RAMROD is pain in the (blank)

By Dave Kannas

Pain is often an overused term for what is nothing more than living. How often have you heard that such and such is a "pain in the _______?" You fill in the appropriate word. What we really mean in most cases is that we merely dislike such and such or so and so. Real pain, on the other hand, is different.

Biking has it moments of pain that sometimes extend into hours. While falling off the bike can be painful in an immediate sense with residual pain that may well extend into the future depending on the severity of injury, training for and doing a decidedly difficult ride can create a different level of pain.

I resolved to train for and complete the Redmond Cycle Club RAMROD early this year. RAMROD is Ride Around Mount Rainier in One Day, which occurred on July 31st. This year's ride was the 25th anniversary of the ride. I was motivated to do the ride for two reasons: To join the club of those who have done it. And the primary reason which was to be able to wear the very attractive RAMROD jersey.

A bit about the RAMROD just to give a sense of what it is. It follows a circular route from Enumclaw to the south to Eatonville, into Mount Rainier National Park, up to Paradise, to and over Cayuse Pass and back to Enumclaw. It covers 154 miles and includes 10,000 feet of climbing. No small feat by any standard. You could compare it to any difficult mountain stage in the Tour de France and not be too far off the mark. But we did it only on one day, not every day for three weeks.

You may recall that I said that I didn't plan to do the Seattle-To-Portland. Part of the reason for that was that I was in training for RAMROD. The organizers of RAMROD ask that only those who are serious about the ride do it. They aren't joking. And to be serious about doing it starts with training.

I did some group rides with lots of hills, but I did mostly solo rides with lots of hills and with an eye to just sitting on the saddle for long periods. I find that I'm usually sitting on my most vulnerable muscle when biking. You could also say that my most vulnerable muscle is under my helmet given that I would even consider doing RAMROD.

Then came a two-week vacation during which Delores and I went to Minnesota for a family reunion. I did take my bike, but got it out only once to ride. Those familiar with Northern Minnesota know that mountains there are scarce, so not much climbing was done. We returned with four days remaining before the ride.

Five a.m. on July 31st in Enumclaw was cold and a little foggy. I started in the dark with the first group to leave. My handlebars were shaking from my shivering. The first 32 miles to Eatonville were fairly easy with a great sunrise over the mountain and fog on the lakes. There was a coffee and scone stop in Eatonville

It was then a slow climb for 27 miles to the park entrance at 2,030 feet of elevation. The next 18 miles were beautiful although the climbing gears came out as we gained another 2,820 feet to Inspiration Point. The prize after that climb was a 12-mile descent that got my speed up to 45 mph. We then climbed up to Backbone Ridge then down the backside for 5 miles. At this point we reached the 100-mile mark of the ride, a point at which getting off and going home sounded pretty tempting. But it wasn't to be.

Looming before us was the climb to Cayuse Pass. Cayuse Pass, for those who haven't driven up it from either direction, is something to behold and to be respected. It's 9 miles of unrelenting grade to 4,720 feet. This year there was an added feature of road construction, so we got in a little cyclocross. At one point in the climb there was a fairly long tunnel. I rode into it without flipping up my sunglass lenses. The instant dark so disoriented me that I lost balance on the bike. Fortunately my speed wasn't at the heroic level, so I was able to get out of a pedal before hitting the pavement. At the top there were cheers then a speedy 8-mile swoop down the other side. After a quick food stop, it was back on the road for the last 40 or so miles to Enumclaw.

Will I be doing RAMROD again? Not likely. But, who knows, when the pain is forgotten I may reconsider. You can rest assured that I will be wearing my RAMROD jersey with pride and will take more notice of those who wear theirs.

May all your rides be safe and painless. Oh, and mainly downhill.

Dave Kannas may be reached via wsherald@robinsonnews.com