Early Morning Cyclist Inspiration

Fall Color

 In no particular order.

Morning Cycles

A blog entry in the stylistic form of my daughter inspired by her recent publication: Tidal Mornings

It's 6:22 AM.  I haven't looked at a clock since sometime just after midnight but I know it's 6:22.  I'm too tired to roll over and check.  I rest a little longer and muster the energy to turn my head. 6:24.  I briefly think I could drive a car to work but I won't.  I've only driven a car to work 2 times in the last 4 months and that's only because my day's obligations would be impossible without it.  It's time, I swing my heavy legs out of bed and my heavy head follows.  How can a body this strong feel this tired.

I'm up!  My morning routine consists of checking the weather.  Temperature, precipitation and wind speed are all considerations on my cycling garb.  38 degrees, dry with light wind; perfect!  Shorts, shirt, socks, shoes, jacket, bike tools, headlight, taillight, gloves, hat, helmet, iPod(optional), Garmin...I'm ready to go!  Coffee! Shit, I almost forgot the coffee.  Sometimes I don't even take a sip on the ride but I'd miss it if it wasn't there.  Now I'm ready to go.

I clumsily clomp down the oak stairs in my hard stiff bike shoes.  Which bike?  By now the decision has already been made.  If I'm feeling nostalgic I'll take my trusty old road bike.  I nearly started my cycling passion on this bike.  Is it raining?  Rain bike.  Is it snowing? Fat Bike. Is it icy? Studded bike. Do I want to disconnect from society, if even for just 30 minutes? Mountain bike. Today it will be the cross bike.  Light and nimble yet aggressive and confident, I love this bike.

I attach all the gear to the bike like a sailor rigging a ship.  Everything has it's place.  Even my shoes will have a place in the pedals, locked together as one.  Man and machine.  I open the door from the dark basement to reveal morning's first light.  At 6:22 it was still dark but now the day is waking up.  The sun hasn't ascended above the horizon but it will, and soon.  The sun has more energy than I at this time of day.  I mount my bike (click) (click) and we are off.  The smell of wet autumn leaves fills the air reminding me of the cold days to come.

The sleepiness that overtook me less than a half hour ago dissolves.  The crisp air awakens me, refreshes me, revives me!  My bike feels light and nimble, ready to play.  Sorry my friend, I slept too late for a long ride today, maybe tomorrow.  The first part of the ride is uphill.  Warming the body from within, banking gravity.  I'm thankful for the uphill start because the rest of the ride will be easy if I choose.  3 miles from home I'm at the highest point in my journey.  In the next 2 miles I am flying.  Twenty, thirty, forty miles per hour all under my own power.  I soar by the same dead porcupine on the side of the road, a little worse for the wear, reminding me of the passing time.

October Sunrise

I get to the point in my ride where I feel smug.  School is in session and traffic is backed up for over a mile, bumper to bumper, like a freight train just leaving the station, as it crawls ahead I smile.  The road is wide enough for me to safely ride by.  King of the cars!  The wind has turned against me, no matter, I am almost at work.  I arrive.  My clothes have gained two pounds that I have lost.  I should drink some water; coffee will do, lucky I remembered it.

I commute to work by bike.  Most people wonder why.  Why would you subject yourself to additional effort, cold, discomfort, time and the many other challenges commuting by bike brings?  Most people don't even consider that biking could be a mode of transportation even on the best of days. There are a panoply of reasons and I will try to do some of them justice.  Biking keeps me fit, my desk job does not.  By riding to work I fit  a 90 minute workout into 45 minutes, the additional time it takes to ride verses drive.  Biking saves me money.  Riding a few days it isn't that much but riding every day it really adds up.  Biking helps the environment.  It's inarguable that not burning our limited oil and creating greenhouse gasses will extend our time on this planet.  Biking keeps me young.  At 48 years old I've passed my physical peak but in the velo world  I can ride faster, longer and harder than 99% of the 20 year olds out there.  Take that aging!  Biking gives me independence.  Most people think their car gives them independence, sure, and when it breaks?  There is something rewarding about getting to where you are going entirely under your own power.  You should try it sometime.   And most of all, I like cookies and beer, not necessarily at the same time.  On tap for 6000 miles this year I've burned about 200,000 calories on the bike.  I still have to count some calories but I get to count higher.

With the time change soon upon us all of my rides will be in the dark and the cold and the snow.  And I will be right out there in it with my lights and my jacket and my fatbike.  Bring it on, I am ready!

The Dempsey Challenge, 2015 - Giving 133%

(Sorry, too cold to take pictures, just a long winded post, pun intended)

I signed up for The Dempsey Challenge for my 7th time this year and exceeded  my fundraising goal of $1000 by 10 bucks bringing my total fundraising for The Dempsey Center to $9510 if my tally is right.  This year I joined team Big Bird who's 2015 fundraising was $6750.  I was wearing big bird plumage on my head for the ride.

I decided this years goal was to complete my fastest century ever.  WRONG!  And here is my list of excuses:

• First, it was cold.  Riding in the cold is OK if you are dressed for it but A, you are wearing 5 lbs of extra clothes and closer to 8lbs after they soak up a days worth of sweat.  In terms of bike weight that is about $10,000 in weight reduction from a bike.   And B, cold air is denser than warm are and actually effects your speed on a bike.
• Second, it was WINDY.  Friggin windy.  When all you have is about a 1/3hp engine (me) a 15MPH headwind makes a difference.  
• Finally, there were no fast groups in the ride.  In years past there was a train of riders doing the course at 20MPH, sharing the load.  This year they were all doing Casco Bay Cyclocross.  The lack of fast riders did make for an interesting event.

So, at the start of the ride I queued up at the front of the pack and my wife was going to round up the rest of our team... We never did make it back together until after I finished.


I started off strong and made my way to the front to see if I could find a fast group to join.  A few miles in we had made our way to Patrick Dempsey and the group that started 3 minutes ahead of the full pack.  I reveled in the magic for about 30 seconds and went on ahead to find out that there were no fast groups, just a few lone wolves and some pairs of riders.  From there I rode with Alex from Bates for just about 1/2 of the ride.  I'm not sure his clothing choice of shorts was the best but he was keeping the weight down.  By the Naples rest stop we passed the current leader which won us a police escort to clear the path, very cool, no pun intended.  Also not close enough to draft, that would have been helpful.  About 10 miles later the previous leader, John, caught us and the 3 of us took turns forging a path through the shitty wind.  Somewhere just before the Harrison rest stop Alex dropped off.  I'm not quite sure where because I thought he was still with us until just before the stop.  Alex caught us at the stop and decided he'd rest a little longer when we left.

I rode with John for the last 50 miles.  He was getting some leg cramps and thought I was doing more of the pulling, I was getting tired and thought he was doing more of the pulling, it worked out fine.  At one point we caught Gustav, a freshman from Bates, and the 3 of us took turns until we stopped at the last rest stop and he kept going with about 15 to go.  The chicken soup at the stop was worth the wait, hot with plenty of salt replacement.  John and I were the second 100 mile riders to cross the line at 1:30 which just about tied my other fastest Dempsey time.  It might actually be a PR but I was looking for closer to a 5 hour century so I'm not counting it.

So, I talked to John for a few minutes and checked on the location of the rest of my team via google+ location.  They were still 30 miles out.  I had a choice, change into dry clothes and mill around for 2 hours and freeze, or, ride back out the course and intercept them.  Since I hadn't made a personal best on my century time I decided I could go for a different PR.  At that point I didn't realize that The Mallett Brothers were playing at 2:00 or I might have stayed to watch.  I started the course backwards which got lots of comments from the volunteers along the way that recognized me.  About 5 miles out who do I meet but Gustav doing the same thing as me.  He's looking for the rest of his friends from Bates including Alex.  We chat until he finds his group about 12 miles out.  I expected to meet my team just about at the last rest stop which is 16 miles from the finish.  Actually, if I hadn't found them by then I was planning on stopping there anyway to get some more chicken soup.  Well, I found them less than 1/8 mile past the rest stop.

I decided that I could really use a little real fuel so they went on and I backtracked for some soup.  It was fun to get back to the stop and tell them that I got to the finish and all they had was lobster so I came back for more chicken soup.  Unfortunately, I hadn't planned on riding hard back to the finish but Kelly and John now had a 10 minute lead on me and I had to put the hammer down to catch them by the finish.  The soup was good.  I caught them with somewhere around 4 miles to go. We finished, got a beer, got some food and then got the hell out of there.  We...were...freezing!!!

I didn't break my PR for speed but I did break 3 other records.  Longest ride, furthest ride and most elevation in a ride.

Stats:

• Distance: 132.9 Miles (a few more that didn't' get recorded)
• Time:  7:40:42 Moving Time (8 hours 15 minutes total time.)
• Elevation: 9075 feet (2600 feet more than my previous record)
• Average Speed: 17.3MPH
• Average Temp: About 35F

We got home, let the dogs burn off some steam, watched an episode of Walking Dead and went to bed at 7:45.  Up around 6:00, ready for a ride to work; s.l.o.w.l.y.

2015 Felt F2X - Mini Review

Honestly, I was happy with my 2013 F4X.  It was my favorite bike out of 8 and I had no intention of replacing it before at least 3 others.  Well...

First Day On The New Ride

 Di2 - Wasn't something I thought I needed but I'm getting use to it FAST.  I shift more on this bike than I ever did because it is so easy to keep adjusting. We have tons of rolling hills at grades up to 20% if a few spots, I shift a lot.

Shimano R785 Ice Tech Brakes - OMG! none of my other disk brake bikes stop like this.  I swear you can go from 20 to 0 on gravel in 20 feet.  This is the one upgrade that I was interested in.  Diving down some of the big hills around here is was done a slower speeds to make sure I could stop when I needed to.

FSA SL-K Light Crank: This is my first carbon crank, again, something I didn't think I needed.  BUT, (sorry for this humble brag) on some sprints and short climbs I can really feel the difference in stiffness.  Some of it is the frame I'm sure.  The F4X was also a very stiff bike with very little flex but this one is incrementally better.

DT Swiss Wheels: No complaints, they fell a little stiffer than the Felt branded wheels on the F4X but nothing significant.

Overall Build: Again, small upgrades over the old bike.

Ride:  On gravel roads this bike is fast, firm and confident. On roads it handles almost exactly like a road bike except when the pavement turns to shit on a 45MPH descent - it doesn't matter at all. 

Overall Opinion: I paid EXACTLY twice as much as I paid for the 2013 F4X.  Is it twice the bike?  No way.  But that's the way the bike price structure works.  The F4X was a very strong, race capable bike that never gave me any problems.  Having had time on both, would I save myself $1500 and keep riding the old bike if I had the choice to make over?  Nope.  Really, and I mean it this time.  I won't replace this bike until I have worn it out. 'cause I want a new fat bike & road bike & mountain bike

This fall I'm going to fit it with some road tires and take it on multiple charity rides like these:

The Dempsey Challenge

Now That's a Cyclocross Barrier.

For Sale: One well loved 2013 Felt F4X, 60 cm, excellent condition, new tires.  $1400

Bicycle Blue Book Value
Craigslist Listin (till it sells) 

Felt Bicycles, if you are listening, I'd gladly write a more in depth review of a 2016 F2 in exchange for riding it for a year.  It would be compared against an older Scott, CR1 so I'm sure the review would be quite positive.

Scott Bicycles, if you are listening, if Scott were to get me 2016 Scott Foil Team (or similar) I'd gladly not review the 2016 F1.

Specialized Bicycles, if you are listening........

The Dempsey Challenge - This Time It's Personal

Actually, every time it has been personal but this year I had a family member that was going through a mastectomy tell me how much was available at the Dempsey Center.  Thank You Patrick Dempsey, all the cyclists and runners that raise money and all of the people that have donated in the past.

How personal is it for me?

•  Family
• Leanne Hamlin, Sister-in-Law, Died very early of multiple myeloma.  Unfortunately I didn't get to know her since I didn't meet her until shortly after her diagnosis.
• Dwight Edwards, Father, An active guy, much like myself, died before his time from cancer in his kidneys, lungs and more.
• Lee Edwards, Mother, Multiple bouts with breast cancer, treated and in full remission. 
• Tricia Edwards, Stepmother, Multiple bouts with skin cancer, doing well with maintenance. Edit: and throat cancer that I had forgotten about. (which I'm going to call a positive because it was years ago and hasn't returned)
• Vickie Woitko, Sister-in-Law, Recent bout with breast cancer, doing well.
• Work (and these are all within the last few years)
• Cindy Anderson, Brest cancer, Treated and doing well
• Marjie Collins, Breast cancer, Treated and doing well
• Jim Greene, Brain Tumor, Treated and doing well
• Gene Honeywell, Aggressive cancer, Tough old bird worked until just weeks before he passed.
• Scott Bolduc, Brain Cancer, Treated and doing well, Truly a life changing event here.  I'm seeing a man that decided to start living life a different way after a disease almost took it away from him.
• --- -------, (Name withheld), currently working through the big C
• Friends & Acquaintances
•  There have been a few.

The worst thing about getting Cancer is once you have it your life will never be the same.  You will always be waiting for it to return.  The fear never really goes away.  Looking at my family history I'm just waiting for my turn.  But until then...This will be my 7th year doing the challenge!  I haven't missed one yet.  With your donations I have raised $8500 to help people struggling with cancer.

The Dempsey Challenge

Here's a summary of years gone by:

• Year - Mileage - Bike - Amount Raised 
• 2009 - 50 - Univega Viva Sport - $840
• My first BIG group ride, pretty exciting!  I was so cute back them, I thought this ride was long.
• 2010 - 100 - Univega Viva Sport  - $2550
• My first century, also exciting!  Even though I have been biking more I had never ridden this far and was a little worried about riding for that long.  I was pretty proud to be riding it on my almost 30 year old bike. This was also the year I lost my dad to cancer
• 2011 - 100 - Scott CR1- $1660
• My fastest century, still exciting.  This was the year I set out to see how fast I could go.  I remember the temps hitting near 90 in October.
• 2012 - 100 - Surly Cross Check $1220
• My slowest century, less exciting.  I decided to do the ride on a slower heavier bike this year, pushed it pretty hard and paid the price.  All's well that ends well.
• 2013 - 100 - Scott CR1-$1130
• When you start the race with a flat tire there's a good chance it's going to look up from there.
• 2014 - 100 - Felt F4X $1100
• Kelly is going to join me for the 100 mile ride this year.  The plan is to kick back and do it at a slower pace and enjoy the ride and ample rest stops.  Since I'm riding the Not Dead Yet ride the day before that may be mandatory.
• 2015 - 100 Scott CR1 Felt F2X(?)
• This year I have joined a team.  The plan is to ride it together but I'm getting an itch to see how fast I can accomplish a century.  I'm not getting any younger after all.  I may try to hook up with some racers and see how long I can hang on.

The Dempsey Challenge raises money to support The Patrick Dempsey Center For Cancer Hope & Healing.  In most years they raise around $1,000,000 which goes directly to the center which offers free counseling, care & support to anybody impacted by cancer.  Your donations support local people to help make their lives better at a time when they need support the most.  

Other charity rides on the fall schedule include:

Loon Echo Trek 

Supports land conversation for public use for current and future generations. If you're ever hiked Pleasant Mountain you have benefited from Loon Echo!  They also manage thousands of acres of land available for public use.  Thank You Loon Echo!

Fight Back Festival

The fight back festival is a major fundraiser for The Cancer Community Center in Portland.  The work the community center does is very similar to The Dempsey Center without the backing of a Hollywood star! The Cancer Community Center Serves the Portland Area and The Dempsey Center Serves the Lewiston/Auburn area.

Thanks for making a difference!

Better Late Than Never - Camping Week

The usual family pilgrimage to River Run Campground had the usual biking trips.  Actually it didn't since we brought the dogs for the first time we were a little more tied to the campground than usual.

Dogs

Cute Dogs

 One glaring omittance was the ride up Brunt Meadow Mountain.  But I made up for it with a "Ride" up Pleasant Mountain.  I even got the KOM   OK, so it was the best out of 4 but that doesn't mean I wasn't working it.  I got mad kudos from several troops of scouts that I passed on my "Road Bike".

It was like a cross race but the runup was the top 1/2 of the mountain.

 

I'm not sure how many people have a picture like this.

  I had planned to ride longer to climb Douglass Hill but no, it was a hot day and I was wiped.  I actually stopped at a house where somebody was watering his plants and begged a water bottle refill.  He was nice, I got ice and everything.

The week was filled with more dog friendly activities like a hike up Mount Cutler

Tired Dogs

It was hot that day too.

Thursday was the biggest ride of the week.  Mrs Candid Cyclist and I set out for a gravel grinding adventure.  Not having a computer I was guessing at the distance.  I was guessing somewhere between 40 and 80 miles, I didn't try to guess too accurately because the ride seemed right.  We planned the route over gravel roads with a few landmarks from the Maine Gazetteer

First Stop, The Hemlock Covered Bridge. 

You can see my turn-by-turn directions here, old school.

The next stop was Kezar Falls Gorge.  I'd never heard of this spot and almost didn't find it.  I only wish it was 10+ degrees warmer while we were there so we could have gone down in to swim.  It was hard to catch the scale in the pictures.  Entry into the gorge was by swimming only and it seemed like it would be an amazing place.

Really cool gorge.  Don't ask me how to find it, just look for the part of the ride where we doubled back.

Top of Kezar Falls Gorge looking down.

From the gorge we took a gravel road that went up and over some mountain.  In all we went over 70 miles, probably half of in on dirt and even more than that on quiet roads, it was lovely.  And by the end we were TIRED.  About 50 miles in my wife learned a lesson in proper fueling for a ride.  Once she got the tank off empty her quickly waning average speed doubled.  Here's where we went:

Gravel Grinding Unknown Adventures

Somewhere on our ride, Walkers Rips I think.

Top of Burnt Meadow (Hiking)  ((With Dogs))

I hate to be the one posting too many pictures of my dogs but she is so friggin cute

There was kayaking too

Random Bike Pictures

Fake Chickens

Real Turkeys

Tall Shadow

Perfect Morning

Steamy Lake