Shelby-Spencer Century
Much like the ride, I'm going to keep this one (sorta) sparse. Dave and I made plans and rode a century yesterday. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing, deciding Wednesday that it needed to happen.
We met at Heine's at 7.00 and used the Westport corridor to link to Anchorage and Lagrange Rd. From there it was country riding for a significant portion of the day. We passed some nice sites in Oldham such as Floydsburg Chapel, but I didn't bring a camera and I'm sort of glad I didn't. Personally I just rode the IF and worked on the sensations of riding tempo and turning the cranks. From there we used Todd's Point Rd as a very nice run through Shelby Co. Todd's Point is of particular interest to me because my grandmother lived for a time there. We then turned onto Aiken Rd. for more rolling KY bliss. The weather at his point was a bit cloudy, but by the time we reached Shelbyville at the 40m mark thinks were opening up.
We had a snack in Shelbyville and then exited via Zaring Mill Rd., yet more rolling KY bliss and with even more sunshine. We realized at some point that we were riding a nice tailwind here. Of course we would pay later, but we put in some 15-17mph avg clips in this middle ride portion. It felt great. After another very short break in Southville we moved south and ended up on on the tri-titled Martin-Nertherly/Martin/Little Elk, a highlight of the day, with a ridge road along very sketchy surfaces. Dave had to stop for some brake work and we saw one of the best asses of the day. An ass. A donkey, one looking for food.
We faced a stiff short climb on Little Mt Church Rd. and then had a gps battle. Dave's track had us taking a left on Timberline, a gravel road. Mine had us going straight and turning left later. Under any other circumstances I'm diving onto gravel but I was on the new IF and I had to think for just a brief moment before a "WTF!" insight. Timberline ended up being some of the smoothest gravel that we've ridden. Another highlight.
We rolled into Taylorsville at the 70mile mark and had a burger and blizzard before the reality hit. We knew we would be riding into a headwind for the remainder of the trip, and, in fact, we did. The climb up Elk Creek Rd was tough but fair, but the ensuing rollers on 1633 and 1392 were taking their toll, certainly on me. I felt great through 75m, but just like my previous century the 75-85 space was really, really tough. Old Heady Rd was a nice riding road up high on the ride and Routt took us to a brief portion of 155 where we used the shoulder.
The last 12m or so was first hilly riding into J'town where I seemed to regain some strength. Once up into J'town, though, the wheels fell off. I was done, baked, bonked, gassed. Dave seem to feel pretty good at this point and I rode his tempo down Taylorsville Rd. into the Highlands. We turned towards the house and the last couple miles were real misery. But good misery. My 2nd personal century under really nice weather with good company on a great bike. I did learn that after 70 miles, though, the engine is what counts. I felt no stronger on the IF than I did on the Bleriot last September. I guarantee it's faster, especially on the climbs, but those last 30 miles are about will and strength, and the bike isn't going to help with that.
A great day.
We met at Heine's at 7.00 and used the Westport corridor to link to Anchorage and Lagrange Rd. From there it was country riding for a significant portion of the day. We passed some nice sites in Oldham such as Floydsburg Chapel, but I didn't bring a camera and I'm sort of glad I didn't. Personally I just rode the IF and worked on the sensations of riding tempo and turning the cranks. From there we used Todd's Point Rd as a very nice run through Shelby Co. Todd's Point is of particular interest to me because my grandmother lived for a time there. We then turned onto Aiken Rd. for more rolling KY bliss. The weather at his point was a bit cloudy, but by the time we reached Shelbyville at the 40m mark thinks were opening up.
We had a snack in Shelbyville and then exited via Zaring Mill Rd., yet more rolling KY bliss and with even more sunshine. We realized at some point that we were riding a nice tailwind here. Of course we would pay later, but we put in some 15-17mph avg clips in this middle ride portion. It felt great. After another very short break in Southville we moved south and ended up on on the tri-titled Martin-Nertherly/Martin/Little Elk, a highlight of the day, with a ridge road along very sketchy surfaces. Dave had to stop for some brake work and we saw one of the best asses of the day. An ass. A donkey, one looking for food.
We faced a stiff short climb on Little Mt Church Rd. and then had a gps battle. Dave's track had us taking a left on Timberline, a gravel road. Mine had us going straight and turning left later. Under any other circumstances I'm diving onto gravel but I was on the new IF and I had to think for just a brief moment before a "WTF!" insight. Timberline ended up being some of the smoothest gravel that we've ridden. Another highlight.
We rolled into Taylorsville at the 70mile mark and had a burger and blizzard before the reality hit. We knew we would be riding into a headwind for the remainder of the trip, and, in fact, we did. The climb up Elk Creek Rd was tough but fair, but the ensuing rollers on 1633 and 1392 were taking their toll, certainly on me. I felt great through 75m, but just like my previous century the 75-85 space was really, really tough. Old Heady Rd was a nice riding road up high on the ride and Routt took us to a brief portion of 155 where we used the shoulder.
The last 12m or so was first hilly riding into J'town where I seemed to regain some strength. Once up into J'town, though, the wheels fell off. I was done, baked, bonked, gassed. Dave seem to feel pretty good at this point and I rode his tempo down Taylorsville Rd. into the Highlands. We turned towards the house and the last couple miles were real misery. But good misery. My 2nd personal century under really nice weather with good company on a great bike. I did learn that after 70 miles, though, the engine is what counts. I felt no stronger on the IF than I did on the Bleriot last September. I guarantee it's faster, especially on the climbs, but those last 30 miles are about will and strength, and the bike isn't going to help with that.
A great day.
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