Native Planet Classic 2006 - Ride report by Shan Perera

I started around 9am, leaving the comforts of the town of Winthrop behind. With its hitching rails and board sidewalks, Winthrop could easily be mistaken for a frontier town from a Western movie set. On this route on the eastern edge of the North Cascades Highway, the remote high desert of the Methow Valley quietly faded away over the next 30 miles as the land rose upwards to 5477’ Washington Pass, the highest point on the highway and my intended destination. I would have left earlier had it not been for an early morning rainstorm that served as a not-so gentle reminder to carry additional clothing —arm & leg warmers, jacket, full-length gloves, and booties. I eased into the ride over the first few miles and quickly settled into a brisk pace. Any hint of the earlier rain had now completely disappeared and given way to partial sun breaks. I was even getting hot.

After 50 minutes, I reached Mazama, the first food stop on the ride at 14 miles. I decide to skip it in order to make up for lost time. Mazama is a popular launching point for sporting activity in the surrounding mountains. When Hwy 20 closes over the winter, Winthrop and Mazama transform into recreation wonderlands offering cross-country and downhill skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, hunting and fishing.

Around Mile 15, the road got noticeably steeper, indicating the beginning of the climbing. Just as I started to really sweat and regret the “extra” clothing, the weather changed dramatically. Without much warning and much to my bewilderment, hail descended from the sky making a cacophonic chorus as it bounced off my helmet. It was quickly followed by droplets of rain. After a few minutes, the aerial bombardment ceased, but the rain picked up in intensity. I stopped hurriedly, scrambled to put on my rain jacket and pedaled on. The thunder and lightning that followed made me reconsider my decision. “You’ve got a good rhythm, you’re not too cold, so keep going,” I told myself.

After about ten minutes, the thunder and lightning ceased and I was surprised when I heard a familiar voice on my left asking “How are you doing, Shan?” It was my friend, David Miller, driving a SAG vehicle to check on all the riders. Having suffered a cycling accident early in the season, he had chosen to volunteer for this ride. I gave David the thumbs up and he proceeded to see if others needed any assistance. By now, I had zero regrets about the additional clothing.

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