Week 30

Date
July 23rd, 2012

Distance
100 Miles

Time
6:14:54

Route Map/Profile

Weather

Cool temps and rain.

Picture

Rain ahead.

Ride Report
It's been awhile, but we had some rain here in Reno this week and I did some rare rain riding. I hadn't ridden in the rain since the Borrego Double in May. I actually like riding in the rain, and I don't just say that because I live in the desert and it's a rare occurrence. Back when I lived in Indiana I felt the same way. As long as the temperature is above 60 degrees or so, I've always enjoyed the ride and find it to be a calming experience. The one big negative is all the bike cleaning involved afterwards.

I chose an easier route (the same as Week 26) to avoid any long, wet descents. It started to rain on me in Washoe Valley and let up as I went through Carson City. I thought I might get a dry ride up 6 Mile Canyon, but as you can see from the picture above, that wasn't going to happen. The descent out of Virginia City on the truck route isn't steep or technical, so it wasn't too dangerous and I didn't get very cold on the way down.

The skies cleared as I rode back through Washoe Valley towards Reno. As you probably know, this is the toughest part of the ride for the bike itself. The rain washed away some of the chain lube and the wet roads left behind a nice layer of grit in its place. This is one of those times when I'm actually glad that my bike is older and not worth that much money. I don't have to worry much about things like riding in the rain, riding on a gravel road that might scratch my paint, or even crashing. My bike is cheap and has a ton of miles on it, and sometimes I actually wish something would happen to it so I'd have an excuse to get a new one.

Week 29

Date
July 16th, 2012

Distance
101 Miles

Time
6:00:21

Route Map/Profile

Bismarck, North Dakota

Weather

Picture

1806 near Cannon Ball

Ride Report
I took a trip to Bismarck, ND for a nice ride along the Missouri River on highway 1806. Bismarck is a better place to ride than I expected. Though I didn't do much riding through the city itself, I came across some sharrows on Rosser Ave and other bike paths along the way as I went through Mandan towards 1806. Crossing the river was easy on Memorial Hwy with a nice & wide separated pedestrian path on the bridge.

1806 was a scenic ride with rolling hills all the way through. Traffic was light, and the vehicles I did see gave me plenty of space. I had a great time out there and wished I had more time to follow 1806 all the way down to the South Dakota border and beyond.

If you'd like to see more pictures, check out the Century in 50 States blog.

Week 28

Date
July 12th, 2012

Distance
112 Miles

Time
7:09:07

Route Map/Profile

Mt. Rose plus the back of Kingsbury

Weather

Picture

Near Sand Harbor

Ride Report
I did a simple out-and-back without all that much climbing. The water stops are perfectly placed on this route. There's a park on Kalhe Drive near the bottom of the intersection of 50 and 207 (the bottom of Kingsbury) and another one (Preston Field) just before the 28/431 intersection (the bottom of Mt. Rose).

Speaking of the 28/431 intersection, they plan on installing a roundabout (http://roadtoblue.com/) and I saw evidence of progress out there today.  I like the idea. At the moment there's just a stop sign there and visibility isn't great if you're on 431 trying to make a left turn on 28. From a cyclist's point of view, this project is going to make it easier and safer to make that left turn from 431 to 28.

Week 27

Date
July 4th, 2012

Distance
108 Miles

Time
6:45:40

Route Map/Profile

Mt. Rose, the east side of Lake Tahoe, and Kingsbury Grade

Weather

Picture

Daggett Summit- Ready for the 8-mile descent

Ride Report
I celebrated the 4th of July the best way I know how- with a nice ride. Lake Tahoe was packed and everybody seemed to be having a good time, myself included. I actually broke the 50 mph barrier down Kingsbury Grade, which is something I haven't done since last year down 267 near Truckee. I had a nice tailwind and the east side of Kingsbury is a smooth road that I know pretty well, so this was probably the most comfortable I've ever felt above 50 mph.

Week 26

Date
June 29th, 2012

Distance
101 Miles

Time
6:14:16

Route Map/Profile

Easy ride plus 6-Mile Canyon

 Weather

Picture

6-Mile Canyon

Ride Report
I had a bad week and ended up doing this ride just to get my century in for the week and keep the mission on target. It's a pretty easy route with 6-Mile Canyon being the only difficult part thrown in. There's been road work on Geiger Grade for quite a while now, so I haven't been out towards Virginia City in a while and I had to take the long way through Carson City to get there.