Gear Masher Ride, Saturday morning, November 14th, at 9 or 10am (to be announced friday)
J Soper
Prior Weeks Ride Summary at bottom of this email (to see what to expect)
Gear Masher Ride (WC), Saturday November 14th @ 9 or 10:00 am (will send out update on Friday at the latest)
Start Location: Little Miami Scenic Trail, 426 Zoar Rd. South Lebanon 45065
Ride Rating: Intermediate+ / Advanced
Group Size: Expect from three to seven riders. Ride is still new so group is usually a mix of new [to Gear Masher] and repeat riders.
Ride Leader: Jay Soper cell 513 293-9538 e-mail jcs.g...@gmail.com
Ride Description:
This week: 47 miles, 2100 ft gain. Route: http://ridewithgps.com/routes/11092842
This is the last scheduled gear masher ride of the year! A hilly ride today but with nothing steep (no mashing required today). And with the long awaited, newly paved Zoar for our final decent, we should have a great sprint finish. Average target speed will be in the 18-19 mph range (not including top-of-climb regroup rest breaks). Pace: expect to pull and draft at 21-23 mph on the flats. We will paceline some with a steady ouput, but we don't take it very seriously... We also enjoy mixing it up (attacking a short climb or maybe a short sprint or whatever we're in the mood for from week to week). Group size can vary, see 'Prior Weeks Ride Summary' at bottom of this email for what to expect.
If anyone needs to refuel, we can make a quick stop at the convenience store in Clarksville. Bring a few bucks if you need something. Otherwise, pack all food and drink that you will need.
Note: We will regroup at the top of any steep or long climbs. Not a problem; I enjoy the break and am thankful when others wait for me. BUT, everywhere else, If you are struggling too much to maintain the pace, there will be opportunities to get on the bike path and take a shortcut back to the car lot. No one will be left behind without a clear way to return to the start location via the bike path!
After the Ride:
I will have some post-ride chocolate milk and peanuts.
Cancellation / Additional Info:
Any cancellation will be published at least 75 minutes prior to ride. Rain, snow, high winds, or temperature below 30 F usually cancels ride. Feel free to give me a call/text with any questions.
Approved bike helmet is required.
Prior Weeks Ride Summary:
Saturday, November 7th: Weather was very nice (sunny and no wind until the end) and 50 degrees at the start. 6 riders today. Attendees (new-guy) Travis, John B, Tim T, Luke B (good to see ya, its been awhile), me, and Keith joined us en route. And keeping with last weeks wisdom, we subliminally convinced (new guy) Travis to pull more than his share. Route was nice; maybe a bit too many turns at the end, but nice. We did take a rest in Clarksville where we determined that three of us six riders have or had a heart issue; we are lucky to still be alive (ha ha). Route was 48 miles with 1900 ft of gain. Our average was 19.1 mph (only one real climb today - up Olive Branch). Afterwards, we all enjoyed some nuts and homemade chocolate milk.... ok ok, before you start picturing something your grandmother made.... I forgot to run to the store to get some chocolate milk so I mixed some Hershey's with milk (the closest I can get to homemade).
Saturday, October 31st: Weather was nice (but a bit windy up on N. Clarksville) and 47 degrees at the start. 7 riders start; 6 finished. Attendees at start were Tim T, John B, Doug, Chris, new-guy Jim, 100-miler Vince, and yours truly. Route was nice; only two challenges (one because of wind on N. Clarksville and one because of gravity on Gard). Route was 46 miles with 2000 ft of gain. Our average was a very respectable 19.6 mph (nice recovery after last week). We had a group that stuck together great and we pace lined more than usual. Thanks new-guy Jim for pulling more than your share. I suspect we'll start slowing things down a bit next week (it is November after all). Afterwards, we enjoyed some chocolate milk while Chris brought down the mood with talk about the dangers of cycling while cars continue to use our roads.
Saturday, October 24th: Weather was fine (no rain, but wet roads and windy in spots) and temps in the 60s. Just 2 riders today (me and John B). Rain was looking imminent and, I think, scared everyone off. I figured we would get wet for sure, but we didn't; just road spray from John (who was always pulling me, but I'll get to that later). Route was nice (another keeper) with Strout being the only real heart thumper. Route was 45 miles and 2000 ft gain with a 17.5 mph average. I should just leave it there, but I'll go on... So, just two of us and I am GLAD. That way no one else was there to see me falling off the back end (ha ha). I'm not sure if it was lack of Wheaties this morning or maybe I should stop using square ball bearings in my back-up bike (yes, I have no shame; I had to mention that I was using my backup bike)... I don't know, maybe John was laying down some stickum on the ground in front of me. Who knows? But, I feel more tired and worn out from this "easy-October" ride (aka "John's beat-down on me" ride) than I have felt all year. So, for this ride I was more of a ride follower than a ride leader. Thanks John for waiting for me.... If you weren't there to keep me going, I think I might still be out there now. Afterwards, we enjoyed some chocolate milk (I needed and had a double shot).
Saturday, October 17th: Weather was great, nice and cool; 40 F at the start and the sun was shining. 8 riders started and 7 finished.... big surprise for me; there are more cold weather riders out there than I thought. One rememberable hill: Wilmington. Paul brought his son, Zack. At 13 years old he kept up great and made all of us old guys look bad. Stopped at bait shop = good time. Maybe stayed a bit too long; we had to spend a few minutes warming back up again. In attendance at the finish line were Tim T, John B, (visiting from outta town) Jeff, Paul and (future racer) son Zack, (work-did-not-call) Doug and yours truly. On our way back, we saw quite a few glider planes out at Elbon, one coming down low... silent and cool. Route was great (we added just a little bit of elevation to avoid some chip seal); it totaled 47 miles, 2100 ft gain at an average of 19.2 mph. Yap, a bit faster today; we had a great group and a lack of multiple big hills certainly helped. Afterwards a few of us powered down some chocolate milk, not hanging out long, getting cold.
Saturday, October 10th: Weather was nice and cool. 5 riders started; 3 finished. This was less hilly for sure; a good October ride. Only one rememberable hill (Middleboro) which had construction JUST prior to the top; not very nice; and up O'Neal (I always underestimate this one). I forgot all my usual food, so we had to make a stop at the optional bait shop. While I was sitting down for my feast, a (very attractive) park ranger came in to report that two bald eagles were circling overhead. But, they were gone by the time I got outside, but Keith (separating from us early to head home) spotted both of them on his way (lucky dog); the rest of us went up O'Neal instead. Route was nice; 51 miles, 2200 ft gain. We averaged somewhere in the 17 to 18 range (I did not collect an exact average for this ride). In attendance at the start were sprinter Keith, 100 miler Vince, new-guy Corey, (work-calls-gotta-bail) Doug, and yours truly. Afterwards, new-guy Corey and I shared some chocolate milk and discussed the local craft beer scene; he convinced me that I need to make a pilgrimage to Madtree sometime.
Saturday, October 3rd: Went to CCC Pumpkin Roll Ride. It was wet and cold. We did 75 miles. The food and company was great!
Saturday, September 26th: OK Weather (a bit windy, but no rain and cool). 5 riders started; 5 finished. This was and will be the hilliest of the season; we will start to cut back at the next Gear Masher ride in two weeks. The route was very nice and definitely a keeper for next year. There was a bit of road work that we opted to avoid so our route totaled 51 miles and 2700 ft of elevation gain and 17.9 mph average. Fellow pain seekers in attendance were Tim, Bruce, Ray, out-of-town Nate, and myself. Afterward: great conversation and protein/carb reloading.
Saturday, September 19th: Great Weather. 8 riders started; 6 finished. A hilly route with only one hard climb (Wilmington-east side), but we had quite a few late-in-the-ride shorter climbs in the Morrow area that wore us out a bit more than I was hoping for. The route was good, but, for the future, I will redo the end to be a little more friendly. But, even with all the unfriendly rollers, Vince still showed us up on his SINGLE speed and Chris with his (why isn't his legs as tired as mine) climbing. The ride was 50 miles with 2500 ft of elevation gain. Our average today was 18.5 mph (not including top-of-climb regrouping rest stops - there were a few more than usual). Afterwards, we downed some beer and chocolate milk pretty quick because rain was starting to look imminent.
Saturday, September 12th: No Gear Masher Ride today; I went to Arcanum to participate in the Tour de Donut. It was a 62.5 mile course with rolling hills and no real climbing. Most intersections had volunteers/police controlling traffic and letting bikes burn through. There were over 2000 people at the event (including a few CCC members) and 1080 DOZEN donuts were made for the event! So, for me, 62.5 miles + 10 donuts completed in 3 hours and 14 minutes (which includes donut stops; not allowed to ride and eat at the same time). The winner ate 44 donuts!! Your placement was based on combined time. Your combined time is your total time minus 5 minutes for each donut. But, maybe even more impressive... The guy who came in second completed the 62.5 mile course in 2 hours and 10 minutes (which included at least one stop, maybe more, to eat 4 donuts). It was a pretty cool, well organized event; had a lot of fun, and I never got sick.... I know, I know... I should have gone for two more. I HIGHLY recommend it next year for anyone interested. By the way, they also have 32 mile and a 16 mile course.
Saturday, September 5th: Good weather; just a bit hot. 6 riders started; 4 finished. This was the first Gear Masher ride for four of the guys. This route was not one of my best; it had three pretty big climbs for the area and two riders (smarter than the rest of us) decided to bail. After the three climbs we did stop at the bait shop to refuel. The ride was 46 miles with 2200 ft of elevation and included Wilmington-west, 350-east, and the east side of Oregonia. we had a great ride, but we did slow it down a bit today. So, in spite of a late-in-the-ride surge, our average was 17.8 mph. Afterwards, we enjoyed some well deserved chocolate milk, pretzels and nuts.
Saturday, August 29th: No Gear Masher Ride; I attended CCC ride/picnic.
Saturday, August 22nd: Great weather. 4 riders start and finished the ride; me plus three new guys to the group. A hilly ride with some good rollers and six climbs, but only three that really stood out (Anderson, Hollingsworth, & Wilmington-west). Ray smoked me on every hill. Ray, I hope you come back; I'll be ready next time. We stopped for a well deserved rest at the Bait Shop by Caesar Creek. The ride was 50 miles and 2300 ft of elevation. Our average today was 18.7 mph. Afterwards, we hung out for some conversation and enjoyed some chocolate milk, beer, pretzels and nuts.
Saturday, August 15th: I'm traveling this weekend so no Gear Masher ride today.
Saturday, August 8th: Great weather. Just me and one other brave rider. A hilly ride today that included climbs up Strout Rd and Gard Rd and a stop for some spring water (Vince's holy water) on Pekin Rd. The ride was 50 miles and 2600 ft of elevation. Our average today was only 17.3 mph. I do like to keep it above 18, but we made an exception today since it was just the two of us. But, do note (for anyone new reading this) that you run the risk of getting dropped if the group wants to maintain 18+ and you are not up to it. If so, I will always offer direction back via the bike path. On the other hand, if it is just the two of us, I'm fine with any speed. But be warned: I just talk more when the speed drops. Afterwards, we hung out and had some beer, chocolate milk, pretzels, and nuts. Actually, I had two beers to make up for those absent today (ha ha).
Saturday, August 1st: Good weather - a little hot. 6 riders start and finished the ride. A pretty hilly route overall for sure, but with only two climbs that really stood out and only one of them was over 10% gradient (west side of 350). Average speed for this route was not fully collected, but the ride was 49 miles with 2500 ft of gain (per ridewithgps.com); total elapsed time was right at 3 hours, but we did stop to refuel in Clarksville and, given the strength of the group this week, we did have to regroup a little more than usual and maybe we went a little less hard as well. So, our moving average was probably right at about 18 mph (maybe even a little less). But, it was a great ride; hope to see everyone again. And, we all gathered afterwards for much deserved chocolate milk, beer, soda, nuts, pretzels, and candy and conversation.
Saturday, July 25th: Great weather. 5 riders start AND finished the ride. This week I accidently made a wrong turn so our planned 48mi ride turned into a 64mi ride. Fortunately, one of our riders got us to a refueling spot so all was OK. FYI... major wrong turns are NOT typical; won't happen again. So, back to our stats: 19.3mph avg (yes, we had a good day in spite of getting lost); 64mi; 2300ft (per ridewithgps.com); One big(ish) climb up Olive Branch and a few other smaller ones (yes, fewer climbs than usual = higher average). Afterwards, we all gathered for some well deserved, Ride Leader supplied, chocolate milk, beer, soda, nuts, pretzels, and candy; and bragging rights for our unplanned metric century.
Saturday, July 18th: Hot Hot day. 6 riders start, 5 finished, 1 (smarter than the rest of us) took a short cut back before we climbed 350. Stats: 18.1mph avg (ouch); 49mi; 2300ft (per ridewithgpps.com); 5 climbs total including east side of 350. I'm embarrassed to admit it but I suffered some rare, nasty cramps towards the end of the ride and nearly got dropped! Thanks everyone for waiting (eventually, ha ha). And afterwards, the 5 of us all enjoyed some chocolate milk, beer, soda, nuts, and pretzels.
Saturday, July 11th: Great weather. 7 riders start, but group broke into a lead group of 5 and a slower group of 2 at about the 8 mile mark. 18.8mph avg; 48mi; 2400ft (per ridewithgps.com); 6 climbs (but only one at 10%+ gradient). And, we all gathered afterwards for some milk, chocolate milk, and beer (a little something for everyone) for some post-ride carb loading and conversation. Thanks Roger and Tim for some great late-in-the-ride pulling. Kurt: welcome to CCC.
Saturday, July 4th: Great weather. 3 riders start, 1 rider split off at 17miles for the bike trail. 18.6mph avg; 46mi; 2300ft (per ridewithgps.com); 6 climbs (two of which at 10%+ gradient). All three of us met up afterwards to enjoy some post-ride carb reloading and conversation.