Vermont is spelled with a capital “V”, surely no coincidence. With the loads of mountains and climbs available, it had to start with a “V”. I mean, if it was mountainous enough to draw a runaway “loose” nun who left the church for a sailor, it must be good, right? (Great nordic skiing there””Trapp Family Lodge, if you are there in the winter months as well).
Anyways, being a seventh generation “V”ermonter myself, who was raised on a family farm on Rogers’ Hill in West Newbury, VT (which was hand cleared and settled in 1763 by my G-G-G-G-G-Grandfather and still owned by my father) I have a deep love and feel for VT, liberal politics notwithstanding. So when I heard about the 200 on 100 “Dumptruck of Awesome” that was available, I just knew that I had to do it. And not only that, I knew that I had to share this beautiful “Ode to the V in Vermont” with all of my best cyber-cycling-soul mates. Okay, soul mates might be going a bit far there, but you get my meaning.
So, enough with the intro.
Break out the rollers, get on the trainers, find your winter gear; lay off the seconds, nurse that one glass of booze, hold the toasting to one drink, dodge Cupid’s chocolates and shoot the Easter Bunny because training for this bastard started yesterday and you’ll be paying for it on the 28th of June, 2012 in spades!
See you in the pre-dawn hours on the Canadian border with our eyes firmly fixed on the prize of the Massachusetts border. Let’s drive this dump truck like Mel Gibson leaving the compound in a post-apocalyptic world, baby!
Route and location details on the Cogal Event Page.
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View Comments
@Buck Rogers
At first I was hoping this was some devious psyops ploy to set everyone up for an epic shelling.
I hope it's just a bit of V shrapnel from P-R slowly being reabsorbed by your system.
@Steampunk
Not well. Mommy issues. AGAIN.
@wiscot
Wiscot, I feel your pain. Let me make it go away:
@xyxax
He he that funny!
@xyxax
man, you are on a roll. but please, email me once the page has turned and I wont have to scroll past the O word
@Buck Rogers
buck i'll toss a few down in your honour. you made the smart decision. a shame would be you came, rode, and did a number on the knee permanently. see you either at a later cogal this year or at 2013 2muchon100
@Tim
i hate to do the +1 thing. but +1. it makes a huge difference. at least for minions like myself
@King Clydesdale
whatever kind of magic you're working over there in PA, keep it up! push this system out of here so we can have fair skies and 35kph tailwinds. i've rigged a sail from the the stem to the seatpost so i'm counting on you. see you for 2013 as well!
@CanuckChuck and @Steampunk
i shot ya emails but in case you read it here first. i can theoretically drive to burlington thursday after we celebrate. i picked the 750 miles allotment for the van but whats 300 extra miles? chump change when it comes to helping out. plus with MJ doing such an amazing favor, I've got to pay it forward and this would be a start.
@ALL
We've lost two of the founding fathers of this cogal. That said, as far as joining the FBI is concerned, let me put it this way; I failed a test to get in a book club. But seriously, next year will be grand. We will again ride bicycles, conquer mountains, rip through valleys, and party the night away to Marvin Gaye's "Aint no mountain high enough"
@roger
For next year I will bring a couple bottles of Chimay for the finish if someone reminds me.
@Buck Rogers
Rest up, mate. Next year, we're not wasting our time with a little state like Vermont. Next year: Too Much Messing with Texas.
@xyxax
Ok, in what parallel universe does the Big O look skinnier than Pharmy? Methinkjs there's some photoshopping going on there - strange variations of focus going on. Or was it during the five minutes when O was too fat to climb?
Anyway, I see Oprah and her pal (sorry, talented, qualified journalist) Gayle as being recumbent riders. Or maybe a tandem so they can fucking blather a load of shite to each other all day.
@Buck Rogers Sorry that it did not work out, was looking forward to riding/meeting but you have made the right choice for the long term. I think we will be neighbors in the fall (?) and the Hudson Valley offers euro style rides so I hope that we get together then. Any chance, Vermont being so narrow, you might drive over the Green Mountains and meet us at the half way point (while we still look pro and are bully with confidence and hubris)?
@all - there but for the grace of g-d go I... Had my first ride in 8 days last night between rain storms that are ripping through the upper Hudson Valley and I imagine Vermont as I am only 100 km from the lower end. It was quite beautiful at sunset with huge cumuli raising into the heavens and light both shadowed and vibrant paying as far as the eye could see.
11 days ago, on Friday, I felt the first stirrings of a cold but had been healthy all year and the training had gone to plan with more centuries (imperials) completed this spring than in the last 10, no 20 years! @xyxax was coming up from NYC on Saturday to put the finishing polish on Too Much on 100 preparation. We rode 50 km late Saturday and 149 km on Sunday. The guns felt great and except for a little niggley feeling that I was getting a cold all was good.
Monday through Wednesday I felt shitty but worked normal days, the only consseion to the way I was feeling was to forgo the Tuesday night group ride, something I had been on the fence about as it was so close to Vermont and I was "tapering" - really resting.
On Thursday I did not bother to get out of bed... untill Sunday. I never had a high fever but the stuff that I was coughing up could have been out of a T.B. ward in Liverpool circa 1853... I since found out that the virus had been going around town for a few weeks and symptoms were the same for others.
By yesterday it had passed and I mostly feel fine, to the point of maybe I will do the Tuesday ride. All this to say that I feel lucky to have known my body to recognize that it was a virus and that my fitness was already in place so that the whole time I felt like shite there was the voice saying stay calm it will pass and you will be in Vermont by Wednesday night.
Even with doubts about recovering in time the guns were never in doubt as they had been "Locked AND Loaded", the finishing tempering with the help of xyxax. So as I make final prep for our meeting tomorrow(!!!) I am thinking that we will not have Buck and King but we will have a great group and a great ride! See you all soon.