Pretty much all of the "wounds" from being on the road every day for nearly 3 weeks have healed. Yes, the bum is feeling quite fine now! Although I was certainly glad to take a day or two off from riding after the final day on PAC Tour, I can't say that there was any reason phycically that I could not have kept rolling along. The body is an amzing machine that is incredibly adaptable. During the last week or so, it became quite easy to modify my intensity level to the point that recovery became easier during the off-bike hours. I was surprised how fresh the legs felt just a few days after the final riding day. All that aside, it was time to take a break mentally from the the daily riding routine.
It is also interesting to me that in the last week of PAC Tour, most of my nightly dreams were about home and being back with family, and oddly now that I am home, for nearly two weeks, most nightly REM sleep has been filled with thoughts of being on a long bike ride. Go figure! While these were certainly not nightmares, I did regularly awake feeling tired, as if I was laboring away on a ride that never seemed to end. Pretty wierd.
I just picked up my road bike from the shop in Crystal Lake where I had it totally gutted and reassembled. Found out I trashed quite a few things while out on the road. Bob fixed it up good as new and it rides silky smooth once again. I am longing to get back out on the road with the Saturday group to once again enjoy the cool quiet mornings spinning away. I got back to commuting to work on the mountain bike pretty quickly and I must say the 15 mile commute seems like nothing these days.
I DO NOT MISS the 3 a.m. training rides in 30 and 40 degree weather which preceeded the months before PAC Tour. For me, this was the hardest part of the year, riding in freezing weather, in the spring winds, alone, and in the dark. Not terribly fun, but necessary to prepare adequately for a demanding cross country trip such as this. Looking back, I would say that the training I did prepared me well for this ride. While I only logged about 3,500 miles from January 1 to the middle of May (I had hoped to get in 5,000 and I know there are riders who had logged a lot more than I did), I think I wound up doing a pretty good mix of varying distances and intensities to build up to this event. Now that I know the trip went well, I can admit I was only able to get in one double century, about 10 rides in the 110 to 150 mile range, and a whole mess of rides at about 70 to 85 miles. I think the most important factor which prepared me was riding as many back to back days as possible. There were a few weeks where I would strive to ride 70 to 75 miles every morning before work. Trying as best as possible to mimic PAC Tour conditions was the most helpful. Waking up tired and sore and getting accustomed to it was the key for me!
After looking at all of the data I was able to compile from my bike computer, here are some interesting (or not so interesting) ride statistics:
- Total miles logged: 3,027
- Total time elapsed (includig rest stops): 204.25 hours (avg. 10 hrs 45 min. per day)
- Average speed (including rest stops): 14.8 mph
- Total riding time: 175.00 hours (avg. 9 hrs 13 min. per day) 7 days, 7 hours, 0 min.
- Average riding speed: 17.3 mph
- Total vertical feet of climbing: 113,504 (21.5 miles) 5,974 feet per day
- Total calories burned: 189,710 (9,985 per day)
- Decending into the Yuha Desert off of Interstate 8 in California. Amazing lunar landscapes and how hot it gets so quickly as you descend to the desert floor.
- Sunrise over the Glamis sand dunes to the east of El Centro.
- The climb up Mt. Mingus and descent into Jerome and valley below.
- The red rocks of Sedona, AZ
- Climbing out of Oak Creek Canyon up to Flagstaff.
- Sunrise in Monument Valley, UT
- The climb up Wolf Creek Pass and the snow capped summit, scarfing down hot dogs and hot chocolate at the top.
- The climb and descent of La Veta Pass. Unlikely I will ever ascend a mountain at over 25 mph and descend at less than 15 mph. The winds were extremely dangerous but getting down safely was a thrill.
- The big skies of eastern Colorado as we left the western mountains behind.
- Kansas gets honorable mention for its vast rolling wheat fields (but not 400 miles worth!)
- The hills of Missouri, riding through Jefferson City next to the State Capitol, and the KATY bike trail along the Missouri River basin.
- Riding through St. Louis, the Gateway Arch and the crossing the Mississippi on the Chain of Rocks Bridge.
- Riding the backroads through small towns of rural Illinois, Indiana and western Ohio.
- Ohio's Hocking Hills .
- Meathouse Fork Road in West Virginia.
- Riding through the Shennandoah National Park and George Washington National Forest.
- The last few miles of the ride down the Colonial Parkway to the beach at Yorktown.
Lon, Susan, and Crew - Our PAC Tour organizers have taken every worry, want or need away from thier riders to the point that all one needs to concern themself with is moving thier bike down the road. From routes, to nutrition, to bike maintenance, to coaching and moral support, Lon, Susan and the dedicated crew make every effort imaginable to accomodate their customers. While there are other touring companies out there, if you are ever considering a cross country bike trip, Lon and Susan are the ones to get you there becasue they do it right, and have a great time doing it.
Riding Companions - Our group was small enough that I pretty much had the oppotunity and good fortune to ride with everybody on the tour at one point or another. Sure it is natural to settle in and regularly ride with others who best complement one's riding style and pace but everyone was there for one another along the way, willing to help with mechanicals and moral support. I look forward to the hope of once again meeting up with many of these firiends down the road on other tours and events.
Friends - I am grateful to my local riding friends and others who followed along on the blog and dropped notes of encouragement along the way. My friend E also rode his BMW motorcycle down to Greenville, OH from Fenton, MI to meet up with me, catch up with old friends and to share dinner and many laughs. E is the "most interesting man in the world" (from the Dos Equis beer commercials).
Food - Eating whatever you want, and as much of it, anytime you want. I still lost 10 pounds on the trip.
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