Crusty Cassette

It was a beautiful morning. Six riders showed up for the Tour de Belgium ride. Debbie, Nikki, Cliff, and Corrie groaned at the suggestion of a reverse Lewiston Loop ride after the previous days' pre-Tour de Lentil ride and late night fireworks. The group decided on riding towards Hell's Gate State Park and part way up Tammany Creek Rd. The ride had its' moments with stopping first at Pedal-n-Spokes where Nikki had her wheel spoke repaired by Scott (& Harley), sprinkler showers along the levee, and finally Lance getting beeped to go into work. Total distance approx. 21 miles. The riders met afterwards at Waffles-n-More for breakfast(brunch). Lance called in his order to Janet from work and arrived just as the meals were being served. Great timing! Don't forget the Bike-n-Brew ride starting at the Red Lion Inn parking lot at 6 p.m on Sunday.

Ukiah Century Sunday June27 Five of us headed off for Ukiah, Oregon after Bite the Bullet: Bruce, Pam, Debbie, Dave H. and myself (Wendy), hereafter to be known as "the group with the pharmacist" though Debbie preferred "Team Rx". We all ate in Pendleton, not wishing to repeat last year's pre-century dinner of Spagettios with dodgy parmesan cheese.

The camping spot by the school was shady and private, only Rx were camping out that night. No kareoke but we could hear the band playing at park, we requested "who let the dogs out" but it was not forthcoming!

Shane, the ride organizer, treated us to a big breakfast of eggs, biscuits, pancakes etc, Bruce was seen eating solid food!!

Even at 5:30 it was obvious that it was going to be a hot one although there was still a nip in the air. Pam set off first (I made good note of this as I didn't want another "where's Pam" incident!) Bruce hung back waiting for things to warm up so that he didn't have to carry his legwarmers etc, I really must get him a nifty rack like mine for his bike then he would not have to wait for the heat, eh Bruce?

The ride is flat for about one mile then it goes up, too much breakfast........ The first 10 miles was very slow, then we hit some downhill and rolling parts through a burned over forest and finally to the first rest stop as Pam was leaving, did I say that Bruce had flown past with a couple of lean looking dudes from La Grande? Wow just over 10 mph average for the first 25, this bodes well for a century!!!

Dave took off from the first stop with Bruce who had waited for us, Debbie and I meandered along through the woods waiting for the long downhill to begin. The patches of snow on the Elkhorn Mtns looked very inviting, it was starting to bake out there on the pavement. Weeeee downhill starts, from the woods all the way down to the headwaters of the Grande Ronde, did I say scenic?

Round the curves and into lunch, almost out of water at this stage, that is rare for me. Our deli sandwiches were waiting, we had ordered them the evening before, it was a bit like having a Subway in the woods. It was hard to leave the lunch spot in the shade especially knowing what was in store, Debbie had fond memories of the "after lunch hill".

We headed out and started climbing very soon after, Bruce and Dave had gone ahead, Pam was behind with Mr O'So Clean (unbeknown to us she was fixing a flat very soon after pulling out from lunch). Up, up, then flat with some gorgeous views, then the big up. Debbie muttered "see ya at the top". Oh boy was it hot. We were thinking about the folks up at Cd'A on the ironman course, atleast we were only riding a 100!

Up more, I come up on Dave and tried to chat , bad move, I got a mutter and a grunt. Being quick at these things I decided that it was not the time to discuss our personal finances or question his ideas on the new deck, in the name of marital bliss I kept on up the hill!! Once reaching the shade at the summit all was well in the world again!

Down, down to our last rest stop, thunder was rumbling and the sky had turned an unpleasant shade of grey, we got out of there fast. Still down, a few spots of rain then Bruce came back to check on us after a shower, power nap etc.

Yea! Ukiah, a BBQ awaited us, huge slabs of pork for the meat eating types, it was brutal in the sun once we got off the bikes. Pam came in a little later with her new found friend and rescuer, Mr O'So Clean, maybe we should see if we can get Kleeburg's company to sponsor us, could we be the Team Rx Porta Johns??? Maybe not!!!

Come to Ukiah with us next year, it is about 3 hours from the Valley, wonderful terrain to ride through and Shane takes great of care with the food etc.

You should have been there . . .

Lance, Jan, Bill, Joanne, Mike, Nikki, Debbie, Cliff, Chris, and Corrie (Linda, pleading lazy, only arrived for the beer) gathered after an evenings ride for an evening brew. BarleyHoppers at Lewiston's Red Lion provided the veranda and the brew. Sunset, courtesy of the same powers that provided the cool evening. We provided the conversation on our own with a little help from Quiz Master Cliff. Bill seemed to be the big winner on Hell's Canyon trivia. Deep subject, huh, Bill?

The scheduled ride took the group from the Red Lion along E. Main to Lindsay Creek Road, then past Mann's Lake to Macintosh then down Tammany and back along the bike path.

Chris wanted a few more miles and so perusaded me to meet him at 4. He had hoped Mark Schmidt would make it down at least for the 6pm start, but he had to settle for me. I started at home and so had 10 miles on him when we started at 4:05. I tried my best to present the Lapwaii loop option in a negative light. I think it is about 35 miles, Chris. I don't think I can do it fast enough to get us back here by 6, Chris. We'll probably meet the group half way up Lindsay Creek, Chris. It didn't seem to matter how I pled, once Chris knew he'd get to hammer up Web Ridge reversed, there was no turning back.

Chris is never very clear on his directions, so when I said we'd need to cut off the Arrow Bridge extension, I think he wasn't clear how we were doing the loop. This kept him content to settle back with me. Usually he disappears at the Casino and I find him waiting at Arrow Bridge. I did my best getting us across Spalding Bridge and Chris reported a 19mph average when we stopped at the convenience store in Lapwaii.

Just before the Casino, we were passed by fire trucks rushing to the cloud of smoke we'd seen crossing Memorial Bridge. The fire had started down near the frontage road we usually ride on the return trip and spread up the hillside. It looked to be pretty much under control as we passed, and I was pleased not to get a cloud of smoke in my lungs.

A 4:00 start is difficult on your diet. Do you eat a second lunch? I chose fritos, trail mix, and pop. Guess that wasn't too good an idea. By the time I put a bottle of Minute Maid Lemonade on top of it at Lapwaii I was feeling bloated. Chris, now knowing where he was at, lead off and quickly jumping the pace up to 22-24 mph. I kept up for a time, but finally had to back off. Chris backed off a bit and we enjoyed a leisurely approach to web ridge, but I knew my stomache wasn't going to let me do anything heroic. I had also hoped for more shade this late in the day--that was not the case. Web Ridge and Macintosh were not sterling cycling moments for me. "Whose idea was this?" I demanded of Chris at the top of Macintosh. We hammered on. By now it was 5:50.

By 6 we were racing down Lindsay Creek. "They're just putting on their wheels," I shouted as Chris flew by. I must not have been too far off. We made it to the lowest possible point--the intersection with E. Main before encountering the rest of the club. We turned around an rode right back up. Let's see, that makes Web Ridge, MacIntosh, Lindsay Creek all on the same ride. I was at 50 miles at the top of Lidnsay.

St. Joe's has a new monitoring system. It seems to require a great deal of monitoring by Lance. He seems to get a call whenever Lance gets on his bike. We left him explaining how to plug in a docking station and headed toward MacIntosh. At this point I must introduce you to our latest heroine-EWD, Early Warning, Debbie, aka: Dog-bait Debbie. Since Debbie was our self-appointed point, she encountered the dog first. She does seem to attract the canines. Could be those well muscled-legs. Could be the smell of fear. Any way, we clear dogs out by sending Debbie out ahead. This dog was persistent, making physical contact, though not able to thwart Debbie's superb cycling skills (paid advertising) and bring her down.

Mike hit 51 mph going down MacIntosh. Chris was in the high 40's though he tried to melt his rims breaking. We all waited expectantly to see what Bill and Joanne on the tandem would do. Bill kept the breaks on disappointing us all. Claimed he could have done 60 if he didn't have to stop at the bottom.

Lance, had given up on troubleshooting over the phone. He surrendered his keys one more time to Jan, and hammered off to do Barr road and Thain back to St. Joe. He did join us for brew later.

Cliff wasn't having any of Debbie's hammering down Tammany so he kicked the recumbent out of second gear and left us all behind. He's a tad slow up, but going down, he's a terror.

Chris began complaining of the lateness of the day and, running out of water, my thirst for brew made me lead out on the bike trail back to BarleyHoppers. Gorgeous evening with the sun setting dramatically with dancing lights across the Snake river. The wind was mild, the company good, and the beer, I thought, plentiful.

Sadly, while there was little custom, my beer and Chris's cold Pepsi came only after Cliff strode manfully to the bar and got his own order. Chris was sorely put out by the Pepsi in his ice, or lack thereof. He also didn't like it when Mike told him the beer was only a buck. That Pepsi cost him 1.06.

Once we had our beers we began to think of food. My stomache still didn't want much but Linda talked me into an order of Nachos for the table. The Wycoff's had offered a barbecue after this ride, but the timing was off. We'll take you up on that offer later. Perhaps in welcoming Steve and his tourist buddies to Lewiston. Looks like Cliff's going to put up Dave and Chris--says he has lots of floor space. Thanks Cliff. I'll send Steve an email today.

Cool evening, cool brew. You should have been there. . .

No fireworks or flames except the occasional jab at one another to celebrate this 4th. Instead we gathered at Disemore's in Pullman for a Tour de Lentil Tune Up ride. By Chance Sean and Carol had also stopped on their way to camp at Priest Lake. They had mountain bikes on top and on the back of their car so we're confident they'll celebrate the fourth with a bit of biking.

Wendy had to forgoe the club 4th for an Albion picnic. When Chris, Dave, and Corrie rode through late in the afternoon, there was no picnic to be found nor any water either. Wendy, I think Albion should put in a publc drinking fountain. What'dya say? Oh, and don't forget to blog that Ukiah century. We are all desperately waiting the outcome of the moment of marital strife you mentioned at the time trial.

Dave Henry arrived as well from his night shift on a bike but not in biking clothes.

Debbie, Corrie, and Dave T. had joined Chris in Moscow for the ride over along airport road. Head winds foretold that this day was going to be a rehearsal of the Palouse Odyssey, though today there was no threat of wind and the temperature stayed cool. I doubt it got much over 80degrees all day.

The Palouse is still covered in a beautiful green blanket of grain.

We got to see Steptoe from both sides. The morning was almost chilly at 64 degrees and though we had some head wind headed out, once we turned toward Colfax, the winds were, thankfully, at our backs.

We took lunch at Arby's though some grumbled about eating and then climbing that hill toward Colfax. Nobody seemed to develop gramps, however, and the rolling hills of the Palouse began to take its toll of those who were not fully fueled.

Linda will listen to me the next time I tell her that she needs to spend more time on the bike. She is plenty strong aerobically, but those quads aren't trained for the bike. She plugged right along though. In about a week, she'll have every opportunity to develop her biking muscles.

At Palouse, Chris and Dave suggested that they might not have time to complete a century today. Because the last two times I have set out to do a century I have failed either from heat or weakness, I really wanted to finish a century today given the cool, gorgeous weather. OneDay Dave was heard to complain a bit about the wind but I reminded him of the times we had ridden wearing winter gear and keeping an anxious eye on a threatening sky because getting wet would not only be uncomfortable but dangerous. So Chris, Dave and I resolved to finish a century and not wait for the rest of the group. Turned out that it was Dave and I who kept one another going. Chris disappeared ove ra hill never to be seen again until I knocked on his door.

Because we needed extra miles, we did the Albion loop. Dave and I also dropped down to Klemguard and returned via Wawawai road. I offered him the opportunity to ride the loop again. "Not today," he said.

"One day, Dave," I responded. Dave's one day will be next Saturday as he takes on the Seattle to Portland course in one day. Good Luck, Dave. You're ready. And don't forget to blog.

Happy Fourth of July.

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Women on Wheels is a group promoting women's cycling by helping women find other women who will ride at a similar pace. The Baddlands Cycling Page. E-mail contact wowbabes@baddlands

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Bicycle Idaho is the tour Linda and Corrie are doing from July 13th through the 19th.

Seattle to Portland

Our Dave T is doing this in one day. Wish him luck.