Mother's Day on the Great Miami Trail

I didn't expect that we would be racing the flood water! We had to get off of the bike trail twice, and ride the road around flooded areas of the trail. This made the days ride a bit more unique. I'll have to clean up the bikes tomorrow, since there were a few spots where the flood left mud on the trail, as much as 3 inches thick.

Happy Mother's day NJ! It was fun!

March 19: "Great Northern"

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Share the Road!

 Heading east toward the Little Miami Trail on Hopewell Rd. it is always nice to see the "Share the Road" signs. I have found that the ride through Blue Ash and Indian Hill are always good cycling roads.  My planned route took me north to South Lebanon then on the road to West Chester. I changed the plan several times to accommodate a few busy roads which I missed on Google Maps. I still use Google Maps because Map My Ride just doesn't seem to offer me any benefit. I really don't care about the ride statistics, or training plans or elevation changes. I just need a fairly basic map route. Google Maps are just fine for that! Getting to Loveland takes me about an hour from Glendale. The ride from Glendale to South Lebanon was the easiest part of the day's route. The picture shows a shelter at the Park in Loveland. Saturday was cool, good bicycling weather. The Little Miami Trail was moderately busy, but an easy ride as always. The day would definitely become a challenge before it was over. There would be climbs a plenty between Lebanon and Fairfield. Route 4 is heavily traveled, and difficult to cross. Route 747 would be virtually an impossible ride as well. I think I must have been lost 3 times on the way to West Chester, since the road names changed at the county line. I found a point where the road easily crossed route 4 but immediately got lost in a subdivision. I had to ride out of the neighborhood, backtracking to Morris Rd. Again near the Butler County Airport the roads were named differently than on my map, but I managed to find a good route south. The last time I found the shortcoming of my map skills, was on Port Union Rd. I called my wife and immediately irritated her with my frustration. 6 more miles and I was home on familiar roads. 66.6 miles for the day...

Loveland

Peters Powder Factory

South Lebanon

Lunch?

St.Patricks Day Ride, Bikes 'R' NOT Gay!

The Blue Angel next to the Irish Horse Farm.

It seems appropriate that I took a break next to a farm breeding Irish Horses! The cycling route was new to me. I have ridden the Waycross Road to Pippin before, but have never been on Crest Road which takes you up wind of Rumpke Mountain. The smell is wonderful especially when you start pounding up the hills on the back side of the landfill.  The first good climb is behind the landfill on Bank Rd. and will definitely slow you down. Riding on Old Colerain isn't really that bad traffic can usually easily get around you, since the road is not heavily travelled. Just be aware, that pasted speeds are 45 and traffic is usually moving faster than that. Once across the bridge and heading out of Venice, which I always knew as Ross the traffic will be rolling at 55mph or more. This is experienced cyclist land in my opinion. You will want to see what's going on behind you on this long stretch. Only the experienced cyclists check their rear-views often enough.  Cresting a hill on Atherton Rd. some kids left a message  in the road!

Some people's kids!

You know there I am, standing in that spot wearing spandex head to toe reading "Bicycles 'R' Gay". That's just funny stuff. Apparently whoever wrote that doesn't own a bike! Or, maybe someone on a bike just rattled their cage. Well, I suppose everyone has a right to their own opinion. I hope a cyclist with a can of spray paint goes out there and sprays "Graffiti Sux!" right next to this. Funny that I took this photo and not the view from the same spot which is absolutely excellent! Somehow, I'm concerned that an adult painted this. In that case, watch your backside near Harrison, OH. if your traveling by bike.

The Face Plate on my old Schwinn Paramount

I took a break on the "Shaker Trace" loop at Whitewatater Forest. The bike trail crossed my route so I hopped on the trail and rode to a rest stop on the trail. My old Schwinn parked next to me. You can spend a lot more money on a bike these days but that doesn't mean it will hold up over the years like this unique titanium frame. I took about 20 minutes to enjoy the good weather. In Cincinnati, March brings quick and frequent changes in climate. It could snow next week. I basked in the sun, ate a power bar, and sipped electrolytes while I watched some folks riding the 8 mile loop. I used the loop to connect Atherton and New Haven Roads. Heading over toward Colerian and the hill on Sheits Rd., (they spelled it wrong not me! My first time up that hill, I was saying the name and dropping the 'e'.) If you look up the hill it is discouraging. Look down at the road and let your legs relax on long hills. You can go really slow, up long hills if you want. Or, crank 'em hard and blow out your legs, you will just be going slow later, (on the flats!).

Top of the hill!

The more energy you expend fighting gravity the more recovery time you muscles need before you can get into your peak energy zone. So if you relax on the hills and power up on the flats, you'll eventually find a pace and output zone where you can ride all day and never get tired or sore. That's where you need to be as a "Touring Cyclist". The hell with the speed myth and the gear heads who have to be in front and hammering all day long. I didn't see any of those folks on the Pan Ohio!

The Goody Shoppe

So, with my relaxed pace and my touring attitude, my stomach started complaining. I left the house before lunch and had 2 granola bars on the ride. When I came to the Goody Shoppe at the corner of Sringdale and Hamilton, I could hear the chili dogs barking at me. I turned out to be a footlong day and a small lowfat shake to boot. This is a good spot for cyclists to stop, since you can sit at a picnic table with your bike and you don't have to worry about someone throwing the bike in the back of their pickup and driving off. The rest of the route took me on the usual roads through Winton Woods and back to Glendale. That's my training plan for a 328 mile route from Cleveland to Cincinnati. Forget about time, forget about speed, the hell with distance. It's all about having fun!




The map:

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