Sunday Ride

Sunday Ride

Saturday I turned down two different group rides; a mountain bike ride, and a road ride. Instead, I planned to do a fairly long ride alone. As I drifted to sleep, I planned out my route. However, I was planning a pretty intricateroute, so I decided to map it out, using BikeMap.net. I got out of bed, and mapped it out. I wanted to ride it, but I wasn't sure if I'd actually get around to it on Sunday. This was the first time I had ridden my road bike in about three weeks, so I had planned a vigorous route to get me back in the saddle. I tried to get every possible hill in, regardless of the quality of the road. Sunday morning rolled around, and I decided to amp up the route, and bump the mileage to over 50. That also brought the total vertical climbing to over 5400 feet; about 108 feet of vertical per mile. I had bit of planning to do, and packing, but I was on the road by 1pm.

My route sent me down a familiar section of dirt road for the first bit, which helped me get the joyous feeling of riding back before I hit the hills on this 80 degree day. I was cranking along in the high 20s on this section, and then I made a sharp U-turn to begin the first hill of the day. Ten minutes later, I was at the top. Then back down the other side, and up to another summit. I stopped and took a panorama. (Peckville) I ate a bar, and pounded down the other side, across a 50mph highway, and up some more to a friend's house, where I chatted a bit, and got some water.

Continuing on, I hit the highest point of the day, took a few more panoramas (Washer's and Patten), and crept down a steep gravel "road" on the other side. Even after it became paved, it was still incredibly steep. From there, I had the chance to ride a flat paved section, so I put in a quick sprint, stepping it up to 34 mph. Up another hill, back down to a different section of the same 50 mph highway, and up another dirt hill, which is the highlight of a local 10k running race. On the other side, I stopped briefly to talk with my grandfather, and then took a 20 minute break to eat my two egg sandwiches. A group of cyclists also chose this spot for lunch, and we exchanged pleasantries.

Then it was back out onto the 50 mph highway, and up a gentle hill, and then a geographically straight shot to the next big town. This section of the routewas the most difficult for me to navigate, having only ridden it once before, and not all at the same time. There were many four way intersections that I paused at, before deciding the correct road. On more than one occasion, I found hills I had forgotten about. Fortunately, a long descent on the other side welcomed me, and then a short cut through a section of abandonded road spared me from riding through a traffic circle.

I rode back toward home, along a familiar commuting route, but then I veered off east, and dove down to a covered bridge over a river, before the steepest climb of the day. A short steep, but steep nonetheless. I came out on an other commuting route, the one I took to elementary school, and now to my job on a film set. This road had been recently paved, so that was a nice reprieve from the dirt I had encountered earlier. I stopped to watch a farmer wrap round hay bales with white plastic, a fascinating process I had watched at the same farm on a bike ride years before. Further on, I noted the exact location of the Leyden/Bernardston town line.

The best downhill in the county now awaited me, and I unfortunately was not able to break 50 mph, coming in at 49.3 mph. Then it was on and down a long gentle downhill into Vermont, and then back along a dirt road beside a winding brook. The brook fed into a river, and I went up, following the river, past a beautiful waterfall, and up onto a section of road I hadn't been on since elementary school. From there, I headed due north, and then came about on to a due south road which had more hills in it than I had previously remembered.

Out past a dairy farm, and down the central road of Leyden. I managed to avoid any significant hills, save the one I cranked up in my highest gear, courtesy of the downhill before it, and the speed I had worked up. Then a few more dirt roads, and I was home!

53 miles

4 hours riding time

5.5 hours elapsed time

13.1 average velocity

5400 feet of vertical climbing

http://www.bikemap.net/route/234223