C
cheg
Guest
Yesterday I did my first Seattle to Portland double century. Along with a new
friend met on the road, we completed the 206 mi. in 11:30 road time (17.9 avg.)
and 2 hours of stops for a total clock average of 15.3 mph. Most of it was just
the two of us trading off the lead but many thanks to the Cycle Tuesday experts
for allowing us to trail behind their superb double paceline for a couple of 20
mile stretches. We really appreciated the lift.
My new friend Doug and I left about 45 min. before the official start time so
there was a lot of open road for us. We joined up about 2.5 miles from the start
and rode together pretty much the whole way to Portland. Riding together was
really great because we each got to take breaks from the wind but it was casual
enough you could drop back and look around or take a drink whenever when you
wanted. The last 30 miles was a real grind but great satisfaction at the finish.
Start to Kent: 24 mi.
Beautiful dawn over Lake Washington. Very nice weather - no wind, temperature in
the upper 60's. Opening day of fishing on Lake Washington so hundreds of people
were lined up to launch their boats right on the STP route. We were glad to be
through before the big crowd. Police directing traffic eased the way through
Renton and into Kent to the (strangely) Mexican theme REI food stop - was it
because of Pedro's products? Who knows. The strawberry smoothies were the
highlight of the day for support food.
Kent to Spanaway: 31 mi.
Some road construction on West Valley but not too bad. May have caused some
flats later on though. Lots of railroad tracks to cross. A significant hill
between Puyallup and Spanaway, about 350 ft. in one mile. That is the one
everyone talks about but it's really not that terrible if you include some hills
in your training routes. The tough part is that you have to ride 40 miles to get
there. Cascade says the total elevation gain on the STP is about 2000', but I
think it is more like 4000'. Esimates vary.
Spanaway to Centralia: 47 mi.
We were overtaken by the Cycle Tuesdays paceline around McKenna and joined their
entourage. They did not seem to mind the followers. Initially we were about 10
or 15 riders back from the end of the paceline and there was a lot of accordion
action and irregular braking going on so we passed ahead of the line and tucked
in closer behind when they overtook us again. Traffic lights tend to break up
the flow and it takes some time to get the line going again. Sometimes the
lights chop the tail of followers off and it's next to impossible to rejoin
unless the group stops. They got up to over 27 mph for some stretches but 23 was
more typical. The paceline stopped at Tenino and Doug and I pushed on ahead of
them after a short break. We reached the midpoint at about 10:00.
Centralia to Lexington: 45 mi.
Lots of rolling hills after Chehalis and a 200 ft. hill at Napavine. Lost an SPD
cleat screw somewhere along there but was able to get a replacement from the
mechanics at Castle Rock (thanks, guys). Classic sight at the Lexington stop -
200 bikes piled on the ground and leaning against everything in site except the
empty bike rack 10 feet from the food line.
Lexington to St. Helens: 31 mi.
We were overtaken by the Cycle Tuesdays again on the way into Kelso and stayed
with them for about 20 miles until they stopped to fix a flat. Climbing the
bridge over the Columbia river broke the line up for a while but it reformed
within a few miles. The first time we were behind the paceline, I noticed that
two riders who were not in the paceline were riding side by side at the back,
apparently to keep strangers from getting into the circuit.100 miles later I
got in that position on the left side of the line and got a good look at a
double paceline at work. They were rotating clockwise with the faster line on
the left and the slower line on the right. It seemed that the circulation was
smooth and continuous, but the fast line leader had to have some way to know
when the slow line leader was not overlapping and it was safe to cross over. I
couldn't tell how from where I was. If you are in the position I was in you
can't overlap the wheel of the last person on the right side of the line. That
way they will always have space to switch over the the faster paceline when the
time comes. It looks like a lot of fun to do if everyone knows what they are
doing. I hope to try it sometime.
We had a rain shower just after crossing the river which broke the heat some,
but it was in the mid to high 80's and humid by the time we reached St. Helens.
Lots of people were sticking their heads under the faucets at St. Helens.
St. Helens to Portland: 28 mi.
The last stretch seemed hard, long stretches with rolling hills and a short
steep climb into the city of Portland. The finish was on the east side of the
Willamette River in Portland so there was some urban cycling invloved in getting
there. Again, we were happy to be there ahead of the 6000+ riders comming in on
Sunday. The finish line could have been more practical. They were funneling
everone into a very narrow corridor lined with spectators and a radio announcer
was telling us all to slow down, slow down. It was not at all clear where to go
after the gauntlet or where to park the bikes. I was thinking " these people
just rode 200 miles, they don't want congratulations, THEY JUST WANT TO GET OFF
THE BIKE." I hope that the layout was modified somewhat for Sunday. Otherwise,
the ride was admirably well planned and supported, you couldn't ask for much
better. Many thanks to Cascade Bicycle Club and all the other sponsors.
friend met on the road, we completed the 206 mi. in 11:30 road time (17.9 avg.)
and 2 hours of stops for a total clock average of 15.3 mph. Most of it was just
the two of us trading off the lead but many thanks to the Cycle Tuesday experts
for allowing us to trail behind their superb double paceline for a couple of 20
mile stretches. We really appreciated the lift.
My new friend Doug and I left about 45 min. before the official start time so
there was a lot of open road for us. We joined up about 2.5 miles from the start
and rode together pretty much the whole way to Portland. Riding together was
really great because we each got to take breaks from the wind but it was casual
enough you could drop back and look around or take a drink whenever when you
wanted. The last 30 miles was a real grind but great satisfaction at the finish.
Start to Kent: 24 mi.
Beautiful dawn over Lake Washington. Very nice weather - no wind, temperature in
the upper 60's. Opening day of fishing on Lake Washington so hundreds of people
were lined up to launch their boats right on the STP route. We were glad to be
through before the big crowd. Police directing traffic eased the way through
Renton and into Kent to the (strangely) Mexican theme REI food stop - was it
because of Pedro's products? Who knows. The strawberry smoothies were the
highlight of the day for support food.
Kent to Spanaway: 31 mi.
Some road construction on West Valley but not too bad. May have caused some
flats later on though. Lots of railroad tracks to cross. A significant hill
between Puyallup and Spanaway, about 350 ft. in one mile. That is the one
everyone talks about but it's really not that terrible if you include some hills
in your training routes. The tough part is that you have to ride 40 miles to get
there. Cascade says the total elevation gain on the STP is about 2000', but I
think it is more like 4000'. Esimates vary.
Spanaway to Centralia: 47 mi.
We were overtaken by the Cycle Tuesdays paceline around McKenna and joined their
entourage. They did not seem to mind the followers. Initially we were about 10
or 15 riders back from the end of the paceline and there was a lot of accordion
action and irregular braking going on so we passed ahead of the line and tucked
in closer behind when they overtook us again. Traffic lights tend to break up
the flow and it takes some time to get the line going again. Sometimes the
lights chop the tail of followers off and it's next to impossible to rejoin
unless the group stops. They got up to over 27 mph for some stretches but 23 was
more typical. The paceline stopped at Tenino and Doug and I pushed on ahead of
them after a short break. We reached the midpoint at about 10:00.
Centralia to Lexington: 45 mi.
Lots of rolling hills after Chehalis and a 200 ft. hill at Napavine. Lost an SPD
cleat screw somewhere along there but was able to get a replacement from the
mechanics at Castle Rock (thanks, guys). Classic sight at the Lexington stop -
200 bikes piled on the ground and leaning against everything in site except the
empty bike rack 10 feet from the food line.
Lexington to St. Helens: 31 mi.
We were overtaken by the Cycle Tuesdays again on the way into Kelso and stayed
with them for about 20 miles until they stopped to fix a flat. Climbing the
bridge over the Columbia river broke the line up for a while but it reformed
within a few miles. The first time we were behind the paceline, I noticed that
two riders who were not in the paceline were riding side by side at the back,
apparently to keep strangers from getting into the circuit.100 miles later I
got in that position on the left side of the line and got a good look at a
double paceline at work. They were rotating clockwise with the faster line on
the left and the slower line on the right. It seemed that the circulation was
smooth and continuous, but the fast line leader had to have some way to know
when the slow line leader was not overlapping and it was safe to cross over. I
couldn't tell how from where I was. If you are in the position I was in you
can't overlap the wheel of the last person on the right side of the line. That
way they will always have space to switch over the the faster paceline when the
time comes. It looks like a lot of fun to do if everyone knows what they are
doing. I hope to try it sometime.
We had a rain shower just after crossing the river which broke the heat some,
but it was in the mid to high 80's and humid by the time we reached St. Helens.
Lots of people were sticking their heads under the faucets at St. Helens.
St. Helens to Portland: 28 mi.
The last stretch seemed hard, long stretches with rolling hills and a short
steep climb into the city of Portland. The finish was on the east side of the
Willamette River in Portland so there was some urban cycling invloved in getting
there. Again, we were happy to be there ahead of the 6000+ riders comming in on
Sunday. The finish line could have been more practical. They were funneling
everone into a very narrow corridor lined with spectators and a radio announcer
was telling us all to slow down, slow down. It was not at all clear where to go
after the gauntlet or where to park the bikes. I was thinking " these people
just rode 200 miles, they don't want congratulations, THEY JUST WANT TO GET OFF
THE BIKE." I hope that the layout was modified somewhat for Sunday. Otherwise,
the ride was admirably well planned and supported, you couldn't ask for much
better. Many thanks to Cascade Bicycle Club and all the other sponsors.