Now that my fitness has been improving, and the France cancellation gave me some free time in the fall, I’ve been looking for a big goal. Having some sort of event on the horizon helps motivate me to stay in shape and keep training. Mitchell had that effect earlier in the year, but during the summer months I tend to languish. I need that dangling carrot to keep myself going.
I found my carrot, and boy, it is a big one!
In October, we’ll be riding the length of the Blue Ridge Parkway, north to south. We’ll start near Charlottesville and Rockfish Gap. We’ll ride the entire mileage of the parkway, including a side trip to the top of Mount Mitchell, in 6 days.
This is a camp that’s being put on through Kinetic Potential Coaching. Not only will this be a tremendous challenge, but it will also be a valuable learning tool. As I write this, Coach Bobby just won a stage at the Cascade Cycling Classic challenge. He also swept the Pisgah Omnium a couple weeks ago. He’s a beast, a great coach, and I’m lucky to have him.
We’ll be staying in comfort at Bed & Breakfast Inns along the way. Bobby will have a couple support vehicles, and will be bringing along a chef to fuel our ride. It sounds expensive, but it’s actually quite reasonable for a trip of this magnitude – far less than what I’ve seen private touring companies charge.
There are still 3 spots open, but a lot of people are on the fence. If you’re interested, send me a note and I’ll get you in touch with the organizers. This should go without saying, but you will need some decent fitness to accomplish this task.
This will be a grand total of 484 miles and 58,000 feet of climbing. For those who have been following my injury progress this year, it might sound like a lot. Frankly, it is, but I’ve recovered to the point that I can actively train for such an endeavor. We expect the healing to continue over the next few months. Most importantly, this will be tremendous training for next year’s Haute Route, which is still on the calendar.
I’ll leave you with a couple Parkway pictures I’ve collected over the years. There will be more of these coming in a few months.
y
SteepClimbs.com 
July 17th, 2013 at 6:08 pm
Great to hear you are getting back to full fitness……
July 17th, 2013 at 8:41 pm
Thanks Frank, getting closer everyday.
July 17th, 2013 at 7:58 pm
The first paragraph is me, absolutely dead on! I’d love to do this trip sometime, and look forward to reading about it.
July 17th, 2013 at 8:43 pm
You rode part of it along the way to Mitchell. Just multiply that climb by 50 and that’s what we’ll be doing. Probably a trip you would enjoy someday.
July 17th, 2013 at 8:57 pm
Great goal, and I’m absolutely certain you will have equal success. Years ago I hiked many sections of trail in the parks along the parkway and can only say hooray for you!! It is beautiful … and very challenging!
July 20th, 2013 at 8:47 am
Would love to hear some of your hiking stories someday. I’m not much of a hiker, but knowing some of the region, I can imagine that it’s just as rewarding as cycling. Thanks for the encouragement. It should be a great time.
July 18th, 2013 at 11:06 pm
This site just became available. Looks like it could be handy. There is also a site that lists all the major climbs on the parkway. I’ll look for it if you haven’t already found the info.
http://www.blueridgeparkwaydaily.com/
Sent from Inside a wet paper bag.
July 20th, 2013 at 8:35 am
Good stuff, Mark! Let me know if you find that site with the climbs of the parkway. I may create something like it after our ride.
July 29th, 2013 at 11:07 pm
I’m so happy for you that you found that juicy carrot to aim for Aaron. Go get ’em!! – Simone 🙂