crazy attempt to do this again in 2005
February 10
March 3
March 4
March 5
March 6
March 7
March 8
March 10
March 13
March 14
March 16
March 17
March 18
March 19
March 20
March 23
March 25
March 27
March 28
March 29
March 30
March 31
April 2
April 4
April 5
April 9
April 10
April 12
April 13
April 14
April 16
April 17
April 18
April 19
April 21
April 22
April 23
April 25
April 26
April 27
April 28
April 29
May 1
May 2
May 3
May 4
May 5
May 6
May 7
May 8
May 9
May 10
May 11
May 12
May 14
May 15
May 16 National Bike to Work Day
May 17
May 18
May 19
May 20
May 21
May 22
May 23
May 25
May 26
May 27
May 29
May 31
June 1
June 3
June 6
June 7
June 8
June 9
June 11
the real thing!
epilogue
I ran 4.5 miles this morning, the first time I've run since May 29. Whenever I've been forced to take three-week breaks in the past, I have barely been able to make two miles when I take it up again. And The Hill typically kills me the first couple of attempts. But I ran my 4.5 miles, effortlessly. I have therefor concluded that distance biking on knobby tires while carrying way too much camera equipment is extremly beneficial to any kind of endurance training.
I rode to work Tuesday and Wednesday (Bike to Work Day), and found myself missing the banana and orange stops! Yes, I miss the daily bananas!
It felt odd this weekend not having to get in 70 or 80 miles a day, even though I'm not done yet. MS-150, with a grueling climb at the end of the first 75 miles, is just two weeks away. Big question of the day: Will I put on slicks prior to the ride? Answer: I'm thinking about it.
I'm anxiously looking forward to completing my goal of climbing ten 14ers this summer (no, NOT on a bike!!!), but there is a part of me that can't let go of that Ride the Rockies adrenaline rush. After I went to bed on Monday, two nights after returning home, it finally hit me that it's over. All those months of training, and now it's done. Just a memory. History.
If you had asked me on Thursday, after the 108 miles, if I would do it again, I might have said it depends upon whether the route includes another century. If you had asked me on Sunday after the Ride, I might have said maybe. Co-workers asked that very question on Friday after I presented a slide show of my exquisite Ride, and my answer was a resounding ABSOLUTELY!
Here's to 2004 RTR!
post epilogue
After today's final MS-150 training ride, I shed my fat tires. Yes, I now have two sets of tires, two sets of Tuffy Liners, two sets of slimy tubes and two different sizes of spares! Encouraged by three MS-150 teammates who changed out their Moab-inspired knobbys in favor of mountain climbing speed and ease, I spent two hours at Wheat Ridge Cyclery getting my own dirty deed done. And get this -- I found a sweet road bike with my name written all over it while I waited. Once my house sells...
mail Ride the Rockies registration and check
20 minutes stationary bike
30 minutes stationary bike
35 minutes stationary bike
45 minutes stationary bike
run 4.5 miles
snowshoe 5 miles
bike 31 miles to work and back
run 4.5 miles
bike 31 miles to work ...
I GOT DRAWN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Woohoo!
I got drawn! I got drawn! I got drawn! I got drawn!
What a great ride home today was!!!
bike 24 miles from Boulder to Lyons and back
35 minutes stationary bike
shovel 9 inches
shovel 22 inches
owie
shovel 15 inches
45 minutes stationary bike
bike 35 miles from La Luz to Mescalero and back
bike 17 miles from La Luz to Tularosa and back
45 minutes stationary bike
received training T-shirt; felt like being drawn all over again!!!
run 4.5 miles
46 minutes stationary bike
bike 10 miles on Weston Pass road, elevation 9,400
dirt, uphill, headwind, snow, good training!
hike 5 miles GSDNP
bike 52 miles on South Platte
bike 31 miles to work and back
bike 41.7 miles to work and back, plus some
bike 31 miles to work and back
bike 60 miles on South Platte
owie!
bike 45.3 miles to work and back and Clear Creek
bike 34.1 miles to work and back, plus some
bike 29.5 miles Highway 7/Brighton Road loop
bike goes in the shop; gears popping
bike 25.5 miles Big Dry Creek/Highline Canal loop
bike 50.5 miles to work and back, plus:
Commerce City loop, Clear Creek/Highline Canal/Greenway via Lowell
Yikes!!! I forgot about Belleview Hill!!! Wowsa!!!
(home at 9 p.m.!!!)
bike 10.2 miles just in the neighborhood
paint Corinna's living room
bike 31 miles to work and back
Riding... in the... Rain! (think Whitesnake)
bike 48.7 miles to Waterton Canyon trailhead (almost)
(okay, original lyrics to the Whitesnake jingle apply now)
bike 31 miles to work and back in sprinkles,
20-minute break under bridge during full-blown cloudburst
run 2 miles
bike 26.7 miles to work plus some
bus home due to lightning and deluge :(
bike 75.4 miles to Arches and to Castle Valley
bike 18 miles to Gemini Bridges
hike/rock climb in Arches
bike 15 miles to Maroon Lake
bike 15.4 miles from Highway 6/I-70 junction to Fall River Road
route-finding was a challenge
ran out of daylight, but awesome ride, non-stop on climbs!!!
run 4.5, the lilacs are intoxicating!
run 4.5, effortless
bike 14 miles Mt. Evans road
(didn't get off work until six)
uphill non-stop!!!
bike 45.3 miles from Boulder to Pinewood Springs and back
very nice climb, super fast descent
bike 14 miles Waterton Canyon
bike 53.6 miles, South Platte/Clear Creek/Ralston Creek
followed home by a rainbow!
bike 43 miles, South Platte
attend MS 150 meeting (official Ganglia Gang member now!)
study training ride schedule; adapt!
run 4.5 miles
attend RTR clinic; stand through entire two hours
(counts for SOMETHING, right?)
bike 53.5 miles (27.5 in the rain; what a difference proper clothing makes!), South Platte/Clear Creek
shovel fourish inches
(Okay, so I didn't HAVE to shovel; by golly, I wasn't going to let that free moisture go to waste!)
bike 7 miles to Target for new bike light batteries
(headlight & tail light burned out during rainy trip home yesterday)
bike 31 miles from Idaho Springs to Echo Lake and Juniper Pass and back
bike 34 miles, South Platte obstacle course (broken trees galore)
take bike in to get worn-out trip computer fixed
bike 71.8 miles, South Platte
to Ruby Hill a.m., to Carson Nature Center p.m.
bugs in my hair, in my ears, in my clothes, in my socks and in my stomach!
(a little extra protein supplement...)
Now, will I be able to run in the morning???
no :(
bike 31 miles to work and back via South Platte, then off to Buena Vista
bike 81 miles from Buena Vista up Independence Pass (non-stop) to Leadville and back
bike 24.5 miles from Morrison up Lookout Mountain (non-stop!) and back
bike goes in the shop for final tune before RTR
passed knee checkup!!!
run 4.5 miles
bike 1.5 miles in the dark to check out new crank
bike 35.3 to work and back on South Platte
my knees are dead, but...
getting closer to 100 miles!
bike 90 miles
* 30 miles a.m. from Colorado Blvd. to Colorado Blvd. on South Platte/Cherry Creek
* 58 miles p.m. on South Platte to Chatfield to Kipling on C-470 West and back
then spin a couple revolutions around the soccer fields at Thornton Rec
while being serenaded by a lone bagpiper against a pink and purple sunset -- very cool!
bike 16 miles Fall River Road (RMNP)
mountain biking at its finest
bike 25 miles Trail Ridge Road (RMNP)
bike 17 miles to work, South Platte
run 3 miles (I think)
bike 15.5 miles around the neighborhood
Elephant Rock
bike 66.7 rolling miles with 8,000 other people
bike 34.1 miles to work and back, South Platte
bike 34.1 miles to work and back, South Platte
felt SOOOOO good to be back on the bike!!!
those 50-60 mph headwind gusts make the miles feel like double, though :)
pack and lift 5,000 boxes, 300 trips up and down the stairs
(yes, I exaggerated, but it's gotta count for something)
One More Week!!!
pack & lift some more, move furniture, paint house
I'd rather ride my bike!
bike 34.1 miles to work and back, South Platte
average 18 mph on the way home trying to beat storm -- my best time yet!
move more furniture -- ugh
my final training ride...
35.6 miles to work and back via South Platte
I'm ready!
I Rode the Rockies!
29 June 2003
5 July 2003
2003 RtR Training Journal
2005 RtR training journal
2010 RtR training journal 2012 RtR training journal
2013 RtR training journal
2014 RtR training journal
bikemaster: snowcatcher at att dot net
© 2005 Deborah and Brett Atkinson