bikejournal.com journal

9/1/2007
(Sat)

138.13

09:21:28

47.10

14.70

0

18

732

4,316

Min: 61
Avg: 74
Max: 82

220

12155

0

128

146

94

0

Road: Hills

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Metric century #23
Statute century #5
Thermometer ride
Total time: 11:20-ish

I had a nice warm-up, Fairview Industrial to Kuebler to Turner Rd. I saw a common grey fox. I observed for several minutes as it unsuccessfully stalked a hapless rodent.

I rode on out to Turner. They are realigning the road through Turner. Nice new pavement and bike lanes developing there.

Past Cascade High School, I continued east on Shaff Rd into new territory. I rolled through mint fields and dodged a super-rainbird that was hosing the road and soaking a farmhouse, while occasionally performing some irrigation.

I came into Stayton unimpressed by the newer part of town. The old downtown was cool, though -- a mid-20th century farm community with creative building re-use going on, such as the bank recycled into a fitness center. (The fitness center folks were nice enough to let me use their restroom.)

I headed south across the Santiam River to Cole School Rd, which is known to a friend who grew up in Scio as "Roller Coaster Rd". I had been very slowly climbing since leaving Salem, but nothing like this road.

First there was short 12% climb, followed by a couple of little rollers and a 7% downgrade. Then a half-mile grunt at 6% (peaking at 11%). Then a short 6% drop and 1/4-mile knee-breaker 8.5% climb that topped out at 18%. A couple of rollers, and then another 1/4-mile climb. Here the road became Richardson Gap Rd. And then...

The elevator drop: one mile of descent with an average downgrade of 6%, peaking at 15%, with a hairpin turn for good measure. This gave me my top speed for the day.

And at the bottom, the beautiful Shimanek covered bridge over Thomas Creek.

To top it off, the next 4.5 miles were straight as an arrow with good pavement and low traffic. I averaged 19.0 mph with an avg HR of 129. The farmland was pleasant, and the road went through a literal gap in the surrounding steep hills.

Eventually, there was a short climb and descent, followed by climbing rollers as we got into the hills NE of Lebanon. I had to yell at a few dogs. I got onto part of the route from the Strawberry Century, and descended into Waterloo.

The Waterloo store was a nice break. A quart of Wilcox Old Fashioned chocolate milk and some shade did wonders.

I crossed Hwy 20 and left the SC route behind me as I climbed the 250' to Sodaville. Pretty road, low traffic. Will have to go back to Sodaville sometime and check out the soda springs.

From Sodaville, I rode to Brownsville on rural two-lane roads. Rock Hill Rd was fine. Brownsville Rd was chipsealed and bedeviled by the occasional wheel-swallowing pothole.

There was a one-mile climb shortly before coming into Brownsville that is notable both for the nice descent and for the dogs who hate cyclists. The dogs came after me as I was climbing past their house. I grabbed my can of Halt! (for the third time today!), and used it on the golden retriever who wanted a piece of me for riding past his driveway. Just a dab will do ya, Mr. Dog. Wonderful stuff, that Halt....

In Brownsville, I gratefully used the public restrooms across the street from the library. In a historic little town like Brownsville, you would expect to find a soda fountain. Sadly, I was disappointed. I checked out Pioneer Park for future reference, as they allow camping. It looked shady and green and generally quite promising (except for the short hill between the park and downtown).

The Dari-Mart on the south side of the river had my consolation for no soda fountain: a banana, two quarts of Gatorade, and an orange popsicle. I felt a lot better about everything except for the time of day, which was a bit after 2 p.m.

After eating and lubing the chain, I took a look at maps and reevaluated. Route options from Brownsville included my original planned route to Harrisburg or a cut-off west to Halsey followed by a ride north on Hwy 99E. Hwy 99E did not sound appealing in the warm sun, so I called Kim to check in and see what the forecast was for winds down here (northerly at 3-6 mph ("...gusting to 9" -- really! that's what it said!) and then headed for Harrisburg on Gap Rd.

What a pretty ride! Very little traffic. The price was a 1.75 mile climb (max 11%). The reward was a downhill (except for a couple of roller-ish hills) run all the way to Harrisburg. There were small valleys with terrain verging on oak savanna. Very pleasant.

The road turned west and became Diamond Hill Road. I picked up a cross-wind, but arrived quickly at I-5, where I realized I was very close to Katr's aunt's house.

The gentle descent continued a few more miles into Harrisburg. My intention was to poke around downtown a bit, but I was starting to feel the time pressure, so I headed north on Peoria Road.

I was delighted to find that the forecast northerly winds were in error, as I picked up a nice gentle tailwind. For the next 21 miles, I breezed along, helped by a slow loss of altitude (80 feet) at a 17.7 mph average. The scenery was verdant farmland with occasional views of the Willamette River. From time to time, I heard raptor screams. I rode through Peoria, which felt like a town that used to be something more but had slipped into bedroom community status.

An hour out of Harrisburg, I started seeing the outskirts of Corvallis, including the world plant diversity maintenance program facilities.

My speeds dropped going through Corvallis due to headwinds, traffic, and growing fatigue and hunger. I stopped at Safeway on the north end of Corvallis. After a half-gallon of organic chocolate milk and a banana, I felt better.

I had been on the road for nine hours, with just over seven hours riding for about 103 miles. It was 5:30, and I was ready to be home. And after I headed north again on Hwy 99W, it really showed.

My speed dropped below my average, despite gentle rolling hills and nice scenery. I rode through the sleepy village of Lewisville via Elliot Rd (thus avoiding the nasty intersection at 99W).

I enjoyed nice views to the southeast, as the road was higher than the old floodplain. Unfortunately, just after a check-in call to Kim, a ground-nesting hornet collided with my left arm.

I have never met a more ill-tempered creature than the hornet, and this one proved no exception, stinging me two or three times in the exact same spot before I could brush it off. Fortunately, the pain subsided over the next 20 minutes. Now I know I'm not allergic to the little buggers, at least.

I also had the road I was on, Corvallis-Independence rd, confused with Buena Vista Rd. Buena Vista is mostly flat. Need I say more?

I was not expecting the two climbs and numerous rollers. Nor was I expecting another super-rainbird encounter. I got pretty wet and was sun-blinded as the road headed into the western sun. Thankfully, the road turned north again after 1/4 mile.

The hills really gave me trouble, though. I struggled to keep my HR in zone 3, as my average speed dropped to 13.5 and my average HR went up to 136.

Finally, I got to the Independence bridge. I got a nice boost in speed heading across the flats on River Rd. Past the first/last railroad crossing, the battery on the Edge finally gave out. Not having a HR monitor any longer, I just started pedaling. I rolled into Salem, and after one last climb (and a wrong turn), I was at our friend Fara's house, where Kim was visiting.

Weather Conditions: Sunny and dry, winds 5-9, northerly in the a.m., calm midday, southerly in the afternoon, westerly in the early evening.

9/2/2007
(Sun)

19.12

01:22:24

27.40

13.90

0

5

259

445

Min: 83
Avg: 83
Max: 84

220

1730

0

115

137

90

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Recovery ride with Katr via Fruitland and Pratum.

High clouds and low-angle evening sunlight made for some "big sky" views at times.

A little bit of stiffness from yesterday's ride, but legs loosened up during the return leg.

Weather Conditions: Mostly clear skies, dry, southwesterly winds at 12-13 mph.

9/4/2007
(Tue)

12.17

00:47:04

45.30

15.51

0

9

461

383

Min: 73
Avg: 73
Max: 73

223

1094

0

129

159

93

0

Road: Hills

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Anaerobic ride, using a different route than usual.

Out Pringle to Madrona to Fairview Industrial Park to Marietta to 27th to Kuebler to Commercial to 12th Street, then around campus and home.

I wanted something that was going to be be about an hour, including warm-up and cool-down (the Pratum loop is more like 80 minutes). This route was good. I was concerned I was going to hit hills too early -- i.e. during warm-up -- but it worked out just about right.

Only spent a little over 17 minutes anaerobic. My left Achilles was a bit tender, so that was fine for today. Next time, I'll add some more on my heading a little farther south and then cutting over to Commercial.

As is often the case, I didn't really get in the groove until 25-30 minutes into it, then I felt great.

Weather Conditions: Partly cloudy, dry. Light westerly breeze.

9/5/2007
(Wed)

39.98

02:37:47

38.70

15.20

0

9

258

837

Min: 65
Avg: 67
Max: 74

223

3139

0

127

152

93

0

Road: Rolling

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commute, plus club ride with SBC.

Rode out to McKay Park for the Wednesday morning ride and got there in time today. I rode with the faster group. (Next time I want to ride with this group, make sure it's on an anaerobic workout day -- aerobic just wasn't quite enough to keep up.)

We did a nice loop on few stretches of road I hadn't ridden before on a meandering route through Hayesville and Lake Labish out to Waconda Road, then west to Wheatland Road and back down through the flats on Ravena. We rode back in to Keizer and then stopped for lunch at the Subway on Lockhaven. The group was very spread out now, with about 2/3 of the group having decided to ride on to Woodburn, apparently.

Had a few nice but short conversations with folks while riding, but mostly I rode by myself due to the slightly different tempo.

After lunch, I headed back home, as I didn't need to go back to the start site to get my car. I took care of some tasks here and then rode to the salle for work.

The hop harvest was in full swing in the flats, and I scooped up a branch of hops that was on the road. I enjoyed the floral aroma as I rode along. I now understand why hops are grown the way they are, having gotten a peek at a processing operation.

Up near Waconda Road I passed a cornfield in full tassel -- oh, that lovely smell. Wow.

Technical: Still haven't remounted the TailSok yet, darn it. Also getting a bit more creaking from the soles of my shoes rubbing some portion of the pedal. Hmm....

Weather Conditions: A few clouds, dry, with light northerly breezes.

9/6/2007
(Thu)

6.46

00:29:07

26.40

13.30

0

5

216

250

Min: 64
Avg: 70
Max: 74

222

743

0

93

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commute to salle via Front Street, plus downtown errands.

Almost drove today as I was short on time, but changed my mind and rode at the last minute. Good choice, Mike.

Averaged 16.29 to the salle via he Font Street route. Whee!

Weather Conditions: Clear, dry, northerly breezes.

9/7/2007
(Fri)

4.26

00:21:30

22.40

11.90

0

3

197

130

Min: 62
Avg: 65
Max: 68

221

392

0

110

145

87

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commutes and an errand.

Had hoped to get a ride in today, but work got in the way. Got lots done, though, so it ain't all bad.

Weather Conditions: Clear, dry, light breezes.

9/8/2007
(Sat)

4.54

00:21:43

22.30

12.60

0

3

180

62

0

221

571

0

88

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commute and errand

Rode to salle by way of Front Street bypass -- speedy!

Weather Conditions: Dry.

9/9/2007
(Sun)

86.03

06:07:47

43.80

14.10

0

11

165

3,319

Min: 85
Avg: 88
Max: 91

221

7729

0

133

149

95

0

Road: Hills

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Metric century #24
Thermometer ride
Total time: 8:16

Corrected max. altitude is 672'

Rode out to Shrewsbury Renaissance Faire in Kings Valley.

Rode out 22 to Rickreall. Passed two women cyclists returning, who responded to my hello with a grim utterance of "Nasty headwind...." I replied, "Yes, but it's a tailwind for me for now!" They didn't seem amused.

I took the MUP south to Monmouth from Rickreall and picked up a full tailwind, averaging 21.2 mph. Wonderful!

I rode out on the Monmouth Hwy to kings Valley Hwy (briefly) and then got onto Airlie Rd, which had been recently repaved. What a lovely surprise!

I continued to Maple Grove Rd, where I rode west to Pedee. I was disappointed to find the Pedee store to be no more. I saw a helicopter with an empty water bucket flying back from the wildfire east of Pedee, as well as the smoke from the fire (later found to be started by some guys shooting .50 rounds of incendiaries into a tree stump...).

I arrived at Shrewsbury with an average speed of 14.9 over 38.9 miles and 684 feet of climbing. Not bad!

The RenFaire did not impress me very much. I got some food (and ice cream!) and wandered around. The Seattle Knights were the featured "act", and they were pretty corny. I had hoped for a lot better. Good karma points for the woman at the lemonade stand who refilled my water bottle with lemonade, though!

I headed out, continuing south on my loop. While the store in Pedee was closed for good, the store in Kings Valley was thriving! Whoo hoo! Gatorade was mine!

I had planned to ride out to Hoskins, but bagged that due to the time and headed east on Maxfield Creek Rd to Airlie. What a nice cycling road! It was also a nice little climb over the hills (300 feet in 4 miles), with a nice descent down to Airlie Road.

I spun along with a stiff crosswind. I crossed Hwy 99W, rode through Suver, and then was back on Corvallis Rd again (from last week) for 1.8 miles. This time, I turned right on Prather Rd and climbed a bit more to coast down into Buena Vista.

I was worried I was going to miss the last ferry, when I spotted a very curious sight on the road coming my way: a scruffy-looking guy carrying all of his worldly possessions (apparently), including a shovel and some other hand tools, walking up the hill. It made quite a sight. It would have been interesting to learn his story, but the ferry awaited.

I got to the ferry with 20 minutes to spare. The river was very low. I trundled along, back on familiar ground for a bit.

I turned onto Sidney Rd and headed north. The north winds were moderating somewhat by then, which was good. A little over half a mile after I turned onto Sidney Rd, I heard a "Hey!" behind me, followed immediately by the clicking of a dog running on pavement. I caught a glimpse of a large blur of dark fur about 15 feet behind my left shoulder. I reached for the Halt!, but the dog responded to its owner's call. Scared the bejeebers outta me -- no bark, no growl, no nothing.

Sidney Road turned a sharp corner and became Riverside Dr. What a nice piece of countryside. Small farms, early evening golden light, and rolling hills for a few miles before a short climb, and then a zooming little descent under the railroad and onto the old river bottom.

I had been dealing with some fatigue for the last few miles, and it continued through the rich farmland. I have got to eat more as I am riding, I think.

I was dampened by a large sprinkler as I passed under some big old cottonwoods that were full of thousands of twittering birds. Then I was at the Independence bridge on the home stretch.

I had forgotten/neglected to fully charge all my batteries, so my taillight dropped into get-me-home mode as I passed Blue Heron Farms on River Rd. A mile or so later, my headlight did the same thing. The sun was down. The lights were enough to make me seen in the twilight, but I was glad I didn't have far to go.

Got home with no further adventures.

Technical: First ride with new Speedplay Frog pedals. Had some trouble getting the left cleat to stay engaged, but adjusted the cleat position and achieved pedaling nirvana. I now understand why people describe them as weird at first -- kinda like ice skating on pedals -- slippery. I was able to get the cleat position a little closer to the center of my foot than with the Shimanos. Also, these cleats protrude just a bit more than the SPDs on my Lake MX60 shoes, so no more walking on wood floors. All in all, two thumbs up!

Weather Conditions: Clear, dry, northerly winds 10-15, gusting to 20-ish

9/12/2007
(Wed)

4.70

00:22:54

20.10

12.30

0

3

180

55

Min: 62
Avg: 62
Max: 63

221

350

0

90

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: commute and errand

Ugh. Too busy at the salle to ride Tuesday.

Weather Conditions: Clear, dry, light variable breezes

9/13/2007
(Thu)

3.86

00:18:25

21.30

12.60

0

3

180

55

Min: 57
Avg: 60
Max: 63

221

366

0

90

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commute

Weather Conditions: Partly cloudy, dry, variable breezes

9/14/2007
(Fri)

3.90

00:18:08

20.30

12.27

0

3

180

55

Min: 67
Avg: 68
Max: 68

221

437

0

86

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commute

Weather Conditions: Mostly cloudy, dry, calm

9/15/2007
(Sat)

47.41

04:28:14

42.70

10.60

0

15

2,153

5,179

Min: 60
Avg: 62
Max: 63

221

9158

0

128

156

87

0

Road: Steep

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Weekend in Yachats

Rode up the Yachats River to the Yachats covered bridge with Katr (happy b-day!) -- a very pleasant ride. The last couple of miles were on gravel on the north fork of the river, but it was good gravel.

Unexpectedly found a geocache near the bridge. Coolness!

Back at Yachats River Rd, Katr set out for the place where we were all staying. I kept going upriver in hopes of reaching Fisher and seeing the covered bridge there.

To be continued... Technical: First ride with iPhone. Didn't have cell service for much of the ride, and it didn't re-acquire service in Yachats until I turned it completely off and then back on -- a power-saving mode gone slightly awry, perhaps?

Weather Conditions: Mostly cloudy, dry, mostly calm, with occasional light variable breezes

9/17/2007
(Mon)

47.92

03:15:42

49.10

14.70

0

10

499

2,025

Min: 64
Avg: 64
Max: 64

220

4338

0

134

160

96

134

Road: Hills

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Rode our Hwy 22 to Greenwood Rd and then south to Clow Corner Rd and west to Hwy 99W. (Note to self: only the first few hundred yards of Clow Corner are paved, followed by gravel that gets progressively more washboarded until the junction with Rogers Rd shortly efore 99W -- ugh).

Jogged north on the MUP to Orrs Corner and then out to Dallas, where by heading north I finally left the headwind behind that had been with me since Salem.

Rode north on Perrydale Rd (MFT) -- old, old Hwy 22, basically. It had a number of rollers that were just a bit too long to roll through, but low traffic and nice views across the valley in places.

Crossed Hwy 22 and continued north on Perrydale Rd (still MFT). This section was repaved this summer and was lovely pastoral riding. Stopped for a snack and to e-mail Kim at the top of a hill across from a u-pick apple farm. The westerly wind picked up ere into a stiff crosswind. Looked at the time and decided that I needed to head for home at Perrydale.

Had a speedy descent into Perrydale, then headed for home with a tailwind that blew me all the way to the climb into Zena (20.6 avg).

At Zena, I realized I had enough time to go through Brush College, so off I went. I had decided to let myself go anaerobic if needed, so the climb went well, averaging 6.6 mph with a avg HR of 150 (max 160).

Descended to Wallace Rd and rode to the salle, then home later on.

Technical: Reinstalled the TailSok last night. Hard to get empirical data, but I think it helped in the crosswinds today. Front tires are wearing more rapidly than I would like -- especially the right tire (?). Continue to be pleased with the Frog Speedplay pedals and the iPhone.

Weather Conditions: Mostly cloudy at first, then partly cloudy later. Dry. Variable westerly winds 7-10, gusty at times.

9/18/2007
(Tue)

4.25

00:19:43

28.00

12.90

0

3

180

85

Min: 59
Avg: 63
Max: 68

219

539

0

88

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commute and an errand.

Had to study, so no other riding today.

Weather Conditions: Overcast, dry (except for a few sprinkles on the way home), calm.

9/19/2007
(Wed)

34.71

02:17:33

40.90

15.10

0

9

620

1,268

0

220

2832

0

135

162

97

130

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Salem Bicycle Club

Comments: Club ride with SBC.

Sunnyview to Howell Prairie to Aumsville. Lunch at Neufeldt's. Aumsville Hwy to 72nd to 64th to the jog at State Street, then north to Fruitland.

Left the route then to go home via Cordon, Swegle, Market, Lancaster, D, and 17th.

A nice ride. Tailwind southbound was lovely from Sunnyview to State Street (22.6 mph avg). Headwind on the way home didn't seem to affect me too badly.

Clothing: The usual, plus leg and arm warmers. Only got a little warm climbing on Howell Prairie after State St.

Weather Conditions: Mostly cloudy, then partly cloudy. Cool and dry and with a steady northerly wind at 14-17 with occasional gusts.

9/20/2007
(Thu)

4.41

00:18:45

26.30

14.20

0

3

178

80

Min: 57
Avg: 64
Max: 71

220

453

0

91

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Commute. Took the longer Front Street route there, usual route home.

Weather Conditions: Overcast, dry, calm. Getting cooler in the evening....

9/22/2007
(Sat)

51.27

03:22:08

38.40

15.20

0

11

586

1,891

Min: 65
Avg: 67
Max: 69

220

4416

0

130

149

97

0

Road: Hills

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: A choosy ride.

Rode out Pringle/Madrona to Fairview Industrial Park and then onto Strong Road past the old Fairview Training Center and Hillcrest School. Turned right on Marietta and rode up to 27th and then south to Boone Rd and jogged over to Battle Creek.

There is a new sidewalk (still curing) that connects Battle Creek with oregonkc's neighborhood. Will make getting there by bike a bit easier. Continued out Battle Creek to Parrish Gap and had a nice ride.

On impulse, I turned right on Cloverdale Rd to see where it went. I enjoyed the ride over the hills to Hwy 99E. It came out at Willamette Valley Vineyards. I rode north briefly to the Sunnyside overpass and then rode south on Sunnyside. I stopped to take a photo of the ponies that trotted after katr and I a few weeks back.

Eventually Sunnyside Rd ended and I had to cross over I-5 again and get on Jefferson Hwy (old 99E). I rode south to Ankeny Hill Rd and then west. I stopped at the NWR overlook for a snack, and then continued on down to the Buena Vista ferry.

Once across the river (water was very low), I rode north on Buena Vista Rd. Again, on impulse, I took a right on Wells Landing Rd and rode past a cluster of nice little homes.

I took another right on Wigrich Rd (a dead end) to see where it went. It was a nice ride through a variety of orchards, across a couple of sloughs that were long-ago channels for the Willamette River. Just before the road ended, I caught sight of two osprey circling a tree very close to the road. Couldn't quite get the camera ready in time, but got a nice shot of some incipient fall color. Wigrich ended at a good-sized farm with well-maintained grounds. Of curiosity were a few small-scale "old west" buildings across a pasture. Couldn't get a good enough look to get any hint as to what they were for.

Headed back west on Wigrich to the junction with Wells Landing Rd and kept going west. Wigrich met Buena Vista Rd at a T intersection that the map names as Modeville. There's no evidence of a "ville" there now, but there is what it clearly an old railroad grade angling off. From the satellite photos, it looks like it used to connect up with the railroad to the west, which still runs north to Independence. Wonder what the story is?

From Modeville, I headed north to the Independence Bridge. From there, it was across the flats to River Rd and home (via Riverdale Rd).

Weather Conditions: A few clouds, dry. Northerly winds 10-12 mph and gusty.

9/23/2007
(Sun)

117.26

07:25:02

43.40

15.81

0

15

967

3,434

Min: 49
Avg: 62
Max: 67

219

9696

0

135

156

98

0

Road: Hills

Catrike Road
Trike

Salem Bicycle Club

Comments: Metric century #25
Statute century #6
Thermometer ride
Total time: 9:24

Peach of a Century -- a very nice ride.

The ride began and ended at Chemeketa Community College. I rode over there, registered, chatted with folks a bit, and got on the road at 0830.

Headed south on Cordon Rd to Turner Rd and then west to Parrish Gap just north of Cloverdale. During the climb to the summit of Parrish Gap, bike2live caught up with me, followed shortly by youngbentrider. I rode with them for a couple of miles on the descent. Then we hit the flats and they slowly pulled ahead. We continued south to Jefferson and our first rest stop.

After a snack and blabbing with a few folks (including a couple from OBR), we took Jefferson-Scio Rd to Kelly Rd on down to Crabtree, then north on Hungry Hill Rd.

Bike2live had said he was going to bypass this road in favor of Hwy 226. I'm glad I rode it. There was some rough chipseal, but I've ridden worse. The scenery was nice, with no traffic. After a jog north on 226 at the end of Hungry Hill Rd, we rode east on Montgomery until we arrived at Richardsons Gap Rd, where we turned north again.

At Hwy 226, we turned west again for Scio. Thanks to good pavement and a very faint downgrade (0.4%), I put my head back and just cruised for 2 miles, averaging 20.3 mph. It was a nice feeling to just be in the groove.

This was MFT in Scio. A nice little town, reasonably well preserved. Will have to make it a lunch destination.

Just north of Scio on Miller-Cemetery Rd was an unexpected short steep climb (15%). Ugh. Had to stop a couple of times.

The road became Shelburn Dr, and gently continued climbing, eventually becoming Stayton-Scio Road, where the metric century riders rejoined us. This route carried us north to Stayton and our second rest stop in the city park.

The OHPV gang was there, including Aero_Diva and Jeff and Diane. I was getting hungry, so I munched away for awhile.

From there, the route took us west to Gardner Street and north to Shaff Rd (familiar from a ride a few weeks back). Unfortunately, I missed a pavement marking and followed a group that turned out to be 62-milers. 1.5 miles later, I realized my mistake and backtracked.

I was worried that my extra three miles would put me waaay at the back of the pack in a possible repeat of OBR Day 3. I saw some riders a half-mile ahead of me turning north on Cascade Hwy. As I made the same turn, they were nowhere to be seen and there was no one behind me, reinforcing my fears.

Just before we got to Sublimity, there was a short climb in a high-traffic zone with little to no shoulder. I stopped at the top (where there was a driveway) to she arm warmers. As I was leaving two women pulled up and asked if they were on the 100-mile route. Yep, I said, thinking to myself, yea, there are people behind me still!

Rrelieved, I set out again. A bit north of Sublimity, the route began to climb up to a ridge. Other than a couple of short drops, we had 5.8 miles of climbing to our summit for the day on Victor Point Road. The view from the ridge west across the Willamette Valley is always fine, and today was no exception.

After 5 miles of up and down, we descended into Silverton. 2.7 miles of speed was very nice, averaging 32.3 mph and peaking at 40.1. It was a fine thing to pass all those folks....

In Silverton, the route was poorly marked. I didn't make any wrong turns, but I often wondered if I was on the right route.

Eventually we ended up on Meridian Rd headed north for Mt. Angel. The last rest stop was a distant memory, and I was getting hungry again. I grazed on snacks, which helped some, but I really needed to get off the bike and eat something more substantial.

From Silverton on, I had been by myself for the most part, except for one rider who briefly caught up with me to ask if we had missed a rest stop in Silverton (at least I wasn't the only one feeling hungry!). He drafted me for a few hundred yards, and then began sucking wind as the road started to descend gently and I pulled away. I wasn't able to cruise as nicely as earlier in the day, but it helped.

I could see Mt. Angel over to the left, but we just kept going north. I was beginning to wonder when we were ever going to turn when we finally came to a turn on Dominic Rd and headed for town.

A bit down Dominic Rd, I came upon Aero_Diva stopped and talking with one of the sag folks. I was happy to see a familiar face, so I stopped, too. We rode on into Mt. Angel together to the rest stop.

Jane was at the stop with her hand-foot bike. After filling the fuel tank, we all headed for Salem. Aero_Diva was going a bit slower than I wanted to ride, as I could see a possibility developing of a 16 mph average speed for the ride. Jane left 30 seconds ahead of me and led by a few hundred meters. I figured I would catch up to her soon and ride with her for awhile.

Wrong. I just couldn't catch her without going anaerobic. She can ride! I thought we were going back by away of Saratoga, but we turned north just before the junction and rode on Waypark. Still couldn't catch up to Jane. Howell Prairie, then Wabash. Still behind.

We turned right on Duck Inn, then right again on Waconda Rd, where we caught a little headwind and I finally started to gain some ground. Ha! We turned left on 72nd and rode past the cemetery and the old church. Jane's riding partner Steve began to fall behind. I caught him, but she was still elusive.

After a dogleg, 72nd became 75th and I finally caught up to Jane with a little push. We chatted and rode together for the rest of the ride. She is a little bit faster than me on hills, but I am a little faster on descents. The difference is small enough that we can ride together fairly well.

On we rode on roads that were mostly familiar to me, eventually ending up on Hazelgreen, and then heading south on Cordon Road. Another rider passed us both, and Jane tucked in behind him. I tucked in behind Jane, and away we went, averaging a little better than 18 mph. It meant I had to go anaerobic a bit, but we were almost done and my average was up to 15.9.

Shortly before the last turn, we left the other rider. I pushed, but 15.9 was my avg when I pulled in to CCC for a slice of pie (apple -- they were out of peach) and the end of the ride (at 1718).

After a bit of chatting with folks, I headed home for my cooldown ride. I got home safely to find my wonderful wife had a dish of olives waiting for me -- a yummy recovery snack -- followed by a caesar salad and pastitsio (Greek lasagna, basically) and two pints of chocolate milk.

Ahhhhh.....

Maintenance: Oiled the chain.

Technical: Mminor issues with RD cable tension -- need to give the RD some attention. Also, flaky HRM again, but I figured out that that I have lost enough weight that after an hour or two's riding, the strap absorbs enough sweat that it doesn't hold the sensors tight enough. Ah-ha!

Clothing: Usual, plus arm/leg warmers. Took off arm warmers at Sublimity.

Food and water: Two liters of water was fine. Would have liked to have had more than 1 liter of Powerade. Still not happy with the food situation -- I am going to try carrying some Boost on longer rides. I do not like the taste of Heed (drink at rest stops -- yech). The Power-whatever protein bar that came with my registration proved useful for quelling hunger pangs if I ate a couple of bites and followed it with lots of water. Had no bloating or unhappy gut this way.

Weather Conditions: Partly cloudy and dry. Light variable winds at times.

9/25/2007
(Tue)

23.30

01:32:57

32.20

15.00

0

6

319

565

Min: 66
Avg: 67
Max: 68

220

1830

0

122

144

95

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: Rode Pratum loop with OregonKC (congrats on the PB!) as a recovery ride.

Extended the loop north to Lardon Rd, then back south on Cordon where we picked up a nice little tailwind. Left OregonKC at Sunnyview and rode on to the salle, then home after work.

A nice ride.

Weather Conditions: A few clouds, dry. Northerly winds 4-6 mph.

9/26/2007
(Wed)

53.40

03:01:21

38.30

17.60

0

15

249

1,023

Min: 54
Avg: 60
Max: 67

220

4746

0

141

165

100

0

Road: Rolling

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: The Club Ride That Wasn't
plus a commute

Personal best for average speed at distance over 50 miles

Passed the 5,000 mile mark on Trikey today!

This ride put me (at least briefly) above 500th place (498) on BJ for the first time, which has been a goal.

This was an interesting ride. I tarted out trying to catch the Wednesday morning club ride, but got a late start and made a wrong turn to boot (brain was on autopilot to go somewhere else). So, as I approached the rendezvous point, I saw a string of club riders heading out. I joined in to find out it was the "slow" group (including my friend Susan M. who was surprised to see me). They told me the fast group had headed out ten minutes earlier and gave me a rough idea where they were going.

A ten-minute lead... Hmm.... Or, I could stick with the slow group, who seemed very nice. But today was supposed to be an anaerobic ride, so I off I went to play catch-up. I figured that with a few higher traffic shortcuts, I should be able to catch them north of Keizer.

I jammed through north Salem via Ward Drive, Portland Rd, Hyacinth, Verda Lane, and Lockhaven to get to River Rd. I pumped north a bit to Wheatland Rd, which was where the fast group was headed. I kept pushing along, figuring that I would either catch the caboose or that the leaders would catch up to me.

I rode Wheatland Rd all the way to Matheny, and then kept going on Matheny (a new road for me). No sign of 'em.

I stopped to look at the map where Matheny joined up with River Rd, trying to guess where they might be. I had been moving right along -- avg speed of 16.6 since River Rd in Keizr 35 minutes earlier. I was definitely getting my anaerobic workout, with an average HR of 18 for that same section.

I spotted a guy working outside. "Hi! Did you happen to see a bunch of cyclists cruise by about ten minutes ago?"

"Yep. They went thataway."

Ah-ha! I poured on more speed. I was now out in the flatlands of French Prairie. I had a slight headwind, but I managed to average 19.0 for the 2.1 miles between Mr. Thataway and the point at which I realized I wasn't going to catch them.

I figure they must have turned off toward Woodburn, but there was no way for me to know which route they took. So, I decided to press on to St. Paul and have lunch at a little cafe that I wad been wanting to try.

Since I was groovin' right along, I kept it up -- especially since I had to be at the salle for a 2:00 lesson and it was 11:30. Hmmm. With lunch and good speed, I should be fine. Onward I went.

It was another 8.1 miles to St. Paul and Huber's Wild Mustang Cafe. I averaged 17.3 for this stretch, thanks to a few little hills. I was starting to get hungry about 3 miles out.

The cafe was excellent, and will be a future lunch stop. Much of their stuff is homemade, including some very fine potato salad. Nice folks running the place, too.

It was about 12:30 when I plunked myself back down in the lawn chair to head home. I was getting a little concerned about time, so I decided to just take River Rd all the way back. I knew it had good pavement and it was the shortest route.

Good choice. My average speed for the whole ride was at 16.5 and continuing to climb, which is a good clip for me. I wondered if I could get it to 17. Then, just south of St. Paul, I picked up a little tailwind. Whoo hoo!

I felt great, even though I was solidly anaerobic. I kept my breathing steady and deep and focused on my pedaling technique. And I kept my cadence a bit higher than usual (averaged 102).

It paid off. I watched m average speed continue to climb. I averaged 20.8 mph for the next 45 minutes. My average HR went up to 151, but I still felt good. When I hit River Road and Lockhaven in Keizer, my average speed for the ride was up to 17.7. Wow!

For comparison, at PIR during the 1-hour road race, my average speed was 20.5 with an average HR of 163 -- and that was with 4.5 miles spent drafting. At the end of that I was wiped out.

Once I got into town, my speeds naturally dropped a little bit. Even so, I arrived at the salle with an overall average of 17.79 for the day, and 50.44 miles.

For a cooldown, I walked over to the convenience store a couple of blocks away and bought a quart of chocolate milk (my recovery drink of choice). It wasn't the best cooldown, but I knew I had an active afternoon and evening ahead at the salle.

Rode home after work, and still felt good.

Clothing: The usual, plus leg warmers, and I wore my WU jersey and matching arm warmers (MFT for these arm warmers). The arm warmers are lighter weight than my Specializeds, but they kept me comfortable. I was briefly chilly right after lunch, but otherwise stayed comfy. Fall is definitely here....

Weather Conditions: A few clouds in the morning, then clear. Dry. Northerly winds 7-12 with occasional gusts.

9/27/2007
(Thu)

4.27

00:18:40

23.40

13.70

0

3

251

68

0

220

419

0

90

0

Road: Flat

Catrike Road
Trike

Team Catrike

Comments: commutes

morning via Front Steet

Weather Conditions: