Day 5 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

The weather forecast this morning said occasional showers in the morning, turning into a steady drizzle by afternoon.  I put on my raincoat, loaded my fixie up, and drove to Butteville. (closer than driving to Sellwood, as I have been doing the last few days).

I wasn't sure of a plan, I thought I might ride southward toward Salem, but of course in my current bike fitness, I would turn around before getting there.  I started off by taking the path that starts near Butteville and goes to Champoeg State Park.  It took me off the road within a a couple of hundred feet and given my continuing trepidation with riding with traffic, that would be just fine.  It is about 2.5 miles from Butteville to the park.

Once I got to the park I started exploring.  Champoeg was the site of the meeting in 1843 that established a provisional government, the first on the west coast. There was a town here in the early years.  In 1861The Willamette River rose 55 feet above its normal level and flooded the town under 7 feet of water and destroyed all the buildings.  Champoeg was not rebuilt.

The Willamette River

Markers showing where Champoeg's streets were.

The 1861 flood level marked on a tree, and for comparison, the level of the more recent 1996 flood.

As I pedaled around I came across this reminder that we should not mess with fairies.

I had the park almost to myself today. I saw one other cyclist, and as it ended up, I knew her! Oregon Randonneur founder and RBA Susan France, who also is a RAAM veteran, finishing that epic race in 1991. Today she was puttering around on a recumbent trike.

The weather was better than predicted.  I had a few drips from time to time, but only two showers, and for both of them I was able to find shelter.

The second shower was heavy, but I was near a very large pavilion, and took shelter there while waiting for the rain to stop.

clicking on any photo in this blog will display it full sized, perhaps large enough to read the text

There were a couple of rows of Sequoia trees here, I was wondering if they were planted by John Ramsey Porter.  Mr Porter was a farmer/nursery operator that lived near my childhood home.  He took off for the California gold fields in 1849.  He didn't bring home any gold, but did bring back some Sequoia cones.  He propagated the seeds and distributed the seedlings to various Washington County (Oregon) institutions. The Catholic Church in Verboort has 12 of them flanking the church, and John Porter's homestead has a line of Sequoia's on each side of the long lane. The county courthouse in Hillsboro has several of them, and there are a few scattered in Forest Grove as well.  It is not a long stretch to think that Mr Porter donated some seedlings to the State Park about 25 miles SE.

I continued pedaling around, and stopping to read historical markers.

I pedaled out to Kitty Newell's grave. As it ends up, Kitty, a Nez Perce indian died in her 20's and was cremated, with her ashes scattered near Champoeg Creek. The grave stone does however stand in the general area where Kitty's ashes were scattered.

I never got on the road toward Salem, but that was okay.
Having spent most of the afternoon playing tourist, I finally pointed the bike back toward home.
(or in this case, Butteville, where my pickup awaited my return)

........Road Bike........Rollers.......MTB..........Lifecycle......Total

Today ....10.................0..................0....................0..........10

Jan.........26................ 0................0.....................0..............26

Feb.........7..................0................0.....................0...............7

March.......5.................0................0.....................0...............5

April.......0.................0...............66.....................0...............66

May.........0..................0..............79......................0...............79

June........2..................0...............0......................0...............2

July........64.................0...............0......................0...............64

August......11..................0...............0.....................0...............11

September 0..................0................0.....................0................0

October 0..................0...............0......................0................0

November 70................0................0......................0................70

YTD........185...............0...............154.....................0.............339

Day 4 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

It was another nice day in NW Oregon.  There was some rain overnight, but by the time the sun came up, the rain had stopped. By mid afternoon it was well over 60F and I loaded up the fixed gear bike and drove to Johnson Creek Park in the Sellwood area.  This article about the park says many don't even know it is there.  I was one of those in the dark. Today I started my ride with a very short ride down to the banks of Johnson Creek and took a photo of my bike.

I then pedaled about 6 blocks over to the Springwater Corridor and proceeded east.  It was an uneventful trip, until I got to Cartlandia.  Voodoo Doughnuts sucked me in!

Now fortified by sugary sweetness, I continued my eastward journey.  When I reached Interstate 205 I turned north on the Interstate 205 bike path, just for a change of pace.  With darkness approaching, I turned around so that I wouldn't have to ride in the dark.

With the mostly downhill run, I made it back in plenty of time.

........Road Bike........Rollers.......MTB..........Lifecycle......Total

Today ....13.................0..................0....................0..........13

Jan.........26................ 0................0.....................0..............26

Feb.........7..................0................0.....................0...............7

March.......5.................0................0.....................0...............5

April.......0.................0...............66.....................0...............66

May.........0..................0..............79......................0...............79

June........2..................0...............0......................0...............2

July........64.................0...............0......................0...............64

August......11..................0...............0.....................0...............11

September 0..................0................0.....................0................0

October 0..................0...............0......................0................0

November 60................0................0......................0................60

YTD........175...............0...............154.....................0.............329

Day 3 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Day 3 of #ridingeverydayinNovember, and time is short, since it is also my mom's birthday (and my deceased dad's birthday too, as well as my mom's twin brother)  84 trips around the sun was a reason to celebrate.

I took off at 8:30 AM, the temperature was 45 degrees. I put a lined windbreaker on over a t-shirt and started out. I was surprised just how cold it was on my arms as I pedaled along. Knowing that I didn't have much time, I didn't take a camera or phone along.  I'm kicking myself for that now.  I pedaled through some neighborhoods where the fall color on street trees was just awesome.  Tomorrow is supposed to be wet, so I may have missed that photo op for this year.

At least the leaves will be there next year again.

I wrapped up the ride and took off for family commitments.

........Road Bike........Rollers.......MTB..........Lifecycle......Total

Today .....6.................0..................0....................0...........6

Jan.........26................ 0................0.....................0..............26

Feb.........7..................0................0.....................0...............7

March.......5.................0................0.....................0...............5

April.......0.................0...............66.....................0...............66

May.........0..................0..............79......................0...............79

June........2..................0...............0......................0...............2

July........64.................0...............0......................0...............64

August......11..................0...............0.....................0...............11

September 0..................0................0.....................0................0

October 0..................0...............0......................0................0

November 47................0................0......................0................47

YTD........162...............0...............154.....................0.............313

Day 2 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Today was another nice day in NW Oregon, the temperature was in the mid 60's when I took off from Sellwood Riverside Park and today headed toward Boring. Boring might seem like a strange name for a town, but it is named after William Boring, a Union soldier who fought in the Civil War, and settled in the area when his soldier duties were done.  Better to be named for a Union soldier than Sul Ross University (Alpine TX) that was named after a Confederate Soldier labeled as a traitor.

I chose to ride east because yesterday I rode to Portland and wanted to ride farther without having to ride on roads with autos. I'm still a bit uneasy about riding with inattentive drivers. Today would be a no cars ride.
The fall colors are still out, but not quite as vibrant as a few days ago.

It was a nice day for a ride.  No real rain, only the slightest of breeze, and it reached 70F.

I did not get all the way to Boring, thinking that a 30 mile trip would be enough for this born again biking newbie.  Baby steps.

........Road Bike........Rollers.......MTB..........Lifecycle......Total

Today ....30.................0..................0....................0..........30

Jan.........26................ 0................0.....................0..............26

Feb.........7..................0................0.....................0...............7

March.......5.................0................0.....................0...............5

April.......0.................0...............66.....................0...............66

May.........0..................0..............79......................0...............79

June........2..................0...............0......................0...............2

July........64.................0...............0......................0...............64

August......11..................0...............0.....................0...............11

September 0..................0................0.....................0................0

October 0..................0...............0......................0................0

November 41................0................0......................0................41

YTD........156...............0...............154.....................0.............307

Day 1 of #ridingverydayinNovember

Well, after last year's abbreviated challenge, and a year of bike race duties, I got back on a bike today.

I haven't been on a bike since August 21st, when a rode a whopping 6 miles.  It wasn't going to be pretty, but I've got to start somewhere.

I still can't get my head around riding on roads.  Most of my 266 miles this year were in Panama, where the traffic is much different than here.  I decided to go ride the Springwater trail in Portland, which opened today after a long closure to provide a fish passageway.

It was a nice day, the high reached 68F, with only a few drips of rain from time to time.

The fall colors are beginning to fade, but were still worth a stop from time to time to get a photo.

I was on my fixed gear bike, because I carry less weight on my arms on it than I do on my road bikes.  My arm continues to be subject to pain when I use it for anything more than the lightest of duties.  I thought that I'd be more comfortable riding the fixie.  What I didn't expect was knee pain, in the knee that was banged up in the incident last November.  Anytime I had to exert on the pedals, there was quite a twinge of pain.  Luckily, this was a pretty flat route.

I got to where the work had been done.  There was some signage installed to explain what had been done.

It was a pretty nice day to ride, especially for November!

The upstream side of Ross Island in the background

I continued on my way.  When I got to the waterfront in Portland, I noted some new informational signs. Since I old and slow, I stopped to take a few photos. :-)
You can click on any photo to see it full sized, to better make out the text.

The Glacial Erratic noted in the previous photo

Having reviewed Peregrine Falcons and the Missoula Floods, I continued on my way. I continued on down to the Steel Bridge where I crossed the Willamette River.

 

In Tom McCall Waterfront Park I found the last vestiges of fall color.

  I rode back upstream on the west bank.  I crossed back over the Willamette River again, this time on the Tillicum Crossing, Bridge of the People.  There was a nice view of the neighboring Ross Island Bridge.

The downstream end of Ross Island

Tillicum Crossing

It wasn't a long ride, but today it was long enough.  Baby steps.

........Road Bike........Rollers.......MTB..........Lifecycle......Total

Today .....6.................0..................0....................0...........6

Jan.........26................ 0................0.....................0..............26

Feb.........7..................0................0.....................0...............7

March.......5.................0................0.....................0...............5

April.......0.................0...............66.....................0...............66

May.........0..................0..............79......................0...............79

June........2..................0...............0......................0...............2

July........64.................0...............0......................0...............64

August......11..................0...............0.....................0...............11

September 0..................0................0.....................0................0

October 0..................0...............0......................0................0

November 11................0................0......................0................11

YTD........126...............0...............154.....................0.............277

Another champion!

I just returned from being crew chief for Chris Davies as he challenged the 1000 mile "No Country For Old Men" race based out of Alpine Texas.

I sourced the support van locally, and drove to Texas, picking up the racer in Santa Clara, CA, a crew member in Gilbert, AZ, and another crew member from the airport in El Paso TX.  We arrived with time to go out for a bit of practice ride on the beginning portion of the course. (support crews meet their racers several miles in)

We breezed through inspection (after all the races I'd been involved in, there should be no excuse not to)

Early the next morning the racers were off!

A 1000 mile race takes several days to complete.  Day one was pretty nice, the high was near 90F and winds were light. Chris was making good time. One of his challenges is to not go out too hard.  Slow and steady often wins these races.

Despite the large starting field, most of the entrants chose the shorter distances. (208 and 383 miles) There were only 2 solo males competing in the thousand mile distance, and the other racer (Andrew Willis) was the course record holder.  We convinced Chris to not chase him as he passed us.  Chris was here to race his own race, and to use it as a shakedown ride for his planned RAAM effort in 2020.

While all this was going on, it was a great day for a ride!

There was a lot of wildlife to be seen, most of it was too fast for us to be able to get a camera on them. At one point, we came upon a scene of carnage.  It appeared that perhaps a large truck had come upon a hapless squadron of Javelina.  There were at least 10 of them scattered along the traffic lane, all dead of course.  Here's a photo of what they would look like alive.

Things were going well for Chris. Andrew was putting distance on us, but we expected that.

The course was altered slightly this year, and we got to race right along the Mexican border.

Rio Grande and Mexico to the right

As day one came to a close, the temperatures began to drop.  By the next morning it was in the upper 40's, a little cooler than normal.  By noon it was in the upper 30's.  It seemed that we were going to get into some interesting weather. Data service was extremely limited so most of the time we were in the dark as to what was happening with the rest of the field.  We finally found out that Andrew had withdrawn from the race.  It was bad news for Andrew, and his defense of the title, but good news for Chris.  All he had to do was finish and he would be the winner.  Ha, as if finishing is anything easy, or assured.

The weather was continuing to deteriorate. It was getting cold and wet. Our California racer was not prepared for this. The crew ducked into a farm supply store and got glove liners and rain gear.  Certainly not bike specific, but it was going to have to do. We told Chris he looked like the Gorton's Fisherman.

It was beginning to be downright miserable to be riding a bike. It was looking more like Oregon in late November, rather than Southern Texas in October!

When the heavier rain would slow down, Chris would overheat in the heavy raingear.  He'd stop and remove the heavy rubber outer layer and ride in his normal cycling raincoat.

  During the night it dipped to 28F.    Cold was one thing, but a light drizzle made it worse.  We had to stop and scrape ice off of Chris' lights because they weren't putting out adequate illumination.  His bike had a coating of ice on it, and Chris was covered in ice as well.

It would never get above 40F for the remainder of the race.  As we made the McDonald Observatory loop, it looked like a winter wonderland.

Despite all the greenery being covered in ice, as well as Chris' bike, the road was staying clear. (the heat from the previous day helped keep the asphalt warmer than the air) That didn't make Chris feel safe however, and he slowed considerably fearing slick roads.

As the race progressed, Chris was digging deep.  A broken collar bone had taken him off the bike for a couple of months, and he had only been back on a bike for 31 days before NCOM started.  I knew that finishing this race was going to be a challenge for him.  I didn't know that the weather would through such a roadblock up in front of him.

He had some foot issues, that we were able to keep at bay by switching his bike over to flat pedals and have him ride in athletic shoes.  I put a neoprene saddle cover over his saddle to provide more padding.  We put chemical hand warmers into his gloves. We did what we could to keep him going.  Before the race, his girl friend Crystal had said if we needed anything to call.  We did!  We handed Chris his phone and bluetooth headset.  She was able to put the wind back in his sails when it looked like he was in the doldrums.   She did that several times.

Finally, we were counting down the last miles.  The crew all agreed that it seemed like the race had gone quickly.   I'm not so sure that Chris was thinking the same thing!

As we traveled the last miles, fog rolled in.  The officials that had been keeping pace with us came up beside our crew vehicle and said not to worry about them behind us, they were going to stay back there to provide additional safety. (normally we would be penalized for "impeding traffic" if a car was behind us for more that 2 minutes.)  We had a knuckle biter descent in the fog.  I was driving, and Paul (our rookie crew member) was navigator (riding shotgun).  I was aware of Paul pressing on the imaginary brake pedal on his side as I would work hard to keep the headlight beam in front of our racer. It was an exciting time!  The trailing official didn't keep up with us in that section. ;-)

Once we got back in relatively flat ground, it became less stressful for our rookie crew member.  He asked if the race director knew what the conditions were like if he would close the course.  Bob and I assured him that the race director knew exactly what the conditions were like, and the race was going to continue!

We made the last few turns and came into Alpine to the end of racing point.  The race director was standing there to record our time.  He looked at Chris and asked, "Do you know what you are?",  Chris responded "The lanterne rouge?".  While technically correct, the answer Dex was looking for was "rugged".  Chris had surely shown that he was rugged.

When we started this race, given Chris's short window of training, I would not have been surprised if he was unable to complete the distance.  I was ecstatic that not only did he finish, but that he was 1st place (and a record on this new course)

It's been a good year for me.  I was crew chief for a 2x mixed Race Across Oregon team that came in first in their division, and 3rd overall, I officiated a World Ultra Cycling Association record attempt in North Carolina that resulted in 4 records. I was crew chief for Barry Dickson who decimated the competition at Hoodoo 500 in Utah and came in 1st place, hours ahead of #2.  I was a member of the crew for 4x mixed Team Skipper on RAAM as they came in first in their division, and now was crew chief for Chris as he set this record.  Not a bad year at all!

.......             ........