Folsom Cyclebration 2011

Local cycling events are the best. No long car rides. No hotels. Just get up in the morning, drive a couple of miles and ride!

This is my second year to ride the Gold Rush Century events hosted by Folsom Cyclebration. http://www.folsomcyclebration.com/

Today was a perfect day for a ride. Forecasted to be a high of mid 80s, the day started out cool but as usual, after the first climb to Beals, we warmed up fast.

Our day started out at the Folsom Library / Zoo at 52 Natoma St.

It was odd to see again the line up of cars so early in the morning for folks wanting to visit their love ones at the Folsom Prison. As I turn into the parking lot and cut off the line to park, I got some nasty looks from these drivers. Last year, I arrived at 6:15 am and was amazed that folks are already lining up for the bike ride. One of the gals in the cars came up to me and told me that they have been in line since 1:00 am and that the line starts out in the back. With a look of amazement in my face I asked "you guys in line for the bike ride?" She said, "Oh no, we're here for the Folsom Prison!". I told her that I'm just here for the bike ride so she told me I can just park anywhere. The Folsom Prison is just right off somewhere close to the Library and they limit the number of visitations. Thus, the line.

Back to the ride. We started out at the American River Bike trail, headed to Beals then finally out to Barton Rd. The hills start out after the first rest stop. We opted to go to the Trailhead Coffee and Cycling Lounge instead of the posted 1st rest stop at the park on King Rd. We thought we'll get less lines, ice water and better bathrooms at the Trailhead and we did.

Then we headed to Baxter Grade. Baxter Grade is probably about 2 miles of constant 8-10% grade. For the metric, it's the only major hill. I have a bone to pick with Baxter so I was pleased that I didn't feel like throwing up this time. I was ill the last time I rode this road.

The ride up Mt. Vernon was easier than I remembered. Last year, I was perplexed that the uphill was almost never ending. Millertown as always is a great descent.

We skipped the water stop at Newcastle and went to Flyers instead.

The rest stops were very well spaced and nicely stocked. The volunteers were awesome.

This year’s event is even better with the almost 85F weather! What a difference 10 degrees make (last year was almost 100F). We made a snafu at the end and didn’t notice a turn sign, thereby missing a couple of miles. We got so excited to be finally back at the American River Bike trail that we just zoned out and zoomed down.

Overall, I was very pleased with my ride. My speed was definitely faster than the last metric I did with similar amount of climbing. So I am a happy gal tonight.

Event Review:

Organization: *****
Rest Stop Food: *****
Sag Stops: ***** (every 15 miles. Perfect for a metric)
Post Ride Food: **** (No vegetarian option)
Route: *****
SAG: ***** (Never saw one)
Difficulty: Kinda Difficult
Elevation Gain: 4600 ft

See you next year!

Today's Ride

I rode solo today.

Nope, I didn't race anyone.
Yes, at the bike trail (nothing too exciting and I'm not going to detail the bike trail on any segment basis).

Just me, my red iPod and of course, my Ruby.

It was a zen type of a ride.

Loved it.

Number Confusion

I am a numbers person. I have always been more comfortable with math than any other subject. I love any type of analytics. So, sue me. This is one reason why I love what I do at work. I get to mix my analytical side with the creative side. For some people, it's just a number. For me, it's fun. Numbers tell me stories. I love being able to read a financial statement. I love the ability to be able to change them too. I love to see progress. I also get distressed when I don't see one :-(

That's why I'm so confused.

At first, I started using ridewithgps.com to upload all my ride files. I love what these guys are trying to do and the work that they have done with their mapping program. That is one reason why I support them. I'm always a sucker for supporting any type of cause.

Then, I got concerned with their privacy features which is not really very private. Why am I concerned with privacy? Well, sometimes I commute from home. Nuff said.

So, I started using Garmin-connect. Pretty much the same features as RWGPS. Not as nimble IMHO but more private. With GC, I can also upload my runs ... that is when I get my Garmin running watch! Yes. I love gadgets too.

Then, some riders use Dailymile.com to log all their workouts. Which is pretty cool! You get to see how many donuts you burned. In addition, it is not limited to cycling. You can log just about everything else. I used to log it to dailymile some months back but I got tired of keying my workouts manually. So I left. When I saw that you can now sync from a Garmin device, that changed it. Plus, you can add a DM widget to any blog.

Then comes Strava. com. Big sigh. You remember analytics? Well, I uploaded a file and it gave me ride segment analytics and how I compared with other riders in my class (whatever that is). I love to compare how I did last week versus this week on the same segment of a ride - say, Ridge Road which is a bread and butter hill. It's quite depressing to know that my wattage is that low. Who cares! I climbed up the dang hill.

But Strava is only limited to rides! What about my runs, elliptical work, weights!

I can't possibly upload my files to all of the above. It's too much work!

Maybe I should just ditch my Garmin.

I. Can't. Do. It.

I just love numbers too much to do that.