Apple Valley 400k Brevet – August 6-7, 2011

Heat, Hills and Hanging Together

Thirteen riders started the challenging AV 400k course, twelve finished. It was a tough ride. Interestingly, everyone on Saturday ended up in two groups, one finishing in the middle of the night, the next early in the morning. Both groups had a fun ride and helped each other out through the long hills, nutritional issues and threatening weather.

First Finishers Craig Futterer, Mark Olsen, Jonas Nygard, Hall Sanders, Richard Miller

The final finishers: Phil Foss (support), Ronaele Foss, Phil Jemielita, Michele Brougher,

Bob Booth, Renee Schepers

Martin and Rob pre-rode the course on Friday and, aside from adding some extra miles due to a torn up road, had a very good ride. Martin is preparing for a straight through ride at PBP and is riding very strong. Rob is heading for the Taste of Carolina 1200k over the Labor Day weekend.

Relaxing in Cannon Falls, Bob Booth, Phil Jemielita (reclining), Renee Schepers

One rider from each of Saturday’s groups chronicled their adventures. Here are their stories.

Craig Futterer

Well, it was hot, humid & hilly, so what else is new. I won’t dwell on these things as we all experienced the same basic conditions and they are best left in the back of our minds for a later date.

We have all been chased by dogs, but a cat???  Yes, it’s true. I was a few yards behind Jonas, Mark and Hall when they attracted the attention of a sleeping cat.  I heard it scream – like that of a banshee.  I glanced down the driveway to my right and there it was, sprinting at me full speed, teeth bared.  The adrenaline kicked in as I jumped out of the saddle, just out of reach of his razor sharp claws. Concerned for Richard behind me, I yelled CAT!!  Jonas looked back and started to laugh……  Ok, so it wasn’t such a big cat, actually a kitty, probably just under a pound, you could just barely hear his cute little meow and he may have only had three legs, but it was the first cat chasing any of us had ever encountered.

Our group was loosely formed early in the ride, with Mark Olsen, Jonas Nygard, Hall Sanders & Jerry Hofmann ahead of Richard Miller and myself.  We would regroup at the controls, but I was unable to keep pace so dropped off. From Plainview on we pretty much stayed together with the stronger riders regularly slowing down to wait – Thank You, Hall, Jonas & Mark!

It was the large, hot, steep climb (I can’t completely avoid writing about them) out of Rollingstone that really brought on the cramps for Jerry and he had to walk up a large portion of the hill, but he eventually made it to Stockton.  Taking a bit of extra time to rehydrate and cool down, we had a nice conversation with a couple of locals, who gave us the names of the upcoming hills – the one on CR-20 I have forgotten, maybe due to the heat and hills (sorry).  The climb out of Elba is called ‘Whiskey Hill’ – that one I could hardly forget. There was also a story attached to this, but I will leave that for another time.  We stopped for more fluids at the Elba Cenex and after struggling through more cramps, Jerry arrived and decided to call in for a pick-up.  We later learned that he met his wife in Plainview – perhaps the pre-ride miles from home to Apple Valley took their toll.

When we arrived in Plainview we decided to sit down and eat at Subway to relax, cool down and have some better food – this proved to be a wise move as I was able to recover somewhat and down the road a bit began to feel much better.

After a beautiful ride in the Zumbro River Valley and exchanging ‘Have a Good Days’ with some folks tubing down the river, we arrived at Mazeppa. We again decided to stop for a quick fluid refill and prepare for night riding. Fresh ice in our bottles and a snack provided a little boost for the remaining stretch in to Zumbrota. A couple of the guys purchased gifts here as well – the cashier was a very good sales person, but the Whoopie/fart cushions didn’t fit on a bike saddle very well. Check your saddle next time, you just never know what you may find….

After a little miscommunication regarding the brand new McDonald’s in Zumbrota and where everyone was going to get a bite more to eat, we were on our way to Cannon Falls.  As we headed toward Wanamingo at a pretty good pace we began to see lightning off in the horizon – Oh Oh!  As we neared the crossing of Hwy 52 we started to scope out places to seek shelter, but we continued to ride.  Just as the rain started to fall and we were contemplated putting on jackets, things changed – we seemed to have out run part of the stormy weather and another dark cloudy area seemed to have moved east ahead of us leaving the big dipper and moon to light up the sky.

Just before midnight, in Cannon Falls, as we waited for Richard to do his yoga thing, or something, on the floor of the SA, a ping-pong playing, Bosnian, Bio-Chemist from the Mayo hopped out of his car and engaged us in conversation about the pitfalls of extreme exercise.  Mark shot back with ‘So, we should sit on the couch watching TV with a bag of Doritos and a beer?’  Ok, so we were a bit beyond the point of hearing how the cells of our stomach wall will diminish and that we could die from over exercising.  Back on our bikes and heading to Apple Valley I was finally able to contribute and help pull for the first time since the very beginning of the ride – we made pretty good time and arrived just after 2 AM, missing last call (sorry, Jonas, I’ll buy you beer after you get back from France).  As we pulled into the parking lot we were greeted by our smiling, amazing RBA – he had ridden 400k the day before, started us on our way at 6 AM, drove to Rochester for a wedding and back, got out of bed and was still standing when we arrived – THANK YOU ROB!

Note: We were able to talk Jonas in to riding home with Hall, in his car, short of his 500k goal.

             Michele and Renee let Bob know he is appreciated

Michele Brougher

Bob Booth, Renee Schepers, Phil Jemielita, Ronaele Foss and Michele Brougher all had the pleasure of riding together for most of a beautiful Saturday on this ride.  Despite numerous issues: heat, stomach issues, a tiny storm, and some really brainless navigation at 3:00am, we persevered and were all in good enough shape to take the group photo shot at the end.  In Michele’s humble opinion, this was a favorite of the 400ks ridden because it really represented the best part of the sport: we had camaraderie to spare.  We also got to meet a really great randonneuse from Colorado Springs who has been all over the country and I really hope swings our way again.  Her husband, Paul, was at every control and always willing to fill a bottle and put in an encouraging word.

We all made it to Stockton around the same time, about 4:30 pm.  Up until that point, Bob had the luxury of being escorted and pulled entirely by women.  Best quote of the day from Bob, “I’m in the best spot of any man on this ride”.  At Stockton, we joined up with Phil, who was looking pretty overheated but was glad to join up in our merry parade afterward.  Best quote of the day from Phil, “Bob, you are a gift from God”.  Renee handled all the hills with great fortitude and there were many hills.  Best quote of the day from Renee, “I swear at the end of these that I will never do another one, then I start planning to do my next one two days later”.  Ronaele was a great person to ride with and has one of the best attitudes on life of anyone I’ve talked to at 3:00 am.  Best quote of the day from Ronaele, “I just enjoy my grand babies and live the best that I can.  Next year, my goal is Ride Across America” (PS: Ronaele was kind of whipping my butt on the last hills, she’s like a locomotive on two wheels).  Alas, though Michele remembers many things said by others, the only thing I really remember saying was something like “gee, maybe I shouldn’t leave my brassiere tied to my handlebars in public”.  My feckless leadership also bought is us some bonus miles.  But even so, we all still had a good time.

A minor thunderstorm outside Mazeppa slowed us down, but it was a beautiful night of riding. A great group of people on a great route, hills and all.

          Ronaele, the pink lady from Colorado Springs, leads the pack

Ronaele Foss – Colorado Springs, Co

Tags: August