I completed my 400K in 22 hours!!

The last time I rode in temperatures as warm as what it was yesterday would probably have been on the UMCA 24-hour at the beginning of September. I'm more used to riding in conditions where 18C is considered blistering hot.

The morning was already warm at 14C, which felt nice, and there was a light south wind ... a tailwind!! I cruised comfortably through my first 3 controls, but after my 3rd control the temperature really started to warm up, and I thought I'd shed a few layers ... and then I discovered that although I had brought a bottle of sunscreen with me, it was empty!! It was only about 10 am and I had 7 hours of burning sun ahead of me. I'd be burnt to a crisp!! So I remained in my leg warmers and long sleeved top ... and cooked.

My one and only encounter with a dog happened somewhere in here. I had stopped at a top of a hill to remove what layers I could, because I just about burst into flame climbing that hill, when I saw something in the distance coming toward me. "Oh great" I thought, "A dog ... it'll probably be some ferocious thing who'll take a bite out of my leg in a minute." I looked down to adjust something and looked up again, and nearly laughed. It was a very hot black pekenese!! I chatted with the dog for a moment then continued on my way.

At the next control I was able to purchase some sunscreen (Very expensive! And frustrating because I have a whole drawerful of the stuff at home) so I could finally ride in more comfort. And the wind changed to become an east wind ... a tailwind!! I had a tailwind all the way out to Alder Flats, the furthest point on my route.

As I turned to head south to Rocky Mountain House, the wind pretty much died. It wasn't a factor anywhere on that road. But the heat increased to peak at the high for the day: 28C, or about 32C on the road in the sun according to my thermometer. Yes, I know ... for some people that's nothing, but it's been 3/4 of a year since I've experienced anything that hot.

The hills on this road are very long but relatively gradual, and reward you with a decent downhill on the other side, so it isn't too bad. Halfway up one long hill, I felt like I couldn't go on. My energy just drained out of me. I stopped by the side of the road and tried to eat a bit, but most of my food had melted and was very difficult to eat. There had been clouds forming in the west over the mountains, and most were heading north to gather into thunderheads (I was heading south so they didn't concern me), but just then one large, blackish cloud moved in front of the sun and stopped there. Almost instantly it felt cooler and I decided to try to keep moving. That cloud remained in front of the sun for the next 20 kms or so, and when it moved, the sun had dipped far enough down so that the shadows of the trees covered the road, and I had shade the rest of the way to Rocky Mountain House.

I got to RMH about an hour ahead of my schedule!! My father met me there ... he was just about pulling into the gas station where I'd stopped at the same time I got there!! What timing!! I bought some icy cold things to drink ... I had drank both of my bottles dry on the trip from Alder Flats to RMH, but was still quite dehydrated. Then I set off again with 140 kms to go.

The 40 kms north to my turnoff were uneventful, except for the quanity of deer on the sides of the road, and quite pleasant because the temperature was dropping. Just before the turnoff, I had to put on my long sleeved top, it was getting that cool!! I turned and for a while that part of the trip was quite pleasant too. I counted approx. a million deer out there ... I've never seen so many all in one fairly small area!!

And then the wind started. It was howling from the north-north-west at 37 km/h gusting to 52 km/h ... and there was a good-sized thunderstorm off to the north, to the left of me. Lightening lit up the sky over there!! The west bit of the wind helped to push me along, but the north parts of the wind slammed into my left side and had me swerving all over the road and working to control my bicycle. Both my arms felt like they had a workout, and my shoulder was sore. I rode all the way to Rimbey (approx. 25 kms) with this wind.

I'm sure I've seen mice crossing the road before on some of my rides, but there were several in the stretch from when the wind started to the turnoff just past Rimbey. I nearly ran over one that scooted across in front of me. Another one dashed between my wheels. One, in the town of Rimbey, was running all over the place. What does it mean when the mice are on the move??

I turned south at the Rimbey turnoff which meant that the wind was now at my back, a welcome relief. But I also became aware of something I hadn't realized before. I was surrounded on three sides by thunderstorms. Only the direction I was heading was thunderstorm-free, but the storms were moving closer on either side and behind me. I was treated to quite a lightening show! And I rode like the wind to try to out run it all!! I had a strong tailwind for the next 40 kms, so I flew through that part of the ride.

My last turn headed east into Red Deer and with 20 kms to go, the wind shifted to become North East, and my pace slowed a bit. I could tell by the road that part of a storm had gone through ... it was quite wet! I kept pushing, even though my legs really didn't want to turn the pedals anymore, and rolled into the finish area at 3 am.

-- Once again a big thanks to my father for looking out for me out there!!

-- I did the route up on Bikely, and according to that there were about 4500 ft of climbing over the 400 kms

-- My 200K, 300K, and 600K all had headwinds for a good part of the ride, it was so nice to finally have a ride of mainly tailwinds!!

I have now completed my last qualifying brevet for the PBP!! :)