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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
Here is my Fathers Day ride: The summers are short in Colorado, especially at 12,000'. Having read George and Tonys EPIC MUni adventure this last week, I knew it was time to get HIGH in the Rocky's. I love this ride for many reasons, but mostly because it is very hard, it is in my backyard, and I do NOT have to drive to get to it. You can pretty much count on the 3:00 thunderstorm these days so I knew I had to leave early, plus mornings are best to catch the wildlife and not catch the traffic. As well, the temperatures are perfect to climb mountains early in the morning. When I left, 6:30 a.m the temperature was 42 degree's, just right. I had 25 miles to get to the Continental Divide at 12,095'. My house is at 8,080' so I had approximately 4,000' vertical to climb. The actual climb is 4,500' with the ups and downs along the way. The biggest part of the climb is the last 17 miles where 4,000' is attained. http://tinyurl.com/yrg4n Here are some pictures. I had the road, Co. state highway 82 to myself yesterday. The only people on the road at that hour are old people, (they can't sleep) and other people heading out for adventures, typically mountain climbers attempting to summit some fourteener before the afternoon ligtning. I ride around 8 miles along the valley floor, with very little altitude change. The deer are hanging around in the meadows before they get chased away by traffic. I notice that the valley is getting narrower and the cliffs are getting steeper and closer to me. It is time for the big push up the Pass. I know this road really well, and it always kicks my ass. But time after time, I find myself pushing up the first climb. Deep inside I love this stuff, is it the pain I like, or is it that ZEN feeling of climbing up mountain passes on a Coker, (now a GB4 36"er). You long distance Coker riders know the "High" I'm talking about, it's one that is hard to beat and describe. I know that I am an adrenaline junky, and this activity is awesome for adrenaline. I go almost one hour and forty five minutes before I stop to refuel and give my butt a rest. I have climbed almost 2,500' in two hours and have ridden approximately 17 miles. My next fuel stop, is at treeline, which is around 11,600' in Colorado. The famous "Last Cut" looms in front of me while I munch on a Snickers bar covered with GU gel. I hop back on the GB436"er after a couple of minutes of rest and push up the Last Cut. The road is very narrow here, so people end up following me until they can find a safe place to pass. I wonder what they are thinking when they are behind me? I'm going at most 7-8 mph, the road drops off 1,000' next to me, and all they can see is mountain peaks and some fruitcake riding a unicycle up this steep mountain road. I smile as they pass with their heads attached to movie or still cameras hanging out their windows. Unicycling is GREAT, people totally love it, and truly appreciate you when you are uni'ing. The wind picks up and trys to blow me off of the mountain, but somehow I maintain my line. My heart rate is very medium today, and I am glad because the last steep climb is within view. This last climb comes out of nowwhere, it is steep and at 12,000'and usually makes the heart go right off the chart. Today, the last climb was no problem, I was lucky, I had a tail wind. I raise my hands, kiss the sky, (Lance Armstrong move) and praise the lord as I have made it to top of Indenpendence Pass one more time. I don't stay long as the temperature is cold and the wind is now blowing 30 mph with gust to 50mph. A few pictures and a drink of water and I am on my way back home. What lays ahead of me is a 4,500' vertical foot downhill ride with no brakes, I like it that way though. I ride with 175mm cranks and like how the long arc allows me to control my speed downhill. The summit was awesome as always, but is only the half way point of my ride. I fly, for me anyway, down the mountain at an average of 12-14 mph. Some of the grades are 10%, but most are 7-8%. Very rideable at a fast cadence. But, I certainly did not want to UPD as there are big drop offs and cars next to me. I cheat the white line a foot or so on the way down; cars can wait for a good spot to pass. I finally start to see a few bicyclists on their way up to the summit, wave, and continue on my descent. I do stop for a fuel break and to enjoy the spectacular scenery. The traffic picks up as people are on the move. I reach the valley floor feeling great, legs a little sore, but plenty left. My butt hurts more than anything, but not major. I enjoy the relatively flat miles to my house through the town of Aspen. Aspen is rocking these days with festivals and people everywhere bending their fun meters. I feel especially good as I just bagged Indenpendence Pass on my GB436"er. I make it home safely, (12:15 p.m.) to where my wonderful family is waiting for me. I proceed to then MUni with my daughter and son. A fathers day to remember, one where unicycling was the key player. I can't wait for my next big ride. Life is good. Some stats about the ride: - 48 miles 24 up and 24 down - 4,500' uphill - 4,500' downhill - Average riding altitude 9,500' - Summit 12,095' starting and finishing elevation 8,080' - 100% ridden - Average temperature 53 degrees F - 2hr55 to summit - 2hr05 down from summit - 5hr45 time out on ride - Wildlife spotted deer, beaver, hawks, eagles, and marmots +----------------------------------------------------------------+ |Attachment filename: mike fathers day 04' independence pass .jpg| |Download attachment: http://www.unicyclist.com/attachment/218545| +----------------------------------------------------------------+ -- aspenmike - unicycling albino ------------------------------------------------------------------------ aspenmike's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/3768 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
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#2
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
We spent Father's Day weekend at a soccer tournament in Peoria, IL. This is our third year at the tourney and we always take along a handful of unicycles. The boys and I spent a little time Cokering around the fields. Bruce -- yoopers - Bruce & Mary Edwards ------------------------------------------------------------------------ yoopers's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/31 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#3
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
Wow, great ride, Mike! Thanks for the trip report and pics. I'm twice as jealous because I'm back in Iowa at 1/10 your elevation for a few weeks. Just long enough to de-acclimate. -- gbarnes - www.gb4mfg.com George C. Barnes IV GB4 Manufacturing, L.L.C. http://www.gb4mfg.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ gbarnes's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/174 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#4
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
I spent Father's Day at Canyon Lake with my daughter and about 75-100 close friends. Got to do a little MUni, partied way to much and ended the weekend doing this: http://www.bikemojo.com/speak/showthread.php?t=30237 The second picture is my daughter (Jackie). They haven't posted any pictures of me flying through the air or the pictures of Jackie doing a forward flip on the b*ke yet -- Krashin'Kenny - Crash Tested If you ain't crashing, you ain't going fast enough!!!!!!!!!!! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Krashin'Kenny's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/3420 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#5
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
I did my Father's Day ride a day early so I could spend the actual day with my son and wife. Saturday I rode with a bunch of awesome riders (Scot Cooper, Rob Bowman, John Foss and Mike Scalisi). First we climbed Mt Diablo (10.8 miles, 3300' up). This was on pavement and 2 of us had Cokers and the other 3 were on 29ers. We took mostly singletrack and fireroad on the way down which was really fun. High speed cross country muni is a blast. I'm not sure of the total time or stats but it was around 5 hours with a bit over 20 miles and something between 3500' and 4000' of up and down. A gorgeous day, not too hot, just perfect. Doing all that downhill with no brake was strenuous, but great training. Would've been even better at 12000' with 50mph gusts, but we have to make due with what we have. The photos are in John Foss's camera... On Father's Day, Beau and I played a round of disc golf, then a number of games of pool, went out to dinner and then a movie. Great weekend! Mike, that was an awesome photo of you! ---Nathan -- nathan - BIG rides: Muni & Coker ------------------------------------------------------------------------ nathan's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/251 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#6
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
Wow! My Father's Day MUni ride pales in comparison to your ride Mike! I rode a 5 mile single track loop with just under 1000' of climbing that kept my heart rate topped out most of the time. I found some new single track that bypasses a section of double track. It is by far the bumpiest trail I've ever ridden. Then I came home and cooked up some nice t-bones for Father's Day dinner. We don't eat much beef so that was a treat. My wonderful kids gave me tickets to a ZZ Top concert coming up in September ... the ultimate geezer band! You said it Mike: "life is good" SH -- showard - ------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ showard's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/452 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#7
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
Krashin'Kenny wrote: *I spent Father's Day at Canyon Lake with my daughter and about 75-100 close friends. Got to do a little MUni, partied way to much and ended the weekend doing this: http://www.bikemojo.com/speak/showthread.php?t=30237 The second picture is my daughter (Jackie). They haven't posted any pictures of me flying through the air or the pictures of Jackie doing a forward flip on the b*ke yet * It looked like tha guy in the first shot has a prosthetic leg. That's cool that he isn't letting it get in the way of having fun. I took a short 6 mile Coker ride around the backside of Stone Mountain park. It wasn't anything special other than it was the longest I had ridden it, and the first time on a uni in the park. They have the one lane of the road closed to traffic on the backside so joggers, cyclists can use the other lane. I plan on going there more often since it is about 4 miles from the house and 1 mile from where I work. The one thing that is cool about a Coker is you rarely get the snide remarks. Something about sitting up that high that feels tough. Now for an odometer and a brake. I love going uphill, but downhill gets me a little nervous. Trying to slow down gets the wheel wobbling as I put pressure on the pedals as they come up. Just a matter of time before I come flying off! I had a great time though and look forward to the next ride. -- bugman - Survivor 2004 Wolfman Duathalon ------------------------------------------------------------------------ bugman's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/3812 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#8
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
Well, I can't approach Mike's epic ride, but still managed to have some good father/son fun. Woke up, and opened my present to find a Sponge Bob bike jersey with him riding an underwater giraffe. Cool! Had a big breakfast with lots of protein prepped by my wife and son, then headed into downtown Seattle for the wrap up of the Seattle International Juggling Festival. Attended an excellent cigar box juggling workshop taught by Matt Hall, then did some free juggling and club passing for a couple hours. Rode the "Booster", Seattle Center's new ride which is basically a giant vertical centrifuge. Great view of Seattle and the Puget Sound from the top of it. Then came home and topped it off with 5 miles of light muni on the Yellow Lake trail system near our house. We ride these trails all the time, but still manage to find new challenges. All in all, maybe the best Father's Day on record. Papa and Son about to hit the trail: http://tinyurl.com/33zwf T -- tomblackwood - Registered Nurtz Tailgate at your own risk..... ------------------------------------------------------------------------ tomblackwood's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/3762 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#9
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
Bugman, Yep, he does have a prosthetic. He lost his leg leg just below the knee many years ago in a car accident, but it never affected his zeal for life. He still races b*kes and can even ride a uni -- Krashin'Kenny - Crash Tested If you ain't crashing, you ain't going fast enough!!!!!!!!!!! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Krashin'Kenny's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/3420 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
#10
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Dads, Where did you ride on Fathers Day?
i went up to Falls City,Oregon for some more riding and filming for the 'local riders video' (http://www.norware.com/biking/) thats being made around here. at one point we taped Joe's tiny little helmet cam to my seat post for some real interesting footage... i was the fortunate one to escape the woods that day without breaking anything. Joe lost some screw and all the fluid came out of his front break,then later a stick caught his derailer and busted the XT derailer! DudleyDoRide boots gave up the ghost. after a super steep park the sole of one of them ripped half way off. i got home about noon and spent the rest of the day drinking beer,playing Gamecube with the kids and watching Phil Mickleson doulbe bogey and lose the US open... oh then there was that Rodan DVD that my got me,Toho Studio's first in color. -- jagur - #3649_all fluff i hear? --------------------------------------------------- [image: http://gallery.unicyclist.com/albums...get_Your_Life- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ jagur's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/502 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33371 |
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