| Ride Stats |
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Distance:
82.81 miles
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Altitude Gain:
3,073 ft
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Avg Speed:
15.38 mph
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Route:
Direct-Novice-Paris
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Avg Grade: 0 %
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Max Grade: 0 %
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Max HR: 0 bpm
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Avg HR: 0 bpm
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Terrain: Road: Rolling
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Bike: Look 585 Carbon Road
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Club: Schuyler County Cycling Club |
| Weather Conditions: Sunny Blue skies 46 F SSE wind at 10 MPH |
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First real ride of the year as the blue skies and balmy 40+ degree weather allowed me to shed a few of the layers that have recently protected me from the cold. It started out as a comfortable touring ride. Although I didn't see any other cyclists I did meet several people on horseback and participated in two cattle stampedes. I also participated in nearly a dozen dog sprints. Most of the events were one on one with me coming out victorious on all occasions. I was perplexed by one fat black dog which appeared to leap and bound beside me rather than run. His fat must have, in fact, been muscle as he was able to keep pace and appear to be almost flying as he would glide with his legs outstreched and only occasionally touch the ground. I wanted to more thoroughly observe his technique, but as I was unsure of his intentions I concentrated on dropping him. More challenging then the one on one encounters were the two dog ambushes. Local dogs here seem to have a system where a chase dog will pursue on the left side and a second attack dog will be laying in wait on the right side of the road. I was almost caught in the squeeze on a couple of occassions with one attack dog actually making a turn for the bite. I was able to make a second effort and keep away but it was competition to see whether the dog, my heart or a quadricep would fail first.Good news is I finished the day unbitten and with all my equipment intact. Bad news is that none of my sprints exceeded 30 MPH. I am going to have to do much work before either dancing with wolves or facing the killer deer dogs of Alabama this spring. The Alabama dogs are the fiercest critters I have ever encountered.
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