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Crush the Commonwealth 2010

Getting an early start on dates due to lots of interest.


Thinking April 30 or May 7.


I was considering April 23 too, but I'm going to be returning from a trip the previous weekend, and don't want to make it two weekends in a row.


Some other events that are around the same time:


DC Rando's 300 May 24


Calvin's Challenge May 1st


This is a West to East year.


5th annual.


Thoughts, comments?


eric
2009-12-12 01:48:22

AS someone mentioned, last year there was a heck of tail wind. This year is in the other direction? Good luck.


Mick


PS yer all crazy.


mick
2009-12-13 00:42:01

What is this?


joeframbach
2009-12-14 14:46:06

See da blawg for the skinny.


Couple of ride reports from last year: mine, DHD's.


Hellacious good fun.


reddan
2009-12-14 15:01:45

My legs hurt now, just from reading that.

I've only finished one century before, and I had trouble walking after that. I think I'll pass on the CtC.


joeframbach
2009-12-14 15:20:38

The blog gets worse very year, and still needs to be updated to get the directions set, it still has the west to east route from last year.


The less work I put into this, the greater the number of people show up.


eric
2009-12-14 15:20:49

joeframbach: You'd be surprised how easy it is to go long distances...it's more a matter of pacing yourself and keeping up with your food and water ("Eat before you're hungry, drink before you're thirsty") than anything else. A certain disdain for common sense and accepted wisdom helps, too, of course.


Eric: Challenge rides just seem to take on a life of their own...if ya really want to weed out the field, put on the CTC EXTREME there-and-back version you were threatening...


reddan
2009-12-14 16:02:00

I'd still like to do that, but that might be a better ride to end the season rather than start. I'd hate to destroy my knees in May.


eric
2009-12-14 16:11:31

Or just move the route to the Turnpike. That'll keep the posers away.


alankhg
2009-12-14 16:12:03

I think people are getting the wrong impression. I'm glad more people are showing up, just surprised how little work it is taking to keep this ride going, and getting bigger each year.


eric
2009-12-14 17:19:21

Sounds kinda analogous to the Dirty Dozen, really. I wouldn't be surprised to see 50+ people doing CTC in a few years time.


The awesome thing about audacious rides like this is that it encourages people to try things they may not have otherwise thought possible.


The other awesome thing is that, if it takes little work, there's less chance of burning out the organizer. :)


reddan
2009-12-14 17:24:33

Perhaps I'll join the 50+ riders next year. Right now I can't foresee myself doing this this year.


Another problem is that the Pittsburgh Marathon is May 2nd. For a full week after a marathon, I can't even look at my bike without throwing up.


joeframbach
2009-12-14 18:11:06

It's interesting to compare CTC with something like TransIowa, which was, I assume, an influence on the event (along with something like the Raid Californie-Oregon). From what I've read, TI is a mammoth undertaking (with a limited number of participants), and because it's a race, people get pissed.


Good on you, Eric, for creating and sustaining a fun-loving event instead of Just Another Race.


bjanaszek
2009-12-14 23:25:54

I hope I can get the time off work to do this. I never really paid much attention to this when it has popped up on the boards before, but it sounds awesome.


ndromb
2009-12-15 16:40:15

Honestly the biggest influence, rules-wise is the Great Divide Race. Much smaller in scope of course, but GDR's concepts of no prizes and racer responsibility for route finding are key to making this work.


Also PennDot really is to thank here too. Without the PA bike routes this wouldn't happen. I'm not down with marking a course on public roadways, or making my own map. I have neither the time, compulsion or willingness to open myself up to the legal liability of doing an event like this. Next thing you know I need insurance, so I have to charge people, so I have to register them, then prizes will be next and the whiners will show up.


Which leads me to thinking about the absolute lack of whining from participants (save for the first year). It gives me a warm fuzzy feeling.


eric
2009-12-15 20:10:48

Which leads me to thinking about the absolute lack of whining from participants


It's hard to whine when you're having _that_ much fun. Or in _that_ much pain, whichever.


reddan
2009-12-15 20:23:17

did any of the first year complainers ever come back?


erok
2009-12-16 18:16:02

Nope. Got a few whiny posts on the old blog, and I think I might have poked at them a bit the next year on a Philly forum, but no one showed. Other than Chris (lockringnotincluded.blogspot.com) and Max, it's been pretty much all Western PA riders.


Last year could have been different, I have no clue where a lot of the people were from. I think there were 2 dudes from Maryland?


Little fact I just thought of, only 2 riders have finished all four years.


eric
2009-12-16 18:30:56

I think Ben was from Baltimore or DC or something like that. There were a couple of guys in from Chicago...both Jeremys?


So what was the first-year whining about, anyway, for those of us who came late to the party?


reddan
2009-12-16 18:47:23

Yeah, there was some guy who stayed at my house for a night or two before last year's CTC who was from Baltimore I think. Worked at Proteus bike shop, cool dude. Friend of a friend who was psyched on things and needed crash space prior to the event. I saw him at Interbike this year but didn't get to chat... by the time I remembered why his face was familiar I was pulled somewhere else.


bradq
2009-12-16 19:31:00

Short version, not worth an effort for a long version.


Group of 4 dudes from Philly showed up, asked at the start if they could pick their own route. I explained the rules to them, they went off course at first opportunity. Rode route 30 the entire way. Showed up at the after party, got mad when I declared Nick the winner. Got on Nick's case, challenged him to ride their route, etc. Also, much evidence of car support.


That's about it.


eric
2009-12-16 19:32:48

Thanks for the info Brad. Sometimes I feel a little bad for not making an effort to figure out who people are. But often the first time I meet them it is 5am in the morning, and know one, including me knows what is going on. It probably doesn't help that I am always late to the start.


eric
2009-12-16 19:39:01

i'm voting for may 7th because, i believe, that's when Rob Lochner can make it. look out.


thelivingted
2009-12-16 20:14:03

Brad, the proteus guy is Ben..me and him match sprinted from lancaster all the way to the bell and then i put him up at my sister's. Know his e mail??


thelivingted
2009-12-16 20:15:34

i little debbie's sponsoring this yet? I'll do it that year.


jk. maybe ill do it one year. but uh, how about i just offer someone a place to crash.


caitlin
2009-12-16 20:55:56

its possible i will do this this year, more possible than any other year


imakwik1
2009-12-16 22:11:11

there should be a "prize," ie. special pat on the back, for the most times riding this


erok
2009-12-17 00:53:16

i think this ride should be renamed the "Tour de Sheetz".


thelivingted
2009-12-17 14:52:18

The Mon Valley Century was also pretty Sheetz-laden. It was the same Sheetz 3 times, but it was glorious every time.


joeframbach
2009-12-17 15:01:15

Sheetz, Rutters, and Wawa...the ultracyclist havens of choice.


I think Sheetz has the best made-to-order food, but Rutters has always had the edge for friendly employees willing to overlook cyclists napping in the corner by the coffee pot, IME.


reddan
2009-12-17 15:22:37

I may follow through with my plan to buy a "I Heart Sheetz" T-shirt for the winner.


eric
2009-12-17 15:48:46

Wow! Eric don't you think the field will started getting crowded if you start giving out such envy-inducing prizes?


mick
2009-12-17 15:55:55

Crush the MTO 2010


erok
2009-12-17 16:30:29

Please sign this petition if you love Crush the Commonwealth!


http://www.freemybeer.com/


Also, not sure which one is better:





eric
2009-12-17 17:13:09

they both have their merits. the first one because if you don't know what it is it looks like you live shitz. the second because of the pennsylvania layer cake


erok
2009-12-17 20:17:52

i vote for may 7th. nobody wants to do this in the cold and rain...honestly, now.


also, relative to the scope of the event - I heard some group of riders is planning team kits this year (warm up suits, jerseys, caps, the whole bit)...


I used to live near Stan Sheetz in Altoona; I could always attempt to ping him for some schwag. wp


willie-p
2009-12-18 14:24:24

beer at every sheetz? my pace would dramaticaly slow.


the first shirt is good. just don't eat the hummus in somerset though or you will get the shitz. and the pukes.


fxdwhl
2009-12-18 14:48:02

my "dinner" at the end of CtC 09 after day 1 was a 12 inch MTO (roat beef, extra mayo with spicy pepper rings) and a pint "chug" of Galliker's famous iced tea. (sorry: breezewood location)


i had breakfast the following morning around 830am at the Sheetz in Chambersburg (my first ever shmuffin - egg and cheese x2).


after that - I was in Turkey Hill and WaWa land the rest of the way.


willie-p
2009-12-18 17:00:09

Illie P I used to live near Stan Sheetz in Altoona; I could always attempt to ping him for some schwag.


Scary thought:

The Official Sheetz FoOt-LoNg Crush the Commonwealth Race and Menagerie.


mick
2009-12-18 18:03:31

All Sheetz all the time for me. I blame my serious stomach issues on not having one in the first hundred miles. That or maybe my body doesn't like peanut butter and nutella sandwiches as much as I thought. I think a little Sheetz action would have fixed me right up.


eric
2009-12-18 18:16:22

Wow... Already planning this one. I hope to god I don't get stuck at some crummy job or with a bad back this year. That is the funnest ride there is all year around here!


adam
2009-12-20 04:28:30

ok, i know it wasn't an option for start date, but i'm really voting for april twenty fourth. i'm going out to see screeching weasel the night before, so this works out perfectly.


does anyone else find themselves in a similar situation?


vegbreath
2009-12-21 05:55:04

The later the better in my opinion LOL... Nobody likes riding in rain and then suffering from borderline hypothermia while trying to sleep a few hours!


adam
2009-12-25 20:11:58

Time to get stupid.


May 7th.


eric
2010-02-05 20:33:11

I regret to inform that I will be unable to attend this year's CTC as I will now be out frolicking around europe in May. Bummer.


thelivingted
2010-02-06 16:13:11

The other Ted is moving to Boston, so looks like the King Ted challenge will have to wait.


eric
2010-02-06 16:31:21

I think I'm in this year. No fixed gear this time though. Probably.


dmg
2010-02-06 18:26:16

Dan, I think your ride to somerset, or however far you made it deserves mention as one of the craziest fixed-gear tricks ever pulled.


thelivingted
2010-02-07 16:09:25

Somerset, yeah. I still maintain that I would have been as okay as anyone else had I not been drenched and freezing for 12 hours straight. Or if would have had fenders. Or if would have not been wearing a messenger bag. Oh well, live and learn.


dmg
2010-02-10 21:57:02

Do a lot of people ride this race without fenders? I would think they would be a must have given the distance and potential for any type of weather conditions that time of year.


rsprake
2010-02-10 22:03:04

Some do, some don't. I always have, might not this year.


eric
2010-02-11 06:38:58

I made a Facebook page for this last night. I feel a little ashamed.


eric
2010-03-19 14:58:44

Thinking about moving the start date up to May 14th, I've got a serious scheduling conflict.


Yeah or Nay?


Or don't give a hoot?


eric
2010-03-24 19:00:05

May 14th would be better in some senses and worse in others.


dmg
2010-03-25 01:07:46

as someone who is in no way committed to this i vote for the 14th


imakwik1
2010-03-25 04:32:45

I'm preferring the 7th, but I can work with the 14th.


reddan
2010-03-25 12:12:05

May 7th it is. The ride goes on, with or without me!


eric
2010-03-29 13:48:27

Whoo! No one else planning on heading to Philly on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning, are they (I'm planning on visiting family before the ride)? Will be riding the 2am greyhound if not...


dmg
2010-03-31 23:14:18

Hey, yinz. I'm working out my travel arrangements...planning to head out Thursday late AM. Took an idle look at U-haul, and found that a 10' truck would be less than $200 to rent for transit from hither to yon.


That's not cheap, but, well, you could fit a lot of bikes in a 10' truck. Anyone interested in chipping in a few bucks for bike hauling, PM or email dan.blumenfeld at gmail.


reddan
2010-04-05 18:15:08

Can anyone help me find a place to crash Thursday night? My sis lives in Harrisburg so I can get dropped off but I can't ask her to get up at midnight to drive me over on a work day.


Thanks,


Adam


that-guy
2010-04-18 03:14:47

I'm officially out for this year. Bummer.


I may make it to the start, shoot a few pictures and head back west, we'll see. Mostly debating if I can trust my 22 year old motorcycle to make the trip. I won't do it if I have to drive a car by myself.


eric
2010-04-20 19:19:12

(Bumping)

U-haul is reserved. Seats are spoken for, but I'm sure I can fit in a spare bike or 5, if that would ease anyone's travel arrangements. Current plan is to leave the 'Burgh late AM and drop off the U-haul in Manayunk around 6 PM on Thursday.


reddan
2010-04-23 11:58:45

hey, i just took amtrak into philly. i slapped together a few cardboard boxes and shoved my completely dismantled bike in. its about 4 ft X 2 ft and i had no problems with transporting it on the train with me! i put it in the overhead carrying thing. not one person raised any issues about it! except when i tried to buy coffee in my socks, the dude wouldn't sell me coffee unless i had shoes on.


nick
2010-05-05 19:14:18

Good to know Nick.


I updated the blog about the bridge closure in McKeesport, but the ped/bike bridge is open.


If anyone riding this wants to call, email or text me, I plan to update the blog while the riders are riding.


ericmckeegan ---at---- gmail


412.980.0662


http://ctcpa.blogspot.com/


eric
2010-05-05 19:47:14

I'm surprised there hasn't been more activity in here since this is coming up so quickly. Any idea of how many people will be at the start?


What are first-night goals looking like? I'm going to try to make it to Cowan's Gap Park before dark. If that fails, there's a really rural ballfield/picnic pavilion/church maybe 20 miles west of York that works for stealth camping. For night two I'd like to get to one of those primitive campsites along the GAP before needing sleep. I'd like to make it to Point Park sometime Sunday morning.


wsh6232
2010-05-05 20:18:49

you're stopping to sleep??? :-)


dmtroyer
2010-05-05 20:25:29

As usual it will be a surprise to all how many people show. Although there was a lot of early buzz about the ride, things have cooled considerably leading me to expect a small turn-out this year.


eric
2010-05-05 21:28:24

First night, I'd like to hit Bedford before sleeping...Breezewood would be okay too, and Somerset would be nice, but is pretty unlikely.


Weather looks decent for Friday, but cold and rainy for Saturday.


reddan
2010-05-05 22:58:05

2 years ago Max and I rode to Rockwood which is something like mile 300 without stopping for more than a hour. It was pretty brutal. It took us 32 hours. Things got worse after that.


eric
2010-05-05 23:05:12

Chris (fxdwhl) reports 13 starters left the Liberty Bell at 5:10.


eric
2010-05-07 12:28:11

This sounds like fun :) Good luck!


bikeygirl
2010-05-07 14:19:40

Anyone want to ride out on the GAP tomorrow to cheer on those crazed maniacs on bikes?


mick
2010-05-07 16:41:09

Update from Darren about 30 miles after the start:


I headed down the Schuylkill trail to meet the riders as they come up from Philly...Here's the way they passed me at 6:15/6:30ish....


By the time they hit Norristown on the Schuylkill River Trail the group was already spend across five miles...Three guys at the front (Dan and two others carrying messenger style bags). 4 mins back another group of three. Two of the guys were from the Pottstown area and they were all traveling very light. I didn't even think they were part of the race, because they only had small bags. Another mile or so back was 'Bill' from Pittsburgh area.


I turned around at that point and headed in the right direction. Getting off the Trail onto the S route two guys came from my left, clearly having gotten off the Schuylkill trail at the wrong place, but some how finding the S route. I leaped-frog these guys and Bill out to New Holland. Never saw the front six again. At New Holland I turned around to head back home. Passed Chris and his riding partner headed to Denver for their first beer of the day. Another sole rider went passed, and then finally two more guys just west of Morgantown, still on Rt 23.


eric
2010-05-07 23:11:03

dem boys is crazy


imakwik1
2010-05-07 23:58:05

Michael and Mark Tressler called in from the Point at 3:51 this afternoon.


34:38.


That is a fine piece of work.


Dan checked in last night at 8:03pm in Breezewood, and again at 8:35am from Somerset, one of the worst stretches of this route. He can't be far behind the Tresslers.


eric
2010-05-08 22:22:37

As I suspected Dan pulled in at 6:28.


That's some fast riding too.


eric
2010-05-08 22:31:33

WOW!!!!!!!


You guys are amazing!


marko82
2010-05-08 22:50:12

34:38? Holy farking chit.


ndanger
2010-05-08 23:36:40

Amazing!


ndromb
2010-05-08 23:42:03

That is the proper reaction Dave.


eric
2010-05-08 23:47:43

Hey, I'm curious about what yinz are doing out there, can somebody post a map/link, I'd like to see the route.


timito
2010-05-09 13:14:21

OK, nevermind I see the info was posted earlier in the thread, amazing, no sleep until Pgh, congratulations to anybody who finished this or even tried.


timito
2010-05-09 13:27:46

Jim Logan, Dan Goldberg, Eric Greenburg arrived at 3:30 am.


Two riders pulled out at Somerset, Adam Newman due to hail at 10:44 last night, and Bill H at 8:30 this morning with no explination.


That is 8 riders in or off the course, leaving 5 still out and riding.


eric
2010-05-09 14:05:14

Second hand account of 2 more riders pulling out at Somerset, 7am Saturday, Ben and Adam.


That leaves 3.


Nick, you still out there?


eric
2010-05-09 15:11:19

That one's gonna leave a mark. :-)


I'll do a overly verbose ride report later.


Day 1 went smoothly (one flat). I made it to Bedford by 9:30, waffled on whether to push through to Somerset or not, then saw a cheap motel and took it as a sign to rest. Spent way too much time there...got a solid 5 hours of sleep, for a total off-bike time in Bedford of 6 1/2 hours.


Day 2 started not with a bang, but a whimper. The leg from Bedford to Somerset was just soul-crushingly awful. Rain ranging from steady to heavy, high winds (headwinds, of course!) knocking down tree limbs, and what was effectively more than 20 miles of steady climbing of varying degrees of suck, before it leveled out and gave me a break. Made it to Sheetz in Somerset after something ridiculous like 3 1/2 hours, hung out there drying out and warming up (did I mention the 40-degree temps?) and forcing myself to eat sundry breakfast items. Rolled down to Rockwood, picked up the trail, and found that I simply couldn't keep up any speed: 12-14 mph was all I could muster, for W A Y too many miles of limestone. Got to McKeesport, crossed to Duquesne and fought my slug-like way up 837 and back to town.


(Hope the Tresslers come out for next year...I wanna see what they can do in the easy direction.)


reddan
2010-05-09 15:21:44

just got a text:


"Jason Oddo and Nick Lubeki are going to finish this race or die trying"


eric
2010-05-09 15:42:12

Dan, the miles from Breezewood to Somerset are just flat out miserable.


Did you ride the last steep hill before the miles of rollers start? I've pushed it every year.


eric
2010-05-09 15:43:12

Didn't push once. Thought about it, but, well, I take this sick pride in wobbling up hills at 3 miles per.


Probably the only thing that kept me from throwing in the towel in that stretch was realizing that I was so far in the boonies that I'd have to ride out anyway so someone could pick me up.


reddan
2010-05-09 15:59:55

Has there been any other over age 50 finishers over the years? Or do I get old geezer bragging rights?


The winds coming over the mountain from Bedford to Somerset were just incredible Saturday morning. The first time I've had to stop going downhill due to wind. I also had to walk across turnpike overpasses due to the sidewinds.


Unfortunaty, once in my past, I left the Yough trail, and turned the wrong way away from Pittsburgh. The GPS was mildly complicit, but the route look familiar (cause I was there before the last time I made the mistake). So I led Dan and Eric astray 5 miles or so. Then it started to rain harder... On the plus side, my lights were great for trail riding for our group. Plus I knew where the Walmart was in Somerset, so Eric Greenberg could buy some cold weather gear.


As a bonus, at 3:30 AM, my story "Can I use a bathroom, I just bicycled from Philadelphia?" worked at the Hilton.


jimlogan
2010-05-09 16:52:43

Bill H here.


It's a big, fat DNF for me.


I had a pretty strong first day. 178 miles to Cowan's Gap park, which is actually the longest one-day ride I've done so far. Camped out there with no problems.


Things fell apart on day two. I couldn't find the abandoned turnpikes and ended up doing some horrible climbs. Flatted on the way in to Breezewood. Then, in the stretch from Breezewood to Everett, I missed a turn and ended up on some secondary Bike PA route...in the end I ended up wasting most of the afternoon and doing probably 50 needless miles which took me right back to Breezewood.


Then the wind killed me. I had to stop just about ten miles short of Somerset. Completely exhausted from fighting headwinds for most of the evening, I camped out among some pine trees. Overnight the temperature plunged, it rained, and my tent leaked. Fearing hypothermia in the morning I ended up calling for a bail out in Somerset.


wsh6232
2010-05-09 16:56:03

For a bit of reference, we finished up our drive from Colorado on Saturday. The westerly winds were so fast and sustained that our van nearly doubled its MPG.


Big up to everyone who even started this year.


bjanaszek
2010-05-09 18:26:15

Hey Bill,


Spoke with you early on at Sheetz in Morgantown. Sorry to hear about all the issues. I was pulling for you and looking for updated to see how things were going. Brutal conditions for everyone on Sat and Sun....


Darren


dcrozier
2010-05-09 23:09:20

Update from Nick L and Jason O at 5:58pm:


"we found ramps (wild leeks)."


Got a message from Ryan Harris (?maybe, hard to hear the message) tonight, he arrived in Pittsburgh 11:30am Sunday morning.


eric
2010-05-10 01:57:25

Hey Bill H,

Sorry to hear you didn't make it - the ride to Somerset is a real soul-crusher, so you are at least in good company.


My report: this year, I tried to 1. take it easy on day 1 to avoid collapsing after the halfway point (as I did 2 years ago) 2. make sure I was eating every hour and drinking every 30 minutes regardless of actual hunger or thirst. I started out feeling terrible, got thigh pain 20 miles into it and was dropped by everyone else on the Schuylkill trail in Philadelphia. Later, I managed to not get off the trail at the right spot and took an unintended trip to Phoenixville, where I somehow managed to get my first wind by the time I made it back to the route. Was feeling good all throughout York, then started lagging again so stopped at Sheetz for a sandwich and milkshake around 1. Met up with and was dropped by Bill somewhere thereafter, ate in Chambersburg, and continued on my own through Cowan's Gap State Park (which was really nice despite inky darkness and a couple of huge trucks. Somewhere after Burnt Cabins I caught up with 3 people from Philly, and together we found our way to the abandoned turnpike. I was somehow feeling better than I had all day, but everyone else was tapping out, and I figured that taking it easy was the best policy. We all split a room in Breezewood, and in the morning two of the Philadelphians threw in the towel and got someone to pick them up.


Eric and I continued on and met up with Ryan, who rode with us to Bedford before feeling like he needed to rest. As soon as we left Somerset, we started getting buffeted by 30-40mph winds that made the climbs oh so much worse, and the descents near death experiences. Finally made it to Somerset in the 3 worst hours I've spent on a bike in recent memory and ran into Jim Logan, who guided us to Walmart for some emergency clothing and then to the trailhead. The trails were littered with branches from the winds, but were otherwise pleasant enough. The trail was rocky enough to loosen one of the bolts that held my front fender in place, which required some emergency zip-tie surgery in the gloom. Stopped in Connellsville for food, and then headed back on the trail in the dark. Somewhere in this section I began to lose my mind, but Jim kept everyone talking and awake during the remaining 40 miles. As soon as we got off the trail around midnight and headed to McKeesport, the temperature fell into the 40s and started raining in earnest, and that plus the delirium sent us 5 miles in the wrong direction. Whoops. Jim eventually figured out our error, and we backtracked from Elizabeth to McKeesport, then got on 837 to Carson Street, to the jail trail, to the Point, and to victory at 3:30am. And then, as a final kick in the pants, I got a flat (the only one of the ride) a mile from my house in the pouring rain. Definitely the hardest day in the saddle that I've experienced yet, but I'm glad I did it. And that it's over.


dmg
2010-05-10 02:23:24

Wow. Kudos and accolades to all who participated this year.


The weather was bad enough for sitting in my house, let alone riding across the state.


davey
2010-05-10 11:36:05

You guys make it sound like so much fun, I just can't understand why I don't want to join you next year.


BillH, don't sweat the dnf -- you made it much farther than all the rest of who were dnS.


lyle
2010-05-10 15:24:11

34:38?


OMG!


I was expecting the first to come in would be over 40 hours with the head wind and the weather.


Mick


mick
2010-05-10 15:28:49

Nick and Jason called in last night around 1 am.


That concludes CtC 2010.


eric
2010-05-10 15:46:23

Results 2010


Michael Tressler

Marl Tressler

-34:38


Dan Blumenfeld

-37:18


Jim Logan

Dan Goldberg

Eric Greenburg


-46:20


Ryan Harris

-53:20


Nick Lubecki

Jason Oddo


-65:48


DNF (all at Somerset)


Jamie

Ben

Bill H

Adam Newman


Comment or email me with name or time corrections.


Hope to hear more ride reports!


eric
2010-05-11 02:35:32

Jim, I have no doubt you are the only finisher over 50. In fact I'm not sure how many people older than me have finished (I'm 36). I get the impression Dan might be older than me, or maybe it's just that old man's bike he rides.


eric
2010-05-11 02:37:54

Oh, dude. And I thought getting called "FWEAK!" by toothless old dude in Hazelwood on Saturday stung...


(I'm 33, by the way.)


My ride report, in tedious detail


reddan
2010-05-11 02:43:15

i like reading reddan's report with all its cringe-inducing details.


imakwik1
2010-05-11 19:24:13

This one is a good read too, and has pretty pictures. Day 2 should be forthcoming soon.


reddan
2010-05-11 19:27:44

(I'm 33, by the way.)


Spring chicken.


bjanaszek
2010-05-11 19:28:04

Jeez, what's with the venom being spewed from Morningside? Got one denizen dissing my ride, another mocking my youth...don't yinz have better things to do, like watch out for bike thieves or something?


reddan
2010-05-11 19:34:46

Jason Oddo convinced me to do this ride with him. I set out with zero training and a drive to have a good time. Spent the thursday in west philly sleeping in someone's back yard after running around chasing pizza and raw milk. At the liberty bell I was surprised by how many riders were planning to do the ride without any gear. Looks like the first year the majority opted not to do this ride self-supported. Leaving Philadelphia on the bike trail we very quickly got dropped by nearly everyone. I saw Chris and two other folks on route 100 and that was the last we saw of anyone else.


I brought a lot of cheese on the ride but left it in my bag for a few days before the ride so it tasted weird, but it still got the job done. Cheese plus gatorade, doughnuts, coffee and sheetz 4$ foot longs is mostly what I ate for the ride. We made it to Lancaster around 1pm and I decided to eat a quart of ice cream, it was a good idea. Friday was a beautiful day. It got dark about 3 hours from Chambersburg, we kept going with our lights on and up some monster hills. After we got to 30 it was a breeze all the way into Chamber-sprawl. We stopped at the dunkin doughnuts and grabbed a sizable bag of doughnuts from the dumpster. Someone called the cops and The Man came and hassled us. We made it to the Farm I worked on last year and slept in the barn. We slept a full eight hours then hung around the farm for several hours in the morning. The chickens we're really happy to see me, so was the barn cat. Although the barn Rat ate my sandwich.


Leaving Chambersburg took a few hours. After we left the farm we stopped at the mennonite mall and got delicious whole wheat butter soaked soft pretzels and mexican food. Then on the way out I bought quart of strawberries from a roadside stand. We talked about making an herbal gatorade out of wild plants that can be commonly found on the side of the road (maybe: coltsfoot, nettles, red clover, chickweed and catnip). This is when the wind started getting really bad. It remained bad all day and night until we finally made it to new baltimore for the night around 12:30am. It just started to rain as we pulled into the baseball field where we would sleep in the dugouts.


We woke up to near freezing temperatures, so we went back to bed, we slept for eight hours. Later when we finally got up, it was still really cold. The climb up to the top of the continental divide was OK. The mountain sheltered some of the wind, not all of it. When we rounded the bend at the very top we were buffeted by one hell of a breeze. Between the mountain top and somerset was horribly awful. When we got the sheetz in somerset it was 36 degrees. I bought a half dozen doughnuts and some coffee and sat outside to eat it. Then I saw snowflakes so I went back inside. We stood around inside the sheetz for an hour and a half eating, talking and pooping. The chocolate milk really hit the spot.


Finally made it to the bike trail around 3pm. We soon thereafter found ramps! lots of them in fact, we brought home about 5 pounds. It got dark around west newton, it got cold around boston. The riverton bridge was cool, we made it to the point at 1am. I called Eric when we got there and tried to trick him by saying we got there on sunday morning instead of monday, it didn't work.


nick
2010-05-11 20:10:25

Although the barn Rat ate my sandwich.


I think there needs to be a CtC "best story" division.


sloaps
2010-05-11 20:21:32

The mountain between breezewood and somerset was intense. Nick and I made it up. He used his granny gear and I just had to close my eyes, breathe, and count. Then upon reaching the top and confronting the wind once again, I found myself pedaling as hard as I could down the mountain and moving nearly as slowly as I went up it.


The highlights of this include 1. Finding a ton of Ramps on the bike trail. 2. Trying to make herbal gatorade substitutes with different plants we found. 3. Seeing cows get excited and gallop when I yelled at them. 4. finding a bunch of straw in a dugout to sleep on. 5. making it up those mountains. 6. going through the abandoned turnpike, which I'd never gone through before.


the whole thing was really great.


johdoh
2010-05-11 20:31:31

We don't know for sure that a rate ate the sandwich. It could have been one of the drunk people.


johdoh
2010-05-11 20:39:07

I haven't heard everybody's stories, but that's a damn good story. Now that restores my hope for humanity. Awesome.


edmonds59
2010-05-11 20:41:53

would a drunk person really steal my sandwich? i mean they're supposed to be my friends. would a rat steal my sandwich? keep in mind that there was a rat war in '09, the rats lost and there might still be some lingering resentment. this is one of the more important unsolved mysteries of crush the commonwealth 2010.


nick
2010-05-15 03:27:42

great pictures, adam.


dmtroyer
2010-05-19 13:13:05

Okay. Report.


I've tried to do this ride for the past 2 years, but due to being school work, it hasn't been able to happen. This year I kind of forgot about it, but decided last year it needed to happen.


So Nick and I set out at 5 A.M. just like everyone else. Everyone rode as a group for a while, then some of the riders started to disappear ahead of us. I was under the impression that there was some kind neutral start at the end of the bike trail, but when Nick and I made it there, everyone was gone. Nick and I had decided before the race that since neither of us trained AT ALL, we were just going to take our time, enjoy ourselves, and focus on finishing, even if not in good time. When we got to the starting point and noticed how few people were actually carrying any kind of gear, it pretty much confirmed our aspirations to simply enjoy ourselves and finish.


So we took our time, to the point where we stopped a lot more then needed, including right there at the end of the trail to have a small breakfast.


Nick basically sustained himself of cheese, while I had some dates, apples, and cliff bars(this will probably be the last time I ever carry clif bars on a bike trip).


We got back on and rode until I realized in the mist of everything else, I had totally forgotten to carry any kind of water. So we stopped at a gas station, I got some gatorade, Nick bought some coffee, and we continued on our way.


My bike was packed pretty light. I have a rack, that clips onto the seat post. My previous "touring" bike, was more of a racing frame with no rack mounts, so it was really my only opition. I had two water proof paniers mostly filled with extra clothes, and a sleeping bag. I also carried a somewhat large fanny pack for all my bike tools, lights, first aid stuff, and other assorted small things that are useful to have on hand. I'm really happy with this set up, aside from not having a rack that attatches to the dropouts and will probably use a set up like this in future tours.


We rode until about Lancaster, although I can't remember a lot of trip there for some reason. I wanted to get there before noon, but I think we made it around 1. Nick ate his quart of ice cream and I made fun of him a lot. I ate some crappy tuna sandwich. On our way. Made it York and stopped for a moment. Can't remember what time it was. On our way to Chambersburg, which at the start of the day was the decided place to stop for the evening since Nick had worked on a farm there and knew people. The back rodes to chambersburg were probably the toughest part of the entire ride for me. Even tough then facing the winds in somerset. Moral was just low and I felt like there were a lot of subtle hills that wouldn't admit they were hills, but still felt really tough to ride up anyways. At this point, I started singing John Parr's "Man in Motion" as loud as I could, and this sound remained the the song to sing when climbing tough hill's for the rest of the ride. I hoped it boasted Nick's morals as much as it boasted mine, but It was too dark to see if he was smiling or not.


When we finally made it Mr Ed's Candy and Elephant shop or whatever it's called, I was stoked. It was round 9-10pm. Took the gradual 5 mile downhill towards chambersburg through psuedo-sprawl. There was log sitting in the middle of the shoulder. Nick dodged it and yelled for me to, but I didn't hear him and nailed the sucker. It was almost game over for me as my bike was launched into the air and to the left. Riding in Pittsburgh during the winter has given me incredible balance, and I was able to catch myself at I'd say near 45 degree angle, and contine. SOMEHOW, I didn't get a flat tire, and I realized I wouldn't be getting one for the entire trip if I hadn't there.


(Did anyone else see that log? Why didn't you move it if you did?)


Made it into Chambersburg, had dinner at Sheetz, rode the farm, and fell asleep in the barn. On the way we stopped at Dunkin Donuts to dumpster donuts. Someone called the cops, and on our way out, a police officer reluctantly ID'ed us. He said he was from some place near Pittsburgh, and nick mentioned that his girlfriend was also from that place(I can't remember what it was). People thing you are less weird if they know you have some kind of partner and mention it. Or even if you are doing something that seems strange, if you allude to having a normal life, it goes really far. I remembered this one time, someone was asking me about my life, and telling them what was going on that given moment, they remarked "So.. you don't have a job, you don't have a house, you don't have a girlfriend... what's wrong with you?"


Fell asleep in the barn. A little while later, Nick's friend came back drunk and woke us up. It was am amusing site to see Nick laying in his sleeping bag in the doorway of the barn squinting as his drunken friends addressed him.


We slept for a good 8 hours and hung out on the farm for a while. We ate some eggs. I drank some tea and played guitar. We left around Noon. We stopped at the Menonite Mall and Nick bought 6 pretzels. Then we rode thorugh town where A HUGE PARTY with lots of people dancing was going on. I almost wanted to stay. We stopped at a taco shop and bought tacos.


Rode out of chambersburg and stopped again when we made it to the top of the first mountain. At our Tacos near the lake. it was really beautiful there.


We rode for a while again. Can't remember the times. Made it to the turnpike and changed the batteries in my headlamp which was insanely bright. we could see everything going through the tunnels and sufferened no problems. The area between the tunnels might be one of my favorite places in the entire world, aside from the sound of the moving cars in the distance.


The rest of the day is a blur, but I remember making it into New Baltamore as it began to rain and stopping at a dugout. Nick went to sleep. I found a bunch of straw and made myself a nice little bed. At some point it started raining pretty good, and I borrowed Nick's pancho to hid under. It was a good sleep, lasted another 6-8 hours. We went to bed around midnight and got moving again around 8 am. I felt like we moved pretty slow. It took 3 hours to get from New Baltamore to Somerset because of that wind. Climbing up the second mountain was not nearly as bad as I anticipated it to be. Like I said, I just closed my eyes, made sure to breathe, and counted. John Parr. Made it to the top and was met with an insane wind. As we headed back down the mountain, I felt I was moving as slowly as I had gone up, exherting myself the same amount, pedaling as hard as I can, and I just started screaming in amazement. I screamed all the way through town. While everyone was in church. Then I started singing every song I knew all the words too as loud as I could to keep my morale up. Cows looked really confused when they saw me. There was a group of cows staring at me as I sang, so I yelled at them, WHATS UP GUYS. One of them looked really excited and started to gallop. I yelled at another cow, and it started to gallop as well. This happened 3 times and it was amazing. On several occations, I turned around and Nick was too far back to see. mY FINGERS WERE GOING NUMB. NICK'S TOES WERE GOING NUMB. I gave him more socks. We made it into Somerset and stopped at Sheetz. Nick ate donuts til he got a stomach ache. I ate a turkey sandwhich. Being a vegetarian for years, I've recently started eating meat again, although I still have apprehensions about paying money for it. I ate a lot of meat on this trip. I kept to fowl and fish, though. I also bought Hot Chocolate in Somerset which I realized was dumb. I used to not drink coffee either, but now I do, and for some reason forgot that I started drinking coffee. So then we got coffee.


Made it to the bike trail. Stopped for a moment in Connellsville. EVERYONE started at us. Somewhere around Rockwood, I think it was, we found a TON of Ramps, right on the bike trail, so we stopped for a good 20 minutes and picked around 5 pounds of ramps. Stopped again in Ohiopyle. ate the rest of our food, Peanut butter, cheese, dates, walnuts, etc. Stopped again later in the day in another dugout in Boston. It was dark at that point. It was also really cold. It had been in what, like the 30's and 40's all day. When we finally got to Mckeesport, It was a sprint from there to the point at which we arrived several minutes before 1 am.


There was a lot of stopping. A lot of jokes. A lot of talk about diet and farming. A lot of marveling at the amazing landscape and the sky. A lot of foraging. We stopped and picked all kinds of things a long the way, mints, chamomille, red blossom, colt's foot, etc. DIDN'T stop for catnip, but we should of because there was TON OF IT. It was really great and I've found Nick to be a great person to ride with, really easy to get along with. At no point did either of us get too stressed out. Morale dropped a little low at some points around dusk and into the night when It was taking longer to get places then we had anticipated, but beyond that everything was amazing and I felt really high for most of the trip.


Next year, I may take this more seriously as a race, however, I don't know if I will ever really be able to compete with people riding expensive bikes, not carrying any gear.


I would like to encourage more people to do this and not feel discouraged because you don't think you're going to make a "good" time. It should really be about going at your own pace, pushing yourself, not giving up, and more then anything HAVING A GOOD TIME. I really hope more people decide to come out next year, be as self-sufficient as possible, and enjoy themselves. Seriously, anyone can do this, you don't need to train much, especially if you are already riding every day.


SEE YOU THERE AND SEE YOU SOON.


JOH-DOH (Jason Oddo)


johdoh
2010-05-19 19:05:25

also, I wrote that REALLY fast, so please forgive any grammer or spelling errors.


johdoh
2010-05-19 19:10:17