| Ride Stats |
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Distance:
102.02 miles
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Altitude Gain:
3,858 ft
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Avg Speed:
18.24 mph
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Route:
Tour of Chataugua
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Avg Grade: 0 %
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Max Grade: 0 %
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Max HR: 150 bpm
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Avg HR: 129 bpm
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Terrain: Road: Hills
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Bike: Look Blade RS 795 Iconic Ltd Road
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Club: Schuyler County Cycling Club |
| Weather Conditions: Overcast 72 F SW wind @ 4 mph |
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Made the trip to Westfield, NY for the Tour of Chautauqua a county in the westernmost section of the state. The century course mirrored the metric Ride for the Refuge course I rode two weeks ago except longer. I've been riding this century since the eighties and it is the only event I did during the covid lockdown in 2020. There are four or five different courses that sequence throughout the years. This years course was different though as it was the flattest ever and included a loop into Erie County. It started out with sixty miles of rolling flat then a ten mile climbing loop and then more rolling terrain to finish it off. Weather was near perfect with a comfortable temperature and minimal wind. There were a little over a hundred riders at the start for the four varying length routes. The century and seventy-five mile group had a mass start together. Ride started fast with a police escort the first couple of miles through town. My plan was hide in a pack as much as possible and hang on as long as I could. My computer nanny was nice enough to let me know that my aerobic and anaerobic fitness were more than adequate for the course but that my aerobic endurance level was less than satisfactory. Peloton rode hard from the start and a large gap opened in the first half mile splitting into two groups. I watched as a few riders sprinted between the groups and soon the front group was larger than my group. Decided to cross and had ended up having to make a quarter mile thirty mile an hour attempt to bridge. Legs felt good and settled into the middle of a thirty member pack as we climbed up onto the plateau and then descended back to Lake Erie. Pace was challenging for the first twenty-five miles but was able to set in with the low twenties pace. There was two clubs represented with a few riders each. One from Jamestown and another from Buffalo with some powerful talent. Things got serious when we headed east on SR 20. The speed for a five mile section was twenty-six miles an hour. The group was soon whittled down to fifteen to twenty riders. I found myself riding on the back. The pack split into two groups and I was in the trailing group. Pace picked up as the second group tried to bridge and soon found myself struggling to hold a wheel at thirty miles an hour. I was able to hang on for two fast surges but was redlining it. Finally had to drop out after the third surge. I was quickly gapped by a quarter mile and the front group was soon out off sight. I did see another rider up the road was also shelled and tried to focus on closing. After a couple miles I pulled into Silver Springs and saw several riders at a rest stop. A few other riders had passed the rest stop but turned around and headed back as I continued on. My average at the thirty mile mark was twenty-two and a half. The stop was also where the seventy-five milers split off. The century course continued on to do a twenty-five mile loop in Erie County before returning to Silver Springs. I focused on keeping a steady pace and trying not to get caught by the riders that had stopped though I had little hope of staying away. I knew I wouldn't be catching anyone as if there were riders ahead they were in a class well above me. Wasn't too happy with the new loop as it was heavy, not too friendly, traffic in a construction zone with a traffic circle. Once I passed through it though the loop was great riding and the trip back through the construction wasn't as bad as the way out. Ended up averaging nineteen on loop and didn't see any other riders. I returned to Silver Springs and started the climbing section. First climb was a five miles long section but only three to five percent. My speed dropped quite a bit as only averaged a little over twelve on the climb. The second climb was a half mile of twelve percent. Passed three riders from the seventy-five milers that were not happy walking up the hill. After that is was few miles of downhill to Dunkirk. Passed another three seventy-fivers that were stopped and eating along the road. Assumed some bonking was involved. Had to do quite a bit of starting and stopping to get through Dunkirk but it was pleasant riding. Got back on SR 5 heading west back to the start with twenty miles to go. My computer nanny was correct about my endurance as the speed started dropping to sixteen and seventeen. Saw a guy I knew manning a water stop with twelve miles to go and stopped and chatted with him for several minutes before doing the last section. Pulled into Barcelona at with an eighteen five average but lost a good chunk as I noodled up the last mile climb to the finish. Had a very strong ride though was flagging a bit by the end. A large group of century riders pulled in as I was packing the truck so it appears the pace may have slackened after the first rest stop. Saw another large group pull into town as I was driving out although they were not returning on the course. Not sure what that story was. Saw one of the Buffalo riders rode the course at twenty point nine. Back in the day I could have ridden the course at over twenty as it was fairly flat but those days are gone. Don't have much speed but just continue to chug along. Good day on the bike.
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