Tour of the Unknown Coast

I did the 100 mile version of the TUC yesterday.  It is one of my favorite centuries.  Since it is a mass start, it is quite fast.  I think around 400 people do the 100 mile version, and there is a couple of shorter rides and even a 10 mile family fun ride.  Claire did her own ride, which consisted of going down to the coffee shop and talking for a couple of ours with some of the locals and then going out and doing about 40 miles on her own.  The organizers of the ride send the bike shop a couple of free entries each year which is a nice gesture.  

My goal was to stay with the front group until we reached Panther Gap, which climbs to an elevation of 2744 feet.  The ride usually stays together for the first 15 miles or so until you hit 3 little climbs before descending into Scotia.  In years past I have ended up in leading groups of only a dozen riders or so, but this year there were at least a 100 riders in the pack.  Anyway, I had a really good time with some tendon pain nagging me almost the whole day.  On the Wall, which is an 18% climb for a mile, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I could have all the major muscle groups in my upper legs cramp up at the same time.  I just rode through it because I didn't want to fall over.  The whole ride took me about 6 hours and 20 minutes.  Definitely not my fastest time, but considering my lack of riding, I was very happy with it.  Probably one of my only concerns, besides the leg pain, was my heart rate.  I usually try to keep my heart rate between 130 and 170, but out of the 6 hours, I was over 170 for 4 hours.  There were plenty of times when I looked down and saw that I was running at around 191 or 192 bpm.  I am no spring chicken, and at my age I should probably try to keep things more under control.  I think I will email my doctor about this.  

For a more detailed description of the Tour of the Unknown Coast, which I would highly recommend, check out this website.