Note: map does not accurately reflect the ride. More below.
Call it the Oddball Ride. I meet Dan (recumbent rider) just down the hill from the house, on my Albatross-bar’ed fixed gear (sans basket). I waffled quite a bit about the bike choice, but when I put the Bianchi on the stand to put on the pedals, I noticed that bottom bracket finally gave up the ghost, requiring an enormous amount of force to turn the cranks. I quickly removed the basket from the Surly, and as I spun the front wheel, I heard a periodic *ting* as the wheel spun. Eh, whatever, I thought, and pulled out. As I braked going down Baker, I heard *ting* *ting* *ting*.
Eh, whatever. Who cares if my wheel exploded 20 miles from home? Not I.
Off we went, along that purgatory known as Allegheny River Boulevard. This road, along with its sister across the river, Freeport Road, is something I only tolerate. Traffic? Check. Road kill? Check. Chip seal? Check. Huge spots of ice? Check. Soon enough, it was over, and we were pointing our wheels upward on Plum Road. I had assumed before the ride that this would be an adventure on the fixed gear. It was not, however, as bad I thought it might be. While the climb is long, it is punctuated with short bits of flat, and the steepest bits are mercifully short. It really is a nice climb–albeit one that makes you work. The road surface is a mix of chip seal and asphalt, and the road is never quite level, with dips and bumps and off-camber turns.
At the top, I pause briefly to examine my front wheel again. A quick spin reveals a broken spoke. Fun. I pull it out of the hub, and open the release on my front brake so the now-wobbly front wheel doesn’t rub on the brake shoe. Here’s hoping the wheel doesn’t fail….
From here, well, we got a bit lost. Not completely lost, but we missed a turn on Hamlin, and rather quickly we were losing hard-earned elevation. We found our way, but not after dealing with a short hump or two on Hulton. Once righted, there was a long, gradual descent to Milltown. Whee! Spinning, and on to Milltown. And more hills. It’s been some time since I’ve done any sort of distance on the fixed gear, and I’ve decided that it really is true–the fixed gear makes rollers just a bit easier. You can naturally carry momentum through the hill, and the single gear forces you to maintain your speed. I certainly wouldn’t want to climb anything terribly steep (or long), but I think the fixed gear was a fine choice for this terrain. It is worth noting I did a horrible job avoiding potholes and other road deformities. Each time I grimaced and waited for front wheel to wobble uncontrollably.
Onward and upward to Logan’s Ferry/Sardis Road, the meat (and highlight) of the ride. It’s amazing how quickly the suburbia of Plum turns into the rolling farmlands of Westmoreland County. The road is quiet–enough so that we can ride two abreast and chat comfortably. Riding atop the ridge, we can see for miles to the left and the right, green hills spilling out. When Sardis intersects Saltsburg, Dan and I say our goodbyes–he’ll continue to Murraysville, then home through East Pittsburgh. I’ll suffer up the climb over the Turnpike on Saltsburg.
Saltsburg passes quickly with roller after roller. Nothing steep, nothing long, just up-down, up-down. A longer descent leads to climb over the Turnpike. I’ve dreaded this as well, but it’s not as bad as I fear. My pace has dropped at this point (especially with a bit of headwind), but I make good progress, and soon enough I’ve crested the hill. It’s (mostly) all downhill from here. I relax a bit on the final descent to Verona, feather the brake the whole way, rather than deal with another 200rpm stretch. And then, back into the purgatory of ARB. I did manage to forestall The Bonk, but at this point the clouds have rolled in, and the ever-present headwind is slowing my pace. My feet are cold, and my neck a bit stiff. Wah. At least I’m nearly home.
Posted on 1 December 2007