Heartbreak 100

I did the Heartbreak Century yesterday. They should have called it the I-feel-like-I'm-going-to-die-Century. It wasn't that actually bad but I hit a few rough patches throughout the day.

There were a few factors that could have been better leading up to the ride: The weather the past two weeks has been crazy. Last weekend it was about 100 degrees and I came down with a fever and sore throat which quickly morphed into a cold. I was still coughing and blowing my rose right up to (and during) the ride. The heat morphed into cold and rainy. I got caught in a huge rainstorm on the way to the ride's start and figured it was going to be a long day. In addition to the weather and being sick my training was not up to my usual standards. I rode GMR a couple of times, up to Baldy once and then my usual Hwy 39 loop a few times. I haven't done a Century since Ironman Arizona in April 2006. My longest ride in recent memory was 72 miles and 30 miles of that was with a friend who was brand new to cycling so our speed hovered around 14mph. A friend convinced me to do the ride and I thought it would be fun. It was fun but it was also tougher than I was prepared for.

The ride started in Frazier Park and it was freezing up there. Fortunately it didn't rain the whole day (also no tornadoes or cyclones :) ). The temperatures hovered around 50 and there was no sun. And the wind! Man there was wind!!! A freaking headwind the entire day!! There were only 200 or so riders doing the 100 miles - I think there were a lot of no shows on account of the weather. The Heartbreak 100 was also part of a King of the Mountain series so there were a few lunatics who started riding at 5:30am, rode 50 miles to our start and then added 50 at the end for 200 or a double century. They timed us leaving the start and I started at 8:14am.

The first 14 miles or so were rollers (into the wind). Everyone sort of started at the same time and I was riding with my two friends. I started to get kind of stressed out about keeping up and being unprepared. I noticed right away that I was passing people on the climbs but was quickly dropped on the flats. This pattern kept up all day. After about 14 miles we veered right and suddenly were assaulted with some serious downhills that totally freaked me out - cars, other cyclists whizzing by, freezing - I actually started to cry. The first aid station was at 18.7 miles and when I arrived I told my friends "if this is what it is for the rest of the day I am fucked." They told me that if I was going to turn around I should do it then. I am not a quitter so I pushed on. I would not have been able to live with that failure.

The next section was gorgeous!! It wound through Los Padres National Forest. It was rollers but they were mild and quite a few downhills. Oh, and into the wind the whole time. We turned left out of the forest and on to a totally flat road and as previously mentioned, into the wind. I hopped on a pace line and we were only going 13-14mph. It was brutal. I pulled for a couple of miles which felt good but it kind of fried my legs a bit. The next aid station was at the 54 mile marker. It was a fun atmosphere - lots of smack talk, discussion of what was to come - and they had some good treats - peanut m&ms!! My friend was started to fade so I was a little worried about him but we forged on. More rollers, more into the wind. I lost my friend before the left turn onto Lockwood Valley Road. I felt bad for forging ahead but I knew that if I was going to finish I had to press on.

Things started to go uphill from here, and again, into the wind (notice a theme??). It wasn't too bad and there was lots of talk about "where is it??" There was supposed to be a major climb (ie Heartbreak Hill) (like 12%) right before the third and final aid station. I heard someone refer to it as an "elevator" because it practically goes up vertically. I was getting tense wondering where it was. It started to get steeper and then wham! there it was! It was actually a pretty awesome climb but at mile 74, it comes a little late in the ride to enjoy it too much. I put my head down and went up and somehow managed to pass people. The wind kicked in right before the aid station and nearly blew me off the road. Damn it felt good to Heartbreak Hill behind me! It wasn't actually that bad, the wind and the timing of it is what made it painful. I refueled at the aid station and at the last minute grabbed a package of cookies and set off.

There was more climbing but not nearly as steep and then "leveled out" to rollers. The whole section was into the wind!! By this point there weren't many other cyclists around so I amused myself by trying to think of Massachusetts and California cities that begin with all of the letters of the alphabet (as a side note - are there any that begin with k??).

By mile 85 I had had enough. I was freezing, I was sick of the wind, my quads were fried and I still had 15 miles to go!!! I actually got off my bike and gave myself a stern tongue-lashing and pep talk and ate my cookies. The cookies helped a lot and I got back on the bike and pressed on. At mile 92 I turned right onto Frazier Mountain Park Rd and knew that the next 8 miles were all downhill (into the wind again!!) to the start. One of my friends passed me right after the turn and I couldn't believe it took him that long from the last aid station to catch me.

The party and barbecue was in full swing when I got back to the start but all I was worried about was checking in, finding a bathroom and warming up. I was absolutely freezing and really tired! They clocked me coming in at 4:14pm, eight hours after I started. My cyclometer showed 7 hrs and 14 minutes ride time which I am really proud off. This was a very very tough ride. It was even tougher considering the weather, being sick and my lack of preparation. At several points (namely mile 18.7 and mile 85) I really had to dig deep to get on with it. I am really glad I did this ride although when I checked in at the end they said I should do the King of the Mountain series next year because they "need more women." Too bad I'll be in Massachusetts!