A Long Ride on New Roads

I've been wanting to take some time off of work for a 50 miler for a while now and it finally came to fruition last week. There's lots of roads, rivers, lakes and nature preserves near my house that I've wanted to explore for a long time and I finally took the initiative. Most trips out my door head west. This one was south. And it was beautiful.

Just south of my house is Camp Nelson Cemetery. It's always worth a quick spin through, some contemplation and a prayer.

I planned 40 miles with the hopes of 50. But I wanted to give myself the wiggle room to explore random roads that I encountered in person. Sometimes roads on a map won't represent how awesome they are when you pass them at 14mph and I wanted to give myself an opportunity to ride those. The photo above is a small example. It was closed off and completely covered with debris. But was a great road for weaving in and out of trees and exploring.

I meandered through farm country and became eye candy for the longhorns for the first 15 miles or so but soon encountered my first major route change. I neglected to take a photo in the moment, unfortunately. But one of the gravel roads I was one for a half mile eventually ended with a menacing gate. Although marked publicly on the map, it was a private road and it's inaccessibility meant that I was going to have to ride a good six or seven miles out of my plan to get where I wanted to go.

Not a nuisance, though. That is exactly why I mapped fewer miles than I actually wanted to ride.

After my reroute, I made my way to Kennedy Bridge on Herrington Lake. Herrington was my family's vacation spot when I was a kid. So pedaling over it was one of the highlights of this ride. Having lived close to Herrington for nine years now, I've never actually laid eyes on it since I was a kid. So it drummed up some fun memories.

After Herrington was miles and miles of corn. Next stop, Burgin: A Friendly Little City. I sat here for a while and ate. At this point, I had climbed out of the river and climbed out of the lake and was a little pooped. But it was nothing that a peanut butter and jelly sandwich couldn't fix.

After Burgin is Shakertown.

Simplicity, donkeys, sheep. I'd never taken a peak into Shakertown before. It's quite quaint... and quiet. And from Shakertown, it's pretty much downhill back to the river.

Just before the river, though, there's a 175 year old church. Pretty spectacular, actually.

After Mt. Zion Church, I coasted for about three miles down to the river. Probably the most uplifting part of the whole ride. Super fast and fun through BEAUTIFUL trees and nature-scape. But after the river, it's all uphill from there.

As I mashed the pedals uphill, I found a little trail that shot off to the right of the road. I had the time and needed the break so I aimed the bars that way. A little gravel and dirt path led me to the photo above. Super cool tunnel in the middle of nowhere. Keep following the path and you'll hit a rope swing right into the river. I was very tempted to swing in for bit but I resisted. There was more climbing to do.

From there it was climbing, climbing and climbing. The three mile descent became a three mile climb on the other side. It was tough. Really tough. My ride was pretty much over but this last little bit toasted me before I made it back to my car. It's exactly how you want to feel when your ride is over. 49.9 miles. Couldn't have gone any better.

Get out there.

Take Up Thy Cross Check Daily

Sunday led to another great ride on the Cross Check. I'm really digging this bike these days. I overhauled the wheel recently, and though it was probably just placebo, it felt like it rolled a little faster.

And, although the Cross Check was rolling faster, I was not. About 10 miles in I was toast. I think I've got a little bug dragging me down. I can't seem to keep much energy. So I pulled off the road, sat on a bench at a little country church and ate a poptart. After that, I leisurely made my way back home. It was a 20 mile total. But it was slow 20. No mind, though. It was just nice to be out.

Get out there.

Father's Day Caffeinated Bicycling

My lovely wife generously extended the invitation to "do whatever you want all day" with Father's Day this weekend. I chose but a modest 20 miles with a couple fellows to ride and consume some coffee.

After choosing a rather climby route, I decided the Disc Trucker was going to be the steed of choice. Neil was riding on his sporty Fuji and Noah was on his Long Haul Trucker. So the Disc Trucker was the fattest-tired bicycle of the day. But the gearing was appreciated when I hit them hills.

Neil, hit under the beautiful yet elusive #lightbro, is thinking, "I love how dry my feet are."

At one point I pedaled ahead and found a place to rest... and maybe get head lice.

Noah celebrating dry feet as he crossed Sugar Creek. Being that his bike is a size 82 (or somewhere around there), he was able to hover above the water line and avoid damp socks. Men with dry feet on bicycles riding through creeks look like Noah.

This is what men with wet feet on bicycles riding through creeks look like. See the difference?

Fear not, Neil. We can dry your feet and sip some coffee. Mid-ride coffee makes all your woes forgotten.

There's not much better than a nice Sunday ride with buddies, bikes and coffee. I've had bronchitis all week. So I haven't been on the bike. And I felt it. But it was a fun ride, nonetheless.

Get out there.

Sunday Bike Vibes

Sunday offered up another opportunity to ride some backroads of Jessamine and Woodford County. I put together a ride that was close to 30 miles and hit up Pauls Mill Road, a nice little creek crossing and the primate rescue center. Pat was the only other rider on that particular day and he was atop his brand new Long Haul Trucker build. It's always fun to ride with a new bike... even if it's not yours. I was on the Cross Check with some new bits and pieces. More on that later. But the gist of the updates is new (to the Cross Check) Brooks B17, a short stem with lots of rise and new cloth bar tape. I'm trying to make it my go-fast bike and a comfy bike. Mission accomplished, I believe.

Pauls Mill Road was as scenic as ever. In this time of year, there's just green everywhere. We spied the old mill and hypothesized what all that old machinery does. I'm convinced it's a steam-punk hot tub time machine. Pat just thinks it's a lumber mill. Who knows who's right? But it's probably me.

Pat got to baptize his new bike in a gentle creek crossing. He built up a flat bar LHT with a new frame and wheels with some additional spare parts in his garage. I love those kinds of builds. This bike will slowly get more and more new components and, eventually, be a brand spankin' new road/touring machine. It'll take time. But it's a budget conscious way to build a bike. And, in the meantime, he's riding it and it's awesome already.

No pics of the monkey sanctuary. We heard them monkeys yellin' at us but I can't ever seem to sneak a peakaloo at 'em. But it is fun knowing they're just a short distance through the woods.

I didn't add up the mileage yet. But it's close to 30. I had planned 26 but we got sidetracked and added quite a bit to our route. That's always nice, though. I love when a plan gets adapted to include more riding.

Get out there.

Picture Dump

Often times, I ride my bike and forget to post anything about it here. I just came across some photos that I thought were worthy of sharing. They're probably not worthy. But you've chosen to read this far. Why not keep scrolling?

I rode an e-assist bike a while back. There's not throttle on this thing. It just uses the effort you're putting into the pedals to calculate how much power to put into the electric motor. It was awesome. Super fun and super fast. I got up to 40mph like it was nothing. The only real use for it would be commuting, I guess. And I'm a fan of using my own power and getting the exercise along the way. But it was super cool, nonetheless. 

We rode road bikes at the MTB park a couple weeks ago. Whatever it takes, right? Here's Noah on his LHT. I love using a bike for all that it can do.

I've missed logging many-a-lunch-ride on here. Most of those rides have been in the dirt. Leading the pack in this photo above is Pat on his Pugsley. He had just put on a new set of Nate tanwalls. I'm a fan of that bike.

And a couple week's worth of Troll commutes have gone unpublished. Super fun to ride this bike to work. Makes me feel like there's more options on the ride. I guess I've pictured touring bikes in the dirt and dirt bikes on bike commutes, huh? Well, anything goes. I like it that way.

The blog isn't a priority these days. I'm okay with that. It's still fun to keep around. I'm under no obligation to give it all I've got. But I'll try to post more. In the meantime, this is peek into a few weeks' worth of riding.

Get out there. 

Weekend Ride

Had some fun riding the back roads of Jessamine County this weekend.

I rode the Disc Trucker, Jason was on his roadie'd Troll and Pat had some slicks on the Pugsley. But, wouldn't you know it, we all got along just fine.

We meandered along the creek for most of the ride.

And eventually through it. The Pug was the only bike to pedal through. I was quickly swept away in the Trucker.

Some rental property?

The cool thing about this ride? We were all three riding the same bikes we rode on a snowy camping trip a few months back. All three different bikes are built with the versatility to do anything from snowy riding to dirt riding to road riding. I love it.

Get out there.

Horse Parkin'

Myself and some other fellers headed out for a quick overnighter last night. Five of use pedaled our way after work and two joined us via Prius. But all participants had a good time (although the bicycle pedalers obviously had more fun). The Disc Trucker was the only fully loaded bike. The other guys threw their stuff in the energy efficient Toyota. But I figured if I've got the stuff to bike-camp, I'm gonna use it, right?

Brendan was on his Kona Dew with all my Revelate bikepacking frame and seat bags. They fit great and got most everything off his back and on his bike. Brendan is almost Canadian, carries a gun and this was his longest ride ever... and he did that mileage both there and back. Way to go Brendanowitz.

I was very pleased with the Trucker. I used all four panniers but that was with zero packing finesse. I just threw all my stuff in each bag. There was no stuffing, packing, pushing or grunting. Just tossing junk in there is so easy. The basket had a backpack in there that was pretty much empty. So I put that on my back when it was time to haul wood.

Night time brought a chill to the air and a universal appreciation for the fire. In the photo above, you'll see a pensive Presley reflecting on the possibilities of having toes for thumbs and the toils of mouth tobacco.

The Prius Pilot, Meeker, was convinced that Bear Grylls once told him you could boil water in a plastic bottle. I strongly disagreed only to be proven wrong. That was followed by the bottle of plastic-leached boiling water falling over on me, causing me to do a backflip away from the fire. At least that's how I remember it.

Late into the night we went for a stealth ride on the Legacy Trail before we retired to our asylums for the night. Three men in hammocks, four in two tents. Meeker snored or maybe it was the quasi-Canadian or maybe it was me. But temps dropped to 42 degrees and I did get a bit chilly. But I was never miserable.

And in honor of Bear Grylls teaching us the science of boiling toxic water, I used his knife to slice an apple up for my oatmeal. Angie got me this boss knife for my birthday and it's... well... boss. It was the biggest knife there. So none of the other guys messed with me all night which insured their safety. This apple, on the other hand, didn't fare so well.

We made coffee, eggs and oatmeal. I assumed that the pseudo-Canadian would have had some bacon or pancakes and maple syrup. He didn't. I think I saw him eating some Chex Mix. I was shocked and, to be completely honest, disappointed. I felt he betrayed his heritage. But we gave our bodies warmth and nourishment, packed up our schtuph and headed back to work for a Friday funday. Not a bad way to spend an evening.

In attendance were those listed below:
I in my kerchief and Disc Trucker.
Presley was on his old rigid Giant MTB (one of the coolest vintage MTBs, IMHO).
Brendan on his Kona Dew.
Dave rode my naked Troll outfitted with some Kenda K-Rads for smoother road rolling.
Noah pedaled his custom Long Haul Trucker and carried his own gear like a boss.
Meeker in his Toyota hybrid.
Jordan riding shotgun in the Prius but joined us on the night ride on his Trek. It's made of kevlar or carbon or adamantium or something. But it's light and fast and the shoes he wears with it go clickety clack when he walks.

Get out there.

MTB Time!

This weekend I got to ride some trails with Pat and Jason over at Veteran's Park. It was 80 degrees and, whoa, was that steamy! First ride of the year that had me sweating profusely and gasping for cool air. It was, of course, insanely awesome.

Three guys, one rigid 26er, one suspended 29er and one 29er+. Yet we rode together peacefully and we rode together. I will say that that Krampus is hard to keep up with on the downhills. Those tires just grab hold of the trail and allow him to just hit speeds that I can't hang with on the Troll. It's pretty awesome to watch.

But we rode hard and fast and panted our way through. Hopefully, I'll condition my lungs for this heat and be well adapted soon. In the meantime, I'll just get that pukey feeling every time I ride.

Get out there.

Recluse

I've recently been spending a lot of time in meetings and surrounded by people. I love being a pastor and I love meeting with people. But every once in a while the introvert in me begins to die a little bit if I don't fight for some alone time.

So I walked out of a meeting yesterday, hopped on the bike and pedaled into the nearby wilderness for some solitude. It was only for about 20 minutes. But I shut my eyes, pulled my cap down over my face and just listened to the sounds of the birds chirping and wind blowing.

And, with batteries recharged, I headed back into the office for more meetings. But that little break was everything I needed. It made me appreciate my bike. It was a simple time and easy to get to with a bike. The bike lures me outside more than I know. I'm thankful for that.

Get out there.

Lunchtime

Now that the weather is a bit more pleasant, it's easy to throw on shorts and t-shirt and do a lunchtime ride. At least, that was the case yesterday. Jason and I headed out of my office parking lot and did a little new-road exploration in Woodford County.

We saw, for the first time in a long while, some green grass to grab our attention.

Jason pedaled the do-anything Troll. This is such a different bike than my Troll. I love the versatility of this frame. Our Trolls certainly show how you can build them up in such different ways.

And we got to see Lil Sebastian.

Get out there.

Explore Kentucky

At the risk of stealing a hashtag from some Kentucky folks, I'd like to celebrate the value of wandering through our bluegrass state. Exploring Kentucky is, by far, one of my favorite things to do.

Yesterday I set out on a route that I've ridden a few times before. But as I pedaled towards my destination, I decided I'd bypass my usual point of interest and just keep going straight onto some new roads. Aimlessly exploring Jessamine County has led me to some really great places. So any time I have an opportunity, I figure I should take it.

And of course, yesterday's ride was no different. I found some great sights along Little Hickman Creek. The photo above, for instance, was some cool architecture. Anyone know what it is? It's built into the side of the creek bank and has irrigation that runs through the building. My wife's theory was that it was some type of cold-storage. Everything is cooler when it's underground and surrounded by flowing water. Any other ideas?

Get out there.

Disc Truckin'

There was a bit more work done on the Disc Trucker this weekend. That fact paired with the temps in the 60's meant that a ride was inevitable. The work on the bike? Just slick tires, fenders and new gray cloth bar tape. This stuff was the eventual intention of the bike to begin with. But with last week's snow adventure, the end result of the bike was delayed.

I thought I would hit up some of my hillier routes to test my new disc brakes. The verdict? UH-mazing. Admittedly, the old brake set up on the LHT was a funky mix of components that should work together. But this new disc thang is awesome. The braking is crazy consistent and powerful. The photo above was taken after I had plummeted down about two miles worth of descent.  And the brakes were responsive the entire way.

That was basically the ride all day. WAAAAAY up a climb.... then ZOOOOOOOMING down the other side. Brakes killing it the entire way.

How do you test the wet-weather abilities of disc brakes on a dry 63 degree day? Ride 'em through the creek! Honestly, that wasn't the purpose at all. This creek is on one of my favorite rides around the house and I just happened to hit it. But it was fun, nonetheless.

I'm loving the Disc Trucker thus far. I've still got to shellac the tape and figure out the front rack situation. I've got no way to mount my basket right now and I'm not really into leaving the front rack on for no reason. It mounts quickly enough that I'll probably only utilize it when I am going camping and actually need it. So the front end cargo situation has to be sorted out. There's still some finagling to be done but I'll enjoy the ride until I figure that out.

Get out there.