The Grumpy Grind is less than 3 weeks away.  I'll try to put up more frequent posts with relevant information that will answer questions about the event and give riders peace of mind regarding what the event has in store.  
      
Today's post is about cue cards for the ride.  I personally think they are pretty simple, but there are new people out there who might not think so, and veterans who might need a refresher.  So here an example sheet of some of the cues from last years card (it is not the same route this year).

R- turn Right.
L- turn Left.
QL- Quick Left. (a turn that will come within 1/4 mile of a previous turn)
QR- Quick Right. (see above)
CL- Curve Left. (when the road curves and becomes another road by name, or when there is not a right angle turn where roads intersect)
CR- Curve Right. (see above)
ST- Stay Straight. (noted when there may be some confusion of road transitions. so just stay the course)
CP- Checkpoint.  This is a mandatory stop.  For safety sake, respect the event and please stop.
Cue Card Sizing- Cue cards are approximately 4 1/4 x 4 3/4.  They will be printed front to back and standard sheets of paper.  The print is not waterproof.  I will issue cue cards in Ziploc baggies.  You can use the baggies or transfer the to whatever cue card holder you might have.

I like to think to keep my cue cards are pretty simple to understand.  You really do need to have a cycling computer to keep track of your miles as you progress.  If you have a good mental odometer, well good luck with that.  You always need to trust your cue cards, and not always the rider in front of you.  Some riders are simply "cue dumb".  Sorry, but it's true.  Try to work together to help each other if you have any confusion.  Do not take any turns unless the cues indicate that you should do such.  I even try to add extra little details, such as telling you when a road T's, to help you know that you are on the right path. 

There will be road intersections that have no signage at all.  The cues will be marked as "unmarked".  There will also be a stake with pink ribbon/tape at those corners to let you know that you actually are at a corner of some significance to your cues.  The "unmarked" road cues will also list the actual road in parentheses on the cue sheet.  For those of you that will insist on using some sort of mapping technology on your phones, this will serve as a back up plan for not getting off track.

This mileage on the cues has been measured by myself, from actual training rides I've done.  The mileage should be very close to being accurate and obvious in terms of making turns.  If you are someone who can't ride a straight line up a hill, you will eventually find your mileage slightly off as time goes on.  Just know I did the best I could to be accurate.

The course is an even Steven 82 miles.  Please trust your cues so that you don't make it any longer.  

The Grumpy Grind is a fairly simple event, where the first and last place finisher both receive the same award.  Nothing.  But I do try to give riders a few mementos to take home with them.  

Mead's Bike Shop, of Sterling Illinois, has been kind enough to support the event with a free water bottle for each participant.  Who doesn't need another water bottle?!    
I don't give out t-shirts like your local 5K does, but if you would like to pre-order one, email me your size, and I'll have one waiting for you on the day of the ride.  It will cost you $10, but you'll be able to wear a beautiful shirt that all of your friends will wonder with curiosity what the Grumpy Grind is. The shirts are 100% cotton, unisex, and run slightly big.  The deadline for ordering shirts is April 10th.

Brent Wegscheid, an a employee of ABUS locks, has kindly donated some fine locks to be given to a few lucky finishers.  Brent unfortunately is unable to ride the event this year, but we thank him for donating the nice locks.

The last bit of swag that only the finishers will receive is a Grumpy Grind pint glass.  Imagine washing down some post-ride BBQ with some Luck Man Pale Ale in your very own finishers pint glass!  I have ridden the course several times already this year, and I can tell you that finishing the course is a good feeling.  So every time you think you just won't make it the finish, dig a little deeper and think about filling your pint glass with good cheer, and perhaps you'll be just a little more motivated.  

On Saturday the final three postcard entries arrived, making registration for the 2016 Grumpy Grind officially closed.  Thank you to all who chose to enter.  I was a little unsure about what I would do if too many entries came in on the final day and the number didn't end on an even 100 participants, but lucky for me that was a non-issue. 100 riders is the most participants we have ever had enter the event. I realize that gravel events have grown in popularity, but regardless, I'm still a little bit humbled by the number of people who are interested and willing to travel to the middle of nowhere in Illinois to spend their day challenging themselves with an 82 mile ride.  I will do my best to make sure that everyone who participates will have a positive experience.  To those who who were indecisive about participating, and did not register in time, I'm sorry.  Hopefully we'll see you next year.

Sunday provided a good opportunity to ride the entire 2016 course.  Before the event occurs, I like to ride the roads multiple times to make sure the mileage cues are accurate, and to get an overall sense of the rhythm of the course.  Plus it's good training for TransIowa.  The morning started off around the freezing mark, with fields covered with an unexpected layer of snow.  The sun popped out later in the morning, making the high temperature of 45 degrees feel just fine.  Every year I have managed to create a different course layout.  This year has the most diverse layout of topography and scenery of any I've put together.  It has flats, rollers, climbs, screaming descents, burning ascents, trees, vast open spaces, and a little bit of dirt to make everybody happy.  It's the type of ride that will make a cold beverage at the finish feel well deserved.

During the next couple of weeks leading up to the ride I'll be posting information about how to read the cue cards, information about camping at the farm (or nearby areas), course safety, what to expect at the finish, etc.  I know a lot of you are traveling a couple of hours to get to the ride, so I'll try to cover the basics so you know what to prepare for.  Going over these details helps give me a mental checklist as well.  Gravel grinds are really pretty simple.  Just follow your cues, don't get lost, keep pedaling, and tell a few stories with fellow riders at the finish. It's going to be good! 

The postcards have still been trickling for registrants of this years Grumpy Grind.  There are currently 15 roster spots left.  A few people have contacted me with questions/concerns about registration.  In my mind, I feel like the website has answered most of those questions already, but maybe I wasn't quite as clear as I should have been.  So I'll do my best to clarify a few of those questions today.

*You can only register via your postcard entry.  In the past, people were able to email their intentions of coming to ride.  That is not the case this year.
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*This years field is limited to only 100 riders.  If the field reaches that number, registration is closed for the year.  If this years field doesn't reach that number by April 1st, registration will still close regardless of how many riders have registered.  

Last weekend I cooked up a little homebrew for this years post ride.  I haven't yet graduated to being an all grain brewer yet, so I purchased a brew kit that seemed appropriate to for this years ride.  The kit was a session beer called "Lucky Man's Pale Ale."  I'm a huge fan of Pale's and IPA's, and I figured a beverage with a slightly lower alcohol content that still had all the redeeming flavor of a regular Pale Ale would be great for an after ride session.  Plus the title of the beer seemed appropriate.  We are pretty "lucky" to be able to get out and ride.  On an added note, the beer was actually named after a quote by Lou Gehrig when he says that he was the "luckiest man alive", and $10 from the proceeds of this kit purchase went to ALS research.  

Last weekend spring teased us a little with it's warm temperatures.  It also brought with it strong winds that grew stronger as the weather grew warmer throughout the day.  I did both some riding and driving of this years course, and my biased opinion is that it's going to be a fun one.  Barring any more necessary tweaks, this year ride will come out to be 82 miles long.  Yes, it's about 4 miles longer than last year route, but some things can't be helped when you are connecting gravel roads.  The bigger kicker is that there will be about 800 more feet of climbing.  This may sound like a lot, but the scenery on the hilly roads that will get you the extra climbing, is well worth the effort.  There will be one check point along the route where you can refuel your liquids (and perhaps grab a burger and beer if you choose?  I'll keep you posted on that. ), but the route doesn't take you through any towns or past any convenience stores.  As stated on the website, this truly is a self-supported ride, so come prepared.  

The rider list is steadily filling up.  There are now less than 30 spots to fill before registration is closed at 100 riders.  If you have any friends who are on the fence and would still like to ride, now's the time to have them commit.  The postcards and kind notes I've received  from people have been awesome, and I'm excited to see the ride growing.  I'll try to post a little more frequently during the next 7 weeks, so check back to see what you need to know as the ride grows near.