Oct-27: Ricochet Robert and the Blustery Perm

Unlike "Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day",
We had no rain nor flood ... at least not where we rode.

"Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day".  
Robert indicated he had never heard of "Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day".

"Down east" in North Carolina ... they were not so lucky.
Down south in the Caribbean ... some there were very unlucky.
Up north, and to the northeast ... I'm hoping everyone is prepared, and lucky.


Ricochet and I rolled the dice.
Most everything came up 7's or 11's.
Everything except Robert's legs and possibly the wind.

Robert's legs ... did not appreciate any inclines.
Well, maybe they came around for one or two climbs around the 90-mile mark,
But then his legs apparently resumed their refusal to deliver any oomph on inclines. 

My thought is that Robert's legs aren't so much tired, but are instead "fatigued".
Two-and-half-years ago, at age 61, Robert did his first adult bicycle ride.
Now ... he'll qualify for a RUSA Cup on Nov-24 (weather permitting). 

The wind was mostly bang-on into our faces until Drewry,
At about the 54-mile mark.
(Don't tell anyone ... I actually looked at the cue sheet to check the mileage.)

The 10-miles from Drewry to Warrenton include my favorite vistas along the course. 
And, except for the half-mile on US-1 / US-158, we had a side-wind.
After the 54-mile headwind leg, the side-wind felt as good as a tailwind.

There are other nice vistas along the route,
But I think the best are along NC Bike Route #4 between Drewry and Warrenton.
That's my opinion, and I'm sticking to it.

Three climbs after leaving Warrenton to get to Stagecoach and Tower roads.
The first two are short ... the third is long ... none are hard.
In fact, though long, the third climb is a perfect "Martin slope".

On that long third climb mentioned above, Robert + I were so busy chatting,
That I lost track of where we were ... and thought we might have missed a turn.
We hadn't ... it was another third of a mile ahead.

Tower Rd has some nice vistas and also Jones Chapel Rd that follows it.
Most everything was muted by the deep overcast from the outskirts of Hurricane Sandy.
Things that may have looked wondrous in bright sunshine were still nice,
All yellow and harvest gold, accented by red and orange leaves, and some unharvested cotton.
[Uh-oh ... four lines instead of three!] 

Big bag lunch for each of us at the Hardee's in Warrenton.
Too much food, really.  But at a low price.
I assume Robert felt bloated for hours afterward ... I know I was.

My stomach did NOT like me getting aero until after Egypt Mtn Rd.
But with a strong tailwind most of the second half of the ride,
Who needed to be getting aero, anyway?

The short-lived veneer of oomph in Robert's legs disappeared on Egypt Mtn Rd.
I didn't realize that until I was passing Egypt Mtn Farm atop ... Egypt Mtn.
I always encourage those new to the course to "save something for Egypt Mtn Rd."

Despite a rather low average in-motion pace and a longish stop for lunch,
Robert and I finished a DRY Egypt Mtn in 10h23 officially.
Too bad we were 18 or 20 minutes late in starting.
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Oct-27:  

--> Egypt Mtn 210-km perm -->; 140.3 m.; est. 9h34 in-motion; 14.7 mph; EM elapsed time:  10h23.  

 
Q-1 tot: _22 rides; 1,610.3 m.; 108h42; 14.8 mph; 1947 RUSA kms. 

Q-2 tot: _29 rides; 2,711.5 m.; 182h48; 14.8 mph; 2700 RUSA kms. 

Q-3 tot: _32 rides; 2,958.9 m.; 197h17; 15.0 mph; 2983 RUSA kms. 

Oct tot: __9 rides; __763.0 m.; _51h24; 14.8 mph; _949 RUSA kms.

YTD tot: _92 rides; 8,043.7 m.; 540h12; 14.9 mph; 8579 RUSA kms. 

FYI, after this ride, Robert has 8879 RUSA kms this year. 
"My recruit" from 2+ years ago ... has gone wayyyy beyond me, now. 

 

Eddington Cycling Number: 

After this ride:  97. 
Meaning that I have completed at least 97 different rides that were at least 97 miles long.