Saturday:
Scouting for the backbone route of next year's brevet series. Jim and I started in Meadowlands, cruised down to Monongahela via Mingo Creek Park, then crossed the Mon and headed up the hill to Rehoboth (Church) Rd. Over to Perryopolis, then some back roads to just past Vanderbilt (about 10 miles short of Ohiopyle), and back via more-or-less the same route. Nice route...challenging, due more to continuous elevation change than to any set of notable climbs.
Notable:
Turkey Hollow-->Indian/Iron Hill Rd up from 906 to get up to Finley Rd and Rehoboth. Much preferable to Tyrol Rd up from Monessen.
Middle segment of Maplewood Rd. "Unimproved" does not do it justice: dirt lovers with cross tires would be in heaven, so long as the brambles and nearly impassable hard-packed ruts do not offend. Would be dangerous in the rain, and deadly in darkness. In dry daylight, was loads of fun.
Sunday:
Riding around town for "recovery ride". Briefly lost my mind and decided that climbing Sycamore fell under the heading of recovery; cured myself of that delusion about half-way up, but was suffering too much to turn around and give up. Also almost killed myself bombing down Pius, as there were either recent street repairs with a poor level of fit and finish, or someone was building a 1:5 scale-model replica of WW1 trench warfare across 75% of the street. Spun up through Junction Hollow to CMU and Schenley, then over to Greenfield via Pocusset and back to town for more aimless riding.
Notable:
Spring has sprung. Saw more cyclists just today than I've seen in aggregate since January.
Showing posts with label century+. Show all posts
Showing posts with label century+. Show all posts
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Tour de Trek Store, attempt # 1
Myself, Jim, and Jon ventured out into the cold today in search of a nice wintry century. At least the wintry part was a smashing success...
The intention was to nail down a century for purposes of the UMCA Year-Rounder Challenge, as January is drawing to a close. Rather than re-use a familiar and well-known route, it seemed like a good idea to go venturing into unknown territory; find some new roads, climb a few hills to keep warm, and all that good stuff.
Now, as every good route designer knows, the most important thing is not elevation profile, well-spaced rest stops, scenery, or areas of historic import; the single most critical thing you can do to create a successful route is to come up with a cool name. Sadly, I came up with "Tour de Trek Store"; but I never claimed to be a good route designer.
Simple route concept; starting in town, visit each of the four Trek of Pittsburgh stores in turn. With a few strategic road choices, a century was easy to put together. Eliza Furnace Trail out to the South Hills and TRM in Castle Shannon; then, over through Mt Lebanon, Heidelberg, Carnegie, and Collier on the way to Trek of Robinson. Cut over through Moon and Coraopolis to Sewickley, then climb the ridge and make our way over to Cranberry and the third Trek store. Finally, Red Belt our way back to town via Etna, then over to Trek of Shadyside and a triumphant return to the trail in Oakland. It was a nice idea, anyway.
We made it as far as Trek of Robinson without incident, although the cold was definitely starting to take its toll. I was happy to find that Trek had one(1) pair of Pearl Izumi booties large enough to (just barely) stretch over my size 48 clodhoppers, which greatly enhanced the comfort of my feet.
Once we started the climb up Beaver Grade Rd, however, it quickly became apparent that Jon was lacking the energy to finish the ride. He put up a darn good fight, but simply bonked too hard to realistically contemplate the second half of the ride. So, we cut it short in Coraopolis, and made our way back to town via the traditional Neville Island/McKees Rocks Bridge/Calfornia Avenue return. Jim suggested that he and I make a trip out to Tarentum and back, in order to get our miles in; it would have been a good idea, but I simply wasn't in the mood to ride a route with which I was very familiar; at least not when a comfy house, hot coffee, and a warm shower were a mere 3 miles away.
All that said, I'm very pleased with the route; a bit trafficky in the South Hills, but has plenty of varied and enjoyable terrain, including some lovely ridgetop roads. If scheduling permits, I think I'll take another crack at it next weekend.
The intention was to nail down a century for purposes of the UMCA Year-Rounder Challenge, as January is drawing to a close. Rather than re-use a familiar and well-known route, it seemed like a good idea to go venturing into unknown territory; find some new roads, climb a few hills to keep warm, and all that good stuff.
Now, as every good route designer knows, the most important thing is not elevation profile, well-spaced rest stops, scenery, or areas of historic import; the single most critical thing you can do to create a successful route is to come up with a cool name. Sadly, I came up with "Tour de Trek Store"; but I never claimed to be a good route designer.
Simple route concept; starting in town, visit each of the four Trek of Pittsburgh stores in turn. With a few strategic road choices, a century was easy to put together. Eliza Furnace Trail out to the South Hills and TRM in Castle Shannon; then, over through Mt Lebanon, Heidelberg, Carnegie, and Collier on the way to Trek of Robinson. Cut over through Moon and Coraopolis to Sewickley, then climb the ridge and make our way over to Cranberry and the third Trek store. Finally, Red Belt our way back to town via Etna, then over to Trek of Shadyside and a triumphant return to the trail in Oakland. It was a nice idea, anyway.
We made it as far as Trek of Robinson without incident, although the cold was definitely starting to take its toll. I was happy to find that Trek had one(1) pair of Pearl Izumi booties large enough to (just barely) stretch over my size 48 clodhoppers, which greatly enhanced the comfort of my feet.
Once we started the climb up Beaver Grade Rd, however, it quickly became apparent that Jon was lacking the energy to finish the ride. He put up a darn good fight, but simply bonked too hard to realistically contemplate the second half of the ride. So, we cut it short in Coraopolis, and made our way back to town via the traditional Neville Island/McKees Rocks Bridge/Calfornia Avenue return. Jim suggested that he and I make a trip out to Tarentum and back, in order to get our miles in; it would have been a good idea, but I simply wasn't in the mood to ride a route with which I was very familiar; at least not when a comfy house, hot coffee, and a warm shower were a mere 3 miles away.
All that said, I'm very pleased with the route; a bit trafficky in the South Hills, but has plenty of varied and enjoyable terrain, including some lovely ridgetop roads. If scheduling permits, I think I'll take another crack at it next weekend.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Lake Arthur
So, I needed a sanity break. Ye Olde Place Offe Employmente has successfully driven me to the very brink of madness, which would explain why I thought it'd be a good idea to venture up to Moraine Park and back via roads I've never traveled. That's roads plural, as in darn near all of them were unfamiliar.
The route included only 5200 feet of climbing, even with a few bonus miles on Rte 8 due to a bodged cue sheet on my part; but it was unrelenting up-and-down for at least the middle 75% of the ride...good fun, but a little more vigorous than I was planning on for the day. I'd forgotten how exciting 528 from Evans City to Prospect was; that was okay though. The part that really did me in was the return; while the first two-thirds of the route was derived from one of Oscar's rides, the return was entirely of my devising; thus, the aforementioned "unfamiliar roads". 68 was rough; 989 was rough; and Lovi Rd, although not normally that bad in the short stretch with which I was familiar, was pretty much torture in spots after I'd already tired myself out. I was so happy to see the Red Belt that I darn near kissed the sign; heck, I nearly included bonus tongue action.
I'd call it a good training ride. Highlights included a lovely 1/4 mile stretch of freshly graveled road (Badger Hill back to the lake); a life-sized, and fairly realistic, horse statue placed on top of a nearby barn; and a woman at Bear Run Campground who was absolutely determined to convince me that the rabidly barking frantic canine beast in the back of her car "was really friendly" and "was nothing for me to worry about".
Since BikeJournal is currently non compos mentis (apparently SLantz left his SQL Server in his other jersey or something), here's the vitals for posterity: 117.63 miles, 14.6 rolling average.
The route included only 5200 feet of climbing, even with a few bonus miles on Rte 8 due to a bodged cue sheet on my part; but it was unrelenting up-and-down for at least the middle 75% of the ride...good fun, but a little more vigorous than I was planning on for the day. I'd forgotten how exciting 528 from Evans City to Prospect was; that was okay though. The part that really did me in was the return; while the first two-thirds of the route was derived from one of Oscar's rides, the return was entirely of my devising; thus, the aforementioned "unfamiliar roads". 68 was rough; 989 was rough; and Lovi Rd, although not normally that bad in the short stretch with which I was familiar, was pretty much torture in spots after I'd already tired myself out. I was so happy to see the Red Belt that I darn near kissed the sign; heck, I nearly included bonus tongue action.
I'd call it a good training ride. Highlights included a lovely 1/4 mile stretch of freshly graveled road (Badger Hill back to the lake); a life-sized, and fairly realistic, horse statue placed on top of a nearby barn; and a woman at Bear Run Campground who was absolutely determined to convince me that the rabidly barking frantic canine beast in the back of her car "was really friendly" and "was nothing for me to worry about".
Since BikeJournal is currently non compos mentis (apparently SLantz left his SQL Server in his other jersey or something), here's the vitals for posterity: 117.63 miles, 14.6 rolling average.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Perryopolis Century+
So, after I biffed on the planned East Liverpool ride on Saturday (fear of crap weather that never materialized), I decided that I just couldn't bear to go an entire weekend without riding somewhere I've never been. I put together a route based on Oscar Swan's Perryopolis ride, but cut back on the usage of the Youghiogheny River Trail as much as was feasible. (and BOY was that the right choice...more on that subject later...)
The basic route was pretty simple; make my way to McKeesport via 2nd Avenue, then 837; shoot up the Mon River to Monessen, then hang a hard left and climb the hill up to Rte 51 and Perryopolis. Down the other side of the ridge to the Yough River in Layton, then wind my way through Banning to Smithton, pick up the trail to West Newton, then surface roads paralleling the river to Rte 48 and the Boston Bridge. Finally, wrap things up with 148 back through McKeesport, then pick up Bowman (AKA East Pittsburgh-McKeesport Blvd, AKA "that big frickin' hill") across the ridge and down to Braddock, then home by following the river back to town. Here's the route for posterity: Perryopolis Low-Trail Alternate Route
The first stretch from Brighton Heights to McKeesport was uneventful, with the exception of several small bits of equipment deciding that they did not wish to remain firmly fastened; notably, the rear fender mount, front headlight, cyclocomputer, and both tailights. So, I spent at least 15 minutes in the first 1.5 hours fiddling with equipment; however, I suppose this is to be expected with a newly built-up bike. And I did label it a "shakedown ride", after all...
As usual, cruising up the Mon along the river was pretty darn straightforward; with the exception of a small climb in Elizabeth on Center, it's flat or gently rolling the whole way to Monessen. Nothing of note to report.
In Monessen, I encountered the first of several unmarked roads, by missing the left on Tyrol Blvd. (This was to prove a recurring theme of my day.) After correcting the navigational eccentricity, I spun my way up the hill, occasionally engaging in low-speed challenges to myself ("Okay, I can get it to 2.5 mph and stay upright; what about 2 mph?"); said challenges being significantly easier to meet than, say, sprinting for a PR to the top of the hill.
A few more directional disfunctionalities, a construction zone on Findley, and a creeping (and mostly inaccurate) sense of being utterly lost later, I finally made it to Perryopolis; unfortunately, as I was plummeting down the hill towards the Yough River at the time, I retain nothing but a blurred impression of nice old buildings and a horde of ne'r-do-well youth that were highly amused by my bike.
Crossing the river was quite simple; a charming one-lane tunnel and bridge led to the tiny hamlet of Layton, plus a gargantuan hill that had unaccountably sprouted up on my path. Wait...that wasn't supposed to be there! Turns out that, in my optimism, I had foolishly assumed that the roads between the quiet little riverside patch towns would actually follow the river, rather than veering alarmingly skyward into farm country on the other side of some rather sheer cliffs. This was to prove the first time (not the last, sad to say) that I fumbled for the granny gear out of actual need.
Once I had fought my embarrassingly slow way to Banning, the going became much easier. Following the river to Smithton, and another enactment of the "missing the unmarked left turn" ceremony, I finally made it to the Yough River trail. "Ah, time for six miles of blissfully easy riding," I thought to myself. "Perhaps I'll even stay on the trail all the way to McKeesport, if I'm feeling lazy" I thought. "This will be a nice change of pace." HAH, I say to that callow and naive young fool.
The funny thing about the combination of limestone trails that are sort of dry on the surface, but still pretty soaking wet underneath, and relatively skinny high pressure tires, is that it becomes similar to this: riding in glue. The most demoralizing and painful part of the entire trip, bar none, was six miles of peaceful riverside trail riding. By the time I arrived at West Newton, I was praying for dump trucks and flung beer bottles as being better than this sloppy, miserable mess.
The remainder of the ride was straightforward, with the exception of a few more missed turns and extra miles. All told, I ended up doing about 113 miles, with a rolling average of 14.2 mph; this sounds like a perfectly acceptable brevet pace. More importantly, I found that nothing really changed after about mile 75, in terms of weariness; this bodes well for the longer brevets, so long as I can remember to keep consistently eating and drinking.
What I did well:
The basic route was pretty simple; make my way to McKeesport via 2nd Avenue, then 837; shoot up the Mon River to Monessen, then hang a hard left and climb the hill up to Rte 51 and Perryopolis. Down the other side of the ridge to the Yough River in Layton, then wind my way through Banning to Smithton, pick up the trail to West Newton, then surface roads paralleling the river to Rte 48 and the Boston Bridge. Finally, wrap things up with 148 back through McKeesport, then pick up Bowman (AKA East Pittsburgh-McKeesport Blvd, AKA "that big frickin' hill") across the ridge and down to Braddock, then home by following the river back to town. Here's the route for posterity: Perryopolis Low-Trail Alternate Route
The first stretch from Brighton Heights to McKeesport was uneventful, with the exception of several small bits of equipment deciding that they did not wish to remain firmly fastened; notably, the rear fender mount, front headlight, cyclocomputer, and both tailights. So, I spent at least 15 minutes in the first 1.5 hours fiddling with equipment; however, I suppose this is to be expected with a newly built-up bike. And I did label it a "shakedown ride", after all...
As usual, cruising up the Mon along the river was pretty darn straightforward; with the exception of a small climb in Elizabeth on Center, it's flat or gently rolling the whole way to Monessen. Nothing of note to report.
In Monessen, I encountered the first of several unmarked roads, by missing the left on Tyrol Blvd. (This was to prove a recurring theme of my day.) After correcting the navigational eccentricity, I spun my way up the hill, occasionally engaging in low-speed challenges to myself ("Okay, I can get it to 2.5 mph and stay upright; what about 2 mph?"); said challenges being significantly easier to meet than, say, sprinting for a PR to the top of the hill.
A few more directional disfunctionalities, a construction zone on Findley, and a creeping (and mostly inaccurate) sense of being utterly lost later, I finally made it to Perryopolis; unfortunately, as I was plummeting down the hill towards the Yough River at the time, I retain nothing but a blurred impression of nice old buildings and a horde of ne'r-do-well youth that were highly amused by my bike.
Crossing the river was quite simple; a charming one-lane tunnel and bridge led to the tiny hamlet of Layton, plus a gargantuan hill that had unaccountably sprouted up on my path. Wait...that wasn't supposed to be there! Turns out that, in my optimism, I had foolishly assumed that the roads between the quiet little riverside patch towns would actually follow the river, rather than veering alarmingly skyward into farm country on the other side of some rather sheer cliffs. This was to prove the first time (not the last, sad to say) that I fumbled for the granny gear out of actual need.
Once I had fought my embarrassingly slow way to Banning, the going became much easier. Following the river to Smithton, and another enactment of the "missing the unmarked left turn" ceremony, I finally made it to the Yough River trail. "Ah, time for six miles of blissfully easy riding," I thought to myself. "Perhaps I'll even stay on the trail all the way to McKeesport, if I'm feeling lazy" I thought. "This will be a nice change of pace." HAH, I say to that callow and naive young fool.
The funny thing about the combination of limestone trails that are sort of dry on the surface, but still pretty soaking wet underneath, and relatively skinny high pressure tires, is that it becomes similar to this: riding in glue. The most demoralizing and painful part of the entire trip, bar none, was six miles of peaceful riverside trail riding. By the time I arrived at West Newton, I was praying for dump trucks and flung beer bottles as being better than this sloppy, miserable mess.
The remainder of the ride was straightforward, with the exception of a few more missed turns and extra miles. All told, I ended up doing about 113 miles, with a rolling average of 14.2 mph; this sounds like a perfectly acceptable brevet pace. More importantly, I found that nothing really changed after about mile 75, in terms of weariness; this bodes well for the longer brevets, so long as I can remember to keep consistently eating and drinking.
What I did well:
- Nutrition seemed to work well. Hearty breakfast, gu packs every half hour or so, and solid food every couple of hours seems like a good working combination.
- Hill climbing. I managed not to get macho about it; as such, even the relatively unpleasant hills near the end of the ride, although taken slowly, were no big deal. I paced myself well.
What I did poorly:
- Too much time spent fiddling with equipment on-ride. I need to tighten everything down properly and hit it with Loctite.
- Too much time spent off-bike, for refreshment and potty breaks. I probably burned 45-60 minutes at various gas stations, convenience stores, etc.
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