For Whom Do I Write, er, Type

I've thought about this before.
I've written, er, commented on this before.
But the ClustrMap list of recent visitors made me pause. 

Sunday, April 20 @ 3:50 : Nahariya, IL

Saturday, April 19 @ 11:22 : Germany, DE

Saturday, April 19 @ 11:20 : Menlo Park, California, US

Saturday, April 19 @ 11:20 : Ukiah, California, US

Saturday, April 19 @ 9:25 : Ithaca, New York, US

Saturday, April 19 @ 9:07 : Boone, North Carolina, US

Saturday, April 19 @ 8:06 : Beaumont, Texas, US

Saturday, April 19 @ 6:25 : Troutdale, Oregon, US

Saturday, April 19 @ 6:12 : Nomans Land, Massachusetts, US

Saturday, April 19 @ 6:10 : Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, US

A new, obvious answer to the question in the title of this post is:
For no one that I've met. 

Apr-09: Oxford 104

10 days after the ride, and now I'm gonna' finally write something?

My friend Lynn wanted to get in a populaire before the 10th.
I wanted to get in back-to-back rides (I'd ridden the 'Bunn Wash Caper' the day before).
We did the 'Bay Leaf - Oxford - Bay Leaf' perm-pop.

Let me explain something about Lynn:
She is a faster rider than me.
Much faster.

To help keep the pace under control for the first part of the ride,
I took the lead and didn't drop out of leading.
Lynn was reasonably accepting of that.
After all, we were riding into a headwind.

After crossing the Tar River outbound, Lynn took the lead.
I think it was on Antioch Rd when I suggested that I was going to send an email to our friend Ian,
Noting that every time I got comfortable with the pace, she seemed to increase it.

Lynn didn't want me to do that,
Claiming that I was referencing stuff from a couple years ago.
I wasn't able to dispute the point as I had to drop her off my front wheel
In order that I not to go into oxygen debt.

At the turn-around, I pointed out that maybe Lynn wasn't the tornado from a few years ago,
But that she is still a strong and fast rider.
[I saw her trying to hide a smile.] 

Trying to keep her under control on the homeward bound leg,
I led for the first 10-miles.
Ten, flat, wind-aided miles.

But as we started the climb back up the steep slope after crossing the Tar River,
Lynn came around me as if I were standing still (I wasn't going very fast),
And seemingly without pedaling hard, she disappeared up and away.

I next saw Lynn 22-miles later, at the finish control.
Officially, she finished 13-minutes before me.

Apr-08: Inaugural Bunn Wash Caper 108

The course:  (http://ridewithgps.com/routes/3385801).

Mick and I rode the inaugural Bunn Wash Caper on a pleasant, though mostly overcast, Spring day.
The wind must not have been much of an issue, because as I type this I cannot recall the wind effects.
However, I do seem to have a slight recollection of riding up the incline on Dunn Rd into a small headwind.
That would suggest a westerly wind on the day.

Checking the weather Almanac for Raleigh:

• Low temp was 55F; 
• Hi temp was 67F;
• Between 8 AM and 2 PM, the wind direction varied from SW to NW; 
• Winds at 10-mph at 8 AM, but only 5-mph from 1100 to 1400;
• (http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KRDU/2014/04/08/DailyHistory.html?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA).

Just a bit of up-and-down climbing in the early miles on Mitchell Mill Rd -- wake-up, legs!
Then mostly flat with a slight loss of elevation as one joins NC Bike Route #2 for several miles.
The route leaves NC Bike Route #2 upon reaching "W. Old Spring Hope Rd."
Which occurs at a cross-roads community (of about three houses).
Or at least there is an NC-DOT green sign for a community there.
Can't recall the name of the crossroads community.
Or maybe that is a potential Info Control question.

One thing we did notice at that turn is this:
The only nuisance dawg on the whole route lives on the "inside" of the turn there.
Sort of a pug / boxer mix.
Not too tall, but tall enough to possibly nip one just above the ankle.
And fast enough, given its "inside" position, to possibly get in the way. 
Mick tried to administer some "training" -- I doubt it took.

After that we dropped down to cross the Tar River, and then climbed back up.
You can see the dip in the elevation profile on the RWGPS map linked-to above.
The first Tar River crossing is at about mile 27.6.
The road climbs about 100 feet in about 1/2 a mile.
That's standard, or even a bit less than the standard,
For roads north of Raleigh.
East of Raleigh, in the area covered by the Bunn Wash Caper route,
That 100 feet in 1/2 a mile is about as difficult as it gets.

After crossing the Tar River, we turned to go up into and through the heart of Spring Hope.
The cue sheet notes a couple c-stores in Spring Hope at mile 30.6 of the route.
There are also some places where one could grab a meal in Spring Hope.
Mick and I rode through Spring Hope without stopping;
We were thinking of a quick lunch in Bunn.

After Spring Hope, we had nearly 10-miles on 7-Paths Rd.
Now that might sound boring and wearing on the mind.
However, it was anything but that.
There are two or three turns required to stay on the 7-Paths;
All of them logical and easy to make without even consulting the cue sheet.

There were also some nice little vistas scattered along 7-Paths.
Nice vistas if one is not so foolish as to attempt to compare to mountains or other such nonsense.
Accept where you are, and accept what the location has to offer, and enjoy it.

Possibly the greatest thing about 7-Paths Rd was the lack of vehicle traffic.
As best I can recall, we encountered only two pick-up trucks during our entire time on 7-Paths.

We dealt with the Info Control at the corner of 7-Paths and Dunn roads,
And proceeded on Dunn and Mort Harris roads to Ferrell Bridge Rd.

Our lunch plans took a detour when we encountered a small country diner
At the corner of Mort Harris / Sledge Rd and Ferrell Bridge Rd.

The diner has only been in operation since about December.
At least that is what the owner / cook told us.
Country cooking.
Home cooking.
Traditional Rural Southern cooking.
Made to order AFTER we put in our orders.
Filling and tasty.
50-minutes total was the stop for lunch.

Then on to Bunn.
A couple miles on Ferrell Bridge Rd (again with no traffic), and about a mile on NC-39.
39 is wide and flat.  Not too much traffic.
However, any traffic at all seemed a lot after the complete absence we'd just experienced.

Through Bunn and onto another bit of NC Bike Route #2.
But now we were headed west.

Those that have done MikeD's "Showdown at Black Creek" Permanent
May recall Brantleytown Rd -> Old Halifax Rd, and a "bear right" onto Strickland Rd.
At that "bear right," the Bunn Wash Caper instead "bears left,"
Staying on Old Halifax Rd and opening a new road to randonneuring traffic.

A short stint on NC-98 and then 8-miles on Mitchell Mill Rd rollers to get back to the start / finish.

All in all, a nice ride on a pleasant, very low traffic route.
If you are a NC-rando living in the Triangle area, and looking for a new Perm-Pop route,
I think you can't go wrong riding the Bunn Wash Caper.
Contact Mick -- you can find his contact info by following the above link.

RUSA Member Retention

I've been a bit remiss in following up on something.  So ...
In context of, and supplementary to, my Jan-01 post,

[Apr-07, 9:30 am EDT -- now 3212.] 
 - - That is up 480 members in the last two months.
 - - - - Mostly renewals?   

===========================================
The key text of the Jan-01 post was / is:

[M]embership [as of approx. 10:10 am EST] is:  "2002 Matches Found". 
It might be interesting to watch that number change over the next few days / weeks / months. 

And that was followed by a series of time-stamped edits:

[Edit, 10:26 am EST -- now "2027 Matches Found".]
[Edit, Jan-02, 6:30 am EST -- now "2063 Matches Found".]
[Edit, Jan-04, 4:00 pm EST -- now 2184.]
[Edit, Jan-07, 8:00 am EST -- now 2269.]
[Edit, Jan-10, 8:00 am EST -- now 2363.]
[Edit, Jan-27, 6:30 am EST -- now 2646.]
[Edit, Feb-07, 5:00 pm EST -- now 2732.]   

It might still be interesting to watch the member count change over the next few months as brevet-season hits its peak (for most of the country, anyway).  

Mar-22: Leesville-Leasburg-Leesville 205

I was going to do my 210k Egypt Mtn route, but
Byron posted for a Triple-L adventure.

Contacting B, he agreed to let me ride if I kept to his glacial pace.
Ha!
You certainly must know what happened.
Byron had to repeatedly wait for me.
While MikeD and Lynn drifted off our front wheels between each set of outbound controls.

We, okay, I finally managed to convince Mike that the two of them should just ride-on,
Without us,
As I had struggled the entire first half of the ride and the return might get quite ugly.

I admit I didn't struggle the whole ride.
Red Mill Rd outbound, and Old-75 and Red Mill inbound, were fun.

But anything with an UP or into the wind,
Were struggles for me.

Byron is an interesting ride partner.
Sometimes he is part of the fast-crew.  Sometimes not.
He is usually quite quiet.  But this ride he was quite talkative.

That latter was to my advantage.
It kept me from dwelling on my struggles,
And kept the ride interesting.

What did Byron and I (mostly Byron) chat about?
The list would include:

• The course.
• Previous rides on the course.
• Ricochet Robert.
• Geof.
• The wind.
• Byron's 4-year-old son.
• Previous LIFE experiences.
• And more.

All in all, it was a good day to have been on the bike.
Thanks, Byron.
--------------------------------------------------------
Eddington Cycling Number:
After this ride:  110.
Meaning that I have completed at least 110 different rides that were at least 110 miles long.

Mar-11: Bay Leaf - Oxford - Bay Leaf 104

As previously indicated (good-bad-and-unexpected-102-km, 2nd half of post):
My friend, Ricochet Robert, had surgery a couple weeks ago.
Thinking he could benefit from a flat populaire to preserve his P-streak,
I suggested a pretty flat route (for north of Raleigh).
Robert was concerned that no one else would do the route.
I told him not to worry -- some would prefer a flat route for recovery,
Rather than the usual hill-fests he LOVES.

Trying to shoehorn several errands into a single day,
Mick & I decided to ride the Bay Leaf - Oxford - Bay Leaf perm-pop.
I recall that Mick had only completed the Kerr Lake Loop twice,
And his non-rando stomping grounds {did not / do not} include the route's area.
Therefore, the route would be almost as if riding something completely new.

I, on the other hand, had completed KLL about 16 times,
And used to do this very route as an occasional non-rando ride.
And, to complete the story, I've ridden many other non-rando rides
That either started or ended (or both) using most of this "Oxford" route.

The route is an easy, mostly-flat route.
With only three (3) controls:  start, turn-around, finish.
[My theory on populaires and new randos is that many need to learn to get on the bike and ride. 
Not learn to get through controls. 
One learns quickly enough about controls if there is a willing teacher on one's first pop, 
And one learns VERY quickly if the group leaves one behind because one is too slow at the control.] 


It was sunny, but still chilly for the 8 am start.
[Okay, chilly by central NC, mid-March standards.]
We started 7-minutes late -- not because it was chilly.

5-kms later, we had to wait (what seemed like) 5-minutes for the light to change.

Then we putzed along for significant stretches of the route.
Mick indicated he wanted an easy ride.
And since he spoke-up first, I never had to indicate what kind of a ride I wanted.
That's my story, and I'll be sticking to it.

Most of the route is rather open,
Or when not open, there are still houses within sight.
Safe "nature breaks" are hard to come by.
About 5-miles before the turn-around, Mick indicated he needed a nature break.
I replied that it was only 4-miles-or-so to the turn-around.
Mick quipped that normally that would be okay, but he had needed the break for 10-miles.
We made a slight diversion off-course to accommodate.

I'm not sure when we got to the turn-around,
And I am not inclined to check the receipts,
But I do know that we took quite a long break.
We remounted for the trip back a full 3h00 after the official start time.

By then, 11 am, it had warmed significantly, and the WSW wind was building,
A slightly quartering head-wind most of the way back.
But a direct in the face headwind on Bruce Garner Rd..

But, for me, it was wind be danged !
It wasn't a 20-mph wind, after all.
I wanted to get the ride done so that I could do the other shoehorned activities.
AND, my ride opportunities are rather limited at this time,
So I wanted to ride hard on the short distance,
To try to hold on to the remaining in-shapeness I've got.
In other words, keep the "use it or lose it" at bay for as long as possible.
[I doubt Dean would think my "plan" can work.
However, he has a more difficult time suspending his disbelief on the "use it or lose it" front.] 

Anyway, we rode somewhat hard on the homebound leg,
Finishing 2h15 after leaving the turn-around "Oxford" control. 
[Not all that fast, but we are slower than many, and it was into a bit of headwind.
There is also the three finishing climbs in the the final 9.5-kms.]

At 78 or 79 degrees Fahrenheit at the finish, it felt rather hot.
On the other hand, the higher temps have whetted my appetite for NO-more-cold-wintry-rides !!


Later, Mick commented, "the route is flat, by 'Martin standards'."
================================================
xxx, yyy, zzz

Mar-02: The Good, the Bad, and the Unexpected

Before getting into the March 2nd ride, I want to note a few things about my Feb-22nd perm ride.  I had intended to put up a post about that ride, but stuff got in the way.  Anyway, ...

Feb-22:  Egypt Mtn 210-km Perm

It was a pretty good day, weather-wise, for late February in north-central North Carolina.
CHILLY at the start, though.
Lynn and I each had COLD hands almost immediately.
We paused after about 2-miles to put plastic bread-bags over each hand + lower arm.
I immediately felt the improvement of having effective wind-blocks;
I removed the bread-bags 10 or 15 miles after having put them on.
Lynn, who sometimes is affected by Raynaud's Syndrome, took longer to re-warm.
She removed her bread-bags at the first control, some 34-miles after donning them.

Thereafter, the day was pretty, but never seemed as warm as forecast.
Lynn slipped away off my front wheel on all inclines of more than 2%.
On inclines of 4% or more, she zoomed ahead as if I was anchored.
That is the same as it has always been.

As this was my first 200k ride in eight weeks, I purposefully took it easy the first half of the ride. 
[Actually, it was my first ride of more than 75-miles in eight weeks.]

When we weren't climbing, Lynn was usually tucked in behind me.
I am faster on the declines, and perhaps also on the flat.
At least I was on this day.

Lynn noted that she had no gitty-up in her legs, and
Her right leg was acting up.
Not wanting to fully extend and getting tight very quickly whenever we stopped or paused.

My lower right groin did try to cramp on the steep part of the long incline
To get to the afternoon control at Epsom.
However, I refused to let the leg cramp.
I guess I've done enough 200k-plus rando rides to have learned a few things.

About 11-miles before the finish, I suddenly realized that I needed to stop and eat some food,
Else I was going to get rather bonky in the last 10-kms with the three finishing climbs.
Lynn rode on so that her right leg would not stiffen up, again.

All in all, it was a bit tough for each of us.
But each made the best of the situation, and I think that overall,
We each enjoyed our ride.

Oh, yeah -- this was my third ever career R-1 (as I had skipped a January R-ride). 
==================================================
 
Mar-02:  The Good, the Bad, and the Unexpected 

My friend, Ricochet Robert, had surgery a couple weeks ago.
He wants to maintain both his P-series and his R-series.
Biker Bob and I think we've convinced Ricochet to do a FLAT 200 at the end of March.
Perhaps Dean's "Tar Heel 200" permanent.
Robert will have to drive to get to the start in Benson, NC.

I realized that getting him to drive to Dean's "Get 'er Dunn" perm-pop
The week before driving to Benson was decidedly not a Ricochet preference.
However, there is an excellent mostly-flat perm-pop route that has been waiting
For someone to bite the bullet and ... submit it.
Given Robert's surgery and "flat needs,"
It was time to effectuate the "Bay Leaf - Oxford - Bay Leaf" 102k perm-pop.
[Click-here for a RWGPS map of the revised 104k route.] 

I decided to ride the new route and make sure everything is still copesthetic.
Here's what I found:

The Good

Except for crossing Falls Lake, the creek valley on Lawrence Rd, and the Tar River --
The route is much flatter than I recalled from many previous non-rando rides, and
Also from lotsa' finishes of the rando Kerr Lake Loop.

The surface of the bridge across the Tar River has been resurfaced.
There are no gaps between the sections and thus no need to bunny-hop one's way across the bridge.

The Bad

Cannady Mill Rd has escaped being Obamulated.
The rough surfaces of the many, LONG patches are still rough and long.
Probably rougher than in previous years ago.

There are quite a few freeze-thaw potholes that have opened up on Cannady Mill Rd.
Almost all of them on the northbound (outbound) lane.
I had to play dodge-'em in a couple places to stay on the smooth surface
Between the old rough patches and the new HOLES.

I would not be surprised if tar-snakes suddenly appeared on the entire 6+ miles of Cannady Mill Rd.

The Unexpected

The intended turn-around control,
Known to many NC-randos as the "Oxford control" on the old Kerr Lake Loop,
Is closed.
PERMANENTLY.
It appears the site is about to be leveled and something else constructed.
Or, maybe not leveled, but with extensive changes and something else constructed.

Either way, I've submitted a revision to the route.
Making the turn-around at the Hasty Mart BP, a half-mile up US-158.
That gas station / c-store usually looked cleaner, anyway.
Often has chocolate milk whereas the Exxon never did.
And, there are a couple high-tables with stools where one can sit for a few minutes.
No such sit-options at the now-defunct Exxon.
As for the rest rooms -- you don't expect me to check out everything, do you?

The Conclusion

We now have an easy, mostly flat recovery-pop on the north side of Raleigh.
And a route that Ricochet can use for his March P-ride, without undue climbing concern.
================================================
xxx, yyy, zzz