Machka 

Happy Royal Hobart Show Day Long Weekend! What kind of cycling or other sports did you participate in this weekend? Who did you ride with? How far did you go? Got pics?

Machka 

My place of employment is engaged in a steps challenge. There are 50-something teams of 8 people each all competing against each other. This challenge actually had an overwhelming response. I think they were figuring there'd be just a handful of teams. The start date had to be moved back a couple days to Wed 19th in order to get enough pedometers for all of us!

It has been an interesting exercising counting steps ... I've never done that before. The challenge goes on until mid-November so we'll see how all these teams do.

Meanwhile ...

Thursday 20 October - I walked 8 km. Rowan walked about 6 km that day because he had injured himself and had to go for stitches and didn't feel up to quite that distance. We did a local hike we haven't tried before, then I went for a walk around the block to get my steps up, and later we went for a walk to the beach and back.

Friday 21 October - We walked 7.8 km to a grocery store we're considering using and back. We thought we'd walk the route to see if walking was an option, and also to see if cycling was an option. The shorter, more direct route, on the way there, was not particularly suitable for cycling. The way back was longer but might work for cycling although there is one challenging climb in the middle.

Saturday 22 October - Cycled 24.4 km up the cycleway and back ... on again, off again rain. On again, off again rain is a theme around here lately.

Machka 

From Thursday's hike ...

seau grateau

Monday - 39.7 mi, 1873' -- Attempted ride through Marian Country to Mt. Tamalpais on the Alpine Dam loop route starting in Sausalito. Ran into a road closure that looked serious enough to heed, so I turned around after the first climb and didn't get to do the best parts of the route, including the climb to Mt. Tam. I later learned that people generally ignore that road closure so I was kind of kicking myself for missing out on it, but the mountain isn't going anywhere, so I'll be back for it some time.
Tuesday - ~42 mi, ~3000' -- Last ride of a week-long road trip with my bike. San Luis Obispo to Hi Mountain Rd, a really nice out and back route through farmland and ranches on the final stretch, the road gradually pitches up to ridiculously steep, then levels out and the pavement ends. Headwinds and inclines most of the way out meant a really nice return trip, including a 40+ mph descent to start it off. Distance is estimated because I paused Strava on the way back to take in some scenery and have a snack, then forgot to start it again.
Friday - 46.1 mi, 3535' -- Back home, decided I wanted to climb to the Hollywood sign. Mission accomplished, and I also rode by a landmark I'd been wanting to see (Fred's house from Lost Highway, near the Hollywood Bowl lookout), but I was in bad shape on this ride, hungover, hungry, and not feeling it at all. I had to stop several times on the way up to the sign, and the route up and down is really not much fun. Rough pavement and tight residential streets mean no good descent on the way back.

Now I'm going to rest. Maybe a little recovery spin to get coffee today, but I'm thoroughly tired. 265 miles and some of the toughest riding I'v done over the last 10 days have me worn out.

Jakedatc

Tues: short recovery ride to get the legs straight after the DU race sunday.. wish i had had time for more since it was a nice day.

Wed: weather kept up and the legs felt good so i did 43mi solo

Sat: forecast looked aweful so i didn't get out in the AM like usual. turns out it was the best part of the day. GF and I went out and tried to sneak in some CX practice at the local farm that has some trails around it. everything was good until out way back it started downpouring cold cold rain.

JMH714

Rode 22 miles. Took bit different route after Newport Beach Upper bay area - specific Irvine area. Passed by my old high school (University HS).

Saw a great view on Newport Beach bay area and took picture of it. Here's the link since it's large pictures.

https://imageshack.com/a/img923/2826/zsxesA.jpg
https://imageshack.com/a/img922/5817/OErny0.jpg
https://imageshack.com/a/img923/2705/gHIwX2.jpg

I don't know how you guys were able to climb thousands feet... My legs got really tired after climbing 263 feet!

I might take another ride tomorrow morning to try out my restored bike at my local trail - just over 12 miles.

FeltF2Tarmac

Didn't ride a great distance however most of it was climbing so 16miles with about 12 of it uphill. Bought some new Castelli tights and what a joy the ride was. Now it's going to rain until late April.

bmwjoe

Hurricane Mountain Road

My nephew got married on Wednesday day up in Fryeburg Maine. Patti and I drove up on Tuesday and stayed in nearby North Conway NH. The wedding was not until 3:30 so we had a lot of time to kill. Luckily I was thinking ahead and threw the bicycle in the car so I could kill a little time before the blessed event. (Patti is very understanding and I love her.) Little did I know the leaves would at peak and the temperature would be in the 70’s.

After a leisurely breakfast with the gathered family I headed off. I had researched the area briefly on Google and found the main road along the valley to be about it for roads. There were few side roads, and they did not go far. I had planned to head between the mountains and stay along the Saco River and just take in the beautiful vistas and enjoy the smooth pavement but I could not resist heading off the main path and exploring one of the side roads that paralleled the main drag. I had not planned to climb any hills, but I came to this intersection and a left turn would take me back to the main road and a right would take me on Hurricane Mountain Road. Hmmmm, sounded interesting. I had the geared bike and I figured what the heck, how bad could it be?

I started up the hill and I saw a couple of ominous signs:
· Steep winding road 4 miles
· Big trucks turn around
· Road closed in winter
· Road not suitable for large vehicles or RVs
· The gate they closed the road with

I passed a couple of mountain bikers crawling up the hill in a real granny gear and then I found out why. Things got really steep really fast. I quickly abandoned the large ring and fell into the lower gears. In the low gear I was making progress but it was slow. Things were complicated by damp pavement and the few wet leaves and pine straw on the road. I hit one switchback on the inside and it was clear that I it was too slippery and steep. I stopped and walked about 20’ up the road and resumed from the far side taking a better line. The road flattened out from insane to just steep and I took the chance to go to my lowest gear.

I came to another insane switchback and decided to go wide and head off into the woods on a little flat grassy area. This went well until my front tire sunk into the sandy soil and down I went at 0.5 mph. Once I was down I realized how hard I was breathing and figured this was a good time for a break, so I just laid there for a minute. A couple of cars came by and were fixing to stop and give me aid, but I chased them away with a thumbs-up. A moment later I saw the two mountain bikers and it would not be right for these guys to pass me. I sprang up and resumed my effort.

It was sunny and 11:00am, but there was still a lot of wet spots. The leaves were few, but a 4” leaf is a big obstacle for a 3/4” tire. I also noticed the sheen of oil in spots. This was probably due to how hard the cars were working to get up the hill and how slow they had to go. On one steep spot I spun the rear wheel. I lost momentum, but not control. I decided the center of the road would have less oil and was a bit drier. I settled into a pace and made it to the summit.

I was a bit disappointed to learn that at the summit I was surrounded by trees and there was no tall vista to be had. About 10 minutes later the mountain bikers made it to the top. At the top there was a sign indication that the decent was a 17% grade. That is insane. I ventured down the far side a bit and found no clearing. I decided to turn around to end back on the main road. I did not have a map and I did not want to get lost. I had no idea where the road would end. Going for a ride was OK. Getting to the wedding late would not win any points.

I started to head down the way I came and realized that the challenging assent was a terrifying decent. The wet leafy/oily pavement was very scary. I took it very easy on the way down rarely getting above 10 mph. I leaned back to keep some weight on the rear wheel and worked the brakes. Several times I slowed down to the point that the GPS stopped registering which is below 4 mph. It beeps when it does this. At one point the road was too steep and I stopped and walked for about 20’. Eventually I got to the bottom. My heart was racing just as hard at the bottom out of fear as it was on the top from exertion. I was happy to be on flat ground.

I continued to the main road and headed north as planned. I wanted to make it to the Bartlet ski area, but decided that I did not want to risk being late. I made it back to the hotel right in time and the ride turned out to be about 25 miles. Perfect!


https://ridewithgps.com/trips/11597569


The wedding was great. The venue was a 1750 barn on an old farm. The “chapel” was simply a clearing in the woods with rustic benches and a chuppah made from logs. Maple leaves had fallen on the wet sandy soil making a maroon and brown carpet that was beautiful. Colorful leaves fell during the ceremony, which made the event even more special. To make things even better the food had a bacon theme. Bacon wrapped water chestnuts as an appetizer, a huge bowl of crumbled fresh bacon (over a pound) on each table to top the salad and instead of a wedding cake they had maple bacon cup cakes.

The wedding venue was also a bed and breakfast. They had a folder with various local rides that one could take from the hotel. They happened to have one describing Hurricane Mountain road.

“This is a very strenuous ride. You should not attempt this ride unless you are a very experienced cyclist and in good shape. The loop includes almost 1700 feet of climbing including a 1.7 mile stretch of 11% grade in a 1-lane, 2-way switchback road. The downhill side is just as steep and just as winding, so make sure you have reliable brakes. If you do ride, you will be rewarded with numerous vistas of nearby mountains and bragging rights.”

When I got home I Googled “Hurricane Mountain Road” and found a number of YouTube videos of motorcycles driving on it. They were not cranking and banking to say the least. I also found this interesting bit on trip advisor from someone who followed their GPS onto the road:

“Wow! On our recent voyage to North Conway from Canada, our GPS decided that the Hurricane Mountain Road was a better option than taking Route 302. Figuring that the GPS might have found some quick route, I followed along. So off we went, up the back of the mountain and then descended down. After way down the brakes were going to the floor and when I finally stopped the car, smoke was bellowing from the front wheels! We managed to edge our way down to Kearsarge Road. I imagine that many people using GPS are brought up that road especially if they are navigating to a spot near upper Main Street.”

Seems I stumbled on a cool road. I am glad I did. I have attached a couple of pictures.

Ride Safe,

Joe

PS: Tomorrow I will take my fixed gear on the Bucks County Covered Bridge Ride:
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/17287514

Machka 

Sunday -- 23.1 km bicycle ride ... cold and windy.

We should be moving into somewhat summery weather now, but no. To compare with the northern hemisphere, we should be at late April weather and yet we're dealing with highs of +11 with a "feels like" temp of +8.

Rowan

Neat report Joe. Descents like that can be really scary. The worst one Machka and I did was at a similar 17% although without the leaves... but we were on our tandem and it only has rim brakes front and rear. We stopped several times (just) to let brakes cool and to give my hands a rest.

For all that, it seems like you had a ball on the ride and at the wedding.

jeffreythree

I changed my road bike from toe clips to my first set of clipless pedals this week. A couple of shorter rides and a 40 miler yesterday on some of my usual routes were all I did to get used to them. Today I finally put my fat bike to the use I intended it for, going fishing down some trails of deep sugar sand and whoop-de-doos. Fish were not biting, but those 5 miles were a lot more fun than they used to be. I did not think to take my phone for pics since there is no cell service and I leave my phone in the van.

woodcraft

Too bad about the road closure- that's my backyard, & it's a world-class ride.

woodcraft

A longer loop Saturday- 87/4800'

Some green grass is showing, after only one rain.

The turnaround was at a country store/deli, & I ate some sort of pig-in-blanket thing that had after-effects,

but powered a non stop return leg.

kbarch

Yesterday was chores/errands, then socializing, but on topic. In the afternoon an old friend and I got in a good 3.5 mile walk around Prospect Park and environs. In the evening it was a party with racing teammates.

Today was the MS ride. I'd signed up to be a marshal, but because the start was on the other side of the river while the 50 and 100 mile routes came through my town in Jersey, we arranged to check in at the nearby rest stop/aid station. Turns out that didn't get coordinated, so a teammate (who lives in the same town) and I just rode along anyhow. Totally uneventful. Mostly familiar roads, but many of them "backwards" from the way we usually take them. The morning was cool, but as it warmed up (slightly - to upper 50's maybe), it got VERY windy. There was one point where I hit some debris and a big gust of wind must have blown me 3-4" sideways - like a lateral bunny-hop.

That might not have happened if I hadn't been so lazy and had cleaned up and changed the brake pads on the bike I should have been riding. Instead, I was on the aero bike. I'm starting to think 60 miles or so is the longest ride I should plan on taking that bike. On longer rides, a little more resilience is nice.

seau grateau

Yeah, I was really looking forward to it. I'll definitely be back some time -- so many beautiful places to ride in NorCal.

JMH714

Rode again today (first time back to back ride), but this time on Santiago Creek Trail to test my restored Specialized Allez. I can't believe how heavy it is comparing to my carbon fiber bike (Specialized Roubaix SL4). My legs are so tired from yesterday's ride and had trouble climb some uphill.

On Allez, I ran into some issue with rear derailleur as it kept changing gears without me trigger it. I'll have to take it in shop again. :-/

bmwjoe

Today I did the annual Buck County Covered Bridge ride. I finished 100 hilly km in just under 4 hours on my fixed gear. As far as I know I was the only fixed gear on the ride. the weather was perfect and I picked the right gear for the climbs. It was fun kicking some geared bike butt up some of the hills.

https://ridewithgps.com/trips/11631296

Ride Safe,

Joe

bmwjoe

I just figured out how to attach the pictures. Check them out.

kbarch

So what gear was it?

The overall profile looks very rolling, and not too steep, but the metrics indicate a max grade of 18.4% - a little ramp, I'm guessing, but still.... And 190 rpm cadence? You must have a lot of practice!

I've only topped out at about 140 cadence, but I know what you mean about how fun it can be to kick geared butt up hills. I rode fixed 48 & 17 on the 75 mile course of the NYC Century a while back. By comparison to your ride, it was was quite flat (but the steepest parts had grades of 60%+, i.e., stairs ); however, there were a couple segments with grades of 4-6% that gave the casual riders some trouble. Fortunately they were on roads with plenty of room to pass, and long enough that I could get up a head of steam. Those "hills" were actually quite a relief. So much of the ride was stop-and-go, often in fairly heavy traffic, so there were few opportunities to make good time. I was so glad when they provided an opportunity to get the legs going properly.

wthensler 

Saturday was the 24th annual Gainesville Santa Fe Century ride. As I've just gotten back into cycling after two difficult years, I figured 3 months wasn't enough time in the saddle to allow me to do a full century, so I aimed at either a 55 or 68 loop.

Well, I felt strong enough to go for the 68, but ended up missing a turn which cost me an additional 13 miles. The highlight of the ride was hooking up with some younger, stronger guys pushing 22+ for the last 15 miles. It was great.

Total for the day was 81 miles, 4 hours and 25 minutes.

bmwjoe

I had 43/18 gears, which works out the 63". I normally ride a 70" gear, but I wanted shorter gears for the hills. I have used these gears before to get more proficient at spinning. This time I put them on about 2 weeks before this ride to allow my legs time to acclimate. I put the cadence meter on the crank just for fun.

I forget how lucky I am to live in this part of PA. Very nice roads are everywhere. This ride was mostly on little country roads that are too narrow to have a center line. There was two traffic lights on the ride and 6 covered bridges. The club support was also very good. Hot cider at the chilly start. There was fresh baked goods at every stop and lunch. I do also like urban riding on occasion. I am thinking of signing up for 5 boros next year.

bikecrate

Finally Fall weather in FL for the weekend. This is what it typically should be like...lows in the 50's and highs in the 70's with a stronger N/NE wind. Saturday road to Upper Tampa Bay trail for 40 miles and Sunday went to Flatwoods park for 42 miles. I felt so much stronger riding. Sadly the good weather will not last. It is supposed to heat up by mid week.