by sedluk on Thu Apr 26, 2012 3:06 pm
I build my bikes to ride. I take a nice picture of them before they get dirty, while this bike may look nice it is built to ride and ride hard. The week before last we got a nice group together and agreed on a 112 mile route with over 10,000 ft of climbing and it was windy. We agree on a route so that if someone can’t keep up they know the way back. We like to ride hard and we are not really interested in waiting at the top of every hill so that stragglers can re-join the group.
We like to ride together and we want to ride together but we expect the other guys to work hard and keep up. We also expect people to have their bikes in perfect working condition.
Our favorite routes are out in Amish country in Central/Eastern Ohio or in an area called Hocking Hills. In many of these areas you will not find AT&T cell phone service. If you think about it, it makes sense. Not too many Amish need a cell phone. The roads have few cars and we love it. On Sundays we often see more buggies than cars. Sometimes they will be joined by guys on horseback, just strolling down the road. I think it is cool when they ride draft horses, the guys who like plush tires should try riding a draft horse.
The roads are generally in pretty good condition, but you will find an interesting rut called a buggy rut. It is where the buggies have worn grooves in the roads. We also occasionally will travel over some packed gravel roads. We try to avoid them but it happens.
On that 112 mile ride we came across a short segment of packed gravel, unfortunately it had rained the night before and it was pretty hilly. Two of the guys made the mistake of unclipping and they got mud in their cleats ect… We waited for a short time but the group moved on and these two guys were not seen for hours until the finish. That is just the way we roll.
I carry a spare tubular for the rare case of getting a flat. And you can usually find a truck or a buggy to give you a lift to the nearest town if needed.
We could choose to do all our riding in suburbs and wait for anyone who has a flat or malfunction or who is feeling a little tired. And I am not saying that we will never stop for someone who has a flat, we do. And we call out potholes, cars, buggies, dogs, deer and we take care of each other. We give each other gel, water, money and advice if needed. But don’t show up with a tire with threads hanging out of it or some supple plush velvety ride tire and expect us to wait every time.
Our kind of riding is not for everyone, we get some who love it and some who never join us again.