07/04/2021
ITT rider update:
Nothing like finishing the 2021 ITT season with a rider who decided to knock out the Tennessee Gravel Triple Crown by riding the routes back to back!
Jason Vance rolled into Fireside Outpost on the evening of June 27th with the intent of using it as a basecamp to rest up between his 3 day back to back attempts on the TELLICO HIGHLANDS , DMR, and the DIRTY 130.
We are happy to say that his mission was a success!
TELLICO HIGHLANDS : 9hrs•14mins
DMR: 12hrs•43mins
DIRTY 130: 14hrs•09mins
You can read Jason's Triple Crown race reports below.
Congratulations Jason!
Tennessee Gravel - Triple Crown Recap
Charleston, SC to Tennessee is a long drive and I procrastinate. So, naturally I would tackle the Triple Crown on consecutive days right on the deadline. Bike set-up: Canfield EPO; 30x10-46 gearing; Schwalbe 2.1 ThunderBurts; Rockgeist Honey Pot and Oveja Negra top-tube bags. I carried 3 bottles on each of the routes, fueled on Infinit.
Tellico Highlands - Monday, June 28 - First attempt on this route, though I've ridden the latter 70 miles in the opposite direction on the Mountain 420. The ride into Green Cove came up quick, and I much preferred the climb up N. River into NC than climbing the Skyway (ala M420). Monday is clearly not a busy day for the Skyway as a two-stroke mini-bike club also chose this morning for their hill-climb rally; my descent was peppered with the drone of angry bees and aroma of burning oil. Indian Boundary is sporting newly-constructed bridges on the trail along the lake; refilled my bottles at the store and resumed climbing! On the M420, the Cold Spring Rd climb coming out of Jake Best is an endless slog (which I've done only on a loaded bike at night); but, riding the opposite direction on the TH, Doublecamp Creek was a pleasant drag uphill, and Cold Spring was a ripping descent. Soon after climbing out of Jake Best, leg cramps set in and would continue for the remaining 20 miles. The final descending miles and rain after leaving Bald River Falls probably helped stave off heatstroke. Maybe.
I felt pretty cooked after this ride and the ice-cold chocolate milk didn't quite take that edge off. Back at Fireside Outpost, I ate some salmon, drank a beer, and chatted with John Pickron until Kim yelled at me remotely through the Ring-cam to go to bed at 8pm. I had to be up in 6 hours for the DMR...
Death March Revival - Tuesday, June 29 - Forecast called for thunderstorms in the afternoon, so my plan was to get on the bike around 4am. I missed that start by 45 minutes, but that wouldn't have impacted the outcome. This was also my first trip on the DMR -again, aside from riding several roads on the M420- and Kim provided me with a revised route with the Tennessee start from Thunder Rock Campground. "You'll love descending that opening climb at the end of the ride" she said...
Right from the start, my legs simply were not there. I suspect they're still back at Jake Best. It was going to be a long day, and much of the climbing outside of the Cohuttas didn't allow me to diesel along. On the other hand, the Cohuttas' gravel was good going up and down; the pipe-spring just beyond Jacks River Field is the 2nd best in the area; and Conasauga and Cowpen provided my legs some easy miles of smooth descents. The weather held up to this point, but the thunderstorm rolled in at Jacks River Falls and would continue up Big Frog. Though it took the edge off the temps, it didn't help with fatigue as numerous queries to the Legs Department returned a memo explaining that pedaling the bike wasn't in their job description. The last 30 miles only picks up about 3500' of elevation, but the climbs were punchy and the wet, blown-out descents didn't carry much speed to average it out. All-in-all, a total slog made worse by yesterday's efforts. That opening climb was a smooth, fast descent back into Thunder Rock Campground, but this just isn't the kind of love I need in my life right now.
The chocolate milk was more refreshing this time around. I stopped by the Ocoee Damn Deli for a country-fried steak and mashed potatoes; I took my food back to the Outpost and would eat in-between cleaning and servicing my bike while chatting with Kim and John. A bit more relaxed and a late bedtime; I wasn't starting as early tomorrow, but I know the D130 well.
Dirty 130 - Wednesday, June 30 - About 8am, I'm getting up from underneath my truck while John is showing me a blurry picture he took of me from the night before, explaining that this might be my "Final Destination" scenario. Let's back up...
...4am- alarm. Snooze. 4:20- wake; eat; do the crossword; prep 3 bottles of Infinit; pack Infinit powder in any available space on the bike. 5:30- depart Fireside towards Etowah to grab a bag of ice so that my celebratory chocolate milk is cold (this is serious business). I stop at the Shell station, add diesel to the truck and a bag of ice to the cooler. Turn the ignition over...nothing. No cranking. No solenoid click. Nothing. I troubleshoot for a bit, and I either don't have enough battery to engage the solenoid, or the solenoid/starter is dead. I call Kim. I call John. 6:30am- John calls back; he brings jumper cables. Still nothing: the starter is dead. Autozone is a half mile away and has a starter in stock, what luck! I roll under the truck, curse for 20 minutes and emerge with the dead starter. John is showing me this blurry picture he took of me from the night before; I tell him, "if I disappear after I replace this starter, then we'll know this ride isn't happening." John drives me to Autozone, we return and I roll back under the truck with the new starter and curse for another 20 minutes, emerge and the truck starts up. I'm still in the picture. 8:45am- head back to Fireside and clean up. 10am- I'm on the bike rolling up Greasy Creek Rd.
The morning is warming up, but there is precious cool air in the shade. The grind up Kimsey Mt Hwy is pleasant; the amount of elevation you gain in 12 miles feels effortless compared to any other climb in the area. The descent down Smith Mt is hinting that this might be a good day, but around mile 20, my left pedal hemorrhages its bearings, and the pedal body shifts about 1/4" on the spindle. It's still retained, but for how long? I'm thinking about John's damn picture and what other omens I've missed up to this point. I contemplate throwing in the towel at Webb Bros, but I'm curious how far up Star Mountain this pedal will take me.
Unlike Monday and Tuesday, the humidity stayed down through the afternoon. I felt cool in the shade and the long descents were refreshing and enjoyable. Even if I had fresh legs, the disabled pedal wouldn't let me mash out of the saddle, so I just dieseled along. The D130 is a long ride with long downhills on hero gravel that eat up the miles. Star Mt comes and goes; Ivy Trail passes by. Coker Welcome Center is still open when I arrive -pleasant surprise! Joe Brown and Shulers Creek downhill eat up more miles before the climb to Buck Bald. The mix of climbs and descents from Buck Bald, Bailey Rd, Fingerboard and Childer's Creek go quick; one last pitch on Powerhouse, then more gravity-assisted miles until you cross the Hiwassee.
The suspension bridge crossing the Hiwassee welcomes you to the last 27 miles of the route: 13 of them are screaming down the same Kimsey Mt Hwy to where you began; only 8 of them truly suck. If you missed your resupply at Reliance Fly and Tackle, you will find the best pipe-spring in the world at mile 108. That joy, however, is short-lived as I begin the 8 miles of suck, and my pedal finally divorces itself from the spindle at mile 110. I remove the pedal body from my shoe and jam it back on the spindle. I reengage the pedal without kicking it off into the woods and limp onward and eventually up to Kimsey Hwy. My manic descent down Kimsey was fueled by my delusion that I might break 14 hours, with limited battery in the dark (light on its low setting), and not being able to fully load my left foot while out of the saddle or in turns in fear of slipping the pedal off the spindle. I didn't break 14 hours and I didn't hit the Great Pyrenees at the bottom of the hill. Still, I PR'd by over an hour, the chocolate milk never tasted better, and John says my picture is still blurry.
Thank you to Kim Murrell for hosting me at the Outpost, developing these routes, and your efforts towards growing the southeast gravel and bike-packing communities! John Pickron, thank you for helping me out on Wednesday; I enjoyed chatting at the Outpost!
