| Ride Stats |
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Distance:
41.80 miles
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Altitude Gain:
3,014 ft
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Avg Speed:
19.42 mph
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Route:
Tour de Perry
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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 72 F N wind @ 5 mph |
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Had to get up before first light to get ready for the ride today in Perry, NY. It was a little short of a two hour drive to get to the ride which started at 08:30. It was a long drive for such a short event at forty miles but I had toured in Letchworth Park back in the seventies and it had left a favorable impression. I also had some buisness I could attend to in Buffalo in the afternoon and that helped justify the gasoline for the trip. Felt poorly on the drive out as the sore throat has been replaced by stomach distress and nausea. Got to the park where the start of the ride and registration was located and was relieved that there did not appear to be too many 130 lb racer types at the start. Crowd was light and most of the people appeared to be cruisers though there were a few triguys and at least one guy that claimed to be a racer. Looked to be around twenty people for the longer forty mile ride as we rolled out of town with a police escort. Big guy in green jersey with a low cadence led up out of town and pulled us at a good clip to the first small hill where he slowed as a group of us spun by him. Had a loose group as we encountered a series of rollers and eventually we were whittled down to six riders. No one in our group admitted to knowing much about the route other than the hills were located near the end of the ride, but the route was clearly marked with arrows painted on the road. Didn't feel to good on the early climbs but was able to hang on in the climbs and ride comfortably on the flats and downhills. Finally got to a long climb, though not very steep, about twelve miles into the ride where some aggression was encountered and riders started to disappear one by one. At the top of the climb there were only two of us left and we coasted and waited for a third rider that we could see a ways back on the hill. The remainder of our group was no longer to be seen. Hadn't seen the racer guy since the roll out and not sure what happened to him. The three of us rode down to a rest stop\sign in at Pike near the twenty mile point and waited for a mass of riders to reform. Started out again with ten or so riders but after the first small climb we were back to the original six. Three of us worked the front of a paceline and the other three sat in as we headed back toward Perry in a headwind. The highlight of ride was passing through Letchworth Park. One of the younger riders asked if we had to stop at the guard shack at the park entrance, and the response from another older rider was that, "No we don't stop at the gate we have a convoy". The younger rider didn't appear to have a clue to what he was talking about. I said to the older rider, " Looks like we have a generational communication breakdown Rubber Duck". Not having time to explain the reference we just crashed the gate though it was much less than 98. The ride through the park was spectacular as we caught glimpses of the gorge and even had an eagle coast by us for a brief period. The ride was pretty much downhill for the most part and we kept a high speed. Would have liked to stop and get some pictures but didn't want to lose my pleasant riding companions. Amazed the group by doing a bunny hop over a set of railroad tracks. Was surprised that none of them had ever done or seen it done before. They thought it was a really neat trick though. I guess railroad crossings and wheelsets have been improved so much over the years that breaking a rim is no longer an issue. Passed through the park and all that remained was one long climb back to Perry. Group fragmented again and ended up cresting the hill alone. One guy caught back up as we road back to the finish at a festival on the main street of the town. Ended up feeling really good for the second half of the ride and had a really good spin going on most of the climbs. The tour was a beautiful course with lots of climbing but nothing steep and I did all of the ride in the big chainring. Had a really good group to ride with and that made for a wonderful day. It was quite a long drive to get there so not sure if I'll return unless they up the miles to at least a metric century, but I would highly recommend the ride.
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