| Quick Stats Ride Distance: 99.42 miles Elevation Gain: 6,154 feet Average Moving Speed: 13.9 mph |
With a name like "Cherry of a Ride" you sort of expect good things. Well let me just tell you this was one great ride. The only downside to it was my physical condition (or lack thereof) and huge struggle over the last half, particularly the last two "little" climbs. But everything else about the ride was great.
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Oh, and I guess the other downer was my phone's RunKeeper app was unable to get a GPS lock in the Gorge. I fiddled with it off and on for the first 10 or 12 miles, and when it still couldn't get a lock at the top of the ride's one major climb (with no canyon walls or trees or other obstructions anywhere in sight) I knew it was time to fuggedaboudit. Put the phone away and enjoy the ride dork! I'm sure Amy was thinking that the whole time, but bless her heart the only thing she ever said was "finally!" when I put the phone away for good.
We started out in Hood River just east of town at the trail head. The 5-mile-ish bike path to Mosier is just superb. Closed to vehicles and with spectacular scenery you just can't have a better stretch of riding conditions.
After Mosier we started the major climb of the ride and handled it without any troubles. There was a spot somewhere in the middle of the big climb when a couple sheep dogs were about to catch us, but a pickup was also coming from behind and thwarted their attack. It was particularly providential since it was the start of a particularly steep stretch. When I saw the dogs had ill-intentions I said "sprint!" and Amy did just that. But had that truck not been there running interference for us the dogs would have easily caught us.
There were hardly any cars. That was the other amazing thing about that pickup: of the half-dozen or so vehicles was saw along this stretch, his timing couldn't have been better.
The first big descent was windy. Worried about wind later but it was relatively wind free ride, particularly since its in the gorge. Amazing!
Lots of wildlife to see. Saw a great horned owl, some deer, and a rattle snake, among other things. Got some bird doo smack in the center of my jersey. Lots of bugs. Several tried to impose their will on me by getting into my head via my ear. I think the wax build-up stopped them.
We stopped at Burger King in The Dalles to top off on ice and water. They told us they'd charge $0.15 per refill. Lame! We decided to try a different nearby fast food joint. Quiznos was happy to oblige. Buy from Quiznos! Avoid Burger King! Or at least the one in The Dalles, as we've not had this issue anywhere else.
It was extremely hot and muggy. But it was also very dry. Can someone explain that to me? We know that it was hot for certain, but the muggy aspect is just how it felt. I also know that it was dry though, and I won't get into particulars but let's just say it has to do with mucous and call it good. Perhaps it depended on where we were on the ride. I guess that is possible as we did cover some ground.
In about a month this ride will not be nearly as beautiful. Today it was green. Everywhere. Even in the rolling hills south and east of The Dalles. The green wheat fields will soon turn to gold. I have never been partial to scenery of never ending rolling wheat fields. I think it has to do with the drive to Spokane. But I digress.
The Emerson Loop Road climb was a lot more of a climb than I was expecting. Very hot. Long. Steep. Never ending.
It was a very good thing we topped off with ice and water at The Dalles. Of course we knew this, as I wasn't expecting an water stops during the middle 50-mile loop out of The Dalles, but didn't really "know" it, if you know what I mean. I had three insulated bottles: two 24-ouncers and one 18-ounce. Amy had two 24-ounce non-insulated bottles. Had it not been so hot I think we'd have been fine. But with the heat, and of course working hard on that third climb up Emerson Loop Road, we were beginning to wonder how we'd do on water. Amy started rationing hers without telling me. The problem with this is that she didn't drink much before we even got to The Dalles, so the last thing she should be doing is cutting back even further. I was drinking like water was going out of style, and I still even had a bit of ice in my little water bottle. So when she finally told me she was rationing and didn't have much water I gave her my little bottle.
I'm not sure how much she ended up with when we got back to The Dalles to refill, but I was not too far from empty. So it all worked out in the end. Another lesson learned though. I should have brought a fourth water bottle and Amy should have brought a third. I had actually intended to but forgot. I was going to leave it empty from the start, but fill it at The Dalles if it seemed necessary. I won't forget this sort of thing again anytime soon.
I bit off more than I could chew. This ride was a lot harder than I was prepared for. We had a rest stop at mile 74, a Taco Del Mar in The Dalles. This would have been the perfect length of ride for me. Upon arriving there I immediately got a large Coke, probably 32 ounces. Amy even had some, and she doesn't like Coke. Amy timed the duration of our stay at this rest stop (apparently unconvinced of my estimating previous stops at only a few minutes each) and after thirty minutes she said she'd waited long enough. I was surprised it had been that long. Seemed like 5 minutes to me! I begrudgingly got going again, as the Coke was empty anyway. I was wiped out and did not want to ride the final 26 miles.
The ride along the edge of the Columbia on the Discovery Center trail brought lots of cold air blasts from the river. It was very refreshing! That water must be plenty cold.
Amy got a flat at around mile 80 while on the Discovery Center trail. We think it was from a rock as we didn't see any glass. Whatever it was sliced open the side of the tire wall. The sort of slice that meant you couldn't just slap another tube in there and expect it to hold. Thankfully I still had some Tyvek in my bag. Having used some recently and not restocking my bag afterward I wasn't so sure I'd have any until I actually saw it in there. [Yes, I just got up from typing at the computer and restocked it!] The slice was bad enough that I wasn't sure it would hold even with Tyvek. So I pumped it up well short of full pressure.
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I really struggled from here on. Particularly on the climbs. The last two climbs don't look like much compared to the early ones, but at 500 feet and 400 feet, and a seriously worn out body at the end of a long hot ride, they are quite nasty indeed. Amy was roaring around with power aplenty. I think the Coke helped her out. Plus the excellent physical shape she's in probably didn't hurt.
When we got onto the final 5 miles, that trail closed to vehicles, I began to be a little concerned about Amy's tire holding up. My mind couldn't help going over the "what if" of her getting another flat, necessitating me going to the van to get a new tire and having to ride (not drive) back to fix it. This did happen near the end of the Daffodil Classic last year, and at the end of that ride she had extra energy while I was wiped out, just like this ride, but I was able to drive back to rescue her that time. I guess this is the one downside to riding on a trail without vehicle access. But it was not to be. The tire held. Thank the Lord for minor miracles.
Oh, my back, which was "out" only a couple days earlier, was tight early but ended up not being a problem, which was a huge blessing. So there you have it, if you are having back troubles the obvious solution is to go on a 100-mile bike ride.
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