Boy, this is definitely an epic ride that had just about everything! The first 130 miles of the ride was a huge struggle while the 2nd half got a lot easier. Now for the whole story!

 

For the last couple of weeks, I was waffling whether or not to do 400 KM or bite the bullet and attempt a 2 day 600 KM pound fest. One of the things I will often do when I am weighing the pros and cons of each alternative is to consult with folks who have "been there, done that". After weighing the pros and cons and taking into account that I am leading the "DB 60" on Memorial Day, I finally concluded that the 400K is the best choice. As things unfolded, I made the right choice.

 

As expected, the ride got off to a wet start, the troops gathered around the front end of the Executive Inn on the western outskirts of Mineral Wells at around 6:30 am or so and despite the wet start, there were no drop outs and the ride started on time. Soon after we began, everyone got in their respective groupings. I started out in a small group consisting of Jorge, Pam W, Rani F, Todd, Gary Gottlieb, Han (not our Hans) and later Ryan. Most of this group are doing the 400K. Our group stayed together pretty well all the way to Glen Rose. Despite fighting a bit of a head wind and climbing a total of approx 3500-4000 feet on the first leg, our group managed to pound out a fairly respectable 16.3 mph average all the way into Glen Rose. Despite the relatively fast start, there were some signs that things were starting to go wrong. First, I was burning up in my rain jacket which I kept on all the way to Glen Rose because we were hitting some scattered showers throughout that first leg. Second, a spoke managed to work loose as the ride wore on which knocked my back wheel out of true bad enough for the brakes to start rubbing as we were pulling into Glen Rose. I was not aware there was a problem until Pam Wright pointed it out to me when we got into Glen Rose. At the Glen Rose control, Sonny and George Evans took a look at my rear wheel and did a temporary fix with a Mavic spoke wrench. The temporary fix was good enough to get me to the next control in Meridian. Unfortunately, the stretch between Glen Rose and Meridian was when I started to get into some real trouble. The beginning of this leg began innocently enough, our little 400K group left Glen Rose together and stayed together for about the first 5 or so miles of this stretch. I was a little tired but was keeping up with everybody until we started hitting some big rollers about halfway between Glen Rose and Walnut Springs. This was about the time I started to get the dreaded "hot foot" which is (for me anyway) a sure sign that I am starting to go through the dreaded "slow motion bonk". I started to fall off the back and arrived at the Meridian control about 5 minutes behind my group. Another sure sign that I was getting into trouble; my average from Glen Rose to Meridian dropped like a rock; my average in Glen Rose; 16.2. My average in Meridian, 14.9! At the Meridian control, I drank a 1 quart bottle of Gatorade, ate 2 Trail Mix bars, and got off my feet for a few moments which seemed to help. Meanwhile, Sonny worked on my rear wheel a bit and helped get that issue squared away. Unfortunately, the slow motion bonk will bet progressively worse from Meridian to Hico. This leg like the one from Glen Rose to Meridian started off ok and I was actually having little problems keeping up with the group for the first several miles; in fact; there were a couple of times where I was actually one of the first ones up the hills. That did not last very long. The hot foot returned pretty quick and around the time we turned off on some county roads off TX 22, I went from keeping up to dropping off like a rock. I wound up falling about 2 miles behind everyone. Luckily, the vegetation in the area between Meridian and Hico has thinned out enough to where I can actually see the group ahead of me, thus I was able to make the correct turns. A couple of other things that really help me on some of these Brevets. One is that I will sit down and really study the cue sheets on the nights leading up to the ride and second, I know the area we travel pretty well due to the many, many, trips I have taken out here over the past 20 or so years. As the miles wore on, the signs of the slow motion bonk got progressively worse. I was beginning to feel rubbery in the legs and by the time I got into the Hico control, I was feeling very light headed. Pam Wright and Jorge saw me come in and made me go to the lunch counter and order food immediately. They made the right call although I was really in no condition to do anything other than lay down in the cool, rest, and let things stabilize a bit before I eat anything "heavy". Before I laid down in the booth to rest, I ordered a turkey and ham hoagie with everything and then picked up some V8 and chocolate milk to drink. I went ahead and drank the V8 and then laid down and then did the lay down and shut my eyes for 20 minutes thing before I did anything else. I told my group to go on and that I needed to stay and rest and recover for a while. Meanwhile, Sonny came over and asked me how I was feeling and went over a check list of what I was eating and drinking before I got to Hico. He made the correct diagnosis; I was low on electrolytes and suffered a bit of a "sugar crash". He gave me a couple of packs of GU, had me take a couple of electrolyte tablets, and told me to sit down for about an hour after I ate. As I continued to rest, several other riders arrived at the Hico control including Dennis Cook and a companion from San Angelo who will be my riding partners from Hico into Gordon. The things that were done at the Hico rest stop is what saved the day for me. The ride from this point on takes a dramatic turn to the better!

 

At about 6:30 pm, Dennis, his traveling companion and I began our journey to Dublin. The stint from Hico to Dublin is the shortest leg between the control points and probably one of the flattest. With the exception of some chip seal, this stretch on TX 6 is also one of the smoothest as well. The combination of the refueling and 1 hour rest in Hico, the relatively flat road, and the slight tail wind was enough to allow me to catch a second "wind", enough so that I went from being off the back to way up in front "just like that". There were several stretches where I soft pedaled so Dennis and his friend will catch up to me which they did just about the time we were pulling into Dublin. I later learned that Dennis had an issue which required a quick stop. The issue was taken care of and Dennis was ok. George Evans was at the control in Dublin. He signed our Brevet cards and asked how I was doing. Dennis remarked that Sonny must have given me some "performance enhancers" because it seemed like I was awakened from the dead. I made one "mistake" at the Dublin control. I bought a quart of Gatorade and a V8, drank the V8 first and slugged down the Gatorade way too fast. My drinking the Gatorade too fast caused a gag reaction which made me throw the Gatorade and V8 back up. After about 5 minutes of getting a good razz from everyone, I bought a smaller bottle of Gatorade, drank it slowly and everything was under control. Meanwhile, George Evans made us aware of some bad road conditions about 15 miles up from Dublin. There is one short section where new chip seal was laid but not oiled and one 100 yard section where the road was completely torn up and impassible by bike. Sonny volunteered to Ferry everyone across this section. Our group of 3 left Dublin as darkness began to set in. With the exception of having to cross the unpaved section, the trip from Dublin to Gordon was fast and uneventful. By the time we hit this stretch, the rain clouds disappeared and a 3/4 moon appeared. The moon lit the roads well enough that we could see the roads pretty well without lights if we so chose. We pulled into the Gordon control around 11:30 am or there about. Again, George Evans signed the Brevet cards and Sonny soon joined him. Sonny and George gave us some tips on finishing the ride and mentioned that there will be no food or open stores for the final 60 miles of the ride. Since Dennis and his friend are only doing 350K, they opted to get something quick and go on their way. I went ahead and ordered a Texas Omelet at the truck stop restaurant figuring that I will need something high in protein to complete the last leg of the ride. After eating the omlette and the usual truck stop greasy fare which was surprisingly very good and getting some new batteries for my headlights, I was off into the never worlds of solo cycling in complete darkness way out in the middle of no where. The final 100K of the ride is an experience I will definitely remember. The only light I had was the moonlight and my head light. The traffic was very sparse. I bet there were no more than 10 or maybe 15 cars at the most for the entire last leg. There is the eerie but pleasant sound of all the nocturnal creatures talking to each other and calling out their mating calls. The primary source of the noise came from various and sundry nocturnal birds and of course the coyotes. There was even some fog in the valley and a light show over the horizon courtesy of some thunderstorms somewhere up in Wise County and a gas well flare fire somewhere outside of Mineral Wells. Never the less, despite the darkness, the road conditions and weather conditions were very favorable and the moon lit the roads just enough where I could actually open up and go fast (20 mph plus) on the flats and low inclines. I deliberately slowed down when I hit the bigger hills in order to save energy for the 5 major climbs to come (Apple Pie Hill, the climb on HWY 16 coming out of Possum Kingdom Lake, and the 3 Amigos near the end of the ride. The first major climb, Apple Pie Hill was not that bad, never the less, I did take my time climbing the hill which enabled me to make a quick recovery to open things up all the way to Hwy 180. I then made the turn to the west and took advantage of the no traffic conditions on US 180 and rode in the middle of the lane which was as smooth as glass. I rode this stretch at a good, steady pace (around 16-18 mph) but did not want to go any faster due to the possible unseen debris on the road. The same thing held true for HWY 16 going up to Possum Kingdom Lake. I rode in the middle of the lane at a moderate to brisk pace and spent half of the time looking for the final control which was a standalone Whataburger/Barbecue pit joint with a pavilion and picnic tables set up next to the store. Since the Whataburger was closed, the LSR volunteers left a jug of water and a Tupperware container full of cookies and other cycling fare for the "night riders". I stopped at the Whataburger control, ate a couple of cookies, swigged the water and took a 15 or 20 minute nap before doing the final leg of the ride. This final leg began with a huge descent on HWY 16 next to Possum Kingdom dam and a subsequent climb out of the valley which turned out not to be that bad. One of the interesting things about the climb was seeing how well the moon lit the valley and that there were some vantage points where you can actually see the Brazos River. After the Ascent from the Possum Kingdom dam area, it was onward to Graford (it seemed like the Graford, spur 334 turn off would never come) on TX254 and then the spur 334 turn off and a date with the 3 Amigos and seeing the gas well flare light up the entire 15 miles of highway. Despite the late hour and the onset of sleepiness, the 3 Amigos were not that bad although the 2nd amigo got pretty darn difficult as I neared the summit. After the conquest of the 3 Amigos, it was a fast dash to the motel. I got to the motel in time to see alot of the 600 and 1000K riders begin their 2nd loops. The long riders did 350K on their first loop and will do another 250-350K today. I did the longer ride on the first day. My arrival time was 4:58 am which was a whopping 21 hours and 58 minutes on the road.

 

Statistics and final thoughts;

 

1. Total time on the road 21 hours and 58 minutes.
2. Time on the bike 17 hours and 15 minutes.
3. Food consumed; 3 trail mix bars, 1 turkey sandwich, 1 Texas Omlet, 2 bananas, and 1 bagel.
4. Fluid consumed; 4 V8's, 2 half pints of chocolate milk, 5 quarts and 1 pint of Gatorade (with one quart of Gatorade winding up on the pavement in Dublin), 1 camelback of water.

 

Things that went well;

 

1. Favorable weather conditions for the last 130 miles of the ride.
2. Timely intervention and advice from the SAG team of Sonny and George. Sonny took care of my rear wheel problem and lent me 2 GU's and 1 electrolyte tablet in Hico which gave me the boost I needed to get my second wind and finish the ride in good shape.
3. Great riding partners (Pam, Todd, Jorge, Rani for the first 100 miles and Dennis and his buddy from Hico to Gordon).
4. The Texas Omelet gave me enough juice to enable me to conquer Apple Pie Hill, the Possum Kingdom Lake ascent, and the 3 Amigos in good order.
5. The sounds of the nocturnal animals were quite entertaining and the moon was bright enough to enable me to see the road pretty well.
6. The since of accomplishment of finishing my first double century.

 

Things that went wrong. Actually only 2 things of any consequence.

 

1. The long slow motion bonk from Glen Rose to Hico. I was very worried when I pulled into Hico.
2. The rear wheel was way out of true and was not holding very well until Sonny made the final adjustments in Hico.

 

Overall, the ride went pretty well. The slow motion bonk could have been avoided by my being more diligent in taking GU and electrolytes and doing a better job of drinking during the ride. In retrospect, I am glad I did the 1 day 400K ride instead of the 600K option I was considering. Each randonneur ride is a learning experience and I feel that I need to get more 300 and 400K rides under my belt before I do multi day events.