June 23, 2018 Thompson Falls to Missoula

I think it started raining around 1:30 am this morning.  I turned over and tried to ignore it but it didn’t stop, in fact it just kept getting heavier and heavier.  By 5:00 Am the alarm went off and I had to do something.  Normally by that time it is full light but this morning I had to hang my little LED lantern in the tent to see as it was still dark.  The present situation required a total rethink of everything I had laid out for the morning.  Different shorts, now I need leggings and arm warmers, plus I need all of my rain gear.  Ok figure out which compression bag these items are in and get them out.  You know that meant opening every bag.   There is really nothing to compare with rolling up your tent in the pouring rain. 

Breakfast was just down the road so we pedalled off to breakfast.  It was being served up by the same fellow, who had provided our supper last night, which I might add was probably the best one so far.  It was hearty breakfast burritos which was a nice change from the breakfast casserole we have been served.

The low hanging clouds filled the valley and mist lay in every hollow. It was only around 60 F so it took a while to get rolling. With 105 miles to cover it was going to take a while.  The road was well worn with two distinct wheel ruts, a center swale and a high spot on either side. The wheel ruts were filled with water so that every vehicle which passed you gave you a good spray of ice cold water, and when a semi-truck went by it was like having a 10 gallon bucket of ice water pitched on your back.   The shoulder was variable but mostly about 3 feet with a set of rumble strips down the middle making most of it un-rideable.  What was rideable was large stone chip seal which had not been swept in a very long time.  I was taking my chances riding to the left of the white line. 

By time I got to first water at the 20 mile mark it was miserable.  By time I got to the 40 mile mark and second water Greg was sitting there in the van picking up cyclists.  I had really wanted to ride to picnic at 57 miles but there he was so it took me only a few seconds to hit the van.  Warm and dry versus cold and wet. A tough choose!  Plus getting in the van with Greg means a direct ride to camp.  Unfortunately that also means you have to help unload luggage.   And I thought my bags were heavy. 

Well it is the end of  week one and we have a rest day tomorrow in the Missoula University dorm.  This ends the toughest week of over 600 miles. Next week is easy by comparison.  Two nights in a dorm and hopefully the rain clears off.  

Off to find a local brew and a steak.

Terry hot biker

June 22, 2018 Kellogg to Thompson Falls

What a day! Thompson Pass was totally spectacular.

However before I get to that I want to tell you about last night.  I finished posting my blog and came outside to find the sky had turned totally black. There was a huge rain front just off to the west. I realized that I had to get my laundry off the fence and as I was pulling it down the first really big rain drops hit me.  Knowing I had less than a minute I made a dash for my tent.  I dived into the tent and pulled the fly zipper closed.  Within 5 second there was a huge flash of lightning and enormous boom and the skies just opened up.  The down pour continued for another 2 hours before it settled down to a steady rain. Lying on my cot listening to the rain on the tent was so soothing. It was great.

This morning there was a low hanging fog which enveloped the valley.  It wasn’t cold but just a little clammy.  However it was very pretty riding up the river valley in the fog.  The route to Thompson Pass is a long steady climb of about 3% for close to 40 miles. I was feeling very strong and made good time.  At about the 20 mile mark sun had burned the fog off.  We turned this right hand corner and there was a beautiful little bridge over the river.  It brought back memories of 2014 and taking Earnie’s picture turning the corner while riding with no hand.  At about the 39 mile mark the grade starts to increase steadily as you approach the summit.  Most of the last 3.8 miles to the summit is over 9% with a good portion exceeding 11%.   Yes I walked a couple of the last few miles.

At the summit (4859 feet) was picnic.   What a spot for picnic!  You can see for miles and the road thousands of feet below.  It was wonderful rolling into picnic.  The feeling of you have made it. Sounds of Credence Clearwater playing. Smells of Shuli’s wonderful soup in the air.   WOW! It just doesn’t get any better.

After lunch was a steep decline down 25 miles to Thompson Falls.  It was a great ride flying down. I think I hit 37 mph without even trying. 

A beautiful day. 

Terry hot biker

June 21, 2018 Spokane WA to Kellogg ID

Another day and another outlandish adventure.  The heat wave we have been broiling under made a 180 degree turn and delivered us pouring rain and vicious head winds.  Ken and I started off from the dorm this morning into a 20+ mph head winds and within a couple of miles a downpour was added to the mix.  It didn’t matter whether it  was up hill or down the best I could manage was about 5-8 mph.  After numerous turns getting out of Spokane we wound up in this canyon which had a distinct down hill and I am guessing at around 5 % down.  Struggle as I would I could not get over 5.1 mph. 

I was suppose to meet Wendy from Trilogy and ride with her to picnic.  The deal was I was suppose to phone her when I reached mile 18.   By time I reached mile 13 I phoned and told Wendy not to come out.  Have a nice cup of coffee and enjoy being at home.  It was quite disappointing as I had looked forward to seeing a friend from our winter home. 

Ken and I struggled on and by the time we reached mile 40 I was soaked and freezing.  The van showed up just then and we jumped in.  A few short miles later we arrived at the trail head to the Coeur de Lane bike trail.  It wasn’t raining and Ken decided to ride from there on to picnic which was only 8 miles as he wanted to get his bike worked on.  I have not had a good opportunity to visit with my friend Ed so I stayed in the van. 

We drove back to Worley where first water stop was to pick it up and went in to a local eatery called Fredneck’s Saloon.  I had the bleu burger which had to be a half pound burger and had ¾ of an inch of bleu cheese on it.  It was so good.  Put this place on your stop list next time you drive through Worley.

We weren’t on the road 5 minutes when the phone rang to say the one of the riders had gone down and was injured.  It was about a 20 minute drive so we were off to rescue him.  When we got to him I jumped out of the van as the weather had switched around and was a beautiful sunny afternoon with a very nice tail wind. 

It was about 25 miles in to Kellogg down the bike path.  So I just sailed along with a couple of other riders. 

The story on the rider who went down is it is a very serious dislocated shoulder but no break.  Unfortunately he is going home. 

Looks like the heat wave has dissipated and we are in for some nice weather.  Tomorrow is a 68 mile ride into Thompson Falls. We cross the second summit of the ride at Thompson Pass but I don’t want to leave a bunch of spoilers.

I am looking forward to a nice evening in the tent.

Terry

June 20, 2018 Coulee Dam to Spokane

Another long day at 93.5 miles into Spokane, but less than half of the climb at only 2400 feet.  Most of the climb was out of the Columbia River valley up to the plateau.  We were staying right downtown Coulee Dam which is on the river.  It is a really cute little town which hasn’t changed since the dam was built in 1941.  If your are looking for a 1940’s home in a quiet are this may be the place for you. 

Breakfast was at Pepper Jack’s which is about half way out of the valley and a great family diner.  I would highly recommend it on your next visit to Coulee Dam. 

After breakfast on the road and up the hill.  It was the same blast furnace as yesterday with a hot blast of air hitting you straight in the face.  Sun is just broiling you as we rode along. 

The ride wasn’t too exciting other than as Ken and I were riding along one of the big field irrigation units was spraying water across the highway.  We were talking about how cold the water was and how long we could stand under it.  Then just as we go up to it the unit shut down and we were robbed of our cold shower.

The second bit was that at the final water stop the peloton caught up to Ken and I.  A few laughs about how did a pair of slow pokes get so far ahead (not stopping and getting an early start) and they zoomed off.  About 25 minutes later we caught up to one of the riders and he had a flat. Ken and I stopped and fixed his tire and it was a really tight Continental, It was a really wrestling match getting it off and then back on.  He never would have fixed it on his own.  Really nice the cool kids just ride off and leave one of their pals. 

Tonight we are in the dorm on the Gonzaga campus.  It is a gorgeous facility and one of the highlight places to stay.  The cafeteria isn’t bad either.  Nice comfy chairs and great internet.

Terry

June 19 2018 Wenatchee to Coulee Dam

What a day 104.5 miles with 5400 feet of climb.  Ken and I were on the road early at 6:20 Am.  Feeling strong and looking forward to a ride to one of the big land marks on the tour.  Who has never heard of Grand Coulee Dam?  It is billed as the largest concrete structure in the world.  However I think this info may be out dated as I think that Three Gorges Dam in China has more concrete in it. However this maybe the way concrete structure is defined.

So down the road we go the route follows the Columbia River for the first 20 miles before making a sharp right turn up a gorge with drops into the Columbia Valley from the plateau above.  The climb is just over 7 miles of 7 unrelenting percent or 2600 feet.  So even though we had left early the heat of the day had set in and the canyon was into the 80’s.  A totally brutal climb by any ones perspective.   After we reach the plateau we are treated to a series of huge rollers, each one higher than the previous one.  But wait we also have a head wind which while not large in velocity is blowing a hot gust straight out of the blast furnace into your face.  Out on the blacktop it is easily into the 100’s.  Picnic is a long way down the road at 60 miles but Ken and I struggle in.  Picnic is grilled Costco sausages warm and toasty in fresh buns.  I stop at a store and buy 2 Arizona Iced teas and guzzle them down (46 oz total).   With just over 40 miles we are still looking at something around 4.5 hours. 

Down the road we go and now the sausages are talking back and my stomach is turning over.  It isn’t far now it is only 35 miles.  Oh no another huge roller.  Keep going as it is only 30 miles well 10 to water stop and so on. 

Touch down in Coulee Dam and I am so exhausted I lay in the grass until supper at 6:00 pm.  Something like 11. 25 hours in the saddle.  After supper I assemble my tent and crawl into bed.

There may be a take away here; don’t go on a C2C bike ride with zero training when you are  66 years old.

Terry

June 18, 2018 Skykomish to Wenatchee

Today was an interesting day as it was 77 miles the first 16 was a long grind up to the summit of Stevens Pass.  Over the 16 miles there is a 3100 foot climb.  Given my serious lack of training and my telling of how Jerry rode Crossroads at 85 by taking a little bump to him over the hills, I decided to do what I preach and jumped in the van.  Sixteen miles later I was at the summit.  It was so easy no four hours of grinding away at 4 miles an hour. 

At the Summit Ken and I jumped out and pedalled off.  From the summit at 4100 feet we rode almost all downhill to Wenatchee at 730 feet.  The first 30 miles was at 20-30 mph with out pedalling and by then we were at picnic.  Picnic was great! Shuli had made split pea soup with bacon.  I could have stayed there all day eating her soup. However we still had a long way to go and it was getting hot. 

The route followed Hwy 2 most of the way and it was tremendously busy.  At the 50 mile mark we turned off hwy 2 and rode along through a series of orchards.  It was a very pretty road however it was filled with really steep pitches and as it was now well over 90 F so the hills were very draining.  I think I would have preferred to just follow the highway cars notwithstanding.  The school we are at is at the far end of town so we had about 5 miles of winding through town.  A bunch of the route was up three blocks turn, left then ride a block, and turn left again down the same hill. Ok that is three sides of a square.  I don’t care how busy the streets are riding three sides of square up and down the same hill when the temperature is 90 F is not fun.

Ken and I got in before the van so we headed off and found some cold cokes in a Safeway. 

A quick up date on the new cot.  It is working out just great.  I am finding it very easy to assemble and it is very comfortable.

Tomorrow is a big day at 107 miles.  I am really hoping that the temperatures moderate a little. I am feeling much stronger after only a couple of days so maybe I will be able to ride myself into shape.  

Terry

June 17, 2018 Everett to Skykomish

The first ride of the cross country ride is in the books.  A short 67 miles with 2400 feet of climb.  Although I have ridden this very same ride three times this is the first time it has not been pouring rain.  And I mean West Coast pouring rain.  Where it is pouring when you get up and pouring when you get in.  It is an absolutely a beautiful ride, which I have never seen. 

After the wheel dip you can see the mountains way off in the distance.  The sun reflecting off the water was beautiful.  So we charge off up a bunch of relatively steep rollers following the Skykomish River.   Then as we are climbing a longer steep hill I get a flat.  Yikes 40 riders and only 14 miles into the ride and I get the first flat of the tour.  Ok somebody has to get it but why me and only 14 miles in.  To make matters worse the tire is the tightest tire I have ever had to wrestle with.  Tom R came along and he is a huge guy and immensely strong and he could not get it off.  The two of us wrestled with it for almost an hour before we got it off.  I think that the tire had settled itself onto the rim as the bike had been hanging in the garage since 2014  Having said all this one of the riders came off his bike in the parking lot of where we did the wheel dip. He has 5 stiches in his upper lip and a lot of road rash on his face. I guess the flat wasn't so bad.            

Now I am the very last rider and I have to catch up with the rest of the group or at least get to picnic before they wrap it up.  As you ride east along hwy 2 the mountains are getting closer and closer and of course the road is getting steeper and steeper.  I was really surprised at how much traffic there was along hwy 2.  I sure don’t remember it that way. 

By the time I get to picnic I am pretty much exhausted.  It is really clear that my training which was basically non-existent since we left Phoenix and headed back to Kelowna in mid-February.   In fact that is kind of understating the case.  However it is only 27 miles to camp so I climb back on the bike and peddle on.  About 5 miles out I realize I have left one of my water bottles at picnic and I am dangerously low on water.   The temperature gauges on signs are saying 76 F but it is probably close to 90 out on the pavement.  I really don’t want to go back so I peddle on it is only 10 more miles to water.   I can’t believe I made such a rookie mistake.  Fortunately  I find a café at mile 50 and get a coke and that tides me over the last 5 miles to water.   After water it is only 12 miles into camp.  To say I was glad to see camp was a total understatement.   I am totally all in but here and after a shower and supper feel much better. 

Early to bed tonight.

Terry hot biker

Sorry for the really little pictures but no internet and only 1 bar on the phone signal.

June 17, 2018 Everett Washington

June 17, 2018  Everett Washington

This morning Agnes and I drove down from our hotel in Chilliwack BC to Everett Washington where the meet up location was for the start of the Cycle America Coast to Coast ride.   To say I was excited would be a total understatement. 

It was only 100 miles from the hotel down to the Everett Boys and Girls club where we are staying.  However it seemed like it took forever.  The short 20 minute line up at the boarder was a life time.  A couple of phone calls from Ken Teague and we were organized to meet him and go for lunch.  It was really a blast seeing my long-time friend.  To think that here we are doing a coast to coast bike ride together after having worked together in the 1980’s is just incredible. 

After lunch, Agnes dropped Ken and I off and she was off to visit one of her sewing friends from Trilogy. Ken and I found a camping spot out in the back and set our tents up.  It was fun getting everything set up and figuring it all out. 

We were among the first in so we were able to meet the other riders as they arrived.  It looks like a much smaller rider this year with only 22 cross country riders and something like only 18 sectional riders the first week.  I was surprised at how many of the riders I knew from other rides.  I think there are 8 or so of the 40 riders I have meet before and at least 6 of them are going all the way.  

Tonight is the first organizational meeting so I wanted to get my blog posted as it always runs late and luggage loading is at 6:15 Am tomorrow.  Luckily it is a short day of only 68 miles. 

Terry

June 13, 2018 Getting ready to go Coast to Coast Number 5

You would think that after four coast to coast bike tours the getting ready to go butterflies would not be a problem. However it seems like this year they are worse than ever.  This could be that I have had a real motivation problem with the training.  When we got back to Kelowna in mid-February  I was suffering from a running injury and that coupled with three foot high snow banks and the gray skies of a Kelowna winter  crippled my energy to go down stairs and sit on the stationary bike for a couple of hours.  Besides the ride is months away and I will train later.   Before I knew it we were off to China on a three week tour.  Filling my belly three times a day at the buffet didn’t help and I came home carrying an additional five pounds.   Yikes now I have less than two weeks to get ready.  So I hurriedly set my bike on the trainer and pedaled away.   

Agnes is going to drive me down to Everett Washington and will drop me off June 16 and she will continue on to Bellevue to visit one of her Trilogy quilting friends. I will be on the road Sunday morning June 17 and headed east for the next 64 days.  Arrival in Gloucester MA Aug 18 and fly home the next day. 

How hard can it be? The first week of this tour has four back to back century rides up and over the Cascades mountain range.  At least the weather forecast this year is for sunny skies and a bit of a tail wind.  In previous years it has been pouring rain and gale force head winds.

I have made a couple of changes for this year.  The big change is I am going to take a cot rather than use my self-inflating Therma-rest mattress.   Hopefully this will prevent me from getting a sore hip where I sank through the mattress and my hip would be on the ground.   The second change is a new fly for the tent.  The old fly had become brittle from too many days in the sun.   Not a big change but I am hoping that I will be able to find my tent as it is now gray rather than the yellow I have become so accustom to. 

I will be riding on my Giant OCR Formula One which is an al carbon fiber bike and is equipped with Shimano Dura-Ace components.  It has a triple front crank and a 10 speed rear cassette. This bike has taken me across the United States on three prior Coast to Coast rides.  It is a very comfortable bike to ride and it knows the way.

Here is a picture of me wearing one of Fran Consagra’s cycling kits. It is a beautiful kit with matching bib shorts, jersey and arm warmers.  Fran was an excellent cyclist and was always an inspiration to me.  He helped me with my photographic efforts and offered tips on how to improve my shots.   To honor Fran I am going to campaign his kit across the country.  I know he would be pleased to see his kit go across the US.   Keep a look out on the blog for Fran’s bike kit as I cross the country.  

Thanks for following along. 

Remember to subscribe and all your dreams will come true.

Terry