You know it is steep when you look up and Bobby and Steve
are zigzagging across the road…. 34x27 and I am zigzagging knowing we are in
the first mile of a 5 mile climb…..
I met Em, Steve/Sam, Debi, and Bobby south of 11 heading
towards Pickens where I turned around and we headed North for our “date” with
Sassafras….. Bobby and Em led the climb up past Bob’s with me trailing off and
Shake&Bake settling in just back a bit… Debi content to ride her own pace (as
prescribed)… after regrouping at the top we rolled over the next climb down to
Rocky Bottom.. Bobby and I started up Sassafras at an easy pace but as no one
was behind we turned around and waited for the grupetto..
The road tilted up
and Bobby and Em started to put distance on S&B and me….. when all of a
sudden Sam blurted out “oh shit you have to be kidding”…. a wall.. I mean a 20% freakin wall is all you can see! .... Sam immediately stopped to take her arm warmers off… Steve and I
continued… first gear…. “Bird…you got a 27?”…me.. “yup”…….Steve.. “not enough gear”… big
Bake is muscling it in a 39x25 and starts to zigzag… I look up and see Bobby up
the rode doing the same, and I immediately follow suit….
pain…..pure and simple….. you focus on getting to the top of
a pitch like a rock climber ascending a vertical wall hopping you get a rest …
SOON…
NADA… it keeps going…. I tell Bake “curves to the right then
back and you hit the top……. well for this pitch” I follow in his
“wake” staring down at the road thinking this is the worse section…..
which may be true…. merde!
Bake stops near the top of the wall to wait for Sam…. I
continue on not wanting break my pain…. downhill .. 5 seconds and then you go up
again.. short .. stand… down again..20 secs of flat at most then up and I mean
up… then flattens then up again… first gear standing.. sitting …
standing…. Glady Fork….. pull out… stop…..
shaking my head…. I really thought it would not be this
bad…..Steve&Sam peaking at 25 rpms struggling up shaking their heads….”I
need more gear, less weight……I am done”… “no top for me today….”
that is a consensus….
bobby and em long gone ascending to the top…Debi must have
bagged it (her coach told her not to stress her legs out)….
I get to descend down Glady Fork for a 4 mile descend before
riding mostly flat back to Brevard (20 miles)…. Steve/Sam and the group are
looking at a 40 mile return trip starting with a 2mile ascent up McCalls Camp
once they bottom out at Rocky Bottom (fitting name)….
I think that will be a hard 40 back to Clemson……
note: Steve said that he had not ridden that climb in 12 or 15 years.... I guess he can ride it again when he is my age.... me ... not again... no fun... tear that page out of the ride route planner...
4 comments:
No kidding, Bird. That is one of the steepest hills around here. It's length and multiple 20%+ grade make it a serious challenge for anyone. i remember now, why I haven't done it in 12 years. The first time I went up there, I was 15 pounds lighter. Believe me, that makes a huge difference! I was hurting yesterday. I won't be going up there again until they build the resort on top...ha ha.
Didn't take me eight years of college to do the math.....three guys up the road in front of me doing the "paper boy" equals one girl relaxing on a rock and waiting for her teammates to come back down....the 40 miles back were a lot easier on me.....just sayin'....Hell yes I bagged it!!!!
How nice of you to tone down what you thought you heard me say, Bird! Good grief, that was ridiculous! I'm determined to do it again when there are 8lbs less of me. I said 10lbs on Sunday, but that climb already melted 2lb off. Maybe that's the solution - do that climb once a week and everything else will pale in comparison!! (Maybe Paris Mtn will be a recovery ride now ha ha)
Fun times with team mates.
Yikes! It's good to have good balance skills on such a climb. That way you won't tip over!
Sorry I missed out. I mean that!
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