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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Pain Never Felt So Good Cyclists To Race Hundreds Of Miles This Weekend

Rita Balock Correspondent

Sally Phillips spent $10 for a bicycle at a yard sale. A helmet cost $25.

Six months later, the bike was stolen. “I walked around the house like I’d lost my best friend,” Phillips said. Her sons couldn’t believe a thief would want it.

That was five years ago.

Now, Phillips spends more money on tires for her two bikes than she does for her car. Those bike tires are replaced every 2,000 to 3,000 miles.

And it doesn’t take long for Phillips, 47, to pile up the miles. She bikes year-round and is establishing herself as Spokane’s premier female ultracyclist, one of an estimated 50 cyclists in the area who push the 200-mile distance and beyond.

Today and Saturday, Phillips and 10 others will spend up to 33 hours on bikes in an attempt to complete the grueling Le Tour De Pain III, a solo endurance ride of 330 or 402 miles.

“The first year, I called 23 people and contacted several others I thought would like to pedal 300 miles,” organizer Bill Misner said. “No one showed up. I almost quit, too.”

He rode it alone - and finished.

Temperatures topped 105 degrees last year when Misner and Bob Bowley completed the 402 miles.

“The second day is going to be the hard day,” Misner, 55, said. “Asking yourself to cover the course in reverse, and there’s a little more climbing coming back.

“The gruesome part is probably the last 50 to 20 miles,” Misner added. “Your seat - there is no way to get comfortable - and your shoulders ache. You’re higher-than-a-kite happy.”

As the postrace euphoria subsides, soreness and stiffness set in. Three days later, the realization of accomplishment is overwhelming, Misner described. “Day four is when the physical part hits.”

Pacing, hydration and food will be key to completing the course, which has no aid stations and must be done without assistance.

“I think of all the places you can see, that is the main reason I can do this,” Phillips said. “I get to places on my bicycle I haven’t seen before. It’s really a kick.

“After my husband (Loyd) and I went biking on a vacation, I thought, ‘This was a lot of fun. How do you put it back in your work life?”’

Phillips, an assistant computer systems manager, started biking to and from work, 6 miles each way, nearly every day. During the winter, she puts studded tires, and even chains, on her bike.

Once a month, she and a couple other Spokane Bicycle Club members do a century (100-mile) ride.

She also organizes the annual Mid-Summer Nightmare, a 200-mile ride that drew 37 entries three weeks ago.

“I think she’s the smartest one of all of us picking the 330 (mile distance),” Misner said. “She’s been 200 miles and her mileage is way up there. The rest of us do intense, intense sprints (road races of 47 to 49 miles).

“It’s flat and fast the first 100 miles,” Misner added of the Le Tour De Pain. “We’ll be at 100 miles in 5 hours, unless we have a headwind.”

Misner expects the field to start separating at 140 miles.

“This is the first long-mileage ride I haven’t been organizing,” Phillips sighed. “All I have to do is show up and spend the whole day riding my bike.”

And that’s exactly the attitude Misner, a physical therapist, looks for when screening prospective riders.

Criteria include completion of a 100-mile ride in less than 8 hours, as well as 1,000 base miles and a helmet.

“My whole motive was to share it,” Misner said. “After I finished the first time, I thought, ‘I’ve got something here I am so excited about, it can’t be put into words.

“Probably the biggest thing is finishing. Coming to Riverfront Park, there is no one there, no banners. Then you’ve got to ride another 3 miles home. All you care is ‘I made it!’ - contrasted with the agony that you don’t want to sit on anything.”

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: LE TOUR DE PAIN What: Le Tour De Pain III, a bicycle ultramarathon. When: Today and Saturday. Distance: 402 or 330 miles. Course: Start and finish at Spokane’s Riverfront Park, east to Wilbur, north to Republic, west to Colville and Tiger, south to Newport and Spokane. Overnight at Republic. Elevation gain: 26,000 feet. Time limit: 33 hours. Contenders: Dave Cole, Martin Scates, Tim Ray, Alex Renner. Comment: “There’s a few people in this event that want to have bragging rights - if they finish.” -organizer Bill Misner

This sidebar appeared with the story: LE TOUR DE PAIN What: Le Tour De Pain III, a bicycle ultramarathon. When: Today and Saturday. Distance: 402 or 330 miles. Course: Start and finish at Spokane’s Riverfront Park, east to Wilbur, north to Republic, west to Colville and Tiger, south to Newport and Spokane. Overnight at Republic. Elevation gain: 26,000 feet. Time limit: 33 hours. Contenders: Dave Cole, Martin Scates, Tim Ray, Alex Renner. Comment: “There’s a few people in this event that want to have bragging rights - if they finish.” -organizer Bill Misner