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Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Day 4: Steamboat Springs to Avon

82 Miles
5,139’ Elevation Gain









This morning, we bid farewell to Steamboat Springs and began our journey south to Avon.  I had a great time in Steamboat but won't miss two things about this stop.  First, there are flying insects the size of small aircraft buzzing around Steamboat.  I always had to remember to descend with my mouth closed. Second, due to a water supply issue, the shower trucks were set up like 1/3 of a mile away for the the camping area.  Having to make the long round trip walk after the ride was not terrible fun.

I was surprised that the camping area cleared out as early as it this morning.  I thought I was getting an early start at around 6:45am but only about a third of the tents remained when I finally got going.  For the second straight day, the weather could not have been better.  My biggest struggle for the first 30 miles was hydration.  Apparently, in my effort to start my day well hydrated, I overshot the mark.  By a lot.   I probably had to pull off to the side of the road 5 or 6 times.  I'll try to manage this a little better tomorrow.

I really enjoyed today's route.  The first twenty miles today were the same as the first twenty miles yesterday, but instead of turning west in Oak Creek, we continued south on Highway 131. The next twenty-five miles continued a slow steady climb with a bit of a tailwind.  Lots of sheep and cattle to be seen today.  There were also some very nice views of the Flat Top Mountains and a couple geological oddities too(i.e., The Finger).  I skipped the first two aid stations but was sure to stop at the third in Toponas for my daily peanut butter and jelly courtesy of the the lovely Davis Phinney Fountation volunteers.

After another short climb, we left the Yampa River drainage and dropped into the Colorado River drainage.  The descent down to the Colorado River was very clean and almost eight miles long.  I met up with a couple other DPF riders just before State Bridge and then started our last big climb of the day up and over to Wolcott.  The rider guide referred to it as a "monster climb", so I back off a bit after riding right behind Polly, the executive director of the DPF, for the the first mile.  I didn't want to run out of gas and tucked in behind a group of riders going at an easy pace.  I was surprised when the top arrived as soon as it did. It wasn't nearly as formidable I'd expected it to be.  Since I conserved energy on the climb, I decided I'd go hard all the way into Avon.  The finish in Avon was very familiar to me in that it is the exact same spot the Triple Bypass uses for their finish.  Avon is ok.  Nowhere near as much fun as Steamboat, but I'm sure I'll manage.

I understand that this is a tour not a race.  But I've figured out that if you decide to camp on Ride the Rockies, every day is a race and there are very real rewards.  The first big reward for riding fast is camping real estate.  There are definitely good, level, convenient spots and miserable spots at the far end of the field situated on a slope. The second reward is that you can set up your tent and stow your luggage before the almost inevitable afternoon rains roll through.  It might be fun if I do Ride the Rockies again to use hotels and not worry about having to beat my fellow rider to our next destination.

My data-  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/519379401

Leaving Steamboat Springs

Riding out of Oak Creek
Descending toward Flat Tops and into Phippsburg

The Finger (not sure which one)

Crossing from Yampa drainage into Colorado
Riding behind Polly and another DPF rider after the last big climb
Avon tent city

2 comments:

  1. It is amazing just how green and pastoral your route has been. It is not how I remember Colorado. It seems like you are enjoying the ride. Good luck with the rest!

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  2. Thanks. It has been beautiful.

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