H-Bear

I registered ($70, including bus ride back to Austin) and the 100-mile map is available here:

https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UT...3,2.081909&z=9

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone knew the status of jerseys. I contacted Carol (Registration Co-Ordinator) and the Shiner store with no success. Since this is Shiner's 100-year anniversary, think it would be a really cool commemorative jersey. So if anyone has insight, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks!

Tex_Arcana

I probably looked in the same places you did and there was no joy, especially since I only saw information for GASP and not Houston BASH. That's the ride I'd be interested in. I guess I'll just have to ride to Shiner on my own sometime. I'll make it my Shiner Pilgrimage. Is there a better more bike friendly route then 90 A to get there?

spaceballs

How steep is this route? I don't have all that much time to prepare, but pretty sure I could handle it. Last time I drove that way I wasn't riding and paid no attention to elevation changes.

H-Bear

Carroll (I misspelled her name earlier) got back to me and said the event director was out of town. She will get on it next week and let me know.

As for another route from Houston to Shiner, I have no idea. However, please let me know if you come across one because I would be interested in a Houston to Shiner Pilgrimage as well.

I don't believe the roads are extremely steep, yet are still challenging. I've heard in the past that headwind was a problem but since it's pretty much a straight shot, guess that should be expected. If you're taking a bus back to Austin, make sure you complete the ride within 10 hours since the last bus leaves at 5. It would suck to finish then immediately get in a bus and head back. I want my free beer, dammit!

H-Bear

Woo-hoo!

I've already booked a room at the Courtyard on Ben White, since the start is at the Met Center (8201 E. Riverside). This is either going to be a blast or an absolute waste of money.

Creakyknees

I did GASP a couple years ago, I think the route was 80-something miles. Few if any hills to speak of, but a nice strong steady headwind the whole way.

Pretty light traffic, some nice backroads but also some long stretches of chipseal on hwy shoulders. Bring your fatter tires and run 90psi if you can.

But yeah, it's pretty much a "classic" Texas ride, you gotta do it eventually.

czexanbmxn

I always wanted to do that ride when I lived in Katy. Now my folks have moved back to the old family place near Moravia, about 20 minutes from Shiner. I'd thought about various routes from Katy to Moravia and the surrounding area, but never ended up riding any of them. Going down US-90(and the I-10 feeder in some places) you could make it to Columbus, where you could pick up FM 2434 on the other side of town, take that to FM 155, south of Weimar.

From there, there are many options. FM 532 all the way out to Moulton, then south to Shiner on TX 95. Or FM 532 to FM 957 south to Hallettsville, then US-90A to Shiner. Then there's always FM 532 to Komensky, FM 1295 south to Witting, then FM 340 out to TX 95, 95 to Shiner. And depending on which county roads in the vicinity have been paved over, there may be more options for shortcuts and/or scenic routes. I know of some great backroads out there, but many are gravel.

Another option is US-90 all the way to Schulenburg, where you could take US-77 to FM 532 or Hallettsville. Or you could take FM 957 to FM 532. Or 90 to Flatonia and hop on TX 95... I've been going between Katy and Moravia and the towns around it for most of my life, so I've seen a road or two around there.

I've done a bit of riding in the Hallettsville-Moravia-Moulton-Flatonia-Witting area and it's nice riding out there. There's a ride in Schulenburg the same day as the GASP, I'm not sure of the routes. https://rmcortez05.googlepages.com/steeplechasebikeride

-Chase

Ironic Mullet

Assuming the route hasn't changed since 2006......

Tex_Arcana

That's pretty cool route wise I'd end up going quite a few miles out of my way northwards then turning back south. Sounds like the scenic route though. Since I live more in the sw part of Houston I'm thinking that US 90 A is more a straight shot. Just got to make my way over to 6 turn south then west when I hit 90 A. Probably a lousy route though for someone that likes the sounds of nature over busy highway noise. I'll try mapping everything out and make a decision. Might find a compromise halfway between both.

H-Bear

I'm headed out this afternoon for a quick (?) round trip. Might as well grab a beer or two or three at the Shiner Saloon since I'll be there

From last night's email:

Dear Rider,

Thank you for participating in the 2009 Shiner GASP benefiting the American Cancer Society - 100 years, 100 miles. Please review the following rider instructions.

Packet pick up times are as follows: Thursday, April 30th, 4-7pm at Jack and Adams, Friday, May 1, 11am-7pm at Jack and Adams, then Saturday from 5:30-6:30am at the Met Center. Directions: www.shinergasp.com

The Midnight River Choir will kick off the party at 1pm followed by Somebody's Darling.

***Also, don't forget we are unveiling the 100th Anniversary Bike Jersey Thursday Night 5:30-7:30pm at the Shiner Saloon at 6th/Congress in Austin. Happy Hour food from the Shiner Smokehouse plus Shiner Beer specials available. A few jerseys may be offered for sale at the Shiner Saloon, then will be available for purchase at packet pick up at Jack and Adams on Friday as well as in the brewery store while supplies last.

-------------

RIDE INSTRUCTIONS – PLEASE READ

2009 Shiner GASP Bike Ride Presented by Shiner Beer
benefiting the American Cancer Society.

Special Thanks to: Shiner Beer and all the staff at the Spoetzl Brewery, Jack and Adams, Shiner Smokehouse, Power Bar, Pure Austin Fitness, Climb On, Grubb & Ellis, Please Be Kind to Cyclists and all the volunteers who help make the ride possible!

Ride Start Time 7 a.m. from Austin, start area is at The Met Center, 7501 Metro Center Drive, Austin, TX 78744 Directions to start from Austin: From I-35, go east on Ben White Blvd / TX-71. Turn right on E. Riverside Drive. Turn right on Metro Center Drive. Go ~.5 mile and turn left to approach the start. Park in the large lot on the left. You may be towed if you park anywhere else on the property! Make sure you are parked at the START, not the La Quinta or any of the other buildings!

What to Bring. On the morning of the ride, you may drop 1 small soft-sided drop bag (nothing valuable, please!) at the start and we will have it waiting for you in Shiner. Please attach your provided ride number to your bag.

Please bring a valid driver’s license or government ID if you plan to consume any beer. Beer servers will ID anyone who looks under 30 years of age.

Course will be marked with large white signs with “Shiner GASP” and an arrow indicating which direction to go. There will be a sign at every turn. Please note we have a NEW 100 MILE COURSE to celebrate 100 YEARS of Shiner Beer.

Rest areas are located every 10-17 miles and will be stocked with water, Power Bar Endurance Beverage, Power Bars, Power Gels, fruit, snacks and cheering volunteers to keep your energy high. There will also be PB&J at the later aid stations. PLEASE NOTE: For aid station #6 in Muldoon, you must leave the official course for a couple hundred yards to get to the aid station. Make sure you turn around and head south when you leave!!!

SAG Wagons. Jack and Adam’s Bicycles support vehicles will be traveling the route all day long to keep our cyclists safe. If you need SAG for any reason, give the van a thumbs down signal. Our drivers will be sure to pick you up! And at the rest stops, our drivers are great about checking around with the riders before heading on to the next stop. Course will close at 3pm. Time may be adjusted if headwind is severe.

Mechanical Support. Jack and Adam’s mechanics will be on hand along the route to provide minor repairs and adjustments. Since rest stops are 10–17 miles apart and SAGs cannot be everywhere at once, we highly recommend that you take along a flat repair kit, water, snacks, cell-phone, rain-gear and a map of the route.

Don’t miss the post race party! After cyclists cross the finish line at the Spoetzl Brewery, an afternoon of food and, of course, ice cold Shiner Beer awaits! The bands will play from approximately 1-4pm. We'll have extra showers set up so you can rinse off and change clothes. Enjoy a little more Shiner hospitality by taking a free tour of the historic Spoetzl Brewery from 1-4pm. Please note: You must have your pull tag from your bib # to access the shower truck! No exceptions!

Food provided by the Shiner Smokehouse and includes brats, veggie sausage and sides. You will be stamped indicating you have received your food. Partner pass holders will also receive a stamp. You may purchase a partner pass at the info booth for friends/family for $20 each on ride day.

For those who have signed up for the bus ride home, the schedule will be as follows:
2:30p, 3:00p, 3:30p, 4:00p, 4:30p, a deluxe motor coach leaves about every 30 minutes. Place your bike in one of the trailers next to the buses, then load up. Buses are first come first serve. Pick up your bike at the Met Center in Austin.

Thanks for participating in the Great Austin To Shiner Pedal, and thank for supporting The American Cancer Society! We’ll see you at the brewery.

froggmann

Hope you get one of those 100th anniversary jerseys. Traditionally the Shiner jerseys are hard to come by. Good luck and be sure to post pics if you get one.

Tyrell

Yeah, where's the pics? Wifey is picking up our packets today. Hoping she gets me one for my b-day.

H-Bear

Sorry for the crappy pictures, camera is already packed in the car.

Tyrell

Buddy came back form packet pickup and told they were ugly. I don't think they're half bad! Will reserve final judgment for when I see them in person tomorrow though....as I squint into the wind....

gotcha640

My wife and I will be at the Marriot South tonight and tomorrow night. We've done 60 milers a few times a month this year, and the MS 80 two weeks ago, but this is our first century, so look for us at the back of the group tomorrow. I'll be on a green and yellow Miyata, she's got a white and pink Dolce. Hope to meet some of you guys.

H-Bear

First off, I did my first Century!!!

w00t!

Secondly, it was a great ride. For the first 70 miles, was having my best ride by far. Almost 17 mph, felt fantastic, and having an absolute blast.

Then turned straight into the headwind. If I were to guess, 15-20 mph with 30 mph gusts. It was so bad that while going down hill, I couldn't get over 14 mph, even while pedling. So from the last 30-20, started to feel exhausted and could barely hold 10 mph. The last 9, I was constantly looking at my spedometer (sp?) and it was worse than watching water come to a boil.

Then at 99 miles, the adrenaline kicked in and I was crusing once again. I kept telling myself, only 2 miles to go, and damn it felt great.

Finished #339, in the saddle for 6:50 and 7:25 total time, and finished average of 14.6 mph (thanks headwind, you *******).

The party was fun but I was really too exhausted to really appreciate it.

While the good more than outweighed the bad, there were a couple of things that I hope get corrected going forward.

1) Ride Marshals: They could have been there but I didn't see one.

2) Showers in Shiner: Not nearly enough. Only 2 trucks, cold water and very low water pressure. As for the lines, it probably took me 45 minutes. The girls, on the other hand, got screwed. Guys had 3 while only 1 for them and probably twice as long of a wait. Had to wait forever for my girlfriend, though finishing 45 minutes earlier probably didn't help.

3) Bike return in Austin: We had to wait only 15 or so minutes but there really wasn't a system in place. No one really knew what to do, so riders just started to unload and put them in the grass. The volunteers didn't check rider numbers with the bike, so it was sorta like an honor system.

So overall, I give the ride

Pictures will be posted tomorrow.

jjurach

I'm new to cycling. I bought a Trek 7.3fx 6 weeks ago, I did the 75 mile route at the Cow Patty Classic a few weeks back, and on Saturday, I completed this Shiner GASP -- my second benefit ride. I like my bike, but I wonder if my long-distance interests wouldn't have been better aligned with a road bike..

I'm uplifted to see someone else mention that crazy headwind. At the finish line (after 9.25 hours total time), I was using words similar to the following to describe the ride: "despair" (am I going to make it? is this really fun?) and "loneliness" (where is everybody? most of the people i passed apparently took the bus, and there were apparently very few people left at my end).

This was the hottest day I've ridden, though the temperature reading on my speedometer never read above 93F. By 70 miles, I was also starting to battle a throbbing headache, and my seat bones started crying out in agony when I stood up after sitting for more than about 5-10 minutes.

The first 70 miles were a blast, though. Even at the finish line, I knew I'd eventually come around to remember the 70 good miles. I feel very positive about the ride this day later.

I'll be training in warmer weather with various rides around Austin, and I'm looking forward to my next ride: maybe the Real Ale ride in Blanco in 4 weeks.

H-Bear

I was hoping for better pictures but oh well... While it being slightly overcast isn't the best for pictures, it ain't too shabby for a Century ride



















I can only post 10 pictures, so to see more: Shiner GASP Photobucket

gotcha640

I couldnt find an appropriate thread in Long DIstance, so here goes:

My wife and I did this ride, and finished up around 5pm. When we left the 2nd to last rest stop (Flatonia) we were the only people on bikes. There was a bus there that was packed, no more room for bikes under neath so people were taking them inside with them. There were another 50+ people lying in the grass, sitting in lawn chairs, etc. Final stop, there were 3 people on their bikes, I assume a bus had just left there. We pushed on to finish, but at the expense of any amenities at the end: no beer left (I've already written a letter to Shiner), no time for a shower, no time for a massage, no time to eat...

I realize that a ride such as this draws almost as many beer drinkers as cyclists. For the first half, we were near the back of the cyclists, but well ahead of the beer drinkers. Then the beer drinkers got tired and rode the bus to shiner, and the hard core cyclists were almost done. We were within the last 20 people to roll in, and it was disappointing to see the tents being rolled up and the kegs floated. We had a similar experience at the MS150. As we rolled in to Austin the majority of people were cheering at the railings, which was great, but once we'd waited a few minutes for our friend, loaded our bikes, and got to our team tent, everyone was packing up.

Question is, what kind of time are the regular riders finishing in? I'll keep training if I can get a goal in mind, but if you have to sag it half way or average 24 mph just to get what I paid for, these big group rides may not be for me. Which is fine.

czexanbmxn

Sounds like y'all had a good ride, if a little windy...I ended up riding the Schulenburg Steeplechase Bike Ride that day nearby. Our second-to-last rest stop on the 70 mi route was actually in Praha, just a few miles from the Flatonia stop. The Schulenburg ride was nice, covering some very scenic country in southern Fayette and northern Lavaca counties. The wind played hell for us at times, but since ours was a loop we didnt have as much to deal with as y'all did. I rode from my parents' house south of Moravia to the start, and when we passed by it toward the end, I picked up my mandolin to pick around with some friends at the finish line. I think having that case strapped to my back acted as a bit of a sail, and hepled the wind push me while I carried it for the final 10 miles.

I like those jerseys...kinda makes me thirsty...