Saturday, September 03, 2011

BWR 2011 - Let's bring it home. Part 8




After getting about four hours of sleep, Roland, Hiroshi and I woke up at midnight and hit the road at about 1am. They had oatmeal, I had a sticky pecan roll for breakfast. A group of four riders had left before us, but we were pretty sure we would catch them, given the terrain.

The first 50 miles were just like the last, only it was dark! Traffic was non-existent, and we just rolled along nicely, enjoying the crisp air. At a certain point, Roland left me. I started getting bored and tired and had to make up silly games to keep me occupied. Here are a few:

1. Catch the rider! I could see a couple riders up ahead. Soon, I was passing Chris and Luis. I would get a half mile ahead of them, stop for something, let them pass and get ahead of me, and start the game over! I think they thought I was nuts, but it kept me entertained...

2. Morning services. I sang the entire morning Shacharet service, out loud...or as much of it as I could remember!

3. Walmart songs. As we approached Wasilla, we were supposed to go to a Walmart at mile 70. Well, the Walmart didn't emerge until mile 74. Did I mention Wasilla is just mile after mile of traffic lights, strip malls and traffic (it was morning rush hour at 7am)? That damn Walmart because the brunt of many imaginative and derogatory songs.

4. Remember the 80's. Any 80's song was fair game, as long as I was singing it at the top of my lungs.

With these tools in hand, the traffic faded away and I quickly arrived at Walmart, five minutes before the MacDonald's opened. A group of us waited, had breakfast and tried to get warmed up.

The last 41 miles took us via the scenic route into Anchorage. Glenn highway was pretty when we didn't have to negotiate the 8" of clean pavement between the gravel and the rumble strip. Roland and I were riding together, and pushed through the last couple of climbs over the Eagle River area. The last 5 miles or so were all downhill, and we cruised into the finish line at 11:34am. We have 26 minutes to spare! Hiroshi followed us about five minutes later, claiming the Lantern Rouge for himself. A wonderful ride!



10 comments:

massagebee@att.net said...

Hey great write up Dana! Seems like the week home has gone by so fast...I'm telling everyone about the Alsaka adventure!

Roland Bevan said...

Great posts, Dana! Let's do it all again, somewhere else!

Jonathan said...

Fantastic write up, Dana. It was great to meet you and Roland.

AndySinAK said...

Dana, loved your story. Made me feel like I was there. Glad you had a good ride. Andy

Anonymous said...

Dana, enjoyed traveling vicariously. I'll put this on the 2013 calendar and hope not to be a FBNIT (Finished But Not In Time) :o)

Sounds like this may become the ride that attracts a lot of folks by 2013 me thinks.

Ride Long and Prosper...and ye did.

Diesel said...

Dana, just a great write-up. I finally had time to read from start to finish. When does your first book come out?

Diesel

jflgray said...

Great report, Dana, with pearls of randonneuring wisdom like " ... all was good except for my squeaky chain. I guess that's what happens when you don't lube your chain before the ride and then ride 600 miles on it. No problem...a squeak is just a squeak...."

Bobby V said...

I thoroughly enjoyed driving sag and serving gourmet Wheat Thins. Next time I'll be big and wild on my bike. I loved your comments about the spectacular scenery. Living here jades me. Bear scat on my morning commute today.

CraigM5 said...

Fantastic write up, I do not know how you managed to keep track of all the details. I'm riding BWR this year and really appreciate and enjoyed your story.

Wolf said...

Dana-
You provide good guidance to those of us preparing to do it in two weeks.

See you in Australia in November!
Tim Woudenberg