Tom H invited some friends on a ride, mostly flat, near a development where he's got a bid in on a new home. In that there were no bridges out, and the only really bad surface was that bit of Rochdale leading to the Assunpink, it was an unusual Tom ride.
It was also unusual in that I got an average that was pretty respectable (and, now that I'm no longer posting ride report blog posts to Facebook, I can say that, probably without engendering the ensuing breast-beating and recriminations about how I'm implying one needs to be able to ride at a particular pace to be a "real" cyclist. Do I still have a resentment about that episode? Yep, I do).
We had a tailwind on the way out, and at the stop, my average was just shy of 17mph, a number that's rare on my rides (and that surprised me, frankly). Well, a tailwind on the way out usually means a headwind on the way back, and Aeolus did not disappoint. I remember riding through Sharon in the drops, head down, pushing against the wind, and thinking, "I'm too old for this."
Except I got back with an average of 16.4 (see the ride page), so evidently, I'm not.
How 'bout a few bike pics from the stop at the Wawa in Jackson?
Above, Tom's Feather. The fork is straight; not with the curve common in most forks; there's an angle right at the crown for the rake-trail stuff. It probably makes the handling slightly different, but I doubt I'm sensitive enough to notice the difference. (It's a neat look, though, and I like the high-polish of his titanium).
In other news, I wore one of my new, handmade jerseys on this ride, and now Laura OLPH wants one. We're working out the details.
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