The Weekend Rides--Saturday Report

Twenty-six of us gather in front of Starbucks for a Saturday morning ride east of New Albany. Although this Saturday get together is not a weekly event, it does serve to fill in between the various BSG, Mountains of Misery, etc..type of events.  A lot of new faces including....

...Eric and a late arriving friend or protégée of Jon Hastings.

There were perhaps hundreds of runners/walkers who came out for a Firecracker 5 event so space on the sidewalk was at a premium.

Among the glitterati to attend the ride were Luke Russell, Marty, Farmer Mike, Andrew Clayton, Dave Chesrown, Lori Nedescu, Danny Alarcon, Jeremy W, Ken Buddell, Joe I, Kyle Zandler, Dan Resetar, Jeff S, Eric, Crazy George who is rounding back into form after bronchitis, Jon Hastings and others.  At a couple minutes after 8:00am....

...we rolled out into a beautiful morning of sun and cool temps.  The pace was higher than the previous Marty inspired Sat morn. rides and someone came alongside me and said, "I thought you said it would e a moderate pace."  as we pulled into Alexandria with an average well above 20mph.  We hit the climb on Mounts, passed a still closed Lobdell Rd, got on to Dry Creek and just as we were closing on 661, I noticed Dirty Dan drifting back.  No bang, no ppssssfffttt, no shout of "Flat" just drifting out of line.  Looking back, I could see Dan dismounting so following my credo that cyclists watch out for cyclists, I turned back.

And boy, am I glad I did.  Not because Dan needed my help, but because I got to sit through the most entertaining flat fix effort I have ever witnessed. Jeff S joined in too and boy, am I sure he regretted it because it soon became apparent he traded the group for the opportunity to ride with me for the balance of the route, having completed only 19 miles to that point. Anyway, Dan was riding a set of wheels that had the tires glued to them.  That's a head scratcher for me but I understand for the elite there is some weight or performance advantage so it makes sense that Dirty would ride them..... 
Dan quickly and professionally removed the wheel and whipped out a can of some kind of chemical solution.  I guess the tire is filled with gas and this foamy stuff, simultaneously acquiring the needed pressure and sealing the hole.  Soon, an odd smelling white foam was spread on Dan and anything within 20 yards.  I heard some stirring by the residents of a near-by house and was certain the Haz Mat team had been called in. Unfortunately, the tire remained flat, apparently the seal had been broken between the rim and tire when Dan failed to navigate his bike around a pothole so deep, fishes could be seen swimming in it.

     

Only when we were certain Dan had a way of getting home (above calling a friend cause Dan had already used up his one "come and get me" call to his wife) did Jeff and I depart.  We finished the route of 68 miles, missing the group in St Louisville by about 5 minutes.  I later heard the average end of ride average was 19.3.

Saturday, July 4th, there is a ride that departs from in front of the New Albany Starbucks with parking behind in the spacious parking lot.  However, there is a 5k run that makes it necessary that you enter the parking lot off #62 rather than from Market St.  I suspect most of you enter via that way anyway,  We will shove off at 8:00am on a wondrous route through the idyllic countryside on some roads that few ride:http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7695716.  I believe the turnout for this is huge with Dirty Dan, Angel of Pain, Luke R, Marty, Jeff S, hordes of others.


That same day, far, far south of New Albany is a ride out of the Logan Conference center on Chieftan Drive, starting at 9:00am.  Includes Wildcat Hollow, Big Pine valley, Happy Hollow, Thompson Ridge descent into Laurelville for food stop, Middlefork, climb up Buena Vista, Cantwell Cliffs, Buck Run, and climb up Miller Rd. Great scenery in the heart of the Hocking Hills!  Like the above ride, all are welcome.  I hear Flyin Tuna will attend this one but don't allow that to deter you from attending.

Then, on Sunday, Rick Miller, ride leader on Thursdays, has invited all to ride from his home
Ricks House
18735 Utica Rd
Utica, OH 43080

When:
8 AM
departure
(I want to be clipping in to my pedals)

How far:
80-90 miles

Terrain:
Pavement, with some
climbing to rolling hills

Pace:
I will be riding at a consistent pace not
killing it but not lolly gagging either avg. in the hills would be closer to
16-18
Feel free to leave as a group and ride it how ever you want or hang with
me.