I was looking forward to this trip for a few reasons. The first was to explore a different style of gravel riding - flat roads. The second was to enjoy different scenery for a mental boost. The third reason - which was the main reason for our trip, was to take advantage of a promotion that I purchased last year from Blue Green Vacations. For $229 I received a 3-night/4 day stay at a Blue Green Vacation Location of my choice. And for an additional 40,000 Choice Hotel Points, $25 Amex Gift card and $100 Visa Gift card, Karel and I would need to sit through a 2-hour presentation. Karel was not thrilled about having to sit through a sales pitch for Blue Green Vacations but since I'm getting into travel hacking, I felt like I could "sell" Karel on this trip by throwing in some gravel riding. Originally we were going to participate in the Swamp Fox Gravel Fondo Race but the race filled up before I had a chance to register. Since we already had the dates and hotel booked, we decided to take advantage of a short getaway.
After a morning swim and lifting session at Furman, we packed up the car and hit the road around 12:30pm. It was an easy 3.5 hour drive to Charleston, SC. Karel did all the driving and I worked on Training Peaks in the car. Campy got to enjoy two cat-free nights at my moms house. It's been challenging for Campy as he is showing some siginficant signs of cognitive decline (doggy dementia) so he is much more anxious and confused. It was good for him to be at my moms so that he didn't have to stress about a cat approaching him while he was sleeping. After arriving to the Hampton Inn at Patriots Point, we unloaded the car, checked in to our room (BlueGreen handled the reservation) and went for a short 3 mile run to move some blood. We were both feeling tired and stiff from sitting in the car so it was nice to shake out. We ate dinner at Verde which was delicious. We both got the Greek salad - Karel had chicken and I had tofu on it.
Prior to leaving, I received the sample pack that I purchased from TORQ nutrition. After 17 years of dialing in my fueling for long distance triathlons, it’s been a bit of a learning curve to figure out the best way to fuel and hydrate for off-road riding. With that said, I’m still prioritizing liquid calories to meet my hydration and energy needs, but also consuming more solid food, gels and chews as the demands are very different when the intensity is higher, limited refill stops, the unpredictable terrain and I don’t have to run off the bike in a gravel or MTB event. I also really enjoy trying out new products to recommend for athletes. I really liked the nutrition profile and ingredients of the Torq products and the variety of flavors.
I was hoping that we could escape the cold in Charleston but we only had one warm day, on Friday. The weather difference could not have been more extreme - on Thursday we started the ride at 9am and it was 30 degrees. On Friday at 9am it was nearing 70 degrees. But Friday was windy!
We did the 53 mile (race) loop on Friday and it was nice to experience the flat roads. Karel's back was really bothering him (he has two discs that are slipped/bulging) so he wasn't feeling too good. It was a good 3ish hour ride. We had to quickly get back to the hotel to change before our 2pm BlueGreen Vacation presentation in downtown Charleston so I ordered lunch from the Pickled Palate. The place was super cute - I wish we could have eaten at the establishment but we had to get the order to go. Karel got the Cuban and I got the Vegan (no pickles, add provolone). It was delicious. We arrived to downtown Charlotte around 1:45pm and parked the car on a side street. The town was super cute but it was really busy.
We survived the presentation - which was only an hour, followed by a short discussion with an individual sales rep. After we declined, we received our gifts. They weren't pushy to sell us the packages which was nice. I could see how this type of vacation rental would work for some people but it doesn't fit our style of travel (which is to travel to race).
We walked through the market and then Karel got some ice cream from the Charleston Candy Company. He got key lime, rasberry and chocolate. I had a few bites and it was delicious (I prefer bready type stuff over ice cream, cake and cookies).
Our good friends Kathleen and Don live in Charleston so we met up for dinner at 6pm on Thursday. I was so excited for the restaurant that Kathleen suggested. We love trying international cuisine. We ate at Malika and it was incredible. So much flavor! We started off with appetizers - Dahi Puri and Chaat Papri.
For the entree, we each got a version of the Thali. Don, Kathleen and I had the vegetarian options and Karel got chicken and Aloo Gobi. I had Paneer Tikka Masala and Palak Paneer. It was SO good!
On Friday we woke up around 6am and had breakfast in the hotel lobby at 7am. Karel had eggs, toast and oatmeal and I had a waffle and eggs.
Karel never travels without his Nespresso machine.
We planned on riding the 100 mile route but had a shorter version as plan B (~83 miles) depending on how the ride was going. It was a beautiful day - in the low 70s but super windy. The flat roads were really tough for us as there was no opportunity to coast. It was a big difference from our riding near/in the mountains. We much prefer hilly routes - although hills can be challenging to climb, at least you get to recover on the downhills. We had to include several breaks to stretch our back and hips throughout the ride. We rode pretty strong, each taking pulls. The gravel was mixed - chunky, loose and soft and there were some sections that were filled with deep holes. It was an adventure and I found myself getting frustrated by all the elements. Thankfully I was able to get out of my funk thanks to Karel giving me a bit of a pep talk.
Karel's back bothered him but a little less than the day prior. He wasn't in the mood to run off the bike and while I was super exhausted from our almost 5 hour ride, I talked myself into a short out and back run. Surprisingly, I felt really good running!
Pre workout:
1 waffle (360 calories) w/ syrup (100 calories), JIFF packet (110 calories), 2 butters (140 calories) = 650 calories
Scoop of eggs = 120 calories
Total = 770 calories (+ cup of coffee and water)
During the 82 mile, 4:44 ride:
1.5 L USWE pack w/ 5 scoops Never Second Berry (600 calories)
1 TORQ chew bar (120 calories)
1 TORQ gel (120 calories)
1 TORQ hydration (120 calories) in 26 ounce water
1 bottle water (26 ounce)
Total: 960 calories, 102 ounces
During 2 mile, 15:30 min run:
~TORQ hydration in a 10 ounce flask (probably consumed ~30 calories and 5 ounce water)
We enjoyed the change in riding conditions and all of the restaurants but we still love our roads, people and towns in and around Greenville, SC.
