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The training is paying off

10.05.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 3 Comments

Decided to skip the regular club ride this morning — they were taking a route that didn’t appeal to me. Instead, I struck out on my own, combining parts of a couple of routes we’ve taken in the past into a longish ride. I wanted to see if I could handle it by myself, and if I had the staying power I needed.

The ride took me south of Austin to Kyle, Texas. After a boring first seven miles on city streets, the rider picks up some country roads. It’s interesting how fast the landscape changes from suburban to rural. You know you’re in the country when you ride by a ranch and find Texas longhorn cattle grazing close to the road. Lots of ranchers keep them because of their heritage — these are the cattle the cowboys drove north to the railheads in Kansas and elsewhere, before the railroads came to Texas. Their meat is tough and stringy — wouldn’t pass muster in today’s supermarket meat sections.

After a turn through Buda, Texas the route picks up two busier roads, but ones with generous shoulders. They lead to Kyle, another small town that is rapidly growing into a bedroom community for Austin and San Marcos. Kyle is a great place to take a break, because of the Lucky Cup, an independent coffee house.

My trusty steed parked at the Lucky Cup. The coffee shop is marked by the door and windows on the left side of the building. Its signage is obscured by the shadows.

I bought a Gatorade and refilled my water bottle here. A patio in the shade (from where the picture was shot) has tables and chairs for relaxing. The owners of the shop appreciate that bikers have discovered the place, and are happy to accommodate their needs.

Instead of turning back to Austin here, as I’ve done before, I continued into downtown Kyle, about two miles away. Let’s just say it’s a small business district, about two blocks long. Prominent among the shops is another spot we might consider stopping on future trips down here:

“Life Is Short — Eat More Pie” is the Texas Pie Company’s slogan.

The rest of the ride went through new housing developments, cotton fields that appeared to be recently harvested, poorer neighborhoods of run-down manufactured houses, and back to Austin. Central Texas has had a very dry couple of months, and I was pleased to be spattered by a few raindrops. This is a pretty dry place throughout the year. Newcomers to the area find it surprisingly green, but then are surprised to find that even though it’s not a desert, cacti abound.

Clumps of prickly pear cactus along the Old San Antonio Road.

So, how did the ride go? It turned out to be a little shorter than I had expected. I guess I didn’t travel far enough east to add on some miles. The bike shifted more smoothly today than yesterday, but will still go into the shop for a tuneup this week.  I had no bonking problems — not even a hint, so I guess I’ve finally figured out what works for me on trips of this length. I’m pulling better on hills, applying the power longer, not tiring as fast. That toe is still a bother, but pulling up on the pedal helps, and when I stop to take a break every hour or so, I shake it out so it’ll be okay for another hour.

I finished 50.2 miles with an average speed of 15 miles per hour — right where I hoped I’d be. I didn’t have to charge off to bed for a nap, as I usually do after a ride this long.  The century is two weeks away.  I think I’m going to be ready.

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Categories // Rides, training Tags // Buda, Kyle, numb, Rides, toe, training

Another Windy City ride

09.28.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 3 Comments

We flew into Chicago on Friday for the wedding of our friends Brad and Linda’s daughter. Brad and Linda are the folks we did a Chicago bike ride with in June, and then met for a week of biking and other stuff in August. We were glad to be there, both because we think they’re great friends, and because we have a high regard for their daughter, Stefanie. We also figured there would be some down time in the wedding weekend to sneak in a bike ride.

There was. The wedding was wrapped up by noon Saturday, but the reception wasn’t scheduled until 5 p.m. Brad and Linda were obviously going to be tied up, but Pat and I headed out to a nearby “bike station” to rent a pair of bikes and hit the Lakefront Trail.

In June, Brad had warned against taking the trail north from downtown. Too congested, he said. So we went south then. But this time, we had to mix it up. We headed north. Brad was right.

The Lakefront Trail at Belmont Ave. Bikers share the trail with joggers, walkers, roller bladers, etc. This is one of the less crowded stretches of the trail we hit.

The Lakefront Trail is an asphalt path, divided down the middle with a yellow stripe so both northbound and southbound bikers can use it. But at several points, it can get jammed. Joggers, who do a pretty good job of sticking to the crushed stone at the side of the trail, suddenly veer in front of bikers. Most bikers are ordinary folks, who have little knowledge of the rules of the road, or merge onto the path without watching for other traffic. Some bikers in full kit get aero, and blast through everyone with little margin for error. And the walkers are the worst. They’re a hazard to bikers, because they will occupy the center of the path, and won’t move out of the way — so bikers have to change speed and direction quickly. When we reached Belmont Harbor, we decided to stop and turn around, since we’d have just an hour to get back to the bike station, return the rentals, walk back to the hotel, and get ready for the wedding reception.

The rental bikes rest at the turnaround point. They were Specialized hybrids. Kind of slow, but the conditions on the trail ruled out fast riding anyway.

When not dodging traffic on the trail, there’s plenty to see. This may have been the last nice summer weekend in Chicago this year (that’s what the natives told us), and people came out to Lake Michigan in droves.

North Avenue Beach has dozens of beach volleyball courts, loaded with aspiring Misty May-Treanors and Kerri Walshes.

The beautiful Caribbean. Blue water, sparkling sand, waving palms…no, wait! This is Chicago’s own Oak Street Beach. And yes, the palms (and there are lots of them) are real.

We got the bikes back to the rental station, after a particularly difficult time crossing the bridge over the Chicago River. So crowded with bikes, walkers and joggers that we had to get off and walk the bikes across — it was just too dangerous otherwise. One of the rental staff commiserated with us about the trail’s north route. She was more upset with the rudeness and lack of caution on the trail than with the crowded conditions. In any case, the next time we’re back here, we’ll head south, just as we did in June. This 12-mile and change ride required us to concentrate hard for the entire ride. But Pat and I agreed that it probably made us more skillful bikers.

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Categories // Rides Tags // bike path, Chicago, crowds, hybrid, rentals, Rides

I snapped out of it

09.19.2008 by Ray Niekamp // Leave a Comment

Did the ride I’d promised today: 21.4 miles at 17.2 mph avg.  Felt great.  I was lucky to duck out of work early today for an eye doctor’s appointment, which got me home earlier than usual.  Pat is out of town on business this weekend, so I can take all the time I want to ride.  Sunday should be a good one.

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Categories // Rides Tags // funk, Rides

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