Busy Weekend - Volunteering And Kitsap Color Classic

WOW! I really didn't think anything could top WAVE, but Kitsap Color Classic was nothing short of spectacular. The weather was perfect, crisp, cool and sunny. I'll get back to this later in the post, but first: Volunteering for Cascade.

The event was a lunch for the big donors at their new office at Sandpoint. Gorgeous location with views of the marina and Lake Washington.




I biked to and from, being that it's a bicycle club and all. 60 miles. A good stretch in some rain. It wouldn't have been a true Cascade event without.

The view from the front

The band

Fancy bike rack

Lake Washington

I'm not entirely sure why I'm volunteering at this point because I have decided to buy a season pass come next year, which makes the "24 hours of volunteering will get you a free ride" redundant. Oh, and I just realized I haven't told you about the best part of this gig yet!

Obviously there was food at the lunch, but there was also ice cream in the form of a hired ice cream truck whose name I will leave out. I was hanging out in the kitchen during the lunch and speeches so I finished eating first. I decided to have an ice cream and went out to the truck. The first thing I noticed was the non existent skirt length of the girl in the truck. Her butt was at my eye level being that the truck was elevated. I figured this in combination with her skimpy skirt couldn't possibly be good and I was right. As she bent down in the freezer to scoop up ice cream, I found myself almost blind. The view left nothing to the imagination and I didn't know if I should tip her in singles or not.

Instead of just getting an ice cream, I got dessert and a show. I didn't tell anyone about this as I figured others would - which they did. The stripper/ice cream scooper got a talking to and had to scoop from the side.

Kitsap Color Classic

 

WOW! Wow wow wow. What can I say. The ride was spectacular. From start to finish.

 

Oddly enough, I wasn't sold on going - even the night before. But, knowing myself, I knew I would end up going anyway so I set my alarm for 6 am, giving me enough time to pack and get going. I hadn't even pre-registered, which was a first.

 

High spandex factor in Edmonds

The guy in blue is holding my bike

Bikes on a ferry - not snakes

Nice ferry staff

Helmets invading the ferry

Anxiously waiting the start of the ride at Kingston

 

Up, I got, packed my gear, and stuffed the bike in the back of the car and headed up to Edmonds. I paid my registration, fastened my bib, and headed down to the ferry dock, which was starting to fill up with riders. I have to give thanks to the ferry crew here for making the ride over flawless and enjoyable. I had planned on riding with a guy, Dave, I met at PROS a couple of weeks back, but didn't know if he was taking the ferry or driving up from Tacoma on the other side. I found him on the ferry. Or rather, he found me.

 

He was riding with another guy, named Eric, so the three of us rode together. Poor Eric was riding a mountain bike/hybrid and we were planning on riding a 14-16 miles pace. He decided to retire the hybrid after the ride was over. Dave was saying that a road bike would make it seem as if he was traveling 10 miles per hour while standing still compared to his current ride.

 

Cascade wasn't kidding when they said the ride starts as soon as you get off the ferry. I did the longest ride option (of course I did).

 

 Combination Hansville + Poulsbo Loop

57 miles

3,844 feet of climbing

Order is: Hansville to Poulsbo then Ferry   



If you love climbs as much as I do, this is the perfect ride. Incidentally, the only food stop we stopped at was the gazebo where I got married at. We took a group photo of our newly founded team.



 

Turns out the man downstairs did the ride as well.

Rider 666

I know I've said that I'm not the stop and smell the roses kind of gal, but this time I couldn't help but notice the breathtaking scenery along the route. I regret not taking more pictures, but I didn't want to get off my bike more than I had to. I wouldn't be me if I didn't make a couple of dietary mistakes. This time it was the repeat offender hydration, but also nourishment.

We were about 30 miles into the ride when my legs started not working well. We were at a slight incline, but not a very steep one. However, I just couldn't seem to get my legs to work properly, then it dawned on me that since we skipped the food stop at Kitsap Bank I hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. Not good. I wolfed down three Cliff gels, which made it possible to make it to the Poulsbo food stop.

I'm such a moron when it comes to eating properly while riding. Need to work on that one.

I will definitely do this ride again. It's convenient - 30 minutes from my home, and the ferry ride is a definite bonus. We did the ride in a little under 4 hours, averaging 15 miles per hour. Yeay Team Wheels!