About the Ride
In years past I've spent considerable time detailing the different segments of the course. It's a long course with a lot of diversity, however, I'll only be brief this go around.
Sure this thing is 200+ miles start to finish, but there is a lot more than meets the eye. The front end of this thing is a ton of climbing; 22 miles up Emigration/Strawberry, another 10 over Geneva summit, and then the infernal 16 miles over Salt River Pass. By the time you get to King-of-the Mountain (KOM), a mere 3+ miles from the top of Salt River, you have given up on any sense of dignity. By this time you've lost enough electrolyte to make a 10 pound salt block. Looking straight up at the top from about 2 miles away, in rips your will to live right out! Still, you get over it (literally and figuratively) and take the little recovery into Afton. From there its a matter of road management and discipline. Stay on groups, or get dumped. Out of Alpine, the beauty of Snake River Canyon, but there is no time for sight seeing. From here you really need to "Johny" up with the best groups you can find, as you need to get past Hoback and into the Valley. Across the highway, you can taste the finish, but you can't cash in quite yet. At Wilson, you put in the last 7 miles, pretty flat, with whatever you can find in the tank. Then your see the signs 5K, 4K and so on, at 1K its time to look good. At 500 meters, you hear the announcer. By the time you hit 100 meters you want to give it all you have and thunder in. And then............."slow down, this way"....."timing chip", its over.
There is so much to tell about, but it impossible. Like everything else, it seems its over before you know it and you just have this emptiness that follows. For me, I devour a huge thing of chocolate milk and try to process the entire summer that just finished.
Tomorrow needs to be about more than a "fun ride". Its about time I do something besides talk big.
I have a lot to do today and I need to get some good rest. For now, trust me, I'm as nervous as you could be. Still, I do this because I can.
Stay tuned......................
Ride Hard!
