was everywhere - on lots of rides I feel abandoned by SAG support while riding at the back - why do so many other rides concentrate their SAG in the front with the strongest riders?

- the whole general atmosphere / vibe of this ride was much more relaxed than any of the other doubles I've been on

Bummers:

- getting heat exhaustion of course - but the heat at mid day in general

- it is definitely a three water-bottle or hydration pack type of ride - with 35 miles and a lot of climbing between some stops it is easy to run dry

- more road kill than I've ever seen on a ride - and even more that I never saw but could smell

Lessons Learned:

- get different shorts - my Perl Izumi's have a huge thick chamois that has acted like a sponge the last three double - sitting on a very wet sponge for 200 miles leads to ... well, let's just say it isn't very pretty

- take more edurolytes - I took more than the usual 1 per hour that I used to take and had much better success eliminating bloat

- lose weight

Verdict:

- Easier than Mt Tam but harder than Davis (even with Davis's heat). I'll eagerly do this one again.

As with every double I ride something happens which bugs me. On this one I left my water bottles in the hotel, luckily one of the volunteers had a bottle to lend me so at least I had something. I enjoyed the early start. it was cool and riding down the first descent in the dark was great.
At the second rest stop i spoke to Marco and Ruth and also another volunteer lent me a second water bottle, which was a good thing for the next section of the ride was hot. At this point I started with a pain in my back which got worse as the day went on, climbing was hard because I had to sit all the way as it hurt too much to stand.
On some sections of the ride it was deserted, I didn't see many riders and I ended up riding on my own for a long time. I think if the temperature had been cooler I would have ridden better and not suffered as much and would probably have been able to keep up with other riders.
The last 35 miles I rode with three other people, they took pity on me and helped to the finish, I'm glad for that because riding the last part of the course near the Dam was very spooky and they all had very powerful lights on which lit up the road well.
I am glad it is over with and I now have my triple crown. This event has wonderful volunteers, the course is well marked, the rest stops are great.

I was working rest stop 2A - just after the tunnel. You all give me your number, remember. :D

Anyway, the car said it was 98 when we jumped into it at 2:30.

Veronica

Oh, Hi.

I don't even remember a rest stop 2a. I suppose the temp of 98 explains why I still feel cooked today.

2A was the water stop on Knoxville-Berryessa Rd, about 15 miles before the lunch stop.

Veronica

Thanks so much, Veronica. You were in the right spot at the right time for me. Definite DNF without you where you were.

Chris picked me up and we drove up to register Friday night and crash at Motel 6. Thanks for the ride, ygduf. Everything went well, we ate, we slept, we ate some more and were able to start rolling at 4:55am. I finished just past 7 before it got dark. So that is a great success I am happy about. But the course really did kick my ass, or the day did. I could not eat at the finish and vomited soon after arriving. Gross details later.

I break the ride down into segments, or parts and have some detailed numbers. My computer showed a ride time of 12h25m and I had about 1h rest/down time of 1h45m, with 15min coming on a rear flat around mile 150. I kind of welcomed the chance to stop and break.

Pt Start Fin ***Mi Break Notes
1 04:55 06:55 36 10m
2 07:05 09:05 35 15m
3 09:20 11:50 37 30m 1 road, 37 miles; 5m water stop
4 12:20 02:10 29 10m Car crash, almost clipped
5 02:20 04:10 24 10m Flat, 15m down time
6 04:20 06:10 28 10m
7 06:20 07:05 13

After lunch, there was the Loch Lomond climb. This really hit me hard, I think it hit everyone hard. I am surprised I was so consistent in the afternoon since my ride just seemed to get harder and harder. I suffered greatly, like I never have on a bike.

Maybe it was the lunch, maybe it was the heat, maybe it was drinking 1 bottle an hour per usual when the heat required more (plus extra fluids at the rest stop), or maybe it was Loch Lomond, for that to me was the killer climb (although it required nowhere near the effort of Marin Ave, which I had to keep reminding myself). By the 5th rest stop at mile 160, I did not feel nauseous per se but had no appetite and I knew I could not eat. At the mile 187 rest stop, I had some wheat thins and one of those juice things but had to force it down. At the finish, I could not eat a thing. I then went off to the side and got sick, vomiting the little in my stomach. Then I drank a glass of sparking cider in the complimentary glass (seemed like an OK idea), but that came up as we started driving away 20 minutes later. After an hour or so, feeling so miserable and so thirsty I finally had a few sips of water. 5 minutes before we got to my place, that came up. But I felt pretty good after that. Got home, had 20 oz. of soymilk and crashed. Finally ate some solid food around 2 today. I am feeling 100% now. I Woke up weighing 146 lbs, my normal is 154-156 and never, ever under 150.

Observations
*I did my first 3 doubles this year. For whatever reason, Knoxville was my hardest, Mt. Tam the next hardest and Terrible Two the least hard. Go figure.
*There were several sightings of people carrying rifles along Knoxville Ave, including kids with their dad. Must be a hunting area.
*With another rider, we were almost clipped by an SUV that straddled the white line and then a second later drifted over it (all 1-2 ft of shoulder), did this for a second or 2, and then just bombed off the road at full speed, probably 50mph, into a tree or pole and then bounced straight across the road into the embankment on the other side of the street. If we were 5 seconds ahead, it could have been ugly. Was he looking back at us after buzzing us? Drunk? Distracted? That was around mile 125 and really kicked in some major adrenaline.
*Very bad choice of the burrito at lunch. With all due respect to efforts of the organizers and volunteers, that was barely edible. But it was my choice so I take the blame.
*Ruth and Marco at Rest Stop 2. Thanks, guys, and the other volunteers.
*All in all, I am happy about the ride and completing the Triple Crown, but very humbled and somewhat perplexed at my nausea.

I don't have many good photos - I uploaded all of them to here - Knoxville Double photo slideshow

Daybreak
http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...ntury/d003.jpg

Lots of time spent in Wine Country
http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...ntury/d005.jpg

Rifleman in Background
http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...ntury/d010.jpg

Fire Damage
http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...ntury/d012.jpg

SUV that almost hit us
http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...ntury/d018.jpg

http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...ntury/d019.jpg

Folk Art
http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...ntury/d023.jpg

Good job everyone! chrisoco, glad nothing happened to you guys when that SUV went off the road.

There is a gang of CTC winners now.... :)

Congradulations everyone ... it was a hot weekend, which didn't make things easy. Loch Lomond is tough ... I remember doing that on the Davis Double (which had to be re-routed as an out and back two years ago, and I had to stop in the shade for several minutes). Glad you guys persevered through it all.

Good job everyone, and nice write ups. Crazy about that SUV. It was nice seeing all of you at RS 2.

I started the ride with three of my friends (between the lot of us, we'd done 88 double centuries; with me being the relative rookie). Here's what happened (this is the summary I posted on Facebook...):

Happened about 10 miles into the Knoxville Double Century yesterday. Was riding with 3 friends at about 6:00AM (before sunrise). The road was rather rough right in there. The first rider lost her bike computer and went to grab it as it was falling, then she knocked her light off of its mount, second rider yells 'stopping!' and scares rider one. ... Read MoreRider one crashes. Rider three crashes right in front of me. I don't think I hit her... It would see that the frame buckled due to the me hitting the front brake. The failure occurred at the end of a gusset that reinforces the joint between the downtube and the headtube. This pitches me over the handlebar... I landed on my back after hitting first with my hands and then my helmet (helmet is toast as well). All told though, I got off relatively injury-free: my right thumbnail has blood under it, and the tendons are sore. A few of my fingertips are numb. And my back feels like it's bruised, although no bruising has surfaced yet.

Fortunately, Joan was heading out to work at one of the rest stops. So I ended up being an "involuntary volunteer" at rest stops 2 and 4.

And now I get to shop for a new road bike and then head to the frame builder to hopefully get a warranty replacement ordered up for the frame...:twitchy:

-The bad news is that I'm doing the Furnace Creek 508 solo in less than two weeks and my only backup bike is a fixie. And I'm not doing the race on that! I'm probably going to borrow a bike from a friend whose girlfriend is doing the 508 as well. Hopefully it works for me! If it's the same model Trek as the one I rode yesterday, it should work...

Now, off to get a new helmet and try out some new bikes. So I'm off to the remaining shops that are open today (the local Cervelo dealer isn't open until tomorrow).

Oh, and here is the link to the pictures... I have more, but I've uploaded the ones of people I know.

http://s55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...o/Knoxville09/

Sounds like many folks had a rough go on the climb after lunch. Myself included.

I felt great for the first 85-90 miles. We had a few nice pacelines through Wooden Valley and then in Napa Valley. It's safe to say I spent too much time at the front of them. The mood was a little spoiled when someone went down hard on our way to Howell Mountain. Ygduf said he saw it coming - the guy was overlapping his wheel a lot. Anyway, I felt terrible. It sounded terrible. Hope the guy is ok.

By RS#2 I was still feeling ok, but the constant rollers on the way there were slowly taking their toll. I said hi to Marco and Ruth, refilled, and was on my way. Knoxville road was definitely interesting. The road was rough, but nothing compared to the roads I raced on at Leesville. Most people were cringing through this section, but I actually enjoyed it as I reminisced about my race.

The climb heading to RS#2a was where I began to break down. I watched all the fast climbers (whom I was hanging with earlier) disappear up the hill. I was pacing up with ygduf and he was beginning to have problems with his foot/ankle. Things weren't going so good but I grinded my way up these seemingly never ending climbs. It was getting hot too, in case that wasn't clear from earlier posts.

By lunch I was not feeling great, but not terrible either. I had a burrito, chips, and a soda and sat for a few minutes. As we left there were a few fast riders that I thought we could latch onto for a while. I bailed on that attempt right away. Just wasn't feeling strong enough to keep up. I soon found myself staring down a 12-15% climb, fully exposed to the sun. This was the beginning of the rest of my ride. Not even a mile into the climb my right quad started cramping. I looked at my computer and read 113 miles. This can't be. :eek:

I shifted to my lowest gear and switched from sitting to standing in order to fend off the cramps. I was so slow. 2-3 mph in some stretches. And I had to stop several times :o. Finally reaching the top, I saw my friend was waiting for me. I welcomed the shade and a nice long decent.

The rest of my ride was at or near total misery. I had to stop again heading to the Lake Hennessy. I was just about to crest the top of the hill when both legs locked up. The descent down to the rest stop was a great relief. I swear, I felt like there was a lot more climbing than descending. I had a cup-of-noodle and refilled water/Heed and sat for a few more minutes. Not a good sign when your legs cramp while sitting down. :mad:

I slowly limped up the hill toward Berryessa and a tandem passed me encouraging me to ride with them. I let them go for a minute but decided to try and hang. If I can stick with them up this hill they would be a great help in the flats towards Cardiac. I made it to the top not far from them and latched on for the next several miles.

On the short descent down to Cardiac the cramps started kicking again. Great. A hill I normally consider easy is about to kick my ass. I watched my riding partner and the tandem ride away up the hill. Amazingly, I never cramped during the climb. In fact as I reached the top, I sprinted out of the saddle and caught my tandem friends for the descent. At this point my mood started improving a bit. There were no more sustained climbs! :)

We cruised to the final rest stop with no problems. My tandem friends were also cramping and wanted to rest a little longer so my friend and I took off alone for the final 12 miles. It was just getting dark and I was finally on my second wind. We rode at a pace I was more accustomed to... 20-22mph. Yay!

We finished at 8:15pm, for a total time of 15:15. No idea on ride time as I have not looked at my bike since the ride. I'm glad there are no more doubles for me this year. I'll stick to commuting and mountain biking for a while.

Great job to everyone that made it! And a big thanks to all the volunteers! :thumb:

Sorry to hear about your crash. Especially with the 508 coming up. You guys were great to work with.

Nice Pics. You got one of Ruthie in action sporting the Quack Cyclist cap :)

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...ille09/KXp.jpg

Oh and us with Joan.

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g1...ille09/KXc.jpg

Wow! Another epic Double Century ride...

Congrats, gang. You guys are tough (and nuts)!

Fall DV is unbelievably dark. No light polution whatsoever. Just a awe inspiring vista of stars to light your way. I did it last year with a cheapo light and it was all ok apart from the last descent which was downright scary. I did ride in the middle of the road a lot to avoid slipping off into the sand. Worst thing about riding in the desert in pitch black is that you get no sensation of movement. There are no objects to give you any sensation of speed. Time and distance really dragged and It did my head in.

Hope to see you out there.

I'm really undecided right now. I have the 3 for the triple crown, and KV was pure misery towards the end. I don't know if I have it in me to put in the necessary miles for DV. We'll see. A few more days will pass and I'll remember the good parts of KV and the bad parts will fade, I'm sure.

What's the weather like in the fall DV? Cool/Cold?

Awesome efforts, great courage and grit shown by all.
You make me want to take on my 2nd double next year.

Weather was warm last year. I have gone off the rails with training for this event too. Going to try to get myself sorted to attempt it on the trike again (even though I said I never would). Here is my report from last year http://catrike.yuku.com/topic/3079 . Hopefully you can see the link.

Then again, there's Bass Lake, with 9400 feet climbing.

You guys were a blast to work with as well! I just wish I could have seen it from the other side of things (meaning, from the rider perspective!).

The good thing to come out of this is that I scored an awesome Look 595 frameset today at a local bike shop. They're transferring most of the parts off my old frame onto the new frame.

Here's a pic of the new frame. It has a custom paint job that was created for Rock Racing. Fortunately all the parts that say Rock Racing are vinyl, so I can just take those of. :)

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g160/Fueco/Look/A.jpg

Fueco - sorry to hear about the frame damage and DNF.

That's fine looking replacement frame though. Good luck in the 5:twitchy:8!

Thanks rydaddy for the lift. I was sluggish at the start - 99% of the time I am asleep at this hour. But around mile 2 you came past with a posse in tow and Chris and I jumped in with the group which largely carried me to the first rest stop, 36 miles in 2 hours.

I rode the double on this wheel, which I guess is toast but has been functioning like this for some time.
http://i468.photobucket.com/albums/r...isoco/d001.jpg

Wow. Good thing there weren't any long stretches of poor roads!