The Blazing Saddles 100 mile – I’d only done one other 100-mile ride outside and that was the Blazing Saddles in 2014 when I completed it on the ElliptiGo. I had a few 100+ mile rides but those were in the basement on my spin bike which is much faster but a lot more mentally challenging. I sent out the word to many running acquaintances who also bike but got very little interest. Christin Doneski who was also sidelined with injury since the Loon Mountain race was up for the challenge. We met up a little before the 7 a.m. start and were among the first ones rolling out of the Triton School parking lot. This was not a race, just a fully supported ride. There would be over 300 people out there doing either 25, 36, 50, 62 or 100 miles. There wasn’t a specific start time just a range of times based on how fast you would go and when the various aid stations would be open. We were out on the road as early as possible based on my prediction that we’d take about 8 hours. Christin had been riding a gravel bike and hadn’t gone beyond 100km, and I would be on the touring bike so I figured 12 mph average would be about right. Christin ended up using a “faster” bike with thin tires, so it turned out that I’d be working harder than I expected and we’d be going a bit ahead of schedule.
We started off on some
nice quiet streets in Byfield (part of Newbury) and then crossed into Georgetown
along the border of Crane Wildlife area. It was in the low-to-mid
60’s and felt very comfortable, but we knew the heat would be coming so
hydration was important. We crossed into Groveland as a big group
went flying by, the last guy asked to ride with us for a bit as the group was a
little too fast for him. We chatted for a bit; this was his 8th
time doing the Blazing Saddles. I mentioned I did it in 2014 on an ElliptiGo
and he remembered that. The Go stands out in a crowd. This
time around I think I was the only one on a touring bike. Most
were on very fast carbon fiber bikes and were just cooking along. We
crossed into Haverhill, and I pointed out the edge of Winnekenni as we
rolled on by. We had some decent climbing as we headed into Merrimac
and then over the border into Newton NH. Christin kidded me that I
was beating her to all the town lines. We took turns at the front but
with the roads being quiet we mostly rod side-by-side chatting the miles
away. We had a little section in Plaistow NH before returning to
Newton and our first stop at the 26-mile aid station. We’d been pedaling
steadily for a little over 1.5 hours, so it was nice to jump off for a moment
to fill up water bottles and grab a snack. We spent less than five
minutes at the stop and were off again as some big groups came in. It was
funny, we’d get passed by the same group’s multiple times during the ride as
they’d take longer rest breaks then come flying by us. I wouldn’t say we
were going slow, but we were steady (our 5-mile splits were very similar even
with elevation gain).
We had a nice 6-mile
stretch that dropped down to the Merrimack River in Merrimac. Then
5 miles along the River in Amesbury before crossing over on the Chain
Bridge into Newburyport. This was a nice stretch for scenery, and
it featured a lot of downhill and flat. I had forgotten about the “extra” aid
station they had set up at Maudsley State Park. This one was mostly for
those doing the shorter distances, but we were welcomed as well. Christin
dashed off to the rest room while I had a mechanic help me with fixing the rear
rack on my bike. I guess I’d hit one too many potholes and it was making
a lot of noise. I was glad he could fix it and glad that it wasn’t one of
my “parts” that was jiggling and making noise. I filled my water bottle
and off we went.
We dipped south into Newbury
and in what seemed no time we were at the 38-mile aid station. A quick refill
of water/Gatorade and we were off again. Again, we had some great scenery
as we passed Doug D’s house at exactly 50
miles (!!!) and then the Little River marshes before climbing up Old Town hill
and then passing the Lower Green. It was getting hot as we crossed over
the Parker River. Although we had a good breakdown lane to ride in it was
exposed and there was a bit of faster traffic on Route 1A. We continued
south on 1A into Rowley and then on 133 (also busy) into Ipswich.
At 60 miles we did a nice out and back section along Jeffrey’s Neck Road where
we saw a few bikers who had completed the loop of “Great Neck” and were heading
back inland. I was hoping that since we’d be right on the ocean, we’d get
some relief from the heat. Really the only cooling breeze was when we climbed
the gap between Great Neck and Little Neck. We got some great views of
Castle Hill, Plum Island, and people on the sand bars in Plum Island
sound. As we hit 100 kilometers, I was feeling that I’d been on the bike
for a LONG time. I wasn’t dead tired (not yet) but just thought “We still
have 1/3rd of the ride to go”. We cruised into Hamilton
and passed Appleton Farms and I continued my tour guide duties mentioning how
much great trail running they have there. I was looking forward to the
76-mile aid station at Bradley Palmer but first we had to cover a couple of
tough hills on Asbury Street (passing the Patton Homestead and the nice
Greenbelt property at Vineyard hill). We crossed into Topsfield
and then hit the aid station. I was thirsty and had a full 16 ounces of
water and a couple of slices of watermelon before refilling my bottle and
heading back out. Christin made a quick pit-stop in the woods since
neither of us want to do any extra pedaling to find the porta-johns which were
about ½ mile away. There were quite a few people at the aid station, and
they all seemed in no rush to move on, I guess it can be pretty tempting to
just hang out there for a while.
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We timed out the crossing
of Route 1 perfectly getting the light as we rolled up. Just after the
80-mile mark we climbed Hill Street/Cross Street and I mentioned that it is
never a good sign when a road had “Hill or Mountain or View” in the name.
100+ feet of climb in ½ mile was tough at this point. We crossed route 95
for the third time as we headed into Boxford and some shaded
roads. At 85 miles I was ready to be done, knowing we had about 1 hour to
go made it tempting to pick up the pace. From this point to the finish,
we had a guy about 30 seconds ahead of us the entire time. We’d close on
him a bit on the climbs, and he’d drift away on the downhill parts. The
final climb of the day on Access Road was a grind but only about ½ mile.
At nearly 97 miles it was a bit of a kick in the shorts. I was working
hard to stay with Christin and looking forward to being done. We reached
the school as my watch beeped for 100 miles. Yeah! Christin’s
computer had 100 but her watch was .6 short so we continued up and around the
school so she would have 100 on the watch as well. I was glad to be done
and a little overheated by the finish. A few Polar Beverages later and I
was feeling a lot better.
The final 15 miles did
feature some of our fastest splits of the day, so I guess we were really
feeling the pull of getting done. I came out of the ride with a couple of
minor dings. I cut up my knee a little with it rubbing against the top
tube and I got a bee sting on my bum! My left ankle (arthritis) was
sore. I think I’d be happier with rides up to about 100 km (62 miles)
after that it isn’t as pleasant. I may do a longish ride in Vermont in
the fall!
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