(Post-blogged on Sunday, May 15th)
...6am comes very early when you go to bed at 1:30am. I was utterly exhausted. I rolled out of bed, with a Black scottie dog "Frankel" (my friend's dog) who snored all 4 hours next to me. I took a quick shower and put on all my bike gear, complete with arm warmers and light jacket - headed out the door with coffee in hand, power bar in mouth. I fumbled thru the directions but I got to the place of the Capital to Capital Century in Dorey park @ 7am, pulled into a dim parking lot with about 50 other earlycomers (later - was to be over 500 cyclists).

Capital to Capital Century, 2005 Click photo to enlarge Photo by d. scott gregory

It was a relatively chilly morning for what was to become a scorcher of a day - in the low 90s. I registered - sort of a low-tech fiasco, then a quick run to the jon, load up on some bananas, oranges, granola, and wash it down with elecrolytes and a red bull. Ready to go...

Saw a few blokes I know from other centuries...and we all acted like dogs wanting to play..sniffing butts and waiting until we were ready to run off in the wind. A team of about 18 of us all started together - started slow, then pacelined hard. Set the tone right away - this was going to be a time trial paceline, we (as a group) are going to keep a tight paceline for the entire 100+ miles, and try to break or stay @ 5 hours (saddle time).

There was one stop after 12 miles - only wussies stop there, or the ones who have to pee every 20 minutes, we breezed on by like a train, then the second stop after 25 miles - we stopped only to grab gatorade refills and a quick "squirt", off in less than 5 minutes....we were whirring at a fast pace, dropping a few riders on the end like a whip... it was a streamlined poetry in motion sett of gears within gears, pace pace pace, then pass, then airflow, then pace pace pace, then airflow....like an electric snake rolling along.

Capital to Capital Century, 2005 Click photo to enlarge Photo by d. scott gregory

We arrived at the halfway point, 53 miles in Jamestown (the first settlement) at 10am. The pictures shown here are of a few of my paceline team (others were in the tent hydrating or honching food) - we had no time to take pictures, so I only was able to have a SAG dude snap a few, then we were off.

The temperature rose up to the high 80s and it became humid as hell on the baks of the James river - sun beat down but we were a collective whirr of gears, sweat and aereodynamic color wind. We diverted the headwinds and celebrated in spirit the 90+ miles, then the pain sets in - we continued to hydrate, and hammer the pedals like a locomotive - then we saw the 100 mile mark, a few more miles.

We finished as a team, working collectively at 5 hours, 5 minutes.

I was elated, and tired and hot. I immediately started taking my recovery hydration packs and a few advil. Drank about another gallon of water, did a slow 3 mile loop letting the lactic acid breakdown. Saddled up and drove back to my friend's house who was suprized at how quick I finished. I was in great shape tho - so I took a nice hot shower, changed clothes and we headed to the store, got provisions for the dinner party we were having (for 8).

Long story short, we had a wonderful dinner party - complete with shishkabobs of chicken, lamb, beef, mushrooms, marinated portabello mushrooms, babaganouch, berries, Corona, Merlot, Chardonnay, omg...great fun - fun conversations with a diverse crowd - then a relaxing dip in the hot tub. I was sleepy afterwards - went to sleep.

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