NER Oh, Canada 400K

[cyclotou...@yahoo.com]

First 400K completed! Thanks everyone for your advice. The ride went really well and I finished in 21 hours. Not exactly blazing fast, but I feel great about it. The route through Vermont was really beautiful and challenging. My nutrition, hydration, and gear selection worked well. I did forget to bring chain lube and my chain got really dry after a morning downpour and sunny afternoon. A quick stop at the True Value for some 3 in 1 oil kept the chain quiet for the rest of the day. I was alone for the majority of the ride after I let the zippy group I started with go on their way (wise decision) without me. I kept leapfrogging a group of 4 guys on gravel bikes, but then I joined forces with them in the evening when they had slowed their riding pace and I had a second wind. It was nice to have company riding after dark. The last 14 miles of the ride included a long, probably 8 mile climb which really felt unkind at the time! The long descent to the finish was nice I will admit! I felt really comfortable on my wonderful Seven Redsky, although I had pain in my right knee for a couple of hours during the hilliest section. I had switched from road pedals to Speedplay frogs a week before the ride which made my feet happy, but I think it threw my saddle height off a bit. After lowering my saddle a little, the pain subsided. I had a decent sleep in my motel room after the ride before driving back to Maine. I still needed to take a catnap in a rest area once! The experience was quite the adventure--quite different from the 200k and 300k rides that I've done.

David