Hello Everyone. I have established a team to ride in the American Diabetes Association’s Tour de Cure scheduled for May 16th. I am planning to ride the 62 mile version although there are routes planned at 40 & 20 miles as well. I have recruited 2 gentlemen that I work with to go along as well. This is a good opportunity for us to get our name out as well as help a great cause. The fund raising requirement is more attainable than the the very worthy Norton Ride to Cure Cancer which should make it more feasible for many.

To register follow this link and choose “Join a Group”. The group is called “River City Cycling Society”, you may have to perform a search to get to it.

If you have any questions please just let me know.

Thanks!
Dale

group convenes

Leaving Dave’s house we consisted of a group of 11 riders, our biggest group yet. We had some usual suspects (me, Dave, Dale), some returnees (Ben from first ride and a friend of his), and a nice blend of others. Dale remarked that it was interesting to see a mixture from different cycling cultures: a fixie rider (Kirk aka Kermit) and Derek from OYLC, Tom the resident ‘bent guru in town and a smattering of local folks including Teri, and the couple of Chaz and Kristin, who peeled off early for a b-day party.

'bent descent

We rolled along enjoying the quick downhill out of Charlestown into a creek valley and rode a nice tempo when we noticed that we had gotten stretched out a bit. I doubled back to make sure everything was alright and told Dale to take the group on a bit. I found the ‘bent crew back a bit, with Tom’s lady friend not enjoying steep ups-n-downs. We- Dave on ‘bent, Tom on ‘bent and I on Bleriot- eventually marshaled forward but found our next challenge for the day, in this case a wrong turn onto Seatick instead of the obvious straight on Mt. Lebenon. It added an extra 4m to the route and with the previous stop meant that we were a good deal behind the front group.

not quite 'fubar'

A couple miles after our missed turn, up a quickie rise past yet another creek crossing Dave threw  chain and had to rely on the excellent wrench skills of  Tom to get going again.  Three is the magic number, right?  With a rest stop, a wrong turn and mechanical we had to really up the pace to have a chance to catch the front group.  Just after the mechanical we found the beautiful road of Heil Rd., one of my favorites of the day.  We caught most of the front group, well, they waited for us at the store stop, and proceeded with a general regrouping save Chaz, Kristin, and the fixie dude who peeled off to make other plans.  Derek/Ben/Joe were up front a bit so our rear group was Dale, Teri, me, Dave,  and Tom and we would all be together until well into Clark Forest.

first store stop

Having mentioned the group of three problems, we encountered a 4th thereafter, one which would take us on an extra 7 miles and up one nasty little hill, oh, and by a big black dog not once but twice. At the intersection of W.Salem and S.Bloomington Trail the cue sheet combined with the signage made for a dicey proposition. Dale suggested turning left, the rest of us went straight. Dale was right but the extra portion on W.Salem/S.Liberty Knob made for some of the best riding of the day, as evidenced below.  It was sort of fun to climb such a nasty steep little pitch (.3?  and 8%??) but we eventually got turned in the right direction, which was towards Clark State Forest.

kid and dog

valley

The next portion of the ride, only a mile long, proved another of my own personal highlights, although my fellow travelers didn’t necessarily feel the same way. Pound Rd., a mere mile-long entrance road into CSF ended up providing us with some ‘mixed-terrain’ action, surprising us all.  I had decided to ride the Bleriot for several reasons, one of which was the climbing involved on the day.  Pound Rd gave me my 2nd reason, allowing me to use the Bleriot ‘country bike’ and the Col de la Vie 38c to full effect.  Everyone else wasn’t quite so happy.  That said, we made it through just fun and commenced the uphill grind into Clark State Forest.  I knew the climb was famous locally, but we were going up the backside.  It didn’t matter.  It was simply brutal, and kudos go to Tom for making it up the while way, even that nasty, short switchback bend that defeated the rest of the group.

Ahh, mixed-terrain on Pound Rd.

Tom, Tammy, and Dale on gravel

Once up the climb we found Ben and Joe, and that would make our group for the return ride. By all accounts, we were all bushed from the extra mileage and extra climbing we didn’t anticipate. From CSF, using the latest IPhone technology a direct route was found and the group headed home, all a bit tired. The pic at our turn onto Munk Rd. does a good job showing the haggard look on some of the faces (not mine, I’m taking the picture )

Regroup on Munk Rd.

horses near home

We crawled back and made it to Dave’s house in a group of 7. The original plan was to all pile in to Charlestown Pizza, but the length and arduous nature of the ride had some of the group heading home at different intervals- I hope Derek made it home b/c I never saw him after the departure-, but 5 of us ended up at at the pizza joint. Dale and I had a quickie appetizer and a beer but we had to split for family purposes. Dave, Tom and his ladyfriend (sorry ’bout the name. Drop a “comment” and it will be edited) stayed for full pizza and camaraderie.

Even with the goof-ups it was a spectacular route and a ton of fun, at least for me and I’m sure for some others.  I encourage Dave to host another one in that neck of the woods because it’s fabulous  terrain.

It was with great excitement that I planned a route for last Saturday to encompass my favorite coffee shop, and the three local breweries. It was the second ride of the RCCS

I had a work “wellness” program to attend in the morning so I dropped the kiddos of at my folks the night before. I knocked out a little office work and then headed home. Left in the rare situation of having no one home and nothing pressing I ignored the chores I could have done and set out early to pad my mileage for the day. Knowing where I was trying to end up I headed off to Cherokee park to make a loop and then head toward the Bluegrass Trail. The day was overcast and a little windy. I was hoping the weather would hold but alas, it did not. I passed two older fellows on MtB’s who were spinning the third ring up Cochran Hill on bikes that were just caked with mud. They probably rolled their eyes at me passing them standing and cranking the big ring as I passed and nodded hello. As I came into Germantown headed towards U of L the wind had cranked it up and the first few drops fell. I stopped into Sunergos for a coffee and a copy of Dirtrag Magazine courtesy of On Your Left with 12 miles for the day.

After a few minutes the usual suspects arrived and we were joined by a new guy – Rick. By now it was pretty clear that it was gonna be a wet one. We gave it a few minutes, decided the rain had scared the people away and set off. The first leg of the journey marked something new for me – transit across the 2nd Street bridge on the roadway. I generally wimp out and use the sidewalk for safety reasons. Since it was Saturday and we were in a group with an experienced crosser I gave it a go. Here is a picture right before we crossed:

We traced our way through Southern Indiana into New Albany on the roads I know so well. We stopped so I could adjust my soaked cue sheet and took two quick pictures:

Our arrival at Rich-O’s was a welcome stop and we were pretty well soaked through. The service was as expected very nice but on the slow side. I had IPA 1 of 3, Tex had a sampler, Dave and Rick had a stout – all made by the NABC. A kind, dapper chap took a picture of us before we left:

As we left to return to Louisville the rain kept it coming. We were completely wet and I was especially cold in the hands and feet. They were to remain cold for the rest of the ride. Outside of that wonderful wool undergarments kept me warm. Our arrival at the BBC coincided with the last 6 minutes of the U of L game which they won handily and made me happy to see. We choose this stop to eat and we were ready. Some food and drink had us ready to get back on the road. I had an IPA and a bowl of chili which I think may be the perfect meal for bicycle riding in freezing rain, snow, and driving winds. I had stopped taking pictures at this point as everything was completely wet and I sequestered my camera in a dry bag inside one of Tim’s panniers.

A short trip up Broadway and through Cherokee Park put us into the Highlands and our last beer stop – Cumberland Brews. The pub was pretty crowded but we secured a table right in the front corner of the room which let us avoid locking down the bikes. Dave shared some habanaro salsa and we had another round of beers. We had decided to abandon the return to Sunergos as no one really needed to go back and our houses/drop off points were on the way. We had been out for a pretty good amount of time and were pretty much ready to hang it up.

One of the most interesting things to me was seeing once again that people gather at local pubs for leisurely times and hanging out. My current family situation does not lend easily to do so. I miss it for sure, although these days if given the time and opportunity I would probably ride my bike instead!

Although I missed the first RCCS ride I would think of this one as a success. We rode as planned regardless of the weather. We stayed together for the ride and had numerous stops and libations to boot. I really enjoyed riding with these gentlemen and look forward to doing so again.

More information will be posted here, but feel free to contact me at mysurly69@yahoo.com if you have questions.

Tim S.

(More information can be found @ http://rivercitycyclingsociety.blogspot.com/ )

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