Defeating California’s Toughest Grand Fondo

[@anthonymian1242]

The real MVP Chris' wife driving him out to the event at 5am!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

100% agree ... not to mention the following me to try and get some footage along the way #MVPElizabeth

[@CFCMahomet]

Agreed!

[@elizabethmiller8978]

Anthony and Jason are my new best friends 😂😂💕

[@joebriggs8422]

at 0:54 15,000 meters of climbing should be feet...had me gobsmacked for a minute 😉

[@davidburgess741]

I'd be curious to know how your friend got that 10 speed road brifters to index with the MTB rear derailleur! I just used old school friction shifters and it turns round 180 degrees with Shimano 2/1 ratio rear derailleur. Hey, I've got 9 speeds crammed into old school 126mm dropouts! It slides in easily. Major successful hack!

[@ryanS593]

Great video. I did C2K in 2019 and tollhouse century this year. That stretch to shaver is bad. The motorists are quite abusive. That was some good ideas and good advice on Marshaling. I always dread that portion.

[@robertfirestine8192]

One of my very favorite local descents though...

[@ryanS593]

@@robertfirestine8192 it is a good one. And also descending down alder springs to me is a blast

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey guys, thanks for the comments. the more I think about it, the more I think maybe it's the size of the vehicles that I find so intimidating. Those large SUVs with the double width wheels and mirrors ... man, they are frightening.

[@scottmac66mec]

Awesome ride, Chris, and really well-filmed!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Scott. Delighted you enjoyed the video, wasn’t sure how we would piece the footage and story together, but I think we got there in the end.

[@williampringle1790]

Good on ya Chris…you are truly a legend! I have to say that I really enjoyed watching this longer format as well as your new show with Jesse. Keep up the good work. 👍

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Much appreciated William. Hopefully more to come.

[@jimlucido4475]

Great video! Thank you for coming to our event. Bring friends. I’m glad I’m not the only one that feels that way going up to Kaiser Pass 😂

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks for having us Jim! I would say "see you next year" ... but those last few kms to Kaiser are still to raw 😂

[@williammurray1620]

Great job! You are lucky it was such a great day weather wise for the ride. One my friends did it a few years ago and people had to drop from Hypothermia. And then heat exhaustion when they got to the bottom! I still hate Wild Cat! And yeah, there are a bunch of knuckleheads in cars that hate us in the hills.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey William, I'm sure every year has their own challenges ... covering that kind of distance across that terrain is bound to throw all kinds at the rider

[@BrettKelly74]

Mate, you are a true inspiration, the physical and mental strength you have is phenomenal. Well done mate, rest up and enjoy the rest of the trip 👊👊👊

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks so awesome to read Brett! thanks so much for the comment. I hope you are staying warm down in the shire.

[@HanMoP]

Not just the bike but the audio codec was also from 2012.

[@werb24]

I’ve seen most of your vids and this is absolutely my favorite. I love the longer format experience. Great work.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks William, so glad you enjoyed the video and I would love to do more of this type of thing.

[@adambolter4965]

Great ride and video! Can I ask what brand your helmet is?

[@adriantan205]

Well done Chris! That was a monster of a ride.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Adrian, monster ride, but even better course

[@MarufoVega]

nobody in America knows what a fondo is

[@omarcastz]

Best content you've put out. Loved it. Love how a decade old bike is able to hold its own against all the current trends (disk brakes, tubeless, super aero tubing).

[@rck812]

that was great and very interesting. good job of preparing, planning, and then sticking to it. That old Cannondale looked great and went well with your kit. "you're the first one" has to be the most understated response ever for first place in a tough race

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

HAHA!!! I loved the bit where the person at the finished asked me "if I had done the whole course" 😂. You are right about the Cannondale, it was just the trick for the day.

[@beefeekeefee]

Did the C2K in 1990, '91 and '92. The last time was on a Moulton built FUSO which I still ride today. Good memories and well done!

[@davidburgess741]

Got a '79 Dave Moulton from his hands to mine with hand written receipt!

[@rayF4rio]

Nice!! Good motivation for me to complete my 150 mile ride in the PI up and back to Baguio. Unfortunately, the heat is always a major factor.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Good luck mate

[@AshKetchhum]

Hi Chris I was the guy from the early start. Mentioning to my friend that you were from Australia, it probably startled you a bit how does he know.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey mate, yeh I remember, how did you get on?

[@3mac67]

Hey, Chris great job you did get lucky with the weather Toll House is no joke and I still have Night Mares from doing Big Creek, you might have seen a few people I know that did the ride I plan on doing it next year.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey Loree, you are dead right, Big Creek is the stuff of nightmares. Anyway who gives this ride a go is a legend in my mind, congratulate your friends for me.

[@williambob111]

As bad as fire areas seem, they represent rebirth and those areas will, within a few short years, be teeming with wildlife and flauna/flora. Fire is a natural, and needed process out west and in many forests.

[@williambob111]

Fires are so severe in CA becaue the leftists hindered common snes efor decades which means tons of dead brush laying around which fuels these things even more. Fires should be more frequent but less severe if we stopped loading the forests with dead dry timber waiting to burn.

[@jamesong2672]

More of this please

[@curtvaughan2836]

Excellent video!

[@richardhutchings1980]

Massive effort. Number 1. The sharpshooter from Down Under steals the race!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Richard, so glad you enjoyed the video.

[@swites]

Wow 250k and all that climbing. Well done!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks!

[@nationsnumber1chump]

That's the way it is with gravel also. Completely different training. In my mind you are a gravel or a crit racer. Not much in between really. 10 hour efforts vs 1 hour

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

It’s very much turning into that here in the US. We don’t have gravel racing yet in Oz, but it’s coming, that’s for sure.

[@Richz2]

Very nice light bike... and a beautiful place to ride (suffer!)

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Light frame, but not the lightest gear on it. Think it's tipped the scale at 7.5kg

[@derekcravenPT]

Wooo, great ride, great result. Think of us peasants suffering an NZ winter while you’re riding in the sun 👍

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks DC, glad you enjoyed the video.

[@ajfmaughan]

Great video really enjoyed watching your big ar$e day in the saddle. Great effort nice work

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Andrew, glad you enjoyed it! One correction though, big day out in "someone else's saddle" 😬

[@AlistairLattimore]

Congratulations Chris, what an epic ride and achievement !

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Alistair. So glad you enjoyed the video

[@arnoud3ss]

This is the content I enjoy so much. Really motivates to ride. Thank you.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

That's so awesome to read Arnoud, so glad you enjoyed it.

[@Stevenv74]

Absolutely love your kit.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks so much!

[@minchia04]

Love it Chris. Thanks for sharing all your thoughts in such detail.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks M, so glad you enjoyed the video!

[@geoffnash2609]

Thanks for a great video Chris and well done one being first across the line in on a tough ride. Looks like it is the vert metres of Peaks in half the distance and at altitude. Not easy. Just on your comments regarding the training you have been doing not being applicable for the event. You obviously have an established high level of aerobic endurance. The benefits of this are deep and long lasting. Riding at high intensity benefits low intensity work and vice versa. Many riders fall into the trap of thinking that training in a particular zone only benefits their performance in that zone, when in fact everything helps everything else. Again, well done.

[@CycoWarriorx]

That slow decent into the chair pretty much said everything that needs to be said... 🤣🤣🤣

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

HAHA!!! not to mention the joys of a 9 hour ride on a 'borrowed saddle' 😉

[@CycoWarriorx]

@@ChrisMillerCycling 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@larrymcgoldrick3471]

Awesome!!! Good Job!!! Thanks, so much.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey Larry, thanks so much. Delighted you enjoyed the video

[@adamgriss2025]

Fantastic effort, Chris. Your better half’s enthusiasm and support most certainly had a major influence on your performance, for sure. 👍🏻

[@simonnaylor9695]

Brilliant ride Chris. Thanks for sharing.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks simon, so glad you enjoyed the video

[@camreeves]

Great video! 30 minutes went so quick. Loved it.

[@albertocoelho5664]

Amazing effort. Congrats!!!!!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Alberto. It was a great day out.

[@toddanderson2193]

Thanks for the video... I live in Fresno and couldn't make the training happen for C2K this year. Next year.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Todd, you have to give it a crack next year. Such an epic day out.

[@richardggeorge]

Well done Chris! The top of those Cali mtns are the height of the valleys in the Colorado Rockies. Mt Evans is a ball breaker at 4365m esp as a 92kg sprinter!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Richard. Would love to come back to do that one

[@jjjj041]

15:09 You’re welcome Chris! Lol do you not have Twinkie’s in Australia?

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Sadly no KM ... maybe their is place in the market for them we could fill 😁

[@RideWithGerben]

Great video on a great event. Subbed for that!

[@epzamora]

Fantastic ride and video... let's hear it for Mike from Rubber Soul!!!!!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Give me an M ....

[@ohadrefael42]

hello chris what kind of platform you using for training calendar ? at 27:47 min...

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

It's Today's Plan

[@stevegrusis4348]

Great, great presentation Chris. Being familiar with this event, your 8:45 is totally amazing especially with no long-distance training.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey Steve, so glad you enjoyed the video and thanks foe the comment.

[@mikeh8282]

Thanks for the vid Chris. Well done on the ride. Epic! 👍🏻👍🏻😁

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Glad you enjoyed it Mike. Never sure how a VLOG like that is going to turn out, so please you enjoyed the result.

[@davidcummings7735]

Awesome video, loved the honest commentary and can relate to the bike I have the same but with a compact 50-34 crank, bet you would have loved to have that.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey David, so glad you enjoyed the video. Yeh, a compact would have been awesome, but the Evo held its own all day, that's for sure.

[@JP-om3ou]

Enjoyed this, keep it up Chris. Looked like an adventure

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks JP, so glad you enjoyed the video. Hopefully more events like that coming up

[@graemepinchbeck9142]

Great video Chris . It seems you planned everything so well during the ride . These events are , to me, more involving than just road racing . Keep them up .

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey Graeme, thanks for the comment and I'm glad you enjoyed the video. As for the event being "more involved" then a road race, it really depends on the race and the perspective. The tactics of road racing are FAR more involved and intricate, but they don't tend to be relevant to the average rider. Where as an event like this is not only more relevant, but it's more attainable. Personally I would love to keep doing both, and hopefully bring you videos and insight from both.

[@mattbordignon3588]

Great content Chris! Really enjoyed your commentary throughout the ride. Cheers

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Matt, mixing the post ride chat with my mid-race ramblings worked quite well in the end. thanks for the feedback.

[@Fred_Nice]

Really enjoyed that one. Question about bottle mix - never used it before. Do you carry extra sachets of it and top it up in your bottles as you refill them? Does it come in individual sachets that are easy to carry or do you have to measure it out yourself?

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey Fred, thanks for the comment, glad you enjoyed the video. As for the mix, this was my first experience with Flow, in fact I have to thank Tyler @vegancyclist for the pack. But to answer your question about refills, yes I had two sachets with 3 scoops (90g carbs in each), essentially 2 bottles worth. I filled them at the shaver rest stop and then took Gatorade at the KP stop.

[@adriankite8849]

Hey chirs loved the longer vlog so good I didn't realise it went for 27 minutes 👍

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

So glad you enjoyed it Adrian!

[@collectivesartori]

Good work Chris. Top achievement.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks 👍

[@JFomo]

Wow 1st place!! Mega congrats 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks JF, so glad you enjoyed the video.

[@markhallowell4059]

Awesome ride Chris

[@mudonsunday]

Extremely well done video start to finish!!!!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

glad you enjoyed the video John

[@gregboyd5815]

Chapeau - top job!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Cheers Greg, delighted you enjoyed the video.

[@grahames9228]

Well done. Epic ride and one of your best vlogs.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Glad you enjoyed it Garhame!

[@cannon1156]

Well done. Go to Thailand in November to do the Chiang Rai Classic .. a simple flat 140km ride with 1000 other riders

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

That sounds like my idea of hell ... 140k of flat with 1000 riders 😬

[@cannon1156]

Chris .. it is a good event (did it back in 2019) as well as being a good holiday

[@wendysuperfan1014]

Thanks Chris!! Awesome!! more, more, more.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

You got it Wendy :)

[@anthonyrizzuto309]

Congrats 🥳

[@anthonyrizzuto309]

Awesome inside into your strategies on how to take on such a ride & surviving on those brutal long climb’s is epic and great video. Cheers 🍻

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks AR! So glad you enjoyed the video.

[@johnnydarko8031]

this, imho, is your best work yet. Kudos.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Johnny ... so what you are saying is I have to ride more 255k/5000m rides 🥹. Seriously thought cheers for the comment, it means a lot from you guys.

[@PeterPutz82]

Great video, thanks.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Glad you liked it!

[@wsegoras]

awesome congrats Chris!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks!!

[@neilmylott]

Great video Chris! What model is that Nero Jersey? Is it the Pro Team, or the Pro Team Aero?

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey Neil, it's the Pro Team Aero Jersey

[@neilmylott]

@@ChrisMillerCycling thanks Chris 👍🏻

[@jamesrowe4861]

Awesome. Well done, loved it. 👍🏻

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks James! Delighted to enjoyed the video

[@kylehall4063]

Big day out, nice work 👏

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Kyle, never sure how VLOGs like this will turn out, so glad you enjoyed the result.

[@romainliot1211]

Brilliant Chris and well done!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Romain!

[@wrightwoodwork]

I recently did milan to san remo and the Italian riders where saying they have friends or family at certain points on the course with fresh bottles already made up. As you loose so much ti.e in the feed stations

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey Aaron, thanks for the comment. The Fresno Cycling Club guys are very strict on having any external support (they call it SAG here ... which is weird). In fact they were not very comfortable even having Elizabeth follow me to film. You can ONLY use their rest stops and can't actually have anything pre-made. It's a funny rule, but I didn't want to cross any of their local rules.

[@wrightwoodwork]

@@ChrisMillerCycling I do t think they meant to get support but it happens. I'm doing the etape. My fueling strategy is to mark off the water fountain ong the course to get fresh drinking water then carry the rest of my fuel. Which is easier to estimate for us experienced riders but not so easy for inexperienced riders. I downloaded an app called water map to find the water points. On any ride its all about where I can refill my bottles

[@mrwezbo]

Made it look easy mate great work.

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

So glad you enjoyed the video mate. Nah, that was not easy at all ... that opening shot of sitting down says it all 😜

[@leroskamara]

Great vlog Chris as always

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Nick! Glad you enjoyed the video

[@danielmoorhouse6506]

Inspirational. 👌

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Daniel, glad you enjoyed the video

[@eto2352]

What a beast! Great ride

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

So glad you enjoyed the video Eto!

[@nick_velokicks]

Best effort is surely having the top navigating head unit on the market ...only to miss a turn! Chris...

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

more to come on #hammerheadgate

[@justinlambert4937]

Good work!!!

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@paulsanchez4141]

Great ride

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Thanks Paul, it’s an awesome course

[@drewbuffington]

Gatorade is fire

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

not if you want an actual hit of proper calories.

[@drewbuffington]

@@ChrisMillerCycling I buy the Gatorade powder, so you can load up in bottles. Ultra concentrated.

[@brianwilson3881]

Great ride Chris

[@andrewrjacobs]

Hey Chris awesome video. What helmet is that your riding?

[@ChrisMillerCycling]

Hey guys, so glad you enjoyed the video. Its the new Devel helmet the team are testing at the moment.