Buttle Aboot

[ornoth_cycling]

The calendar said: ride the Pittsburgh Randonneurs’ First Sunday 100k. But their plan was to ride the PMTCC 3-State loop, which includes a number of roads I’d rather not ride more than once a year, if at all.

So I punted and decided on a solo century, extending my favored Days Run / Sun Mine / Deer Creek / Guys Run / Old Mill / Squaw Run route up through Saxonburg to Butler.

I’m in Brilliant Physical Health!

Another absolutely perfect day. On my way up to Freeport I stopped for a selfie at “Brilliant Physical Health”. Got up the Sun Mine climb—despite the road being closed—by riding underneath the arch made by a bucket-loader’s arm across the road.

The extension through Saxonburg provided endless steep rollers through typical Pennsylvania farmland, which meant endless wind sprints and tired legs and aching knees. On the plus side, several of those roads had just been newly resurfaced: Knoch, Bull Creek, and Frazier. And I even briefly got to ride on Dinnerbell Road! And chatted briefly with another rider coming off Bull Creek.

I wasn’t hammering, which conserved my strength and made the ride more enjoyable. And somehow, despite having 75 miles in the legs, I retained a strong enough pace to set a new PR on the steady Guys Run climb.

It was a good, solid, long day in the saddle. That’s really all there is to say about it, tho... Solo rides often don’t make for great write-ups, but it’s another century in the books (#8) for 2019.