2015 – 5th Annual Defcon Bike Ride

TLDR: Ride a bicycle with us at Defcon – signup here.

TLDR2: (8/6/15) Bike shop will meet us at 6am to hand out rentals. You do not need to go there ahead of time.

TLDR3:(8/6/15) If you need a ride we have a carshare sheet. DM your email to @cycle_override.

TLDR4:(8/6/15) We are very busy today and will answer questions as we can.

Dust off your cycling shorts, get out the chammois butter, ice the water, it’s almost time for another Defcon Bike Ride in Las Vegas!

The date of this years bike ride is Friday, Aug 7, 2014 at 6am. This is Friday of Defcon. We will meet outside [TBD location] at 5:30am. There [may/will] also be a contingent meeting at the Tuscany at 5:30 am.

Registration is here. This is just so we can get a count and arrange comms leading up to the event. It will also give us your email so we can blast out any details needed pre ride, or at 5:25am on Aug 7th .

Here’s the deal – we have partnered again with McGhies Bike Shop in Las Vegas for our ride. Yes – they will throw your clipless pedals and seat posts on if you insist. They have 3 levels of road bikes:  a ~$40 Cannondale Synapse,  and a ~$100 Lance Armstrong starter kit road bike (think Madone.)  There’s also a $125 level also.

Bike rental is first come first serve — there are about 18 $40  male road bikes and 5 female — after that it’s a hybrid or a $100 bike.  You can always ship out your bike for about $100 each way on most airlines.

Here’s what YOU have to do:

You need to go here and reserve your ride. You will need to pay with a credit card. You should note anything special here and you should indicate you are reserving for the Defcon Bike Ride.

Here is what you should put in the comment box: (your own specs of course)

“Defcon Bike Ride

Size: 54 cm – will bring my own pedals

Need bike at 6am”

And for pick up:

Please select pickup at store – Las Vegas

Use this chart based on your height and inseam to figure out your size and fill the comment box out accordingly:

You alone are solely responsible for your bike reservation. McGhies is aware that we are running this event and will support us, but it’s on you to make sure you are all set with a bike.

THE ROUTE

NOTE: This ride may be at a higher altitude than you are used to. (2600-3800 ft)

OK — last piece the route – you can see the route here. This is the same route as last year (and the year before). Basically the route is slightly uphill out – and mostly downhill back. It’s looking like we’ll have a car heading up the back. (thanks @myrcurial ) There may be a bigger loop for those interested – we’ll let you know soon (basically taking the scenic loop around and catching up w/the group on your way back) – but it will likely be unofficial.

We are looking for sponsors so let us know if you are aware of anyone interested in throwing in some schwag or some cash to help support this ride.

What do I do next?

Once you reserve your bike — all you have to do is wait for Defcon 23! Oh and keep riding!

Cheers!

The Cycle Override Team

PS if you have any questions — leave a comment so everyone can see the answer!

Reflections from the kids (and maybe a few from Mom)

Yesterday we trekked home.  Albany to where we live is about a 6 hour drive depending on traffic and we definitely hit traffic in the last stretch of the drive due to arriving during rush hour.  We only really stopped for lunch in Bethlehem, PA.  We ate at the Sands Casino which was only cool because it’s built on the property next to (or maybe on part of the property that used to belong to) the Bethlehem Steel Mill which went out of business many years ago.  This thing defines steam punk.After lunch and when the kids were a bit more awake I asked them to write up a few thoughts about our ride.

From Bobby:

This trip was extremely tiring but really fun. I should have really packed more clothes especially socks because I ran out really fast. [Mom’s note – this was due in part to Bobby not always delivering all of his dirty clothes to us to be washed, just saying’.] In the bags I was carrying I mainly hauled glasses cases, misc stuff, toiletries, some clothes, and games. My usual conversations while biking were of video games and of how many miles were left in the ride. I fell down once (stopping on a hill) and got a pretty neat cut (might become a scar) from it that stung for a while. I also got bitten by a horse fly right next to my right eye on the last day which came with quite a bit of swelling.

The weirdest thing (and in my opinion the funniest thing too) are the tan lines that all of us (including Daxton) got. One thing that bugged me out though was all the bugs, waking up so early, and not being able to go to the various stores along the way. However, my favorite things were talking about video games, sleeping, and the bumps on the trail. I could use them as mini ramps to jump which was so much fun. At the end of each day I thought, “I’m done with this, bring me ho…(falls asleep).” But at the end of the week it was fulfilling to ride the Erie Canal all of the way (but just to end up at the wrong hotel which killed the excitement of ending it). I think I speak for my family to not trust my dad in navigation.

And from Terran:

Well, to start off, I did not realize the extent of how much the luggage would slow us down; when I first turned that pedal, I knew we were in for a world of hurt. It soon turned into a mind game of, “It’s only 40 more miles, it’s only 30 more miles…” etc. Of course the trail itself made that ordeal worse; mile markers, boring stretches of nothing, and endless bumps. Then we got to each hotel and we knew we would do the same thing again the next day. The worst for me was when we were biking on roads, as the only thing I could think of was, “Oh **** we’re gonna die.”

However, all of that hardly stands up against the amazing feelings and sights. The canal’s water was full of both wild life and the many others who were enjoying the canal, and the many locks and villages among the lock were pristine and, in a way, cute. Many of the towns and cities we visited had great eats and their own attractions such as old ships, museums about the canal, and even just a fun main street. The people there were also a breed of their own, from druggies to other eccentric cyclists. And of course the sense of accomplishment at the end of each day (especially the last until we realized we were at the wrong hotel, and all that flew out the window). It is one of those trips where I cannot believe I did it, but in the end I’m glad I did.

And from Mom:

I can’t even begin to tell you how proud I am of all by boys. Short of a few mornings where it was hard to wake them up they tackled this adventure head on. Even Daxton, who we were sure would have the hardest time, got up each morning with a smile and ready to get back on the bike. They really impressed me and I couldn’t be more thankful for the memories of the last week and a half. This is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done physically (because I had to get up and keep doing it again the next day and then again and again…for hours…) and the encouragement from Bruce and the boys was endless. Seriously though. I wasn’t going to let them show me up.  😉

Tomorrow, or maybe later today, I’ll get some videos posted and then I think that’s it until the DefCon ride. Haven’t decided if I’m doing that one yet, but I am going to be walking a half non-athon on Thursday morning in Vegas (13 miles) if anyone wants to join me and the crazy non-athon crew. Let me know.

One last shot. As we drove into our hometown we saw this rainbow which seemed to be pointed right at our house, leading the way home.

 

Day 8 – Amsterdam to Albany, 31.7 miles

Last day of the ride had us up early and outside prepping to get on the road.  We were all pretty excited to be nearing the end of the ride and even better – we knew today was all on pavement.This process included the application of bug spray.  We learned to apply it early after the first few days.  The entire back half of my body is covered in bites – no fun to ride with, especially if you’re me and have interesting reactions to bugs.
Started the morning riding back down the hills I mentioned yesterday and then it was paved trail for about 10 miles.  We made a quick stop so I could get a picture of the marks we’ve been following for most of the ride.  This one is telling us to turn right – and pink generally means there’s some kind of caution ahead.  In this case it was a bit of gravel followed by a major road crossing.The path out of Schenectady had a rather huge climb.  Big enough that after we got to the top (I walked the last bit and I think the others did too) we laughed to see some other race’s marks on the pavement that said “atop the bitch.”  Yeah, that hill was, to quote another cyclist, “the fun part of the ride.”  I guess it is, if you’re going down.  A few miles after that we pulled over for a true rest at the last lock we’d be passing on this trip.  Also most locks have porta-johns.  This works out well for the one person on this ride who doesn’t easily have the ability to pee while standing up. We took a few family pictures.  One with the sun right behind us, but hey – there’s part of the lock.  Then we got wise and turned around.  It was hot and humid so we didn’t linger terribly long.  Coming into Albany there was plenty to see. We pulled over just to get a few shots of this vista.  From there we rode past the GE Global Research Center.  But even more exciting we watched several local police escorting large trucks carrying HUGE excavators into the Bettis Atomic Power Research facility. It was a big enough delivery that numerous employees were out front watching the trucks roll in… and we rode right through the middle of it all. Bruce thinks they’re putting a nuclear propulsion system into the excavators. The boys think it’s Black Mesa 2.0.

A few more miles and we pulled into the hotel and took these celebratory pictures.
As you can see, we were excited to be pretty much done with the ride.  EXCEPT…

Except that my wonderful husband.  The one I’ve been married to for almost 20 years.  Who has lead this family without fail through the entire country.  Who always knows north from south.  Who is one of the best navigators I know…

HAD LEAD US TO THE WRONG HOTEL!

Ok.  It was pretty funny.  Even funnier is that the kids and I had already gone in and eaten the free donuts they had set out for guests.  Thankfully the wonderful lady at the desk got us pointed in the right direction and we didn’t have that far to go.  She even came outside to send us off.  If you’re reading this – thanks again!  And thanks for the donuts!

Right.  So by the time we got to our true hotel, we just decided to call it.  The whole day had gone so well and it seemed right to end it on this funny note.  We got checked in, showered up and decided to go out and get a late lunch.  You might say there was a bit of excitement at seeing the car again.We thought we might go out again for a late dinner, but in the end opted to eat here at the hotel.  A few rounds of Heads Up, plus the endless antics of Daxton kept us in stitches and it was a great way to continue the unwinding process.  We’ve still got at least 2 more posts for you.  The kids are going to weigh in with a few comments tomorrow and I still want to post those videos I mentioned a few days ago.
Tomorrow = Home!

Day 7 – Little Falls to Amsterdam, 44 miles

Word of warning – this post rambles a bit more than normal.  Looking forward to a good night’s sleep I am.
Second to last day and I still haven’t told you about the gear we are carrying.  You know that Bruce is pulling Dax and I’m pulling a Bob Trailer.  The boys are each carrying these Ortlieb panniers.  Bobby has the smaller set and Terran’s are slightly larger.  These are great bags, waterproof and highly reflective.
In one of Terran’s bags he is carrying all our bad weather gear.  Rain coats, rain pants and windbreakers.  These needed to be in an easy to get to location if the the weather turned on us.  Thankfully we didn’t run into anything that necessitated us using any of this (except for windbreakers a morning or two) but you know how it goes – if we had not brought it with us, it probably would have rained every day.  In Terran’s other bag he carries our food items.  This includes bars, drink mixes, etc.  Again easy to get to on the trail.  Bobby carried our toiletries in one bag (all contained within individual small bags within a packing cube) and one of the big packing cubes containing clothes you see below.  He also got a few pairs of shoes shoved into the bags as well.
The packing cubes you see above were an idea I came up with a few weeks before the trip.  I knew we needed a way to keep our clothes organized and separated as we would be in different rooms each night.  These are the Eagle Creek packing cubes – the ones that allow for separation between clean and dirty clothes.  We already owned some and used them pretty regularly for other trips, but I went ahead and ordered bags for the kids too (conveniently in the colors we already use when assigning the kids’ things).  They look pretty full here, but honestly it’s mostly because we had just done laundry so nothing was compressed yet.  Everyone got two sets of biking clothes, two sets of normal clothes, a lightweight hoody and extra socks/underwear and something light to sleep in.  Oh and everyone has a pair of shoes (not in the bags).  That’s it.  As it turns out we’ve been able to do laundry a bit more than we were expecting so maybe we could have packed even lighter. Anyway, most of those bags go into my trailer.  The red/yellow bag on the end is an Arkel. Each of the boys has one of these on their bike as well.  One carries tools, the other just extra stuff we might have on a day to day basis.  Bruce carries the first aid kit and extra tubes in the bags on the WeeHoo.

Ok so that’s the gear.  Hopefully I haven’t scared too many of you away and you’ve hung in for the funny stories of the day.  It was a beautiful morning and after a quick breakfast (McDonald’s  – hey it was next door) we were on the trail only to stop about 4 miles into the ride because we saw this: It’s the Herkimer Estate and a history teacher we met a few days ago told us we would pass right by it so to be on the look out.  Herkimer was a brigadier general in the Revolutionary War.  We jumped off the bikes to take a quick look around. We even got one of the kids to take a picture of Bruce and I – something that doesn’t happen often enough. And look – a family shot as well.   We got back to riding after that.  Around mile 12 I had a bit of excitement.  Bruce and Bobby had stopped to pee so Terran and I rode ahead.  About a quarter mile up we hit a patch of sand that was deeper than it looked.  I had my foot out already and was trying to stop my bike, but when the trailer wheel hit I could no  longer control it and went down in what Terran described as an “ungraceful attempt to leap off the bike.”  Thanks kid.  I was fine and he helped me back up and we walked our bikes through the slop and then waited so we could warn Bruce and Bobby as they came up on it.  After realizing I had gone down Bruce stopped to make sure I was ok.  The conversation went something like this:

Bruce – You ok?
Me – Yeah, I’m good.
Bruce – You sure?
Me – Yup, was a pretty soft fall.
Bruce (looking intently at my shoulder) – Come here…
Me (leans towards him and shows him my arm) – Ok
Bruce slaps my arm which produces a rather loud WHACK.
Me and kids – blink blink blink
Bruce with a rather sheepish grin – Yeah, you had a bug.  Nothing to do with the fall. Uh, guess I should have said something.
Me and Kids double over laughing until Terran manages to straighten himself up and in a pretty good mimic of his father, pretends to slap my shoulder and says, “Good Job Soldier!”
Cue much more laughter.

Anyway we were back to riding after that.  Here’s a peek at the part of the trail we are on now.
We stopped for lunch in Canajoharie.  You know you’re eating where the locals go when the first question they ask most anyone who walks in the door is “Do you need a menu?”  They just handed them to us, btw.And very lamely I have no pics from the rest of the day.  We kept riding the trail until we hit pavement just outside of Amsterdam.  I should note that for about 4 miles we were on a section of the trail where they apparently allow horses.  The trail was full of pits from their hooves and not really fun to ride.  The last half mile to the hotel was ALL UPHILL.  And steep at that.  We all walked.  And in fact we jumped hotels as well.  When we got the top we were staring at a motel, and the place were supposed to stay was still another half mile away but past the interstate exchange.  No thanks, especially since we’d have to ride back through it again in the morning.

To make up for not riding up the hill we somehow found the energy to walk down into town, only to order pizza and ask them to deliver it back to our room but to please give us a head start as we were walking back.  Yup we walked those hills twice.  At least the second time was without bikes.

Albany tomorrow.  Last day of the ride.  Current plan is to go straight to the hotel and drop gear, then ride the bikes to the Hudson and back to complete the ride.  We’ll let you know how it goes.