Completed what has to be the most insane 400k I have ever ridden over a weekend of continuous rain. Even without the rain, the ride itself was already a relatively challenging route with three climbs early into the ride before a relatively flat middle section, ending off with some rolling hills at the end.
The ride was originally slated to start at 6:00am but I missed the announcement where they moved the starting time back by an hour. So I arrived at an almost empty starting point with just me, another rider, and the organizers there to greet me.
First climb was a relatively short but steep hill under very light drizzle, but the roads were still quite wet as it had been raining continuously since yesterday. Good thing I brought along a detachable fender, the Topeak Defender RC11, or else my back would have become a dirty mess very quickly.
By the time I got to the bottom of that first hill, it started raining heavily and it continued to rain until I reached the next climb, where it lightened and became a drizzle throughout the climb. The first checkpoint was at the peak of this hill where I started catching up with some of the riders. Then it started raining heavily again on the descent.
Once I reached the next town I stopped at a nearby petrol station for my first meal - nothing special, just instant noodles and a pack of salted peanuts. When I left it was still raining, and I even came across a felled tree that blocked half the road on the way to the next climb. The third climb was the tallest hill, with the second checkpoint awaiting at the top. It continued to rain on the descent, and the whole time my hands were literally white and wrinkled from the cold, which made it harder to brake properly. Even had to dodge a couple of felled tree branches and other nasty debris caused by the rain.
Stopped at the next town for a proper meal this time. It's more of a very late lunch, but I had rice with fried chicken which was a very, very nice turn of events because usually on long rides like this, I'd be having stomach problems by now. I guess that's one of the few silver linings of continuous rain in cold weather.
Next checkpoint was a simple stop-and-go at a petrol station. I didn't drink as much water as I usually do - I guess it's the cold weather - so I didn't see any reason to make it a long stop. Quickly moved on, stopped for dinner along the route, then back to riding in the night until the fourth checkpoint. Rain started getting heavier again from that point until the fifth checkpoint, so even though it was a long and flat route but visibility was terrible in the rain so I had to take it safe and slow. I even had my backup light out, so two lights illuminating the way but that didn't help much.
Fifth and final checkpoint was a McDonalds. I arrived at around 1:30am in the morning and it was still raining rather heavily at the time. Although I wanted to carry on immediately after that, but I was sleepy and cold, and I wasn't keen on the prospect of going out in the cold, heavy rain so I stayed behind and took a nap instead. More riders came in, all complaining about the cold, and we were holed up here until 3:30am, in which we had no choice and really had to move on if we wanted to be able to safely meet the cut-off time for the event. Fortunately the rain had let up a little bit, but it was still cold - not from the actual temperature, but more because we were drenched and it was windy.
Moving on, visibility was still terrible and I came across a group who had to stop for help because one of their riders broke their shoulder(blade?) after hitting pothole. I myself hit a couple of potholes on the way, but fortunately nothing too nasty or serious. I was lucky I did not even get any pinch flats during the ride to the finish.
I completed the ride in 25h 53m of elapsed time, completely wet, cold and dirty. Such an insane, trying experience. I only found out just how nasty this monsoon rain had been afterwards, as it wreaked havoc all over the country during the ride and causing flooding and property damage in many states. So in a ways I suppose I can consider myself lucky that I myself didn't run into any major flooded or blocked roads, or any other dangerous incidents throughout the ride.
