[ORRando] Ride Report - Willamette Headwaters 600K

Mon Aug 30 18:49:35 PDT 2010

"Michael may lack any sense of scale, but he's not a sadist".

This comment, made several months ago by my friend Cecilanne, was
looping through my head as I climbed the first few miles of NFD 11 at
mile 302 of this weekend's Willamette Headwaters 600K.  

4.4...3.8...3.9...4.2...3.7...  I marveled at my ability to sustain
speeds that slow, for that long, and keep the bike upright.  An hour
later, when I'd gone a grand total of 5 miles, I decided that Cecilanne
was, in fact, wrong.

But, as usual, I get ahead of myself.

A few months ago, when I heard about the proposed route, I felt both
excitement and trepidation at the idea of riding it.  I had just
finished my first 600K in May, and despite the challenges I had with the
weather on that ride, randonesia had already begun to set in.  By the
time the registration for the 600 opened, I had a few more 200s and
another 300 under my belt, and so decided to dive in head first and sign
up.

The elevation profile, with more than 21,000 feet, concentrated in 4
major climbs, looks like the teeth of some kind of beast, ready to chew
up and spit out the unaware, the undertrained or the complacent.  Or
anyone having a bad day.
http://bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=171849
<http://bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=171849>  (see summary
tab).   I'm a reasonably decent climber.  Not zippy by any stretch, but
very steady.   So, I was prepared to be challenged, but I didn't feel
intimidated by the profile.   It wasn't until 10 days before the event,
when I read Michael's pre-ride report, that I started to question the
wisdom of my decision.

"This is a really hard ride..."

"...4 miles of pretty intense climbing..."

"...it's only like 8 miles of intense climbing..."

"...starts off really steep for a mile, and then relents, and then has
another steep section, then relents, and one more steep bit.  That's the
first 4 miles..."

"...crappy demoralizing rollers for the next 10 miles..."

"The wind will be blowing upstream, right into your face.  You will
curse my name."

"There is a suckerpunch hill just before you get to..."

So, here's the thing.  Michael is one of the strongest climbers I know.
If Michael is using words like "intense", "steep", "demoralizing" and
"suckerpunch"....  Well then,  I'm sure as hell gonna sit up and take
notice.  And annotate my cue sheet accordingly!

Michael promised us a course of epic proportions... Of spectacular
scenery....  Of quiet, in-the-middle-of nowhere, traffic-free forest
roads.  He even used the word "legendary".

And he was absolutely correct. This ride was every one of those things.
I don't have the words to describe the incredible beauty of the
Aufderheide, the stark lava fields on 126, the breathtaking vistas from
NFD 22, NFD 5850, and Straight Creek Rd (NFD 11).   I can't accurately
convey the remoteness of the terrain we moved through or the total
silence in the forest on NFDs 22 & 5850 where I didn't see a motor
vehicle for hours.  I wish I could bottle up the giddiness and sheer joy
of descending Quartzville Creek Rd...swoosh...swoosh...swoosh...leaning
into turns and not pedaling for miles and miles.

This ride challenged me.  It challenged my legs and my lungs.  It
challenged my descending skills. It challenged my mental toughness.  I
feel like I met those challenges head on, and I'm really pleased with
the results!

And so, I say thank you to Michael for organizing this legendary, epic
and (with apologies to Cecilanne) slightly sadistic course.

Susan

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Susan Otcenas
Team Estrogen, Inc.
www.TeamEstrogen.com <http://www.teamestrogen.com/> 
877-310-4592
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