More than a year ago, I decided it was time to try yet another domestic 1200. I had such a good time riding the Front Range SR 600, I felt that the Colorado High Country 1200 would be a good one to join. I signed up back in 2019 and was confirmed to ride. As we all know, COVID-19 came and pretty much everything was postponed or cancelled. This included all the brevets. Also, the permanents program was shutdown. An email I sent back in April of 2020 documents my worries.
Of equal concern to the pandemic is our ability to be ready for a 1200. Without the ability to ride permanents or brevets, I'm worried some (like me) simply won't be in shape to take on a 1200K. Having said this, we shall see what happens between now and then.
All through April and May, the folks at CHC20 kept us posted with news about the ride. Finally, on May 24th, the ride was officially cancelled. I know many (especially the organizers) were disappointed. I took this news with a big sigh of relief as I no longer would feel pressured to travel when most of the country was in lockdown.
CHC Cancelled for 2020
Dear CHC Registrants, It is with a sense of disappointment but prudence that we have decided to cancel the Colorado High Country 1200 for this year.
Fast forward to January 2021 and the email arrived saying that those of us that had registered for CHC20 could sign up for CHC21.
News for CHC Registrants from 2020
We’ve been asked if there will be any priority given in CHC’21 for those who were registered for CHC’20 when it was cancelled. Here is our policy: Registrants from 2020 who register for CHC’21 on the opening day of registration will get priority if there is a first-day lottery. For example, if on the first day of registration, 35 registrants from 2020 and 25 other riders register, the 35 registrants from 2020 will get confirmed spots, and the 25 others will go into a lottery. (There won’t be a lottery within the 2020 registrants, because there were 50 registrants at the time the event was cancelled.)
At the time this email arrived, I was dealing with my asthma issues. I had a couple of bad rides and one DNF due to a mechanical. I was again in the mindset that I was not in any shape to commit for a 1200 when I was dealing with the respiratory problem, lack of training, and lack of confidence. I opted not to sign up and instead concentrate on figuring out my problems. I have a couple of blog posts you can read where I document the journey with the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Now, my good friend Jeff had signed up for the ride and he was training in earnest for this ride. As a friend and riding partner, I was perfectly happy to sign up and ride along as he got himself in shape for CHC21. It was during these training rides that Jeff began the discussion of what it would take to get me to sign up and go to CHC21. Right after the HCR 1000, I was pretty much at the low point of my 2021 riding season (so far at least). After this brevet, I signed up for and completed the Hounddog 1000K up in Greenville, TX. Building on this, I did ride after ride and Jeff continued to nudge and suggest. At some point, Jeff mentioned there was still one empty spot in the CHC21. I finally decided to send JLE an email and ask if it was possible for me to fill that spot. JLE responded yes and I filled out the registration, provided my qualifying rides, and secured the vacation time at my job. I paid the fees for the brevet (lodging and food in Walden) and the RMCC club fee as well.
Now, these training rides took on new significance. I rode with more determination and worked to build up my fitness, endurance, and hill climbing. Jeff and I rode our hilly 100Ks every Tuesday night which helped us train on hilly routes.
We then rode longer rides on the weekends using the Texas heat, humidity, and wind to build up our endurance. All in all, I felt pretty good. We were knocking the rides out in good time (despite the hot days) and confidence returned as more rides were completed.
In addition to riding, I had to start making plans to travel. I was originally thinking that maybe I would drive up with fellow rando RussD. However, after talking to Russ, he was of the mind to fly to Colorado. I switched gears and started looking at flights. However, as soon as I started this investigation, my wife said she would like to travel to Colorado to escape the heat and humidity of central Texas. We changed strategy one more time and added a 3rd passenger (my sister in-law). A happy band with a new Jeff Abbott book to listen to during our journey.
This week, I started laying out all the gear I will take with me to Colorado. This included the base layers and clothing to keep me warm during cold mornings/nights, summits, and descents. I ordered new gloves to help address some hand pain issues. My old gloves have gotten a bit thin and the padding is worn. I also stopped at the grocery store and bought cookies and candy bars that will be with me on the bike for some of the long stretches with no services. I need to tuck 3 bottles of Ensure Plus into my bag so that I can drink these as recovery drinks each night in Walden. I also made a copy of all the per-day RWGPS files and annotated them with cues I normally find useful (services, climbs, summits). Later on JLE made similar edits and published them to the official ride site. The annotated maps and routes are found here:
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/36697291
I dropped my bike at the shop to get it inspected and to fix a noise I have been hearing in the headset on the last 2 rides. I also asked them to check/replenish the sealant in the wheels. I also asked for a general check of all critical systems (brakes, shifters, cables, etc). I just want to be sure the bike is in tip top shape for the brevet. The chain was replaced 2 weeks ago so that should be fine.
This morning, my heart was pounding as I got news the bike shop had been broken into and bikes had been stolen. I waited nervously for the official opening time to call them and talk to the shop manager. The bike was safe, but I learned the thieves had tried to break in and finally resorted to driving their truck through the front of the building to smash and grab bikes from the showroom. This is apparently the 5th time the shop has been robbed. It makes me sad and mad that this happens. As happy as I am that my bike is safe, I am sad for the owners and employees of the shop. It's not a big chain and their livelihood depends on the shop being safe and secure. I hope they catch the thieves. Kudos to the bike shop though. Despite the bad news, they do plan to finish the work on my bike and get it back to me. As Jeff says, the show must go on!
Comments