Route: El Classico de 2012

• Route: El Classico de 2012

Great ride with the El Classico personnel at the head of the effort and the meal following. 

'Chips, Scott, eat the chips. Have some salsa, as well!' Great idea. And the barbeque, gently savory spiced with all sorts of great stuff, three desserts. http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/94519369/?new_route=1

Find more Bike Ride in Clifton Park, NY

The route passes by The Good Times Restaurant near Outlet Rd. at the northern end of Ballston Lake. Then onto the infinite incline, on the downhill direction, north. Onto the shady Brownell Rd. Coolest piece of road in the hot sunny rides of 100 miles on June weekends. Van Areum then across I-87. Thence across the highway a couple of times until we circle the race course, through town, then out by Yaddo until we cross the highway AGAIN. Under construction it was a mess. Across on the other side, we climb the in-town climb. Onto Lake Rd. then across the river, looking longingly at the boathouse, and then right onto the horse country ride. Cool green of pasture land, thence through the fences, into the Alpine section. Up hills, working the gears loooowwww on the selection scale. Finally we come out next to the 32 access to the Battlefield monument. 32, 423, 75 then out onto 76 down to the lake. Saratoga Lake. We're only 12 miles from home. Up the hill, across until we return to Brownell, but the return is not complete without the semi-infinite shallow incline until we do Jonesville re-entry.

Out and Back with MeV

Find more Bike Ride in Schenectady, NY

Didn't have the time to or energy to do the entire 30 mile loop. So MEV and I went out as far as we thought prudent, turned around, went back to the office. 

DMika, Ti man, Juan Filkinos, myself -- the best team assembled. DMika was actually a little whacked the other day, according to one account, after doing some fast paced stuff. 

We did some good time on Riverview Rd. and really hammered it 26 mph . . . 30 mph.

We'll see how well he does . . .

We'll see how well he does . . .

Upper Gregg, because "everyone thinks it is gravel, but on Google Maps, I looked . . . not at all!

Sunday, today, May20, 2012, on the advice of the Ti Man, I go to find E. Gregg, to Upper Gregg, because "everyone thinks it is gravel, but on Google Maps, I looked . . . not at all!"
OK.
So here it is: 2 h 15 m for the following ratty route, including being stung on the face by a bee that managed to get inbetween my glasses and nose, http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/94507895




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Check out the Cat 3 climb portion. UGLY!!

AND to add insult to injury or the other way around, I got stung by a bee on my face (nose, really, but I don't want anyone making fun of my nose). This was 3/4 the way up so I was maximum sweaty and mildly insane with hypoxia, and couldn't see very well with perspiration dripping into my eyes and on my glasses from the bank on my helmet . . .

BLAMO!! A searing pain starts across my face and I rip my dark glasses (and regular glasses) off and nearly lose it all, but I hang on. I keep pedaling (up this 10% slope) and waving my glasses around, and finally put them back on . . . it HURTS, nose bridge piece rests on the sting site.

Then I get something blown into my left eye. Sting on nose near my right eye, something in my left eye, crap, what next!!??

Nothing.

I just go home, feeling vaguely sick from pedaling uphill for 1,900 ft, 60 km, in two hours, or so, in 88F temperatures.

Standard Ride-up-the-West-Glenville Hills escarpment . . .with a quick glance at the bridge under repair

It was a standard Ride-up-the-West-Glenville Hills escarpment . . .with a quick glance at the bridge under repair. T-bone and I left Nisky, ran through the town moves past Ellis, down Nott, through the back streets around Avneue B, then across the Freeman Bridge. . . to Sunnyside. Once on the other side of the tracks, and onto Cuthbert, Vley, etc. we spoke.

"So what do you want to do?" We couldn't decide but whipped past the turn off for Ridge and Rte 147. As we moved west on Rte 5 toward Amsterdam, we passed our options: Rector, Gower, and then decided to stop at the makeshift light next to the Stewarts Shops and look over the mounds of dirt to check out the repairs.

The repairs are on the by-pass (lock) that was washed away during the floods surrounding the Hurricane Irene and tropical storm that followed. Schoharie River valley got the worst of it. Entire villages were washed away, bad.

The route that crosses the river west of the town or in the town of Rotterdam Junction . . . on top of the falls or wier, and crosses over the lock for the Mohawk River . . . was washed away. They are dumping truck-loads of dirt. Thousands of cubic yards each day, I am sure, though I haven't counted. . . the Rte 5 lanes are messed up. Dusty. Dry. Orange cones are everywhere.

12 ft to go for the dirt/soil or fill to reach the road surface. Then they'll have to lay road bed, road surface, etc. check on the bridge structure (already done, I'm sure).

We pulled away from the wonderful sight and site, and moved east to Washout and started up the hill. We spent a good  15 minutes on the ride up, then down to Ridge. Left on Ridge after consulting an older couple out for a walk. The right on 147 toward town. The W. Glenville Rd. is  now repaired. They put in a culvert, repaved the road, another casualty of the monster rains.

It was getting colder and we went in and out of zones of warmer then cooler air as we moved along back toward town. Left on Bolt, right onto Swaggertown. Swaggertown until Van Buren raised the possbility of going across the Rexford Bridge. We surveyed the repairs to the underpass now being created and worked on. They uncovered the underpass stone work (which might just be cement). . . indicating the road went elsewhere or maybe there was another rail line . . . hard to imagine.

Cooler weather before too much longer.

Down to the Mohawk at Cohoes and back, Saturday 9 July 2011

Down to the Mohawk at Cohoes and back, Saturday 9 July 2011
With T-bone, off we went for a little leg-stretching spin. . . once lunch was over and we were happy to be moving.

It's an easy route east on River Rd (Rosendale) around the 'S' and on past Lions Park to Old River Rd. to the Colonie town dump entrance, continuation of the Rail Trail -- you can do it in your sleep although it's not advised.

We deviate from the standard Route Nine Bridge loop by taking Fonda Rd. from the little cement plant on the east side of the culvert beneath Rte 9, and follow that east to the Mohawk R. Left or north on Crescent Rd. past the falls, the power generation site, the pool, with hint of the Lock Six park on the other side of the river, through the trees. 

Across the bridge, becomes the regular trail. We choose to climb the trail in the woods, once across the Rexford Bridge, then through the residential area (Olde Niskayuna, oh boy) to home. 

Nice ride and fairly OK time. 

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/40936626

A roll into Rensselaerville and return by 402, 143 and 85 + standard approach / return via Voorheesville

In a nutshell:


A roll into Rensselaerville and return by Routes 402, 143 and 85 and the remainder is classic approach/ return route through Voorheesville. [Two days ago, 5/28/2011, there was a parade or sidewalk sale Day. . . or Memorial Day on convenient Saturday venue.] Same route up to the Helderberg plateau but different route southerly, mostly, nearly into Catskill Territory. 


It started a nice cool, dry morning, after showers that had just ended when I left. Then, as the trip wore on, it became a little warm. By the half-way point, 55 km or so, arriving in Rensselaerville, I noticed I was low on liquids, drinking my way through my first bottle and a half or so, and hungrily scarfing down a snack. I stood outside the Catalpa B&B. 


The ride up the 85 / 443 route from the intersection with 85 & 443 there at the corner shop near Wolf Rd. was epic, as usual, and the flat + downhill was just as wild. I think I was hitting 60+ kph (so 40 mph) on the steady downhill from the Helderberg plateau down into R-ville. I saw some turkey, large pheasant, and a deer on one stretch of 85. When I finally pulled to a halt there at 351 and 85, I realized my time was getting away from me . . . I had 2 h 10 on the clock and I wasn't really headed north, at all, although my plan was to go  east somewhat.


So I make a quick revision, still stuck on whether to plunge into the soup and head east, way east to 32 or something, THEN go north -- but I stuck to a more prudent plan to go east on 351, the north on 402 into Westerlo. I hadn't been to Westerlo in a while, anyway. 


It's a pleasant trip; I'm always a bit surprised. I've photographed the library there on the corner at least three other occasions or two. 


So it was 143 straight north, YES, or continue on Route 1/Route 143 east-- maybe getting a terrain advantage. I stayed with 143 north, to join 85 at Somebody's Corners, a crossing I'd passed by earlier noting the descending price of gasoline 3.89/gal at the service station there. 


Up the hill on 85 a bit, not hard, not long until the downhill wheeeeee! free ride with wind in the chain. . . the front derailleur starting to give me grief. . . just when I needed the big chain ring in front for land speed record velocities. Past the Stewart's, stone place, on the flat to the Thacher Park turn off, past the big 'S' set of turns to 85A. 


In the other lanes, other direction, I saw some timid cyclists preparing to go up and they looking longingly at the descending maniac. I do the same. It wasn't long before I knew what time I might be home -- 1 pm. So I called then texted home.