Tuesday, September 29, 2009

ACC (and we ain't talkin' college basketball)

A foggy morning at the start of the ACC

The Apple Cider Century was a great ride this past Sunday. The weather was gorgeous. It didn't rain and temperatures ranged from cool in the morning to pleasantly warm in the afternoon. Mary and I rode with a bunch of our JDRF Ride team mates. She did the metric century (61 miles) with Brian and Heather, while I completed the full 100 miles with Mike, Linda, Cathy, and John.

Mike and Cathy on the tandem, Linda chasing them

It felt great to get a century ride in this year. I was very disappointed after Killington having ridden only 62 miles. I know nobody else felt that way, but I tend to be my own harshest critic. Not only did I complete my seventh century ride on Sunday, I did it in my best time ever, just a shade over 8 hours. That was probably my last big ride of the season. Our Death Valley team mates leave for their ride in just a little over two weeks. I wish them warm sunny skies and minimal winds.

Tom and Mary after their respective century rides

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Over 6000

Today I rolled over 6000 miles on my Cannondale. The computer showed 6017.5 at the end of today's 24 mile ride on the White Pine Trail. That's in just a little over 4 years. But considering I don't put many miles on that bike from November through March that's a pretty good number.
September has turned into the nicest month of our summer. Warm and dry during the day, not to mention sunny, then cooling off at night. Unfortunately, it's also dark by 8:30, so it's getting hard to get those post work/dinner rides in. We are registered to ride in the Apple Cider Century next Sunday. My plan is to do the full century since I don't have one yet this year. I'm hoping next Sunday is as nice as this Sunday.

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Great day for a ride

Even though our JDRF ride is completed we still have team members who will be riding in Death Valley in October. So we are still participating in team rides. Today's was a nice 42 mile ride with several rolling hills. The ride started from Townsend Park and we were running late. By the time we arrived the team had already taken off. Fortunately they left a tip sheet and route map for us. I took a quick look, recognized the route so Mary and I took off north up Ramsdell Road. The route called for a loop that ended at 9 Mile Road, so we figured we'd ride the route backwards at that point and meet up with the team instead of trying to catch them. When we got to 9 Mile I took a closer look at the tip sheet and realized the team had started south on Ramsdell. We had ridden 4 miles in the wrong direction. So we turned around and backtracked the route eventually meeting up with the team on Honey Creek. So we turned around and rode the second half of the route with our buddies. They all ended up doing 45 miles, we only managed 42. It was a perfect day to be out, much better than the last time we all got together for a ride.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Jake's Music Festival on 09/19/09

Photo by Kevin Owens

Jake's Music Festival takes place in just 8 days. This is our fifth annual celebration of local music. We have a great line up of bands featuring everything from family friendly groups at 5:00 to some of the hottest bands in the area. You can find a full listing of bands at our festival blog.

Thanks to our main sponsors Frames Unlimited and Magic Hat #9. Because of them 100% of all ticket sales goes directly to our local chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. And those tickets are only $8 this year. We'll also be having a silent auction and adult beverages at the newly renovated Wealthy Theatre concession stand.

Some come early and stay all night, or just drop in to check out one or two bands. Either way you'll have a great time.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Waiting for the return of my Cannondale

The ride in Killington did some very bad things to my road bike. It's in the shop getting four new brake pads, a new chain and a new cassette. Parts had to be ordered so I've been without my black and red beauty for almost a week. Luckily the old (as in heavy) mountain bike is still working, so I took that out over the weekend.

Abandoned gas station along the Kal-Haven Trail.

Mary and I and our son Ian, along with our friend Susan, rode the Kal-Haven Trail on Sunday. We started on the South Haven end and did about 15 miles. It's a flat gravel trail that was quite popular on Labor day weekend. It was great to get out on a perfect riding day. My Cannondale should be ready tomorrow, so I'll have it in time for this Sunday's team ride. Even though we are done with Vermont we still have about 10 West Michigan Riders heading for Death Valley. Ahh... heat.