Chilly Hilly With A Toe Jam Kicker

Shawn, Elisa, Greg - Near Battlepoint Park

***Warning, intrepid cyclists only need apply. ***

Oh, yeah, that's us.

 Welcome home Daddy-O! My dad just rolled into town fresh from the dry desert heat of Phoenix, Arizona, so we decided to reaquaint him with the joys of cycling in Kitsap County, Washington. We (us year round Washingtonians) thought it was a warm day. It had to be in the upper 60's, for sure, maybe even the low 70's, and the sun was gracing us with it's presence. Shawn, Elisa and I all whipped our jackets and/or sleeves off after the first few hills on the approach to Battlepoint Park on Bainbridge Island. He kept his thermal underlayer on. It is a true testament to how well the body adapts to different climates.

  

A "woo" worthy climb. One of many.

Shawn, Michelle, Greg, Elisa with Illahee Beach State Park across the water behind us.

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard

Just to add a little fun and extra challenge into our adventure, Shawn led us through Fort Ward State Park, and out along the water on the south side of the island. It seems the park is not currently being maintained, but it is still suitable for biking. Shortly thereafter, as we were strolling along the water just admiring the view, we took a sharp left and, gulp!, craned our heads upwards as we scrambled to get into a manageable gear for our attempt up Toe Jam Hill-site of the annual Toe Jam Half Marathon.

It was a close call, and we certainly were wishing for mountain bike gears, but we made it up the steepest section, and after that, although we were still climbing, it almost felt like we were heading downhill, such was the relief we felt. There were still many more hills to conquer and downhills to freewheel. My Cateye clocked my top speed at 39.8 mph. Yahooooo! Good thing I didn't hit a pothole-but what fun.

Welcome Home Dad!!! -Michelle

Bainbridge Ferry with Seattle Skyline

About three hours into our ride, my Dad (a.k.a. Greg) was shaking his head at our distance covered. We had pulled off along the east side of the island, along a beach road with a stunning view of Seattle across the Salish Sea, to gobble down whatever food or gels we had left at that point. We were 40 miles into our ride. "I'm usually at home and relaxing in the pool by now," he quipped. "Welcome back," laughed Elisa. "No kidding," he replied with a wry grin. The hills really do slow you down. Fact.

We continued on the roller coaster route, making our way back to the Agate Pass Bridge, which leads into Suquamish and onto Poulsbo. We will all be riding together in the upcoming Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic, otherwise known as the STP, next month. This ride was a great confidence booster for all of us. I think we are all really looking foward to our upcoming 200+ mile jaunt from the Emerald City to the Rose City.

55 miles, 4 hours: A challenging social ride. :)

Happy riding folks!

-Michelle

Chilly Hilly 2010

Sunday, February 28, 2010

We awoke to the sun illuminating the snowy peaks of the Olympic Mountains. I've had the Chilly Hilly penciled onto my calendar for four years now; looks like I picked a banner year to actually participate in the event. My husband, Shawn, was getting on his bike for the first time in a couple of months, but he gamely rose early, as he always does, made coffee for us both and loaded the bikes onto our van. I'm not sure he knows this, but above actions are a direct pipeline to my heart.

The ride, which is put on every year by the Cascade Bicycle Club, starts in Winslow for those of us on the west side of the water. For those to the east, the ride starts at the Seattle Ferry terminal, with a ferry ride (a gorgeous one this year) across. I missed seeing the cyclists roll off the ferry, but have heard it is awesome to watch. Now, why would I pay money to ride a course that I can travel any day I want, for free? If you've ever done an organized ride, you know the answer. It feels great to be riding along with thousands of other cycling enthusiasts! Cars can barely muscle their way through as cyclists claim the road on this truly scenic 33 mile loop along the rolling hills of Bainbridge Island. And the islanders love it. Bainbridge Island is very bicycle friendly. Signs are posted all over the island claiming, "Bainbridge Shares the Road", with a picture of a cyclist and an equestrian below it.

My husband and I are both signed up to ride the STP (Seattle to Portland bike ride) this year and this event was great training for that. Riding in a crowd with some car traffic mixed in can take some getting used to, as well as the added challenge of knowing which gear to be in on the quickly changing gradients of the course. I confess to letting out a couple of loud whoops on the uphills. I just love hills, what can I say? After letting loose a loud "Wooooohoooo!" on the steep hill approaching Battle Point Park, the guy I was passing looked at me sideways, with a half smile, and panted, "Yeah, fun stuff." I'd like to think I cheered him to the top and that he didn't bail and walk. I heard some responding whoops behind me, but I didn't look back, as my heart was hammering away and I myself was quite focused on getting to the top while avoiding contact with the numerous bicyclists about me.

Battle Point Park is about half way through the ride and serves as a rest stop for participants, with food booths, vendors and the ever important port-o-potties. We stopped briefly and chatted a bit with a gal at the REI booth there, who offered us some merchandise coupons and kindly took our photo.

There is a chili feed at the finish of the ride, but we opted to get back home to our kids. We both enjoyed our "cycling date" though, and I got the feeling our kids were happy about it too. We celebrated our accomplishment by plopping on the couch to watch the Olympic Gold Medal match between the U.S. men's hockey team and Canada, which was a very exciting overtime game in which Canada won 3-2 and about which all Canadians will likely remember exactly where they were and what they were doing on that particular day for years to come. I'm pretty sure it's going to stick in my mind as well.

-Michelle