I needed a pleasant ride to sooth the nerves from "life."
Tony was offering a brevet-fest out of Lumberton, but that didn't fit the bill.
MikeD posted looking for a crew to do Carolina Crossroads 200k perm, but
I didn't fancy finishing with 7-miles on Garner Rd, and
Then negotiating my way through the music festival and across downtown Raleigh.
(And, seeing on FB the crew he did collect -- I would have been solo, anyway.)
Denny's Store Sortie, 138-kms, little to no traffic, mostly pleasant climbs, some hills.
That fit the bill.
Less than an hour after starting, at about 15.8-miles, where the route crosses US-15 outbound,
I encountered what has been a recurring problem on many NC rando routes this year,
Permanents as well as brevets:
"Road Closed Ahead."
What NOW?!
I rode a quarter mile, chicaning around the road-closed signs,
To get over the small crest that was blocking the view for the reason for closing the road.
It didn't seem prudent to get any closer than I did.
LOTS of construction trucks, apparently hauling gravel.
I spied, between the construction vehicles, what appeared to be a new roadbed
On the other side of a small bridge.
Not another bridge out -- thank goodness!
Can't imagine why that road / roadbed needs rebuilding.
My recollection is that that section of road was in good to excellent shape.
Anyway, I turned around and returned to US-15.
The NC-DOT indicated detour didn't make sense to me,
I had forgotten about W.B.Clark Rd,
So I went the opposite direction on NC-15,
To Will Suitt Rd.
A longer detour, but Will Suitt Rd is a more pleasant road than Cash / Gate # 2 Rd.
(Dappled shade on Will Suitt whereas Cash / Gate # 2 Rd is more out in the open.)
Skipping ahead ...
On Mt. Harmony Ch. Rd., I saw a flag, fully unfurled by the wind,
Pointing in the same direction I was heading.
Great!, I thought. Not.
As that would likely mean a building headwind on the return.
Confusion reigned concerning the direction of the breeze / wind, however.
The next couple flags, less than half-a-mile after the first one,
Were quite at rest.
That put some hope in my mind that the second half of the ride would not be into a headwind.
Turned out it was false hope.
The second intermediate control is in the small town of Berea.
As I stopped outside the control gas station / c-store,
A Mr. Aaron V. of Berea walked up to ask me how far I was riding and from whence I had come.
He insisted on shaking my hand, mentioning that he didn't understand how "we" could ride so far.
(I told him that my first ride on the road was about 17.5-miles, and somewhat hilly.
And ... I thought I might die.)
Anyway, I spent 6 or 8 minutes chatting with Aaron,
Trying to be an ambassador for cycling, and also proselytizing.
As Aaron was likely about 10 years younger than me,
I suggested to him that "if your doctor one day says 'you need to start doing some cardiovascular exercise',:
Bicycling is an excellent way to do that.
Bicycling and walking.
'Twas a great day to be on bike, out in the countryside,
With clear and fresh air, only wispy clouds in the sky,
Moderate temperatures and low humidity.
=================================================
Sep-07:
--> Denny's Store Sortie perm-pop -->; 112.3 m.; 7h05 in-motion; 15.9 mph.
_pre-ride commute: 9.0 m.; 0h32 in-motion; 16.6 mph.
___DSS: 91.2 m. (2 detours); 5h44 in-motion; 15.9 mph; rando elapsed time: 6h13.
____ post-ride commute: 12.1 m.; 0h49 in-motion; 14.8 mph.
Q-1 tot: _11 rides; __940.3 m; _64h42; 14.5 mph; _1275 RUSA kms.
Q-2 tot: _18 rides; _2293.9 m; 158h18; 14.5 mph; _3142 RUSA kms.
Jul tot: __6 rides; __643.3 m; _42h25; 15.2 mph; __694 RUSA kms.
Aug tot: __6 rides; __631.0 m; _42h25; 14.9 mph; __756 RUSA kms.
Sep tot: __1 rides; __112.3 m; __7h05; 15.9 mph; __138 RUSA kms.
YTD tot: _42 rides; _4620.8 m; 314h57; 14.7 mph; _6005 RUSA kms.
C-43, P-21, M-55.
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