I wrote the following note to my fellow RAAM racers and thought I would share it here.
A couple of takeaways from this weekends ride on the RAAM course. If I am stating the obvious then no worries, I am told that is an annoying character trait of mine. ;p)
First, as Jim suggested, we should ride the first section of the course prior to race day. This will be especially important since this section is unsupported and therefore the cyclists will not have the benefit of being navigated by the crew. This is not such a big deal for the first 8 miles since we are in the Parade Zone and just follow a paved bike path. The race then begins however the riders are still unsupported for the next 20 miles so it would be helpful to know this part of the route so that time is not wasted getting lost in the urban areas. I did get lost several times during my practice run and that was due mostly to my not being familiar with how to read the RAAM course instructions.
I would also suggest that the crew do a few practice runs navigating using the RAAM route guide. It is important to differentiate between mileposts and actual turns. For example TL:Gopher Canyon Road is not a turn but rather a Traffic Light at Gopher Canyon Road that you go straight thru. It’s not difficult but just a skill that should be learnt up front before race day. Doing so would reduce the stress level for the crew.
As for the terrain, it appears that we are only on the streets of Oceanside for a few blocks. Then we are on the San Luis Rey bike path for 8 miles. The great aspect of this is that the path takes us out of all the congested roads in downtown Oceanside and out towards the suburbs. The surface of the path is good and there was a breeze coming off the Pacific which pushed me along. After the 4th underpass we do a sharp right, ride thru a set of poles, then a sharp right onto College Blvd, cross the bridge and immediately turn right on to North River Road. We then ride 12 miles thru some nice rolling country side with perhaps 4 turns along the way. Hopefully we will then meet up with the support crew at Old Castle Road.
The next section is supported however rider exchange is only permitted at designated points so riders have to be prepared for the two climbs that are 5 & 7% grades. The climbs are not overly long however I found that the temperature was quite a bit warmer than on the coast. The good news is that each of the climbs is rewarded with a either some flat cycling along the mountain ridgeline or with some nice descents.
A rider exchange Is allowed at the Harrahs Casino which is good because the 1500 ft climb up Mt. Palomar is next. This is one nasty hill that continues for about 4 miles. I found the road to be narrow with a lot of switchbacks which the locals like to drive very fast. Once the hill is over then we are treated to some beautiful Cali countryside that us cyclists dream of all winter. This section is easy to navigate as well since we stay on SR 76 the whole way to Time Station 1 at Lake Henshaw.
I drove the next section of the course today on my way to Palm Springs. It’s mostly rolling terrain and we should be able to make good time as long as the winds are in our favor. We are more susceptible to the wind because we are at elevation and as well, the flora changes from pine scrub to open desert. The only technical section is the steep 10 mile descent known as the Glass Elevator. The first 4 miles are not too bad but the bottom section is a never ending series of tight switchbacks so it requires a lot of focus and stamina. It might also be dark by this time so extra caution will be required. This road is also a favorite amongst tourists so we can expect lots of traffic (and RV’s). We then head out onto the desert valley turning into the Anza Borrego Park before we reach the Salton Sea. Luckily we will be riding through this area at night because daytime temps can be very hot, like over 100 F.
Other things that occurred to me:
Steven & I will have to change our bike computers to MPH. I had a lot of fun converting the route map into kilometers.
It will be important for the crew to reset the odometers at each timing point or navigation will become very challenging.
I became quite dehydrated during my 4 hours of cycling. I guess the cool winds off the Pacific fooled me into thinking it was not that hot out. Wrong!
Put Sunscreen everywhere. I was wearing bike gloves but my hands still became sunburnt.
