RtR Day 2--Mileage 455

The wake-up this morning was MUCH better and not anywhere near as cold as CB. I remembered to wear my merino--yes, it is all about the merino--and slept very well at the far side of the football field.


After a breakfast of coffee and a smoothie I was ready to roll at 7:15. The ride was tough heading north toward Leadville because of the nasty headwinds. I was making about 13 miles an hour until this guy came along and we worked together a bit and added a third.


Aid Station 1 came after about an hour of riding and I had to try some of Pancake Man's Flapjacks. I paid $5 for all you can eat but only had 3. They were pretty good and what I needed to fuel up for some more headwind fighting.

 Gotta Love Pancake Man's Entrepreneurial Spirit

Rick, Steve, and Mark showed up to the aid station about 10 min after me and we regrouped and talked about what we would do for the rest of the ride. You see, this is what is different about a ride vice a race. The goal of RtR is to ride, enjoy the Rockies, but above all stop and smell the roses, eat the pancakes, and meet other people.

Rick and I rolled out with two guys from Pittsfield, MA (both UMASS Grads) that now live in CO. This guy Eric took the lead and pulled the rest of us 13 miles in to the wind to the next aid station--he did not want anyone to take the pull! I was truly in debt and enjoyed the ride....

After the next aid station it began to warm up and the winds died down and we were about 20 miles from Leadville. We began climbing again and rode past Twin Lakes, which is the most amazing aid station of the Leadville MTB 100, that would normally have close to 4000 people. We could also see the historic Powerline off in the distance and this is the heartbreaker of both the Leadville MTB 100 and the Leadville 100 Trail Marathon.

The climb in to Leadville was gradual and Rick pulled us most of the way to the aid station next to the Melanzana factory. While catching our breath (at 10,200') the "Fast Woman" arrived and Rick and I recounted our previous day experience "trying" to draft off of her when she is barely 5'2" and about 105lbs. More to follow on this..........

 Fast Woman AKA Megan

From Leadville we rode toward Tennessee Pass on the 10th Mtn Division Memorial Highway. Rick and I rode most of the way together and leisurely stopped at each aid station. Crepes and a coffee was a great lunch. 

 

Crepes--normally its gels and Powerbars when on the road

On a sad note one RtR rider crashed on the Tennessee Pass descent and was reported to have died either at the scene or at the hospital. Apparently his jacket got caught in the front wheel and caused him to crash.

Climbing toward Minturn

Rick and I rode the last 20 or so miles together as we lost Eric and Chris because we took a bit longer in the aid stations. The ride from the bridge in the photo below was mostly a gentle descent in to Edwards.

Looking Back at the Bridge we just crossed

Looking Down at the Eagle River

Beer Garden and Odell's Brewery

Eric and Rick Talking About Fast Woman

After arriving to Edwards (Beavercreek Ski Resort) I pitched my tent, showered, went to get a snack and recharged my phone and checked e-mail as the local high school and WIFI for the RtR.

I met Rick, Steve, Mark, and Eric at the Beer Garden a bit later and while we all had something to eat Eric was recounting his experience with Fast Woman. To paraphrase Eric's story he tried everything to drop her on the last 20 miles in to Edwards. He tried to push harder in to the wind, descend aggressively where his 70+ pound weight advantage should have dropped her but no..............and per Eric "the laws of physics should not allow a 105 lb woman to be able to keep up" and on and on the story went until Eric was finally able to drop her on a descent in to town. So after 2 days of riding three of us have interesting, and humbling, experiences on the road with Fast Woman.

Day 2 down.