Sunday, January 30, 2011

2011 Tour of the Unknown Coast


Saturday May 7th, 2011
Director: Vic Armijo
Number of Riders: 918






If you notice this post has changed this week because Blogger experienced technical difficulties which deleted my most recent version. I had to recreate the post.

Here are the results from this year. The tour has posted the official results with some corrections. I'm not sure what happended after 9th because I wasn't at the finish line. I don't think Brian Dowd was a 100 mile rider. I do know that Michael Davies-Hughes would be the next rider after the one they show as disqualified. You can pick Michael out in the sequence of photos that Jason Barnes and Jay Fox took. If you know any different let me know. I've also just shown the first two women because I would have to speculate on additional riders.

Remember that this is a tour and not a race where you would expect more accurate results. My recommendations for next year is to stop at the finish line and announce you are a 100 mile finisher. When we finished there were a lot of riders from other distances finishing at the same time. We appreciate all the volunteer support that makes the tour a success every year.

1. Teri Kolder, 6:16, Haiku, Hawaii
2. Laura McNulty, 6:34


1. Brian Ecker, 5:13:36, Bellingham, WA
2. Anthony Ferretti, 5:19:56
3. Matt DeShazo, 5:20:39
4. Courtney Wood
5. Rob Van Kirk, 5:22
6. Jim Robbins, 5:22
7. Greg Willard
8. Chris Carroll 5:30:17
9. Kevin Johnson, 5:34:59



Lots of great pictures this year from Jay Fox posted at Noble Sports and from Jason Barnes Photography . This year Jason took pictures all around the route from his motorcycle.

The pain begins on the Panther Gap climb. You can see the pain in my face (4th rider). Rob Van Kirk set a real steady but hard pace up the climb. Matt Dashazo spinned along all day and appeared to be the strongest in our group. Brian Ecker pulled away on Avenue of the Giants with Todd Flackus and eventhough we could see him at times, he was just too strong to catch. Photo courtesty of Jason Barnes Photograpy.





Here Brian Ecker climbs the wall several minutes ahead of the chasers. Photo courtesty of Jason Barnes Photography.
















Times Standard article May 8, 2011
Click on it for a larger view:



















Tri-City Weekly Article - May 3, 2001
























Click above for a larger view or click the link below for the online article:

Race gets rolling Ferndale welcomes Tour of the Unknown Coast - Times-Standard Online

Tour Flyer:



















Here is the GPS data from my ride. You can see that our average speed was pretty fast to the base of Panther Gap. It took us about 4 hours to get to the base of the wall. Click on "View Details" to see all the data.

12 comments:

teri said...

Hello all. can't believe this is the first comment here with May 7th so close.
This will be my 4th TUC, each year I learn something new to drop a little time.
I have a question for you guys that do the little loop in a sub six (<6 hours) How do you not stop? camel backs, bottle hand off?
How many bottles do you intake?
I've never used a camel bag for a road race, seems like it would feel like a lead weight up the wall.
When I remember the TUC's I just recall trying to stuff way too much into my back pockets. sleeves, leg warmers, food, gu etc.
Any suggestions?

jimbobrides said...

If you are in the lead group you take advantage of the car to drop off extra clothes and to grab new bottles. I usually bring all my food since it is what I'm used to eating on long rides. Good Luck!

Anonymous said...

Teri: I hope you reached your goal this year. This was my fourth time too, since 2008. I was able to finally crack 6 hrs with a time of 5:48, which I'm pretty sure got me in the top 20 -- something I never would have believed possible. I stopped once and refilled my two already empty-and-consumed bottles, one with water and the other with cytomax (carried with me in a baggie) at the Panther Gap summit. So, a total of four bottles the whole ride, which worked for me because the weather was cool. For fuel, I had two Hammergel flasks, one with Gu + caffeine that I emptied out of packets, and the other with a very thick mixture of perpetuem -- three full scoops and just enough water to make it ooze out of the bottle when squeezed. I also take a thermotab every hour to hour and a half. The day before, I took 5 thermotabs spread out over the day and drank lots of water. This gets the body's tissue to hold more water. I didn't cramp once, and I was giving it all I had. The key to stopping is knowing what you want to do beforehand, doing it quick, back on the bike and go! I didn't bring extra clothes, just a thin base layer, long sleeve jersey, and knickers. I figured the only places I'd get cold were long descents, and really only one to speak of. The rest of the time I knew I'd be warm due to hammering those pedals.

Jimbob: Congratulations on an impressive time, once again. I'm going to focus my training such that I will be able to stay on the fast train to the foot of Bull Creek climb next time, and just maybe I can crack the top ten some day. This year, I stayed with them over all three Sisters and down, only to get dropped in Rio Dell because I didn't have enough power left after that effort. Just missed it! Anyway, thanks for this cool site. I love this century, and plan to do it every year I'm able to.

jimbobrides said...

Congradulations to everyone for another great year. The sub-six is a major goal for most everyone. I would love to see a women break six! The key will be to stay tucked into the front group all the way to the base of Panther and then having some strong friends to pull you all the way to the base of the wall. A tail wind helps too! My first sub-six was on a magical south-wind day, which don't come very often.

Anonymous said...

Amen to that, Jimbob! A friend of mine who also happened to have that same time as I just did, a few years ago, had a bunch of strong team mates pull him for those two stretches.

Anonymous said...

Teri Kolder took first this year with a 6:18. I (Laura McNulty) got second in 6:30.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations, Teri and Laura!

Thanks for the view from the front, Jimbob.

Ken

teri said...

actually Teri Kolder did a 6:11 ride time and a 6:16:07 total with stops. the TUC clock was false.

teri said...

wellll...the sub six is going to take a bit more work. I made too many mistakes, carrying a camel back--rookie mistake. dumped that off to Jennifer's lead car after I got dropped on that first hill. I know I have to stay in the lead group till Panther gap--I thought there'd be two fast groups but looked like y'all stayed together. I was alone till Rio Dell when I dropped my water bottle (next mistake) and there was a group of about 15 guys--was a good group but I knew it wasn't going to be a sub six group. that group dissolved in the redwoods. ended up with two good riders up Panther and stayed with one most of the way to the wall. one guy @ beach, then alone (as usual) except passing those guys who went out too hard, into the endless hills. Anyone notice the "Bonus" hills they put in this year?
@ stacxr-- YEAH!!!! great job breaking sub six--when did your training start, do you have a coach?thanks for the feed back, my nutrition was one thing I did right. two every hour of Recovery E-21--an electrolyte capsule made from NZ green mussels, and http://www.infinitnutrition.us/ in my bottles--super great stuff. Perpetuem with soy protein isolates is hard on my stomach. Secret weapon for me was the 1/2 can of Coke before the wall and the espresso Gu half way thru the endless hills.
I had 6 minutes of stops this year (3 last year) too much stopping this year.
must stay with the group...must stay with the group...
@statcxr after you got dropped in Rio Dell did you have a group to ride with? what was your group(s) like thru the rest of the ride? riding with anyone in the endless hills? a 5:48 is super! I'd love that.
It's interesting to ride in Ca. with better cyclists.
There's a lot of really strong cyclist up here, very impressive riding.
Mahalo

Anonymous said...

Teri,

I rode through the winter, but started hard rides in March -- centuries with 8-10,000 feet of climbing. I don't have a coach. However, I ride and train with a guy named Marc Moons, one of the best double-century riders around. I follow his advice on riding, on-bike eating, and recovery. This experience made me realize that I never really trained in a very serious way, even though I've had two 6:25ish finishes and a 6:03 finish last year. I thought maybe my much-improved finish this year was a fluke instead of the result of the radically different (and WAY harder) approach to training I took this year, but just one week after the TUC, I finished first at the Central Coast Double Century in Paso Robles. I know a couple guys who use a coach and the impression I get from this admittedly small sample is that they are more in the business of keeping clients than having them get really optimum results.

After getting dropped in Rio Dell, I rode alone on 101 to the Pepperwood exit. I decided to slow for a group of around 10 approaching me, and we rode a pretty fast pace to and through the forest. I wanted to have energy for the climb, where I really make up time. Near the cemetery on Bull Creek, I left all of them behind and started reeling in some of the group, that had left me in the dust in Rio Dell, near Panther Gap summit. I rode alone to the Petrolia dump, reeling in more as I went. There, I caught and rode with two fellows to the base of the Wall, by which time we three caught another five riders along six mile. We all rode to the base of the Wall, where everyone, except me, stopped. I never saw any of them again, and I caught and passed another two in the Endless Hills, nearly getting another near the last climb. By the time it was over, I had overtaken probably half the group that punched my ticket way back in Rio Dell. I know now what I need to do to stay with the leaders to the forest next year, and I'm confident a top-ten finish is not an unreasonable goal for me, even though I'm 48 and started riding only 4 years ago.

Thanks for your kind words, Teri. And hang in there! It sounds like you are learning from your mistakes, and that you WILL hold the women's course record someday soon.

Mahalo!

Anonymous said...

I like your revised post, Jimbob. Thanks for including your ride data and links to the sites with pictures. Those photographers really hit it out of the park with the perspectives captured in the shots. The view looking down the upper part of the Wall with Sugarloaf Rock and the ocean as a backdrop is an iconic symbol of this ride. I celebrated what appears to be my 12th place finish (if Dowd was not a 100-miler) by splurging on some photos from both websites.

Point taken about this being a tour and not an official race, but so many folks take it seriously enough such that it does become a de facto race, in my opinion. And hence, those same folks want to see accurate results. The inclusion of all finishers' names is a great addition to the results spreadsheet. I think it can only serve to make this already fantastic event even more attractive to people who come from both near and far (Teri!) to participate. I expressed these sentiments to the tour director after the first edition of the results were posted, and also thanked him for putting out the revised, official results.

Teri, congrats on a really good time this year, although I know short of your sub-six goal. You're so close, and I think you could achieve it next year with some tweaks to your preparation. I have some ideas that you might find very helpful. If interested, feel free to email me. There's a link in my profile.

Anonymous said...

More notes from this year's tour. I was also dropped after the little humps near the cemetery on the way out of downtown Ferndale. There I was, pedaling alone through the pasture land feeling disappointed at the sight of the lead group moving further into the distance ahead. It wasn't long before I was caught and absorbed by a chase group led by Courtney Wood, who was really hammering, and not all interested in having anyone pitch in on the effort. Right after Courtney passed by me, a voice in that pack said, "Come on Ken!" It was the voice of Bob Beede, a guy I have known since before he started riding the TUC for the first time in 1988. Well, Bob has ridden the TUC EVERY year since, making this his 24th consecutive year doing the tour. He won it in the early '90s with a 5:08, and has a PR of 5:04. Anyway, I was able to latch onto the back of the Courtney Wood bullet train and we soon caught up to the leaders. I had revitalized hopes of staying on the fast train to Rockefeller, but was dropped in Rio Dell again because of a lack of power from pushing so hard to keep with them over the Three Sisters.