Campers: please add your day-by-day notes to mine
ToC Campers,
I want to write a recap of each day for the blog. Please help me capture what we did, experience, ate, etc while it's still fresh in our heads:
Day -1:
- Nemo and Trent arrive. We assembled bikes and we had Thai in Monrovia, then Pinkberry
- Anything else?
Day 0: Drive to Sacramento
- Halligan, Bryan, Lynda, Bill, Margaret, Chris, Marvin, Corso meet us at my place.
- Load up the bikes and vans, drive to Sacramento.
- Meet the rest of the crew at Mike's Bikes in SAC, then drive up to Grass Valley
- Some had dinner at a great Italian place. Others at...a pub or something?
- High school mtn bike championships, lots of young mtn bikers staying at our hotel.
Stage 1: we ride from Grass Valley to about...15mi outside Sacramento
- Stage was much harder than the profile led us to believe.
- Flat to rolling, into the wind for the last 20mi kinda sucked.
- Any other terrain notes?
- Got into SAC, most had lunch at Chipolte then we watched the finish of the race.
- Large crash at the 500m line, almost right in front of us, Boonen goes down and is pushed in by teammate.
- Drive to, stay in Davis.
Stage 2: Davis to Santa Rosa, we pulled everyone out in town of Angwen, sprint town after Mt. Howell.
- Chris Malone and I storm Davis Wheelworks for quick repairs, tires, tubes, etc and they seriously hook us up. He and I then drive to Angwen where there is nothing. We hook up sammiches and hot soup for the campers for when they arrive.
- Rainy stage, please give me your notes as I didn't ride today.
- We drive to Pacifica. Admin team has dinner at nice seafood joint in Half Moon Bay, during the drive to which we remember there is a legit climb that begins about 1.5mi out of the hotel
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Stage 3: Pacifica to where the KOM detour kicks back out on the 101.
- Climb out of the hotel separates everyone and we regroup into large A and small B groups at the sprint line in half moon bay.
- Very nice peleton ride of about 10-12 of us down the coast.
- Nature stop at left off of the 101, then we transition to rainforest in about 2mi. Incredible ride up the KOM.
- Rich takes the KOM from Halligan and Trent, after exercising some dirty racing/hip check tactics on Trent
. - Quick regroup and add layers at the top, twisty, slick descent, Trent goes down. I go up to find him, put me, Mike and Trent in the van and leapfrog ahead to catch the group.
- Group comes up on P sitting next to guardrail during climb of the next KOM. Things go pretty sideways from here but we pull it together as team. Nice work!
- Please give me your notes of the ride from the KOM down to the beach. Looked like it rocked.
- We get P and Trent to the hospital with Kitima.
- Many of us eat at Chipolte again, we are joined by Mike Hedman who visit P in the hospital, returns Kitima to the hotel and brings P his luggage.
Stage 4: San Jose to Patterson/I-5 via Sierra Rd and Mines Rd
- A group gives B's a 45' head start.
- A's catch the tail end of the B's at the top of Sierra Rd.
- Great descent and then scenic ride around Lake Calaverras.
- Carrie Chavez rides up to meet us, pulls Nemo to the regroup spot at the freeway.
- NorCal cell meets us and guides us around the road closures to the bottom of Mines Rd. Pretty sure I got some good video of this, hopefully others took pictures.
- Admin transfer leapfrogs some people either to the bottom or top of Mines Rd KOM.
- SAG van(s) get locked in with closures and can't SAG the A's, we have to forage for water on the climb
. Note to self: the Mines/Mt Hamilton/Del Puerto area is the EN ToC Triangle and we need to insert a vehicle into that area ahead of everyone. - Trent flats, flats again, everyone finishes the ride at the truck stop on the 5 where we all eat and half-heartedly watch the tour go through.
- Loonngg drive from Patterson to Visalia.
- Dinner in Visalia at a good Italian place and...anyone?
Stage 5: we bail on the tour route and do our own thing -- Sequoia National Forest to Kernville ride.
- Drove twisty, curvy roads to Springville (great coffee), then up into the forest.
- Kicked everyone out at ~3500ft
- Awesome climb to max elevation of 7300ft at Ponderosa(?), then net downhill to that 4-way intersection that dropped us down to Kernville.
- Patches of snow next to road, incredible views, zero traffic, many stop to take pics at Trail of 100 Giants.
- Fast descent down to Kern River, where veg and terrain changes dramatically.
- ~15mi ride along the river into a stiff headwind. A group has fun playing roadie and attacking each other. Rich takes the sprint at the vans
. - Tri tip, shakes, and the finish of the Tour on TV at that little general store.
- Looonnggg drive from Kernville to Monrovia.
Stage 6: we drive to the intersection of the 15 and 138, then east ~4mi past some nasty switchbacks.
- Campers ride to nasty steep KOM just outside Crestline and then very hard sprint inside Crestline with 18% kicker right before the line.
- Rich and Dan "reassess" the plan, hooking up an admin option to portage some campers past narrow shoulder section to the high school on the 18.
- We carry on the from the high school, Rich establishes solo breakway outside of Running Springs and then sets up random spectators to talk smack to Halligan and Co as they roll through
. - Rich and Halligan ride the course along the north shore of Big Bear Lake, most others take the direct route to town along the south shore.
- Regroup at Walgreens and everyone splits up to eat and watch the finish.
- We drive back to Monrovia.
- Dinner of mediterranean, much beer, and a fire on the patio of Rich's place.
Stage 7: Admin and TT
- Packing of the Bikes at 10am at my place.
- We then go downtown to watch the TT.
- Kinda cool venue with lots of people and lots to do, but PITA to get around on the course, or to the pits or the expo.
- Chicka's get their stalk on and do not need to be bailed out of jail...
- Final dinner at the Yardhouse.
- Take campers to airport and camp ends, no one has died, SUCESS!!
Please add your notes and highlights. Thanks!
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Day -1. Welcome to LA Trent- here's the keys to the van- now drive in LA Rush Hour traffic to Rich's house following Coach P and Dan Socie who don't know where they are going either! Nemo spends her wedding anniversary having dinner with 4 hot men, none of which are her husband. Many SAUs burned that night!!!
Day -0. Nemo breaks first in requesting a pee break on the 7 hour drive to Sacramento. Not sure Coach Rich would have stopped otherwise! Bike shop in Sacramento has everything you need for supplies, except C02 cartridges!!! Huh??? Rich & Patrick miss filming the first time meeting of EN Chicas Leigh, Nemo, and Kitima- we refuse to reenact it for them. Grabbed lunch in Sacramento at a pub around 3:00 and then wondered why the camp leaders wanted to meet again for dinner at 7:00- just a hint of all the food consumption to come! Vince Hoffart & his new bride meet the team in Grass Vally and show us the good spots to eat. Some of us enjoyed California Sushi, yummmmmmmm.
Stage 1- Nemo nearly has an asthma attack just climbing over the highway overpass just outside the parking lot and then drops a chain (more foreshadowing of events to come). Rich comes back for an assist and observes her rear break is rubbing the wheel- things felt a lot better with that fixed!!! Leigh's break rubs the tire all the way down the first descent smelling up the joint! Chris Malone suffers on Day 1 for reasons unknown at the time only to discover later his BB was totally wacked. The A group pulls together to help him through a stage that absolutely was harder than advertised with a Cat 3 KOM! Coach Rich flats twice and Coach P has trouble with his cassette- mechanical issues all get sorted out on the day 1 shake down ride!!! I think this is also the day we rode over the highest bridge in California. Beautiful climbs up to amazing huge villas- this is obviously where the rich folks live. The descents on this day were wide open, fast, and safe. Nemo beats Kitima in the first "B Group" sprint by sneaking up behind her (tee hee hee). Nemo's only victory of the week! More dinner in Davis- specifically the first night of many crepes.
Stage 2 - Started out overcast but most of the heavy rain held off until the end of the ride. Peter Carol joins the team to help lead us out from the hotel to the start of the race course. First part of the ride was through the vineyards of Sonoma Vally and VERY windy! The B group nearly kills the B2 group- we make a pact not to let that happen ever again! There were 2 KOM's on this day, a Cat 4 and a Cat 2. I hopped in the van after the first Cat 4 to save up my legs for the rest of the trip only to later be encouraged by Dave Corso and Brian Massey to get back out of the van and climb the Cat 2 in the rain. Totally worth it and I'm so glad they encouraged me to do it! Once I started climbing I was too scared to turn around and go back to the van because the steep descent looked scary (silly me forgot I'd have to go down the other side eventually anyway). The descent was cold but the hot soup at the end was awesome. More crepes for dinner.
Stage 3- This is the day we had to say goodbye to Larry- he had to return home for a business meeting, bummer! The original plan was to give the B group the option to just ride down the PCH and not do the 2 KOMs in the rainforest (a little concerned we might not get through fast enough to beat the pros). But when we got to the turn-off point where we were supposed to communicate our decision to the vans, the vans were no where to be seen. So I guess the choice was made for us! We hit the climbs! Beautiful. Totally froze to death on the first descent and made the decision to pull out after finishing the next KOM climb. Good coffee and milkshakes at the restaurant on the PCH at the end of the course and the sun came out for our drive back up the PCH so we could enjoy the view. Much needed laundry night for the campers and the Boyles take care of Nemo & Kitima's laundry so that Nemo can visit with a local friend and Kitima can eat & rest after a long day at the hospital. We then enjoy a laundry folding party in the Boyles room while watching Lost.
Stage 4- Major KOM climbs, Sierra road is a ball buster, but beautiful. Fantastic meeting of East & West! Again Rich doesn't have the video rolling and we refuse to reenact it for him. Rolled into our hotel after an awesome day of riding to find several of the pro teams were staying at our hotel! EN Stalkers start working their magic. Halligan and Brian Massey end up sleeping in the lobby :-)
Stage 5- Halligan almost hurls on the winding roads leading to the start of the ride. We stop at a coffee shop to take a bio break before finishing the drive half way up the mountain. Rich kicks us out of the van and the climb begins immediately. BEAUTIFUL! Great choice for the detour day. Dinner at BJs pizza & pub- great group dinner, lots of laughs.
Stage 6- OMG, they let us sleep in!!!! Ride start wasn't until 8:30 AND we were going to stay at the same hotel that night so we didn't have to pack our overnight bags!!! Heaven! Another beautiful day of riding (climbing) and Kitima and Nemo pass 2 other dudes on the climbs
We're getting good at this! 2 KOMs on this climb and a sprint that occurs at the end of a 20% incline!!! These climbs were no joke! Best exchange of the trip occurs when Rich & Dan meet up after dropping off the vans at the end of the course while the rest of us are working our way up the mountain: Rich "uh, I think I oversold this", Dan: "you are going to kill the campers!!!". Thankfully they did some quick thinking and came up with a way for some of us to get a little leapfrog over the tricky spots so we could still enjoy the ride. Lots of fun at the race expo and watching the TOC Stage finish in Big Bear. Drove through the land of no-where for hours before finally reaching LA. We are given 30 min to shower up and change before getting over to Rich and Joannes for the final night of celebration. Rich builds a fire and nearly burns Sony and Riley's tails!
Stage 7- After a long day of stalking Rich drops the campers off at the airport with a traditional "Grandma Dump". Pretty sure he was happy to see us all go home!!! It must have been a huge relief for him!
-Land in Sacramento, meet Larry Gilbert and discover that we are kindred spirits about never owning enough or spending too much on bicycles.
-Hotel in Grass Valley is swarmed with teen mountain bikers. None of those bikes were 29ers. What kind of godless people are they?!
-Dinner at Nevada City which had the Gold Rush town look to it with nice restaurants and a bicycle theme. Mike Allen, Corso, Nemo, Scott, and I had delicious sushi.
Day 1:
-"Class picture" before we head off on the course. Team EN is resplendent in our matching kits.
-Swoopy, fun descents for the first 20 miles punctuated by some climbs. As the day progresses, the swoopy, fun descents seem to give way to more and more climbs. Temps are in the 80's. It feels hot and dry to this New Yorker. I get behind on fluids and salt resulting in a cramp that seizes my left leg. Yep, the Sodium Queen goes down!
-Lunch at Chipotle where I eat a burrito the size of my head.
-Leigh & Dave, Nemo, Scott, Corso, Larry Gilbert and I position ourselves about 600m from the finish. I am in awe seeing the Pro peloton for the first time. Tom Boonen crashes 300m from us. I rush to offer him wound care (I'm envisioning rubbing salves all over him! Ha!) but he's already up on a new bike and riding to the finish. Too bad for him!
Day 2:
-The ride starts in Davis. I think I'm riding in the middle of the road, but NO...it's ginormous bike lane. I vow to live in a place like this someday.
-Windy and grey through orchards before riding into the hills on the way to Napa. Despite the weather, the scenery was gorgeous.
-Hot soup in Angwin...thank you Joanne!!
Day 3:
-Drizzle to start the day in Pacifica...typical San Fran weather! We roll down the PCH and are treated to iconic rugged Pacific coast views. A left turn on Tunistas Creek Road and the vegetation gets more dense, the trees become taller. I am riding my first Cat 1 KOM in an unspeakably beautiful redwood forest. I take a nature break and spot a banana slug!
-Frigid and wet descent through slick, twisty roads. One crazy hairpin turn and some dodgy switchbacks...it wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't raining.
-Halfway up the second KOM I'm in a haze of hypoxia from the climb and distracted by all the gorgeous scenery when Mike Allen shows up and says,"Patrick's crashed and he looks bad. How fast can you get up this climb?" How FAST?! Doode, you're looking at it. So Mike literally pushes me up the rest of the climb (it was like an extra 50 watt turbo boost!) where I meet the van with Patrick and Trent. The rest is as per Rich's podcast.
-Mike Hedman picks me up at the hospital (with a Chipotle burrito) after Patrick is admitted. After meeting him for the first time, I proceed to devour that burrito in his car like a hyena tearing into a wildebeest. Sorry, Mike! I really do have better manners.
Day 4:
-Sierra Road climb...it's the scene out of the "Happy Cows make Happy Cheese" commercial. Who knew Silicone Valley was so pretty? The descent affords sweeping views of the south Bay Area. I say to Rich,"It's like a John Steinbeck novel (I'm thinking East of Eden), but without the poor people." Did you see anyone downtrodden trying to escape from the Dust Bowl there? I think not.
-Mine Road climb...More amazing views then a descent into more arid land with plants that are prickly. The last 12 miles Nemo and I make a silent pact to put our heads down and ride to the end. We were NOT going to get swept up...and we didn't! We watch the peloton roll by in Patterson while munching on Carl Jr. burgers.
-The Visalia Best Western is full of team trucks, vans, and cars. No Saxo Bank. However, the Bissell team was on my floor. Leigh scores a pic with Heinrich Haussler. We stroll around getting pics of expensive and immaculately clean ProTour bikes.
Day 5:
-After breakfast, the chicas walk by Heinrich Haussler's room and notice his laundry in a bag on the floor. We all considered stealing the poor boy's dirty bibs and jersey, but let it go. I would've felt really bad if I saw him on TV riding the stage in Bike Nashbar or Performance shorts.
-Dumped out at around 3000 ft in Sequoia National Forest. The road goes up, up, up to 7200 feet. My first climb on a bike at altitude. There's SNOW at the top. And the TREES---such magnificent giants!
-The descent begins with a nice swervy road that all too soon begin to climb again. Sheesh. This pattern repeats itself until after The Trail of 100 Giants.
-The watering hole in Kernville feeds us Tri-tip sandwiches, fries, and Poptarts while we watch the end of the ToC stage in Bakerfield.
Day 6:
-Last day: Time to leave it all out on the road...whatever little is left to leave. We get out at around mile 80 of the course to sample the last 2 tasty KOM's. The first one is a real a$$-kicker with my a$$ being definitively kicked. Pitches of 15, 16, 18, 19% grade---this day when I look down at my Ergomo and see 10% grade, I think "Whew! Now I can rest!" The Crestline "sprint" was NUTS---an 18%? 20%? pitch. Holy crap! The spectators on the climb cheered us which really lifted me up those switchbacks.
-The views on the way to Big Bear Lake...just stunning.
-Watch the pros finish...said Hi! to Bob Roll and take a picture with a big picture of Cancellara figuring that's as close as I'll get to him...
-Wonderful dinner at Rich and Joanne's! I ate my weight in pita bread, hummus, and kabobs. Great campfire stories recapping the week's adventures.
Day 7:
-Time trial in LA...What a spectacle! Nemo, Leigh and I are in Dan's Podium Girl shirts. They are giving us special stalking powers. I nearly faint getting a picture with Bobby Julich. Bjarne Riis signs my ToC shirt. I get my picture taken with Spartacus and tell him that he's the most handsome man in the peloton. Get pics of Andy Schleck and Jens Voigt. Yep, I'm an old CSC/Saxo Bank groupie. For Dana Sharp, I get pics of George Hincapie and have an actual conversation with him. What a nice man!
-Dinner at the Yardhouse. No calorie dense crepes, pizza, fried food---we've all reverted back to sensible eating knowing that thousands of Calories weren't burned today on the bike.
We should start up an EN Norcal welcoming committee!