Another busy August for Mangs and Alings

So the team's been busy this month.  A couple of weeks after summer's biggest rides, Mangs, and more importantly, their female counterparts, the Alings, never let their saddles rest.  Here's what went down in August:

Thanks to Aling Archelle for the collage - pics of Alings over
over several weekends of riding since late July

Alings got busy training for their signature ride, Cycle the Wave, scheduled for Sunday, September 20.  What started out as an activity for just the avid female cycling enthusiasts of Team Mang has quickly gained interest among the fairer crowd this year and a bigger more diverse team has been on their saddle every weekend since after the STP. And this time, they're not just riding.  They actually raised funds for the cause (WAVE stands for Women Against  Violence Everywhere). Several Mangs have been providing support to the Alings - an encouraging sight in this family friendly group.  At the very least, the Alings' spouses or partners recognize the importance that their better halves play in their favorite hobby.  This team has always been about positive reinforcement anyway.  Watch for a full report next month on how they did at the Cycle the

Veronica met her goals
with the help of the team

Wave ride where most, including beginners, will attempt the 30 mile route.  But some are talking about doing the 37 and even the 42 mile route! More power to all of them!

Even when they're not with the group, the spirit of Team Mang and Team Aling remain with its core members - witness one Aling Veronica.  In spite of her seeming absence from the major rides and training this year, she continues to represent the team in all things good. At this year's Obliteride benefiting the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, we had a 1 person team since many of us could not participate.  So we just helped out with her fund raising efforts.  It's a cause, after all, that affects all of us.  Thanks for representing, Aling V, and thanks for doing this truly meaningful ride!

Mangs with H2Velo friends at the finish line in Vancouver, BC

Another August and another trip to Vancouver, BC, goes down in Mang history. A rainy Friday in the middle of August didn't stop a whole bunch of Mangs from taking the road on their 108 mile journey to Bellingham as part of Cascade Bicycle Club's RSVP (Ride from Seattle to Vancouver and Party) first leg.  With all the excitement, the group skipped the traditional Royal Star Buffet stop at Mount Vernon and hurriedly made their way to the ride's halfway point.    The second half of the ride provided an additional 17 miles to the normal course due to construction at the border crossing, forcing the ride route through a different international entry point and adding a few more hills to the ride.  Mangs were up to the challenge, though, and working together, all finished and partied at Coast Plaza Hotel at a decent time.

Hanging out at the Night Market
after a day of cycling

In the meantime, another group of Mangs hooked up with a few guys from LAFBL to do just a Vancouver, BC ride on the same Saturday. This was more of a touring jaunt where the goal was simply to have fun and get some miles in.  You can ask the participants about the fun details of that ride - specially that trip to a beach that shall remain unnamed. Both groups came together for celebration at the Night Market in Richmond that evening.  What's a ride without the food afterwards, right?

At Artist Point with nary a view in sight due to forest fire
smoke covering much of Mount Baker

The next weekend brought about another epic ride - this time from Maple Falls, WA to Artist Point, the end of Highway 542 at the highest paved area of Mount Baker, 5,100 feet above sea level.  In spite of the 2 hour drive to the starting point, riders had a blast pedaling 31 miles up the mountain.  It would have been a perfect ride had it not been for the smoke from the Central Washington forest fires which enveloped the mountain specially at the higher elevations, taking away some of the views.  But as with all our rides, it's the company and the journey that counts and all agreed that hanging out with each other was what made the trip worthwhile (click to watch a video).  That downhill run was one of a kind, too.

Our two faithful racers at the raceway were joined by a few
others during the course of the season

August also brought about the conclusion of the year's Budu Racing series at Pacific Raceways in Auburn where at least 6 Mangs participated over the course of the season.  One of them, Alex, actually won something on one of those fateful Tuesday nights.  Some of the faster guys joined in on the series this month just to try it out.  Their only goal was not to get dropped by the peloton - some achieved it, some...well, let's just say the pictures were great!  Several Mangs and Alings hung out at

A few more Mangs joined in later
in the season

the track every week to cheer them on. Next year, some Mangs are planning to participate early on in the season, so they can improve their racing skills as the series progresses from Spring through Summer.     

The month concluded with the annual camp at Deception Pass with a scheduled ride. This year's Saturday ride around Whidbey

A near miss - a car was actually parked there just before
we left for the hike.

Island was canceled due to the strong windstorm that kicked in.  Mangs and Alings woke up to the sound of rangers evacuating the camp site because of the danger of falling trees and limbs.  Already a tree had fallen down, barely missing a car and a tent.  The team and their families were barely able to sneak in a short hike up to Goose Rock in the midst of the windstorm before they all had to pack up and leave.  One of our cars was actually damaged (albeit very minor) by thick tree limbs falling.  So the camp was cut short but we managed to squeeze the most fun that we could out of the place and out of each other (just watch the video).

Having fun with the wind at the hike atop Deception Pass

Whew - summer just blew past us and the rains seemingly arrived right on schedule.  But September promises a few more sunny days and every weekend of this coming month still has a major ride or adventure for the Mangs.  So stay tuned for what's going to happen at the Whistler Gran Fondo, Cycle the Wave, Honolulu Century (yes, we've got someone in Hawaii) and the Kitsap Classic.

Mangs take on the RAMROD and finish together!

This entry is from a guest blogger - my good friend Mang Raf who rode last year and this year's RAMROD (Ride Around Mount Rainier in One Day) - so its a better perspective than mine.  Enjoy...

Mangs taking a break at one of the rest stops

"RAMROD 2015 was back to its original route after deviating from it for last year’s edition. The sun came out and along with it the breathtaking views of Mt Rainier and the surrounding areas which made for a really gorgeous day.

Mangs Amor, Carlo, Cris, Ferdie, Fred, Pete, Raf, and Roland set out for the course just before 6AM with the plan of sticking together until finish. Mang Ferdie and Mang Roland set the tone for the first leg of the ride (this will be a recurring theme) with Mang Fred interjecting with inspired breakaway attempts right at the start. The pace line speed was still relaxed at around 16-18mph at this point and was about 15 miles into the ride when we went for a pit stop. It was then that the team realized it was pulling several other teams that were enjoying the warmup behind the Team Mang train. Nice.

A Team Mang staple on every ride - the inevitable selfie shot!

The ride to the first stop at Eatonville was nice and steady. We meet up with Mang Joe. He was riding with his other group with one of member  more than happy to spill some funny-silly beans on Mang Joe [Joe, we can be bribed :-) ]. The pace and elevation started to pick up after the stop that caused the train to stretch and created two sub groups. Mang Roland did some heavy pulling going 20+mph with Mangs Amor, Carlo, Fred, and Raf giving him push while Mangs Cris and Ferdie pulled Mang Pete. We all meet up at the second stop in Ashford. We endured our first mechanical issue with a loose rear wheel hub.

The leg after Ashford is where the ride really started to climb higher and higher. Mang Fred, still highly-energized, attempted another breakaway. Mang Carlo, with his 12-25t cassette, set the climbing pace right at the Nisqually entrance of Mt Rainier National Park on the way up to Paradise. He alternated with Mangs Cris and Ferdie at various stages of the climb. Eventually the trio outpaced the rest of the team at Longmire and off they went. A second and third sub group formed. Mangs Roland, Fred, and Raf alternated pulling each other with Mang Roland doing his usual singing to keep things light. Mangs Amor and Pete rode together as the third sub group.  The first and second sub group reunited at Inspiration Point and also met up with Rain City Cycling. Photo ops galore.

The ride from Inspiration Point all the way down through Stevens Canyon has to be one of the best parts of the ride. The descent was fast – one can easily hit 40mph without even pedaling – and the views were simply amazing. We missed this from last year’s route. I highly recommend this portion of the ride as a must-see/ride.

The team got all reunited once again at the rest area at the bottom of Stevens Canyon. We endured our second mechanical here with the same problematic rear wheel.

The ascent to Backbone Ridge was when the temperature really started to play a big factor on the team. Heat fatigue was setting in. Tan lines were being seared on skin. Ice-cold drinks/ice warmed up/melted down in no time. It proved to be a short climb and lead to a fun 5-mile descent onto the Grove of the Patriarchs.

The fun eventually led to the main crucible of the ride – the climb up Cayuse Pass. We started out all together until varying paces led to another round of several sub groupings. Mang Fast Ferdie and Mang Cris led the charge. Mangs Carlo, Roland, Raf, and Amor bunched together and waited for Mang Fred who was not too far behind. Mang Pete soldiered on. The air and ground temperature got so hot that articles of clothing were getting removed and drinks were instead getting poured on the riders in attempts to cool-off. This sub-grouping continued on until the top of Cayuse Pass at the intersection of Highway 410. Mang Roland broke away off the second group close to the top of Cayuse but got reunited after one mile. He did his best Tarzan impersonation by doing the Tarzan yell to notify us where he was resting on the side of the pass. Maybe it was the hard climb, or the scorching heat, or maybe both but his yell was a welcome cheer. At the top of Cayuse, Mangs Roland and Fred sought refuge in one of the ambulances stationed and took advantage of the A/C. The ambulance was being manned by two lovely lady EMTs and the ever quick-thinking Mang Roland asked one of them to check on his heart (beat). Playa.

Mangs at the Finish Line - 149 miles around Mount Rainier

Mangs Ferdie, Cris, Roland, Amor, Fred, Carlo, and Raf all got reunited once again at the deli stop at the Crystal Mountain parking lot. Kudos to Mangs Ferdie and Cris for waiting. Inhaled food and drinks. Replenished supplies. Stretched limbs. We were all ready to make the final push until we realized Mang Pete was still nowhere to be found. Mang Cris volunteered to stay behind and wait. But true to word, everyone decided to wait and ride to the finish all together.

The ride from Crystal Mountain deli stop back to the finish at Enumclaw was magical. This was where Mang Fast Ferdie and Mang Roland truly showed their veteran leadership, cycling skills, and overall positive attitude by controlling the entire team (and a few other hangers-on). Mang Ferdie would set the pace, shout out instructions, and utter words of encouragement to everyone. Mang Roland added his jovial attitude and kept spirits up.  Mangs Ferdie, Roland, Cris, Raf, and Fred alternated on pulling duties at a pace ranging from 20-27mph. Mang Roland, who was once again back to almost full strength, didn’t even realize that he was actually breaking away when all he was trying to do was take his turn to pull. Mang Ferdie was quick to reel him in. 

With two miles to go on Highway 410, Mang Ferdie and Mang Roland broke away. But, again, true to word, they waited for everyone at the left turn leading to Mud Mountain. All the Mangs started arriving and we made our way down Mud Mountain and rode on a 2 x 2 formation as far as the road emptiness would allow us. The Team, all eight riders - Mang Amor, Mang Carlo, Mang Cris, Mang Ferdie, Mang Fred, Mang Pete, Mang Raf, and Mang Roland - , crossed the finish line TOGETHER a little after 6PM. The fast guys, Mangs Ferdie, Roland, Cris to name a few, could've have finished much much sooner but they chose to keep the entire team riding altogether. Kudos to them!

This year’s RAMROD proved to be an awesome experience for Team Mang. Everyone stepped up and passed the test of skills and character that RAMROD threw at the team. In the end, the shared experience by the eight Team Mang riders will be remembered for a long time. Walang iwanan! (No one left behind!)"

Team Aling starts up their training

The Alings getting ready for their first group ride

You probably already know that the Mangs could never make it through the night without their female counterparts - the Alings (whereas Mang is another way of saying "sir" in Tagalog, Aling is a way of saying "ma'am").  So it was only a matter of time when the Mangs' female charter started riding, too.  To be fair, some Alings have been riding - and riding strong - but many had yet to mount that iron horse sitting in their garages.  Other priorities in their lives always managed to prevent the from spending a few hours of their weekend on their wheeled machines.
But on a sunny Saturday morning, a week after the STP Classic (an event in which many of them gave support to the Mangs), several Alings took to the streets and finally rode their first group ride. They took it easy, cruising at comfortable speeds and navigating the Kent/Green River trail system so that the more experienced riders could guide and encourage the less experienced ones.  Riding as a pack boosted their confidence and these women wasted no time encouraging, instructing and having fun with each other in conversation and learning basic bike handling skills.  The atmosphere was very positive and fun-filled.  For added wit, we threw in a few Mangs to ride along and catch up.
The total ride was a good 3 hours or so and passed through the requisite Starbucks break in Kent, eventually ending up at a Hawaiian BBQ place for lunch.  Hmm, now why are we not surprised?

Recalorization ceremonies are customary after a ride

Overall, it was a great time for everyone.  There are some who may have had some difficulty, being that this was their first time to ride - but with the encouragement of the other Alings, everyone finished with a feeling of accomplishment and a desire to get back on the wheeled machines the next week.
The Alings will continue to ride on the weekends, progressing from the trail system to some city streets and then - gasp - hills! all the way up to the Cycle the Wave ride in Mid September.  Hopefully, this enthusiasm won't stop after that event - we're looking for Alings to represent at the Lake Chelan Challenge and STP in 2016.  And who knows - we might even see a few more tandems in the team.  Mangs will be right there to support them, too, as they've always been there to support the Mangs.

Go Team Aling!