TOC Lessons Learned
We joked a lot about creating a "Top 10 list of Coach Rich TOC Lies" during the week, but I thought it really would be helpful to jot down some of our "lessons learned" for future campers. Here are a few to get us started:
1- Forget about having any time to check email, the Forums, Facebook, or create any kind of daily blog or race report! Internet access isn't always all that great and just having 5 min of spare time to download powertap data is considered a luxury!
2- Forget the Netbook/Laptop. Get yourself a smart phone. There's a lot of time spent inside the van going to/from locations and that's your best bet for sending/receiving social network stuff. No guarantees here either though- some of the places we drove through had really poor cellular service as well. Who knew you could be in the middle of nowhere for so long in California!
3- Wind/rain Jackets with zip off sleeves rule. The wind vest was awesome too- but a jacket with zip off sleeves would have been great for those descents from high elevations.
4- Double, Triple, Quadruple check all your gear and just buy new everything! Cleats, cabling, break pads, tires, whatever. Nothing like 4-5 hours of riding per day to really show you where your maintenance skills have been lacking!
5- Buy that freakin anti-chain drop dealio thing that Mancona told you about! I was soooo tired of dropping the chain that on the last day I vowed to ride in the small ring the entire ride no matter how long the descent was. Grrrrrrrrr.
6- Rich Lies. Pretty much about everything. 
If he says it's just some easy rollers, get ready for a steady 2 hours of climbing!
7- Sag Vans RULE!!!! Use them. I was able to do a lot of the TOC riding and see most of the pretty stuff from my bike because of strategic use of the Vans. Marvin and Joanne were simply awesome! PS- no matter what you are looking for, the response to "where is......" is likely going to be "Imust be in the other van".
8- Dave Boyle can eat a freakishly large amount of food! What's almost more surprising is that Leigh can almost keep up with him!! That said- when it comes to food- just follow Dave, he finds all the great spots!
9- You will NOT loose weight on this trip!!!! No matter how good you think you are going to be with eating healthy on the trip, by the last day I guarantee you'll be elbow deep in pringles and double stuff oreos just like everyone else. If you gain less than 5 pounds on this trip consider it a success!
10- No one stalks a pro as well as an EN Chica!!!!
Comments
Hahahahahah. So funny and so true.
Year two at the ToC rocked. Great people, epic rides, and as always lots of laughs along the way. Such a bummer to be back at work and not climbing into a van this a.m.
Will post my top 10 later when I finish digging out from the stack of paper on my desk!
#9. Weighed myself this morning for first time in two weeks. Gained 6lbs and lost 3.5% body fat.
Now I'm even further away from my "A" race goal for Vineman 70.3.
Time to put the head down (and, obviously, the fork too!) and start drilling my eating!
@ Scott - Here's what I use on my commute bike (which is actually a road bike with drop bars, 23c tires, etc). This is a different brand, same concept.
I have a version of this on each of my bikes. Works like a charm.
I just signed up for Vineman 70.3 and I'm further than you in regards to my weight...even further with my run fitness so just chill :-).
V
11- If you own a PowerTap, bring the goofy black hub remover dealio (or make sure at least one camper has it). Thank goodness Halligan had his because at least 2 of us had to use it during the week!
12- Leave your running shoes home, but bring the bathing suit!!! Seriously, there is very little time for running and even if you do get a spare 20 minutes in your day, you'll be happier using it to take an ice bath or hop in the hotel pool/hottub for a little recovery.
@Scott, here is the one I have: http://www.acecosportgroup.com/shop.../road.html
I'm sure the other ones mentioned will work just as well. Very simply and works great. After I put it on I went out and purposely tried to drop my change by quickly going from the 50 - 25 to 34 - 25 while climbing and could not get it to fall off. I just hear it hit the catcher and slide right back into place.
Of course, proper shifting would avoid the problem all together but it was worth the $30 to me.
I'm interested in getting one for both road and tri bikes, of course.
I assume since the tri bike doesn't have a cylindrical seatpost, I'd have to get the "Road Braze-on Chain Catcher" and bolt it to my derailleur hanger, right? Probably easiest to do that for both bikes to be consistent, yes?
Anyone else have some "helpful hits" or "lessons learned" from the TOC Epic Camp they'd like to jot down and share with future campers before we forget?
I'll keep it rolling
:
More later, still stuck at LAX waiting for a flight...
1. Don't bother with your cue sheets. Rich will tell you everything you need to know at the meeting. They're better to look at after you've done the ride.
2. Leave your shit in the van. Someone will find it for you.
3. Bring a disk wheel next year.
4. Ride for 60 miles without van support. It's good on the mental six pack and you get to ask strangers for water on the roadside.
Halligan, you crack me up!!
Rich- Walkies for the convoy would be much better. Too many spots along the way with no cell service. Poor Joanne and Marvin musta gone nuts!
I'll add three more:
1- I'd suggest putting the EN Logo's on the Vans. There were lots of white vans out there supporting folks and sometimes it made it challenging to know if you were rolling up to "our van" or not. Just some of that soap/chalk stuff the swim team kids use to write on the vans for meets would work fine- nothing fancy required.
2- Think "transition bag" for your day bag. I made the mistake of bringing a smallish tote that is plenty big for my normal ride routine, but not nearly big enough for all the crap I needed in the van.
3- Bring the queue sheets for the next days ride with you in the Van. Rich is gonna ask you for a copy during the ride so he can figure out what to do the next day anyway and it will put you in his good graces :-) Besides, the "down time" in the van is great for looking at what is ahead the next day and then you don't have to bring it to the team briefing cause you'll already have the route memorized!
Sorry, I couldn't resist.
Lessons learned:
1. Two years in a row, still the best part of the tour are the people. I got to catch up with folks from last year and meet new folks who I felt I already knew through the forums. EN just attracts genuine, solid, quality folks.
2. Be prepared to have your chops busted - all week long. Sidenote: I had no intention of getting out of the van after I put my compression socks on, but we made a pit stop. A man's gotta recover. At least I wasn't walking around in sasquatch feet (corso's vibram ff's) all week.
3. Don't be afraid to ask a pro tour mechanic to look at your rattling cassette. They may be more accomodating than you think.
4. When staying at the Holiday Inn in Visalia, be sure to ask for the room with the lobby patio. Who's got that picture?
5. Carrie Chavez does not get short of breath on a climb.
6. There's something about a KOM sign that just gives life to lifeless legs.
7. Trent is indestructible. That man just bounces back no matter if its hit by a car, run off the road by a car, crashing on a descent. Amazing.
8. I would have caught the random guy I was chasing on the KOM if I hadn't come upon a crashed out Coach P.
9. Solvang is way bettter than LA for the TT.
10. We need smores for closing ceremonies next year.
11. Two words - Sweat Pea
By my count I violated 1 through 6 and yet I still regard myself as an ideal camper. But duly noted.
Other stuff:
-Stage 2, Davis Wheelworks is a great bike shop. We tapped on the window an hour before opening and they took us in and saved our wheels/asses. The bike mechanic looked at a couple of things on my bike, totally unrelated to the original issue and said, "I just can't live with this, I'm sorry." He proceeded to replace cables etc, faster than I've ever seen anyone work. They took great care of us.
- Stage 3, the climb up from the coast through the forest was sublime. It was so beautiful riding up through the giant trees and the mist that I forgot to obsess. The final stretch back down to the coast was fast and rolling "trending downhill". Brian, Super Dave, Chris and Bill T, pacelined it, hammered, yammered, and attacked each other all the way in. Halligan slapped us around like a cat with a wounded mouse. Other than the camper and coach carnage that day, it was a great day of riding. "Asterisk" Strauss stole a KOM from Trent. Then Trent crashed. Hmmmm.
-Stage 4, the "hard day". Looking at the elevation profile sheets is TMI. They can make a route seem like an assault on K2 followed by a grand traverse across the Alps. Conversely, a tough route of rollers will be underestimated. Sierra Road is a difficult climb, no doubt. But the Mines Road other than the first 5k is a long trending upward grind of about 20 miles, not a climb. After that, the very fun stretch into Patterson allowed Dave C, Chris M, Brian H, and Dan S to paceline and then throw haymakers at one another. My strategy to take down Dan S worked like a charm. Get him on my terrain (downhill) then attack, attack, attack. I did this, he quashed them, I then folded like a lawn chair. The net: tremendous work for all of us.
Stage 5, Kern River. If anyone ever suggests to you to ride from Kernville upriver to the Sequoia Forest, be ready for one of the longest, toughest climbs anywhere. We descended it.
Stage 6, the "easy day". As the Indian chief in the movie Little Big Man kept saying, "It is a good day to die." Lots of shattered campers. Most folks were done. I was okay, having cried mechanical with 15 to go. The earlier climb to Crestline was the steepest of the tour. I was pulling 4's at one point- 4 mph and 44 cadence.
On a serious note, when you think of all the moving parts I am amazed at how well this trip went. And it really was a team effort. I don't know of an instance where folks failed to pitch in or have each others' backs. And the getting along was remarkable given the schedule, the van travel and the daily level of exertion. I am very happy to have met and spent time with the peeps of the Nation. Thanks Rich and P and the Admin Crew. It was a blast. Well done.
Looking forward to next year's Tour de Parris Island.
Even if you are a L'il Peep, know that the A group will be on the top of that KOM or at the Sprint Line cheering for you like you are crossing the finish line of an Ironman. The support of the whole team was just awesome!
At all costs, find The Halligan or Mike Allen to draft off of. Those two seriously tall, seriously strong doodes were worth fighting over. No joke...I'm 6'1" and I would be looking at Mke Allen's waist when I was drafting behind him....just awesome. But there is no truth to the rumor that Trent and I almost came to blows on the bike over them in our best rendition of Cadel Evans at the Giro last week
Vince
Regarding Rich's list above, he's rrrrrr. Rich is rrrrr. Rich is right. There, I said it.
After my initial knee jerk, smart ass comments, I'd like to say that he makes very valid points. Bottom line, he and P are running a business, and therein lies much responsibility.
To wit:
I show up with a new cassette, for all the climbing. I thought it was dialed in but I wasn't, totally. So on day 1 I have a mechanical which helps to bring about an all day struggle, which in turn effects the group I am hanging onto and they have to accommodate my reduced ability to hang. So my lack of attention to detail creates a slowed pace for the group. It's one thing to want to "ride up" but one needs to be really dialed in to do it, with no errors. Luckily, we had not only a super strong group, but also a super nice group of guys picking me up. If they don't, I'm straggling in on my own and that's a missing camper. Nothing worse than a missing camper.
Later, my wheel was busted. No biggie for me, I've got a no cost solution. But the point is that had I brought a different wheel, the whack it took may not have disabled it in the first place. Ergo, the workhorse training wheel advice. Good advice.
Neither of these things were by themselves big issues, but if 16 people each have their own version (and everyone has a moment or two) then that's a cluster.
The trip was tons of great riding and tons of fun and just a little more forethought and organizational effort (even on "vacation") makes it smoother all the way around.
While I was not there in body I was in spirit. A few things I like to think about while group riding and maybe you did and I don't know about it.
1) A list of anyone with allergies, medical conditions etc
2) List of who to call in emergency (relatives)
3) list of everyones who is riding cell phone numbers to pass around.
Maybe one day I can do this ride and put this plan into action.
We did have #3 on your list (which was super helpful BTW), but I'm not sure the guys had #1 & 2. Kitima and I discussed the fact that perhaps a requirement for TOC next year should be that everyone has a RoadID on them. Many of us did- but not sure if everyone did. That would certainly help with 1 & 2. Good thoughts.
Nemo
PS- Chris, you are right, when you consider ALL the moving parts that make this camp happen (and I'm just not sure anyone can appreciate how much there is until you experience it for yourself), it's amazing more stuff didn't go wrong. Kudos to the coaches for all the cat hurding they had to do all week! The more we can do to arrive in tip top shape and take care of ourselves, the better experience it is for everyone.
PPS- I have one more item to add to the list: Steve Ford makes AWESOME granola!!!! I tried my best to make sure everyone got a sample, but that stuff barely lasted 24 hours!!!
You know I could be talked into be the Camp Chef. I also could make you some more Granola for people who did not get there share.
I could ride for a bit then hop in the van to race ahead and get food going.
Make a big batch of smoothies for when you come off the bike before you shower for recovery.
Dinner I see being some nice pasta dishes, salad, oh and some cheese and crackers before dinner to snack on.
Dessert one night would have to include whoopie pies.
Plans Plans I need to make up plans.