Ride Report -- 100ccc Gold

The 100ccc Gold ride is complete (pending IBA certification).  It was a very good ride with no adverse weather.  There were high head winds traveling west after Ozona, TX.  And, on the way back some nice tail winds through New Mexico.  There were the usual traffic slow downs going through Baton Rouge LA and on the return trip I caught morning rush hour traffic entering San Antonio.  The only construction delays I experience was on the west side of Las Cruces NM.

NERD ALERT! What follows is a review of the ride in terms of the performance factors I use to evaluate my long distance events.  I have found organizing my LD training efforts around these factors effective at isolating areas where I need to improve.

Riding and Risk Management:  I had no "close calls" while on this event.  I did not employ excessive speed.  I would maintain speeds faster than the slow traffic and speeds slower than the fast traffic.  I do not have a radar detector so I'm diligent about maintaining a consistent and effective pace.  The FLIR thermal imaging system mounted on the bike was a great help.  Especially, while riding at night in west Texas and through Florida.  It significantly enhances and extends the detection distance of warm blooded critters in and around the path of travel.  Being able to detect threats 6-12 seconds ahead really helps reduce the stress level while riding at night.  After six months of using the FLIR I am please with the decision to employ this advanced technology. 

Planning and Navigation: I divided the 100ccc into logical segments.  Of course the routing was easy, I-10 west to I-12 to I-10 to I-8 and back again.  I plotted the route on MapSource to capture the miles and travel time.  Then used the route turn by turn data to  prepare the timed out ride plan adding in the pit stop times and rest stop times.  I published the 100ccc RLPLite MS Excel spread sheet on 3/15/2013.  During the ride I had SPOT tracking on and sent a SPOT message at each fuel stop and rest stop.  You can refer to the spot markers to compare the SPOT date/time stamp arrival time (CDT) with that planned using Rally Leg Plan Lite tool.  I have recapped the segment plan vs actual times below.

Segment                                                                            Planned          Spot Time Stamp

1. JAX Start                                                                      05:00             03-17 04:59:41
2. JAX Start to Junction Rest 1 - 1,198 miles                     22:02             03-17 21:58:34
3. Junction Rest 1 to El Cajon Rest - 1,145 miles             21:17             03-18 21:20:09
4. El Cajon Rest to SDO DBR - 20 miles                          06:35             03-19 06:37:10
5. SDO DBR to Junction Rest 2 - 1,163 miles                   23:22              03-19 23:20:10
6. Junction Rest 2 to JAX Finish - 1,195 miles                   00:10             03-20 23:52:24

Ride Pace and Resource Management:   Maintaining a consistent ride pace was a major training objective during this ride.  This 100 hour "on the clock" event provided the opportunity to validate the moving and overall average MPH of my riding pace.  I used the calculations within the Leg Planning Tool to identify these two metrics as well as the required fuel stops for each leg segment.  Refer to the 100ccc RLPLite Excel file to see the planned segment and for the entire 100 hour leg.  As planned I had 8:49 of slack time should the weather, equipment malfunctions or heavy traffic cause delays.  Knowing time to each segment end would give me good information about the pace.  At the end of the ride I did a screen shot of the zumo 220 (powered continuously) that captured the actual pace performance to compare to the planned numbers.  They are pretty close which confirms the accuracy of the planning tool and the consistency of my riding pace.

Planned using the Leg Planning Tool (see Leg Statistics table in the 100cccRLPLite file)

• Total Plan Miles = 4,721
• Moving Average MPH = 72.7
• Overall Average MPH = 51.8
• MapSource Travel Time = 64:55
• Pit Stop Time = 2:45
• Rest Stop Time = 23:30
• Total Stop Time = 26:15
• Total Time = 91:10

Compare to the GPS screen shot of the performance data captured at the finish.

I maintained a consistent pace given the speed limits, traffic flow and overall conditions to help manage risk and reduce stress.  This consistent riding pace also aids in the accuracy of the fuel endurance distance calculations.  I had planned to stop every 300-350 miles to keep within IBA rules.  That distance is also the FED of my new GSA motorcycle.  It is not completely broken in yet and I have not achieve its best fuel mileage per gallon.  I captured the data for each fuel stop while preparing the IBA fuel log.  Refer to it for the details.  Below is a summary of the FED data:

• Enroute Pit Stops = 13
• Start/Mid/Finish Stops = 3
• Fuel Stops at Rest Stops = 3
• Fuel used Start to Finish =  131.8 gallons (133.393 total minus start fill up of 1.593 gallons)
• Miles per gallon for event = 35.9 (4,735.1 GPS miles divided by 131.8 gallons)
• Highest/lowest MPG = 44.4 and 31.7
• Farthest fuel load distance = 341.1 miles
• Highest amount pumped = 8.831 gallons
• Total fuel costs = $533.56 (High $4.40, low $3.69 and average $4.01 per gallon)

Problem and Stress Management:  There were no significant problems that caused stress and no stress that caused significant problems.  My rest management plan kept me well rested with 23:30 devoted to rest spread over the event.  At each rest stop I practiced my routine to maximize eyes shut time.  At Junction the first stop is at a store to get a healthy sandwich and a pint of 2% milk to consume before sleep.  Then to the hotel to check in, download the bike, shower, set the alarms, eat then go to sleep.  In the morning I refueled to get a start DBR then hit the road.  I hydrated while riding using a 100oz CamelBak with insulated hose.  I did experience several instance of bladder stress which caused me to make a unscheduled pit stop to refresh.  I'll work on slower consumption while riding to lessen excess bladder accumulation. I had one equipment issue that caused me stress.  The switch on my electric jacket kept shorting off.  I solved the problem by removing the switch and plugging straight into the lead from the battery.  I ate while riding using a combination of high protein bars with low glycemic index and custom trail mix.  I use a 32oz drinking bottle for tasty good zero calorie drinks with added electrolytes.  This kept my energy level pretty even throughout the ride. I avoided heavy meals opting to consume around 2,000 calories spread throughout the day.  My riding gear worked very well without stress causing comfort issues. 

Personal Courage and Commitment:  Seems a bit pretentious but it takes some degree of courage to push oneself through the tough times while maintaining a commitment to stopping the ride when one exceeds one's limit.  Because I managed the other performance factors within my knowledge, skills and abilities I did not feel I was exceeding my limits.  My commitment to being disciplined about staying focused on tasks made the ride interesting.  I kept my mind active, thinking ahead, anticipating problems or issues in a way that made the ride fun. 

Sundry Items:  The total cost of the 100ccc was $760.92 itemized below.  Combine the cost of attending the IBA annual dinner and the IBR pizza party before the 100ccc along with the redeploy back home from JAX pushes the total cost of this LD adventure to around $1,356.11.  But, who's counting?!

Fuel costs = 533.56
Lodging = $142.36
Cash = $85.00

ROG:  After arriving home on Friday 3/22 the GSA indicating 21 miles left till zero on the fuel range counter. Today, 2/28, I fill up a quart sized MSR fuel bottle and got on the motorcycle to run out of gas.  This is my first ROG on the new GSA.  When the GSA Fuel range guage hit zero I started an odometer on the GPS.  I was riding on I-35 at interstate speeds to burn up what was left in the tank after the ride back from Jacksonville.  By the time the motorcycle experienced complete fuel exhaustion I had traveled another 43.4 miles.  By this time I was doing a turn around via frontage roads off the interstate and pulled into the parking lot of a motel.  I could see an Exxon station less than a 1/4 mile away.  I poured the 0.25 gallons of gas from the MSR fuel bottle and rode to the Exxon.  There I put another 9.584 gallons into the tank.  That's a total of  over 9.8 gallons of fuel.  This is good information.  I will be confirming this with more ROG tests in the next couple of weeks.  I'll do a blog posting to document the results of this fuel endurance distance testing on the new bike.

Follow On Items:  I need to stabilize my FLIR camera.  At high speeds it tends to pulsate causing a slight distortion in the output to the display.  I was happy with the way the zumo 220 worked with the hard wire to the battery.  I want to find a better way to eat my custom trail mix while riding.  Using a zip log bag tucked away in my tank bag was clumsy.  I'm thinking a plastic cylinder, like a drink container, with a wide mouth and flip up cap.  That way I can mount it in a pouch on the side of the tank bag for easy access.  I also want to do some ROG (run out of gas) testing on the GSA.  It's getting well broke in now and I want to dial in the fuel endurance distance and consumption rates under several different riding conditions.  I'll do a blog posting of the plan and the results after the tests.