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Home→Bike Ride→My Day at the 2009 Hotter’n Hell Hundred

My Day at the 2009 Hotter’n Hell Hundred

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The weather was abnormally cool. The riders were large in number. I saw ride # 13899 at one point. I was thinking this would be the year to maybe ride the 100 mile route even though I would miss the ride through Sheppard Air Force Base and the cheering air force personnel.

Well my plans changed at about mile 40 when I was involved in a crash. You can see some of it in part 2 of the videos. I was not injured to the point that I could not ride but I was feeling some pain. The nurses/doctors at the ABB rest stop cleaned up my road rash and put some the mesh bandage on my arm and left knee. I start to look like one of the riders in the Tour de France now.

With my change in plans I turned off at Hell’s Gate and took the 75 mile route. The rest of the ride was fine since the wind was out of the ENE which meant a tailwind most of the time to the finish. The temperature at the end was 85 deg. according the to sign atop a building downtown. This indeed was a mild one. Last year was mild as well, not over 100. Is this a trend?

I decided to divide the video into three sections. This year I think I captured the flyover of the jets from Sheppard AFB as the Star Spangled Banner was ending.

Comments

My Day at the 2009 Hotter’n Hell Hundred — 15 Comments

  1. Sorry you crashed, glad you finished and you’re not seriously hurt. HHH is on my short list of “goal” rides. Maybe next year. We need to get together and do that Splendora loop one of these days…

  2. I’m glad you had a good HHH despite your mishap, and I am very glad you got good medical care. The final official HHH count was 14,203 riders.

    Keith Williamson, MD
    (HHH medical director)

  3. In 1999 I was lucky enough to be in OKC for a 3 week period of training that included the weekend of the HH100. I had friends in Burkburnnet that put me up just 5 yards west of the east bound turn under the intersate as you leave town. It was nice to see some of the sights again. Glad you weren’t hurt too bad and thanks for the postings!

  4. I am moving about. We are on vacation and I drove to Branson, MO on Sunday. I moving around and the road rash is healing but there is the usual stiffness as the scab forms. Thanks for commenting. with the short supply of housing it helps to have friends with a place to ride from.

  5. Thanks for commenting. The ride was great even though I crashed. Thanks for the count update. Even with this large number I did not notice any rest stop short of supplies. I didn’t know someone with HHH would notice my blog.

  6. It is good to have some future goals. I have ridden so many of the HHH I can’t remember. When I went to the first one the riding buddy I went with and I decided to camp out at the state park not realizing how hot it gets. That was the only time we camped outdoors. If you decide to go and want a hotel room don’t wait until January to try and make a reservation. If you go by yourself there is the indoor camping at a number of places.

    Last weekend I ran into (not literally) a rider who lives just west of Splendora. At first I thought it might be you. Let me know when you will be in the area.

  7. Thanks for the video. I just rode my first HHH. I’ve been riding all of about 2 months, and not very serious at that- usually a 12.5 mile course that I cover in about 45 minutes (down from about 52 minutes on my first try). Last week some friends asked me to go on an early morning trek- 45 miles. After that, I changed my mind about the HHH which was previously kind of a far-off wish. I’m stupid- 49yrs old and not that great of shape, though I have good genes and a former casual athlete. I got a shooting pain in my left knee right past my first stop at 20 miles. 5 miles later another huge flash. Rest of the way I kind of used my left leg at 80% and eschewed the 100k route and headed left to Electra (sp?). Loved that stop, with all the flags. Made Hells Gate at 12:15. At mile 80, First Aid game me two Tylenol and a woman there from the Texas Guard (Penny?) massaged my knee, told me it was tenditis from my lack of training, but would not be any long-term deal. That made me feel better about the knee. Finished the deal at 4:15. I estimate I spent about 2hrs at rest stops. Crossed the starting line at 7:30am, so my average riding speed (not counting the rests) was probably about 15mph. I think if I trained, I could ride a little faster and eliminate the length of some of my stops. Didn’t really know what to expect on this, so I was pacing myself so I wouldn’t cramp up, lose my knee, or hit some kind of wall. A lot of fun!

  8. Great comment. Thanks. Sometimes we do not know what we can do until we test our limits. I hope your knee recovers. I can remember back in 1979 I thought a long ride was 10-12 miles. Then I learned about the League of American Wheelmen and their century rides. A while later I went on my first century. No fancy century but an un-supported one. My wife met me at the designated end spot at the Jack-in-the-Box in Cleveland, TX. I was cooked and well done at that. I crawled into the car and she drove me home. I don’t remember how long it took to get over the soreness.

    I have had other experiences, some great, some not so good. I have been in several crashes but continue to ride.

    I will wait to hear about your ride at the 2010 HHH.

  9. Thanks. The legs feel fine- actually surprised I’m not more sore. Saturday evening I was wiped out and a lot of nausea- I felt like I was maybe missing solid food, but also felt like couldnt hold something down. My wife’s friend is an RN and suggested boiled eggs and cottage cheese products and pineapple. That was just what the doctor ordered! Then I slept long. Sunday, still very tired and I took a long afternoon nap. Now, I feel pretty good.

    Quick question- I saw something somewhere about a Mineral Wells ride. I know they have an old railroad that turned into a state park trail between there and Weatherford that you can ride your bike on. Does that route have any part of the ride? Do you know anything about the Mineral Wells ride? I’ll Google it of course, but just wondering if you’ve done it.

    Oh, and the crashes part that you mentioned. I havent had any yet, but it sounds like for anyone that has been riding any length of time, it’s not a matter of if, but when, and how many and how bad. Did yours involve cars? other riders? Any suggestions on avoiding them?

  10. I have not heard of the eggs and cottage cheese and pineapple cure for after ride crude. I have keep that in mind.

    The Mineral Wells ride does not sound familiar. You can always check with Keith Burgess-Jackson ride notes. He rides almost every ride in that area, along with many others.

    The crashes I mentioned have been in this order: self induced with other riders and SUV side-swipe. As far as avoiding them; don’t ride. Since that is not acceptable to me you just have to be alert to your surroundings, listen and use a good rear view mirror. When you do crash, rest a few days and then go for a ride.

  11. Thanks for posting the video. This was my 1st Hotter’n Hell and was my fastest century (4:45). I arrived at Wichita Falls from Dallas (2:30 drive) at 5:45AM. I could not get any accommodation around Wichita Falls. I started out with the front group, not too far from the start line. It was an incredible start. Hundred or thousand of cyclists started out very fast (24MPH). I was able to join them to start the journey. I only stopped once at mile 60 to get water. The group got separated during the course. I was able to rejoin with different groups to retain the 20+ pace. You could not do that with other century rides (limited number of fast riders). I did not encounter the cheering and big crowds at the finish line (11:45AM). I did not stay there for too long due to a long trip back to Dallas. In the same day we headed out from Dallas to Houston (5:00PM). It was a long driving and riding on Saturday. I will be back next time but I need to get the accommodation in Wichita Falls. It was a long trip from Memphis, TN to Dallas and Wichita Falls. I probably need to reserve the hotel a year in advance. Do you know what date they have Hotter’N Hell next year?

  12. You are a fast rider and with all of the driving an enduring one too. Thanks for the comment. Next year’s ride will be the last August Saturday before Labor Day. In 2010 this will be August 28th. Yes, you are right about the hotel situation. You should make reservations now but no later than January if you want to have some kind of choice. There is the option to use what is called indoor camping. I have used this many times. The price is right and if you can sleep in a large dorm it is not a bad choice. It usually includes a good breakfast.

  14. Just happened upon this blog. This was definetly the year for a fast HH100. My goal was small-just break the 5 hour mark which with the help of friends we accomplished. 2010 maybe the 4:30 is the new goal.

    I make this an annual get away and I’ve been going to Wichita Falls since 1990. I missed 92, 93, 94 but never since. Experience camping out near the MPEC sometime-that’s quite an experience.

    Crashes are commonplace given that many people and most of them being less than experienced cyclists. Keep alert and don’t overlap “anyone’s” wheel they will dart out without so much as looking. But for rides, this is the best in the state by far. I love HHH weekend.

    If you ride in the Fort Worth look up our club http://www.fwbaclub.org for our weekend rides. I always say “just keep pedaling.”

  15. Thanks for visiting the blog. Like you I have ridden the HH100 for many years. I have camped out at the state park when it was 100 degrees so I can identify with your MPEC experiences. You are right about 2009 being a perfect year to ride. Time will tell whether 2010 will be a repeat.

    For the last several years my wife and I have enjoyed visiting Wichita Falls as a vacation.

    Crashes are common in group rides because of the different skill levels and too much action. I have not rode in Fort Worth for sometime. The last time was on the Cowtown Classic.

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