This year we avoided the gravel stretch along White Bridge Rd. In early spring it was closed anyway, because the winter had taken a terrible toll. (We actually rode it the week before it was closed, and this normally dead flat road was like riding a very small roller coaster.) It has since opened again, but riding the gravel was never much fun.
We traded the gravel for Carlton Rd., which begins deceptively flat, only to pitch upward for a good half-mile climb. The reward is a terrific downhill (40 mph for us) once you turn from Carlton onto S. Maple Ave.
After much fretting about the weather all week, Saturday morning started out quite nicely. By the time we began riding, though, clouds had rolled in, and it had become distinctly chilly. We just hoped any rain would hold out until much later.
When the pack started to spread out, we hung back so we could keep track of everyone. As luck would have it, we got a flat, rear tire, of course, just after turning onto Van Beuren Rd. We had been close to the Garbers, and they said they would use our delay to get ahead of us. Theresa and Joe showed up shortly thereafter and decided to wait while I changed the tire, just in case.
After removing the rear wheel, I examined the outside of the tire and found a piece of metal that looked like the culprit. Upon taking the wheel apart, I found what looked like part of a staple stabbing the tube about 1/4". Although the kevlar-belted tire is definitely worn, I think this thing would have got a new tire just as well. In any event, I removed the metal shard, replaced the tube, pumped up the tire, and we were off.
Cycling with Theresa and Joe along Pleasantville Rd., we decided to bypass the little loop up Millbrook and down Long Hill, opting instead to head more directly to the rest stop. We love the stretch along White Bridge Rd. and sailed into the parking lot, Theresa and Joe arriving soon after. The faster crew was just getting ready to leave. Seeing how things were going, I gave Mark Cook the key to the car we left at Loantaka, so when the fast group got there, they could get at the goodies we had brought along, rather than wait for us.
We asked whether the Garbers had arrived. They had not. We were concerned, because we figured they must have got way ahead of us while we changed the tire and should have reached the rest stop by now. As we consulted with George about what to do, we spotted them cruising toward us. Evidently our shortcut had bypassed them; all was well.
We (Brandriss/Kristol, Cudworth, Garber) lingered at the Raptor Trust for snacks and to use the restroom, and then we stragglers proceeded. (Rutch/Seidler took off after a short break.) Larry and Ellen urged us to let them proceed at their own pace and not to worry about them, and we did so. We assured them there would be food when they arrived back at Loantaka, even though they said not to wait. The rest of the ride proceeded uneventfully, up and down, round and round.
Next year we may have to rename the ride "Great Swamp Hills, Mills, and Smells." We savored the intoxicating smells of lilac, crabapple, and just-opening honeysuckle. And of course the blossoms, themselves, were a treat to the eye: azalea, early rhododendrons, along with the lilacs and (crab)apple trees. The early-flowering cherry trees were surrounded by a pink snow of fallen blossoms.
To our surprise, Theresa and Joe arrived after us, around the time we became concerned about them, because they had left before us at the rest stop. Joe said they took one of the nice deadend loops I marked in the route, so he could recover the miles lost by our shortcut to the rest stop (and thereby get his 40 miles). We must have passed them while they were there.
Meanwhile, Ellen and Larry arrived while the feast was in full swing, so there was plenty of food remaining for them. And they did the whole 40-mile route. Bravi and welcome!