Ride the Rockies 2014 Day Six: Welcome to Golden!

The final descent down Lookout Mountain into Golden, Colorado, made it all worth it. Six days of riding featuring some of the toughest climbing I have done: Boulder Canyon (especially the middle third), Berthoud Pass (Empire to Mile 66). the Three Bitches (see below), Battle Mountain and Tennessee Pass (a tough combo), Loveland Pass (especially Keystone to A-Basin), and Floyd Hill (a nasty little stretch of about two miles at 8-10% grade). After all that we were rewarded with a true downhill finish featuring amazing views of downtown Golden and the Coors Brewery.

I'm still not sure which of these steep climbs are the ones locals call the "Three Bitches." The first three were tough, but the two in the middle were just plain nasty. And that little bump at the end was brutal. The fact that it was a totally unnecessary detour through a neighborhood of multi-million dollar homes supports my theory that ride director Chandler Smith suffers from Sadistic Personality Disorder. 

Day Six began in Breckenridge with a nice easy five mile cruise on the bike path until we hung a right and climbed over Swan Mountain (steep but short) and into Keystone. From Keystone to A-Basin ski area is the toughest part of the climb up Loveland Pass (straight and steep, especially the four miles below A-Basin). It was funny to see skiers heading to the slopes as we rode up to the parking lot. Three of them were Team Bar2Bar members Woody, Paul (the Pilot) and Leah (Paul's daughter, the stoker).

The Bar2Bar Ski Team gears up to ski a few runs at A-Basin int he cycling helmets and jerseys! From left: Lea, Paul (the Pilot) and Woody.

Paul and Lea drove up from their home in Frisco with the tandem and ski equipment so they could ski a few runs before finishing the ride. Woody rode up and skied a few "laps" (as he calls them) before getting back on his bike and rejoining the ride. The Bar2Bar Ski Team accomplished something I'm sure few, if any, others have done: skiing in the middle of a ride on Ride the Rockies!

The video above captures the final ascent to the summit of Loveland Pass (it's pretty long, about 20 minutes, but not much happens in the middle -- from 8:00 to 12:00 -- so feel you might want to fast forward through this section!). We had a nice tailwind up the pass. I call this tailwind "Angel's Wings" because it literally feels like you are being lifted up from an invisible force. The views from the top are awe inspiring and you definitely feel a little closer to heaven!

The next 35 miles featured a mostly downhill combination of bike path and side roads through the old mining towns of Silver Plume and Georgetown. Shawn and I rocked this section and were joined by Omar, a wounded veteran, for the stretch into Idaho Springs (we rode up some of this stretch on Day One before the snowstorm on the summit of Berthoud Pass shut down the ride).

Omar is part of a program called Ride2Recovery that helps wounded veterans recover from mental and physical injuries through cycling. After being bed ridden for three months following spinal injuries, cycling helped Omar get back up and moving. He is now training for the U.S. Paralympic Team. There were several Ride2Recovery participants on RTR this year. Click here to donate to this great cause.

It was honor to meet Omar, a veteran wounded in service to our country in Iraq. Thank you for our freedom, Omar!

Omar and I lamented being "larger" riders as we started the climb up Floyd Hill. Struggling up the steep climb (1,000 feet in two miles) I kept saying, "I don't know who Floyd is but I don't like him! Turns out he was an early rancher in Colorado. So he must have been a good guy but the hill named after him sucks!

Shawn was a great teammate, doing lots of pulling and offering words of encouragement after leaving me in his wake on the big climbs. "See you at the top," he'd shout over his shoulder as he took off. :)

After the short descent of Floyd Hill we had a little climbing to do to get to the top of Lookout Mountain, but the end was near and the thought of the final descent (and the burger I had at the aid station in Idaho Springs) gave my legs the last burst of energy they needed and soon we were overlooking Golden, the final stop on RTR2014. The following video captures the windy descent of Lookout Mountain in Golden.

Passing under the Golden Arch, Shawn and I joined the other cyclists in celebrating surviving one of the toughest Ride the Rockies in history. Given the cold weather and over 25,000 feet of climbing (considering I was about 1,500 feet below the top of Berthoud when they closed the pass to cyclists), I think this was the most challenging of the eight RTRs I have completed. Of course, that makes the feeling of crossing the finish line all the more satisfying. After all, that's why we ride, right Omar?

Shawn captured this shot of me crossing under the Golden Arch, which doubled as the finish line for Ride the Rockies 2014.

It was nice to wake up in my own bed this morning with nothing on the agenda except to rest up and getting ready to re-enter the real world. Only two weeks until my next big ride -- the Colorado Bike MS with Patty's Pack. Stay tuned for details on how you can be part of this fundraising effort to help people living with Multiple Sclerosis.

Ride on!

Daren

Ride the Rockies 2014 Day Five: Minor Triple Bypass

In Colorado they have a ride called the Triple Bypass ("for those who dare") that traverses three mountain passes in one day. I call yesterday's ride, Day Five on Ride the Rockies, the minor triple bypass, with climbs over Battle Mountain, Tennessee Pass and Fremont Pass. Climbing three passes in one day was tough but Shawn and I think the previous day's ride over the Three Bitches was worse.


Overlooking the site of Camp Hale, training grounds forthe10th Mountain Division in WWII.

Day Five began with a nice steady incline through Minturn, Colorado, before the first climb up Battle Mountain (9,267 Ft.). We were rewarded with a nice downhill and amazing views cross the Red Cliff Bridge before starting the second climb over Tennessee Pass (10,423 Ft.) My favorite part of this stretch was riding through the valley where Camp Hale was located (except for the headwinds) Camp Hale was the training grounds for the famous 10th Mountain Division in WWII, where Senator Bob Dole* and his fellow soldiers learned mountain combat techniques (on skies) before being deployed to the Italian Alps.

At the 10th Mountain Division Memorial on the summit of Tennessee Pass

After submitting Tennessee Pass we dropped down into Leadville, Colorado, the highest incorporated city in the U.S. at 10,200 Ft. above sea level. From there we climbed Fremont Pass (11,319 Ft.), the third and final pass of the day. Official total elevation gain for the day was 5,580 Ft. (which is a little over half of the triple bypass, hence the "minor" part).

Woody donned his traditional Hawaiian shirt for Day Five.

I enjoyed the final descent down Fremont, making an attempt to break my own personal speed record of 50.4 miles per hour on a four mile stretch of -7% grade. But alas, the headwinds held me back and I only reached 48 mph. I did get to ride in the slipstream of Paul (the Pilot) and Leah (his daughter) on their tandem down the pass and along the bike trail into Frisco, where we stopped a the official Team Bar2Bar destination for the day, the Moose Jaw Pub on Main Street.

The BEEFWIFE joined me in Breckenridge for the final night party.

It was a beautiful evening in Breckenridge for the final night party. Hard to believe RTR14 is almost over. Well, when I say almost I mean we have 77 miles to ride, including a massive 3,000 Ft. climb over Loveland Pass (11,991 Ft.) as well as two steep ascents (Floyd Hill and Lookout Mountain) coming late in the day. I'm looking forward to coasting down Lookout Mountain into Golden and crossing the finish line at the Golden Arch sometime around 2:00 this afternoon.

Ride on!

Daren

*My father and I both worked for Senator Dole in the 70s and 80s, including his 1980 presidential campaign (my dad) and 1988 presidential bid (me).

Ride the Rockies 2014 Day Four: Arriving Before Happy Hour

I had one goal for yesterday's ride from Steamboat to Avon, and that was to spend as little time on the bike as possible. The issues with my right shoulder/back and left foot would only get worse the more time we spent "in the saddle." The 82-mile ride looked daunting: a slow, steady climb from Steamboat to Toponas then a big descent into the Colorado River valley, followed by a 6 mile climb back out. After another descent we would end with a 11-mile steady climb to Avon.

In addition to a nice tail wind, new Team Beef rider Shawn did a lot of pulling on Day Four. Here he rolls along the green pastures of the Yampa Valley with the Flattop Mountains in the distance.

But God was smiling on us yesterday (perhaps feeling sorry for torturing us with rain, sleet, hail and snow on day one) and he blessed us with a nice tailwind for most of the day. It was the first time on RTR 2014 that the wind wasn't working against us. As a result we made good time and arrived in Avon after just 5 hours and 25 minutes of riding.

Dropping into the Colorado River Valley was a sweet descent, but we paid the price on the climb out.

When we rolled up the Gore Range Brewery, Shawn asked what the title of my blog post would be for this day. There wasn't much of anything to complain about, unlike the Three Bitches from the day before, until we sat down at the bar and realized we had arrived an hour and a half BEFORE happy hour. Bad timing!

The Brisket French Dip on a homemade pretzel roll at Gore Range Brewery was amazing.

Nevertheless, we enjoyed a great post-ride meal and washed it down with some liquid carbs. Unfortunately, Team Bar2Bar captain Paul (the Pilot) and his daughter Leah overshot the bar (the one he chose) by several miles, so we closed up the official Bar2Bar destination and headed on into town to meet them for a happy hour margarita* at Agave.

It was a beautiful night at the party in Avon.

Time to get packed up to head out for today's ride, a 74-mile doozy featuring three big climbs: Battle Mountain, Tennessee Pass and Fremont Pass, before dropping into Summit County. The plan is to stop at the Moose Jaw Pub in Frisco before heading into Breckenridge, the overnight destination. The Moose Jaw has been the official Bar2Bar stop on many a Ride the Rockies over the years. I'm already looking forward to enjoying a cold one sometime around 4:00 this afternoon.

Ride on!

Daren

*Ordering margaritas with Paul is story worthy of an entire post. Remind me later :)