Dallas, on the right, waits for Steve H to ready the sign-in sheets.  While ride leader Rick thought he would be at the ride, we thought we ought to be prepared just in case and in this case, it was a good idea to be prepared.

Not brand new but kind of new, Shannon's ride.  I kind of like that white top tube contrast against a black frame.

Wow, what a great weather night and very, very refreshing.  Despite that, the crowd was not what some thought it would be, only around 55-60 but Evan, on the right, was making his first visit since the days the Thursday ride started from the church. Evan rolled out with a large A group of 27.

Plenty of space this week to stretch out and enjoy the shade. The Rivet group was down in numbers but still plenty strong with Ken B, Travis, Philippe, Kyle, Jon H, Pete C, Ghisallo Nick, Mike C, Aaron C and a few others.  They torched the relatively flat route of 33 miles and lots of casualties from the effort out 161.  The lead group finished with a 25mph average.

When you see me with camera, don't stare with a silly look, just smile.  Well done.

I call it the "Wilson Effect".  You read about all my short cutting, whining about how badly I suck so you see me head out with the A group and you naturally think, "Well Hell, if he is going out with that group then I can hang with that fatty." and so you come, tonight 27 of us.  Led by Scott B, Gus, Jay P, Evan, Jared, Andrew C, Ron B, Ryan S, Kristie, Dan R, Don, Ric, Hector, Scott, Koji, Deniece, etc... oh and a guy in all black or dark grey/black kit that when not taking a long pull and scattering us to the wind, would drop off but stay in the wind.  Dang, wish I could do that. He said he rides with the Riveters but a combination of stomach flu and hay fever had him at about 60%.
We burst forth upon the idyllic area between New Albany and Granville, our numbers reduced from 27 to 14-15 by the time we rolled into Granville with a 24.4 avg. Along the way, with a fairly strong and not helping north wind I found myself guttered by Andrew Clayton.  This from a guy on track to finish the season with 16,000 miles and there he is hunkered permanently at the gutter's edge. He should have been out on the left establishing a 2nd line with that level of fitness. 
We soft pedaled a bit at the left turn onto Raccoon Valley but the damage was long done and so many had dropped anchors out in the vast ocean of asphalt between here and New Albany.  We turned right on Louden and then left on Lobdell.  The downhill to the base of the park is kind of iffy and I hung well back but the group did not hit the hill too hard and with Jared towing me, I was ok.  We paused at Mounts to allow Ron B to catch on and then entered Alexandria at breakneck speed, eventually getting on to Jersey Mill Road. Here, the 60% Riveter pulled the entire ascent and I tapped out with a couple of ramps to go but what luck,  the group slowed crossing #37 and back into the group was I and remained so to the end, finishing with a 22.2 average.

 Some of the Riveters remained and were entertained by Luke, telling about his and Lori's experience in TN and then....

....with Kristie's arrival, the folks swarmed to the back of her car for a sampling of the usual high quality snacks. One can achieve a level of popularity unrivaled with a few hours in the kitchen each Thursday.  OK, on to the Saturday ride options. Coming soon.

     

I visited Rick Tuesday, passing the Lazy R Campground on Drycreek where there were 25-30 vehicles all in support of the Bruce Willis movie filming in the Granville area...well, anyway, Rick told me he would be at tonight's ride.  Now, back to the Willis movie, I had to stop at the Granville post office on Wednesday and the place was abuzz with the following information:
1. Lady working at gas station thought it was Bruce entering but turned out to be his stunt double with film crew.  Thinking this would be as close as she would get to Bruce, she asked and received permission to kiss the double's shaven head. 
2. The back of Moe's Barbecue was made to look like a bait shop for a scene.
3. Wanting to film a scene in the post office but not receiving permission from DC to use a post office box after closing, the crew rented a box for the minimum period and then used it after hours in a scene.  They were filming as late as 11:30pm.
4. The CVS pharmacy where we frequently stop for refueling was made to look like the front of a police department. 
Below are the routes for tonight's ride.
Route A/B 33 mile ride file https://ridewithgps.com/routes/7502711
Route C 22 mile ride file https://ridewithgps.com/routes/7502839

           

We had 4 new cyclists out for tonight's The Cycling Club ride out New Albany, Larry P, Lisa A, Angie and a visitor from the UK on the right, Andrew.  Andrew was riding a rental from Veloscience that Larry was checking out.

Gus Cook rolls in, our ride leader.  With new people we should have run through the ride "mission" and regroup point locations but I failed to alert Gus to their presence, a failing by his loyal lieutenant. Later, 2-3 of the new cyclists, unaware of regrouping, turned around after losing the group.

We almost had Meredith join us too but alas, she had the wrong cycling shoes and had to bail on our group of 18.

We head out on another very hot and humid evening, enjoying a brisk pace to Alexandria where we arrived with around a 22mph avg.  Earlier, Jeff Schleup had departed about 20 minutes prior to our parking lot exit, riding our route.  Suddenly and without advanced notice, as we cruised toward the left turn onto Mounts Road, my unmotivated self, cyclist of no passion, decided he didn't really want to ride very hard so when the group turned right on Lobdell, I stayed straight.  I know, big surprise.  Reaching Hardscrabble Road, I made a left and headed to Northridge and then Stone Quarry to catch Jeff but he had already gone through so after waiting a few minutes, headed for the barn with 32 miles.

          

Another entertaining report from Lori, a summary of her experience at the River Gorge Omnium in TN.  An event of time trial, crit and road race, the latter of which is a great read on Lori's blog, here:
http://www.thecadencekitchen.com/all-blog/rg-recap

       

 From Ken Buddell, a summary of the action at The Frank: We started with 8 people in our group. Three of the guys I do not know there names but it Was Pete C, Travis, Dan Rhule and Steve Fields. The 8 of us were keeping a good pace up to the first rest step when we dropped one of the guys. Then by the second rest stop we were getting a little tired. in between the second and third we were down to just Pete C, Travis, Dan and myself. We had all run out of water before we got to the third stop, it was so hot. Between the third and the final stop we all had cramps at one point or another. It was pretty rough but we all made it through. And since this was the last "official" FRANK I was glad to have been a part.

Meantime and meanwhile, well south beginning in Logan, OH, there was the COP's Lake Hope ride.  Options of 75 and 96 miles, coupled with a steamy forecast and a Trek US Postal bike I dusted off from the basement for use, had me intently studying the route for a shorter option.  Above, Brad Blair and about 25 others wait for the start of the ride.

In the foreground, Jared contemplating what lies ahead as he is warned that water stops are few on the 96 mile route.  Only Andrew C and Jared tackled the long route. Not only is the store in South Bloomingfield closed but so too is that dumpy, concrete structure on 278 prior to Lake Hope.

Brothers Simpatico.  The Donald and Bruce.

Eric with Steve O to his right.  Those two with Bob S and Brent J probably led the strongest of the 75 mile group.  So, off we went and with the infrequent refuel stops, we decided to stop at the market....

....at the campground on Chapel Ridge Road at only mile 24.  As we rose from the small wooden seats, our sweat had drained onto the surface leaving behind various shapes.  Because the bench on which I had been seated had a convex surface, my sweat stain appeared to be shaped like a heart.  Oh the tittering and laughter that created. The heat began to be felt and by the time we reached the climb by the Vinton County airport, I just wanted to finish and did not stop there with the others.  Instead I stopped at....

....Lake Hope and was glad that the boat rental place had food and drinks.  There I regrouped with Larry, Lisa and Mark V.  We departed together but I had decided to limit the effort and rode very slowly from that point forward, stopping at the small market in Union Furnace and even in Logan at the Speedway where adding ice and Gatorade to the water bottle was a life saver.  I had no problem with the old Trek although shifting is so sluggish compared to the Di2.  And no, I did not cut the route short, finishing with 74 miles.

      

Lori N and Luke R were in TN this weekend for the "River Gorge Omnium" a TT, crit and road race.  The road race, which included big climbs (if you have ever done "3 State 3 Mountain" you would recognize them) was a tough 70 mile event.  Lori finished, in the women's Pro/1/2 division, 5th of 56 while Luke finished 48th of 87 in, of course, the men's division. Congrats!

     

Team Hastings was out in force tonight, with around 50 others by the time 6:00pm came around.  As I made my way around the parking lot, spreading good cheer, I discovered.....

....a new, unorthodox way of applying lube to one's chain.  There must be an easier way and then I stumbled upon something that other than stealing all of Kristie's cookies or door dinging Marty's White Bike would be 3rd on the list of parking lot etiquette violations.....

...parking one's car in the lone shady spot on an evening where the heat index was around 100.  Farmer Mike & French Climbing Machine appear miffed but otherwise refrained from saying anything.  Now the shade dwellers were scattered to the wind and sun.

Jared, Andrew and Franz, who is temporarily driving a minivan.

John K, Michael, Rossi tandem, Rick and Alberto Contador await the start of the ride.  Earlier in the day, two versions of tonight's route were distributed so after conducting a walkaround poll, the majority opted for the shorter route.  I gathered eager group ride leaders and then sent off the Riveters, a fairly small group and then Scott Billman...

...led out the A group, of which there were around 20.  Initially, I thought Scott had released us too early but ahead was not the Riveters, just another group exiting at about the same time.  Included in our group were....

....Lori and Luke who did not want to have to dig too deep as they were racing in TN this weekend.  We broke free of New Albany, racing eastward and reaching Alexandria with a 24.2 avg and then Granville at a 25mph avg.  Then we turned back to the west via Raccoon Valley Road and into a head wind that seemed to tame the beast a bit. To that point our group had dropped only 1-2 people, another on the Moots Run climb but for the most part, everyone had hung in there as we turned left at York Road.  I was hot, I was not looking forward to the York road rollers, I was convinced I would get hung out to dry there and I suspected the group was not going to make the 1-2 obligatory regroups so at 161, I hung a right and departed the route.  Michael came along too. I finished with 30 miles and a 21.7 avg, the balance of the front A group finished with 21.8 for their 35 miles and the Riveters raced the route with a 23.8 avg.

During the drive home, the sun was creating some cool cloud fringe lighting.  

      

The Frank: 75 and 102 mile routes. The hilliest bicycle ride in Ohio. The 102 mile route has over 10,000 ft of elevation gain. For experienced riders only. Ride is not about fast descents, its about climbing. If you cannot descend slowly/in a controled manner please do not come. Cost is $40 to $60. Go to bike-ohio.com for more info and to register.
75 mile route  https://ridewithgps.com/routes/2659595
102.5 mile route   https://ridewithgps.com/routes/5683384

I believe Ken B, Travis, etc... the ultra fit will be attending the above. As for the regular Jimmys and Joes, they will be...

I was asked to put this out in case some were missed who are friends of Bill Barrett's.
Come and help Bill Barrett celebrate his 60th birthday with a bike ride this Saturday, August 27th.  
 
Click on this link for the bike route:  https://ridewithgps.com/routes/16031015

There will be two start points for a 60 mile and 30 mile ride.  
60 mile route.  Leave from the Hawk’s Nest in Alexandria at 3:00.  Plan on dropping off a car or getting a ride to the start point.  The ride will be the reverse of the route link above.  
30 mile route.  Leave from the Rusty Bucket in New Albany at 5:00.  Following the link listed above.  Those participating in both the 60 and 30 mile ride will ride together from New Albany to Alexandria with the following stops: 

Beer/Gatorade stops along the 30 mile route:
Stop #1 Rusty Bucket, New Albany
Stop #2 The Pub, 48 S. Main St. Johnstown
Stop #3 Broadway Pub, 126 E. Broadway Granville
Stop #4 Hawk’s Nest, 261 W. Main St. Alexandria

The final destination will be the Hawk’s Nest.  Plan on sticking around for beers, burgers, cake and wishing Bill a happy birthday.  Any friends, spouses, or non-riders are more than welcome to attend.  Riders should be arriving around 7:00.  Please pass this along to anyone that I may have missed.  This event is open to all of Bill’s friends and family       

       

Gus arrives a bit early as we debate the merits of riding the route in reverse.  The gang is hesitant with change and lastly, out of consideration for Doug M who rides to/from the ride, we stay with the usual.  Ron, in the middle, later towed me for the entirety of the Battee road climb.  What a guy.  There were 18-19 of us and all anxious to get the ride under our belts because.....

....waiting for us, in the trunk of Kristie's car was a mix of healthy and unhealthy treats.  I sampled the unhealthy prior to the ride.

We headed out, pausing at the last light out of town. Here a member of the group mentioned he was having calf cramp problems and during this brief stop, I heard all kinds of remedies ranging from pickle juice to mustard.

The eastern most reach of the route where we regroup.  The shadows are getting longer as the sun slides toward the southern horizon.  We tackle Stone Quarry where I hang back to conserve energy for a later climb and thus....

....am one of the last to arrive at the Northridge Road regroup but I was plotting and upon reaching the base of Caswell road, I was ready.  It took a few seconds for a leader who would pull we to emerge cause you know I'm not going to strike out alone.  Finally Ghisallo Nick buzzed by and I leapt for his wheel.  He gapped me but demonstrating rare determination, I caught back on and we ascended the climb, joined at the wheel if not the hip.  Within sight of the top, rather then show my gratitude for his selfless behavior, I attacked and gained the KOM group points.  Unfortunately, the effort did not get me a PR on Strava cause of the mucking around at the bottom. 

Upon our return to the parking lot with a 20.4 avg for our 38 miles, Kristie sprang open the trunk lid and we flocked to the contents. This time I had a healthy snack and it too was excellent. 

     

A gathering of 19, smaller than last week, probably a result of our route being a little on the short side and plenty of other options.

The sidewalk scene dominated by coffee drinkers, cyclists and joggers. Yet another very humid day as we....

....head east into pea soup.  Conspicuous by their absence, there were no Riveters or even Mini Riveters so the pace, while brisk, was never too hard as we took a meandering route, hitting Granville at mile 20 where we....

.....made the briefest of stops to top off water bottles or, in the case of Larry P, pick our noses or both.  Flyin Tuna hijacked Gus' route so rather than exit Granville and hit the short gravel section later on Hankinson, we did the Jones Road and Welsh Hills climbs.  Thanks a bunch Cindy.  We regrouped at Dry Creek and got a fairly intense pace going to 661, then kept it going to Louden and kept it going....I began thinking, do I want to keep this up for another 20 miles, can I keep it up for another 20 miles?  Probably not so I exited at Stone Quarry but hey, give me credit for doing the Raccoon Run climb.  Finished with 51 miles and learned someone in the group, almost immediately after I left, asked that the pace ease up.  Guess I should have hung in there.

      

OK, here we go.  Saturday, for the elite Columbian climbers or ordinary cyclists like Isaac, Paul D, etc... there is a ride out of Bainbridge, which is not the Bainbridge up around Cleveland but the one west of Chillicothe on route 50. 
Bainbridge is roughly 20-25 minutes W of Chillicothe on Route 50.
Meeting Place: Marathon Gas Station on Route 50 about a mile past Paint Valley HS and the Seip Mound on the right. There's a vacant store and parking lot adjacent that should serve nicely for parking.  Ride start is 8:30am and it will be a great one.
A Option: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15240006
A- Option: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15240208
B Option: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15240100

COP has the Steve Barbour Memorial ride with start times from 7:30-9:00am at the Grizzell Middles School in Dublin.  It is $35 for a day of registration with marked roads and a map at the start.  Fairly flat route.

Lastly, there is a Gus Cook production, from in FRONT of Starbucks in New Albany at 8:00am.  The pace is spirited conversational.  I am pretty sure there will be a large turnout and a broad range of fitness levels.  If you are wondering who will be there, well Gus, probably Peggy, me, Flyin Tuna, Granville John, Dirty Dan and many, many others. The route is: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15982891
       

          

          

Cyclists arrive and wait for 6:00pm and the start of the ride.  I was waiting for our ride leader to arrive as I had not been notified that we was not coming so had not brought sign-in sheets or maps.  Steve H can usually be counted on to have sign-in sheets but he too was absent.  So, with a couple of minutes until 6:00pm, I announced this a non COP ride and things commenced as usual.    

Scott Billman on the right, celebrating his 60th birthday by riding 60 miles earlier in the day but then, out he came to ride with his Thursday buddies too. 

Michael on the left, John K on the right.  Weather, while hot and again humid, appeared to be ok.  Just a thin storm line to our west that looked like it would miss us.

Franz and Jackie waiting for the B group to shove off.  Light turnout tonight.  I understand this weather pattern will be swept out this weekend with much more settled weather coming next week.  Curiously, the long route was only 38 miles so there was some talk around the parking lot about that. 

Oh great, Paul D is back from riding the mountains of Washington and Oregon.  That's all the A group needs, the return of a guy with the killer instinct after training in the mountains.  Ha, ha, just kidding big fella.  New guy on the left, should have gotten his name.  He makes Paul look small.

Lot of the heavy hitters were absent but from my perspective, heavy hitter group, aka Riveters, are so large they can afford some MIA.  Travis, Kyle Z, Pete C, Tym Tyler, Luke, Ken B and then some mini Riveters like Dirty Dan, who squirted me with a water bottle when no one was looking and a few others.  I rounded up ride leaders, sent out the Rivet group, who would finish with a 23+mph avg and then....

....the A group rolled out, numbering maybe 14, including the Music Man.  MM is the Paradise Garage guy who rides without ear buds so we can enjoy his choice of tunes.  I love it and hope next week he straps a speaker to his frame.  I don't recognize any of the tunes because with the wind and road noise, it's just noise but I like noise. As I always say, the louder the better. 
Our pace was pretty high, arriving at the 310 crossover at a 24mph avg and then, up ahead the Riveters were milling about.  Drawing closer, ahhh it's Pete C fixing a flat.  Too bad but the Riveters are not a loyal bunch so many left Pete, probably with his blessing and caught up with us.  Their average at that point was 26mph.  Reaching York, I could see lightning not too far north of us and a black cloud appeared to be drifting south.  Borat said we could either turn left and get through the rain quickly or turn right and ride with it, making it worse.  Hmmmm that seemed like a false choice.  I thought of an alternative, turning around and so....

....Rick and I did that, pausing to catch the rainbow.  I thought for sure the groups would get hammered and the b group must have thought the same because they went off route to go south and then back.  Yet, other than light rain, I hear the Rivet and A group got through it ok.  Hey, got info for tomorrow rides coming soon. 

Better late than never, tonight's routes:
38 Mile A/B route     
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/7684601
19 Mile C route
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/7684929
I thought I should pass along that good friend of the blog, Marty, also known as Marty, owner of the White Bike, has left the country.  He will be missed as he travels around France, not to return until mid September.  Other friends of the blog will join him in September for a week of riding over mountain passes.  Maybe I'll have some pics to share with you.  That would be cool, the White Bike ascending Alpe d'Huez.

           

Kevin Hollingshead, aka Polish Pony, quit cycling with us because getting punked by Flyin Tuna on the area's climbs is rather humiliating.  However, Kevin's daughter Heather is in Rio, working with ESPN covering several events, including cycling.  Above with a broadcast icon that most will recognize.  What an awesome experience early in one's career.  As for Kevin, I keep trying to get him out for a group ride but bruised egos are slow to heal.

       

A reminder that this Saturday, a day of GLORIOUS sunshine, an epic cycling event will take place, hosted by the one, the only, Isaac M.  I'll have more in a few days or you can scroll down to last Monday's post for additional information.

   

Poobah, always having something to say (he talks equal part with mouth and hands) and Doug reacting to it.  Must have been a lot of people looking for a Saturday ride because the silly blog had 240 unique visitors on Friday.

Good turnout of a broad range of fitness levels so it appeared we would have the "Spirited B" group and a "Sluggish B" group. New guy Joe on the right with the white/black jersey and since he admitted to following the blog, it is important to bring attention to a stand-up guy! With around 20 in the parking lot, I thought I should see if anyone was in front of Starbucks so rode to the front and....

....there was a larger crowd.  I urged the front folks to head to the back but there was push-back.  Someone asked what had been the meeting instructions and so, since officially it was the front of Starbucks, I had to scurry to the back and urge the gang to come forward.  Too many to mention but included were Dustin, Marty, Jon M, Mark V, Mike M, Amanda, Franz, Tim, Joe, Pete C, Poobah, Doug M, Travis, Flyin Tuna, Sandy, Jay P, Jackie, Luke, Lori, Meredith, Kim, Isaac M, Gus, Steve N, John of Granville, Larry P, Lisa, Deniece, etc....

We head east into benign conditions.  Temp was moderate, humidity pervasive, light winds, not bad at all.  Many of you know me to be a "Man of all Seasons", comfortable riding in any conditions but these last couple of weeks, yuck.  the good news is officially, Monday marks the end of the "Dog Days of Summer" period and maybe you have noticed the average day time high temp has been trending down?  Right, how could you know given the actual temps?  We headed east at a very moderate speed and then....

...a couple of gaps opened as someone ratcheted up the effort.  I think some people got caught up in the chase who maybe should have hung back  and eventually got caught out between groups.  At one point we were at single file on 161 but things calmed a bit at the right turn on Watkins, left on Morse, right on York and then the York roller coaster really split the group as we arrived at the #16 crossover.  Someone said Dustin had bounced his bike computer off the handlebar so he was back sweeping the bushes.  We soft pedaled for a bit and some stragglers caught back on and then we went farther south prior to the left on Blacks, roared down Blacks after it crosses the railroad tracks and above, traffic forced us to pause again at #37.  Our number was around 20 now and I anticipated it would drop dramatically at the Canyon climb but curiously, Luke set a very modest pace and it was kind of neat to see a train of 20 ascending as one.  At the bottom of Canyon, our average was 20.4 and I proceeded straight while the group went left.

I arrived first in Granville and saw Lon Herman and John Sada sitting in street clothes on a bench.  Lon is recovering from an injury and just about back 100% although reclaiming fitness has been difficult.  Dang, it was hot and humid.  I discovered after the ride, one of us had a problem with dehydration and why not, given the circumstances?  Above, Dustin was rather perturbed that he had lost his Cateye computer. He had paid $20 for it 4 years ago and amortizing the cost over time, it was $5 a year and he was hoping to get it down to $4 or $3 with another year or two of use. Some in the group were becoming antsy and began the process of rounding everyone up.  I was enjoying the shade too much so lingered a bit longer....

...with Poobah, Cindy, Larry & Lisa.  After a few minutes, we too departed and were soon overtaken by Ken buddell.  If you belong to Strava, you've got to watch the "Flybys" of our group and Ken. He thought he had arrived too late to start with us so began this on again/off again route that crossed our path many times but never did he happen on the group.  We followed the route until the Raccoon Run where I made a right and the others stayed on the route by making a left.  The wind, ohhhhhhhh and the gusts OhMyyyyyyyyy.  I was about out of fluids when I got to the gas station on 161.  Yeah, that one about 3-4 miles from the parking lot.  I just had to have something cold to drink so stopped to fill my water bottle with ice and Gatorade.  Wow, did that taste good!  Finished with 62 miles.

There is the COP "Ride the Darby" as one option or there is the "Ride with Isaac" from in front of New Albany Starbucks, 8:00am.  This route: www.ridewithgps.com/routes/15794203 is genius considering the forecast so at no point will we be more than about 30 minutes from New Albany if weather requires a dash for the barn.  Spirited B pace with a few regroups although I understand enough will be there to form a Sluggish B group pace too.  Lastly, note the many and voluminous short cutting options, most notably at mile 47.  See you there.

             

Clouds building to the west but frequent checks with radar indicated we should be ok, surprising considering how humid and windy were the conditions.  It was the kind of evening when the breeze from riding felt hot too. Guess it gets that way when the heat index is around 100. HEY, got a Saturday route to put up in a few.

Kyle on the right, returned from a vaca in Alaska. He was able to maintain cardio fitness from being chased by Kodiacs and moose.

Hmmmm. we come to the realization that our ride leader may not be coming.  Good thing Steve always carries sign-in sheets. 

It was so hot, Amanda's hair was on fire.  Mark Rossi on the right, making a rare appearance with Karen and tandem. Amanda, aka Corvair for reliability issues, was named B group ride leader and handled the responsibility well.

Older man on the right was sporting a pair of blue socks that I hoped to catch in the image.  Riveters dominate the road and also the lone shady spot. There are "plains" Riveters and then there are the "all rounders".  The Plains Riveters ride strong and hang with the group on the flat plains but once the road rises at Jones, Thresher, Beechwood, etc... the wheat gets separated from the chaff. Isaac on the left is Chieftain of the Plains peoples. 

My ongoing effort of catching a pic of everyone, rolls on.

Another smallish turnout, maybe around 55.  With the threat of rain practically every week, we never hit that big group of 90 this season and with Pelotonia in the rear view mirror, the alternate groups were not around either.  The Riveters rolled out and while rocketing out 161, dropped several people who joined the A group.  Entering Granville, their average was 27 and at the Jones Road climb, Luke, Ken B and Pete C gapped the field and stayed away for the remainder, finishing with a 24mph average.  Philippe did next best on the Jones climb but had to spit the bit just at the top.

The A group rolled out next with 15, swelling to 18 at 310 with Borat, David and another Headwind guy joining in.  While our average was 24 entering Granville, we had not pushed it to the limits of the group, saving ourselves a bit for Jones and the ensuing climbs.  Entering Granville, Jon H had turned around (I hear he ran 60 miles last weekend) and soon saw Brandon did so too.  I swear, until then I had not even considered it but seeing those two planted a seed that grew into a giant Hemlock in my brain.  Did I really want to ride in the coming hills in this heat and humidity?  No, I did not so cut out and soloed back to NA, finishing with 34 miles while my band of brothers finished with a 21 avg and 43 miles.

Here ya go, the back half is brutal. Know the route, load the route or print the route but be aware of the route.
Route A/B 43 mile ride file https://ridewithgps.com/routes/9668772
Route C 31 mile ride file https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15771080

               

Ely, visiting from D.C., found the ride on the Cycling Club web site so his mother brought him to the parking lot and hung around until we shoved off. Always glad to see new people, even temporarily.  You never know who will become the next favorite whipping boy or girl of the blog. So many reputations I have enhanced.

The H&H gang gathers as part of tonight's rain threat reduced contingent of 16.

Rick in white, Donnie, Peggy, Michael and Ely.  Weather radar suggested the rain was going to skirt us to the west so out we went.  I was unnerved by Marty's absence, a bellwether if ever there was one.  He probably has forecasting tools at his disposal that exceed our smart phones so him not being there was a bad sign.

Way back in 1939, the world was introduced to Dorothy and her ruby slippers.  As a demonstration of how oblivious I am to most things, it wasn't until we hit the final New Albany stop light that I noticed Kristie was wearing footwear that....

...rivaled what Dorothy wore.  Dang, those are pretty sweet.  Dirty Dan and I began talking about the shoes and he offered that following the theme of the "Wizard of Oz", I could be likened to....

....the Wizard.  I could read his mind, a fraud, hiding behind a curtain of the internet.  Yep, that is probably exactly what Dan was thinking. Dan also called into question Marty's assertion that I rode well on Saturday.  Riding with Dan is certainly an uplifting experience for me.  Arriving in Alexandria, I bugged out of the group and soloed back. Just didn't feel like riding and seeing a tunnel of clear sky to the west, decided to take advantage of it.  Oh, and....

...so it begins, turning the round things into triangular things. Lots of round things in need of splitting.

      

     

Isaac is organizing an event that will put us in an area of Ohio that few have ridden.  I suggest you get outside your comfort zone of drive time or ride distance or ride difficulty and join the fun at 8:00am, using the above as a preliminary idea of what is being planned. Isaac has created a Facebook page for the event and there you will find evidence of planning that exceeds that which led up to the invasion of Normandy.  I'm not sure this link will work but if not, you can count on me to post additional details.  https://www.facebook.com/groups/1630787680566860/1638829796429315/?notif_t=group_activity&notif_id=1470620390884465

       

Good turnout of about 25 for Marty's Ride from Granville to B-burg on some roads I and others have never ridden.  Above, Steve O, Rex, Dean, Dan, Lisa, Peggy & Mike.  Since I popped 2 more spokes during Thursday's ride, yeah, it's aggravating, I took advantage of Luke's generous offer to switch out my wheel for one of his.  Everything matched and other than the chain jumping a couple of times, it worked great. 

More of us gather awaiting Marty's signal that it is time to go and soon it's on and we are....

...headed out with reminders of an earlier shower.  A small group of us got hung up at a light in Granville but Steve O pulled us to the base of the Jones Road climb where we just about rejoined.  Along the way, there were many people giving us the thumbs up, waves and shouts of encouragement as they mistook us for the Pelotonians.  We headed east and upon reaching Montgomery Rd, turned left and hit a fairly significant hill.  I barely clung to the back of the group and when we passed a "Y" with Wilkens Run branching left, I wondered if those who had fallen back would know to veer right.  They did not so Dean, Rex, Farmer Mike, Peggy and Eric made the left but eventually ended up in B-burg.

We regrouped at Licking Valley Rd where just prior, I heard Luke say, "Ow, I just got stung in the nose by a bee." At the stop, with camera out, I asked which nose and just as he reached with index finger extended, he realized I was setting him up for a pic and stopped.  That guy is way too smart for me.  But benevolent too as later he dropped back to drag me back to the group.

Larry P, a prolific eater of bananas the peels of which too frequently end up on my car's windshield.  Unable to find Mike & the others, we rode on, eventually reaching B-burg at.....

....mile 40.  I was cooked and really dragged the previous 39 miles!  The store was overwhelmed so some of us hit the gas station instead and then came back to hang with the gang while watching....

...the world go by, sometimes slowly.

Well, it was time to head back out and round 9 of us took the right on Bell Church and the 67 mile option.  Reaching St Louisville, I was kind of hungry so stopped at yet another market for more calories and then headed toward Granville....

...where on Burg I encountered a steady stream of Pelotonians headed north.  I finished with 68 miles and 4200' of climbing.

      

The dog days of summer are upon us.  Above, Shannon, Peter & Gus engage in the sign-in process while Dirty Dan circles.  Probably looking for an opportunity to swoop in and elbow me in the ribs or worse.  Actually, Dan is doing rather well in the Rivet group, last night hanging in there for 20 miles.

In most parking lots, the above could be a drug deal but in this parking lot, it's Kristy handing out home-made goodies.  Eleanor on the right is healing from her fall of a couple of months.  The guy on the bike was in our group with music to keep us entertained.  Sounded like Salsa to me but not sure.  43 miles of it is a bit much, just my opinion.

As usual, the lone shady spot was a popular place.  Hey, there is Grand Poobah making his first appearance of the season. Bent over to make sure his sophisticated radar, that tracks approaching cars, is working.  Todd hung in with the A group.

New guy Eric on the left and Axel on the right.  Axel and Gail are headed to France next week to ride the mountains on a tandem.  Steve Hewitt handling the sign in process as Rick was in the shop, taking care of last minute Pelotonia bikes.

I made the usual silly warnings about group speeds and sent off the Rivet group as the HH fellas look on.

Now that is odd, another guy riding a BH bike.  Might be a first timer and rode with the A group.

The A group headed out and with it, some how the B group mixed in too.  Above, Mike M avoids photo bombing.  I guess we had around 30 combined but things slimmed over time.  The pace was rather moderate on this flat route with lots of turns and stops.  Only a couple of us knew the route and there were several times when those in the lead missed a turn or turned where the should not.  We finished with a 20.7 average while the lead Rivet group was at 24.  Then....

...returning to the parking lot, Kristy flung open the trunk of her car and in place of the healthy fig bars of earlier there were chocolate chip cookies!  It's not the end of the season yet but she has my vote for MVP.  Oh, there is Jared in the red jersey.  Get this.  He misses the start and then soft pedals the route counter clockwise before slotting in with us, which is good but well rested, he kills it on Jersey Mill and sent Poobah out the back (in the interest of full disclosure and honesty, I too got popped toward the top).  Then in the parking lot, he ridicules us oldsters! Have some respect for your elders youngster!  The long knives are out for that guy......
HEY--see the Saturday ride option below.

          

Saturday, from Granville's River Road Coffee Shop, 8:00am, a Marty Sedluk Production to give the Gus Cook Enterprises a break from ride organizing.  While we will gather our bikes at the coffee shop, do not park your cars there.  Instead, behind the Granville IGA/Market where the bike path passes, there is parking, parking at Centennial park where Raccoon Valley splits from Moots Rd or at the ball field parking just east of the coffee shop prior to dead ending at #16. Probably should not park on Broadway (main east/west road) in Granville as Pelotonia passes through there. Spirited B pace, usually conversational with a few regroups. I know, you've heard this many times previously and it always turns out to be a Rivet pace but trust me, a mid level B will have few problems.  All are welcome with now 2 routes, 93 and 67:.
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15582756
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15617862

                

Well, for the beasts of burden, the cyclists who get shelled on Alward, Thresher, Stone Quarry, Caswell, etc... have we got a route for you!!!!!  See ya Thursday and remember, print your own map.

Route A/B 43 mile ride file https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15594975
Route C 28 mile ride file https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15595059

    

First, for a very entertaining and interesting read, check out Lori N's report from racing a 5 day stage race in Bend, OR where she rode alongside pros, Olympians and other Cat 1 and 2's.  It's a semi-long read and well worth the time:
http://www.thecadencekitchen.com/all-blog/cascade-classic

Now on to the Tuesday report where 72 year old Farmer Mike won yet another mountain bike race this past weekend.  I had planned to join the southern Rebs at Canal, see if they are still licking their wounds from the Summer Solstice Massacre but saw pop-up showers building south so...

...hooked up with about 20 out of New Albany including, left to right, Peter, Doug, Glen and Rick.  The heat may have been getting to Glen as he left us to return home.  Someone suggested we just do laps in the shade.

New guy Eric in white.  Typically, new people are a bit anxious about the pace but he rode well and surprisingly, the pace tonight was much milder.  Have no idea why as many of the folks who previously pushed the pace were here. Drew was here too, a Thursday nighter making his first Tuesday appearance. We rolled out at 6:05 following the usual route....

...with the first regroup at the end of Battee then a left turn toward dreaded Stone Quarry.  Tonight we were to turn left on Raccoon Run and that steep climb but Farmer Mike told me he was going to stay on SQ and hook back up with the group at Concorde.  Like, that's all I needed to hear and so Rick, Michael and I did just that but curiously, Mike did the RR climb.

The full SQ option gave us a nice break in the shade but soon the group arrived led by Nick, Gus & Marty.  We bypassed the Caswell steps opting instead for 310 and a right on Miller.  Finished with 37 miles and a 20.2 avg.  I'll have a Saturday ride option up soon, likely out of Granville, 8:00am with a route provided by Marty.

    

      

Here is one for the sprinters. 
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15521629
Super B: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15521639
Normal B: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15521645
C Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15521655