Century Comments from Scott

Here are comments from team member Scott -- his thoughts on our century last Saturday:

June 4th 2005 ---- 100 Grand = my first official century --- finished in 8 hours - 37 minutes = 110 miles (not to bad for a guy who eats ice cream for a living :-) )

I was up by 5 am to eat my power meal of the day which included two eggs and a bagel, Brian picked me up at 6am so that we could be early for registration - imagine that me early for something? I knew that this would be a great day as the sun was shining and birds were singing what more could you ask for?

MILE 1-20: After registration I double checked my tire pressure and found that it was at 70psi and I needed 120 psi so to have a nice easy trip - once completed we were on our way to our first rest stop 20 miles away. I had a sneaky suspicion that I needed to work on my hill climbing skills before this ride but never did - well my suspicions were correct the first 10+ miles were loaded with hills, thank goodness I had the eggs and bagel to start my day off. One thought was that it was great to ride with my partner John - we had a lot of banter and made the time go by faster. Also John (easy rider) almost bought the farm (an inch away from taking a spill) - need to watch the loose gravel at the intersections.

MILE 21-40: ahhh the first rest area it felt great to fill up and rest for a bit as we had a just a small portion of the tour out of the way. It seemed that the next 20 miles went really fast may be because it was pretty flat and I was running on adrenaline and Gatorade.

MILE 41-85: what a great rest area we had the same menu from the previous stop (bagels, fruit, drink, homemade cookies, and some type of turkey breast). As John mentioned in his summary he had taken off and I was riding with Speed Racer for about 1/2 mile before he decieded to take off - For the first time I was riding alone - it was windy, lonely, and I started to talk to myself but one thing that kept me entertained was that just about every group of riders that pasted me commented on the moose attached to my camel bak hydration pak - it ranged from "how come he is not pedaling?", "one of the forest critters jumped on your back", "what team are you with?" and most of them just chuckled and said nice moose. Did I learn a HUGE lesson during this segment - make sure your fluid supply is full - I ran out of Gatorade and water by mile 60 - not very fun.

Well that was the longest 45 miles in my life - and I was glad to rest and find the water tank - the guys were waiting for me and itching to complete the rest of the tour, so I did rest for about 10 minutes before proceeding.

MILE 86-110: I could have used a few more minutes but as my boss Neal has told me just gut it out - so I did and was using adrenaline for the last 10+ miles. During the last leg of the tour I was again riding alone - which was alright I was really not in the mood for company and I did not have the energy to speak but I was looking forward to the Moose Tracks Ice Cream that my wife Nicky would have for the Denali bike team at the finish line - just a few more miles.

FINISH LINE: wow did that ice cream taste great!! Cold, refreshing and the Moose Tracks Fudge was great!!! It felt great to collapse in the grass and just sit still - whew! Now I need to get ready for the Holland Hundred on July 16th.

Trip average: 14.8 mph for 110 miles 8 hours 37 minutes Max. speed: 30.xx mph - what a great hill Over all it was a great experience - the weather really was not that bad - I did not get hurt and I was happy to have finished my first century

A few things I learned during the 100 Grand:

1. Make sure you have enough fluid.

2. Don't pack a lot of food - The rest areas have you covered the next century I will just carry the power bars by Cliff and packets of Gatorade.

3. Make sure you have a lot to think about during the ride as there is no guarantee that a team member will be nearby to chat with you.

4. If you do have a team member riding with you - use them to draft of off - This did not work out for me

5. Utilize the rest stops - Fuel up and get going you can not afford to cool down.

6. Get the miles in early - The more you get in before the heat of the day the better.

7. If I had a preference between hills and wind - I would have to choose the hills - At least they go away and you can coast down the other side.

8. Use Vaseline or bag balm to prevent chafing - Need to do next time.

9. Base miles - I had ridden 320 miles prior to this 100 - in the course of 8 weeks or so - I think that this is a great start - more would have been better.

10. Speaking of base miles - make sure you have a bicycle purchased (Jennifer) - can't wait to see you at the Holland Hundred :-)

11. Know your limits - Don't go as fast as the person that just passed you - they can suck the energy right out of you.