We drove down on a rental and the drive wasn't too adventurous. We got here at Black Mountain which is just north of Asheville and where our home base is for the week. The one thing that really caught us by surprise is how HILLY it is here. Just to get to our house, we had to drive up 1050ft in about three kilometres, which means some steep hills. After a grocery run, we decided to ride our bikes within the complex and that was an immediate shock to my legs. That same 1050ft ascent was what we had to descend and ascend on our bikes in the rain with about a 20% grade as the max. I am not a fan of downhills and my brake pads can attest to that! LOL! The other thing we noticed right away was the temperature. It is cold here, ok, maybe a little warmer than TO but not the balmy 20C or so I was expecting and with no hope of getting some bike tan lines. The whole week I was layered in cold weather cycling clothes.
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| View of the sunrise from the house on Black Mtn on our last morning there. |
The following day (Sunday) we had our first long ride, about 85km, up Jeter Mountain. This ride we logged a total of 3596ft of climbing with the steepest part being a 21% grade. This was a pretty demoralizing ride for me. I was unable to keep up with the group (which took me a couple of rides to accept and then was able to enjoy riding solo), I got cold, I lost my sunglasses lens which popped out when I put my sunglasses in my back pocket when it got too foggy, I bonked because I made a rookie mistake of not taking any nutrition during the ride, and unfortunately, someone crashed! The crash was really unfortunate but he was back on the bike bravely the next day. The ride was a tough one with the first half being quite hilly. I was actually a bit proud of being able to out climb a couple of people who had to get off their bikes and walk because they weren't able to climb the hills. At least I can muscle through them and not have to get off the bike.
Monday we swam in the morning and then climbed up Elk Mountain with a total of 3573ft of climbing with a 17% grade as the steepest hill and about a 10km steady climb. I had my trusty Garmin 705 with me so I would not get lost. I had uploaded our route and even though this process took some time I at least had something that would tell me if I got off course and showed me where to go. Pheww! This helped the group out too when I was with them and was able to tell them when we got off course. After this ride I told the group not to wait for me though. The last thing I wanted was to hold the group up and have them wait for me. I feel terrible because I am holding them up and because I am the slowest one. I am fine with riding on my own if I know this is what I will be doing. And I still had fun!
Tuesday we headed for Mt. Pisgah and the Blue Ridge Parkway. This was the first day I was able to wear tinted sunglasses lens as the sun was out and I didn't have to wear a ton of layers. I even got a bit of a sunburn on my face, although that may have been a mix of wind burn. Even though the sun was out we had to contend with quite a strong headwind which meant some teeth chattering descents. We climbed a total of 4200ft with a 12km climb up the mountain and the steepest part being 13% for a total of about 98km, our longest ride for the week. I even managed to take a picture when we stopped momentarily to add some more layers at the top of the mountain. I also did a short 10min run off the bike.
Here is a pic while on the Blue Ridge Parkway on our one of two sunny days:
On Wednesday some people wanted to take it easy with a break form the bike. A small group of us still went out on our bikes and did a shorter ride, about 39km up Morgan Hill. Still some steep sections here, the steepest being 13% and a total elevation of 2342ft. Unfortunately, it was cold and rainy and by the end of the ride I was shivering and wet. I was probably hypothermic as I was unable to do stuff, lol! I wasn't such a happy camper at the end of that ride but was still happy that I went!
Thursday was probably the stupidest stunt I/we have ever done! Definitely something to talk about for years to come. We decided to climb up Mt. Mitchell but had to re-route our original route due to some rock slides. So we were going to approach the mountain from the east on the Blue Ridge Pkwy rather than the west. It was another chilly day but we had no idea what was going to hit us. I started the climb feeling pretty good and just kept a good steady effort until we hit the Blue Ridge Pkwy. By this time it was quite cold and very foggy. Ironically, I noticed the sign that read to not use the pkwy in snow, ice, or foggy conditions. Wish I would have paid attention to this. After some time waiting for another rider, I soldiered on, but now quite a bit cold from waiting. It was raining so we also had to contend with wet conditions. Further along the pkwy the fog got more dense. I was happy I had both a tail and headlight in hopes that motorists could see me. I was barely able to see two feet in front of me. I fully admit I was nervous riding on the winding rodes with no visibility. All I knew was that I wasn't going to descend because the little bit I did try to do I got extremely cold and lost all feeling in my hands and feet. So my plan was to keep riding and wait at the top for someone in the group to pick me up and I was going to tell someone of my intentions when I would see them on their way down since the route was an out and back. Well, with about 6km to get to the top I see Ming coming down and he was yelling at me to turn around right away as it was too cold higher up. He didn't make it all the way to the top as he realized it was too cold and he started descending to get to the car and pick us up. I didn't really realize how cold it was because I was steadily climbing but when I turned around and started descending I knew I couldn't do it. Another rider from the group that I met up with wanted to just get to the tunnel so we can be protected from the elements. That was the hardest few km for me. I absolutely froze! I couldn't feel my hands or feet, I could barely brake, it had started to hail then snow, I was almost in tears and was just desperately looking for the tunnel through the thick fog. I was ready to quit until I saw the sign for the tunnel. I was a wreck! The other girls managed to hitch a ride down. Three of the guys made it to the top and nearly froze to death themselves and managed to hitch a ride from a park ranger that was radioed in and took them half way down the mountain. I stayed in the tunnel with the other rider waiting to be picked up. There was no way I was able to descend, so we waited. I would have rather continue climbing because at least I can generate some body heat. But instead, I resorted to becoming the tunnel troll waiting to be rescued. I was for sure hypothermic here. I just wanted to go to sleep to end the shivering and pain. It was not fun! Probably after an hour or so of waiting in the tunnel we got rescued by our other group members! I was shivering uncontrollably and it took at least 45min for me to stop shivering, and more to warm up. What an experience! I managed to pull out my phone and take a couple of pics of the tunnel and the fog while waiting:
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| the thick fog on the Blue Ridge Pkwy - this picture does not do it justice |
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| where I became the tunnel troll - my refuge until we were rescued |
Surprisingly enough, most of us were still willing to ride on Friday. We went back to Morgan hill and this time it was sunny although quite windy and a bit chilly on the descent. A better ride for me the second time around. After the ride, a few of us headed to the pool and I did about a 3.3km recovery swim. We are heading home tomorrow after a short run. I hope I have made some gains here this week. My legs feel it for sure! I wish I was able to take more photos but I was either always climbing, decending, or it was too cold to stop to take a picture. Ah well!
North Carolina definitely has some beautiful cycling terrain but I do not know if I would be willing to come back here. It would have to be warmer for one thing. Maybe South Carolina!?
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