Leader: Steve Palincsar
Members: Ron Altemus, Joan Oppel
Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45312277 At least, that's what it was meant to be, and I assume it was for Ron and Joan. Me, I got around 2.5 mi and had a flat. For the rest of my story, see "Mishaps/Mechanicals". And see below for the Ride Report addendum for the riders who completed the route.
Weather: Sunny, mid-40s -- at least, when it was sunny. When clouds covered the sun,m as was the case on the way to the ride start, it dropped into the high 30s, with much binging and bonging and flashing of the SNOW ALERT on my dashboard. The wind wasn't much until it was, but that was when I got back home.
AMS: unknown
Mechanicals/Mishaps: A piece of glass in the front tire, and as we turned onto Bunker Hill the bike didn't feel right. A tenth later the reason was obvious. I have tires and rims that in combination are very difficult to mount and dismount. The temperature today made things worse. Unbelievably worse. With me, Ron and Joan working the problem together, it took us about an hour to get the tire off, replace the tube and remount the tire. Remounting was incredibly hard work, so much so that we resorted to tools other than the Bead Jack to mount the tire. When we finally got the tire on and started inflating the tube, it wouldn't hold air.
At that point I decided enough was enough,we weren't going through that again even though I had yet another tube. It was time for Plan B, which consisted of Ron going 2 1/2 miles back to Starbucks and coming back with his van.
Before I could fully articulate this plan, a Good Samaritan in the form of a woman driving a pickup truck came by. On the way back to Starbucks, she told me she and all her family live along Berry Rd and Bunker Hill. I for one am certainly glad of that fact.
Report addendum from the riders who completed the route - Ron and Joan continued on Bunker Hill Road, and after the frustration of the tire debacle, it was good to be pedaling again. It soon became warm enough for clothing adjustments, with temperatures in the high 40s. We actually had a pleasant ride, even though on some busy roads. Traffic was definitely heavier on this Sunday than during the week. Following Diane's roue, there was a nice stretch of nearly 7 miles on the rail trail, where we took advantage of both a portapotty break and a scenic snack break at the big marsh near Bumpy Oak. The west 14 mph wind hit us on Hawthorne, but Chapman's Landing proved as sheltered as always. We made the decision to alter the return (eliminating the shoulder of 210 for 2+ miles) to Manokeek by crossing 210 at Bryans Road and taking the back way on the west side of 210: Mathews, Gospel Unionor, Livingston, Pine Lane, Manning, cross 210 at Livingston, take Dusty Lane, cross Berry, to approach Manokeek from the north. That added about 2 miles. We had a good ride, were glad to get out.
Steve's report from home continued: It was more comfortable and warmer at home, and that might have helped, because it only took me a half hour to remove the tire and replace the tube with a new one. Patching the tube with the glass puncture wasn't too bad, either: easily found, easily patched.
But things were different when I looked at the tube we installed on the road as such a cost in labor. The tube wouldn't hold air at all initially. The more holes I patched, the more holes I found. In the end, it took six patches for that tube to hold air once more.
Report: I love the idea of piggyback rides. We had such fun with them back before the Pandemic! I thought piggybacking with Diane's B ride would be a great place to start doing it again.
In practice, it didn't quite work out that way. Ron and Joan were a few seconds behind the B group getting mounted up and moving. By the time we reached Berry Rd, the B group was out of sight.
It's been some years since I rode east on Berry Rd, and I'd forgotten what the traffic between the shopping center and Bunker Hill Rd was like. I'd pretty much decided this would be a one-and-done before we made the turn, and then my tire went flat. And now I'm sure.
I hope Ron and Joan had a good ride for the remainder of the route. Perhaps they can edit this and tell us what adventures befell them after we parted ways.
