Sunday, what a Fun..day

I don't remember the last time I challenged myself as much!!

It was Ind vs. Eng on Saturday night - the first real match for India in the world cup. So, we had a little poker + cricket party at Bharath's place. We gathered at around 10pm and started playing and then the cricket match started at 1am. Thoroughly enjoyed Sachin's sixes :) and India's batting, but was a little disappointed with India's finish.

After India's innings, I headed off with 2 other friends (Jenny & Ishwar) for a ski trip to Tahoe. The weather forecast was sunny and there was supposed to be a lot of snow because it had been snowing the whole week. So, there was lot of anticipation about skiing on Sunday. While driving there, we had the luxury of watching cricket on Jenny's iPhone. That was something. It was awesome being able to do that. But India were terrible defending a huge score of 338 and we were glad we lost signal when the match was all but lost. And Jenny took over the driving. I predicted the match would be over with 2 overs to spare the way Strauss and Bell were going at it.

We reached Kirkwood a little bit before 9am on a beautiful sunny day and decided to check the score out. Surprisingly the match was still going on. England had dramatically collapsed and they needed 30 from 13 balls with 3 wickets to spare. Thanks to the technology, we were able to witness the drama and the thrilling tie!! Okay.. at least we did not lose the match. Not a bad start to the day we thought.

The weather was perfect, lot of sun and lot of snow. :) It wasn't snowing then and there was lot of fresh snow on the slopes. It was my first time skiing on so much powder (ski lingo for snow). This was my 3rd time to a ski resort and the first two times I had taken the beginner package with lessons and stayed on the bunny green slopes. So, the order of difficulty of ski slopes goes from green t0 blue to black (or diamond) to double-black (or double-diamond). After one run, we joined AP at the resort and the group I was with this time were regular skiers and Jenny and AP were daredevils, I heard from Ishwar. They would go on the blacks and the double-diamonds and also go off terrain. Whoa!! Anyways.. here I was with them.

I did not want to be on the green slopes skiing there by myself. The last time I was there at Kirkwood, I did that and was bored at the end of it and wanted to try something different. It was my first time with this group, so, they had no idea how I skiied or on which slopes I could ski. So, the first run with Jenny was more of an assessment. I think it was blue slope. There was so much snow and first time on a blue slope for me. I was intimidated. After a slow and unenventful run, we tried to find a run that I can go on repeatedly. I waited at the base of a lift while Jenny went up a lift to assess that run. In a few minutes, he had gone up to the nearest peak I could see and come down. And by this time, AP joined us. After deciding that would be a suicide for me, we went up a different lift. It was a difficult blue. It was a little steep and narrow at the top of the run and once I fell down I found it hard to get up on that slope. So, after trying in vain to get me back on feet, AP and Jenny went down the slope and promised to come back up that lift. I can't believe now that I just stood there at the edge of the slope waiting for rescue like a deer caught in headlights. I pretty much froze.

I stood there wondering if it was the shoes which had a bit discomfort. Or is it the excess powder on the slopes. Jenny was back in a few minutes and with his assistance I managed to come back down the slope this time. At the end of the run, I was more comfortable to negotiate that slope than before. I practiced slow turns & I also learnt new techniques to get up after a fall. After checking if I would be able to go on that run alone again, Jenny went off with AP to jump off a cliff, or ski down some precipice. That run was called "The Wall," so you can imagine how steep that could be. They had gone off to the highest peak I could see from where I was standing to do their stunts. I went back on that slope and after exhausting myself with some slow turning all by myself, I looked for company and that effort going in vain, I took the lunch break. As I finished up my lunch, I bumped into Ishwar & then caught up with the other guys too. During the break, I had refreshed myself and also adjusted my shoes.. so, I felt much more comfortable after it.

Post-lunch, I just wanted to stay with at least one of them. Well, I probably had to because my cell phone died. But either ways, it turned out to be tremendous fun. It was such a huge resort and Ishwar wanted to go a different side of the mountain. In order to get to those lifts, we either needed to walk up some slope a bit or go up a lift and ski down to those other lifts. We chose the latter and at that point these three guys wanted to leave me on the easier slopes while they were gonna tread some blacks. I refused to go to the green slopes and just stayed with them instead. :)

Best decision I made? Maybe Ishwar would not agree. Over the next hour or so, I negotiated my first few blacks and took umpteen number of tumbles. The first run was probably an easier one and managed to ski down it fairly comfortably falling only a couple of times. The second one was way too sleep and made me take a variety of tumbles -- on the belly, on the back, facing uphill, facing downhill, legs in a V position, legs in an X position. If there was a way to fall, I fell that way. Once I even lost the ski pole boarding the lift, and another time I lost the ski boarding the lift and had to hop off on one ski after that -- all sorts of adventure. Given the amount of discomfort I put my body to though I feel very lucky and thankful though not to have broken a bone or two. But after getting out unscathed through all the hell, I felt satisfied. Good workout. And enough for the day.

Few more blue runs and green runs, few more fast runs and fast tumbles later, I was back to the lodge, having explored lot of Kirkwood. It was a great day to ski - lovely weather and lot of snow. And a lovely experience overall!

After that, it was the drive back, to a sumptuous dinner @Ishwar's including mango lassi, parathas & kabobs all home made by Ishwar's & Jenny's spouses. Great way to end a great day. Now, if only India sneaked in on the victory, it would have been even more special. By the time I reached home at midnight, I had slept for an hour (on the way to Tahoe) in the previous 24hours and that was by far the fullest utilization of 24hours in a day I can remember.

The Faint Experience..

It took me 30 years to realize how it would be to faint! When it happened though, I thought the experience was surreal.

I had gone in for my routine physical exam which entailed giving some blood samples for tests. So, I went to the lab after having not had anything in the 12hrs prior. The last time I had gone for the blood test, I had felt dizzy and was expecting something similar -- guess signs of weakening body? -- when the phlebotomist (cool word for one's occupation heh?!) drew out blood out of my right hand, I did feel dizzy. Since he could not collect enough blood in the last sample, he had to take one more sample from the left hand. (By the way, this was the first time one 'could not' draw out enough blood from my hand.. I was wondering if the blood pressure was not high enough to push the blood out but the phlebotomist had other explanations as well.)

For a moment, I wanted to take a sip of water before he drew the remaining sample but since it was just mini test tube I thought I would sit through it and then go have my lunch next door. I do not remember how I started to go unconscious but what I remember thinking was that my brain had completely shut off. I remember asking myself where I was and what I was doing, and my brain had no answer!!! NO ANSWER - my head was totally blank. That was some feeling. I can only guess that it lasted a couple of moments before I started to gain consciousness. I realized one of my flip-flops had fallen off. And I saw the nurse was around too, and they were applying some ice at the back of my neck. As I was regaining my consciousness I was told that I had fainted. I was so surprised to know that they had noticed that I fainted. I was still sitting on the chair but had totally lost consciousness. And then the person drawing my blood actually knew I was gaining my consciousness back. How? He told me the paleness in my face was going away! Paleness!!?? Whoa! Until this time, that was only an academic word for me. I still had not seen myself pale but that was some kind of an experience.

I then quickly grabbed lunch, all the while feeling miserably cold, and finally got home to comfort! It made me wonder -- what would we be without our brains!!??And just how the whole body works is just mind boggling!

A never-ending century @ Davis

A culmination of training? Or a new beginning? Only time will tell. One thing for sure is that it was a job well done. And for that, hats off to TeamAsha coaches - Lyresa, Jeff & Stan - and all TA buddies. On my first ride, the very first ride, I had a nasty fall and scraped all my left side of the body. That I survived the entire season without another fall (well, there was one small one when I was stationary, but lets discount that) was surprising to me. And to think that at the end of the season I would have completed a 100miler would have seemed ridiculous at that moment!
Now for the Davis ride part..

Chasing Anshu

It's flat? Really? Sure, it was flat all the way till rest stop 1 @ 25mile but it wasn't easy. In all the rides so far, the roads were so smooth, the roads in Davis left a lot to be desired. :) It took almost double effort to tackle them. On top of it, the wind! After coach Lyresa's on-hands demo of cycle repair (no, she had a flat tire), we left in clusters. I took off & soon some more passed me. And then there was Anshu. For all his pre-race talk about him chasing me at Davis, I was the one left to chase him all the way to the first rest stop at mile 25. He caught on to a paceline and took off & just vanished. Looks like lot of people caught on to pacelines and had lot of fun. :)

I managed to get on to a paceline too towards the end of the first 25-mile segment (rest stop 1 was at mile 25). As we were approaching the rest stop, we had a right turn, and all of a sudden I realized how much headwind we were up against. As soon as we made the right turn, I felt the bike being displaced maybe a few inches. The girl leading our group was awesome! She was riding amazingly steady on her aero-bars and I just drafted behind her all the way to the rest stop.

Judgment time for Foxy's Century

Until the rest-stop, there was lot of support personnel on cars and bikes. And there were arrows on the road at every turn, which was awesome! No need to look at the route sheet at all. But our group was pampered on Tour of Napa Valley with food. :) Rest stops every 15mi with lotsa awesome food. So, the first rest stop was where I was gonna pass my judgment on the ride, and also set my expectations for the rest of the ride. Didn't leave a good impression. There were bananas and grapes, and some more food. But not enough stalls & not enough variety. I knew not to expect much support over the rest of the ride.

Chasing Lyresa & Sriram

After a lesiurely wait at rest stop 1, I started out with a bunch of other friends. The roads had changed for the better, and after a few short turns, I could see a long flat road straight ahead. I went on my aerobars and like cruise control, I was going at 80rpm cadence for I don't know how long. It felt awesome! Aerobars, you beauty! As I was going past lot of folks, I also passed coach Lyresa & Sriram who promptly started drafting behind me. After having pulled them for a few miles, I was passed over by a faster paceline and Lyresa & Sriram promptly jumped onto their group. :) I guess that should be the strategy. Get on to whichever paceline you can. :) After that point, I was chasing them until the second stop at mile 38.

Leaving them in the wake, or should I say, leaving them at rest stop 2 that was a fake?

As I was approaching second stop, I was passing a few TeamAsha folks. The second stop was at a dangerous junction with not much space for bicycles to stop. There was some water and porta potties. I stopped momentarily, filled water and started back again, leaving everyone while they had stopped at the water stop. Stop 2 (rest stop / water stop) lived up to the expectations! The next stop was 18mi away. The road was so rough, I was on a hunt for the path of least resistance. In one stretch, there was a small trip of good tar on the shoulder and I got on to it. It felt like I had got on to a pace line. :) After negotiating some hills, coach Lyresa caught up with me. And then we were playing cat and mouse for a few miles. It is always fun chasing Lyresa. I love going past her on an uphill, but again she eventually outrides me. Couple of miles before the lunch she passed me and went ahead.

Lunch? It was more like breakfast.. peanut butter and jam! But they had chips too! Yay. Finally some taste. :)

Chasing Pavan & Naveen

After re-grouping with everybody, I started out with Naveen, Mukul & Pavan. Or at least that was how it was supposed to be but Pavan led everyone else off. So, I started a few minutes after they left, and I was chasing them. I yelled out to Pavan but of course he did not hear me. The next 18mi was known to be a climb! I was in for the long haul. We were all in for it! After a time that seemed looong, I passed Naveen at the top of a small hill, and went ahead on the downhill. I love downhills but soon I started cramping. When you get cramps, I realized even downhills are a pain! :| After some time, I got some help from Naveen as he handed me 2 salt capsules. I meant to gulp a couple at lunch from Anshu, but forgot, and it seemed to be showing the due effect. After taking the salt, I started riding again hoping the cramps would go away. However, after a few minutes, I had to stop. I stopped by the road, took a little nap, stretched and massaged my muscles hoping the cramps to ease out. Soon, Lyresa passed me and waited for me to get back on the bike. I was on my bike again, and soon after that rest, I was ready to ride again! My cramps were gone after a bit, and I was so thrilled.

Counting Numbers Lots of water around, no where to drink Staying within limits

Hills are fun!

After a long climb (before I had gotten cramps), I was just curious how much we had done after lunch. I thought I would have had 6 more miles to go, but alas, I had done 6 miles! All of 6 miles. At least 9 more to go? Or was it 12 more? I had no idea, but I was going to go after them anyways. And after getting fresh legs post-cramps, I enjoyed the hills again. At least, they were scenic and had good roads. :) I charged at them when I could and when the longest climb stared at me.. I counted numbers. 100 pedals at a time. After the climb, I was looking for my reward (which was a long downhill) but it never materialized. There were downhills that I enjoyed, pedaled at 43mph(!!) but still was greedy for more. It was not just the cramps that put me within limits. It was also the road traffic. At one point I was cursing the truck in front of me for slowing me down on a downhill. :) I dug into my innermost reserves of mental fortitude but found the reward elusive.

After the cramps and uphills, I ran out of water and was thirsty -- and very eager for the next water stop. There was so much water in the scenic beauty around, but no place to drink. I kept looking for the waterstop or a lovely downhill. But soon I gave up on the water stop and stopped at the first store I found to buy some water. After I freshened up there, I found the water stop a stone's throw away. Stopped there again and found watermelon. Finally! Pickle too! Probably the best food of all the stops.

Riding with Sriram Riding without Sriram

Filled my water bottle & started the ride out with Sriram with a gentle climb. At the top of the climb though, I couldn't resist the downhill and took off. Sriram duly caught up with me and then we were pacing each other for some time until he found another paceline and I asked him to go ahead. After chugging along for some time, my mind shut off! Like it was telling me "that's enough!" As I reached mile 95, I heard someone say 7 more miles. I started counting again. I thought the finish would be 2000 revolutions away, but the organizers were teasing us. It just never seemed to end. And once I completed my 2000 revs (already close to 104mi done), I just decided to push on until the end. When it did arrive though, I had no idea that it was the end! Just another street, just another parking lot. Just like that, the finish was there! I almost lost it & rode right through! No fan fare, no finish line, it seemed like just another day in the park. And ironically, after having some pasta and freshening up, we (Pavan & I) were feeling fresh. It was a totally weird, yet, a happy feeling!

Maybe it was the familiar faces at the end, maybe it was the fact that everyone had a good ride, or maybe it meant that this is just a beginning!

Highlights

• The weather: Beautiful day to ride. Wouldn't want any other way! Gotta thank the Gods.
• The elements: Rough road. Wind helps, wind hurts.
• The dilemma: If I don't attack the uphills, they will eat me alive. If I don't attack the downhills, I can't get momentum for the uphills!
• The verdict: Cardiac hill is awesome! Hills rock, Flat roads in Davis suck!
• The weekend: Worth the wait, memorable.

Conquering hills?

http://beta.mapmyride.com/routes/detail/23270606/

Unexpectedly, just like that, we bumped into a long hill. After completing that, nothing seemed daunting any more for some reason. And then late into the ride, there was an optional climb. Of course I was gonna do it.

I was under the impression that the additional detour was 2.5mi. Now, I was not sure if it was 2.5mi round trip or one-way. :) Either ways, the total round trip was 7mi, and it was a fun hill. Long climb. And then at one point, I was even going up & down to stay with Kiran & Anshu. Wow. What was I doing?! It all seemed so easy at that instance. Hard to put how I felt in words. I felt I was conquering the hills!

This ride will probably remain my biggest strength in dire situations.

And you thought Ink Grade was painful??

Fifteenth toughest ride in Napa. In Napa, that too!

15) INK GRADE 247 ft/mi. Total distance from Pope Valley Rd. to White Cottage is 4.5 miles and 1110 feet of climbing. Very nice ride with plenty of shade, lots of breaks especially at the start. One of the longer climbs in Napa but not as difficult as most. Also part of our righteous Tour of the Napa Valley.

247ft/mi?? chhii.. not even 5% grade.

how about this for a climb?

2) SPRING MTN (starting from St Helena) 526 ft/mi. I rank this second even though there are two other climbs that are steeper, but this one is longer and there are essentially no breaks. Total distance (from Y in the road to county line) is 4.5 miles and total elevation gain is 1560 feet. The major pitch however is 1.9 miles long and 1000 ft with virtually no breaks. It is covered in shade which helps but I've only attempted this twice in 7 years just to give you an idea of how much I enjoy this one.

excerpt from here: http://www.eaglecyclingclub.org/hills.htm

Tour of Napa Valley 100k

Not a great preparation for the 100k.

- Missed last two weekend rides to Old La Honda & Kings Mountain

- My only rides in the last 3 weeks were the bike patrol during weekend Asha runs

- Car problem 2 days prior

- Lost TeamAsha jersey the day before (even before I tried it on)

- Trial by fire for my brand new biking shorts (no.. not for the shorts, more for me!)

- Amid all the forgetfulness, landed late for dinner in Napa the night before

But after that, things seemed to turn around. It was nice for all of the folks to have waited for me. The to-go dinner tasted good. The weather at the campsite was pleasant. The best part was of course that I got a sound sleep Sat night! All I cared was to be able to sleep well the day before, and the first goal was accomplished! Everything else, not a care in the world!

Clearing up the campsite went quite smoothly in the morning. It's a different matter we (Prakash & I) ended up late in the morning. By the time we got to the check-in point, it was already 7:30. After lounging around a bit, and adjusting my brakes, it was time to roll. It was close to 8:00 already! Was probably the last of the 65mi riders to start.

I was lucky to have coach Stan riding alongside, making sure everyone was rolling, and also taking pictures of us all. After a gentle warmup (for coach), he took off and left me panting. ;) No, I wasn't, but Stan really did take off. Pretty soon, there was no sight of him. I kept chugging along and after some time, I passed Praveen & coach Stan, who had stopped to fix someone's bike. And then, I saw coach Lyresa patroling for other bikers. It is amazing how all the coaches double and triple the climbs patroling for the bikers in the group. Taking pictures, egging us on, etc. Take a bow!

Reached the first rest stop @ about 14mi. Lots of awesome food!! (Had to be the first thing I mentioned about it.) Met up with the rest of the gang, and ready to roll again as it was still a bit chilly. Started out with a climb, and then there were some rolling hills. Nice shade, slow biking, it seemed all fine. Raja & I were rolling around pretty smoothly, and I even mentioned to him "it's been pretty smooth so far." That was probably around 20mi or so. Raja went ahead. I slowed down. It wasn't really a climb, but it wasn't easy as well. It lasted for probably another 3-4mi. I had no idea about this climb, how long, if there was a downhill.. no clue. By the end of it though, I was sick of it!! Sick of biking slow.

The first sight of a downhill / flat road, I started pushing on. I knew the second rest-stop was not too far away. And it looked like the climb had been negotiated. I caught up with Sriram & Prakash, but I had no intention of slowing down. i just kept pushing on, probably pedaling at 90-100rpm. Kept going for about 2-3mi, maybe.. touching 30mph. And to my surprise, Prakash & Sriram were right behind me. Good drafting!!! Took a small break, slowed down, and took off again.. it was amazing! The three of us, zooming past other bikers, keeping at it for a good 4-5mi. Terrific. Best part of the ride! Then I slowed down, Prakash & Sriram continued. I caught a glance of the dreaded Ink Grade Rd (this was the only thing about the ride that I had heard of) and met them again at lunch stop. Along with the coaches and the rest of the gang. Sumptuous lunch and bike maintenance followed. After a leisurely break, I started back, alone, to climb up the Ink Grade!

It's just a hill. Yea, what's the big deal? I kept pedaling. In my lowest gear on a climb, and shifting a few gears down whenever there was a little respite. The stupid climb never ended!!! Refused to budge. How long is this??!! Saw "half way there" on the road soon. Was excited. Then there was a relatively less steeper 'climb.' Yelled out "yoo-hoo, downhill!!" I thought I was doing fine.. trudging along slowly, when my quads cramped all of a sudden. Lucky for me, I had a place to stop on the side. Sat down for a while, emptied the gatorade bottle, stretched a little, walked a little, and got on the bike soon. And then I saw coach Stan patroling pretty soon. He rode up the hill with me again, like he did with almost everyone!! and clicked pictures. So sweet! :) Finally, was almost done with Ink Grade. At the water stop, looking for salt. But to no avail. Glad the cramps did not come back. After some more climb, it was downhill time!!

So far so good, negotiated shoe lace in the chain, and toe clip coming off without falling. Next stop was about 13mi away. And most of it was downhill. WOW!! Not much pedaling to do, and still coasting at 35mph+. It was awesome. Really awesome, and really pretty. Met up with Raja/Naresh/Prakash/Sriram/Praveen at the last stop. By that time, I was pretty much stuffed. Had a little food, and started out again. Started ahead with Sriram, but soon everyone passed. The last 13mi were full of anticipation of the finish line, knowing that the difficult part had already passed. It was sunny, but there was a gentle breeze. It was so close, yet so far. It felt nice, and at the same time sad that the ride was ending.. It was a nice day.. why did it have to end? A bunch of mixed feelings. After a long stretch of Silverado Trail Rd, I pushed on for one last time and slowed only at the sight of the finish line.

The sight of Chakri, holding the camera to capture the moment. As he has done on numerous occasions!! Finish line = Chakri! Kudos to you! And the rest of the riders waiting to give high-fives. And again, of course, the awesome food!! :)

It was a great ride. And a great first trip to Napa. Thanks to all the coaches and TeamAsha!! It was awesome, but it was all a stepping stone for hopefully many more rides to come.

When am I gonna do Old La Honda? What about King's Mountain? What about all those other places we haven't explored? Can't wait.. Thanks for the wonderful program so far!!!

Napa Preparation

Calaveras was intense. The ride next weekend was to the reservoirs in San Jose. Relatively, it was a piece of cake. 45mi, but compared to Calaveras, this seemed like a flat course.

I could complete the whole ride without getting off the saddle. (although I would not advise that.. :) ) 3 more weeks to the Napa, and good confidence after Calaveras.

However, I missed the next two weekend rides. Looks like I missed some good ones too - Old La Honda & Kings Mountain.

At this point, I pretty much did not do any preparation specifically for Napa course. I just trusted myself to complete the ride in one piece.