My October of activity continued with the Hilly Hundred Cycling Weekend in Ellettsville, IN a couple weeks ago. It is a laid back cycling tour through south central Indiana, near Bloomington. About 5000 cyclists of all ability levels come and take on the course with its varied, rolling-hill terrain for a couple days, riding a little over 100 miles (and 8000+ ft elevation gain) total. I have wanted to do a lower intensity, “enjoy the scenery” type of fall tour for some time now and finally got a chance thanks to my sister and her fiancée having previous experience with this event (and also participating this year). Here’s how the weekend unfolded…
Friday evening, the wife and I packed up and made our way to Ellettsville. The drive from Cincy took us longer than anticipated since much of the trip is on back roads. We also had not anticipated the driving time to and from our hotel to race registration and back, which added almost an additional hour. Either way, we made it to registration at the local high school and found the school grounds had been invaded by an army of tents and RV’s. Apparently a large percentage of participants come for a weekend long campout as well…an idea that I think would be appealing when participating in this event in the future. Registration itself was pretty straightforward and included a fun welcome video (featuring Peewee Herman). Susan grabbed her volunteer information as well since she would be working an aid station on Saturday morning, then we made our way back to to find my sister and company and eat a late dinner before relaxing at the hotel for the night.
Saturday began early, sometime around 5:30am with breakfast at the hotel and driving to the high school (also the start and finish for both Saturday and Sunday rides) to ensure Susan arrived in time to man her aid station. I took the extra morning time to clean my bike a bit and grab some coffee to get myself warm since the dawn temperature was in the mid-30s. Once we had collected our group of riders, we took off on day 1’s voyage in the 7:00 hour. With this event, there is not a set start time…you just take off whenever within a range of morning hours. This works pretty well with the incredible amount of bikes on the road.
Ride 1 – 57.5 miles – 5200 ft ascent
A caravan of cyclists exited Ellettsville with us, so the pace was exceedingly slow at the start as we weaved through traffic to find some room to maneuver. A short, but very steep climb came right out of the gate which didn’t help the traffic situation since some bikers were walking their gear up the hill and others were resting waiting for friends to catch up at the top. Our group bypassed this hill and found the roads more open on the other side. About ½ ways between the start and our first rest stop (only about 15 miles in) I pulled ahead of our group to attempt to get my heart rate up some and loosen my legs up. This was mostly an effort to warm my body up, and it seemed to work pretty well. I pulled into the first aid station a couple minutes ahead of the rest of our party and went to search for the wife. I found her incredibly busy at the food tent slicing muffins and bananas. It was amazing the activity of participants loading up on the offerings of snacks after only 14 miles of riding. The amount and selection of food was pretty astounding including donuts (the pumpkin was popular), muffins, granola bars, fruit, bagels and peanut butter, etc. The placement of rest stops worked well for our group throughout the weekend since we could ride at our separate paces and regroup periodically to ensure we were all relatively near one another.
At Rest Stop 1
Once regrouped and successfully sated, we moved along toward the lunch stop. That’s right, more food only 14 miles ahead. This section was pretty flat compared to what was ahead, but included some rough pavement so the ride was taxing at times. Through this segment of the ride the temperatures came up and it was time to strip the over-layers I left with in the morning. By the time we reach the lunch stop, it was comfortably warm and sunny. Lunch included another smorgasbord of food including fried chicken, pasta salads, veggies, cookies and ice cream treats. I was amazed I was able to resist over-filling myself, but the thought of riding bikes on a full stomach made many of the options less appealing.
Either way, by late morning we left for the second half of the day’s ride. In the first couple miles after the lunch stop we passed a long elevated train bridge across the fields to the left. A lot of riders stopped for a photo op as it was quite picturesque. Unfortunately my camera batteries died within 15 minutes of starting the day’s ride, so I just had to take a mental snapshot as I rode by. The next section of road was marked by a number of rollers, but no major climbs. However, the roads in this section were some of the sketchiest we would encounter through the weekend. Considering the variation in rider handling skills and the number of cyclists on the road, I thought this section of the route in particular was a questionable decision by the race organizers. I consider myself a competent bike handler, but was white knuckled on a couple of the descents with blind corners and hard to spot pot holes and gravel. Another rider nearly crashed just behind me when he launched a water bottle on a pot-holed descent and the projectile got lodged under his rear-tire. Amazingly he recovered and we all shared some nervous laughter recounting the experience, but obviously it could have been a potential disastrous situation. A secondary effect of the rough roads was premature discomfort in the saddle. As we neared the last rest stop of the day I was ready for a break to stretch out. I noticed a cyclist pass me with a kit that reminded me of my high school, so I let him pace me to the next stop where I could ask him about it. Turns out, it’s the official racing kit of the Trinity High School cycling club team that apparently was started a couple years after I graduated. I talked with my new acquaintance and admired his kit while waiting to regroup at the last station. With only about 12 miles remaining in the day, I bypassed the food and just reloaded on water before leaving for the final miles of the day.
The last stretch into town was the toughest of the day. The road conditions improved, but the rolling terrain seemed to compress into a constant series of ups and downs. Also complicating the final stretch was the increase in traffic near and in Ellettsville. None of the roads were closed to traffic, which wasn’t really an issue on the isolated country roads. However, in the city even though traffic was light by most standards, every car on the road with the multitude of bikers made navigation difficult. Midway through this stretch I was ready to be done with the Saturday ride, so I pushed a little harder and just knocked out the remaining miles. I reached the finish area and just lay on the ground at the high school until everyone else arrived. Once all were collected I tracked down the wife who was exhausted from her volunteering experience (but said it was a lot of fun interacting with the riders, locals, and listening to the rest stop band belt out jazz tunes) and napping in the car.
After the ride, it was back to the hotel for cleanup, college football, and naps before heading into nearby Bloomington for dinner. Being a college town, Bloomington offered a good selection of “pub grub” which is exactly what we were craving after the day’s exertion. It was at dinner we all realized that even though we weren’t pushing the paces too hard, the effort of the day had taken a toll on us…we were tired. The remainder of the evening was spent at the hotel with beer and board games before an early bedtime. The Sunday route awaited us early the next morning.
With no volunteering to hurry down for, Sunday began slightly later than Saturday and the extra sleep was appreciated. Also, the morning weather was warmer so less layering was required. The temperatures by the end of the ride Sunday would actually be in the mid 70’s. Since we’d also be driving home at the end of the ride today, we started just after dawn.
Ride 2 – 49 miles – 3950 ft ascent
Sunday’s route left town in the opposite direction and is apparently the same route every year. It contained most of the notable hills and sites of the weekend. That being said, the first 9 miles to the rest stop are kind of slow and unremarkable. There was a nice stretch in a valley between fields of crops surrounded by rolling hills that was a pleasant way to warm up the legs while taking in some nice scenery. It was actually more ideal to start with a segment that included less major hills at the start of the day to get some miles knocked out while making sure everything was in order. Since we were somewhat more concerned about making good time, we only stopped long enough for a quick stretch before leaving rest stop 1 and heading toward the lunch stop.
Heading Out of Town to Start Day 2
The second segment of the Sunday route was the highlight for me. Initially you cruise through some farm roads before making way into a more heavily wooded area. Much of this section is a state forest, explaining all the trees. Before long, you officially enter a state park area where the roads are in perfect, smooth condition. After a couple miles enjoying the roads and forest, you will hit one of the signature climbs of the Hilly, Bean Blossom Hill. It’s the longest total climbing section of the whole route. The base of the hill is steep and gets you cranking and worn out right away. After only about a quarter mile or so of hammering the steep segment, Bean Blossom relents into a false flat before essentially stair-stepping for the next 1.5 miles or so. The reward at the top is even smoother roads and a long gentle descent out the other side of the park, complete with some openings in the tree line to some spectacular forest views from above. I was in my zone through here and probably experiencing “cyclers high”. The weather had warmed up a good deal and I would have been uncomfortable with my windbreaker, but the shade kept the park nice and cool. As you exit the park proper, you pick up the descending pace, and basically just coast right in at a high speed to the lunch stop.
A Taste of the Local Scenery
With the wife off-duty for Sunday, she made her way around with camera in tow and met us for lunch. She was also doing a bit of artsy photography with my sister and her fiancée’s bikes for their upcoming wedding, so was on her photography game. As the rest of the group arrived we grabbed food (same offerings at all the stops as the prior day) and lounged for a while on the grass, baking in the fall sunshine. Pressed by our tentative schedule, we didn’t picnic for too long before heading onward. The Mt Tabor climb stood between us and the next rest stop and I was eager to see what the deal was. Over the past couple days since arriving in Ellettsville; I’d heard many participants allude to it in anticipation or dread.
Right after leaving the lunch venue, there were a couple climbs that were no joke, there to punish those who overindulged on cookies and ice cream. After overcoming those climbs in the initial miles, things flattened out. However, the pace didn’t rise since the road conditions deteriorated some as we cruised through open farm fields with grazing livestock. Also, now that we were in open air and atop a hill I was able to notice how windy it had become. For the most part there weren’t crazy gusts, but just a steady strong breeze. At this point, I had enough energy to just push through it when it was working against me. Before long, we got shielded by trees as we descended into the valley just before Tabor. Now, Mt Tabor isn’t a mountain at all as there are none in the area…it’s not even really a very tall hill. The segment of road that climbs Tabor is less than a quarter mile long. What makes Tabor the epic climb of the event is that it takes the quickest way possible up the hill, making it consistently, impressively steep. The average grade for .2 miles is 20.2%. Many participants were unable to even attempt climbing that grade and instead opted to walk it from the beginning. Further complicating the Mt Tabor climb is the traffic that gets built up there…people walking…people passing…automobile traffic. At any moment the person struggling in front of you could tumble causing a massive slow speed pile-up. Then, if that’s not enough, there is an intersection at the top and the grading increases to greater than 23% at the very end to accommodate the incoming road. If out riding solo, I don’t think I would have too much trouble with it, but I nearly did not make it after getting stuck behind someone moving much slower than me due to getting pinned to the right by a truck coming down the hill. Luckily, before I came to a complete stop, the truck passed and I was able to swing into open space and make it to the top.
Participants Struggle Up Tabor (I’m not longer one of them at this point)
Many people congregate at the apex of Mt Tabor to celebrate their accomplishment, but I decided to move along since the final rest stop was only a couple miles ahead on downhill roads. Unfortunately I missed Susan who visited Tabor to take in the suffering with her camera lens and the rest of our party met her at the top for a break. Before the last rest stop in a small town there is a very fun winding descent into the town center. It had some technical turns, so had some hay bales setup. This gave the arrival into the last rest stop a very European cycling race feel…very cool.
The last rest stop was also a highlight since it had a great back-country band playing very folksy tunes like “Home-grown Tomatoes” and including banjo and spoon players. Everyone regrouped one last time and enjoyed the music before moving onward. My sister and I went ahead since we were getting warm and ready to complete the ride. The last miles had one notable climb to the Ellettsville town water tower, but was more notable for the wind. A head and cross wind made it a slow grind for 2/3’s of the last segment. My sister and I just settled into a cadence and talked as we worked through the wind. No reason to overdo it now. After climbing to the water tower, though the descent put us in line with the wind and the tailwind propelled me home to the finish. The Hilly Hundred 2011 was complete!
Looking back, the event was a blast. I would highly recommend it, or other fall bike tours like it. It’s a much different atmosphere from the road running and triathlon scene with a different crowd. The bike tour crowd is a laid back bunch, eating a lot, enjoying the scenery, talking it up with anyone and everyone. Also, at least in the case of Hilly, they’ve found a way to coexist with the locals despite overcrowding the roads. Many locals allow their yards and towns to be hosting sites for rest stops and are out enjoying the music and interacting with the riders. If I return in the future, the only change I would make is look closer into camping at the high school. It would have been nice to be closer to the starting line and I think camping (assuming good weather) would add another element of fun to the event.
As I continue to clear up the backlog of posts I need to get out, my next task is to get a race report for the St Louis Marathon written up and on the blog in the next couple days…before it gets overshadowed by the upcoming vacation!
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