75 Miles of Montour

http://web.mac.com/earthscapes66/75_miles_/Movie.htmlThis one was quite the suprize. With over 7,000 ft. of climbing in 76 miles, this was one of the most epic road rides I have ever done. Coming through the town about a mile from the start, the police held the stoplights and the peloton was stretching as far as I could see. The first climb was a wall, and split the race into 3 groups - the leaders, a smaller group that we were in, and an even smaller one behind us. My dad and I encouraged the other riders in the group to catch the leaders, and we got within 50 feet at one time. I could see that our group was drifting back, and that there was a dirt road ahead. Most of the leaders where not able to keep a very fast pace through this section, and my dad and I used our mountain biking skills to bridge the gap. We rode together for about 30 more miles until 2nd big climb. Somehow, I used my momentum to get slingshoted up passed other riders to the front of the group. At the top of the climb, our group was somewhat structured, dropping 40 people or so, and I was riding with the elite 20 people of the race. Which wasn't a very good idea. I was expecting on stopping at an aid station, but the group I was with just cruised right through. With about 25 miles to go, I got dropped, and struggled to keep my pace up as a killer headwind was blowing against me. It seemed as if the climbs were easier that the wide open, flat fields, because of the lack of wind. I finally finished with a time of 4 hours and 17 minutes, about 8 minutes ahead of my dad. I had not expected to do this well, because it was the first time I had ridden my road bike in 2 years, and because my bike was 4-5 lbs heavier than the bikes that most other people where riding.