ride-baited & ride-switched

Regular readers of this blog... HAH! There are no regular readers of this blog, and there are only about a half-dozen IRregular readers, so I'll explain anyway: On both of the 62-mile Anchor House training rides I did in May, the route included Federal Twist Road, a nasty hill. I've now done it twice this season, and, though I'm generally good with hills, I've decided I can knock that one off my life list and not do it again. So when I was looking for a ride for today, I saw a ride in the Princeton Freewheelers list with this language in the description: "We search for hills on this social ride with a “steady B pace.”... Call or email if not sure." I emailed saying that I like most of the hills in the county described, but I wanted to avoid the Twist, and the leader-fellow emailed back that he was intending to do just that road. OK, time to look for another ride. Hmm:

MINI COVERED BRIDGES RIDE: Scenic and hilly ride starting just north of Sourlands. We will go through NJ’s remaining covered bridge and cross into Pennsylvania hit some more. Strong B ride. Meet in parking lot of East Amwell Elementary School (Wertsville Road near NJ 31), Ringoes, NJ.

Well, the only covered bridge in NJ is in Sergeantsville, and Federal Twist is not between that and the starting point, or the crossing to Pennsylvania. It's advertised as a hilly ride, but I bet I can do that. 30% chance of rain was predicted, so I emailed one of the leaders and he said they were going anyway.

But when I got to the ride, the folks who were on the regular email list for this leader said that instead of the Covered Bridge ride (moved to next week), we were going to do this ride:

RIDGE TO RIDGE: Hilly route from just north of Sourlands ridge to the hills of the Musconetcong ridge. Strong B ride. Meet in parking lot of East Amwell Elementary School (Wertsville Road near Route 31), Ringoes, NJ.

Oy. Ridge-to-ridge meant that we were riding fro the top of one mountain, through the valley, to the top of another mountain. And then back. And I did 75 miles yesterday.

Although I'm glad it wasn't any worse, it wasn't as bad as I feared (or maybe I was the one who wasn't as bad as I feared). There were some wicked hills (I don't think any were as bad as the Twist, but they were bad enough), but I was able to downshift, hit a cadence, and pedal through 'em. I didn't embarrass myself; I kept up with the group (and I was able to do a little sweep-up so we didn't lose some of our number, so I had a chance to feel useful). By the end, we had ridden a smidge over 61 miles, with 4200 feet of ascent (WHAT?); the leader decided to leave out two hills when he was told that we'd have at least 3500 feet of ascent during the ride (deo gratias, alleluia). I didn't eat enough or carry a snack, and came dangerously close to bonking on the way back (a bonk is a serious loss of energy; it's always unpleasant, and, because it can affect judgment, it can be dangerous), so I'll be better prepared for next time. And, while I've been stumbling through my Sunday-night chores, I've been able to generate a little sympathy from my excellent wife. Not enough that I got her to do any of my chores, but some.

I'm thinking of going back for the Covered Bridges ride next week, but I'm afraid they'll switch it for this one:

BILLY GOAT RIDE: No Flat-landers. And no whiners. Only real polka-dot wearing, billy goat wannabees welcome. VERY hilly and beautiful ride. Approximately 7,000 ft of descending. Do not ride hard on Saturday and don’t plan much for Sunday afternoon...you’ll be SO happy when this ride is over.

Hrmph! 7,000 feet of descending means 7,000 feet of AScending. I may not need it to be over to be happy; I think I'll just avoid that one.