Whipping The Devil...
For years, I've been riding my bike in the hills above the east side of San Jose; and on most of those rides, I've seen the direction markers for the DMD. And once I found out what the ride actually was; I assumed that you had to be nuts to even attempt a ride like that. But then, ultra cycling has a way of growing on you. I started off with a few double metric centuries, and then slowly worked my way up to my first double century (Eastern Sierra in 2006). After that, I figured that it would only be a matter of time before I could take on the truly crazy rides.
Last year, I wanted to give the Devil Mountain Double a go. But bike problems early in the year forced me to give up on that dream for the year. After getting my new frame in June last year and earning my triple crown jersey (three doubles in one year) in 2007, I knew that it was time to go for the DMD. I certainly couldn't blame a lack of base mileage, having ridden nearly 10,700 miles in 2007; and being well on my way to besting that this year. The trick had to be in preparing mentally and ensuring that I was properly rested before the ride.
So some time in late March, I dropped my entry form in the mailbox. And as they say, "The rest is history". On April 5 I rode the Mount Hamilton Loop, which is most of the second half of the ride. I figured that if I knew the course, I'd have an easier time once the suffering started. But there was one major difference: the high temperature that day was 57, much cooler than the forecast high of 83 for the day of the ride.
On Friday night, I came home early and got my bike and other gear ready to go for the next morning. After cleaning my bike and setting every; I settled in to watch the Sharks game on TV. After watch the boys lose in overtime (fortunate it didn't go too late...), I went off to sleep with two alarms set (3:44 and 3:45).
Once my alarm jarred me from a deep sleep, I was up and running out the door. It took me a mere 35 minutes to drive up to the San Ramon Marriot for the 5:00 AM start. I checked in about 10 minutes before the start, and was ready to roll. Or at least as ready as I was ever going to be (how can you really be prepared for a ride of this magnitude?).
After a nice cruise over a few rolling hills on Crow Canyon Road, the first climb of the day was on. I've done Mount Diablo before; and it's really not that bad of a climb. Not easy, but doable; and it's especially nice right at dawn on a warm day. And I have to tell you that watching the sunrise from the side of any mountain is something to behold. But anyway... I took it really easy up to the the top, and after reaching the summit and checking in I was off to race down the north side of the mountain and through Walnut Creek and Clayton on the way to the next big climb, Morgan Territory Road. MTR is a great ascent with lots of shade, and would be really great if the road was in better shape. Fortunately the descent was in much better shape. And yes, 'The Plunge' is a fast descent. After screaming down into the Livermore Valley the route heads for some fast flat sections east and up over Altamont Pass Road. Altamont is a fairly easy climb, and before long I was heading down the other side.
After making my way over to the bottom of Patterson Pass, it was time for the actually suffering to begin. The temperature was beginning to really warm up, and there was no wind whatsoever. So the heat was starting to get to me, and I still had over 120 miles left to ride. Finally I got to the water stop near the top, and recouped a little bit of energy. And then I got to go over the steepest part of the climb! The first sighting of that part of the hill causes an "Oh my God!" type of reaction from a lot of people, and indeed it's written on the road... "Oh my *!"
But I made it over that; though I felt a little disoriented coming down the west side and back down in the outskirts of Livermore. But I made it down fine, and over to the beginning of Mines Road. I made it to the rest stop at the bottom of the hill and got some actual motivation for the rest of the ride. Seeing Joan there really did keep me going during the long hours to follow (hugs do wonders, don't they?). But I did also get some much needed real food. And that helped for the immediate need of climbing Mines Road and over to the lunch stop at Junction.
The climb on Mines Road really isn't bad, especially with a tailwind going south. At the water stop, I ran into my dad who was riding the Mount Hamilton Challenge (Mount Hamilton Loop with Calaveras to finish, and a total of 124 miles with 9000 feet of climbing) at the next water stop at mile marker 17 on Mines Road. We chatted for a few minutes. After leaving there, I cruised the last few miles into Junction and got some good food. A turkey and cheese sandwich can sure taste amazing! After refueling and resting for about 15 minutes, I was off on the road to Mount Hamilton.
Most of the road up to Hamilton is fairly mellow. There are a few climbs before you get to the meat of the climb, but none are all that bad. But once you get over that bridge and onto the real climb. I actually felt fairly good at this point, and yet I was passing a lot of people that were suffering mightily. Every few minutes, I'd see someone stopped on the side of the road, resting in the shade. People were puking, walking there bikes, and wobbling; and yet I was able to continue pedaling the whole time.
Still, it was a tremendous relief to get to the water stop about a mile from the summit. I got some orange juice and a popsicle (nice touch guys!), and refilled my bottles and was off to descend into San Jose. Now, I hate the descent off Mount Hamilton when I'm not tired: it's much worse when you have been on your bike for 11 hours! Still, I managed to maintain a decent speed. But then, coming into one corner, I hit my brakes and started to slide. Fortunately I was able to stop before I going off the road. But I took it very easy for the rest of that part of the descent. When I got to the top of the next rise in the road, I stopped to check out my tire. Sure enough; there was a huge section of tread missing, exposing the cotton casing underneath. I very gingerly continued my descent, just hoping to find a tire. Thankfully I made it into the Crothers Road rest stop without a blowout. Once I got in, I asked the guy (Tim) working the stop if he happened to have an extra tire around. He said that he did, and even changed the tire for me while I was refueling. After that (and calling my mom to tell her that the tire problem had been solved -I had called her to see if she might be able to bring a tire from home and meet me along my route) I was back on the road with a promise to bring the tire back to Tim the next day.
After finishing the descent of Hamilton, I made my way onto Piedmont and then over to Sierra Road, the final major hill of the day. Sierra Road is one of those hills that can kick your butt when you're fresh. So I was just hoping to survive the climb. I took note of the time I started up the hill, so I'd get an idea of how much 150 miles slows down my pace. And the answer was surprising. I suffered a bit, but the cooling temperatures (it was closing in on sunset by this point) helped me to ride well on this bump in the road. I made the top in 42 minutes; only 7 minutes slower than my best time on Sierra Road this year. Then I made my way over to the famous "Pet the Goat" rest stop. After petting the goat and refilling my water bottles, I was off for the fast descent down Felter Road. And then another steep climb, up Calaveras this time. From there, I made my way past Calaveras Resevoir and then down into the valley above Sunol. I turned my lights on before making that descent, so it must have been near 8:00 PM.
After pulling into the Sunol rest stop, I had a hot dog. And let me tell you that 5-star restaurants have nothing on a hot dog at mile 182 of a long and hard bike ride. I then headed off down Niles Canyon Road for the most dangerous part of the ride. Niles Canyon is bad during the day. Heavy traffic and no shoulder are not a good combination for riding. Fortunately traffic wasn't too bad while I was on the road. But in no time, I was turning onto Palomares Canyon Road for yet another climb. But PCR is very mellow compared to the earlier climbs. So it was more about enjoying climbing on a road with absolutely no traffic at night. And the descent was even more fun!
From PCR, the route heads into Castro Valley and then back over the hills on Crow Canyon Road, before meeting Norris Canyon Road. Norris an easy climb. And yet is was nice knowing that it was also the last of the climbs. After 2.4 miles and some 500 feet of climbing, there it is painted on the road "DVD 0'". No more climbing!
From the top, it is a simple quick decent into San Ramon and over to the Marriot and the finish. But there is a couple more feet of climbing! The overpass over 680 goes up at least two feet! =)
The stats for the day: 206.1 miles with 18,600 feet of climbing; and two bee stings. My total time was 17:58. This was obviously not my fastest double, but it was pretty much what I was shooting for time-wise. I would have been at least twenty minutes faster without the tire troubles...
A big thank you to the volunteers at all of the rest stops. But special mentions to: Joan (of course!) for inspiring me for the rest of the ride, Tim (for the tire, which I did replace the next day), and the lady making the sandwiches at the lunch stop.
2008 Devil Mountain Double Results
Last year, I wanted to give the Devil Mountain Double a go. But bike problems early in the year forced me to give up on that dream for the year. After getting my new frame in June last year and earning my triple crown jersey (three doubles in one year) in 2007, I knew that it was time to go for the DMD. I certainly couldn't blame a lack of base mileage, having ridden nearly 10,700 miles in 2007; and being well on my way to besting that this year. The trick had to be in preparing mentally and ensuring that I was properly rested before the ride.
So some time in late March, I dropped my entry form in the mailbox. And as they say, "The rest is history". On April 5 I rode the Mount Hamilton Loop, which is most of the second half of the ride. I figured that if I knew the course, I'd have an easier time once the suffering started. But there was one major difference: the high temperature that day was 57, much cooler than the forecast high of 83 for the day of the ride.
On Friday night, I came home early and got my bike and other gear ready to go for the next morning. After cleaning my bike and setting every; I settled in to watch the Sharks game on TV. After watch the boys lose in overtime (fortunate it didn't go too late...), I went off to sleep with two alarms set (3:44 and 3:45).
Once my alarm jarred me from a deep sleep, I was up and running out the door. It took me a mere 35 minutes to drive up to the San Ramon Marriot for the 5:00 AM start. I checked in about 10 minutes before the start, and was ready to roll. Or at least as ready as I was ever going to be (how can you really be prepared for a ride of this magnitude?).
After a nice cruise over a few rolling hills on Crow Canyon Road, the first climb of the day was on. I've done Mount Diablo before; and it's really not that bad of a climb. Not easy, but doable; and it's especially nice right at dawn on a warm day. And I have to tell you that watching the sunrise from the side of any mountain is something to behold. But anyway... I took it really easy up to the the top, and after reaching the summit and checking in I was off to race down the north side of the mountain and through Walnut Creek and Clayton on the way to the next big climb, Morgan Territory Road. MTR is a great ascent with lots of shade, and would be really great if the road was in better shape. Fortunately the descent was in much better shape. And yes, 'The Plunge' is a fast descent. After screaming down into the Livermore Valley the route heads for some fast flat sections east and up over Altamont Pass Road. Altamont is a fairly easy climb, and before long I was heading down the other side.
After making my way over to the bottom of Patterson Pass, it was time for the actually suffering to begin. The temperature was beginning to really warm up, and there was no wind whatsoever. So the heat was starting to get to me, and I still had over 120 miles left to ride. Finally I got to the water stop near the top, and recouped a little bit of energy. And then I got to go over the steepest part of the climb! The first sighting of that part of the hill causes an "Oh my God!" type of reaction from a lot of people, and indeed it's written on the road... "Oh my *!"
But I made it over that; though I felt a little disoriented coming down the west side and back down in the outskirts of Livermore. But I made it down fine, and over to the beginning of Mines Road. I made it to the rest stop at the bottom of the hill and got some actual motivation for the rest of the ride. Seeing Joan there really did keep me going during the long hours to follow (hugs do wonders, don't they?). But I did also get some much needed real food. And that helped for the immediate need of climbing Mines Road and over to the lunch stop at Junction.
The climb on Mines Road really isn't bad, especially with a tailwind going south. At the water stop, I ran into my dad who was riding the Mount Hamilton Challenge (Mount Hamilton Loop with Calaveras to finish, and a total of 124 miles with 9000 feet of climbing) at the next water stop at mile marker 17 on Mines Road. We chatted for a few minutes. After leaving there, I cruised the last few miles into Junction and got some good food. A turkey and cheese sandwich can sure taste amazing! After refueling and resting for about 15 minutes, I was off on the road to Mount Hamilton.
Most of the road up to Hamilton is fairly mellow. There are a few climbs before you get to the meat of the climb, but none are all that bad. But once you get over that bridge and onto the real climb. I actually felt fairly good at this point, and yet I was passing a lot of people that were suffering mightily. Every few minutes, I'd see someone stopped on the side of the road, resting in the shade. People were puking, walking there bikes, and wobbling; and yet I was able to continue pedaling the whole time.
Still, it was a tremendous relief to get to the water stop about a mile from the summit. I got some orange juice and a popsicle (nice touch guys!), and refilled my bottles and was off to descend into San Jose. Now, I hate the descent off Mount Hamilton when I'm not tired: it's much worse when you have been on your bike for 11 hours! Still, I managed to maintain a decent speed. But then, coming into one corner, I hit my brakes and started to slide. Fortunately I was able to stop before I going off the road. But I took it very easy for the rest of that part of the descent. When I got to the top of the next rise in the road, I stopped to check out my tire. Sure enough; there was a huge section of tread missing, exposing the cotton casing underneath. I very gingerly continued my descent, just hoping to find a tire. Thankfully I made it into the Crothers Road rest stop without a blowout. Once I got in, I asked the guy (Tim) working the stop if he happened to have an extra tire around. He said that he did, and even changed the tire for me while I was refueling. After that (and calling my mom to tell her that the tire problem had been solved -I had called her to see if she might be able to bring a tire from home and meet me along my route) I was back on the road with a promise to bring the tire back to Tim the next day.
After finishing the descent of Hamilton, I made my way onto Piedmont and then over to Sierra Road, the final major hill of the day. Sierra Road is one of those hills that can kick your butt when you're fresh. So I was just hoping to survive the climb. I took note of the time I started up the hill, so I'd get an idea of how much 150 miles slows down my pace. And the answer was surprising. I suffered a bit, but the cooling temperatures (it was closing in on sunset by this point) helped me to ride well on this bump in the road. I made the top in 42 minutes; only 7 minutes slower than my best time on Sierra Road this year. Then I made my way over to the famous "Pet the Goat" rest stop. After petting the goat and refilling my water bottles, I was off for the fast descent down Felter Road. And then another steep climb, up Calaveras this time. From there, I made my way past Calaveras Resevoir and then down into the valley above Sunol. I turned my lights on before making that descent, so it must have been near 8:00 PM.
After pulling into the Sunol rest stop, I had a hot dog. And let me tell you that 5-star restaurants have nothing on a hot dog at mile 182 of a long and hard bike ride. I then headed off down Niles Canyon Road for the most dangerous part of the ride. Niles Canyon is bad during the day. Heavy traffic and no shoulder are not a good combination for riding. Fortunately traffic wasn't too bad while I was on the road. But in no time, I was turning onto Palomares Canyon Road for yet another climb. But PCR is very mellow compared to the earlier climbs. So it was more about enjoying climbing on a road with absolutely no traffic at night. And the descent was even more fun!
From PCR, the route heads into Castro Valley and then back over the hills on Crow Canyon Road, before meeting Norris Canyon Road. Norris an easy climb. And yet is was nice knowing that it was also the last of the climbs. After 2.4 miles and some 500 feet of climbing, there it is painted on the road "DVD 0'". No more climbing!
From the top, it is a simple quick decent into San Ramon and over to the Marriot and the finish. But there is a couple more feet of climbing! The overpass over 680 goes up at least two feet! =)
The stats for the day: 206.1 miles with 18,600 feet of climbing; and two bee stings. My total time was 17:58. This was obviously not my fastest double, but it was pretty much what I was shooting for time-wise. I would have been at least twenty minutes faster without the tire troubles...
A big thank you to the volunteers at all of the rest stops. But special mentions to: Joan (of course!) for inspiring me for the rest of the ride, Tim (for the tire, which I did replace the next day), and the lady making the sandwiches at the lunch stop.
2008 Devil Mountain Double Results
posted by Mike Deitchman at
8:06 PM
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