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devotee who obviously has a great ability to recruit and motivate volunteers (including his mother, Joan!). The ride started in 1995 from Rochester and has undergone small changes each year, moving to Syracuse and finally lthaca, with QuadZilla being added to the Finger Lakes ride last year, As Mark says, "The ride is a supreme test of a rider's ultra abilities. Mental toughness, navigational skills, and physical ability are all put to an extreme test." Frank plans to give the event a one-year hiatus so that he can ride London- Edinburgh-London next year, but does plan to run the event in 2002 and 2003, before PBP.
So, back to my travails. Chris and I rolled into Auburn (280 miles) around 1:45 a.m., and I lay down on a bed at the well-organized Super 8 Motel checkpoint as my brother, (RBCer) Tom Evans, who was doing the shorter Finger Lakes 555 km, was getting up to head back out into the dark and cold (about 53 degrees). I slept perhaps 10 minutes, and then Just lay there for a couple of hours, moving from side to side, stretching my sore leg and back muscles and wondering how in the world I would ever get back up to finish this thing off with another 200 km on no rest, with a return to what was advertised to be even more severe climbing.
Chris and I got started just before dawn, having been passed in the night by Dan Jordan, who had come all the way from Kansas City, and Bill Schwarz from Kinderhook, NY. We quickly knocked off 25 early morning miles before our first big problem: we missed a turn and got hopelessly lost. I finally waved down a passing motorist and got directions back to the course 10 miles later and just in time for two more tough climbs before the final checkpoint in Tully. I finally sent Chris ahead on the second-to-last brutal climb before Tully, a ski-slope like incline rising straight off the Orchard Valley golf course because of my awkward climbing. I was so exhausted that I couldn't stand for any meaning- ful part of the climbs, and so was reduced to zigzagging back and forth across the road, seated, in my 39 X 27, going 3 to 4 mph and perhaps doubling my total climbing distance.
To add insult, my bottom bracket was starting to scrunch under the high torque, and I was shiver- ing, despite leg warmers, a jacket and it being the middle of July, so that when I got into Tully I was completed depleted. Chris, who had brilliantly slept a couple hours during the evening, was calmly waiting for me, and simply readied himself for another nap while I tried to regroup with juice, coffee, sandwiches, and sweets. At last we were off, but when I saw the first of the remaining climbs shooting straight up again, I balked. Perhaps I could have suffered up one more time, but the thought of as many as four more of these babies was too intimidating, and I told Chris I was going to stay down in the valley and find the fastest, quickest way back to lthaca. Good deci- sion. The sun came out and I got a short nap on a picnic table, which made me feel a little better for the ride in. Thus, I came in as an unofficial finisher with 380 miles on my clock, versus 405 to 420 for those who had soldiered on through the madness. The End.
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QuadZilla Ride Report By David Cohen
On July 22 and 23, Quadzilla 2000 took place. The randonneur-style ride, organized by Mark Frank, started and ended in Ithaca, NY. In between, we were to ride around all 11 Finger Lakes, going 400 miles in 40 hours. This was to be my first ride over 200 miles, and I sure picked a tough one. For those not familiar with the Finger Lake area of upstate New York, suffice to say, there are some hills.
I want to say up front that the most amazing part of this ride was the checkpoint support. I've done many organized rides and I've never seen support like that which was given for this ride. Everyone of the volunteers at the checkpoints was happy, helpful, and encouraging. Plus, the checkpoints had food galore - both hot and cold - always being happily served to you by the incredibly friendly people. And, the people at the check points had all the supplies you could need to help wiht the ride (tools, chamois butt'r, sun screen, extra jackets in the cold night, everything). Simply, the support was remarkable. This made the ride all the more enjoyable.
Some numbers up front - I rode 410 miles (a wrong turn or two along the way) and climbed over 27,000 feet, averaging just under 66 feet per mile. My total time was 39:45, and my total time on the bike was 31:36, for an average on-bike time of 13mph. Considering all the climbing, I'm happy with that.
A few things I learned: 1) I wish I had a 30x30 gear. One guy I rode with had that, and he climbed the best of the threesome I rode in. The other guy had a 30x27, and I had a 30x23. (Throughout the ride, I was offering $100 to anyone who would give me a 30 tooth cog for my cassette.) The ride organizer recommended at least a 39x26, but I can't imagine using that high a gear. 2) Upstate New York dogs really don't like cyclists. All the ones that chased us - usually on the steepest hills - responded to a firm "No!" and we were OK. But, we heard through the support grapevine that a rider had been bitten and had to stop the ride. 3) Louis Garneu shorts are the way to go. My shorts and one of the other guy I rode with's shorts left us hurting over the last 50 miles, even with loads of chamois butt'r. The third guy, on the other hand, in his Louis Garneu's, was doing great. 4) Rolling hills and steep short climbs are tougher than longer climbs that are not as steep. I've done lots of long climbing out west, but nothing matched the difficulty of this ride. I can't imagine what else would, except maybe Furnace Creek in 100+ temperatures or maybe the Death Ride in extreme temperatures. 5) Riding with people you get along with and ride at similar pace with makes a long ride very enjoyable. Russ, Jim, and I had a great rapor, talking about Lance, RAAM, Jim's racing past, and all the fun/crazy rides we've done and were going to do.
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