Day 4 - Montrose to Crested Butte - Check Engine Light ON!

Every once in a while, you have a day when the engine light comes on.  Today was that day for me.  But, before we get to that tale, let's set up the day's ride.  The plan was to go the 92 miles from Montrose, CO to Crested Butte, CO, via Gunnison Colorado.  There was over 6,000 feet of climbing traversing Cerro Summit, Blue Mesa Summit and Hwy 135 up into Crested Butte.

The day’s first challenge was the 11-mile ride into the 15 to 20 mph headwinds and the 2 to 4% grade (1,500 feet of elevation gain) of the Cedar Creek valley up to Aid Station 1.  Hammer and I took turns taking 5 minute pulls into the wind.  It took an hour to get there.  From there we began the 4-mile, 1,000 feet climb up to the Cerro Summit.  The grade averaged from 4 to 10%. It took 45 minutes.

Base of Climb - Cirro Summit

Cirro Summit - Hammer & Coach - All Smiles

From the Summit, it was a quick descent into Cimarron and Pleasant Valley which promptly began the next climb, the 6-mile, 2,600 feet climb up to Blue Mesa Summit.

Looking Down Blue Mesa Summit from Top

It took almost one hour to make the climb and was followed by another descent into a valley where I was promptly stung by a bee/wasp in my thigh.  It swelled and tingled and thus began the slow fade that was to be the rest of the day.  I was able to get up the 500 feet climb up to Blue Mesa Reservoir and downhill to Aid Station 3.  It allowed me to pull out the stinger and get some benzocaine on the bite.  Ate lunch and got back on the bike.

Blue Mesa Reservoir (Largest Body of Water in Colorado)

My hope was that I could ride it off.  The 15-mile ride to Aid Station 4 followed the Blue Mesa Reservoir and the heat, sting and lack of water began to take their toll.  Determined to get to Gunnison and at least do 100 km/62.5 miles, I called Lisa to be available to hook up with me in Gunnison.  Made it to Gunnison and actually had a good pace going, ~ 21 to 22 mph with a tailwind.  The ride was routed around the city and we started heading up the road to Crested Butte.  I called Lisa and let her know where I was.

However, I began to notice something strange....all the people that I had passed 15 to 20 minutes earlier were passing me!  I had dropped my speed to 11 to 12 mph, so that my heart rate (HR) would stay under 140 bpm.  I would surge back up to maintain speed and my HR jumped back up.  Then it happened - the HR wouldn't go up, even though I was going faster. Even though the world started looking blurry around the edges, I recognized that this wasn't a good thing....The Check Engine Light had come on!  The lights were on, and no one was home.

At this point, it is simply a matter of dropping to a gear that you can comfortably push and getting to a place to stop.  Coasted in to Aid Station 5 where I sat for about 15 minutes drinking water....dazed and confused.  Hammer and Pretty Boy (Ryan - Team Flying High) came up to me asking, "Coach - Hello, Coach; are you there?"  I just leaned up against my bicycle.  Finally, I muttered that I probably need to stop.  Needless to say, Lisa pulled over and picked me up.  The day was done 73.91 miles.

In retrospect, I was suffering from pretty severe dehydration.  My strength was fine, but there just wasn't enough water for my body to do what it need to do.  Here were the final stats:

• Distance:  73.91 miles
• Duration:  5:55:17
• Calories Burned:  5,293
• Ascent/Elevation Climbed:  5,043 feet
• Average HR:  131 bpm

Here's some of the pics upon arriving @ Crested Butte:

Whetstone Mountain, Elevation - 12,516 Feet

Mt. Crested Butte - Elevation 12,162 Feet

Today is a rest day and I am enjoying it immensely....doing nothing!  Tomorrow is what cyclist's call the Queen Stage, the defining stage of a multi-stage race/ride.  It generally has the highest mountain pass or series of mountain climbs.  Tommorow is slated for 75 miles and climbs 4,000 feet over 12 miles of dirt road up to Cottonwood Pass, 12,126 feet.  I'm looking forward to it and telling you about it!

The Coach