2010 GFLBT—Short version
This past weekend’s Great Finger Lakes Bicycle Tour was more enjoyable than any other I attended.
What makes it so are the people. BikeJournal people keep coming back after our Reunion there in 2007, there’s a bunch from the Rochester Bicycling Club who attend every year, people I’ve met there over the years, new people I met this year. This year, a whole crew from the BikeForums.net 50+ Forum came along at my invitation.
I’d have had a ball even if I’d never set wheel to pavement. But the riding was nice too.
Friday night’s ride to the Sugar Hill Fire Tower just keeps getting easier. That ride nearly killed me in 2007. In 2010 it was a nice little warm-up for the weekend, that perked up the appetite for dinner. The weather was perfect, and Blue Steel and I hooked up with some fast friends for the descent back into camp. After chasing him down, even our “rabbit” joined us for the plunge into the valley.
Saturday’s half-century was a delightful little ride between Seneca and Cayuga lakes. The figure-eight route had plenty of opportunity for “customizing” one’s ride. At least that’s what I called it when I missed a couple of turns. We’re on our own for lunch on the Saturday ride, and by delaying it to near the end, I had the best SAG stop ever at what I’ll forever call the Chicken Winnebago.
A rainy Sunday morning still make for a nice—if abbreviated—ride at Keuka Lake. One rider had a gadget phone that got the weather radar, and another rider is an actual meteorologist for AccuWeather.com. He called the break in the rains perfectly, and we got in 45 minutes out and 45 minutes back with only a sprinkle or two, before the skies opened again on the drive home.
Through the weekend, Blue Steel was the perfect mount. A steel-is-real ride coupled with stage race geometry made for a fast, comfortable ride all weekend. Its lightweight drivetrain more than made up for its tall, standard-double gearing.
Blue’s happy demeanor made the pleasant rides even more enjoyable. It didn’t mind poking along barely into the double-digits, it rode confidently through gravel, it had fun on the descents. Heck, even standing still it liked the attention. “Pretty bike.” A beat. “That’s a Schwinn?”
The weekend really let Blue’s racing DNA show through on both the climbs and the flats. The bike really feels good under power. The harder I crank it, the better it feels. It made climbs enjoyable—yes, enjoyable—even the long one at the end of the ride on Saturday.
One section of Saturday’s ride was mile-after-mile of fresh asphalt. Flat, smooth, arrow-straight to the horizon, I kicked Blue up into the big ring, stretched out in the drops and cranked. I didn’t care where the map said I should go, I followed that fresh blacktop to the end. It was pure joy.
While I’m not having second thoughts, it is a shame I’ll have to disassemble Blue this week in order to build-up the Litespeed.
I’m running late for work. More here on the 50+ Forum.
June 16th, 2010 at 1:54 pm EST
Awesome. I wanted to do that ride last year when we lived nearby-ish in PA, but it didn’t work out. I really wish I had been able to go.