Fighting the Wind on Friday

Straight, narrow and practicall car-free
roads were the order of the day!

Today’s ride options gave us a choice of 22, 26, 32 or 36 miles. The organizer’s decided that the “fast riders” should do the longest option, and the slower people should do the shorter rides. We wanted to do the long ride, and being slow riders we knew what to expect. After the first five miles the group of ten tandems we were with started pulling away from us and that, as they say, was that.

The route led us up and down many a rural road, some shaded by stately trees while others were wide open with horse farms or cow pastures on either side of us. It was beautiful, pretty quiet except for the occasional passing car and mostly flat for the whole route. The only problem we experienced was a nasty headwind given to us courtest of Hurricane Sandy as she heads north in the Atlantic.


There were some occasions when we were riding along at 25mph, feeling like there was no air moving around us at all. (Tailwind.) Then there were LONG stretches of road where I could barely get our speed above 8mph and holding a straight line due to all the buffeting was difficult. (Headwind.)


We showed up at the usual meeting spot and found a couple of the tandem teams still there; most had already come and gone. We drank and ate a little bit and then continued on into the wind for a little while longer, reaching home just after completing 50 miles.


Tonight we’ll register and receive our ride packets for the rally, and get to talk with some of the riders at the traditional “Ice Cream Social” that officially kicks off the rally weekend.