Air Assault (June 25, 2012)

The past three days of riding has been extraordinary. Not in the sense of being nice and awe inspiring, but in the sense of being “ah damn” inspiring.

Friday’s ride of 54 miles from Lost Trails Resort to Jackson Hot Springs included two passes of 7014’ and 7264’. Actually the two passes were close together, so officially should be considered only one pass … but what the hell, it sounds more impressive to speak of two passes. The second pass, Chief Joseph Pass is also the Continental Divide. It should be noted that the effort of climbing so demolished me that I did not see the very large “Continental Divide” sign. The downhill to Wisdom (this seems to be contradictory to the oft characterized “climbing a mountain to reach the guru who will share some wisdom” cartoon) … anyway, the downhill to Wisdom, MT was quite beautiful and absolutely a rider’s delight. With only 19 miles to go, it seemed as though the day was pretty much done and pretty much enjoyable. Not so.

The 19 miles from Wisdom to Jackson Hot Springs rides thru an exceptionally flat and exceptionally wet area … wet as in “the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes” wet. You think you can deal with these pests until you can’t. Kim and I tried various techniques including swatting, spraying, long sleeves and pants, etc. … pretty much to no avail. To worsen the situation, Kim (who has been having to deal with flat tires for much of the past week), once again had to deal with the rear-tire rim being at pavement level. The thought of attempting to replace the tube did not appeal to her, so she employed the “pump-and-ride” technique. Mosquitoes … air assault #1.

We all camped at the Jackson Hot Springs Resort, where Roger, Frank and Kim finally determined that the problem with Kim’s rear tire (repeated flats) was that the rim tape was defective. Watching them all wrestle with the rim, tape, tubes and tire prompted me to ask (being the wise-ass that I am), “How many cyclists does it take to change a light bulb?” Kim responded, “If it is my light bulb, more than one.” Or something like that. Frank and Roger’s looks at me conveyed another response. Kim commented that she is very grateful for the many bike-maintenance skills she is learning from Frank and Roger … these guys know their stuff. Me … I guess my stuff most of the time.

Air assault #2 came around 9:00 PM that evening … as we all headed into our respective tents for a quiet night of sleeping, the country western band fired up their amps.

The next day’s ride to Dillon (52 miles) included two passes of 7400’ and 6760’. These passes would be difficult enough, but 20 mph winds (I might be exaggerating here) made the climbs extremely difficult. For most of the first climb the wind was directly into our faces, the second pass had the wind coming from the south. While the head wind makes riding difficult, the side wind makes the riding scary. Continual buffeting from the side pushes you sideways when you least expect the push, or doesn’t push you when you expect it (air assault #3). Reaching Dillon was a great relief. Camped at the KOA and was serenaded by the announcer of the nearby Senior Rodeo.

Day three (49 miles to Alder, MT) did not include any passes, but the wind did not give us a pass. The initial 28 miles to Twin Bridges was easy … strong tailwind out of the south; the final 21 miles to Alder were very difficult. Even though this area is extremely flat, I could only manage about 7 mph … very strong headwind indeed. When we reached Alder, Frank, Kim and I stood outside a store. Kim espied a motel across the street, checked it out, and returned with the news that rooms were available, the rooms were very nice, and the rooms were only $50. It did not take me long to consider this option versus camping in the wind at the local KOA … decision made instantly. Comfort is good.

So the last few days have been good (great riding group, and beautiful scenic country) but difficult due to the air assaults … and today‘s ride looks to be equally windy. Oh joy!!

But all-in-all, ‘tis a good way to spend the day/summer.