Cup Chasers Finish A COLD Arrowhead 135!

Congratulations to multiple Cup earner, Dennis Grelk, for his 3rd place finish in a VERY cold Arrowhead 135 Ultra Marathon Bike Race! We're looking forward to his report when his fingers thaw!

And Ames ultra-cyclist, Nick Wethington finished an incredible 18th! His brief report is below. Congratulations to Nick and Dennis for finishing this grueling event - as well as Iowan Lance Andre for his efforts in the Arrowhead - made even more difficult by his moving to Florida for some "cold weather" training! While he finished, enduring the -34 degree temps, he was disqualified for 'ride' (??) We'll look forward to an explenation from him on that one... anyway - congrats to them all!!

Now for Nick's report:

Dave,

I finished the Arrowhead 135, making that my first of hopefully many
centuries this year. That puts me at one metric and one full for the
year. The Arrowhead was great, and even though it took me forever I'm
so excited to go next year I want to start getting my gear ready
right now. Camped out one night when it was below -30 degrees F, and
that put cold in perspective for me. It was about 35 degrees
yesterday, and I rode home from work with no gloves or hat, feeling
like it was a balmy day in summer.

Anyway, I hope to get another metric and full this month after a
little bit of recovery time, so I'll keep you posted. Thanks!

~Nick Wethington

and from Tim Reikena:

Dave,

Got in another metric yesterday along with 20+ riders. Not sure how many riders went the full 62 miles, but there were quite a few. The ride was the "Chucky's Challenge - Groundhog Ride" and started/finished in Jamesport, MO.

The weather was perfect with temperatures past 65 degrees. A little windy, but not bad. The figure-8 route was hilly, flat, and then really hilly. Most of the roads were dusty-dry, but one hill was so steep, the angle of the sun never got to it. Soft and muddy. Rumor was that only one Expert rider rode up it.

A unique aspect of this ride was that it took us deep into Amish country. Many homes were passed that didn't have electricity running to the house. Everyone waved and were friendly. Horses and buggies everywhere. The group I was riding with actually had to pass a horse drawn wagon at mile 10. Everyone was cool with it and made sure the horses didn't get spooked.

The most intriguing part of the ride were the "Amish" dogs. I've ridden
thousands of road/gravel miles here in North Missouri and I know how dogs can be. At times, they can be aggressive and cause accidents. Most riders I know have been bit at least once.

Any dog (and there were many) on an Amish farm showed interest in us, but was friendly. They never once barked in a threatening manner, or looked at our spinning feet like they were trying to judge when to take a bite. It made the ride even more enjoyable.

Riding with a group must have helped me sustain a better effort because my average was 11.5 MPH - faster than the other metrics I've done this year.

Thanks again,

Tim Riekena