Cycling Costa Rica - 1 Kilometer at a time.

Costa Rica to Durango

2008-03-31T10:57:00.008-06:00

Trip Totals
Kilometers - 532.69
Elevation Gain - 40,757'
Elevation Descent - 43,749'

We get up early and head to the airport which is a zoo even at 5:00 in the morning with lots of spring break visitors heading home. You have to pay a tax of $26 when you leave the country so keep that money set aside as you spend your cash though the trip. I am not sure what they do if you don't have it, but it takes some time to go through the line. Then on to the next line for luggage and boarding pas and then through customs and inspection. It always takes Graeme some time to go through the line with a UK passport and a US work Visa but we make it to the flight just on time.

Coming back to the US is always an eye opener as to how we live in most parts of the country. We are trying to decide where to eat and don't feel much like spending time to find a place to do so. We head south of Denver on I-25 and the only options seem to repeat across the landscape like a scene from the flintstones where the store fronts repeat over and over as Fred and Barney run past. As we try to find a place to eat we bumble around missing turnoffs and going down frontage roads that lead to dead ends. We finally stop a Chili's, a first for me, where the food is OK and then go across the way to get coffee "It's a Grind" a place thats serves up a mean cup of ditch water - the worst cup on the whole trip.

The trek across the state confirms that we live in a wonderful place here in Durango and we are all glad to be home.

Tuesday is the first official day of the club rides and I should be ready to roll this year from the start.

If anyone is interested in having the cycling trip of a lifetime ask me about details or go to

costaricamtb.com

Contact Paulo Valle for next season's trips - Mountain Biking, Downhill Biking or Road Biking. You will be treated like a professional athlete as they put together a first class trip with the best amenities available for you. Oh by the way the water is just fine.

Beach to the City - Last day in the can

2008-03-30T10:07:00.003-06:00

Knowing it will be our last day at the beach I get up early and head to the water and spend a small amount of time there before heading up to breakfast with Warren. I stick with the local fare of rice & beans, fruit and coffee believing it might be awhile before I get to enjoy this traditional Costa Rican meal again.

The decision is made to get ready to leave sooner than later to make sure that we get back to the hotel in Heredia in time to pack our bikes and get to bed early for a 4:00 am wake up call. We all pack ourselves one more time into the sardine can (Van), pick up a frozen chicken and head to the crocodile bridge for feeding time. I hear the on average 10 people in the country or so are killed by them each year and the way they were going for the chicken, It would be a violent death. For lunch we stop for our last family owned restaurant meal where the father could answer questions one had on store merchandise and was the host while the mother took the food orders & cooked while the daughter served the meals and bused the tables.

It took the better part of 4 hours to make it back over the hills the central valley and up the hotel at which point we broke down our bikes and got ready for our final diner out. Paulo has reservations at a great Spanish restaurant where we are served piaya, a traditional dish that is very similar to a cajun rice and seafood mix. The owner also treats us to a round of wine from a bota bag and show us the way you hold, pat and drink from it.

10:00 and it's time for bed.

The Beach at Punta Leona

2008-03-28T18:36:00.007-06:00

Today is spent without lycra as we are going to take a day off at the beach. The riding part of the tour is over and we are relaxing today at the beach, getting some sun, sand and water action. Early on we each at our own pace migrate down to the water and then regroup at the bar and figure out our plans for lunch and the rest of the day. Lunch in Jaco, pronounced "Hawk-O", buy some beer and back to the beach for sunset where we experience the hatching of turtles and their trip down the beach to the sea. Nothing attracts beautiful women like a bunch of baby turtles, except maybe puppies.

Diner is at a local eatery, where Paulo knows the owner, in Hermosa Beach just south of Jaco which serves us a great variety of grilled meats while we enjoy playing foosball and pool waiting for dinner.

At this point I am ready for bed and leave the last trip to a bar in Jaco to some of the others in the group.

Tomorrow we check out and get back to San Jose for one more night in Costa Rica.

San Pablo to Punta Leona - Scorpion Nights - 45 km, - Up - 1,979' - Down - 3,375'

2008-03-28T18:26:00.004-06:00

It sounds like Donny does not like creepy crawly things, so after taking a good ribbing at diner about what bugs we might find some of head to his room for the last beer of the night to discover a scorpion climbing the wall above his bed. Once the beer is devoured and the scorpion removed we head back to our rooms for our own inspection - no more are found. Donny sleeps little this night and is ready to go early but there is no rush today the last of the tour.

Never underestimate the ease of the last day, never. We head downhill into the heat of the coastal floor climbing some small hills along the way, nothing like the climbs we have been doing but the temperature keeps getting hotter. After regrouping the route we take is the highway to Jaco which is the worst road we have been on the whole trip and I am this point just wanting to get to the beach and have a lunch. The closer we get the more influence we feel from the international resort development industry and the less it feels like the Costa Rica we have come to know. Punta Leona is located in a beautiful costal area with two nice beaches, but the rest of the experience is like staying at a Holiday Inn including the all you can eat buffet and pay to play internet access. This place is for the 90%ers and sucks if you want to experience Costa Rica.

The day finishes up with us swimming in the ocean, watching the sunset and making plans for the next day while eating deep fried comfort food. Excuse me, I think I'm going to puke.

More to come.

Ciudad Colon to San Pablo - 59.5 km, - Easy Day, Up - 4,264 - Down - 3,375

2008-03-25T20:08:00.006-06:00

After yesterdays ride I felt if the day was tough I was only going to hang at the back. After touring through Costa Rica for 7 days and going through the hardest days I was not going to let an easy day stop me. The climb out of town was slow for me as my legs were left on yesterdays stage, the toughest in my book. This might have been an accumulation of 6 day prior on the bike as well.

We get to San Puriscal where we see an old church that has been abandoned after an earthquake in the 1990's. I get a quick bite to eat and partake in a slice of melon(Cantalope) that is to die for as we are heading out. We stop for our lunch a few small climbs and enjoy all the school kids who are talking about us as we sit around in are lycra geek suits.

After lunch the road is all downhill to where we are staying tonight. The tour that Palo, Bob and Nene put on has been fantastic and we have been treated like royalty the whole time. The best places to stay, great food, bike maintinance and roads that are fantastic, in fact there are more pot holes on any given road in LaPlata County then what we saw the whole time here and I won't even mention Florida Road.

If anyone has ever thought of biking in Costa Rica check out what these guys have to offer. Go online to www.costaricamtb.com to find out more. I think it is hard to get an idea off the web site of how good of a time you will have and how wonderful the people and the country is.

I had some reservations after signing up if I would like the Jungle and the humidity but I did just fine. I was also wondering if I was fit enough, after a winter when the best thing to be doing involved snow, would be able to finish all of the stages and climb all the hills without getting in the wagon which I did as well, barring anything happening tomorrow.

More to come from the beach.

Costa Rica Roubaix - 71 km, - Up - 5,100 - Down - 7,858

2008-03-24T22:51:00.014-06:00

This day was billed as killer with countless climbs in the countries steepest mountain range just south of the valley central. After eating Chicky Blak’s, a chocolate cookie found everywhere, we climb out of the car somewhere just off the Pan American Hwy. outside of Santa Maria. The air is thick with sunscreen and the previous days lactic acid swirling in a breeze that is coming from the east. From there we depart for the first decent of the day back to the town of Frailes where we had lunch on the day before. Once we reach the bottom of the hill it becomes apparent what the definition of killer will be for the day with 28% grade at times rising about 3,500’ feet in the first climb of the day culminating in lunch at a small little eatery. After lunch we descend what seems to be forever but never reach the valley floor thousands of feet below.

The fun really begins when we hit the section of Costa Rican "Pave" which takes us through a torturous section of unpaved road for the next 7 km and rising 1,500’ feet or so in the process. Prior to hitting the section I drop a chain that gets stuck between the small ring and the frame which sets me back 5 minutes on the day. As I regroup I find Big Mike on the side of the road with a rear flat and Graeme a mere 300 meters from Mike also with a rear flat.

Graeme is able to recover, but the incident takes Mike out of the stage with multiple pinches in his tube. Three of the strong men in the field, Warren, Carl & Jim are no where to be seen until the end of the dirt which has worked all of us to a pulp. A return to the pavement is a welcome relief but there is still a nice section of climbing left before reaching our final destination in Ciudad Colon where the days effort almost made me crumble. The team van was able to feed me water and "Gu" as I pressed the last few kilometers out of my legs finally making the destination at "Grand Canal Hotel".

Tomorrow should be a little easier from the route description.

More to come

Cartago to Santa Maria - Donny goes Down - 58 km, - Up - 5,907 - Down - 5,341

2008-03-24T22:40:00.006-06:00

The ride today has been sold as one of the four toughest of the trip and it lived up to the billing in every way. We drive to our starting point in South Cartago where we see quite a few group rides going by as we get ready and as we head out of town. We are also able to see an Easter procession on our way to the climb.

Todays route takes us over 3 really good climbs with plenty of sections with over 22% grade and fast downhills. The first climb is the steepest and on the back side Donny loses the rear end and ends up going down and ending up in the gutter on the side of the road. Road rash seems to be the only injury but it is on both knees, one hip, an elbow and a hand. The fall makes the rest of us stay cautious the rest of the ride.

Donny gets cleaned up and takes a ride in the van for the rest of the day while the rest of the group starts the second climb to lunch close to the top of the summit. We stop in a little bar/restaurant that made us a great lunch. From there we climb a small ways to the top all of us feeling the lunch stop in our legs for a bit. We then descend another fast downhill to the base of the last climb of the day which is not as steep as the other two (close) but the longest of the day at 17 km. We reach the top that is blanketed in clouds and raining a small bit and the moisture makes the descent dangerous.

We enter the town of San Carlo which has a beautiful church, maybe the nicest of the trip. From there it is a small distance to the place we are staying in Santa Maria which is a nice place that we will have all to our own tonight.

More to come

Irazu - The Volcanic Garden - 48.25 km, - Up 5,993' - Down - 5,993'

2008-03-22T20:53:00.010-06:00

Graeme has been talking up the climb to Irazu Volcano and warning me that the day would be tough, and it was. The ride starts at about 5,000' just up the hill from Cartago, a city that was devastated in 1910 by a major earthquake, and goes to the top of Volcan Irazu topping out at 11,000' where you can look down into the center of the volcano.

The ride has almost no breaks as you make the assent and at times the grade reaches 22% as you rise through and eventually above the clouds surrounding the mountain. The slopes are covered with small family farms growing a wide variety of fruits and vegetables as well as small communities that support the surrounding area. The climb takes me about 3:10 or so to get to the top with most of the group ahead of me, but I do keep Carl and Barry in sight by the time I reach the summit which is filled with visitors celebrating the Easter Hoilday and the great weather.

No mishaps today and the return down the hill is a screaming blast with only one small climb along the way before descending to our destination at the 1910 restaurant which turns out to have a slow and confused staff - great food if you were one of the lucky ones to get a meal. On the van ride back through Cartago we see the local people lining the streets as the procession celebrating Easter is in progress. We also observed plenty of recreational cyclists today riding the local roads as well as riding on the road to Volcan Irazu.

More to come.

Turrialba the Terrible - 75.5km, - Up - 5,032 - Down - 1,825

2008-03-22T06:38:00.007-06:00

Today starts with breakfast and then I try to change the worn out cleats on my shoes - they don't work. We spend some time trying to modify the cleat and pedal to no avail. I am then able to borrow at set of SPD pedals and cleats to fit an extra pair of shoes that I brought.

This time it is I who takes off 20 minutes late from the group with Bob and Paulo showing me the way. We head through the town of Turrialba and then climb for the next 3,500' or so on the side of Volcan Turrialbe in the rain eventually meeting the rest of the group at the top of the climb where Bicycle Bob needs to help Big Mike, one of the guys from Texas, fix a broken spoke.

We climb for a little more and the Paulo tells me that most of the climbing is done so at this point I decide that I want to pull a wheelie. I go right over on my back quicker than I can get out of the SPD pedals which I am not used to - lucky I had a lot of water in the CamelBak. Elbow scraped and the back is a little sore but I am not hurt enough to end the ride. It keeps raining as we keep pedaling to the point most of the crew is freezing during the lunch stop.

We descend through a beautiful valley, stocked with farms on every hill, to the valley floor below eventually crossing a deep canyon that has a dam holding back a large body of water. Most of the countries electricity come from hydro power and with all this rain and elevation it sure makes sense. At this point I am ready for the cold beer and the hotel but we still have a few more kilometers to get there. We arrive in the town of Orosi which has one of the oldest, if not the oldest colonial church in the country. Just past town another 6 km and we arrive at the hotel Rio Perlas. The biggest day in the saddle so far with three more to come that might be equally as hard.

More to come

Siquirres to Turrialba in the Rain - 45km, - Up 3,758, - Down 2,165

2008-03-20T16:40:00.006-06:00

It rained most of the night and in the morning through breakfast. Sometimes the hardest part is the ride in the van with your butt going numb.

After an hour of driving we arrive at our departure town of Siquirres and as soon as my bike is off I take off climbing the hill. The clouds cover us as we ride up the hill raining on us off and on the whole way. It is nice that were are kept cool as I hear this section of the country can be brutal under the heat of the sun.

We climb through the rain forest looking for a place to eat lunch which is not going to be easy as everyone is shutting down early to get ready for the Easter weekend. At the top of the last climb the whole group is together and I thought we had more climbing to do so I took off just before the crew gets ready. In the next town I find a restaurant that is closing and cleaning up and ask if they will still serve me. Without knowing the language I am still able to order a meal and finish as the group comes by and I find out we are done with the climbing and on our way to the hotel.

The place is an old plantation which has been converted into a very nice hotel with a beautiful lake out front.

Poas Volcan downhill to Sarapiqui - 51.5km, Up 1,264' Down 7,316

2008-03-19T21:27:00.007-06:00

It is obvious that Paulo runs a first class tour and provides the best for his clients. Last night we stayed in a fantastic hotel that was located in the north part of the town of Heredia, just north of San Jose.

Today is the first official day of the tour and we meet the rest of the crew from Dallas - Mike, Barry and Donny. We drive close to the top of the Volcano that we climbed yesterday, have lunch and then take off. I can feel the lead in my legs leftover from the day before but with not much climbing and a lot of downhill, I mean a lot of downhill - we drop from around 8,000' down to 150' elv. We pass through the jungle and a very large waterfall called the waterfall of peace, past a plantation and then to the valley floor below. Tonight we stay in Sarapiqui about 40km from the Atlantic Ocean

The next few days the country will be almost shut down as they take the celebration of Easter very seriously. This means drastic measures must be taken to avoid not getting and beer for the next few days - we are sending Nene to the store soon for the upcoming demand in Pilsen, Imperial & Bavaria beers, all local products of the region. Speaking of local products, I know Coca-Cola does not come to mind as a local product, but they signs are everywhere and they use local cane sugar and the traditional bottles almost making it a local product as well.

Tonight we are staying in the jungle (actually just a portion left after the clear cutting) in a nice hacienda with bungalows and birds, but you sweat just typing the keys on the computer. I was finally able to enjoy the full potential of the food that is being served tonight because the need for calories has arrived. We shuttle tomorrow morning to Siquirres and, from what I hear we have another 5,000' to climb to get to the next destination in Turrialba.

After diner Bob, Paulo & Nene ask everyone if they want go to town and see what the nightlife is like. Everyone else is wondering how late the night will be and worry about not getting to bed until 3am. I decide that I am only going to be here once and I better jump on the bus or forever wonder.

More to Come

The ride to Volcan Poas - 79km, Up - 7,460' Down - 7,400'

2008-03-18T22:38:00.006-06:00

I am up early and ready to get to breakfast and get on the road to Poas Volcano, a total of around 5,000' of climbing to the top. Breakfast consists of rice & beans, cheese potatoes with beef, cinnamon cooked bananas, eggs and local fruit - wonderful.

The group lets me take off early and I climb to the top of the Volcano at my own pace, I think I had someone else's legs while going up the hill most of the way climbing with a good pace. There were some steep parts but not as hard as I was thinking, the next Volcano, Irazu has a much steeper road from what I hear and climbs to 11,000'

At the top I wait a little and the crew is up shortly after, Bicycle Bob is with the crew and he leads us back to his house and then on to a great restaurant and then we are able to meet Paulo and Nene who run the tour.

I made a small mistake by not putting sun screen on the tops of my thighs, they should feel better in a couple of days.

I am beat, but happy that I was able to complete the whole ride without too much difficulty.

More to come.

Costa Rica Arrival

2008-03-17T11:17:00.005-06:00

We made it into Costa Rica after driving to Denver in a snow storm and narrowly missing a car that had spun in front of us on the black ice and was sideways in the road. Left at 1:00 am and made it to Costa Rica as the sun was coming up, this allowed us to get a view of the landscape as the plane was landing. Some of the hills look like they climb forever.

We waited at the airport for a little as our plane was late and the shuttle was gone which almost lead us to loading up in the wrong vehicle going to the car rental station. We finally found our ride and quickly made it up to the hotel/hacienda.

We are all tired and hungry at this point and happy to relax before taking on Paos Volcano on Tuesday - 9,000' or so at the top and we sit at around 4000' at the hotel.

The rest of the day is spent by the pool and getting our bikes set-up for the riding to come. We have been waiting for Carl, who has been traveling Central America and Columbia, to arrive and he should have been here around 4:00 pm. We are eating diner when he arrives telling us a story of his friends backpack getting stolen out of the car with a passport and some money. It seems they parked, rode down the small hill and then had to go right back to the car and the door had been pried open by then - he thinks it might been two sitting on the wall by where they parked. Moral of the story, don't let your passport get too far from you and if so, separate it from things likely to be stolen.

They will be spending part of today getting a new passport at the U.S. Consulate, a process we hear does not take that long but what a hassle.

Graeme has 3 friend who will be joining the tour and they arrive from Dallas today while we try to organize the transportation of our stuff to the next hotel. We have not talked to Bob or Paulo at this point to see what the logistics are.

More to come.

Packing Day

2008-03-16T10:40:00.005-06:00

Packing for a trip like this is always nerve wracking for me. I am trying to strike that balance between necessity, comfort, bulk & weight. I can't imagine how Bob ( http://www.durangocyclery.com/bobsblog ) on his ride to Costa Rica from Durango slept on the night before departure as he thought thru all the things he may need for such a journey.

72 Hours till departure

2008-03-13T19:43:00.013-06:00

I have signed up for a cycling trip in Costa Rica.

I must first back up and relate the circumstances that have brought me to such a trip and why I signed on.

After trying many things in Durango from climbing peaks to racing motocross, backcountry skiing to mountain biking it was time to see what the excitment about road cycling was all about. I started out by putting skinny tires on my old Yeti PRO FRO and heading out on the roads of LaPlata County solo. After a few times out doing some valley loops I figured I should be ready for the "C" Ride.

You see in Durango we have the:

"A" Ride - mostly top pros, the Fort Lewis College Cycling Team (One of the top rated college cycling teams in the nation) and Ned Overend who just keeps mashing the pedals every year.

"B+" Ride - Everyone who wanted to go Pro, but now has just started to work for a living.

"B -" Ride - A group of mostly working stiffs with enough talent to hang with anybody on any given day and don't say minus they don't like it.

"C" Ride - They rest of the cycling roadies who still want to believe there was a place in the peloton for them, if only things had gone different. Along with the 65 plus crowd who have come to town and can spend 6 days a week on the bike and manage to put in sub 3 hour times to Silverton racing the train in May.

Anyway, after 4 miles out CR 250 I was dropped and nobody cared, much less asked to see if I had a flat tire or if I had blew a nut, nothing, not even a glance.

Now remember this was early May in 2005 and the whole crew had been pedaling their brains out all winter at the local spin classes getting ready for the annual "Iron Horse Bicycle Classic".

Things got better as the season went on and I was finally able to hang on to the peleton most of the time, but came to the realization that I was not destined to become a climber, maybe my brother was right and a motor might be better for getting up hills.

Here I am 3 years later and some how I thought it would be a good idea to join some of the "C" Ride crew on a cycling trip to Costa Rica for 12 days of touring the quaint countryside. Joining me in this adventure will be Graeme Wallace, Jim Gossage, Carl Rand and my good friend Warren Hurley. Also joining us will be 3 of Graeme's friends out of Dallas with Bicycle Bob, Paulo & Nene as our tour guides.

After buying my plane ticket and paying for the rest of the trip I find out that the profile of the elevation looks more like an EKG chart. Nothing but two ways to go, up or down.

We have had the best ski season in years and everytime I try to get in some miles I am tied up at work, the weather sucks and the last case, my bike breaks. Parts are found by a stroke of luck and I will be set for the trip. I am trying to think of all the last minute details, things to bring as well as finish up with most of the projects at the office.

More to come.