Slender Fungus Sunday Ride

Gumby napping after a long ride and before having to mow the lawn

Gumby finishing the ride. Good job man!

Gumby's Tifosi writing words of encouragement

Slender Fungus hanging out at favorite place: Gas Stations

Ice box in Savannah, IL.

Riding along the Big River.

Taking a break after a long grinder

Riding along a valley

Messmer, a good gravel road with lots of steep hills

taking a break by a picturesque stream.

We were supposed to leave my house at 5 am. but it did not happen. I really hate being late. I awoke, got dressed, loaded on Hellmut's car and away we were. No coffee, no breakfast, and no bathroom. We made it to Lanark, IL in no time and started to pedal. We rode straight west and got a bit off track once into Mt.Carroll. Poor mapping, planning on my part but we soon enough found our way and started to hit the hills on Scenic Bluff and Messmer. This is where we need to be riding to get in shape for T.I.
Hellmut was on a 29er, Gumby on his Fisher and I on the 1x1x29 fixed. I figured it would be a good chance to see how I can do. I did not make two hills all day which were excessively steep. Hellmut made them using the 32x34 gearing on the 29er. We made it all the way to Hanover then headed south to Savannah, took a break at the gas station and then made the long trek back to Lanark. The hills were relentless and the wind was getting stronger and stronger. The ride turned out to be good, and with some refining will be even better. There are many good roads to discover in this area. We will save time and drive to mt carroll instead of Lanark so we can hit the hills quicker.

We ended up riding a total of 72 miles, 20 more than planned. We were tired but had no flats, no mechanicals and nobody had any cramps. Riding time was around 5 hours 20 minutes.

best,

ari