FLCC> Sunday Legge & Ford Hill Ride Report

[Sara Barker]

Hi all,

Yesterday I was out with 3 other women for a ride on our favorite Honeypot 
loop and just happened to run into the various Sunday ride groups. We 
started from my house in Brooktondale and had completely forgotten that the 
Sunday ride was also going in that direction. I just wanted to say that I 
really enjoyed crossing paths with riders from the moderate group. We 
chatted with everyone up Old 76 and it was quite refreshing to see so many 
cyclists and meet up with others who were so pleased about being out on 
such a beautiful morning (and paying attention to car back!). Glad to hear 
that all is working well amongst the groups and thanks for the good 
conversation.

Cheers!
Sara (Lilynn, Tania, and Carol)

At 10:06 AM 7/23/2007, Steven Powell wrote:
>FLCCers,
>
>What an amazing weather day and a gorgeous ride!  We split into two
>main groups with 10 riders in the moderate group and at least that
>many in the lead group.  The lead group left promptly at 9 am (a new
>tradition?) while the moderates were planning their re-grouping/rest
>stops.  In order to save energy for the hills to come, we took the
>easier way out to Slatterville Springs (Ellis Hollow to Thomas Rd).
>The moderates passed the lead group on Boiceville Rd, as they were
>tending to a flat tire.  At that point a few of the riders swapped
>from the moderate group to the lead group.  There was also some
>overlap between the two groups as we started up the climb on Old 76
>and turned onto South Rd. for some more serious climbing.
>
>The 6 riders in the moderate group followed the published cue sheet
>up Legge Hill with its amazing top-of-the-world view, down the very
>steep backside where you could ride as fast as you would like thanks
>to some good pavement (there was a short gravel section, but that
>fortunately was on the climb up).  I'm not sure if the lead group
>followed the cue sheet up Legge Hill or if they continued on
>Honeypot.  Perhaps someone from that group could post a quick note.
>
>At the bottom of Legge Hill it was unanimously decided to continue on
>up Ford Hill, which didn't seem nearly as long of a climb as Legge
>Hill.  Near the top, we were greeted by two friendly dogs and one
>with an attitude problem toward bike riders.  I had my waterbottle
>out, ready to defend my front wheel, but he backed down and decided
>to just make a bunch of noise at our group and stayed a few feet away
>from all of us.
>
>After Ford Hill, we took a short detour to Speedsville and the
>convenience store for a rest stop and some water, sandwiches, and ice
>cream.  This was definitely bike touring, and we were in no hurry to
>end such a perfect cycling day.  We headed back out to Rt. 79, turned
>off on Flat Iron where we encountered a pretty substantial headwind.
>At that point some us started to feel the effects of the earlier
>climbs and miles, and the pace slowed a bit.  Back out onto 79, and
>we split into two groups, one returning via the low-energy Thomas
>Rd./Ellis Hollow and the other small group go up and over Snyder Hill
>for one last climb.
>
>My cycle computer showed 12.9 mph for the full 47 mile ride, which
>fit pretty well with what I expected for the moderate ride group.  We
>probably stopped about 6 times and re-grouped, which allowed us to
>keep together and navigate some of the trickier sections of the ride.
>This moderate bike touring style with multiple stops for re-grouping,
>is not for everyone, but there seems to be enough interest with 6-10
>of us to continue it on the Sunday rides.
>
>Until next Sunday.
>
>--Steve Powell
>
>--
>Steven Powell
>Cornell University
>School of Electrical & Computer Engineering
>321 Rhodes Hall
>Ithaca, NY  14853
>Tel # 607-255-4551
>Fax # 607-255-6236
>e-mail: sp35 at cornell.edu
>
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