Sounds much more “medical and ominous” than just saying “cramps”doesn’t it? Well, while I was experiencing it, ominous wouldn’t even have come close. Something like excruciating, nightmarish pain; completely off the charts would have been a bit more accurate. I simultaneously had both hamstrings, my left quad, and my right calf all sieze up like someone pulled the emergency cord on a bullet train. In my 10 years of riding, I never had a full blown cramp – only slight cramp type feelings that were able to “work out” by spinning in a lower gear.

Many folks may not realize it, but the century ride I did earlier during my training for the Giretto was my first ever. The only rides I have done for more than around 50 miles in one day were supported with multiple stops for refueling and rest. So when I decided to do the Giretto, it was no small decision – this will be performance at a level I have never even gotten close to.

SO… I bonk last week, and I focus on getting my fueling right the night before and the morning of this weekend’s ride. I did only a modicum of research on electrolyte replacement, as I felt just one tablet in my water bottle would take care of each half of the ride – that turned out to be less than 50% of what I should have taken. Then on top of underestimating the electrolytes needed, I did not believe the rep from Hammer that I needed to drink the quantity of replenishment fluids he recommended. I knew it was more than twice what I normally drink, and I was afraid I would become bloated and upset to my stomach. Consequently, I didn’t take enough with me, didn’t drink enough, and on top of that the temperature reaches the high 80s, making it the hottest ride of the year. At about 3.5 hrs in, I imagine my muscles sending out a distress signal “Houston, we have a problem”.

From the extensive reading I have since done on the issue of cramping (the remainder of my weekend) it is clear that such excessive heat is quite commonly associated with severe cramps. I did not give the weather a second thought, except for how to dress, not for how to adjust my replenishment. To add to the ambient fun, the wind kicked up to ridiculous levels as our direction turned us towards home. At times we were standing on the flats just to stay in double digits for speed.

My first clue that something bad was going to happen was when we were pacelining while Nina was pulling the train through some rollers. I made the mistake on a previous training ride of telling her that if she was going to lose too much momentum on the climb, as the leader, she should drop back and let someone else pull. Hence, she was determined not to lose much of any speed coming up the hills this time. In fact, it seemed like she went faster as we climbed further. In an effort to not get “dropped” by my “little girl”, I cranked the pedal too hard for my muscle’s condition at the time, and it seized up. I was forced to stop pedaling immediately, and had to catch up after about 30 seconds of recovery. I was proud of Nina putting the hammer down, but didn’t think too much of the cramp given that it didn’t last long.

The next “warning sign” came as my left hamstring (which I had been nursing the week before) started to cramp – my first full blown cramp where I had to get off the bike and walk it out. After it passed, I got back on the bike and my buddy Bill stayed with me as we rode for a few more miles. As we finished just under 60 miles and 6,000 feet of climbing (with an average of 15mph) it happened. All 4 muscles I mentioned above seized up like alligator jaws on pig bait. I jumped off the bike and must have looked like a lunatic, screaming in pain and walking randomly through a local resident’s front and back yard like the scare crow since my leg muscles couldn’t bend. My heart rate kept rising till I could hardly breath, and finally I collapsed in the grass praying that the pain would stop. It wasn’t a pretty sight. I laid on my back and couldn’t move for the next 20 minutes. Once my muscles released, I told the group to go on ahead and come back in the truck to pick me up. I could hardly walk for the next several hours.

I debated sharing the gory details with my readers. Will they think I’m an idiot? I should have known better, etc. This actually may all be true, but I’m laying it out here anyway to let people know that you can’t leave anything out of your training. I was downright derelict in not learning enough about the proper fueling, nutrition, and physiological effects that would happen to me as I attempt riding, climbing and pushing my body beyond its comfort zone. Use this as a warning to not let it happen to you. DO YOUR HOMEWORK!