Death Ride 2009

In the weeks preceding Death Ride I logged a 104 century ride up Mt. Hamilton and several 5+ hour rides, one which included a climb up Mt. Diablo. On a mtb ride the week before my friends had assured me I was prepared for Death Ride. I went into the ride feeling adequately trained (thanks Coach Thomas) and confident.

We started the day much later than originally anticipated. We arrived in Markleeville and were ready to roll at 6:30AM, much later than the official 5:30AM start and much, much later than the first rider who started at 3:30AM. I wasn't even up at that gawd awful time! The weather was clear with temps in the low 60's to start, perfect riding weather! Micah, Roland and I agreed to ride at our own pace and meet up at the aid stations. My goals for the day were to take it easy, eat at every aid station and make sure I took in every minute of the ride. Each pass holds some spectacular Sierra views and I wanted to remember the awesomeness of the day and not the pain. I set an easy pace heading out to the base of the first two passes. It felt so much easier than when I rode in during a training ride! At the base of Monitor I stopped to take off my jacket and snapped my first picture. Against the rules, I had brought my iPod with me to help with any tough grinds.

I didn't remember Monitor being a tough climb until the final pitch where you questioned where the top was. My easy pace had me passing people and being paced and I reminded myself this was not a timed event nor a race. I took in the views, said hi to almost everyone, chatted with some folks and enjoyed the first climb. I got several comments about my pink ensemble and had a good time with it. At the first aid station I stopped to fill my water bottle and ate some Fig Newtons. The aid workers and I joked about my pinkness and how it would make me go faster.

I continued on, passing people who were breathing really hard. Not a good sign half way through your first pass! I took in the views and continued to chat with people and held a nice easy pace. The next aid station was at the top of Monitor pass. As you neared the aid station a crew would put a sticker on your bib marking your first earned pass. I took in the amount of people there, ate fig newtons, filled the water bottles and chatted folks up. The pink get-up continued to be a conversation starter. The first time I had ridden Monitor I was much more tired than I was today. I still felt fresh and ready for more.

As we headed down the backside of Monitor the folks who started near the official start time were coming back up. Waves and waves of people pedaling. It was almost annoying since they were taking up the entire road way on the left and folks were breaking out of the pack to pass. As we were flying down a straggler would break away into our lane so you always had to keep your speed slightly in check for the unpredictable behavior. Although I had wished we had started earlier I was glad not to be in a crowd like that. I found Thomas in a wave of people and waved to him.

At the base of Monitor I ate again, filled water bottles and made jokes about my pinkness. They placed another sticker on my bib for a second pass earned (officially earned once you got back to the top). I remembered the backside of Monitor being a hot slog the first time I did it. I also more than vaguely remembered the 3 miles at 8% grade. Micah and I took off together and chatted as we rode. The views aren't as spectacular going up the backside of Monitor so it was nice to have a buddy as well as my iPod to keep me entertained. We saw very few people coming down and it almost felt like we were the last riders out there since I knew we were behind the early starter pack. I thought back to the training ride where I kept hitting a false summit and was mentally breaking down because I just wanted it to be over. This time up Monitor I didn't even feel the 8% grade and enjoyed the whole climb.

Coming down the front side of Monitor you can reach crazy speed. Since very few people were climbing and the road was closed to traffic it was like having the whole road to yourself. I tried to keep my eyes on the road but also look down at the GPS. The fastest I saw (which was the fastest I was comfortable going that speed and looking down at the GPS) was 44.7mph. At that point I thought to myself that it wasn't really necessary to be going this fast and backed off. Two guys passed me and I was following closely until one of the guys water bottle flew off his bike and began bouncing right in front of me. Visions of this literally becoming my own personal death ride flashed before me as I was riding at 38mph. Fortunately the bottle bounced just out of my line just in time for me to avoid hitting it. At that point I decided it was better to keep things well in check and take it easy on the descents.

At the bottom on Monitor I made the left turn to begin Ebbetts Pass. I hadn't pre ridden Ebbetts so I wasn't really sure what to expect. The lower half of Ebbetts was a nice grade and I could sit back and really enjoy the riding. Micah was starting to cramp and hung back with me as Roland continued on at his own speed. I was told that Ebbetts was not as steep as Monitor but longer with short but steeper grades. We stopped at the aid station and thought of just continuing on but a man and his daughter said this was the one stop that he never missed to refill his water bottles since he ran out of water in a previous year. I questioned this a little when he said it was six miles to the top since I knew the climb was much longer than that. Most of Ebbetts has nice grades and was easy riding but it wasn't long before the steeper grades made their appearance. Ebbetts had some of the most spectacular views and I couldn't help but stop and snap a few pictures. The epicness of this ride is partially comprised of distance and elevation gain but also the sheer awesomeness of the views.

As we were riding up Ebbetts I saw Rand for a second time and he screamed a hello as he descended down It's pretty easy to spot someone all decked out in pink. Another friend stuck out his tongue as us and then some random guy made another comment. Roland made the comment he felt like he was riding with a celebrity. There were several steeper grades on Ebbetts but I never really felt the 12%. I could feel that I was starting to get a little tired but not nearly as tired as I expected myself to feel. The top of Ebbetts was a huge cluster with people crammed into a much smaller space. Riders were laying down on the dirt taking naps and resting, riders were trying to ride through in each directions, bikes littered every available inch of space. We stopped to refuel and get Micah some salt to help his cramping. The aid stations were well stocked with watermelon, oranges, baked fingerling potatoes, PB&J on bagels, cookies, potato chips, gummy bears, the typical gu and shot blocks, soda, V8, water and Cytomax. We refueled and then headed down Ebbetts. The backside of Ebbetts is a narrow one lane road so you couldn't pick up speed on the descent since there were too many people out. It was only 5 miles down before the turn around. I had gotten a bit chilled at the top of Ebbetts so I wore my jacket for the descent. As I was rolling through the check point the young girl couldn't see my bib and ran after me yelling 'where is it, where is it?' I stopped so she could place my 4th pass sticker on me.

There wasn't a need for more water at that point so we quickly turned our bikes and headed back up. Many folks were in survival mode just slowly spinning their wheels to make it up. Again, the views were just amazing and I took it all in. I was listening to my Ipod and enjoying the experience when I passed a male rider who was struggling. As I passed him I heard him say "you look entirely too relaxed this far into the ride". At that point I thought back to 2005 when I had taken a job 12 miles from my home. On the drive into work that first day I saw several cyclists riding the roads and thought that was something I could do, ditch the car and commute via bike. I hadn't been on a bike since high school when I bought my first road bike and attempted the commute. Although I was active with hiking, I wasn't fit enough to do the full 24 mile commute. I was fortunate to have two cars so I would shuttle the commute, taking the bike to work in the morning and riding home that evening then riding to work the next day and driving back home the next. It took a few months to gain the fitness to do the 24 mile round trip commute 4 days a week. 4 years and thousands of mile later I was riding Death Ride! I had come a long way and cycling had taken over as my sport of choice. All sorts of thoughts cross your mind as you share the road with 2800 cyclists on an epic cycling journey. It was a good day to be alive.

The V8 had really helped Micah and his cramping and him Roland had grow wings and flew up Ebbetts. At the top I overhead someone say that the cut off time was 4PM at Woodfords. If you had not made it to that point by the cutoff time you were not allowed to attempt the final pass. It was 2:15PM and I began to get concerned about making the cutoff. The final cutoff was 5:15 at the base of Carson Pass. Given how windy the day had been up to this point and from hearing past experiences I knew Carson would be a grind and that we'd be blessed with a strong headwind. It was the final stage of the ride and we would be tired to boot. I found Micah and told him that I was going to continue on since I wanted to make sure I made the cutoff times. Fitness wise I still felt good and was confident I would make the final pass. I did not want this day to end with us missing a cutoff time and being pulled off the ride. We went back and forth on cutoff times and what we should do but the only option for me was to get rolling. I didn't want to be pushed for time and didn't want to ride with stress looming over me.

On the way back down Ebbetts and into Markleville I just let it fly. I passed many people on the way down and began to push on the hills and flats. I frequently checked my watch to see how we were doing on time. Micah yelled that it was in the bag and there was no need to push but I was still uneasy and didn't want to take any chances. Roland and Micah wanted to stop at the truck to drop off their cold weather gear before going up Carson. I tossed them the key and kept rolling. I that point I was confident I'd make the Woodford's cutoff but I hadn't ridden HWY 88 to know what the roads were like to the base of Carson. I reached Woodford's with 40 minutes to spare so I knew I had time to get to the last aid station by the cut off time without pushing it. As I started off I saw people coming down HWY 88. Many were smiling but some had a look of wanting this day to be over. The road had a very minor grade for a long way out on HWY 88. I had driven this section of road countless times. It was interesting to be taking it in on a bike. Unlike the other passes, HWY 88 was not closed to road traffic. In addition to watching the erratic cyclist we now had to watch for impatient drivers. The cyclists were tired and began making poor decisions like making unannounced stops or pulling out to pass just as a car was coming. It was very unsettling. I continued up with an easy pace being very aware of my surroundings.

I saw Thomas on his way down and we exchanged greetings again. I had stopped to change water bottles and he made a turn and caught up to me. He asked me where I was going - to the top of course! He gave me the details of what lay ahead and had asked how I was feeling. Up until Carson I was feeling good but I could tell I was tiring. Although my legs still felt strong and that they still had something left in them my upper body was killing me. My right shoulder hurt the worst and would go dumb at times. After our brief conversation Thomas, now a 5 pass finisher, headed back into town and I continued the climb.

At one point I looked back and had 10 riders behind me following my lead. Not being a real roadie I wasn't comfortable with being in the lead. Had I known at any time, I could of pulled out to the side and let someone else lead. Instead I pretended to ignore their presence and focused on myself. I reached the aid station and found a spot for my bike. A male rider came up to me and thanked me for leading him up the climb. In the past he would go out to hard and end up blowing up on the climbs. He liked my steady pace and said it helped him save something for the final stretch to the top of Carson. Another rider came up to me to compliment me on my matching outfit. He was responsible for his teams kits and prided himself on his ability to put together attractive ensembles but said I put him to shame. I noticed his hair wasn't dyed red to match their black and red kits and mentioned he might want to consider that. :-)

I took a potty break, stretched my arms and then headed back out. As I looked up ahead I saw a very dark and angry sky. Riders began to come down wearing plastic bags and ponchos and I heard someone mention snow. Uh oh, this was about to get ugly. Thomas had said it was 9 miles from the aid station to the top. I began counting down miles. With 5 miles to go the GPS battery quit and it started to rain. Oh sure, why not! I'm a strong woman but I don't do rain. I didn't do a triathlon because I was concerned about rain and I easily bag workouts if there is any chance of precipitation. However this was Death Ride and I was almost there. The rain was gentle and warm at first. One guy made a comment about it and I told him it would just make our stories better. The rain had to be accompanied by a strong head wind, the story wouldn't be complete without that right? At times the wind was so strong I felt like I was being pushed backwards. Head down and just keep the pedals turning. Folks were littering the side of the road and frantically putting on their warm weather gear. My core temp was still high enough that I felt fine in just my jersey. I wanted a dry jacket for the descent which I expected to be very cold. As the rain continued it grew more steady and got very cold. My focus was on the 10 feet of road directly in front of me but I'd periodically look up to see how much farther we had to go. Without the GPS I had no idea how many more miles lay ahead. At one point I looked up and saw another steep stretch of road. I stared at the section hoping to not see any cyclists coming down it. I was losing my mental wherewith all and was questioning if I had it in my to make it up that grade. The guy behind me must have done the same thing because I heard him yell "Fuck this!". I would guess that every rider had that same thought run through their mind at least once while looking at that stretch of road. I reminded myself that sometimes the grades look steeper from a distance and that I WOULD make this ride no matter what. At this point it was as much a mental challenge as it was physical. I would not come this far and not earn my bragging rights! As I started the turn up the final grade a woman had stopped. She made mention of my outfit and rode next to me for a while. We chatted and I mentioned that we couldn't have much farther to go. Her famous last words were "oh no, it's just around the corner". At that point I knew I would soon become a 5 pass finisher. We continued on and caught up to another woman rider. She yelled 'where the hell is it' and I couldn't help put laugh. It was one really long continuous corner we were riding. As I crested the final part of the corner I saw the familiar cabin for cross country skiers and knew I was there. On our ride into Markleeville the tents were already erected at the top so I knew just how little more I had to go. As the tents came into view a huge smile broke out across my face. I still have 20+ miles to ride back into Markleeville but I was a 5 pass finisher!! I turned into the aid station and placed the final sticker on my bib. Micah and Roland were already there and Micah and I exchanged congratulations. Somewhere in the crowd was ice cream with my name on it. Micah and Roland had dropped their cool weather gear off at the truck so they had nothing but jerseys. They were cold and shivering and wanted to head down. We made plans to meet at the truck and they headed down. I signed the Death Ride poster, sat and ate my ice cream and reflected on what I had done. The rain had stopped at this point but the sun was hiding behind clouds so the temps had dropped. Many folks were not prepared for the rain or cold temps. The Schwan's driver had plastic bags with him and people we grabbing the bags to wear as another layer. Once my ice cream had sat in my stomach for a while my internal temp dropped and I began to feel the chill. I put on my arm warmers and jacket just as the shivering began. I had expected a cold descent and really wanted to get off the mountain and down to lower elevation as soon as I could. Fully clothed I grabbed my bike and took off. My first thought was to go as fast as I could to reach the valley the quickest but the wind chill was taking it toll on me. My jaw ached from the chatter and I bit the inside of my cheek, my lips and my tongue several times. I couldn't control the shivering and was convinced I had a 50% chance of biting off my tongue since I was losing control of my ability to move body parts. I checked my hands several times to make sure I could still control my braking. I slowed down hoping the ease the affects of wind chill but it didn't help the shivering any. I knew once I got down in elevation it would warm up but it seemed to take forever to get there. Once I finally hit the valley floor the shivering still did not stop. I changed gears and began to push to get the blood flowing and hopefully warm up. It took several minutes but finally I could feel the warmth spreading through out my body. I was happy to have this experience finished and hammered my way back to the truck to meet Micah and Roland. Death Ride 2009 had been completed.

Several times on the ride I reflected to places I was in my past. I thought about all the times I pushed past the point of pain or continued on a difficult journey (mentally or physically) long after I had thought it not possible. My theory of when you are in a difficult spot you just keep putting one foot in front of the other and soon enough you'll be in an entirely different place continues to be a motto for me and has gotten me through some of the toughest parts of my life. I am the fittest I have ever been in my life and I've learned to enjoy each minute of the life I lead. Death Ride will go down as one of the best days of my life, marking a journey I would of never fathomed I would ever start yet one I'm happy to say I've completed. I can only wonder - what's next? Oh yeah, Everybody to Everst with the Challenged Athlete's Foundation on April 16, 2010! Come on, if you know me you know I would never complete an epic adventure without already have planned out the next one! :-)