This saturday. Any other RBR members doing the ride?

My ex, who used to be an RBR visitor from time-to-time, will be there. Short hair, female, on a LOOK, fairly strong, probably wearing an OUT Spokin' jersey (from Colorado). How's the forecast?

I have a note from my mom that say's I am too sane to attend.

Have done it a few times in the past with my wife and kid.

Have Fun!

This will be my first time. Forecast calls for 85-90 with probably a million percent humidity. Wind is supposed to be light and out of the south. Hopefully will be from the west because the wind never seems light in Indiana cornfields.

Any recommendation on when to line up? I don't want get so far up front that I get with those racing the ride but don't want to be stuck in the back with those poking along.

I will be there for my first time too. I hope the rain holds off or at least not like it was yesterday!!

I have heard the start is just insane. Not sure of the time to line up, but it will be a mess for a while. I know a lot of people just group up at the 40 mile rest stop because they can't stay together at the start.

I'll be on a late 90's carbon tubed Trek 2100. Should not be a problem to find with only 1,006 riders pre-signed up as of July 7th. :mad2:

I will either be in a Indy Cycle Specialist (blue) jersey or a vintage Proflex (white) jersey.
I really need some more clothes!

Hey crum, you a roadie only? I often visit the HMBA board too.

Hey crum, you a roadie only? I often visit the HMBA board too.
I occasionally visit the HMBA board and ride Town Run. Admittedly, the MTB is mainly used for urban assault and greenway riding with my non-roadie friends. A few nasty crashes at TRTP convinced me to get a road bike.

I too shouldn't be hard to spot. I'll be on a red Spec Allez Elite, the bike I usually see 2-3 of at CIBA rides. My jersey will be a red, blue and yellow Hincapie sportswear jersey. At least its a little different.

Any recommendation on when to line up? I don't want get so far up front that I get with those racing the ride but don't want to be stuck in the back with those poking along.

Remember my time comments are from a couple of years ago before Daylight Savings Time was introduced in Indiana. Adjust as appropriate if start is other than 6:00am also note that my mileage marks for rest stops are old too and may have changed. (edit - just noticed start is at 7:00am and adjusted times below)

Note for the hotel. Before you go down to the breakfast buffet load your bike. The elevators are a mess as it gets closer to everyone's departure time (all at once). One hint might be to use the stairwell. We take the tandem and do not have that luxury so the other trick is to press the UP button, get on and ride the elevator up and then we have our spot secured in the elevator as it goes back down.

The ride has always started promptly at 7:00am and depending n Joe's watch sometimes a couple of minutes early. Plan to have your car parked by 6:30am. This allows time for unloading the bike, stocking the bottles and pockets, unloading the bladder, etc. About 6:45am or so start working your way towards the start line. Don't be shy about moving around people (pretend you are in a crit. start) and tell them you are meeting your teamates (or wife) up front. They will let you through because the real racers are way up front and the other wannabe racers/fitness/tourist riders are still polite. If any one complains remind them it is not a race (yeah right).

Once the ride starts pick yourself a fairly clean group of riders to hang with. It will be a giant paceline for the first 40 miles with that many riders doing a mass start. No need to rush as it is a long way across the state but in the same light there is no reason to pass up a free ride in the draft. If the group you are with is too fast just safely drift out and find the next group that is your pace. Do not kill yourself hanging with the wrong group as you will need that energy later. Be careful as there are some strong (but squirelly) riders until things thin out. Absolutely do not get in the aerobars the first 40 miles and if you are following someone's wheel that insist on riding aerobars in a pack get far, far away. People are excited in the morning and do stupid things. Later on people are tired and do stupid things but they are well spread out by then.

Depending on the heat and your needs our family often stuffs their pockets with food and an extra water bottle and skip the crowded 40 mile rest stop. If you need to pee catch a cornfield rather than waiting in line for a portapot. We usually make our first stop at rest stop #2 at 65 miles and that is the first place we meet our SAG driver. We keep this stop brief as time off the bike just adds to the length of an already long day. At lunch we make a little longer stop to relax off the bike a bit and eat some real food.

A few hints for your SAG driver. When dropping off the rider early Saturday morning when you just start to see cars parked turn around and park so you are facing West and not too close to the start line. This will make your escape from the starting area easier once your rider leaves and a few extra hundred meters wont matter to your rider (yet). After the rider leaves head back to Terre Haute and sit down and have a nice breakfast. They should not need to see you until the first rest stop (40mi) at the earliest and realistically not until rest stop number 2 (65mi). DO NOT FOLLOW YOUR RIDER on the route. Use the designated Personal Service Vehicle map in your riders registration package.

A few more hints for the SAG driver. Rather than facing the mess of bikes and cars at the rest stops park your car 2 or 3 miles before the SAG stop and your rider can find you and get what they need without the chaos of rest stop. Take a chair and a book as you will be sitting around a lot and some sunscreen. Wear a unique T-Shirt so you stand out from all the people wearing the official support vehicle T-Shirt. A pair of binoculars can be nice. Put an extra car key in your pocket as it is easy for a tired rider to close a door and lock you out of the car. Also know your riders number as it is easier to work with the officials if necessary. Pack a phone charger too. When packing food and drinks for your rider be sure to pack something for yourself too.

Speaking of food and drink. Lots of water and energy drinks. Gels help although some real food is good too. By about mile 120 you are going to be tired of "bike" stuff and will want some variety. Pack some extra stuff so that you might have whatever you are craving. For me I usually pack an ice tea, root beer, coke, ginger ale and a couple flavors of gatorade. One year I had an awful craving for a Milky Way so now one is usually in the cooler. A variety of crackers and pretzels, etc. as your stomach might get a little iffy later in the ride. Pack a wash cloth to wipe off the sweat along the road when you stop and don't forget to reapply sunscreen part way, perhaps at lunch.

Below are some times (adjusted for daylight savings). As I recall this was a fast year as it was my wife and me on the tandem. Adjust as necessary for yourself but it should give your SAG driver an approximate idea when to meet you at the rest stops. Note that after you have traveled around the south side of Indy and return to US40 it is nice to see your SAG driver every 10 miles. A longer distance gets depressing and a shorter distance gets even more depressing. Sometimes you don't even stop but just knowing they are there helps mentally.

5:30am park car
5:45am ride bike as far front as possible (avoid the first 50-75 riders who are true maniacs)
7:00am Start
8:15am 25 mile mark
8:58am 40 miles (first rest stop)
10:14am 65 miles (second rest stop)
11:42 90 miles (lunch)
1:19pm rejoin US 40 after looping south of Indy
2:15pm 131 miles (third rest stop)
3:44pm 159 miles (finish-YEAH!)

Good Luck and post a ride report.

I have a note from my mom that say's I am too sane to attend RAIN.
The same note also applies to Toga Parties.