2016 100 Miles of Nowhere sign up

OK, I think I may have temporarily lost my mind as I've ridden less this year than any of the last 5 years, but I went ahead and signed up for Fat Cyclist's 100 Miles Of Nowhere ride this year.  He reduced the sign up fee and I just couldn't resist. I guess that means I really, really need to get on my bike and ride!

The official date of the ride this year is November 12.  That is the date I had been thinking of doing the Honor Ride, but I figure this might be a better choice.  Now I need to figure out where I am going to ride and who might ride with me.

You may recall that in 2013, I did the metric version (100 km of nowhere).  I had been shooting for the full 100 miles, but the lack of riding cut that short.  I hope do acquit myself nicely this year, but am not holding out high hopes for a long distance as my total distance on the bike for 2016 is only 48.1 miles. that is over 19 rides.  Certainly nothing near respectable so I will need to do some serious digging to get any kind of real distance this year.

Why not join me, either here or in your own neighborhood and do your version of this crazy ride.  It definitely benefits a great cause and you get a t-shirt!

What does it take to put on a charity ride?

I recently read a ride report from Dave Buckney over at Cycling from fat to fit regarding a ride he had done with his family titles 'BHF Goodwood 2014.' Essentially it is an event where people can sign up and then do laps around the track at Goodwood near Portsmouth in England.  It sounds like it was an absolutely wonderful day of riding with friends and family and enjoying traffic free pedalling.

This got me thinking about the Corporate Challenge Bike Races I've done (read here and here) over at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway complex and how it could be interesting to arrange a similar event here in a cooler part of the year.  That got me wondering what, exactly it takes to organize such an event.  I think it could be fun, there is certainly no shortage of worthy charitable causes that could benefit from such an event.  I can even imagine getting some sponsors on board.

So, my question is a general one to anyone who might have experience putting on a charity cycling event, or any charity event - what does it take to put on this type of an event?

Conversely, if there were an event like this in the Las Vegas area, who would attend?

Please, by all means let me know your thoughts on this whole crazy idea!

And don't forget to Get on your bikes and ride!!!!

VIVA Bike Vegas is Back!

I was so happy over the weekend when I was reading an email from Lisa over at Biking Las Vegas (http://bikinglasvegas.com) in which she shared the good news that a new company has picked up the Viva Bike Vegas Ride and it will be back again this year!

From the website:

Thanks to Perimeter Bicycling Association of America (same ride organizers that host the popularTour de Tucson event), for picking up the ride, and for continuing on the tradition of hosting a well organized and fully supported century ride that is sure to be the largest and most popular ride of the year!  Perimeter Bicycling has developed collaborative partnerships with the RTC, city of Henderson, city of Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) to help support and promote the ride.

The event is scheduled for Saturday September 13, 2014 and the main rides are a 100, a 50 and a 25 mile ride.  Their rides are unique in that all 3 distances will finish at the Discover Children's museum by starting at various locations along the same course.

There will also be a 10 mile, and a 5 mile fun ride.

I was talking to my daughter and it looks like we are going to do a family ride of the 10 mile route with myself, my daughter and 2 or 3 of the grandkids depending on who feels up to it.  It should be a blast!!!!

Here is the website for the event:

http://www.perimeterbicycling.com/las-vegas/

Get on your Bike and RIDE!!!!!

Bike: MS donations needed

As I've mentioned before I am going to be challenging myself in less than 2 weeks by riding in the Bike:MS Las Vegas Challenge.  I will ride 30 miles both Saturday and Sunday, November 9 & 10.  Unfortunately I have yet to reach my modest fundraising goal of $250 for the event.

If you can, please donate towards this fight against MS.  $5, $10 - it all adds up.

Thank you.
Dan

Bike: MS Update

My next event of the year is the BIKE: MS Las Vegas Challenge coming up in just over 3 weeks on November 9th & 10th.  My goal is to complete the 30 mile ride on each of the days.  This is definitely going to be a challenge in the mileage department.

Now, unlike the Tour De Cure last April, there won't be such steep hills to climb, but there will be climbing. Its more the steady, long grade variety instead of the steep sharp climbs that did me in when combined with the heat that day.

I am planning on putting in a good deal of riding leading up to the event.  I haven't been doing as much as I had planned, but I will be doing a lot.

What's also not up to level I had planned is my fundraising for the event.  I had hoped to have met the goal of $250 by now, but have not.  Please, if you have an extra $5, $10, $20 or more, donate it to help support the fight against this terrible disease HERE.

Thank you.

Get On Your Bikes And RIDE!!!!!

Fall is definitely here

it was only 59 degrees this morning as I headed out for my ride.  Now for most of the country that would be considered a nice warm morning.  For Las Vegas that is on the cool side and a sure indication that fall is definitely here.  Of course looking at the forecast for the week, this is the warmest low temp for the week.  If the weather prognosticators are to be believed, Thursday morning could be in the low 40's.

It took a bit of time to get in the groove this morning and I'm not sure if it was so much the cooler temps as the fact that I'd only ridden 20 miles so far in October.  Fortunately I increased that total significantly by getting in a nice 12.4 miles this morning.

As I've mentioned before I have registered for the Bike: MS Las Vegas Challenge event next month.  Please contribute to help fight this disease here.

Get on your bikes and ride!!!!

100 Miles Of Nowhere...

Ok, here's the story for this:

(Fat Cyclist 100 MON)

I was competing in the 100 Miles of Nowhere Las Vegas Block edition. As I posted here, I signed up for this for the first time this year back in mid-April.  I figured I would have lots of time to train, get my stamina up and be ready to go.  While i had the time, things didn't quite work out as well as I had hoped in that regard.  My longest ride leading up to this event was only 20 miles.

My swag showed up 2 weeks ago.  Great swag from all of the sponsors.  Here is my race plate.

As I planned my event I decided to use laps around my block as my course for the event.  From training and testing ride I determined that it was approximately .47 miles around the block.  Doing the math that meant I would need to do 213 laps to hit 100 miles.

One concern I had was with the forecasted temperatures for June 1st.  !0 days out the forecasted high was 101 degrees Fahrenheit.  Way too hot to ride in all day.  Since a lot of my training is done before work when it is nice and cool, I decided to start my ride nice and early in order to try and beat the heat. So my plan was to get up and be on the bike by 4:00 AM.

As I posted yesterday here, I had just changed my seat and did a quick shakedown ride to check the position.  Friday night I washed my cycling attire, laid out all my supplies for before and during the ride, set my alarm for 3:30 AM and went to bed early for my at 9:00 PM.

The alarm went off, what seemed like way too soon and it was time to get up and get going.  I got dressed, headed downstairs and had a banana and some Oreo vanilla cookies washed down with a bottle of Starbucks Vanilla Frappacino.  I then aired up the tires and opened the garage.  I was relieved to feel the cool air come in as it was only about 65 degrees.  I turned on my Garmin and my lights and off I went.

The first lap wasn't too bad except for the 10 to 15 mph wind from the west.  This meant that I was pushing into the wind on the uphill prat of the lap.  Not bad, but I started thinking that it might prove to be a problem later on.  One lap down and a whole bunch more to go.

Very few people were out so early so i basically had the streets to myself  It was relatively peaceful and quiet.

I got into a pretty good rhythm and the laps started going by.  I kept a count of laps in my head and the goal was to complete at least 45 or 50 laps before I took my first rest.  As I rode along I noticed that the sky to the east was getting lighter and eventually at 40 laps I noticed the sun on the mountains o the west.  A few more laps and I actually saw the sun over the houses to the east.

As the laps were adding up, my saddle area was getting a little tender.  Let's face it, I just didn't have enough saddle time leading up to this ride.

I hit 53 laps, which was 25 miles and decided it was time for a rest.  I checked my Garmin when I went in and noticed that I had completed the 25 miles in 1:55 which equated o an average speed of 13.0 mph.  I was right on the pace that I had envisioned before the ride.  I knew I needed to get hydrated and eat some calories or I would be in trouble.

So, some powerade, more Oreos, a couple of fig newtons and I was back on my way.  As I rode the next laps, the neighborhood started waking up.  People were walking their dogs, backing out of their driveways and starting to do some work round their houses.

As the laps progressed I was thankful for the Garmin as I lost count and had no idea how any laps I completed.  fortunately I had my distance traveled on the Garmin. 

One thing to note is that during this stage I actually had a dog chase.  On the opposite of our block a woman was putting her 3 dogs into the car as I rode by.  I was almost by when the largest of the 3 dogs spotted me and all 3 took off after me barking.  The woman called after them and within a house or two they decided to listen and turned around.  

At approximately 12 miles I passed the house and my wife was there cheering me on!  Thank you dear! I completed the next lap to make 12 1/2 miles in just under an hour and it was time for my next break.   I had just under 3 hours seat time and a total of 37 1/2 miles so far.  My saddle area was also quite sore.

A banana, a powerade, some pringles and a couple of fig newtons and I was back on my way.

My wife took a picture of me during the ride:

Not much to remark on for this segment of the ride.  I did a bunch of laps, the sun was out and warming things up and surprisingly my legs didn't feel much worse for wear.  My saddle season was another matter, though.  I was getting quite sore.

Just after the 50 mile mark it was time for another break.  Still maintaining about the same pace as these miles took just under an hour as well.  Here I was at 50 miles and 4 hours into my ride.

More powerade, a Honey Stinger Blueberry Buzz bar, a few more pringles and some oreos and I was on my way again.

I noticed that I was slightly slower and this was due to shifting my position on the saddle looking for some relief.  It wasn't to be found, though.  I toughed it out to 62.5 miles and decided that was it for this event.  I had completed the 100 Miles Of Nowhere Las Vegas Metric Century around the block edition.  I was pleased to have made it that far since this was 3 times the farthest ride I had taken in the last 3 years.

Now for a nap, some sushi and Cold Stone Creamery.

Oh my, what have I done????

In a fit of insane behavior (at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it) I just registered for an insane event that is scheduled to occur on or about June 1 this year.  It is a very worthwhile event, I assure you, but what was I thinking????

The event is Fatty's 100 Miles Of Nowhere.  If you  are not familiar with this concept, in a nutshell we are to ride either stationary trainers or around a very small course for 100 miles in support of charity.  Fatty explains it so much better here.

The race is going to benefit a very deserving cause this year - Camp Kesem.  To quote from their webiste:

"Camp Kesem empowers college student leaders nationwide to create free, life-changing summer camps for children affected by a parent’s cancer."

 As you can see this is a very worthy cause for such a crazy stunt.  What makes this even more crazy is that I have not ridden 100 miles in a long, long time.  Wish me luck!

Easy or Hard????

How should I push myself - Easy or Hard?

I am looking ahead to a couple of organized rides this fall.  The first is put together by our Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) and is called Viva Bike Vegas.  In the past it has been held in October, but this year they moved it up to the Middle of September to coincide with the Gran Fondo Pinarello and Interbike, and it is being held on September 22.  What attracts me to this ride is the opportunity to actually ride the Las Vegas Strip.

The second organized ride is BIKE:MS Vegas Challenge  which will be held November 10 & 11.  Thee are ride options on both Saturday and Sunday and the proceeds of the fundraising go to the National MS society.

Both rides look to be well organized and well run.  They both offer options as to length of ride as well.  Viva Bike Vegas has 4 options 17, 75, 102and 122 miles.  BIKE:MS has 3 options on day 1: Century, Metric Century or 30 miler, and 2 options on day 2: 50 and 30 miles.

This is where the question comes in:  Do I go the easy route and look at the shorter options, or do I really push myself and try for a longer option?  My first instinct has been to ride the 17 mile route for Viva Bike Vegas and the 30 mile on Day 2 of the BIKE:MS. Of course that was before I read some of the recent blog posts by Fatty, Sarah, Fizzhog and Steve.  Now I am starting to question if I should push myself harder.

One huge consideration is my current fitness level, likely quantity of riding to prepare for the events.  Another is whether or not anyone is going to be accompanying me on the ride(s).  I would love to have some company!

OK, I’ve made up my mind and will shortly be putting my money where my mouth is as I actually register for these 2 events.  I am going to do the 17 mile route for Viva Bike Vegas.  If they had a 50 mile route, I would be tempted to do it as it is just after my 50^th birthday, but I think the 17 miler will do nicely.  I’ve also decided to do the 30 mile ride on both days of the BIKE:MS event. (watch for more information so you can donate to help support this great cause)

So, I now have a plan and will ride fairly easy, but tending towards hard as I get more miles under my belt.  Anyone want to join me at either event????