Saturday I went to the Barracks for some 'cross. Did three hard laps with a fourth of moderate pace and mixed in remounts and general cool and warm down time. In total I rode two hours. I'm not sure why but several people seemed to be using the cross country course as a place to walk their dogs. They were a pain in the arse.
Twice I almost took a tumble. The first time I hit a hole that I never saw. Both feet unclipped and I barely caught myself before hitting the bars or endo'ing. The second time, I hit the brakes with my usual force. With my brakes working well now, they grabbed hard and scared the crap out of me.
Sunday I did the Bugman ride for the first time. Fifty-six miles of chilly morning air that turned into a perfect day. The trees out in the Wildwood area were looking quite good. Trent busted out his new non-downtube shifting bike and rode well. A new guy from Nevada was riding well in the hills, too. Eduardo, however, chose not to take a route map from the man of bugs and promptly got lost somewhere along Melrose and was never seen again. He was caught in between the lead group and some slower riders. Like a Criss Angel magic act, *POOF*, he was gone. He either turned down Allenton or missed a turn on Hwy 100 at Melrose. We don't know, but he wasn't back at Starbuck's by noon.
It had been a long time since I had been in the Wildwood area around Melrose, Babler and Chesterfield. Doberman had not been climbed in at least two years. The new roads in Wildwood make for some fine riding.
I have not missed riding on Wild Horse Creek. That's just not a fun road anymore. The road is poor and cars are going by respectfully but at high speed. Long Rd and Edison were like interstates with one car after another going by. Edison wasn't as bad since it had a shoulder.
No ride is perfect, though, and all things considered it was a nice ride.
Photo of the Day:
Twice I almost took a tumble. The first time I hit a hole that I never saw. Both feet unclipped and I barely caught myself before hitting the bars or endo'ing. The second time, I hit the brakes with my usual force. With my brakes working well now, they grabbed hard and scared the crap out of me.
Sunday I did the Bugman ride for the first time. Fifty-six miles of chilly morning air that turned into a perfect day. The trees out in the Wildwood area were looking quite good. Trent busted out his new non-downtube shifting bike and rode well. A new guy from Nevada was riding well in the hills, too. Eduardo, however, chose not to take a route map from the man of bugs and promptly got lost somewhere along Melrose and was never seen again. He was caught in between the lead group and some slower riders. Like a Criss Angel magic act, *POOF*, he was gone. He either turned down Allenton or missed a turn on Hwy 100 at Melrose. We don't know, but he wasn't back at Starbuck's by noon.
It had been a long time since I had been in the Wildwood area around Melrose, Babler and Chesterfield. Doberman had not been climbed in at least two years. The new roads in Wildwood make for some fine riding.
I have not missed riding on Wild Horse Creek. That's just not a fun road anymore. The road is poor and cars are going by respectfully but at high speed. Long Rd and Edison were like interstates with one car after another going by. Edison wasn't as bad since it had a shoulder.
No ride is perfect, though, and all things considered it was a nice ride.
Photo of the Day:
3 Comments:
Nice photo. Must have been early in the evening by the look of the sky.
Jim -- thanks for coming out on Sunday. You're right about that stretch of Wildhorse Creek between 109 and Long Road, although nobody has even come close to buzzing us there. It's all downhill too, so at least we can go pretty fast. I've considered bypassing it via Orrville/Shepard/Strecker/Kehrs Mill, but that adds a hard climb right after the pit stop - Eatherton/Chesterfield Airport would not be an improvement either. It's the weak link of the ride for sure, but the least of three evils.
Yeah, Ted. Most rides have that one section that is not ideal. Our Jeffco rides have the same thing with 141. You just deal with it and put it behind as quickly as possible.
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