EVERSON-REESE HILL-ARTIST POINT-EVERSON; 100 MILES OF FUN

Hooked up with Tom Meloy, David Longdon, Carol Noble-Potts and Mark Clausen, all from Cascade Bicycle Club's High Performance Cycling Team, for an epic Everson-to-Artist Point-with-a-detour-up-Reese Hill-and-back ride on Thursday. Why start in Everson instead of somewhere on the Mount Baker Highway? Well, the Mount Baker Highway, from B'ham to about Maple Falls, is actually pretty cruddy to ride--high-speed mega-trucks and the like, pickups with sideview mirrors that extend out on either side like airplane wings, etc. Plus, from Everson and back it's about 95 miles unless ... you add the short but nevertheless, painfully evil Reese Hill (350 feet in 0.8 miles) on the way out which makes it exactly a hunnert.

We skipped Reese Hill on the way back, basically following the Ski to Sea bike course from the D.O.T. sheds to Everson. My right leg cramped badly at mile 89 but after a few sips of Mark's mystery liquid (EPO, methamphetamine, cocaine and salt), I felt fine. Sixty-eight hundred feet of climbing in all. Super (hard) day!

Just above, that's me on the left (obsessed as I am with the Belgian national champion's jersey), Tom Meloy in the center and Mark Clausen on the right. In the top photo, Meloy leads Clausen through the first switchback on the descent from Artist Point.

On the way back to Everson, we stopped at Graham's in Glacier for Coke, maple bars (me), salty chips--anything to help power us through the last 25 miles. Above, Tom pours the nectar of the gods into Carol's water bottle. Below, Carol, Mark, Tom and David. A group of nice folks and truly great to ride with.

As for the MTB side of things, Scott "Titanium Cowboy" and I are watching the weather forcast before we pull the trigger on registering for next weekend's Capitol Forest 50-Mile mountain bike race. Looks pretty good so far, a little rain but not multi days of drenching downpours which would make it sehr unpleasant. 

REESE HILL ROAD 'N' MORE

Saturday, Team Unattacked (John Clark, Scott Young and I), headed north up Sumas way for some Reese Hill action. Always good to get this one under one's belt. Did South Pass Road too so that Scott, who's riding the road bike segment for our Ski to Sea team could get some experience on the course. Funny, when you dread hills they're never as tough as you think they're going to be. And vice versa, and I think therein lies the key: dread all things so that nothing seems that bad. (God, I am not looking forward to writing this next sentence.) Put in 60 miles in all with some fun rolling ups and downs on Mission Road. (Hey, that sentence wasn't that bad!)


Thought I'd give an update on my race plans too. This Sunday (May 3) I'm planning on the Tucker Classic mountain bike race down at South Seatac. It'll be my first-ever race in the Indie Series (http://www.indieseries.com/), which I've heard nothing but good things about. The following Saturday I thought I'd try the Silver Lake time trials out Maple Falls way, maybe the 7-miler on the 29er, and the 22-miler on the Specialized Tarmac, sans aero bars. It's a Charlie Heggem production: (http://www.norkarecreation.com). May 17 is another Indie Series race, this one on Whidbey Island. And May 24 is B'ham's own World Championships, also known as Ski to Sea. I'm on Awesome Dawson Descending Masters, sponsored by Dawson Construction. (Thanks, Pete!) John's running, Scott's road biking and I'm mountain biking, for the first time ever. Should be fun!

SUNDAY RIDE

Great ride on Sunday. Out to Sumas and back. For fun we threw in North Pass Road hill and Reese Hill Road (Reese Hell Road), both of which are tilted rather steep, but are not super long. Both hills were enjoyed by those who rode last year's Nooksack Omnium road race.

Above, birthday boy Scott Young, Steve Vanderstaay, and John Clark enjoy froofy espresso drinks while mesmerized by John's bike leaning against the espresso stand. Below, Steve appears to be reprimanding his bike for one reason or another.
We got in 70 miles or so with some fast rotating paceline stretches and team-time-trial wannabe behavior. I felt a little off at times. Not sure why. I had one extended pull where I couldn't really feel anything, not quite bonkish, but close. Had to look down at my computer to make sure I was riding a good speed because it was like I couldn't feel anything. Kinda odd.

Scott was manimal (part man, part animal) on the hills. But only because it was his birthday and we let him. (Yeah, right.)