MikeTurner on "March 29 training ride"

MikeTurner — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 07:39:39 +0000

Hello All, it's 8:30 and raining here in Oak Ridge. I'm looking online at the NWS doppler radar site and there's a band of rain coming at least 2 hours long. So I'm not showing for the 9:30 ride and I guess no one else will either. At 12 noon, if it's quit raining, I'm going to ride down to Oak Ridge Elementary School and see if anyone's there who'd like to go to Hanging Rock. Anyone reading this and wants to get in a decent ride today - tomorrow's weather is iffy too - please come, we'll pedal off at noon.

Mike

MikeTurner on "March 29 training ride"

MikeTurner — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 08:46:47 +0000

P.S., I see on the ride schedule that the Topo7 program says this ride has 10500' of fun in it, that's as much fun as Bridge to Bridge! Just my opinion based on doing most of these roads with altimeters - though admittedly I haven't done this exact full route with an altimeter - but I wouldn't expect an altimeter to show more than 7000' of total elevation gain, probably more like 6500. So don't let the big number scare you off if it does, or for the rest of you don't be dissappointed if we don't get in that much climbing.

Mike

MikeTurner on "March 29 training ride"

MikeTurner — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 06:48:18 +0000

Hello All, we have a really fun ride planned for Saturday March 29. So much fun that someone wrote back that she'd rather hang herself. Yes this ride does look to be more fun than I've had in a long time. But then April is almost here and for those of you who intend to do the really fun rides, the 3 State 3 Mountain Century is just a month away and the Mountains of Misery Century is just over a month and a half away. You can't start getting used to so much fun soon enough.

As always there will be plenty of regrouping stops and store stops and I'll happily ride with the slowest riders, especially up Sauratown and Hanging Rock. Though I won't walk as that would be faster and get the fun over too quickly.

This is the old route #27 for those of you who've done Bill's rides in the past, modified to show the starting point in Colfax. Which in the spirit of fun adds a few rolling miles to the route. Before we roll out I will ask the group if we'd like to modify the route, I'm going to propose that we go straight up to Walnut Cove and straight up from there to the left turn on Mountain, instead of going right on Pine Hall Rd. towards Dillard. That will shorten the ride to a little under 90 miles - I know, not quite as much fun - but gives us several more regrouping/store stop opportunities on the way up. I've never passed thru Dillard and a store be open, though there's always the first time. We'll do whatever the group wants to do but I'm going to make that suggestion.

As of Friday morning Mother Nature is smiling on us, or maybe she's laughing at us, and it appears the weather will be fine. Slightly cool but dry. Here's the weather policy for tomorrow. Since most of you will have to leave your homes by 8:30 to get to Colfax in time, if it's raining at 8:30 then the ride is off. If that happens I'll put a post in this forum about a ride to start later, mid day or early afternoon, to maybe head up to Hanging Rock. But I'm not going to plan that now since it looks like the weather will be fine.

Hope to see all of you there,
Mike

MikeTurner on "March 15 Ride"

MikeTurner — Fri, 14 Mar 2008 12:45:04 +0000

Hi All, the March 15 training ride was supposed to be a 50 miler from 64/109, but due to some people racing and other obligations it's been moved to Oak Ridge Elementary at 9:30. Because of the threat of rain and since this was on the calender as just a 50 miler anyways I'm keeping the route short, not the 70 mile distance that was in the form e-mail that was sent out - though if it ends up being a nice day we can always find more roads. The route will go via rolling backroads to Germanton, east to Walnut Cove, and in Walnut Cove we have an option point. If it looks like the rain is going to get us I have a route straight back for a total ride of a little over 41 miles, if it looks like the weather is going to hold we'll continue east around Belews Lake to Stokesdale and back for a little over 53 miles. There are regrouping points and 2 stores on the short route and a 3rd on the long route. Cue sheets below. Hope to see you tomorrow, Mike

Linville Rd. 2.1mi.
L Haw River Rd. .2mi.
R. Goodwill Church Rd., becomes Freeman Rd. 2.5mi
L. Piney Grove Rd. .1mi
R. Goodwill Church Rd. 2.2mi.
L. Belews Creek Rd. 1.7mi
R. Brinkley Rd. 1.6mi
L. Pine Hall Rd. 1.9mi
R. Grubbs Rd. 2.5mi
Regroup at 311
R. 311 .1mi
L Lake Woussiket Rd. 1.9mi
R. Baux Mtn. Rd. 2.3mi
L. Kiger Rd. 1.2mi
L. 65 .6mi
R. Hwy 8 .9mi
R. Brook Cove Rd. 4.9mi
Regroup at Walnut Cove

Short option back from Walnut Cove:
R. 311 .5mi
L. 65 5.6mi
R. Belews Creek Rd. 1.7mi
L. Goodwill Church Rd. 2.2mi
L. Piney Grove Rd. .1mi
R. Freeman Rd. 2.5mi
L. Haw River Rd. .2mi
R. Linville Rd. 2.1mi

Long option:
R. 311 .2mi
L. Oldtown Rd. 3.1mi
R. 311 3.7mi
R. Pine Hall Rd. 1.7mi
L. Pine Hall River Rd. ( Lindsey Bridge ) 2.6mi
R. Eden Church Rd. 1.9mi
R. Ellisboro Rd. 6.2mi
L. Ellisboro – this is a side road thru Stokesdale, regroup here .5mi
R. Lyman St. .1mi
L. 158 .4mi
R. Purgason Ln. .1mi
L. Athens Rd. .8mi
R. Eversfield Rd. 2.5mi
R. 150 3.2mi