Gainesville's Godforsaken 400k
Last weekend [March 8, ed.] Ken McDaniel and I met in Gainesville, Florida, to do the GCC 400k.
We both arrived around 6PM and immediately took our bikes to the host hotel for the mandatory bike inspection. There we met Jim Wilson and his wife Meegan who helped us finish registration and answered a few last minute questions.
Since the ride was to begin at 4AM, we had a quick dinner (and a beer for me) at a local hotspot, Gainesville Ale House, and then it was off to bed.
At 2:30 we ate a quick breakfast at Waffle House before heading over to the ride start. It was colder than we had anticipated (37o). Ken repeated more than once that we thought we were supposed to be in Florida! At the ride start, I noticed 21 other riders; all were dressed appropriately.
The start saw the pack quickly break into different groups with our first group consisting of five riders. Our new teammates were Cabe C, Allessandro ('Alex') M, and Jorge L. The early start gave me three hours to try out my new dynamo hub and lights (which worked flawlessly). We formed a nice paceline which saw us averaging 18+ mph into Control #2 at mile 33. We all appreciated the morning sunrise and the quick warming that soon followed.
The afternoon high was 70o. Alex shouted out at mile 72 that he was out of water! Since our next control was some 55 miles ahead, we needed to find the first store or church.
This is when we realized that we were way out in the boonies. A cyclist in Georgia (or most other places the southeast) may not see a store for some miles, but you must be careful when you spit to avoid hitting a church. In this part of Florida, we didn't see any stores or houses of worship. Ken and I realized there must be nothing but heathens down here in Gator country!
At mile 92 we finally came upon a store. We all stopped to refill and strip off some layers. After a couple of minutes Ken and I were ready to push off, but our three native teammates needed some more time. Ken and I headed out with the idea that they would catch us.
We almost missed the lunch stop at Suwannee Bicycle Association. Fortunately, Jim was looking out for us and flagged us down. Meegan had a beautiful spread of salad, chicken stroganoff, bread and even dessert. Just as we were finishing up our 3 compadres arrived and sat down to eat. So once again Ken and I headed out for the second half of the ride. We had a brisk average of 18.4 mph so we were making excellent time. Could we finish at sunset? Not likely, but we could limit our night riding before we finish if we kept it up.
The wind picked up and was apparently shifting, but we kept up our average. Now I say 'apparently' because again, unlike anywhere else in the southeast, none of the homes or farms were flying any flags. So now we came to the conclusion that we were riding in the unpatriotic and godforsaken land of Florida!
The terrain was flat by Georgia standards but beautifully varied. We passed through groves of pine and moss-covered forests, horse farms and cow pastures and of course swamps and rivers. The route we followed was on good roads that were light on vehicular traffic. We entered Gainesville after dark, but Jim's route kept us off the busy roads and even gave us a a quick tour of the UF campus. My dynamo hub kept my Garmin powered up so I could use my maps page to navigate through the many in-town turns (thank goodness).
Our results: 250 miles, 16h01m (a PR), 18.2 mph on-bike avg. and 3500' of climbing.
A couple of final thoughts. The Wilsons provided an excellent day of riding. The route had both minimal traffic and nice roads. The lunch location and menu was an unexpected pleasure. All of the this was a 5+ hour drive from Atlanta. Jim is already planning a 600k (RT from Gainesville to Tallahassee) for next April -- a ride that I plan on putting on my schedule.
Brian BurkeRUSA #7357
Brian Burke is an avid distance cyclist and an optometrist, practicing in Dawsonville, GA. He received his O.D. from Ohio State and remains an avid OSU fan.