Observations from the 2014 Gran Fondo NJ in Morristown

After pedaling for 42 miles, of which 3,412 feet were more or less straight up, your correspondent has some observations about Sunday’s Gran Fondo NJ:

• A little training goes a long way.
• A little more training goes a lot farther.
• Past glories and weekly rides to the Burnham Park pool are no substitute for a little training.
• Pop Tarts are not ideal training food.
• Nutella sandwiches and cannoli are the Breakfast of Champions.
• The richest communities have the crappiest roads. (You know who you are!)
• The deadliest hammerheads are not on Shark Week.
• Granny knew what she was doing when she invented low gear.
• It’s too bad bicycles weren’t invented when Granny’s granny was around.
• A lactic acid trip is not psychedelic.
• The last 10 miles are the longest.
• The last 20 miles are the longest.
• The last 30 miles are the longest.

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Here is what others had to say about the fourth annual Gran Fondo NJ, an Italianate name for scenic (and hilly) rides of 18-, 42-, 62- and 107 miles that attracted a record 2,050 cyclists to Morristown, according to co-director Bill Ruddick.

“I was just happy I finished and didn’t crash into anybody!”  said Garry Herdler, a 45-year-old Philadelphian who took up cycling two months ago because he enjoyed spinning classes. He rode the 62-mile “Medio Fondo” on Sunday. “It was great scenery, just fun to do. I liked the hills,” he said.

UPDATE: There was at least one crash. A 58-year-old biker from Maplewood sustained minor injuries after colliding in Morris Township with the back of a car driven by a Morristown woman, around 4 pm, reported NJ.com.  

Township police are investigating the accident, which occurred at Sussex Avenue and Kahdena Road, according to the report.

Daniel Libanan, 42, of New Milford is an avid cyclist with the Bicycle Touring Club of North Jersey and a veteran of the New York Gran Fondo to Bear Mountain. He rode the 62-miler in Jersey and was impressed.

“The route itself was challenging , a good mix of challenging uphills and fast downhills,” said Libanan, who works in finance.

“The rest stops were very nice. There was a lot of food and support… [and] Morristown is beautiful. I’ve never been to the farm area here. The views are stunning.”

Members of the Major Taylor Cycling Club of New Jersey shouted kudos for the route markings, organization and food to Gran Fondo NJ founder Marty Epstein after they completed the Medio Fondo. But a painful memory is likely to stay with Gina Bullock until next year.

“Black River Road, that was a bear!” she said, referring to a 2.4-mile climb in Tewksbury.

“I want to cry, my back is hurting so hard!” echoed Sallie Hagens, another Major Taylor team member.

Many teams participated in the Fondo, for a variety of causes.

The Team NJ Sharing Network rode to raise awareness about the need for people to register as organ donors.  Cyclists who tear the anterior cruciate ligament in their knees may not realize that surgeons repair these ligaments with donated tissue, according to a statement from team member Michele Dabal, a Mendham resident who received a liver transplant nine years ago.

Fellow team member Nancy Bird planned to ride in honor of her husband David, a liver transplant recipient and Wall Street Journal reporter who has been missing since January.   The couple rode last year’s Gran Fondo together.

In Tandem is a New York organization that pairs cyclists with visually impaired persons on tandem bikes. And that’s exactly what its team did at the Gran Fondo NJ. One of the ride’s tandem “captains” was Marty Epstein’s son, Jonathan.

Other teams included The Seeing Eye Inc. and Grow It Green Morristown,  nonprofits that will receive some of the Gran Fondo proceeds, along with Sustainable Morristown, Homeless Solutions Inc. and the New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition.  

Since its inception, the Gran Fondo NJ has helped nonprofits raise more than $400,000, according to the organizers.

Marty Epstein, whose day began at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday, said he was pretty pleased with how everything went.

“It’s never really a piece of cake. There’s always room for improvement,” said the owner of Marty’s Reliable Cycle.

“But I think this year ran smoother than ever. We did a good job marking the roads, and registration went smoothly.”

Marty can count one of bicycling’s legends among his converts.

Gary Fisher, often called the father of mountain biking, came from San Francisco to pedal 87 miles in the Fondo–not bad for a 63-year-old guy who only started training a month ago.

“Beautiful roads, beautiful places, beautiful blue skies, these beautiful trees, streams, big houses,” recounted Fisher, attired in a dapper hat and suit after his ride.

“I tell all my friends in California, ‘I’m going to New Jersey,’ and they say, ‘Why the hell do you want to go there, man? That’s like ugly, that’s like, Whoa!’  They don’t know nothing.”

MORE COVERAGE OF THE 2014 GRAN FONDO NJ