BRP Day 2

 


Welcome back! Sorry it's taken me a while to get back at it.

Well, after a PHENOMINAL dinner at Little Switzerland's restaurant at the end of day 1, (it wasn't weird, Bryce) we strolled back to our quarters to relax and prepare for the next day, which was our longest day. The walk back to the room showcased a beautiful night sky, with the nearly full moon illuminating the passing clouds and the large patio with a campfire that looked over the valley below. 

On tap for day two was 142 miles and around 14,000' of climbing. I felt pretty good after the previous day's 135 miles and was hoping for a good day 2, so I did things I don't normally do, like stretch, drink a couple liters of water, apply someone else's electrolyte salve, etc. Unfortunately, their breakfast didn't start until 7:30am and we weren't about to wait and start an hour later (Justin had an illegitimate fear of the dark and had no desire to still be out after sundown). Because of this, I was ill-prepared for morning food stuff and had to get two packs of apple cinnamon oatmeal from Les; I had some leftover salmon and loaded mashed potatoes I considered eating cold, but I didn't. I should have. Hindsight, 20/20.

I don't sleep well away from home so, after another sleepless night, we met Les outside and prepared to get going. But, before we left, I had to admire and grab a few pictures of the classic Porsche convention that filled the parking lots around us. 




The brisk 40 degree morning started with a short but fast and cold descent right out of the parking lot. About 1 minute in, the previously pictured Marlboro Porsche passed us in a tunnel, sounding like a big block beast pounding the ground; it was so bad ass!! 

After the descent, we had a nice rolling section, passing by a sprawling vineyard, with an mesmerizing view of the sun, rising across the valley, just over the adjacent peaks. That section slowly transitioned into our first climb.




We had a lot of climbing on day 2, but it was different than day 1. The first day had us in the high mountains, over 6,000 feet several times, with 2,000-3,000' climbs. The biggest climb on day 2 was just a little over 1,000 feet; most of the day was just continuous "rollers" but larger, probably 300-400' each. It would be deemed "roller hell with a headwind" closer to the end of the day. 

We skirted the edge of Grandfather Mountain State Park and caught just a glimpse of the gargantuan hotel at Sugar Mountain Ski Area, which is normally half empty. 


The next big attraction would be the Linn Cove Viaduct. I had never even heard of this structure, but a friend, Brian Hackathorne, had told me to take some pics of it the night before. I had no clue what it would look like, and had kind of forgotten about it until we came around a corner and BOOM, there it was, sprawling in front of, and underneath us. We were all smiles. 



Pictured: Justin's vintage 1992 cycling glasses


So, our planned lunch stop would be at mile 54 at the Blue Ridge Diner. I don't know where it went south, but I definitely started to feel like crap a ways before our stopping point. It was an early bonk, from a calorie deficit. When I start to fade, my neck and traps are the first to feel it. And it's daunting, knowing it's hard to come back from this in the middle of a long ride, with over 100 miles to go. 

We arrived at the rural country diner, where we definitely did NOT fit in with our spandex and clunking bike shoes, and sat down for some much needed fuel. I guess those two packs of oatmeal and several sugary snacks just didn't cut it after a big first day. Should have had the damn cold salmon and mashed potatoes at 6am. Hindsight, always 20/20. We finished up and rolled out, complete with pocket corndogs and Justin's stash of corn fritters. I was feeling better.


By this time, my phone was almost dead, for some reason; maybe it didn't actually charge over night, I don't know. But that means I didn't take any more pictures for the day.

 It didn't take long before my perpetual bonk returned and I just continued to feel bad for the remainder of the day. They just let me sit on the back and hang on, which was nice. Sorryyyyyy! We stopped at the Northwest Trading Post at mile 78 for a quick bathroom break, and for me to lay in the grass, forcing down a Pepsi and corndog. Only 64 more miles of suffering!

The rest of the miles are a little blurry, and I don't have pictures to help me recount the day. I do remember everyone else riding really well, all day. Unfortunately, Les got to experience his first real melt down, but only about 5-10 miles from the finish. He forced some food down, we stopped to pee, and we all made it to Lonesome Pine Cabins around 6:45pm. Kaleena and Cody's wife, Jamie, were already there, in their respective cabins, with cold beer and hot pizza waiting for us. THANK YOU SO MUCH LADIES! And, I'm still thankful that Cody decided not to partake in the "jacuzzi tub" that was situated right in the corner of the living room below the TV. Definitely didn't need to see that after a long day. 

So, after the way Les and I felt at the end, we were a bit terrified for another 110 miles on day 3. Stay tuned to see what happened...

Thanks for reading! For now, here's a tuckered out Lula.










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