 |
| Pre-dawn pre-ride photo by Brenda |
More Photos Here Results Here This is the route we rode
As we drove to Helena Friday night the winds kicked up and smoke poured into Western Montana from wildfires in Canada, Washington, and Oregon. Montana had a nice wet spring, we were hoping for a smokeless summer for a change. But when big areas to the west and north are in a drought we’re going to get it anyway. Forest fire smoke is a fact of life in the summer in Montana.
As we drove to Helena Friday night the winds kicked up and smoke poured into Western Montana from wildfires in Canada, Washington, and Oregon. Montana had a nice wet spring, we were hoping for a smokeless summer for a change. But when big areas to the west and north are in a drought we’re going to get it anyway. Forest fire smoke is a fact of life in the summer in Montana.
By early Saturday (July 19, 2014) morning the winds had
calmed a bit, but the smoke was hanging around as thick as ever. Air quality was poor. We knew we would all probably end up with
smokers cough by the end of the ride.
But despite the ugly conditions, 5 randonneurs were at the
start in Helena including myself, Ken Billingsley, Karel Stroethoff, Joshua Loveland, and
Mark Liebig-who drove all the way over from Bismarck, ND. Mark rode our 300K early in the season and
this was to be his first attempt at a 400K.
The story of the day would be wind. Primarily a southwest
wind. The same wind that was blowing in all the smoke and kicked up to 20+MPH
would blow us most of the way to Great Falls and fight us on the return to
Helena. It was a great blessing most of
the time, but also a curse whenever the route happened to turn south.
I started the ride off with a bang! Riding strong over the
big hill out of Helena with Mark I felt my back tire going down. I couldn't
hardly believe it. I was riding my bomb proof Gatorskins. I shouldn't be
getting a flat. Mark graciously stopped and helped me get the tube changed as
the other three riders came along and we all had a little impromptu gathering.
The cause of the flat was simply an old multi-patched tube. The leak was right at one of
my patches. My cheapness got me on that one, but that patched tube did make it
through most of the summer and my Cascade 1200 attempt. I actually forgot I was using it. Mark quietly rolled up the tube and stuffed
it in his bag saying he’d toss it at the first garbage can. It was a delicate
intervention-no doubt-to keep me from attempting to patch the tube again. Much
appreciation to Mark for the help in fixing the flat and saving me from myself.
The first half of the route is very lumpy with big, big
rollers between Wolf Creek and Augusta.
This would have been an incredible stretch except the heavy smoke ruined
the vast wide open scenic vistas we were anticipating. But it was staying cool and the wind, which
was sometimes an annoying cross-wind was helping more than hurting.
We got the full positive effect of the wind on the 20 mile
legs from Augusta to Fairfield and Simms to Vaughn. On these stretches we spent most of the time
well over 20 mph. It was incredible.
Mark, Ken and I rode the whole way together. They’re both a little faster than me-or at
least, they slow down less than me when we got tired. So I had to dig deep at times to keep
up. But it was really good for me.
Joshua was riding his first brevet of the season. A 400K is not the way to ease into a brevet
series. But we were riding out of his
hometown-so he decided to give it a go. We met Joshua coming into the controls
at Augusta and Simms as we were leaving, so he was only maybe 20-30 minutes
behind at that point and looking very good. Unfortunately, he had to break off
the ride at Great Falls and drive back to Helena for non-bike riding reasons.
But he got in a good solid 150 miles on the hilliest part of the route-so that
was a good days work for sure.
Karel just got back from a teaching trip in China. He hasn’t hardly turned a pedal since our 400K in early June except for a couple of permanents. So he was understandably going to ride this
400K at his own pace. I didn't see Karel again after my flat tire, but our
dutiful volunteers, Brenda, Jackson, and mother-in-law Mindy drove out to check on him. He was doing fine a couple of hours back if not just a bit sleepy.
One of the more interesting features of the route is the
Riverfront Trail in Great Falls. It’s a
little tricky to navigate, but it gave us a needed respite from vehicle traffic
and offered some wonderful views of the Missouri River, including the BlackEagle dam and falls.
After the obligatory stop at Giant Springs State Park in
Great Falls, to see what was once known as the shortest river in the world, the
Roe River, we turned south and headed to Helena, knowing full well that
headwinds were inevitable.
 |
| Giant Springs dumping into the Roe River (Missouri in the background) |
The wind calmed down and the smoke seemed to thin out on the
way through Ulm and when we got to Cascade conditions were calm and quite pleasant. That didn't last though. As the route squeezed into the Missouri River
Canyon after Cascade the wind hit us hard off and on. Along with bugs…lots of bugs. Fortunately they weren't the biting kind,
just the annoying kind-unless you’re an angler or a trout.
There was lots of wildlife in the canyon besides the bugs including a huge
herd of mule deer, eagles, osprey, antelope and a rattlesnake coiled up on the
shoulder that an unsuspecting Mark almost rolled over (that was the only live
rattlesnake I saw, but there were plenty of dead ones).
Brenda and the rest of the volunteer crew met us in Wolf Creek.
They had cold cokes and other goodies. It was a real morale booster for me as
we rested up for the final big hump between us and our beds in Helena. It was a clear starry night sky. The smoke was all gone and temperatures were
quite pleasant. If I wasn't so tired I
would have been having the time of my life.
The last climb which is on I-15 turned out to be easier than
expect-despite my fatigue and increasing soreness. The wind miraculously calmed
and what there was actually helped push us along. Over the crest of the big hill,
the lights of Helena appeared-a truly beautiful site. The descent was even better as there was no
traffic I just rode in the travel lane of the freeway and let it go.
Ken, Mark, and I were done at 1:58 AM (that’s right-2 minutes under 21 hours! I made sure to record that). I
was starting to feel nauseous like I did at the Cascade 1200, but kept it all in
this time. But it’s a good thing I
didn't have to ride at all on Sunday. I was totally cooked.
Karel took a couple of sleep breaks along the way and waited
to finish in daylight as it’s easier to stay awake when the sun is up. He
texted that he got done at 6:46. Another
gutsy performance by one of the toughest randonneurs I’ve ever known.
Many thanks to Ken and Mark for staying with me. We had a lot of fun and interesting
conversations along the way. And Mark
managed to get to see some scenery after the smoke started to clear and before
it got dark. Congrats to Mark for his
first 400K-the first of many, many more I’m sure.
 |
| Photo courtesy of Mark Liebig. Great scenery after the smoke cleared |
The 600K is next on Labor Day weekend. Only one more brevet for a full series. It’s just the longest and steepest ride of
the year-no problem!
