About a month before the Assault I was doing some metal work for a friend and using a high-speed grinder I put a tiny piece of metal in my eye as I did 25 years ago at the Melton Bicycle Co. This is a painful and long story.
Soon after the eye incident my knee (cyst on the tibia and a cyst in the joint) stiffened. I had to back off riding to heal. It's always noticable until I make other stuff more noticable.
After working out with my weed-eater (the weed-eater won) my back was giving me problems.
After a ride around the "Roan" with the Marion Foothills Cycling Club I could not stand straight or walk straight. Two days were spent mostly on my stomach. The back has been a problem from accidents (head-on-bike vs car and a "rear-on-bike vs car being among them).
The 2 weeks leading up to the "Assault" were spent doing back exercises and eating anti-inflamatories.
I had developed a bulging disc. I recieved help from several doctors Will Moomaw, John Ende, James Salerno, my chiropractor Rob Resnick and a physical therapist- Bob Limone. Some issued great advice, anti-inflamatories, back adjustments and exercises.

The night before was spent greeting friends that I see once a year at the "Assault" and had dinner with my riding partners Eric Besser and the Marion Foothills Cycling Club.

The day of the "Assault" I didn't eat breakfast as it was $8 from my hotel.
I just didn't see $8 there.
I started off the morning with a banana and 2 cans of "Insure" (500 calories).

I had trouble finding Micki (Ian's wife) to give her my truck key so that she could drive it to Marion. I'm sure I owe Micki some gas money. That worked perfectly. Thanks.
Upon seeing her at the starting line, I just got in where I was at that moment. Even though it was raining I took my vest off immediately as I'd rather be chilled than risk any uncomfortable warmth. I knew that I could do Mitchell in short sleeves. I had purposely left my shades in the truck. The glasses seemed to be just something else to lose concentration. I may have been 150 or 200 from the front. Before I could get started the front was a quarter of a mile down the street.

I chased hard and finally got on this huge pack. The problem was that this huge pack would split into 3 parts. I would be in the third pack. The other 2 packs were invisible to us. Perhaps this was best because I could blow up trying to keep pace with such outrageous athletes in the first pack.

I tried to stay near the front of this pack. When a great tandem couple came by I latched on. Several times I had to make this jump. I also know the terrain and knew that I needed, at least at this time, to stay behind the tandem on the small uphills so as not to miss them on the "downs".
Quite often this is the way to stay with strong tandem riders.

Taft Draper came along and we made a great team.
We seemed to pull every group that we came across.
After 108 I descended in front of everybody including the tandem so that I could open and drink a "Red Bull". The ride up to this point did not allow time for anything but heavy breathing. Somewhere out here my gears started slipping. I seemed to have much better luck with my downtube shifters in friction mode, although I did have to fish around for the rear sprockets all day. It really interupted my momentum for the rest of the ride. I've checked the derailleur since and it is worn out because of so much "play" in it. It's very loose.

Before the dangerous curve that is right before 64 and Bills Hill I descended out front and had  another "Red Bull", but not before warning all the riders around me of the sharp curve.
After taking the really sharp curve (the second), a rider thanked me as did Pete Pensyres and John Howard on 2 other "Mitchells".

Taft and I continued to pull. Just before the "campround" at Marion, I again descended in front of everybody, opened my "Red Bull", and drank away. At the campground a rider turned across into the driveway and didn't signal. I only had to slow down almost to a stop. No biggy.
That was the worst near-accident all day and I was watching out for that one. It was better riding all around as opposed to most of the "Assaults" in recent years.

I poured my water out of the unused bottle to lighten my load. I developed cramps in my right leg but forced my legs to spin it out. It took a while and after some agony, I confessed to Taft my problem. I consider it to be bad luck to make that confession, especially to someone with Taft's abilites. Taft and I continued to catch and release riders all the way up the watershed, exept for some who caught us. I told Taft that I expected him to leave me, but I sure did enjoy riding with him all day. I also told Taft that I was stopping at the intersection of the Parkway and 80 to reload my provisions as my wife, Paulette, would be there.
I called out her name but she wasn't there.
I pedaled onward. Taft stopped briefly and soon caught up. A mile or two on the Blue Ridge Parkway Taft dropped back. I don't remember the last tunnel before the downhill. It must have been the fog (inside and out).

I plodded onward sucking down a CarBoom every 30 or forty minutes. I really like the different tastes that CarBoom offers. They're easy to take down with that kind of variety. At mile marker 350 I popped another CarBoom as I topped the knoll then caught and quickly dropped 3 riders on the 2 mile descent.
I stood up at the rise at 352. I concentrated on getting this next mile over with as it is harder than the next 2.

Again, before turning off the "Parkway",  I "CarBoomed" again. I put my nose to the grindstone and slugged it out with those first 2 plus miles into the Mitchell State Park. My left leg was cramping here. I continued to "spin it out". I could not see any characteristic marks such as signs that I used to "globally position" myself. I never knew where I was until I saw the "Gates of Heaven" where the split-rail fence is.

I gassed it up when the road leveled off. some folks surely don't know they can and should shift up at this point. I put it into my big ring and stood up at first.

I really enjoy being an inspiration to so many young people. When most see a bearded old man passing them they try to never let that happen again in their life. For some of them it would happen again. For some I'm sure it will never reoccur. One larger, muscular rider passed me several times and I thought about sprinting the last 100 feet to pass him but thought "why?". I would have messed up his photo and I'm not sure that I could have gotten him.
Enough is enough. I did cross the line in my large ring but the war was over.

6 hours, 26 minutes, and 22 seconds- 102.5 miles to the summit of Mount Mitchell.
It felt like 103 miles though.

All of my friends including every Marion Foothills Cyclers congradulated me as if I had been first instead of 97th. Tony Atkins hugged me a dozen times or so. He knew that I've finished an hour or two later than that in the last few years.

I consider it to be an almost perfect ride according to my abilities.
Absolutely I was blessed. I was able to ride more this year and cyclig is a sport that rewards your time investment. The more you ride, the better you ride. Well exept for somebody like John Endy who is right now doing 400 milers. You can over do anything.
Everything but my youth came together as well as I could expect.
My choice of foods was about perfect it seems. I never felt bloated or lacking.
I had a lot of miles and a lot of help.

102.5 miles on 1 bottle of water, 3 Red Bulls, and maybe 6 Carbooms on the ride itself.
2 Ensures (regular), 1 banana, and some water before the ride.