Happy 4th of July! My first ride to Mount Mitchell++

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

Happy 4th of July! My first ride to Mount Mitchell++

Erinna and I had tried once before, about two years ago, to go all the way to the summit of Mount Mitchell (the highest point east of the Mississippi) but we did not make it. I'm not all that into road riding so it took two years but today, we made it.

We had received conflicting views of how long it takes to go from Asheville to Mount Mitchell. That along with the fact that I have to go to work in a few hours we decided to start the ride at the intersection of Town Mountain Road and the Blue Ridge Parkway. We met up with Jay and Monica Curwin, Clint Spiegel, Thomas Minton, and Chris Brown. That's not a slow group of riders and they quickly left me in the dust. Erinna held back with me and I passed through the three stages of warming up: 1. Sweat profusely and gasp for air 2. Try to breathe through nose, fail, and start blowing snot all over everything. 3. Adjust the chamois, do a standing stretch, and find that comfortable pace. Luckily that didn't take long and the steepest climb (of the start) was done. Erinna and I got into a great groove and she pulled me the entire way. I just kept her pace, which was a touch uncomfortable, and we made it to Craggy Pinacle '7 or 8 minutes' they said, behind the group. After Craggy Clint hung back with us. The road climbs just a little more and then plummets down down down. Jay, Thomas, and Chris made a break and were really hauling ass. I waited just a little too long to respond but tried my damnedest to catch them. The road starts to roll up and down after that first big descent off Craggy and I was feeling every inch of the climbs. We finally made it to the Mount Mitchell State Park entrance and started the next climb, a four mile mellow hell that didn't quite live up to the reputation it held in my mind. It wasn't easy, by any means, but it wasn't all that steep. That climb goes on and on and on for four very slow miles. I kept Clint in sight the whole way but the rest of the group, Erinna included, were long gone. The most torturous part of that climb is that you can see the top from so far away. The road goes around a bend and there it is again. AND IT'S NO CLOSER THAN BEFORE! Uugh. It was only four miles though and there's a snack stand at the top!!!! WooHoo!!!! I was so hungry I coulda ate a horst so I did; I ate some 'beef' jerky and had a Gatorade to wash it down. I was absolutely astonished to learn that we had made it to the top in 2.5 hours. That's freakin' awesome! Oh, I did take my camera and got just a few shots:

Jay, Monica, Erinna, and Chris

Erinna and I. Yes, I'm still riding that old orange Torelli Cyclocross bike as my road bike

We didn't stay long and decided to not go to the tower since it was a hazy day and we couldn't see much anyway. That and the best part was ahead! Descending from the highest peak in the East (>6000') down almost 3000' to the car. The drop off Michel was super fast. I was hauling. A car let me pass even. But then.... the worst.... most painful.... demoralizing.... series of.... climbs..... Back.... all..... The........ way.......... back......... (Wheee a little downhill) to................Cra.............g...........g.............y. Dear lord, why do you have to make me hurt so? What have I done? So I like a little beer. Is that a sin? No, I just need to get on my bike more. Erinna, Monica, and Clint were waiting for my sorry ass at the top and I didn't stop. I was in such pain and my mind was in such a place that I decided it would be best just to continue on. I did manage to grunt a 'hello' as I passed. Then the real fun began. 12 miles of downhill on pavement on a bike with tires less than an inch wide. I don't know what it is but I S-U-F-F-E-R on the climbs but boy, point that hill down and I'll push like I'm running from the devil himself. I put it in the big ring and hammered as hard as I could. I would burn out, hang my head, coast, and then find it again. I stood and wrenched at the bike and flew down that hill. Landmarks clicked by quickly: The watershed sign. The overlook. The hard turn. The tunnel and finally the false climb that marks the end of the ride. Past the last overlook and I spot a rider not in our group headed the same direction. I chased and chased but that dude in a bright orange jersey was moving right along. Before I could get on his wheel there was my turn. Thomas was sitting at back of his truck; the others had gone on home. EXCELLENT RIDE! To my absolute amazement Erinna and Monica, then Clint not long after, arrived in a matter of minutes.

I love living in the mountains of North Carolina.

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While I'm thinking about it, I've got to mention, I've been off the bike a bit this early summer. I did some really cool 'Off-The-Bike' activities, though:

Bonnaroo!

Here's a few 10,000s of my closest friends leaving Oysterhead:

This is not a joke. Our 10x20 and one two man tent flew away. Check out this video I found on youtube.com. Watch closely, listen for the gasps, you'll see a big white tent fly away. That was ours...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFED-9j_ek0