Whew. Michael and I completed RAMROD (Ride Around Mt. Rainier in One Day) on the tandem, despite record heat. For those not familiar with the ride, it is a 154-mile, one day event which completely circles a 14,000 foot volcano in Washington state. Usually it is lovely. One legendary year it snowed on the mountain during the ride (in July!) This year it started at a comfortable 78 degrees F before dawn at the base of the mountain, and hit 100 degrees before 11am. There is a long, long exposed climb up a south-facing slope midday, but breezes across the pass when you finally make it to the top. Unfortunately, the denouement after the final pass was a descent into a blast furnace; it was well over 100F at the finish line in the afternoon.
Our ride this year was a complete success, if by “success” you mean “finished the ride,” “avoided heat-related illness,” and “were still speaking with each other.” The organizers provided fantastic support – handing out ice-filled tube socks at the base of the longest, hottest climb was a stroke of genius.
File in the category of “things we can check off our list and don’t need to do again.”
Afterward I modified the t-shirt design … just a little…
