SamP
Guru
As a follow on to this ride, I drove over to Shenandoah National Park's Front Royal entrance with USS Yiggy, my Trek Y-26-based Conversion Kit bike. USS Yiggy is probably 35 pounds heavier than the Ridley Fenix Carbon I rode 11 days ago.
The weather this afternoon was incredible for mid-late October, clear with a few clouds, mid-70s. I arrived lateish afternoon at the Dickey Ridge Trail parking area right after the Front Royal entrance and a half mile before the NPS station. My goal was to do the initial 6.5 mile climb, a rise of about 1600 feet from the base.
Part 1: Strava / RideWithGPS
I tried to take it easy and stop at every roadside parking area long enough for my heart rate to drop under 160 bpm, consume liquids, energy gels, chews, and take pictures. I found I was weaving all over the road, my low speed balance still isn't all that good. Looks like I averaged about 4.9 mph over the climb vs. 7.9 mph on the road bike. My heart rate seemed to run about 2-3 bpm higher than on the road bike. When I stopped at the Dickey Ridge Visitor Center (a little over a mile before the top of the climb) for a short break, I found my legs a bit shaky but otherwise felt much better than the previous ride at this point. I continued to the top of the climb and perhaps just a bit over to the descent, turned around and made a longer stop at the Visitor Center then descended back to my car.
On the descent, I was generally a bit over 35 mph rising to 40 mph when I scooted up on the seat and scrunched down to get more aero. The bike was very responsive, maybe even slightly twitchy, carving turns just by shifting weight a bit. A blast. I got a little cold as well, I left my wind jacket in the car, a minor mistake.
I think riding USS Yiggy to Big Meadows is probably a little beyond me, but I think I can do a lot better than I did on a road bike.
I wore a traditional bike jersey (on this ride and the previous Skyline Drive ride)--I didn't have any regular bike jerseys until a few days before my previous Skyline Drive trip, got a used one from VeloCity Bicycle Coop for $10 (as well as a pair of leg warmers for $5 which I also used on the previous trip). The rear-side pockets are very usable while riding USS Yiggy.
I'll add some pics later.
The weather this afternoon was incredible for mid-late October, clear with a few clouds, mid-70s. I arrived lateish afternoon at the Dickey Ridge Trail parking area right after the Front Royal entrance and a half mile before the NPS station. My goal was to do the initial 6.5 mile climb, a rise of about 1600 feet from the base.
Part 1: Strava / RideWithGPS
I tried to take it easy and stop at every roadside parking area long enough for my heart rate to drop under 160 bpm, consume liquids, energy gels, chews, and take pictures. I found I was weaving all over the road, my low speed balance still isn't all that good. Looks like I averaged about 4.9 mph over the climb vs. 7.9 mph on the road bike. My heart rate seemed to run about 2-3 bpm higher than on the road bike. When I stopped at the Dickey Ridge Visitor Center (a little over a mile before the top of the climb) for a short break, I found my legs a bit shaky but otherwise felt much better than the previous ride at this point. I continued to the top of the climb and perhaps just a bit over to the descent, turned around and made a longer stop at the Visitor Center then descended back to my car.
On the descent, I was generally a bit over 35 mph rising to 40 mph when I scooted up on the seat and scrunched down to get more aero. The bike was very responsive, maybe even slightly twitchy, carving turns just by shifting weight a bit. A blast. I got a little cold as well, I left my wind jacket in the car, a minor mistake.
I think riding USS Yiggy to Big Meadows is probably a little beyond me, but I think I can do a lot better than I did on a road bike.
I wore a traditional bike jersey (on this ride and the previous Skyline Drive ride)--I didn't have any regular bike jerseys until a few days before my previous Skyline Drive trip, got a used one from VeloCity Bicycle Coop for $10 (as well as a pair of leg warmers for $5 which I also used on the previous trip). The rear-side pockets are very usable while riding USS Yiggy.
I'll add some pics later.
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