Here’s the book my 8 year old son picked out from the school library to read with me tonight. It is Furnace Creek Eve Eve lol.
Tonight’s Book
3
Check-in/OK message from Spot Sample 6 SPOT Messenger
Spot Sample 6
Latitude:33.79267
Longitude:-117.84003
GPS location Date/Time:10/04/2012 09:17:41 PDT
Message:Hey, It’s George “Red-Eyed Vireo” Vargas and I’m racing the Furnace Creek 508 race. Follow me!
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/9vi9K/33.79267N/117.84003W
If the above link does not work, try this link:
Spot Sample 6
You have received this message because Spot Sample 6 has added you to their SPOT contact list.
Every day is an Adventure. Share Yours.
http://www.findmespot.com
Final Week– Countdown 2012 Furnace Creek 508 T- Minus 45 hours
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The 2012 Furnace Creek 508 is 1 day and 21 hours days away.
I want to give a shout out to Brad Horton from SPOT Messenger. This year I will be carrying a SPOT Messenger either on me or in the crew vehicle during direct support at night so you can track me on my seventh Furnace Creek 508 via the Global Positioning System (GPS).
Here is a link to a search on my blog of previous rides I did while doing a demo of the Spot Messenger during the 2011 season. When I’m all set up I will provide you with a link to follow me on the race course. You will be able to get my most current location within 10 minutes!
Nota Bene – the Spot Messenger updates on a prescribed timed interval and draws a straight line from the last known point to the current known point. In other words, you might see some straight lines going through dirt or through a large rock formation because it won’t track me on the paved road that took me around said rock formation. Be assured, the Furnace Creek 508 is raced on paved roads. However, paved is a term I use loosely on all roads after Baker time station Mile 382.
I’m very excited to provide this feature to you my readers. Pass it along to your friends. Please show support for my sponsor SPOT!
I will be carrying the units at my store B&L Bikes and Sport.
Here is what the unit looked like in 2011.
Go Vireo!
Final Week– Countdown 2012 Furnace Creek 508 T- Minus 55 hours
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The 2012 Furnace Creek 508 is two days away.
| Click | Race Date | Total Entrants | Solo Finishing Rate | Team Finishing Rate |
 |
October 6-8, 2012 | 241 | TBA | TBA |
|
October 8-10, 2011 | 217 | 49 of 67 = 73.1% | 146 of 150 = 93.33% |
|
October 2-4, 2010 | 202 | 57 of 82 = 69.5% | 110 of 120 = 91.67% |
|
October 3-5, 2009 | 179 | 29 of 59 = 49.1% | 98 of 120 = 81.67% |
|
October 4-6, 2008 | 211 | 67 of 81 = 82.7% | 128 of 130 = 98.5% |
|
October 6-8, 2007 | 192 | 44 of 78 = 56.4% | 114 of 114 = 100% |
|
October 7-9, 2006 | 179 | 50 of 75 = 66.67% | 100 of 104 = 96.15% |
I have been participating in the Furnace Creek 508 since 2006. It’s very interesting to look back at the finishing rate over the years. In the six previous years only 296 out of 442 (66.25%) Solo riders have successfully finished the race. I guess that’s why it’s called “the toughest 48 hours in sport”.
Why am I looking at these stats? Well because my training this year has been interrupted and preempted by so many life issues. But ‘m not worried that I will DNF. On the contrary, I’m looking at these numbers and saying to myself “I have finished this event six consecutive times. I have finished in spite of my nutrition, pacing and sleep deprivation issues. I have finished against the heat, the winds, and the chill of night …I will finish again.”
Go Vireo!
Final Week– Countdown 2012 Furnace Creek 508
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The 2012 Furnace Creek 508 is less than a week away. I will attempt to post daily to give you an idea of the things I do on my final week of preparation for the “toughest 48 hours in sport”.
Today I usually do a stock take of my gear. I have a blue storage container that has been affectionately named “the 508 kit” and also as “the big blue bin”. In it I store the reusable and non-perishable items needed for the 508. Such as:
1. Safety Lights
2. Totem Signs
3. Duct Tape
4. Bungee Cords
5. Dry Ease message board
6. Fix-A-Flat- for the crew vehicle
7. Crew loose leaf binder – Or what I call the 508 Race Bible
8. Admin supplies pens, pencils, highlighters
9. Booster Cables
10. Cleaning Supplies– Paper Towels, Simple Green, Trash bags, Zip Lock bags (assorted sizes)
11. Rags, work gloves, and/or food handling gloves
I then air up all my tires on my tubular race wheels, take them for a spin and then check them in the morning to see how much pressure loss if any, they’ve had overnight.
Today being October 1 and the first day of Breast Cancer Awareness Month I changed my bar tape from black to pink. My mother died from breast cancer a few years ago and it’s my way of remembering her during the 40 hours of racing at the 508.
Racers of the 508 please join me in sporting pink bar tape in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
This is PRO bar tape and it’s quite ornate 😉
Everyone needs a super hero to believe in 😉 Who is your superhero?
OC Gran Fondo Event Report VIP George Vargas
I’d like to thank the Ride Director for the OC Gran Fondo, Cameron Jackson, for a wonderful experience as the VIP of the event. I was treated with VIP parking, a VIP lounge with breakfast and guests before the event, rolling to the head of the massive group (nearly 1,000), and a shout-out before the starting gun. All the while, I thought what’s all this fuss about? But as I reflected for a few minutes just before the start this recognition isn’t unearned or unwarranted. It is nine years of suffering on the bike and consistently finishing or winning some of the hardest events race director’s evil and twisted minds have ever conceived.
I rode my Pinarello tandem, Penelope, with Lori. I liked the route. The OC Gran Fondo took me on streets I hadn’t been on before and that’s hard to do for a guy who often rides centuries for training. The route made good use of the few hills Orange County has to offer i.e. Cannon, Saddleback Ranch and Santiago Canyon in both directions.
We rolled out with a police escort for a few miles. When the motorman pulled off the pace picked up steadily and continued to increase on the Santa Ana River Trail. By MIle 20 the lead group had thinned out to fewer than 10 riders. And by the time we hit Cannon we were fewer than five. Cannon (Mile 33) is one steep bugger. It’s not a long climb but as a tandem we were at a disadvantage climbing the 10% grade. I let the group go and was more than ok with not chasing them down.
Over the next 40 miles we rode conservatively because of the heat and the climbing. We blew through the first few SAG stops. Our first stop was Mile 82. I think Lori and I could have done the whole century unsupported with the water and food we had with us from the start. I had 1000 calories with me in liquid, gel and semi-solid forms.
The course was well marked. Unfortunately, there were few “Hooligans” on the course that moved signs and even removed signs off the course. It was in the last few miles that these shenanigans were taking place. We lost about 15 minutes trying to figure out where we were and how to get back on course. But all’s well that ends well. We finished in about 5 1/2 hours (7am start) and proceeded to enjoy a great recovery pasta meal! I’d like to quote my friend, Richard’s Facebook comment on my finishing photo “a century before lunch is pretty good going”. Indeed!
One last note if you took a picture with me either before or after the event please send me an email with the photo so I can post it on this blog report.
vireo508@gmail.com
Thank you OC Gran Fondo for a great day on the bike.
FURNACE CREEK 508
Ok so what’s next for George “Red-Eyed Vireo” Vargas? My seventh consecutive Furnace Creek 508 solo is next weekend. The race begins in the Santa Clarita/Valencia area on Saturday October 6th and continues non-stop until all 508 miles and 35,000 feet of climbing are completed. Please follow my blog and Facebook to stay abreast of my progress. Don’t expect much since I have not been able to train as I used to in years past. The Furnace Creek 508 website will also be a great source on tracking me and the other racers.
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George “Red-Eyed Vireo” Vargas with Lori Hoechlin
George “Red-Eyed Vireo” Vargas with Jennifer Koles and Carol Barger
I’m seriously considering the Bianchi Oltre as my next bike!!
Bianchi Oltre as a complete build
Pasta Feed at Finish of OC Gran Fondo
OC Gran Fondo Finish
Using my iPhone 4S with iOS6 and panorama feature
OC Gran Fondo start with Lennie
2012 Furnace Creek 508 – Crew Announcement
It is with great pleasure that I present the crew for my 2012 Furnace Creek 508. This will be my seventh consecutive 508, a feat not ever accomplished. This will also be the least amount of training I have ever had going into the event. My crew will have their hands full getting me to the finish line. I owe my success on my previous six 508’s to my crews. Without a good crew I would not have finished. I am happy with my selection for this year’s crew and I know this year my success will be in their hands. I thank Christina Rose, Gregory and Roland from the bottom of my heart for their selfless act of volunteering for this Epic Adventure!
This is the year that I have dusted off my athletic goals and decided it’s never too late to get out there and go for it! My first significant goal I accomplished in 2012 was the Camp Pendleton Mud Run, which was so much fun I can’t wait to do it again next year. My next goal is set for March, 2013 to finish a triathlon. In the meantime, I’ve done several 5K runs, a sprint relay triathlon and will be doing a half marathon. But it’s time to work more on my swimming and cycling of which I just got my first serious bike, yeah!Over this past year in my pursuits, I have crossed paths with some of the most extraordinary people, none more than George. I have come to know that he is an inspiration to so many, including myself, and I’m looking forward to the experience of this true “epic adventure.” I love the idea of being a part of something and the whole “team” concept of working as one for a winning outcome. The journey is going to push our limits but I am so confident, honored, excited and ready to work with this crew to get George across that finish line in his best time yet!
Christina Rose
I started riding 12 months ago after a long hiatus from the sport. I was inspired to ride by my frustration with my weight and general health. What started as short ride down the coast with a friend turned into a passion. I’m not the fastest rider out there, but I love epic rides. In the past year I’ve lost 37 pounds, ridden two double centuries, with a third on the calendar, completed all five passes of the Death Ride and had some epic rides in the San Gabriel mountains (I love Dawson Saddle and GMR). Next year I’m going to keep extending my rides longer and longer until I stop having fun. If I keep having fun along the way then I’ll tackle the 2013 London – Edinburgh – London ride. In addition to riding, I’ve got a beautiful wife and two beautiful children aged 4 and 6. My eldest has started to ride the local bike path with me and already knows the difference between good and bad pain. I also skipper a Catalina 37 sailboat in the summers and run my daughter’s Girl Scout troop. I’m so excited to support George in his 2012 Furnace Creek 508 attempt, because when I first started riding I put the 508 on my list of “big hairy audacious goals”. Now, maybe after watching and supporting George’s attempt I can have a go at it myself. Go George!
– Gregory
Roland von Kriegenbergh, 1969, Software Engineer, born in Zurich, Switzerland, lives in Temecula, California.
I was born and raised in Switzerland where I raced bicycles on the road and on the track for most of my teen years. In 1998, my wife Nicole and I moved to California to enjoy its abundant sunshine, deserts and beaches. In 2009, while teaching our son (and later his sister) how to ride a bike, I rediscovered my passion for cycling after almost 20 years off the bike. During one of my first centuries, I noticed someone wearing a yellow California Triple Crown jersey that said ‘200 miles in one day. 3 Doubles in one year’. I thought she was crazy and told myself I would never ride ‘200 miles in one day’ in my life. A couple of years later, I finished 3 Double Centuries (Death Valley, Solvang, Grand Tour Malibu) and got my own Triple Crown jersey. I guess I am as crazy!
Crewing for George, one of the most experienced 508 riders in history, will be a great learning experience for my own ultra-rides that go beyond 200 miles in the future. It will teach me the course, show me the ups and downs a rider goes through and what’s required from a crew.
My goal is to help George make it all the way to the finish line just like in his previous six 508 finishes.
George's Epic Adventures 