FLCC> Halsey Valley Sunday ride notes

[John Dennis]

It was another hot Sunday mitigated by beautiful valleys, cool liquids, and
good company.  If climate change keeps changing apace, our Sunday rides will
be departing at 3am ten years from now. 

 

David Sahn and I arrived about 8:40am—late as usual—and joined the
long-haulers at HSBC/East Hill Plaza.  By chance, former FLCCer Donald
Specker happened by aux pieds to see us off.  He didn’t have his lawn chair
and picnic basket so our send off wasn’t quite as festive as how the locals
in Manchester, UK, gather at the airport to spend an afternoon plane
spottin’ from the grassy verges.  But, thank you anyway, Donald. 

 

I’m afraid I didn’t record any names and promptly forgot the few names I
heard, so I am resorting to that dreadfully primitive  means of (descriptors
in brackets) in lieu of full names.  At the send off, long-haulers included
Stewart Wolsh, Jeremy (of Old 76 Road), Vanessa McCaffery (wearing CU
cycling team jersey), Evan (newly arrived CU junior from West Chester
County, and three days into organic chemistry), a newly arrived prof in the
business school from Boulder, CO, and brown jersey (visiting ITH again).  We
departed under clear skies with temps in the high 70s/low 80s. 

In Brooktondale, David snapped a shifting cable while turning onto White
Church Road. Stewart declared it unfixable without a new cable, so David
headed home in high gear. The turn west onto Route 96 from Gridleyville
Crossing Road commenced our riding into a modest headwind, so we were warm
enough to break into a sweat when he stopped in Spencer at the short-route
staging area.  There were more people than I’d ever seen there, but it turns
out that Don Fritterer’s group had already ridden in from the Newfield area
and would play-ride with us for only a few miles before heading off in
another direction.  

Among the people I recall seeing were Lou Lodico and two other Big Horne
Velo riders (but not Terri who reportedly got her cast off the day before).
Tania Schusler, Mark Sorrells, Daniel Blakeley, Steve Edgar, Karen Edgar,
Jim Millar, and Henrik Spoon were among the throngs. Chris Koukourdis
started late at Spencer and appeared later in the ride. 

Alas, without Bill Lodico’s commanding presence, we failed to repeat last
year’s wonderful divergence down into Pennsylvania: “we instead followed
Bill across the westward-flowing Susquehanna River at Smithboro.”  This time
the lead group followed the advice of Jim Millar and turned north a couple
of miles short of Waverly onto a newly-paved and well-shaded road that did,
however, involve some real altitude before dropping down to Rte 34. Mark and
Daniel managed to have flats within a few feet of each other and Jim
gallantly assisted at both repairs.  Following the regulation route, after
refueling at a local gas station, we turned onto the Dean’s Creek Road and
in due time passed the Salo natural gas well-drilling site belonging to
Fortuna Energy, which is owned by Talisman in Calgary.  Many of our roads on
the route were crossed by seismic cables and it’s quite possible that we are
seeing the end in the making of the “north end of Appalachia.”  The
production well drilled last fall in Van Etten is reportedly the most
productive well that Fortuna has drilled into the Trenton Black River
formation in Central New York.  Daniel, Karen, and I dropped off the back of
the fast group at about the Salo well-head (allowing me to peruse the DEC
permits).  I had forgotten to pack my endurolyte capsules (from
Hammernutriton.com) and I could feel the beginnings of cramping nipping at
my quads going up the rise.  Daniel obligingly had another flat which
allowed for some respectable repairing in the shade.  (It was in the mid 90s
by then.) 

Henrik Spoon—a Dutch astronomer who had kindly offered me a ride from
Spencer back to Ithaca—is new to Sunday rides having spent more time on
mountain bikes.  It seemed incongruous to be explaining the spatial dynamics
of a peloton and the principles of drafting to someone who is measuring
distances in light-years and anticipating the merging of our galaxy with the
Andromeda galaxy in three billion years, a full four billion before our star
burns out. He says not to worry. The individual stars are so far apart, they
will not collide.  So, no need to repent just yet. 

A bit north of Spencer on 34 we drove past Evan, soloing his way back to
ITH.  Apparently, he hadn’t realized that Stewart and others would be going
back by the more scenic Crumtown Road route.  Vanessa and I had sensibly
bailed  from long-hauling at 68.5 miles in Spencer, compared to Stewart who
probably would put in 125-130 miles for the day. 

And, just as I reminded folks last year, we spent about 2/3rd of the long
ride in the Chesapeake Bay water shed and one third in the Lake Ontario
watershed. 

Ride safe and well-hydrated, 

John

 

cell: 607-227-5172


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