Tennesee Gravel Triple Crown - In Under a Week
My family and I arrived at the Fireside Outpost on Saturday. Due to the construction on Turkey Creek Rd, I opted to tackle the Tellico Highlands route for my first ride on Sunday. My objective was to complete all three Individual Time Trials (ITTs) within five days while staying at the Fireside Outpost.
Tellico Highlands
I started early in the morning feeling good and energized for the initial climbs. To fully immerse myself in the Tellico Highlands course, I chose my Gravel bike with 47c tires and harder gearing. I had already ridden most of this course a couple of weeks ago during a Vista 300 attempt, so I was reasonably familiar with the route.
During the initial climbs into Green Cove, I struggled to manage my effort to ensure I had enough energy for the River Rd climb. Unfortunately, I found it challenging to maintain a steady pace due to how I was feeling. Despite that, I swiftly passed through Green Cove, making only a brief stop to adjust my seat, which had slipped during one of the downhill sections. I skipped any further breaks and faced the Green Cove Climb with the intention of sustaining a one-hour threshold effort to reach the top. However, halfway up, the heat started to intensify, and I began to feel slightly dizzy. To prevent any complications, I reduced my power output and maintained a steady pace. It was frustrating to encounter this setback despite maintaining proper fueling throughout the ride. I've always struggled with heat due to a severe case of heat exhaustion I experienced out west a few years ago, but I had to accept the circumstances.
Once I reached the Skyway, I knew I was close to my only scheduled stop for the day. I descended swiftly into Indian Boundary and arrived at the store after approximately three and a half hours, as I had calculated. I quickly entered the store, grabbed some cold beverages and an ice cream sandwich, consumed some of the drinks and the ice cream, and promptly got back on my bike. I felt refreshed leaving the store. However, on subsequent downhill sections, I dropped both of my bottles three times, forcing me to retrace my steps and retrieve them. I later discovered that the titanium bottle cages I had imprudently purchased had developed cracks near the bends, compromising their ability to hold the bottles securely.
The double track climb section after Indian Boundary seemed to stretch on endlessly. I realized that I was under-equipped for this portion, but considering the enjoyable sections earlier in the ride and the long descent on the road beforehand, it was a worthwhile trade-off. When I finally descended onto Turkey Creek, I gave it my all, although my energy reserves were depleted. I arrived back at the starting point after 7 hours and 10 minutes. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the Tellico Highlands route. In my opinion, it traverses some of the most picturesque areas among all the routes, with stunning climbs and a thrilling descent on the Skyway.
Dirty 130
On Wednesday, after a couple of days off the bike for a family vacation, I decided to take on the Dirty 130. Although I probably didn't give myself enough recovery time due to all the running around, hiking, and kayaking we did earlier in the week, that's just how life goes! For this ride, I opted for my MTB with a suspension fork, and I'm grateful I made that choice.
I started the challenging climb up Kimsey and immediately felt a lack of energy. My heart rate wouldn't go above 130 bpm. I decided to push on until Mile 34, where I cross the creek near Fireside Outpost, to assess how my body was feeling. I conquered Smith Mountain for the first time, crossed the creek, completed the muddy road, and as soon as I emerged onto Spring Creek Rd., I began to regain my strength and felt fantastic. It seems like I need a two-hour warm-up now before hitting my stride.
I continued to Star Mountain, making decent time on the ascent, and swiftly reached the Cooker Creek store. There, I indulged in three sodas, two ice cream sandwiches, and refilled my bottles with water. Without wasting any time, I pushed forward, heading toward Buck Bald. I managed to generate some good power on the way up, or so I thought. Unfortunately, there was cell signal at the top of Buck Bald, and I found myself attending to a couple of work matters before hopping back on the bike and descending.
Upon entering Reliance again, I felt like I was overheating. I had run out of fluids, and the temperature was rising once more. I quickly made the decision to veer off the route and head to the Reliance Outpost store to replenish my fluids before tackling the last two significant climbs.
I crossed the suspension bridge and began the climb after the power house. I knew I had to stay hydrated and fuel myself properly to avoid hitting the wall during the final ascent up to Smith. I took a brief break midway up the climb and used the ice water I had grabbed at the store to cool myself down before pushing onward.
At the base of the final climb up Kimsey, I maintained a steady pace. I was immensely grateful to have my MTB for this section. It was rough up there! About 3 miles from the top, I called my wife to let her know I was almost finished, which gave me a surge of motivation to push through. I reached the top of the climb and started the exhilarating descent to the finish. My goal was to complete the route in under 12 hours for my first attempt, and I believe there's plenty of room for improvement on a cooler day with fresher legs. I'll definitely be back to conquer it again!
Death March
I saved the DMR route for last on my agenda, and once again, I opted for a MTB, which was the obvious choice for this particular route. Similar to the Dirty 130, it took me some time to get warmed up. The beginning, at 11 am, was oppressively humid! I had some foot issues from kayaking the day before; I had scraped my right foot on a sharp rock and had it bandaged up. Fortunately, I discovered a BOA tension on my shoe that didn't irritate the injury, allowing me to apply pressure to the pedals without pain.
Around 20 miles into the ride, I was being mercilessly attacked by bugs to the point where my lower back was extremely irritated from their bites. I decided to stop, took off my jersey, and applied Murphy's bug bite balm to soothe my back. Additionally, I applied Murphy's bug deterrent to the outside of my bibs, neck, and helmet. This proved to be a successful remedy, and I continued my journey. I reached Watson Gap, and the scenery started to feel familiar from my time on the TNGA last year. The next 30 miles consisted of numerous short, steep climbs before the massive descent to Mulberry Gap.
I arrived at Mulberry Gap around 2 pm, completely depleted of water. After taking a moment to cool off, have lunch, and refill my fluids, I resumed the route, ready to tackle the climb back up to Potato Patch. Despite managing my effort due to the heat, my legs felt surprisingly strong! I received encouragement from a UPS driver at the base of the climb, and luckily, I had grabbed a handful of gels at Mulberry Gap, which I consumed one every 15 minutes throughout the climb.
The top of the climb was refreshing with its cool shade, and I even experienced chills as I descended the other side. The stretch from the top of the climb to Mile 72 seemed to fly by.
Upon reaching the bottom, I stumbled upon a Visitors Center/Game Station that had a cold water spigot on the side of the building, so I quickly refilled my bottles there. I kept moving, breezing past the double back turn up Big Frog Road. My Garmin had been acting up all day, so I took a brief stop to figure out the correct direction before getting back on track. After conquering the climb up Big Frog, I maximized the descent, but as I rounded a corner, I came face-to-face with the largest hog I had ever seen. Initially, I mistook it for a large black bear, but then realized it was a hog. Thankfully, it scurried off without any issue, but I continued on, slightly spooked.
The final stair-step climb pushed me to my limits as my legs cramped and my body grew exhausted. However, I persevered and reached the top, commencing my descent to the finish. I hadn't encountered many cars on the route until this last descent. There was a significant amount of traffic coming up the climb, and I narrowly avoided being doored by a stationary Toyota Camry that appeared to have insufficient clearance to make it up the road. I remained vigilant and arrived at the finish in one piece after 9.5 hours—a bit slower than I had hoped. Nevertheless, I believe I enjoyed the DMR the most out of all the routes. Perhaps it was because I took the time to appreciate the scenery more or because the route was predominantly free of pavement. The DMR is undeniably a beautiful and challenging ride.
Finaly ITT Triple Crown time: 28h-36m
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