Some how it this ride was named after me, why, how, who etc caused it I don't know. Hell I didn't do even a speck of planning for it. I plan was simple, ride for a really long time on cross bikes. That's it' Of course waking up in the morning and seeing the snow in my yard made me wonder how long a ride it might really be.
Quick walk with the Molly Monster and then I packed the car. She was not to impressed to see me leave with a bike and not her. She does know that the cross bike equals no play time for her though. I headed out a little early not know what the conditions in Barrie might be. This also meant i through my other wheel set in the car with the aggressive cross tire on them. Why, snow and slicks just don't mix.
First time seeing these things out. Not impressed, 40 km/h on a highway. I will not off ramp on ramp??? No comment. Made it to Watson's place with some extra time. No snow here, sun was out. I actually thought it might have been a heat wave, then I got out of the car and had that shock to the system, not today!
Headed over to The School. Let's just say that it's a special place, Check out the storage bins and they call Waubaushene redneck!!!!
We also found Andrew a Trans Am to go with his poor excuse of a sketchy type beard thingy that he has growing. Didn't even have to trade in the Mazda.
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Lots of excitement and we really haven't even started riding yet. Tristan, running a little late rolled in, quick talks and we were off. Mental projection is supposed to work, I tried to think warm, it wasn't happening today. Now the first few hills did a better job. Gravel concessions are always a good way to get the body warm.
Made our way south before jumping on the rail trail, not the pretty paved one that I'm used to at the bottom of my yard but pretty dam close with packed limestone, Lots of 3 up riding and talking at this point. A few more lefts and rights and we were at the north end of Coulsen Hill. Before we hit the single track we stopped and watched in complete aww.
Tristan is known for his ability to put the power down, he is also known for his bike handling ability. I use that term loosely. The ability to keep the bike smooth and straight is not a strength, UNLESS he rides on something that has absolutely zero traction and was know way strong enough to hold his weight.
Let's just say that I'm still in aww. He even went across in a perfectly straight line and had the evidence in the ice to prove it. Check out the video of this on Andrew's blog. Of course we made our way into the single track and old Tristan came back to life. For me I found some interesting times in there having to back pedal a little because my foot would get hung up on the wrong side of the fender if I hadn't
We continued south back on some pavement before the next off road adventure kicked in. It was a nice change riding on roads I've never been on and mixing it up with a little off road. Into another park area where there were a few on the edge decent, clay mud and slicks equals a lot of drifting.
A quick break, it's interesting on how often breaks to pee happen in the cold weather.
Nice area to hang out.
We started the return trip north. Watson is complaining that I didn't pull. My thought, I'm the old guy today and you ride faster than I do. Does that equal things out. I will say that I was a little cautious on my output during the later part of the ride. I could feel a little weakness coming on during a couple climbs. I was trying to ride in control and getting up front would not have been a great idea. Oh and for the most part we road side by side most of the ride unless the amount of cars on the road would alter that.
We made a quick stop at Tim Hortons. Coffee, not theirs, sorry tastes like crap but the hot chocolate and the peanut butter cookies were very very good. Slightly refueled we headed back up the rail trail towards Barrie. Way in the distance we saw a cyclist. Are racer mindset has the three of us picking up the pace to catch the distant rider. A few efforts and we finally caught up, it took longer than we thought and we worked harder than we thought. Once we passed the mystery hammer time rider we realized it was a middle aged woman on a mountain bike who basically put the hurt into the three of us while she wobbled and bounced around as she pushed the hard gear. I started to think about taking up a new sport. Watson was beyond words all I heard was a few really deep breaths. I think it was because his head was hanging a little low and he could hardly breath. I bet he was thinking that the UCI would want to urine test her!!! It was a little humbling.
Heading into the final stretch Andrew had this crazy notion to try some crazy steep climb. It's a great way to cool down I opted to walk at the mid way point. I did shoulder the bike and run a bit when I saw the camera come out trying to show off my world class cross skills. Once the camera was away I pretty much came to a stop.
Tristan and Andrew battled it out on the climb before they both cracked. Spun back to the house and finished the ride the right way with a beer and some stories. A few random things talked about during and after the ride. Winter training, next seasons events, who is doing what, entry fees and prizes, what o cup division I'm going to race in next season, where to ski, who is slacking off etc. In the end it was a great day.
.jpg)
Lots of excitement and we really haven't even started riding yet. Tristan, running a little late rolled in, quick talks and we were off. Mental projection is supposed to work, I tried to think warm, it wasn't happening today. Now the first few hills did a better job. Gravel concessions are always a good way to get the body warm.
Made our way south before jumping on the rail trail, not the pretty paved one that I'm used to at the bottom of my yard but pretty dam close with packed limestone, Lots of 3 up riding and talking at this point. A few more lefts and rights and we were at the north end of Coulsen Hill. Before we hit the single track we stopped and watched in complete aww.
Tristan is known for his ability to put the power down, he is also known for his bike handling ability. I use that term loosely. The ability to keep the bike smooth and straight is not a strength, UNLESS he rides on something that has absolutely zero traction and was know way strong enough to hold his weight.
Let's just say that I'm still in aww. He even went across in a perfectly straight line and had the evidence in the ice to prove it. Check out the video of this on Andrew's blog. Of course we made our way into the single track and old Tristan came back to life. For me I found some interesting times in there having to back pedal a little because my foot would get hung up on the wrong side of the fender if I hadn't
We continued south back on some pavement before the next off road adventure kicked in. It was a nice change riding on roads I've never been on and mixing it up with a little off road. Into another park area where there were a few on the edge decent, clay mud and slicks equals a lot of drifting.
A quick break, it's interesting on how often breaks to pee happen in the cold weather.
Nice area to hang out.
We started the return trip north. Watson is complaining that I didn't pull. My thought, I'm the old guy today and you ride faster than I do. Does that equal things out. I will say that I was a little cautious on my output during the later part of the ride. I could feel a little weakness coming on during a couple climbs. I was trying to ride in control and getting up front would not have been a great idea. Oh and for the most part we road side by side most of the ride unless the amount of cars on the road would alter that.
We made a quick stop at Tim Hortons. Coffee, not theirs, sorry tastes like crap but the hot chocolate and the peanut butter cookies were very very good. Slightly refueled we headed back up the rail trail towards Barrie. Way in the distance we saw a cyclist. Are racer mindset has the three of us picking up the pace to catch the distant rider. A few efforts and we finally caught up, it took longer than we thought and we worked harder than we thought. Once we passed the mystery hammer time rider we realized it was a middle aged woman on a mountain bike who basically put the hurt into the three of us while she wobbled and bounced around as she pushed the hard gear. I started to think about taking up a new sport. Watson was beyond words all I heard was a few really deep breaths. I think it was because his head was hanging a little low and he could hardly breath. I bet he was thinking that the UCI would want to urine test her!!! It was a little humbling.
Heading into the final stretch Andrew had this crazy notion to try some crazy steep climb. It's a great way to cool down I opted to walk at the mid way point. I did shoulder the bike and run a bit when I saw the camera come out trying to show off my world class cross skills. Once the camera was away I pretty much came to a stop.
Tristan and Andrew battled it out on the climb before they both cracked. Spun back to the house and finished the ride the right way with a beer and some stories. A few random things talked about during and after the ride. Winter training, next seasons events, who is doing what, entry fees and prizes, what o cup division I'm going to race in next season, where to ski, who is slacking off etc. In the end it was a great day.
There is currently 2 plus inchs of snow now and looks like winter may officially be here. I guess I'll be getting my skis ready this week. I'm still not putting the bike away.
Time to head out in the white stuff
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