Diablo Challenge 2013

Of course, I was early. My wave for the Save Mt. Diablo's "Diablo Challenge" wasn't set to launch until 8:50, but I arrived in the Monte Vista High School parking lot, three miles from the start, before 7am. It was not really a bad thing. I didn't have to hurry putting my stuff together, and I enjoyed chatting with the other cyclists in the near darkness. It would have been perfect if it hadn't been so darn cold. It was the coldest morning this season, but fortunately I was prepared with lots of warm clothes.

I also arrived at the start way too early. But again, it was interesting to see, and chat with, so many cyclists. Bike ogling is always enjoyable as well, and there were some very swell machines there.

I had no help with the ritual pinning on of the race number, but I wasn't alone as many fellow riders also had to take off their shirts in the shadowy cold and pin without help. We also were issued electronic timing chips on ankle bands that made us all look like we'd had some issue with the courts and law enforcement.

There were tons of helper-bees there, among them the Search and Rescue volunteers, who walked over to where I had my bike and dumped all their stuff next to, and partly on top of, my Roubaix. As I moved my bike I commented to them "This is ironic, here you are the rescue folks, and yet I'm having to rescue my bike from you." I said it with a smile and a laugh, but they didn't seem amused. Still, I'm glad they were there for us, and my bike was, after all, unscathed.

Over near the start all the hyper-serious cyclists were warming up on portable trainers. It looked pretty funny as they were all facing away from the start. It was because that was uphill, and it feels better not to ride a trainer facing downhill. Still, I cracked up.



As we waited I sent Tricia a text with a photo of the mass of humanity lining up. She texted back "Aren't there any women there?" so I sent her this photo. Not only were there women, there were really fast women I never even saw until they were on the podium, collecting prizes for their stunningly fast times.



My wave was number five, so we waited (and waited) until the earlier waves took off. As we rolled away from the start I watched almost everyone ride away from me. At least being an uphill ride it was warm enough that leaving all my warm gear in my backpack and not wearing it turned out to be a good idea. The organizers had a pickup to deliver the warm clothes packs to the top, which is great as it can be cold coming down.

After about 10 minutes I was surprised to find I had caught a lot of riders and was passing them. This was a continuing theme the rest of the climb. I was amazed how many I passed and that only two passed me (Being in the last wave I shouldn't have been too surprised, but I was anyway.)

Passing all those people made me think I was having a good ride, and having someone constantly in front of me to catch helped keep me focused. I tried to make use of the whole road, something you can't normally do because of downhill traffic. But the closed road let me try to find the shortest lines between corners. At least when I remembered.

Normally when I ride with a group it isn't an all out effort to the top. There are regroups and chatting along the way, and often a stop at the junction. Because of that I don't have a feel for how long any section takes. Still, I was pleasantly surprised to hit the junction at 38:02. I didn't have any clue how to extrapolate a possible finishing time from that, I just kept pushing the pedals.

Me with legend Diablo Scott, one of many volunteers who made this ride possible.

The famed DiabloScott (of the famous bike blog) had guessed my time would be 75 minutes. As I rode I found myself thinking "Yes, I've got that." and "No way can I hit that." I was surprised how long some sections were, and that some weren't as long as I remembered.

As I got close to the final push I was wondering if I'd have anything left. The normal "Wall" at the summit is on the right, and you come down the left side. To keep riders coming down to the festivities in the large parking lot just below the summit from having to cross the path of riders still on the course they route the Challenge up what is normally the down side. It's steep, and it's longer. I swear it's harder, and the normal side is plenty hard enough. DiabloScott had (perhaps jokingly) earlier suggested I toss my water bottle aside for the final bump. It sounded silly when he said it, but I got there I was up for any help I could get. I yelled to an onlooker, asking him to put my bottle by a signpost and tossed it, then started up.

I was at the end of my rope when I crossed the finish line. I'd had to slip though a traffic jam of a guy walking his bike and another rider wobbling badly as my lungs screamed at me to just stop the pain. But I made it. As soon as I stopped moving I almost tossed my cookies and thought my heart would pound out of my chest. I wanted to lay down, but couldn't find the energy to dismount the bike. In just a minute or two, though, I felt like I might live, and eventually even breath normally again.

As I rode to the party just down below I looked for my bottle and didn't see it. I'd resigned myself to it being gone when I saw it — on the top of the signpost, well out of reach for me. As I contemplated how I was going to get it, the nice guy who put it there just happened back by and retrieved it for me.

I joined the party below, and scored a water bottle and hat (but not a jersey, darn it.)

I have no idea what some of the columns mean. But my time was 1:15:34:9.

Tricia and I had a plan. She'd start up North Gate and I'd come down the North side, we'd meet and ride together. Unfortunately we didn't know they'd closed North Gate road. She couldn't get up, I couldn't go down. So she rode around Walnut Creek while I went back to Danville. We were able to meet for lunch at least, but I sure wish the organizers would have mentioned the North Gate closure in their info packs. We weren't alone in being surprised and having our plans screwed up. It was the only annoyance in an otherwise well run ride.

Philosophy and stupid stuff
I turned sixty freakin' years old on Friday. I never thought I'd be this old. It's very odd. In honor of my age fears I started preparing for this during the summer, and worked on losing 15 pounds since the school semester started. I'm still slow. I'll never break an hour, the benchmark for actual athletic riders. Still I did meet my goal of a Strava PR, and collected a ton of PRs on the way up. I met my goals of finishing, not running into anyone and wrecking their day, and getting a PR for the climb.  I managed to put out more power than I ever have before — 201 watts average to the junction, and 193 for the whole climb (and a 195 weighted average.)  I may well be in the best cycling shape of my life. At 139 pounds I'm certainly at the lightest. Does it matter? I guess not. But maybe it's better than drinking beer in front of the TV. Or maybe not, if the beer is really good.

Followup post here.

Getting a head

The new tubes I bought are labeled "pump friendly" because the have smooth stems. My pump was not impressed. My Topeak "TwinHead™ just blew right off. I had to, barefoot, hold it on with my toes while I used the pump. It was not fun.

I started looking for another head that wouldn't fly off. There's one that comes from Japan (you can't even buy it here) that costs over $70. That's just crazy. Other than that, there isn't much in the high-end department.

You might think I learned my Topeak lesson, but you'd be wrong. I bought a Topeak SmartHead. It's working really well. No leaks, and doesn't explode. The lever is a bit weird in that it flips up to close on the valve. It's a bit hard to jet a finger under it to flip it that direction; it seems like it would be easier to press it down, but that does seem to be how many pumps work these days.

Here's hoping it lasts a really long time.

Joyce's new Colnago

 Our good friend Joyce got a new bike, and not just any bike, but a bike with the much-storied name of Colnago on the downtube. It's a beautiful matte black with subtle white highlights, lots of Ultegra and cool, swoopy lines.

She dragged it out to East Contra Costa to ride our Brentwood loop with us.It was a stunning day, with clear air and light winds. It might have been perfect if we hadn't have had two flats. Yep, it's getting to be goathead season out here again. Yech. Still, our short stop at the Big Break Regional Shoreline Park in Oakley and the car-free Hoffman Road with it's Diablo view are some of the reasons it's nice to ride out here. And, best of all, and most unusual: no wind!

 I'm happy because I snagged some PRs, a few of which are longer than just a few feet and I really worked for.



Of course, it isn't really a ride in East Contra Costa unless you see one weird thing. Today it was this sign, hanging off the back of a very loaded bicycle flying a tattered American flag.

First Day of Fall: Diablo Summit

Dan (LanceOldStrong to his fans) lead Tricia and I up Diablo to the summit and back through one of his "sneakin' through neighborhoods" routes. As always, there is a bit of an area I thought I knew, a weird cut-through, and a spot that wasn't meant for bikes, but works anyway.

The mountain looks burned, but not so burned it won't come back. I understand no homes were lost, and no people injured, so the news is all pretty good. Of course, it looks black in a lot of spots now, but those who know this sort of stuff insist the mountain is healthy and next seasons wild flowers will be glorious. I hope they're right.

We had an easy ride, except for the North Gate entrance to the junction. I thought I'd see if my weight loss effort was paying off and did what I could to get up quickly. I snagged a good fist full of PRs so my project must be paying off. I am, however, still behind the PRs of the folks I ride with a lot, so my head isn't getting too big. After the junction we just rode a lazy pace to the summit. Well, as lazy as the mountain would let us.

Strava doesn't seem to want to be able to embed this map, so if you want to see all my PRs (and who wouldn't) you'll need to click right about here.

Tricia's iPhone

I like to think that I am the cyclist/photographer around here. But Tricia, armed with her iPhone, is giving me a run for the title.  With two nice images in the last couple of days, including the moon setting on her commute to work Thursday,  she's making it a contest.

VeloViewer of Mystery

I've stumbled onto VeloViewer.com. I don't know exactly what it is, but is seems cool. I created the image above from my Strava data and apparently it keeps it up to date (edit: Actually, I don't think it does.) There's all sorts of ways it can display my Strava data, and I even almost understand some of them, but not this one. But I still like it, because it's geeky cycling stuff.

Strava heat maps

How cool is this? Strava has a new feature where you can make a "heat map" of your rides. The more you ride a route, the redder the line gets. I've only been using Strava for a bit over a year. I wish I could do a heat map from all my GPS-tracked rides, which started in late 2007.

You can look at the actual readable, zoomable version of my map here, and make your own as well. If you do, post the link in the comments, or at least share it with me.

100 commutes

Friday was my 100th bike commute to work this year. I didn't count days I rode in to play tennis in the summer, or double-count days where I rode in, rode home, rode back then rode home again. It's all legit. That's almost every work day, rain or heat. I skipped when I had to carry something I couldn't get on the bike, and a couple of times I only rode in and was picked up after school.

I will, of course, keep commuting every day. I'm looking forward to finding out how many commuting days I'll have at the end of the year.

Just because, here's my commuter bike. It's a Motobecane Fantom Outlaw with disc brakes, fenders, a rack and panniers, a planet bike superflash rear light and a Magicshine headlight. And the essential REI coffee thermos.

Clouds, with mink and heron with Stephen King

Some days you ride, and some days you ride and see things. We left home on Labor Day under beautiful cloud cover, and actually were rained on just a little, and we saw a bunch of cool stuff.

Wikipedia photo

We couldn't resist stopping to make photos. Not only were the clouds great, but the air was clear and Mt. Diablo looked grand in the distance. And as if that weren't enough, as we rode along the Marsh Creek Trail we saw an American Mink. It was too far away to shoot with the iPhone, but this is the second time we've seen it, more clearly this time; clearly enough East Bay Parks naturalists to identify it for us. It was pretty exciting to see something in the creek that wasn't plastic, or, as Tricia said, planted there just for us to see.

Then we saw the slow-motion appearing flight of a great blue heron. What magnificent birds. They really look like dinosaurs when they float across the sky.

We also stopped along the trail for  what Tricia says looks like a scene from a Stephen King story: A dead tree, and lurking in the background across a brown-dead field, boarded up houses. And not just regular houses, three-story houses, where we are sure bad things happened.



Of course, no day is perfect, so we topped it off with a flat. But we are looking on the bright side. The rear tire is pretty much worn out, the front tire is close behind, so we get to go tire shopping! That passes for big fun in the Corlew-Campbell household.

Diablo Challenge 1986 and 2013

When I signed up for the 6th annual Diablo Challenge in 1986 I thought the challenge was just to get to the top. But it was my birthday weekend and it seemed like a cool thing to do. I had no clue it was sort-of kind-of a-bit-of a race. I was pretty sure I could make it as I'd ridden to the summit from the Northgate a couple of times, each time being an epic life changing lung-busting leg-crushing effort, with numerous stops along the way, but I was a bit surprised when I found out some people rode the challenge in less than an hour. I know I rode to the start from Pleasant Hill, made it to the top, got a tee shirt, but I don't remember much else.

I rode it again in 1992 on my Cannondale Black Lightning with gears more suited for a criterium than a climb. I remember that someone caught me as I hit the summit and fell over.

I'm having a birthday this year too, and not just a normal birthday, but one that ends in zero, so again it seemed like signing up for the challenge is the thing to do. I'm not sure why, but it is. At least it's given me a reason to drop a few pounds in anticipation, as if it will matter.

When I rode it back in the day I don't remember official waves, or even that many people. Now I guess it will be a zoo. My only worry, now as it was then, is some low-skill big-ego rider who thinks he is a pro but lack any real descending skills will take me out on the way down. That, and having quantified in cold hard numbers just how slow I really am.

I will have a contest to guess my actual time. Post your guess in comments and win ... something. Make sure I have a way to contact you.

Or you could join me, wait at the top, and laugh when I roll in a long long long time after the start.

Really ripped

I really enjoy my bike commute home after a long day at at work. I usually get a tail wind, and it's only 8 miles; just enough to work out the days stress and think a bit. Usually....

I was getting too many flats on the trail with all its glass and stickers, so I bought a set of Schwalbe Marathon Racer tires, Schwalbe claims they are the fastest and lightest in their Marathon line, with HD-Speed-Guard for the highest level of puncture protection, RoadStar Triple Compound for the best handling characteristics, and a greater tread depth increases lifespan. They are well known and well loved by flat-hating bike tourists. They did hold up well against the sorry roads and paths of East Contra Costa County.

But now, about 3500 miles in, I have a huge unrepairable rip in my rear tire. I was riding home it it just went "boom." I'm not sure if I wore it out, or hit something that ripped it. Whatever the cause, it put an end to my commute home. I did the walk of sadness back to the college, pushing my bike (which is no where near as much fun as riding it) and waited for my sweet Tricia to come collect me with the car.

Old unloved tire installed, new tire on order, commute ready for the morning. Case closed.

Number one, with a bullet

Didn't I just post about my finding bullets on my bike rides? Here's another one. Maybe there are so many littering the streets of Antioch it isn't even noteworthy any longer. I know I'm running out of ways to photograph them.

More actual bike stuff again, soon. Really.

Post ride fueling

Photo by Tricia

You know you're in the right place when, after you park your bicycle on the patio and sit down, your waitress comes out and says "Your margarita is on the way, what else would you like?"

Along with her food, Tricia liked the shadow of her chair, and the way the light came through the cutout name of the iron back and played on the ground.

Cocina Medina, our just-down-the-street restaurant, is one of our favorite places to stop after a long ride when we're almost home. The have a patio we can ride our bikes on to without going inside, then we can sit outside so as not to frighten the other patrons with our lycra. They have great service and delightful food, and it's a joy to patronize a business run by real people and not some faceless distant corporation.

Highly recommended:  Fajitas, and of course, the margaritas.

Babyless baskets and a bullet

Photo by Tricia

On recent rides around Antioch Tricia has noticed a trend in roadside detritus: babyless baby holding objects. It caused such a degree of wonderment and perplexafacation that she stopped to photograph them. She wonders "Where have all the babies gone?" I have no answer.

I usually find bullets. And I found another one. This one, however, wasn't found in Antioch, but on a ride in Port Orchard, Washington. Unlike the live rounds I find locally, this one was used. I am unable to draw any conclusions from such a small sample size. But overall, I still wonder why I find bullets, and is this normal? I sure didn't find any growing up in Walnut Creek. Just sayin'.

Short summer bike trip in Oregon

Over the past few years we've taken week-long bike tours. This year we didn't take a long organized ride. Instead we did a few smaller things. I don't have any great stories, but I like the photos.

We started with a ride and a night in Jacksonville, Oregon where we went to the Britt Fest for a Kenny Loggins and the Blue Sky Riders concert. What a nice theater and concert.

We met our cycling friends Bob and Catherine for Cycle Oregon's Weekend Bike Camp. Two days with 85 and 65 miles rides where the organizers supply ice cream at the finish as well as music and a beer garden.





We stayed with Bob and Catherine in Oregon where we rode a bit and also got to see Cyclepedia at the Portland Art Museum. It's was a great show with many amazing and beautiful bicycles. There's even a book!



They also took us out for a ride along the Gorge, and it was beautiful and fun. It's impossible to not constantly be saying "wow!" and stopping for photos. We didn't even try, we just smiled a lot.








But wait, there's more! Bob and Catherine took us to their cabin in the shadow of Mt. Hood for some more riding. What's up with Oregon? How could it have so many beautiful places?



We even managed to get to Washington to see Tricia's son Jason, daughter-in-law Lea and grandson (really, she has a grandson,) Bishop. Of course, we rode bikes when we got there. Tricia liked riding with Bishop so much she came home and started shopping for a folding bike so she could fly up and ride with him more often. Do you have an opinion on Brompton folders?



We stopped off at Grants Pass, Oregon on the way home where Tricia made me — you guessed it — ride my bike some 18 miles before driving back to the beautiful Gateway to the Delta, Antioch.

The "Stuff" of cycling

Cycling is about freedom, fun, being a kid, challenge, mobility and a zillion other cool things. It's also about stuff. Admit it. You like stuff. So do I. Unless bad things happen to my stuff.

Stuff 1

This is, or was, my new, or newish, tire. Alas, at the end of a hard set of intervals I was breathing too hard and hurting too much to notice the large chunk of glass in my path. The tire popped. I had a boot, but with a tear like this do I really want to be going down Diablo and have it fail? No, I do not. So, I threw my trie away. Money wasted. Oh well.

Stuff 2

White walls. Yep, I got white-wall tires to go with my white bike.  They're pretty nice, but I feel a touch of guilt for caring. Still: Stuff. There you are.

Stuff 3

Due to, I think,  a broken leg at a young age, my right foot points out just a bit. That makes my knee want to swing out on the upstroke, and also make my heel want to strike the crank arm. Bummer for me. But fortunately for me, my friend Lance Oldstrong has a funky left knee from some youthful fun. He discovered a product called Knee-Savers that is in essence a pedal extender. He only needs the left side, and has been generous enough (Thanks, Dan!) to give me the right side parts. It sure has made my pedal stroke less ugly, my cranks less scuffed and my leg not hurt. Stuff, is there anything you can't do?

Stuff 4

Not all cycling stuff is my stuff. Tricia has been hunting for the perfect saddle for a while now. After going through the stock models, she's tried a Terry Falcon, which she still uses on her trainer-bound bike. She tried a Selle Italia SLK and didn't hate it, but didn't love it either. So, after 16,000 miles she's giving a Specialized Oura a shot.

Stuff 5

Sometimes stuff is just stuff you see on the road. In this case, we're still working through bad puns, but just don't have the head for it.  Feel free to post your own.

Clouds

We don't usually get clouds like this in June in California, but we sure did on Tuesday. We caught just a sprinkle of rain, but nothing serious, though the black clouds were sure worrisome. The ride? Just thirty-something, no big deal, but the clouds and light made it all wonderful.

Antioch adds boats to bike lanes

At my home we've worked out a reasonable and equitable division of labor. I am "Eeyore." She's Ms. Positive. I am a crank and easily annoyed, she is generous and forgiving. But sometimes events conspire to push Tricia out of her peaceful zone and into my territory. The territory of the perturbed. These events are upon us now.

I think the combination of all the cyclist hate in online newspaper story comments, the claim auto drivers make that "The cyclist just swerved out in front of me for no reason, so I hit 'em" and the increasing volume of glass along Antioch streets is what did most of the physic damage. But that last straw? It's the flagrant ignoring of and lack of respect for bike lanes. Apparently it's perfectly all right to park any big ol' thing in a bike lane here without fear of legal reprisal. (See also)

She has become so agitated that she's taken to stopping her ride, yes, actually stopping and getting off the bike mid-ride, and making photos.

I have assured her that doing so, and having me blog her photos, will surely result in a correction to these unseemly, unfortunate and disturbing incidents.

So, if it's you breaking glass on the street, or parking in the bike lane, please heed my plea: Cut it out.
Thank you.

Bike Forums Slow Poke ride

My favorite biker chick.

LanceOldStrong organized a classic Bike Forums Slow Poke ride. It was just what I needed after a bit of interval work. It seems I fail to recover overnight like I did when I was twenty.

So we rode slow.

The route over the Benicia and Carquinez Bridges kept us new the water ,where it was a lot cooler than the 106 we saw on the car readout when we got back to Antioch.  This may be the last ride we get down the Carquinez Scenic Drive for a bit as it will be closed for a year or more to fix up the road.

Here's a slide show of just a few images from the ride.