Weekend Rides!

[Mr. Bloom]

The Natchez Trace Parkway is a 444 mile long National Park that starts (or ends) 30 mies west of Nashville. The Ride2Recovery Ride was to benefit fallen warriors. As I've previously posted, we had grueling conditions and I felt my age (and weight!). But, as I get older, I'm getting a little more inclined o stop and take some pictures!

On the Trace to the start...cyclists, car, and look closely for turkeys! They were everywhere!


The overall setting was very pastoral:


This was the view from a bridge at mile 51. The wind nearly knocked me off my feet:


Lunch in historic Leipers Fork (so historic, that when I lived 15 miles from there, I had never heard of it)


I'm glad I did the ride...it reminded me of my riding basics that I forgot in the last year of less riding.

Here are the stats: my 40 mile pace was 18.8mph. At mile 43, pace didn't matter anymore...finishing alive did!


I don't think I've ever done a ride with so much speed variation!

[Crankin]

I got home from my class at around 3:45. I was in a really bad mood, so DH went off to the grocery store and I went out just for a stress reduction ride (the topic of the last part of my class was self care for therapists). I did one of my "dark ride" loops, that I usually do at 5:30 AM, before work, when I have limited time. Ten miles down to Concord center, around a loop and back behind the back side of the Old North Bridge. The area is just packed, I mean packed, with people and cyclists for all of the upcoming Patriot's Day celebrations.
A very relaxing ride, and only a little bit slower than usual.
Today will be a long ride.

[ASammy1]

Only got about 7 miles in yesterday, but they were glorious First official ride on the LHT! It was on the PACKED multi-use path, so didn't get as far as we had originally planned, but I did learn that I really need a new saddle!

[Catrin]

The Natchez Trace Parkway is a 444 mile long National Park that starts (or ends) 30 mies west of Nashville. The Ride2Recovery Ride was to benefit fallen warriors. As I've previously posted, we had grueling conditions and I felt my age (and weight!). But, as I get older, I'm getting a little more inclined o stop and take some pictures!

Great report Mr. Bloom! Pity that I wasn't a cyclist when still living in Tennessee, and even spent close to a decade in Nashville. I think I was aware of the existence of the Trace, but no more than that, sadly. Perhaps someday I will go for a spring or fall tour of it

Your elevation gain was higher than I would have expected, doesn't the Trace head to the SW of Nashville? Of course, there are those bluffs to the west of Nashville that run about half the distance, or more, to Memphis. Thanks for sharing the details of your ride - on congratulations on surviving those winds! It's been a long time since I've been in that part of the state and it was nice to see the photos - and you riding with the turkeys

[indysteel]

Great report Mr. Bloom! Pity that I wasn't a cyclist when still living in Tennessee, and even spent close to a decade in Nashville. I think I was aware of the existence of the Trace, but no more than that, sadly. Perhaps someday I will go for a spring or fall tour of it

Your elevation gain was higher than I would have expected, doesn't the Trace head to the SW of Nashville? Of course, there are those bluffs to the west of Nashville that run about half the distance, or more, to Memphis. Thanks for sharing the details of your ride - on congratulations on surviving those winds! It's been a long time since I've been in that part of the state and it was nice to see the photos - and you riding with the turkeys

You should part of the Trace sometime, Catrin! I'm not sure I'd want to travel the entire distance of it, but I'm glad I did a stretch of it the last time I was in the Nashville area. In 2008, I went down for the Harpeth River Ride in June and then rode about 40 miles on the Trace the following day before heading back home. I stayed in Franklin, which is a lovely town. It was one of the my best riding weekends ever. The portion of the Trace that I rode was rolling. Early on a Sunday morning, there was some car traffic, but it wasn't particularly heavy. I saw more turkeys than people. DH and I would be heading down there this year for the River Ride but for the fact that it's the same weekend as the MTB clinic. Maybe next year.

[Mr. Bloom]

Your elevation gain was higher than I would have expected,

I'm highly suspicious of the number (we've debated Garmin reliability many times here in the past)...I expect it was less than half of the reading...but it felt like twice as much!