My Blog

It all started so early…

Bear Valley, CA. Eyes opened at 12:30am (guessing from nerves), but the alarm officially convinced me out of bed at 3:15am. Even though it was dark, it seemed like the weather was warm and yesterday’s smoke from the California wildfires had cleared out by virtue of the breeze coming in through the window. I was leery of the first, thankful for the second.

Started hydrating with a full glass of water. Dressed in 5 minutes with what I had laid out the night before, I headed to the breakfast station. ‘Power cake’ ingredients were ready for final mixing: wheat flour, bran, flax seed, oatmeal, brown sugar, baking powder, pecans, walnuts, salt, egg, milk, applesauce, blueberries and cinnamon. This was no wimpy pancake – this pancake-turned-power-cake was created for hours of cycling and most effective when topped with butter and maple syrup. Accompanying the power cake: 1 cup of coffee, 1 cup of water with multi-vitamin, 1 bottle of water for the road.

4:00am – Stepped out our front door to find that my brother, sister and mom had taken advantage of my 9pm bedtime from the night before. My car was painted with various encouraging slogans and a number of inside-joke depictions. Laughing along the one hour drive over Ebbetts Pass to Markleeville/Turtle Rock Park, the temperature hovered around 55 degrees (warm for 4am, predicting a hot day). As I approached Monitor Pass around 5am I drove in the opposite direction of many riders who had started before light (teammate Dave being one of them). I parked along the road near the entrance to the park, surrounded by many other crazy people gearing up to do the same thing I was about to – spend an entire day going uphill on a bicycle.

(ready to head out in front of my car, indicating this is my third Death Ride for TurningWheels for Kids [to my car painters – thank you for the support and huge laugh at the wee hours of the morning])

The riding begins

5:30am: I was officially riding with 55 degree temperatures, so I only needed long fingered gloves, my vest and sleeves in addition to my jersey and shorts. This year I started the ride on my own, but knew a number of riders that would be on the same path – my three TurningWheels for Kids (TWFK) teammates (Dave, Brennan and Jeff), a number of fellow Bear Valley-ites (Martin, Charlie, Jill, Doris and Dave), and friends and fellow riders mostly from the San Jose/Santa Cruz area (Bob, Greg, Caspar, Tommy, Hilary, Brett, Leslie and Brad). I was hoping to catch up with some of them, but had no idea if we’d cross paths with 3,000 total riders this year (the largest number yet).

A complete novelty for this ride, I had no heart rate monitor. The batteries to my Polar had died at the last moment. For the past two Death Rides and all throughout training, I had based my pace on my heart rate and knew it’d be tough to keep slow and steady without it, but I didn’t have much choice. I borrowed my mom’s stop watch however, which allowed me to monitor my calorie intake.

The first two miles were dark and chilly – a downhill stretch until we reach Markleeville and the check point where all riders show their numbers to enter the route. The next three miles were a gentle climb and until the left on Monitor Pass and the beginning of the real climbing.

I caught up with two fellow riders from Bear Valley, Martin and Charlie, and we found ourselves at the same pace for the first climb, chatting, watching the sunrise and surrounded by just a fraction of the total riders. My calorie intake was programmed as last year’s was – every 15 minutes I had a drink of water and a drink of Cytomax from each water bottle (what I trained on and what is served at the aid stations) and every 30 minutes I had 1/3 of a power bar. If and when I stopped at rest stops, I would eat fruit – bananas, oranges, watermelon – because of their water content for more hydration and digestibility. Long rides have demonstrated that if I get behind in calories there is no way to recover them later, but if I have too many they cannot be digested fast enough, causing stomach cramps so the balance of concentration and frequency is key to last the long day. Even though it was early, I had probably passed three riders already changing flat tires – I crossed my fingers that I wouldn’t have one myself over the course of the day – such a pain.

Heading up Pass #1 – front side of Monitor. Riders in shorts and no jackets – it’s only 7:00am, indicating a hot day and need to stay ‘watered’. Martin (sporting Wisconsin’s W) and Charlie.

8:00am: Reached the top of Monitor Pass at 8,314 feet – Pass #1 completed, first sticker earned and only 113 miles to go. I began the long, windy and spectacular descent down the backside of Monitor. Many riders were passing on the left and being passed at the same time. Towards the bottom of the pass there were more riders coming back up so this became a bit treacherous.

Bottom of pass #2 rest station – our TWFK team colors and the fun décor (a skeleton)

Heading up Pass #2
8:30am: After a quick refuel I began the long climb back up. Just as I clicked in I ran into fellow TWFK teammate Brennan and his friend Cara, both looking strong and enjoying the day.

The ride back up brought more excitement. As many riders were still descending at fast speeds, I was thankful that there was a painted line separating the lanes, encouraging riders to stay on their own sides. Nevertheless, there was still the occasional line crossing by the ascender which usually drew a wild yell from the descender barreling down at 40+ miles per hour. Add in the occasional SAG motorcycle splitting the lane while trying to find and aid any troubled rider and you were kept on your toes (and towards the far edges of the road).

I was passed and was passing other riders and not too far up the climb I met up with a fellow Carmel to Cambria Century rider, Greg and his friend Gary. Surprised that I was finding friends, our paces separated us and I was upon the mid-rest station which was full of energy. The rumor was that a local high school football team was aiding this station to cheer, run, entertain and exercise at the same time. They’d greet the riders downhill of the station, grab their water bottles, sprint up the hill to refill them and hand them back (all while the rider is riding, so no time lost and no stopping). This was one of the three liveliest rest stops of the entire route.

View while ascending the back side of Monitor Pass (Pass #2) and riders riding on – towards the top of Monitor Pass.

I had forgotten that this is a long ascent and that there were certain turns where you can see far ahead of you, and hence know how far you have yet to go. Towards the top I found fellow Bear Valley rider Dave Ritche – an amazing rider and veteran of the Death Ride many times over. He puts me to shame and offered the best piece of advice I could have received for my first Death Ride two years ago: “Go out at marathon pace, and then back off”. Thanks Dave!

Around 9:15am I hit the summit (8,314 ft) of Pass #2 – where my 2nd sticker was officially earned. I refueled here and began the descent towards Pass #3 – eager to make it to Hermit Valley where the TWFK crew and my family would be waiting.

Pass #3 – Front side of Ebbetts Pass

Near the base of Ebbetts Pass is the second most lively ‘stop’. It’s not a scheduled ride stop, but is incredibly entertaining to pass this group of prom queens. Their sign reads “my outfit is better than yours” and they were a very friendly group.

Around 9:30am I began the ascent up my favorite pass for its scenery, but the steepest pass of the ride with some 10% grade climbs. I am thankful to the two riders pictured below, who brought an outburst of laughter with their brassier-wearing, whiskey-drinking skeleton in tow (aptly called The Rolling Bones), complete with bike helmet and sound system. My hats off to the ‘driver’, as that could not have been a light load to pull up any of the passes.

About half way up Ebbetts I found my TWFK teammate Dave. Keeping his steady pace, Dave was in perfect rhythm to finish his first Death Ride. We’d been riding for five hours and I became anxious for the PBJ&banana sandwich waiting at the bottom of the fourth pass.

Views riding up Ebbetts Pass. No shoulder, no guard rail, no lane dividers – a true mountain pass.

A bit farther up the road I came across Leslie, another first time Death Rider from Truckee who was also looking very strong and well on her way to make all 5 passes. I was towards the top of the climb and just kept plugging away. It was at this point I realized, though, that I had made an error at the bottom of the pass.

The temperatures had become increasingly warmer and I was drinking more fluids accordingly. Unlike last year, I did not see nearly as many riders collapsed on the side of the road from dehydration, yet I had miscalculated my fluid intake and thought that a bottle and a half would sustain me from the bottom of Monitor to the top of Ebbetts. A ways before the top I reached for my bottle and found both empty. Now I was left hoping that the voice in my head – which sounded strangely like ride master Captain’s – that had yelled ‘hydrate!’ every 15 minutes throughout the morning had left me well-watered by this point and I’d make it to the top ok.

I came across Jill and Doris (married to Martin and Charlie who I had ridden the first pass with just hours before). They were on a three-pass mission for the day and enjoying the opportunity to take it the views a bit more than I was, with my head down just keeping pace.

At 10:35am I made it to the top of Ebbetts (8,730 ft) completing Pass #3, and rolled gingerly over the cattle guard and to the downhill. At 11:00am I arrived at the Hermit Valley rest stop (bottom of fourth pass) to a crowd of supporters. My family and TurningWheels for Kids had truly formed a rally cry for all TWFK riders. This was by far the most rewarding rest stop of the entire experience. The first sight pulling into the stop was of four neon colored signs from my family all in support of my ride, a huge banner with our teammate’s names (see picture below), a crowd of cheering TWFK supporters and my amazing family there to help me. I followed the Toeniskoetter clan to finally refuel my water bottles and to a well-stocked car with water glasses that read “2 to go” (meaning number of passes left). More sunscreen, more water, my two PBJ&banana sandwiches on wheat (one for this stop, one for the road), chapstick and the opportunity to unload my sleeves, long fingered gloves and camera (which now felt a bit too heavy, even if I was able to capture more of the ride on film). I kept my vest just in case – recalling that the last descent on my first year brought hail.

After refilling my water bottles (twice) – keeping with one water, one Cytomax (but asking for an additional scoop of mix in my bottle because I trained on a higher concentration) – my family and I made our way back to the TurningWheels greeting station to wait for Dave’s arrival, announced by rambunctious hoots and screams from the squad. Shortly thereafter arrived our fourth TWFK teammate, Jeff. Although we were one teammate short of being in the same place at the same time, I was thrilled that I had at least seen all the TWFK riders – Brennan, then Dave and finally Jeff – especially considering the number of riders on the road, the different start times and the course route.

Following a myriad of pictures, a rather quick conversation and one PBJ&banana, Dave and I headed out while Jeff refueled. It was a whirlwind of a visit and Dave and I both commented that we couldn’t have been more grateful for every single person who came to support us (especially for me, for my family who was 100% there to help – holding my bike, refilling my bottles for me, bringing my lunch, making the signs, decorating my car, taking pictures – doing everything so that I could have a few minutes to eat lunch and say hello before heading off again). They drove all that way to see us for 20 minutes. To everyone who was at Hermit Valley – thank you!

Team TWFK greeting station at the Hermit Valley rest stop. Fantastic banner, amazing cheering squad.

Dave and I are off again – beginning pass #4.

Keeping to our individual paces, Dave and I separated on the way back up the fourth pass. It’s easier to pick out friends as they are coming down and there were a slew of them on their way to the Hermit Valley stop. Caspar and Tommy zipped by, easily distinguished by the horns they had cleverly attached to their helmets. Martin and Charlie followed just after. Brennan and Cara were just behind them and again I came across Leslie whose computer had come loose and fallen off her bike on the way down, but with luck she found it on her climb back up. Within an hour I was back at the top of Ebbetts Pass at 8,730 feet.

Four passes down and one to go

The temperatures were very warm, but not yet uncomfortable and there was a large cloud or two offering some shade. More riders were passed changing flat tires. Talking to a volunteer mechanic after the ride, he mentioned that the majority of flats he changed were probably due to thin (cheaper, lighter) tubes.

Descending the front side of Ebbetts Pass is always the trickiest of all five. A rock wall borders the right side, it’s a 1 &1/2 lane road, there were riders coming up two and three across, no shoulders, hairpin turns and a steep drop off the other side of the road. There’s also a tendency for the rock wall to drop small rocks on the road, so reaction time is helped by a sane speed.

I passed the lunch stop at the bottom of Ebbetts as I had already eaten my PBJ&banana and proceeded to join into as many pace lines as I could for the next 14 miles of hot, flat riding between the bases of Ebbetts and Carson passes. It was much warmer at this point – into the mid-90s, and as usual we were riding into a head wind, so keeping up with a line of riders was the most energy efficient way to go.

I joined one group, but they pulled off after a few miles to rest. I joined another group, but didn’t have the energy to keep up with their pace so started slogging it out on my own. I passed my car at Turtle Rock Park, its painted windows making me smile yet again and then was passed by a rider who encouraged me to pull in behind him for the next few miles – saving me precious energy as mine was nearing its end on this flat stage.

Finally, we arrived at the base of Carson Pass and my second favorite rest stop of Woodfords. It was around 2pm and the heat of the day was in full swing. I thanked the kind rider who let me tag along for the last few miles and as I pulled into the stop I saw her – the magical volunteer with the spray hose. Bless her and the water she showered upon us over-heated riders. Within minutes I was doused, cool and refueled for the final climb. My legs had begun to feel heavy, my knees a bit tired of climbing and I knew this would be a mental and physical effort to the end. I had 38 miles to go, half of them uphill and a sudden sound of distant thunder, which was slightly worrisome.

The Final Climb

After seven slow, uphill miles I arrived at Picketts Junction, the last rest stop until we reached the top. As I pulled off the road and onto the gravel, I watched as an exhausted rider failed to pull out of his pedals. Over he tipped and collapsed he remained. The volunteers at the stop rushed to help, physically unclipping his shoes from the pedals and taking his bike from under him as he did not seem to have the energy to do so. What looked to be a combination of total energy expenditure, high temperatures and dehydration, the rider decided to remain on the ground and recover while being tended to by the volunteers. A glimpse of why only 25% of riders finish all 5 passes – this is a demanding day.

It was at this last stop that I ran into two other riders – Brett (who I rode one pass with last year and who was completing all five passes this year for the first time) and Bob, another rider with whom I shared the road during the Carmel to Cambria century in mid-May. Brett had a very complicated and potentially ride-halting experience on the road between the fourth and fifth passes that resulted in him losing the function of his rear wheel. He had returned to Turtle Rock Park looking for a mechanic and found none, but in an amazing show of rider sympathy, a complete stranger agreed to let him take the back wheel of his bike if Brett mailed it back to him. This random act of kindness allowed Brett to continue and eventually finish all 5 passes (with only two gears, but two gears nonetheless). Incredible.

With only 9 uphill miles left to ride from the Picketts rest stop I turned back to the road. I was becoming increasingly aware of how long this day had been. My knees were feeling the strain, my sit bones were tired of sitting, the 3.5 hours of sleep and lack of HR-monitor pace was catching up to me and the complete void of any wind was allowing the heat to slowly sap my remaining energy. This was the point of the ride where I dug in to remember why I was out here for the third year in a row. Thinking about the more than 70 individuals who donated to TurningWheels for Kids in support of this goal, my family and friends who drove up from San Jose to cheer for me, those who thought to send a dozen well-wishes the day before the ride, the ice cream bar at the top of the pass ? and most importantly, the hundreds of under-served kids that would be helped by finishing this goal that Dave, Jeff, Brennan and I started training for months prior. There was no where to go but upward and onward.

Finally I could see the top, even if it was off in the distance. The slow and steady train of riders was making its way and I knew that in 20 minutes I’d be there. Knees unhappy, feet slightly numb, shoulders growing tense, I pedaled forward one stroke at a time. 20 minutes, 15, 10, 5 and I was there – the top of the 5th and final pass. The 5 pass pin was bestowed upon each rider with directions to the well-deserved ice cream bars. Because I had not stopped for any amount of time throughout the day I decided this would be my place to relax. I found a chair kindly offered up by a rider who turned out to be a Swedish racer. His friend had convinced him to travel to California just for this ride and he marveled at how challenging it was in comparison to the flat riding in Sweden. Their group was tired, but happily so and enjoying the rest. I saw Brett and Bob both come in and then found fellow Santa Cruz rider Brad, the last person I knew on the ride who I hadn’t seen yet. Amazing – I couldn’t believe how many friendly faces I had actually come across.

After 45 minutes of sharing tales of the day, congratulating each other and signing the 5 pass poster, I finally dared to peek at the sky behind us. It certainly wasn’t the color I was hoping for; dark clouds, looking as though they were letting out rain somewhere on the road and working their way towards us. As much as I wanted to wait at the top for my fellow teammates, I knew that a rain storm was on its way and it was time to finish.

I put on my vest and began the final descent, at first in another pace line of riders. Then we hit it – a hard rain. The temperature dropped down to 65 and I found myself soaked in a matter of minutes. The salt and sunscreen dripped into my eyes and I couldn’t blink it away fast enough. Not seeing all too clearly, I decided against pulling off the road because I was surrounded by riders whose brakes were likely as wet (and useless) as mine. Eventually, the water running into my eyes no longer stung and at least I could see out of them again (even if my glasses were soaked). Slow and controlled, I made my way down Carson pass in a solid downpour. Riders were still ascending and had a long ride to go in the rain. I later discovered that the skies at the top opened up with grape-sized hail, forcing a hundred riders to seek shelter in the port-a-potties, under any tent and any available tree. What a Death Ride experience.

Thankfully without incident, I made my way back to Turtle Rock Park and my (slightly rained on) painted car at 5pm. I was glad to have a towel and change of clothes for the hour ride back to Bear Valley. Tired and stiff, I still couldn’t help but smile. The day was a success. 10 hours of riding plus1.5 hours of total stops totaled an 11.5 hour day. 129 miles ridden, 15,500 feet of elevation gain, over $12,000 raised (almost $25,000 between the whole team TWFK) and the ability to pass on that opportunity to a child who has never had access to it. That could accurately be defined as a ‘banner day’.

The evidence: 5 stickers, 5 passes, 129 miles, 15,500 ft of climbing, one rain storm and over $12,000 raised for TurningWheels for Kids.

My sincerest gratitude to my supporters, donors and cheerleaders.
You made it happen and I thank you.

Let me preface this by saying this was not only my rookie year at the Death Ride, but my rookie road riding year period. I had just recently bought my road bike in the fall and didn’t really begin riding seriously until after the first of this year. I may have been crazy to even attempt this so soon, but I couldn’t resist the challenge. I received report from one lady who said there is no way I should even be there, never mind have a chance to finish. For those that don’t know, I’m not a young man. I believe that I completed this ride by trying to be smart in my training, preparation and riding and that is what gave me the chance to finish.

I know, I should probably stop and think this out but my current plan is to do the Death Ride again next year as part of team TurningWheels For Kids. I know that many of you have told me that someday you want to ride the Death Ride and that next year might be the time. I’m not going to name names but you know who you are- Don, Scott, Steve, Scott, Kevin, Brad, Alan, Bill, Derek, a few people from Gold’s and elsewhere…. If so, plan to start your training accordingly if not right away. Next, contact me about joining our group for the 09 Death Ride. We would love to have you team up with us so we can support each other’s efforts. Besides you’ll get to wear a cool jersey and have people ask if you know Leah!

For more information about my ride experience read the post below. Both Leah and I have posted blogs about our training experiences below also.

Here’s what you do-
*Make and follow a plan to get into Death Ride shape. If you need ideas, we’ve accumulated some information about how to do that.
*Be sure you have a decent bike. It doesn’t have to be top of the line, just decent for a 125 mile ride.
*Contact us to express your interest and find out what’s involved. dave@turningwheelsforkids.org
You’ll find we give more than we take!
*Watch the Death Ride website for registration information and register when the lottery opens. If you don’t get picked in the initial lottery there are other ways to get in.
*Just Do It!

• ride 125+ miles in one day- Done
• climb 15,000+ feet of mountain in one day- Done
• Obtain all 5 mountain pass stickers- Done
• Be a Death Ride finisher- Done
• Earn money for TurningWheels For Kids- Done
• Thank everyone who supported our cause- Working on it.

Soooooo, I finished! We finished! All 4 of our TurningWheels For Kids team members who were able to start the ride, finished the ride. Congrats to Brennan, Jeff and Leah. Thank-you to all who supported us. I could feel your support. I felt so honored to be the recipient of so much from so many.

Now I’m going to type a long diary of the day. For most of you that may be extremely monotonous and boring so feel free to skip down to the bottom and read my list of highlights and impressions at the end. It won’t offend me. Again, thanks for your generous support!

Here’s how it all went down: Keep in mind that this was my first attempt at the Death Ride. Also, I was a rookie at road riding period. I had only bought my bike in the fall and have only riden one organized ride which was a century.

Thursday morning before the ride~ drove into the Sierras to begin my deep focus on the task at hand…. yeah right! Drove up to take a break from work. I just used the DR as an excuse. I did drive over highway 4, Ebbetts pass into Markleeville to check out the area. The weather was warm but clear. Highway 4 looked tough and I tried to ignore the fact that it was going to beat me up in a couple of days. While in Markleeville I checked in and picked up my registration packet, numbers and goodie bag.

After hanging out for awhile I headed back over to Dorrington (near Big Trees) to meet up with tonights host, Jeff along with more TurningWheels support crew members- Sue, Donna, Derek, Deb, Jakob and Colby for a great Italian dinner. I love the carbo loading part of the preparation for a big ride.

Friday morning while the others headed out to the lake for a day of boating and tubing :>( , I drove back over to Markleeville to truly begin the “Death Ride experience”. It was only 10:30 am the day before the ride and the Markleeville area was beginning to hop. Turtle Rock Park had security at the entrance and I had to talk my way through with a little name dropping to get to the camp area I was to be staying at that night. Immediately after driving in I met up with a friend, Greg Eby, that I would be camping with that night and set up camp. Around noon fellow TWFK team mate and DR guru Leah showed up and we all walked up to a main area of Turtle Rock so the others could sign in and we could all walk through the vendors display area and bag a few freebies. Soon afterwards Leah took off back to Bear Valley where she would be staying in her cushy bed for the night while the rest of us would be sleeping with the bears.

Hunger showed it’s head again (happens a lot) and so we didn’t hang out too long before Greg talked me into riding the bikes down to Markleeville, about 3 miles, to a great little Deli for lunch. The only problem is I refused to ride back up the hill to camp (part of my pre-ride resting discipline) so we hitched a ride with another friend with our bikes in the back of the pickup. Now the real preparation began as Friday afternoon was filled with sitting around and talking and meeting new friends who were camping in the same area. It’s a tough life. Sit, talk, stand, talk, sit, talk, laugh…. Oh, occasionally wander over to my well prepared bike and check something just in case. When we spent sufficient time we walked back up to the main area to, you guessed it, eat again. Pasta, of course. Dinner was followed by more new friends joining our group. After everything was laid out for the next morning, we hit the sack at the relatively early hour of 9 or 10 or so. It would be a long night as sleep would be hard to find. It was. How does 1 1/2 -2 hours sound? In spite of being up most of the night I didn’t hear the bear that passed by our tent.

Saturday- Day of the ride! 4:00 am – Greg’s and my alarms went off simultaneously. 40 minutes later, dressed and prepped for the day, we rolled out of Turtle Rock park, in the dark with headlamps and tail lamps, into a long line of early starters single file down the hill and through Markleeville to begin the first long climb of Monitor Pass. In less than 2 hours the top of Monitor was crested at 8730 feet for the first time. For those that don’t know, every couple hours of riding there is generally an established rest stop where drink, food, restrooms, mechanical and medical help are available. Many people gave me great advice and one I chose to follow was to skip the rest stops at the summits. If altitude affects a person the only cure is to get down from the altitude. I spent very little time at the summits for that reason and usually rode right past since the next stop would at the bottom of the next down hill or shortly after and would be easily obtainable.

What a great and picturesque ride down the east side of Monitor! This was a blast! Soon I was at the bottom of pass #2 at mile 25, which is out near Highway 395. This was my first stop of the day and involved filling drink bottles with Cytomax, eating a little fruit and pretzels and shedding some clothes. I didn’t waste time at the stop (another bit of advice- minimize stops, keep moving) and soon I was turned around and headed up climb #2. It didn’t take long before I saw Leah fly by on her first downhill and Jeff Kazan not far behind. I was wondering how far back they might be as they started 45 minutes to an hour behind me since they didn’t want to mess with lights as I did. Over the top of climb # 2 at mile 35, 2 stickers in (each pass climbed means a sticker on your bib number) another high speed downhill and soon riding the rolling Highway 4 to begin what some consider the toughest climb- #3, the east side of Ebbetts pass.

Gratefully, I had ridden this exact route back and forth over Highway 4, Ebbetts pass just 2 weeks prior and knew what to expect. It would be a long, but very do-able climb. Resisting the urge to keep looking over my shoulder for Leah I tried to enjoy the amazing views and people that would pass by. So many jerseys and stories. Many people riding for a cause besides our team. In some ways it’s the people that really make this a great ride. At one point I looked right and then looked left to see Leah’s smiling face. She caught me. So, I’m grinding along and she whips out her camera and starts shooting pictures! Oh, brother. My pain will be immortalized. After talking (well she talked, I just tried to breathe) she stepped on the gas and sped up to her normal pace and was gone as she was even more excited than I because her family would also be waiting with our TurningWheels crew at the next rest stop. They had driven all the way up to support and cheer our efforts- amazing! Continuing my slow but steady pace I summited at mile 55, collected my 3rd sticker and bombed down the west side of Ebbetts to see the team. This was the best down hill of the day as I was on schedule, if not early and felt like I had a good chance to finish all 5. Sure enough as I rode into the Hermit Valley rest stop at mile 61 I was welcomed by a very loud cheer on my behalf from the TurningWheels For Kids crew. This was an amazing reception in the middle of nowhere. I would imagine other riders wanted some of that.

Very cool. First things first, I collected that very important #4 sticker

and then over to the “gang” to report. 3 climbs down, 6+ hours and looking down at my bike computer realized I only had covered half the course, mileage-wise! I think it was Jeff Kazan (he came into the rest stop shortly after me) suggested that I remember that I’ve already climbed 3 of the 5 passes including what some believe is the hardest. Don’t stress about the mileage. I had plenty of time.

I’ve got to say how grateful I was to realize the sacrifice Sue, Donna, Deb, Derek, Jakob, Colby, John O., Carlene and Jeff made on our behalf. They had a huge banner and attracted many other cyclists that knew about TurningWheels For Kids and even participated in our Big Bike Builds. Unfortunately if I was going to finish the DR, I needed to go. With mixed feelings Leah and I said our good-byes and began our push up climb #4. Just a short way into it as Leah was beginning to move off at her faster pace, Brennan went flying by. He looked good. It didn’t seem to take too long before the summit of Echo came up again at mile 70 and soon found myself flying down Ebbetts back towards Markleeville. This descent is fast and can be somewhat technical with tight turns and no room for error. No mistakes made and I soon found myself at the lunch stop where Jeff Kazan waited for me to have light lunch, refuel and take off for the long grinding ride out to Carson Pass.

To be honest this next section was the part of the ride that I was dreading. It involves a long, usually against the wind, rolling hills ride out back through Markleeville passing my car along the way and on to Carson Pass. The advice to me was to hook up in a pace line to minimize effort and to find some relief during this part. If you aren’t familiar with that term is, it’s a close single file line of riders with the lead rider working hard and breaking the wind while following riders have an easier time in the draft. Fairness dictates that there be rotations or turns in the front pushing the wind. Almost Immediately I saw a long line forming just ahead and tried to catch it, but I was spending too much energy getting to it so I let it go. Not too much later a short line passed by at my pace and I hooked on. It broke up in Markleeville as the lead riders stopped to see supporters so I pressed on. It wasn’t long before I realized that I had a shadow (another rider) on my rear wheel that seemed content to just stay there. I came to find out she and I had started about the same time and 10 hours later found ourselves pretty evenly matched. Last year was her first attempt (she completed 4 passes) and we agreed to work together to push each other to the top. This part of the ride got hot and at the next rest stop there was a volunteer squirting people with a hose. The volunteers were great all day. Unfortunately at the next and last rest stop before the final summit I left my temporary partner, Laura, behind as she was running out of gas and pushed for the summit of Carson. Carson Pass is open to traffic so it was important to keep my concentration for this last leg. Everyone seemed to be slowing down to my pace, so part way up the hill I found myself in a long pace line. Luckily I was paying attention because a few riders tangled and crashed up in front and immediately bikes and riders were sprawled across the highway up ahead. Keeping my head up allowed me to avoid the mess. Luckily no one was seriously hurt and could push on. At about mile 100 I could see the top of Carson pass way up ahead and it looked like it was still another 100 miles away.

Pushing on at my snails pace I eventually found myself at the final grade. I knew I was close and the riders around me and I started to talk about just that. We could taste it. We were so close. We could feel it. Oh, wait. What we were feeling was hail! It was starting to hail! We had heard thunder for the last hour or so and I was worried about rain, but hail? Turning the last corner at the summit I rode down to the #5 summit rest stop and the hail began to dump. Luckily I was wearing my helmet. Ditching my bike I joined the mass of riders squeezing under every available shelter to wait it out but it kept coming down. It lasted about a half hour before it changed to rain. I wanted to get down and finished, so donning a garbage bag as a make shift raincoat I started the big descent down Carson in driving rain. This was the most miserable part of the ride. I was soaked and couldn’t see much at alland was shivering, which makes it a little hard to control a bike going at a pretty good clip down a mountain pass. I was concerned that the oil had lifted out of the road which would make the pavement very slippery, never mind the wet white lines and the passing cars. Eventually I made the last right hand turn back onto Highway 89 as the sun came back out. Only a few miles to go. I was going to make it.

I did it! Finished! There was Turtle Rock Park. There was my car! Done. Completed. Accomplished my goal. Finished not only for myself, but for the kids who deserve to have what I have and the freedom to be happy.

125 miles.
15,000 feet of climbing.
5 mountain passes.
11 1/2 hours in the saddle.
13 + hours total time.
9200+ calories burned.
1 day.

So, what did I do next? No, I didn’t go to Disneyland. Instead I rode some more~ down to the camp to catch up to Greg, who finished hours before. He’s a stud. Then I rode back to the car to pack up and head out, touched bases with old friends and new friends on how their day went and then off to Jeff’s cabin in Dorrington for the celebratory dinner of superb pasta and shrimp prepared by John O.

End of day.

Feelings, Impressions and Highlights:

*The almost 2,000 training miles, over 100,000 training feet of climbing and countless spin classes were worth it.
*Loved camping at Turtle Rock. Met new people, made new friends
*No sleep the night before.
*Disappointed that I didn’t hear or see the bear that passed by our tent.
*The Death Ride has multiple personalities and many chapters.
*The 4:40 am departure~ Seeing the long line of bike tail lights on Highway 89.
*The high energy RAP High School guys filling water bottles on the run coming up Monitor.
*The prom queens cheering the riders up Ebbetts.

*The spectacular support by the “Skeleton Crew”.
*Being amongst thousands of riders.
*Talking to so many other riders along the way to learn their story.
*Being asked over and over if I knew Leah and was riding with her.
*Top speed recorded- 49 mph.
*So many who were willing to offer great advice that was “spot on”.
*Lots of hail and lots of rain.
*Unfortunately I don’t know what happened to Laura. Hopefully she finished.
*The spectators and supporters scattered all over the course cheering and supporting us.
*Both sides of the main street through Markleeville lined with people waving, making noise and cheering.
*The sense of accomplishment.
*The TurningWheels For Kids crew who sacrificed and drove so far to support our team.
*All of you my supporters and your generosity.

THANK-YOU!

Quick news flash- Just finished the 2008 Deathride today and completed all 5 passes. It took all day, but it’s done, finished, completed! More detail to follow as soon as I recover some. Currently everything hurts.

TEAM TWFK WAS INCREDIBLE OUR DONORS AND SUPPORTERS WERE AMAZING – THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO REACH MY GOAL OF $10,000!!!

I’m with Dave – too exhausted to say more than Brennan, Jeff, Dave and I all finished all 5 passes and wow, was it an eventful ride. Details to follow in the next few days…

Friday, July 11th DAY BEFORE THE DEATH RIDE: 45 minute ride with fast-paced intervals.
Today was registration for the Death Ride in Markleeville and the smoke was THICK and the temps high. Worried that it will be 12 hours of breathing in heavy smoke tomorrow, but hoping for an evening wind to help clear the air. To date, I am just a few dollars short of my fundraising goal – I think I’ll make it by the day of – thank you to all who helped realize this goal!!!

Thursday, July 10th: 40 minute swim, Bear Lake; 20 minutes of core strengthening

Wednesday, July 9th: mostly off – some walking, mostly eating salt and drinking water in preparation for a hot ride (considering it’s in the high 80s in Bear Valley).

Tuesday, July 8th: 1.5 hour ride, ~25 miles, ~1,100 feet elevation gain. Bear Valley –> Mosquito Lake –> Bear Valley.
Again, I do not know the details since my watch crashed (read July 1 post). I definitely focused on heart rate zones – intervals at high cadence. It is incredibly warm up here for this altitude and I’m hoping it cools down before Saturday or we’ll be melting. Increasing water intake substantially this week in preparation of a hot ride.

Monday, July 7th: 20 min light walking, core work

Ok boys and girls the work is over and the fun is about to begin.

The last 10 days have involved a couple of spin sessions and a couple of mostly flat street rides. I’m as ready as I’m going to be this year. My bike has been checked and tuned. Bill Hyland of Hyland Family Bikes has been very generous and I have added his logo to my jersey. By-the-way, if you have bicycle needs see Bill and his crew on Meridian Ave. in San Jose. Others of you, and you know who you are, have been very helpful for me to be on a quality bike and do some quality training in preparation. Thank-you so much for your gifts and generosity. I have logged over 1800 miles on my bike, somewhere over 100,000 feet of climbing and hours and hours in the gym.

My stuff is packed and I’m heading to the Sierra’s in the next day or so.
The weather report looks ominously hot. I think I’ll be ready to hydrate well and replenish lost electrolytes and other important stuff. Stuff is a catch-all technical word related to bodily physiological something or another.

For me the DR is NOT a race. It’s an event to complete for the kids we are trying to lift to a happier and healthier life. With your help that can happen.

Mostly, I wanted to let you know how important your support has been for this endeavor. The ride will really be a stretch for me and I recognize that so many of you are supporting me as I go a little wacko with this fund raiser for TurningWheels For Kids. Experienced cyclists may do the Death Ride routinely. Not me. I’m really a rookie road rider this year and this is a very lofty goal. In order to finish all 5 passes it will take everything I have both physically and mentally. My goal is to complete it and contrary to what I’ve said to some people my belief is that I can.
I will make every effort to post results after this weekend so stay tuned…
Don’t feel sorry for me as I do have at least 3 excellent Italian dinners lined up while I’m gone.

From the bottom of my heart- Thank-you,

Dave

We’re at $9,020 and counting!!!! Thank you to everyone for your donations and words/emails of encouragement – it makes such a difference and positive impact on my motivation.

Sunday, July 6th: 2 hours, 25 miles, don’t know the vertical because of that whole watch issue (see July 1). Bear Valley –> Utica Res –> Bear Valley.
Very warm weather (surprising for the altitude), slightly smoky, but manageable.

Saturday, July 5th: 40 minute swim across Bear Lake

Friday, July 4th: 2+ hrs (don’t know, since I don’t have my watch!), ~30 miles (ditto), maybe 3,000ft elevation gain (argh). Bear Valley –> part way up Ebbetts Pass –> return.
Goal was less effort, more pedaling – trying to adjust to the altitude. I was out of breath in the first uphill…forgot about that part of the ride.

Arrive to Bear Valley & will remain here until the Death Ride.

Thursday, July 3rd: 30 min of cardio/30 min core work

Wednesday, July 2nd: Day off:)

Tuesday, July 1: 40 minutes cardio/30 minutes weights & core work.
Minor catastrophe! Polar heart rate monitor and watch battery died today of all days – 11 days before the ride. After determining that the warranty would be voided unless I actually sent the watch to Polar for battery replacement, I practically ran to FedEx with the watch to overnight it to their LA location. The website states it is a 7-10 day turn around. Considering that I am leaving for Bear Valley on Thursday and will not be back to pick up mail before the ride, I am praying the watch arrives to my office in time for my family to bring it with them on July 11th. My pace and eating schedule are both determined by my Polar – fingers crossed that I’m not left to guess at those two measures come July 12th.

Send Off Dinner from TurningWheels for Kids team!! Our team riders, Dave, Brennan, Jack and I gathered for a filling dinner at founder Sue’s place as our last hurrah before the Death Ride. We missed Jeff, but he was there in spirit. The highlight of the evening was learning of the potential to raise an additional $1,129 per rider from a VERY generous donor. For every pass we complete, a sum dollar amount is awarded, plus $1 for every mile covered. Talk about incentive to finish all 5 passes – thank you oh secret donor!!!:)

Monday, June 30: 1 hr, 15 miles, flat ride – spinning out after Sunday’s massive 90 miler.