Joe Palooka Ride to Oolitic, August 29

By Allan Edmonds

Eighteen riders gathered for the last 8 am ride of the year, a hilly 57 mile trip south to Oolitic, just north of Bedford.

After deciding on our main refueling stop in Oolitic and several regrouping spots along the way we were off.

On the way out of town we saw a group of another eight or so riders heading out for their planned ride to Nashville. So altogether there were some 26 club members out for a ride.

We naturally split into two compatible groups, but the whole group (plus one extra rider we picked up along the way) did re-groups together in Smithville, Judah, and Oolitic before heading home with the two groups going at their own speeds.

Route to Oolitic

We had a great time as usual posing with Joe Palooka in Oolitic. For those who don't know this is a limestone statue of the comic strip character. It dates from about 1946 and commemorates the 100th anniversary of the big limestone operation in the area, although the sign indicates the limestone quarries began in the 1830s. The limestone for the Empire State Building in NYC came from the quarry just north of town.

The whole group posed with Joe...

(Click on photos, etc., for larger versions.)

After our photo ops we all went a few blocks south to the Casey's convenience store for snacks and drinks.

This ride had quite a few major hill climbs. And here are several different elevation profiles of the route. The first one is derived simply from the map created on MapMyRide.com. The next three are all based on the same GPS recording of the entire ride. You decide which one you like better. Even though the three all used the very same GPS data they gave somewhat different estimates of total climb. I think this is due to different algorithms for interpolating the recorded data, which comes every 4 seconds.

MapMyRide's Pre-profile (est. 1535 ft climb):

Garmin online profile (total climb 4215 ft climb):

Trimble. com profile (5927 ft climb):

Garmin Training Center software profile (3929 ft climb):

More photos of our regrouping time at the Joe Palooka statue can be found at PicasaWeb.

Harrodsburg via Ketcham

Pre-ride chatter centered around the "dogs" on Ketchum. Everybody except me had seemed to have heard about them and everybody had a unique theory to bring. Some with pepper spray; some _hoping_ the dog(s) were gone or restrained; others ready to yell at them to go home.

Kathy grabbed the sweet spot in the shade.

(click for a larger version)

Glenn explains the route to the gathering group:

The group started with 24 riders. We had a good mix of people: Several familiar faces and a few new ones; a father daughter pair dropped by to visit; and somebody who had just joined the club today (he had his printout to show me! ;).

We regrouped on the edge of town at Clear Creek School.

We took the "normal" route out through Olcott park and over to the raceway to Church Lane to Victor Pike to Fluck Mill. Pretty familiar territory for most OWLS riders. At the end of Fluck Mill we turned right to check out a part of Ketchum I had never ridden before. Then the surprise... Hills!

I was ready for the dogs; mentally at least, but nobody warned me about the hills! I honestly had not ridden this section of Ketchum and was myself a little surprised by the climb up out of Cedar Bluff. What about the dogs? All in all I counted 5 dogs. One that I was happy was restrained, two beagle mixes that just wanted to come out and say hi, a brown puppy lab that was too lazy to leave his shade tree, and another one just wondering in a farm field.

After making it off of Ketchum we turned onto Popcorn for a nice downhill all the way into Harrodsburg. After a brief rest it was time to tackle the last "big" hill up Monroe Dam road then the normal Strain Ridge route home.

All in all a great group to ride with!

Glenn Berger

More photos are available at PicasaWeb.

OWLS Go on a Wild Klaus Chase, August 25

By Allan Edmonds

Klaus Rothe led a group of 22 OWLS on a somewhat wild chase...through town and campus, down to Griffey Lake and up the other side. With busy streets at 6pm and many more cars in town because of the impending IU semester, Klaus several times zoomed to the lead and went out into the cross street at a stop sign, stopping cross traffic while our large group moved through. That guy does have...guts.

Klaus instructing the group on our new route:

(Click for a larger version.)

Then we cut over on Bethel to Old 37, down the hill on Audubon Drive through Marlin Hills. But before we got to Business 37 we took "the first right onto a gravel road" for God's sake. We went along N Stone Mill Road for for a somewhat excruciating half or three quarters of a mile. Then we crossed Business 37 on Bayless, connecting to Kinser Pike. Whew! Some hill. Most of us had never been on Stone Mill or on Bayless. (Well, I think I once went _down_. That used to be a sometime Al Abbott shortcut coming back into town from Bottom Road.)

From there it was Bottom Rd to the Sewage Treatment Plant, where we regrouped on a bridge in the shade on W Maple Grove.

Here's the group on W Maple Grove Rd:

(Click for a larger version.)

Then it was more new roads (for me) on N Maple Grove, W Acuff, etc. back to Kinser Pike.

From there we came back a familiar way through Cascades, but still had to deal with a lot of town to get back to the SE part of Bloomington. Along the way people began to drop off and head home. My small group, which thought we were last, enjoyed getting caught near the stadium by several riders who had taken a wrong turn back in the Ellettsville suburbs and had had to backtrack to get back on the route.

It's always fun when someone in our group designs a new route and shares it with us. We proved that one actually can ride a road bike on gravel, at least for half a mile or so. And we found a few roads we'd never been on, several with substantial hills. Thanks to traffic, gravel, and hills my overall moving average was about the lowest it's been this season, around 12.5 mph, closer to what I often average when I include stopped time.

Clay City Almost a Century, August 22

From Stan Ellis

Bryan Park was flurry of activity at 8 AM with a flea market taking up the parking spaces and bicyclists gathering for briefings of the days ride options. I handed out maps to everyone hoping those interested in the century could get to Spencer as I was not sure who was going. We left Bloomington under cloudy & threatening skies.

We arrived in Spencer for the first stop with 12 cyclists including Bill Struemph, Jerry Arvesen, Mike Finger, John Connell, Steve Emery, Jim Schroeder, Mark Villanova, Joe Anderson, Bob DeGroff, Greg on the recumbent (sorry I can't remember your last name) & Paula Turk (from Elkhart). Paula had ridden her first century only the week before so she was a little apprehensive about this ride. Her options were to press on w/us or return by herself. She chose us. I told her the only thing she had to do is keep Joe in sight as he was the "Map Guru". She commented she was the only female and I told her to act as if she was riding with a bunch of big brothers. Greg said not to worry about him as he knew the roads and would probably take a short cut along the way.

The next section to Clay City has a lot of rollers and a lot of gear shifting. Paula had some problems with the chain a number of times which put her way behind. I don't imagine she has to shift that much in her home area. I told Paula to stay in the big chain ring and I would let her know when we came to the hills then leave it in the small chain ring. Bill dropped back to check on us and the three of us pace lined the remaining 10 miles into Clay City.

We had a short but comfortable lunch at the IGA (short for the slow group) but the fast guys were patient and waited for us.

The next section to Worthington is one of my favorite pace line roads, seventeen miles of flat, curvy road. We left Clay City together except for Steve and he had thoughts of getting home early so he left before the rest of the group. That was great because we now had an excuse to run him down. Jim bridged the gap to Steve and they rode together. We worked our way through our pace line and when Mike's turn came we all jumped on the Mike Finger Express. We caught the break away about 3 miles from Worthington and finished together. Steve wasn't getting rid of us that easy.

I told everyone to stock up on food & drink since I wasn't sure if Solsberry would be open. Part of the group was drinking Red Pop & another part was commenting how could anyone drink that stuff. When we left Worthington it was still cloudy and looking like rain at anytime. Actually all day was like that but we stayed dry. The fast guys were still fast but I settled into a slower pace saving my energy for the hills to come. I told Paula it was time for the small chain ring.

The group got pretty spread out on the long uphill grind to Newark but the fast guys were again waiting patiently? for us. Steve decided to head back through Mcville to save time. I guess he realized he couldn't out ride us so he shortened the route (just kidding). We now had ONLY the "3 Sisters" and Solsberry hill climbs. As we approached Solsberry I told Paula if she could get to Solsberry she would be home free.

The Yoho store was open and the locals were friendly. One older gentleman in particular was interested in our equipment and the bike club. I told him we only had one rule to ride with us and that was you had to wear a helmet. I then proceeded to leave with out mine......what a dummy.

As we rode back on Highway 43 the peloton broke up into groups of 2s & 3s, everyone had a buddy to ride with. I noticed Mark was dropping back form the front group and I thought he was being a nice guy. When I caught up w/him he looked terrible. He said he wasn't sure he could make it so since we were close to Rosie's, Mark and I stopped. If you have to bonk what a better place?

Mark caused quite a stir in the restaurant looking as he did. The waitress brought him cold towels and an ice pack. Everyone in the place was showing concern and one couple even offered Mark a ride home. Nothing like southern Indiana hospitality. I asked Mark if he could eat and eat he did; Apple pie w/ice cream, coffee, lots of water, a double caffeine Power gel, coffee and a Milky Way. I knew if he could eat we could get him back on the road. If you can't eat you might as well call for a ride. As we were leaving one of the customers asked if we knew a guy by the name of "Harley Davidson" since we were on 2 wheeled vehicles.

Since the skies were looking threatening over the Bloomington area I wasn't riding home in the rain by myself so Mark had to ride, no excuses. It must have worked as Mark rode around in the Bryan Park parking lot to get his magic "100 miles".

I want to thank all who joined us and a special thanks to Paula. I had asked her if she had ridden in the Hilly Hundred but she said she was afraid she might not be able to handle it. No problem! Whomever in the club that originally sent the ride notice to Paula please get this to her if you would.

We had a rather diverse group with fast riders and some not quite so fast but I think everyone had a good time. I averaged 16.3 mph, about the middle of the group.

Thanks for listening!

Winery Social Ride, August 23

By Allan Edmonds

Kathy Smith and Ralph Zuzolo continued their longstanding tradition of leading a Sunday afternoon social ride out to the Oliver Winery, with an informal picnic on the winery grounds before heading back to the park. As usual Mark Napier drove a sag vehicle so that riders could send a snack along with him or commission him to transport purchases back to Bryan Park.

About a dozen riders took part in this 25 mile round trip event on this cool August afternoon.

Gathering in Bryan Park

This shot doesn't do justice to the classic 1980s BBC jersey on the left!

Regrouping after the first crossing of Highway 37 at Kinser Pike.

We got fairly spread out, but eventually everyone made it to the winery.

One neat tidbit: Stan Ellis reported that a study showed that the three top reasons people visit Monroe County are

1. IU

2. Lake Monroe

are you ready?

3. Oliver Winery

We headed back home in a couple of different groups with some accepting a sag ride back to the park.

The scariest part of the whole trip was crossing a very busy Highway 37 FOUR TIMES. (Is this all because of the IU fall semester which opens in one week?)

Busy Saturday, August 22

By Allan Edmonds

Bryan Park Pool Parking Lot was more crowded than usual this Saturday at 8 a.m. We had our usual large group of Saturday riders, more than enough for the two separate rides that set out to a certain amount of kerfluffle. But we also had a big city-sponsored garage sale filling up the lot across Woodlawn, with buyer vehicles parking in "our" lot.

Stan goes over plans for the Clay City Ride.

Stan Ellis, leader par excellence of the Clay City almost-a-century ride, got things organized, distributing maps, deciding the main stops, including food stops, etc. About 8:10 we all set out, with eleven of us heading east on South Downs toward Nashville, doing a small, common, variant of the club's Nashville Ride (Old Hilly Hundred route), but taking Owl Creek (naturally enough) down to Helmsburg Road. The other larger group headed out 7th Street toward Spencer.

When the OWLS group was crossing College Mall Road we encountered Rudy Savich heading west, late, toward the park. That put him at least a ten minute deficit to the main group.

Ron dropped back to work on a squeaky brake. Although we learned later that he continued the ride, he never caught up and eventually decided to take a more leisurely break in Nashville.

Some of Lanham Ridge was quite rough. I was holding on for dear life. It was only later at the turn onto Owl Creek that noticed I had lost my trusty old CatEye computer which I had had for the last nine or ten years, with not even a battery change. The mount broke last year and since then I had been using a different mount in which the computer fit rather loosely. Oh well. These things happen. Its odometer showed something over 15,000 miles.

It seemed like it might rain, so we were anxious to get to the Shell Station in Nashville before it started. But we never got more than a little spittle...not really a sprinkle, even. Even so the temperature remained in the low 60's for the whole ride, and more than one rider went with the temptation for coffee over Gatorade or soda. Ken bought a bag of doughnut holes at the shop next door and shared them around.

We then headed out for Bear Wallow, the first time ever for some of our group, and the first time in the south-to-north direction this year for any of us. At the top of the long steady climb we briefly regrouped and took a photo of some of our group in front of the wallow.

We returned following the standard route to Bean Blossom, then in on 45, with a detour on South Shore Drive. We covered the 52 miles in a little over 4 hours, including stops.

As for the Clay City crowd ... [to be continued when I hear more]

Scenic Shiloh, Thursday, August 20

By Allan Edmonds

Tom Reynolds led a good group of OWLS on what was one of our longest and fastest evening rides of the season. We went out 45 to Bethel, then down Boltinghouse, over to Old 37, back east along Anderson, regrouping just before Shiloh Road. We then made the long climb up Shiloh to Tunnel and 45. At that point all but one of us, who had the farthest to go home, took Mount Gilead Getty's Creek and Kerr Creek back to Highway 46 and home. Altogether the ride amounted to about 32 miles, plus mileage from home to the start and back. This slower rider ended up averaging 14.9 mph home to home.

A highlight of the pre-ride organization time, while Tom handed out custom maps and described the route, was Shelley showing off her new TEAM ESTROGEN jersey.

Editorial: Thoughts on Safety

By Allan Edmonds

A couple of minor incidents during this Saturday's ELLSTIGOSPEWHI Ride have put safety issues on my mind. The club really should have fairly regular conversations about safe and appropriate riding habits, especially as some of our rides get larger and involve a broader cross-section of ability and experience.

One small incident involved me. As I approached a four-way stop sign, with the intent of letting the car to my left go first, another rider came up behind me and zipped through the intersection on my right, having seen the driver wave us through. No harm done. But I was disconcerted. What was at stake here was communication between cyclists and also sending consistent signals to other riders and to drivers.

Another incident on the same ride: Those on the ride may remember passing a group preparing for a funeral at a church in Gosport. It turns out that one of our club members was among the group at the funeral and observed us whiz by without much regard for stop signs. What was interesting was that this club member got to hear his fellows' observation that those cyclists didn't show much respect for the rules of the road. No physical harm was done. But harm was done to others' attitudes and opinions about cyclists.

We simply cannot be too careful when we are out on our bikes. There was a tragic story of a long-time League of American Bicyclists member and local safety advocate in South Carolina who was killed this summer when he inadvertently turned left into the path of an oncoming car. This was someone known as the most safety conscious rider and someone who constantly taught his fellow riders safe cycling. And even he made one disastrous mistake of inattention.

I don't intend to preach to the club. But I do think we need that ongoing conversation about safety and consistency as we live out the rules of the road. And in that spirit I want to offer a few more comments.

To our credit essentially everyone wears a helmet on club rides. And we all stop at red lights. (Well, there have been a couple of times over the years when we came to a red light that we couldn't trip without a car behind us. We then invoked the "three-minute rule", waiting for a safe time to cross and then just did it.)

I think we need to show more respect for stop signs, especially in town, but also in the wider area. We need to think more about how many riders should go through a stop sign as a group.

We need to do more with hand signals and voice communication among ourselves, especially as we approach intersections or stops. Some of us are good at that. But I for one tend not to do as good a job at this kind of communication as I should.

I've recently noticed more riders calling out "clear" as they go through an intersection. That's okay. But all riders should remember that it is ultimately their own personal responsibility to be sure it is safe to proceed. Someone who calls "clear" doesn't have the right to authorize you to blow through an intersection. On the other hand, warnings like "Car left" are really important reminders to watch out.

Let's do everything we can to make cycling safe and enjoyable. Let's regularly discuss safety as a club.

Adopt-A-Road, Sunday, August 16

Sunday afternoon, August 16, was our club's quarterly service activity of road clean-up along our adopted mile of Old Highway 37, south of town from where it crosses State Road 37, down to Ketcham Road. Here's a map showing "our road":

(Click for a larger version.)

For a bigger map with more context see this map at MapMyRide.com.

Some fifteen club members showed up to scour the road sides for trash and recyclables. It took a little over an hour of hot work, with most sections of the road getting double scrutiny.

Here's the sign at the south end of our stretch:

(Click for a larger version.)

Yellow bags are for trash. Blue for recyclables. You get to keep all money found.

Red vests and gloves were provided. Everyone had to view an on-line video and sign a waiver before participating. Hats, sunscreen, and insect repellent were all appropriate.

Mark noticed this snake, which was surprisingly willing to stay and watch us watching him:

(Click for a larger version.)

Afterwards we gathered briefly for cool drinks and snacks before departing.

Here are some 10 of the 15 volunteers who helped out:

(Click for a larger version.)

There was a nice mix of new folks and experienced hands. Next time a call goes out for volunteers maybe you would also like to help out. A special thanks to club president Jennifer Miers for doing the work to develop and organize this service project!

ELLSTIGOSPEWHI, Saturday, August 15

Jim Schroeder led the club on a 57 mile adventure through Ellettsville, Stinesville, Gosport, Spencer, and Whitehall. (Have you figured out the name of the ride yet?) The route involved familiar bits from several different rides, somewhat reminiscent of the way the Ride Around Bloomington does. Perhaps the most interesting parts were the new roads that took us from Gosport northwest beyond McCormick's Creek State Park: Hollybrook Rd, Phillips Rd (part called Wesley Chapel), and, especially Rocky Hill Rd the last 6 miles down into Spencer. Here's a link to a copy of the map at mapmyride.com.

Here's Jim trying to get some of the 29 riders organized.

Klaus Rothe undertook a major task of documenting the day in photos. He met us at the park and then drove along the route, periodically stopping at strategic spots to take photos of club members during the ride. He has an album of 134 great images that can be accessed at Club Ride 8-15-09. I recommend the Carousel view.

Here's a view of our stop in Stinesville:

When we got into Spencer we were a bit undecided what to do in part because Jim had just said that there were lots of places to stop. My little group reconnoitered on Main Street. As we stood there, a fellow came along and commented how we must be having trouble deciding which way to go. All but one of us were pointing south. But Ron Brown was pointed north. We asked the man to take a photo of us:
Our group of eight decided not to go over to the Sunoco station. After a little drinking and eating on the street we just headed out of Spencer to attack the aptly named Cemetery Hill on the way toward Hwy 43 and Whitehall.

Altogether a fine day. We were happy to get back around 1 pm, given the heat of the summer day.

OWLS do Karst Farm, August 13

Tom Reynolds led an OWLS group of around 18 riders on a 28 mile route to the west. Here's a link to his map, which I called the Karst Ride, out Woodyard, by Karst Farm Park, the airport, and the Fairgrounds.

Tom goes over the planned route:

(click to enlarge)

Tom checks whether everyone is there before leading us out from a stop:

(click to enlarge)

Last regroup near Monroe Hospital before heading home:

(click to enlarge)

Madison Double Century, August 8-9

By Jennifer Miers

Mike Finger, Paul Toth, Steve Emery, Stan Ellis, Kathy Smith and Mark Napier embarked Saturday morning from Bryan Park for the Madison Double Century. With lodgings procured, participants chose different ways to enjoy the weekend. Mark and Kathy planned to drive directly to Clifty Falls State Park and explore a 60 mile loop ride from there on Saturday, joining the other riders on Sunday for the route home. Melanie Miller and Pat Muyskens headed down to Madison via Stream Cliff Herb Farm in Commiskey. They would join the group for dinner Saturday night, then hike in the park and schlep the shops in Madison on Sunday. Stan Ellis, back on the bike after a midsummer injury, planned to test knitting bone and muscle on the more scenic parts of the ride and help drive the SAG vehicle. Mike, Paul, and Steve opted for a speedy century south Saturday, arriving at the Inn shortly after 3:00 p.m.

The century routes used for the weekend were an amalgamation of a Rudy Savich Double Century route, part of Joe Anderson’s TRIRI routes, and a significant amount of handlebar research on the part of Jim Schroeder. Jim devised a two day course that incorporated some new roads, great scenery and good climbs. In the end, Mother Nature also put her touch on our final route as flood waters from rain at the beginning of the week lapped at Brownstown and cutoff access to Medora from the east.

Heltman's at Spurgeon's Corner on Hwy 135 features fresh

sandwiches, pizza, AND indoor plumbing

Riders were in familiar territory as the group headed out Highway 45 toward Nashville, via Lanham ridge and Owl Creek Roads. From there it was a quick hop to Spurgeon’s Corner on Highway 135 where the group took its first rest and Stan would join the pack. The road was clear of storm debris but mud smeared pastures and fields showed where creeks had recently jumped their banks. Evidence of the week’s rain was more obvious further south where one of the first county roads on our route was closed due to high water. As it has been frequently in recent memory, US 50 at Brownstown was again surrounded by water. By the time our group approached Saturday, water had receded off of low-lying areas of Highway 250 allowing riders to head east from Dudleytown and, happily, avoid a 10 mile detour. Once past Uniontown, the roads got more interesting and the scenery improved markedly. A profusion of Queen Ann’s Lace nodded by the roadside and all makes and models of horses stoically watched two and four-wheeled traffic pass. Favored with a tailwind, riders pushed themselves faster through this section of rollers and curves near Paris Crossing and Paris (proper). A turn at Lancaster on to Rector Road brought riders closer to the state park and past, (possibly) the largest collection of concrete lawn characters yet assembled in a single yard.

Temperatures approaching 90 and crosswinds made the Clifty Inn a welcome sight Saturday at mile 106. The Inn boasts an indoor pool (in addition to the park’s outdoor pool), a good restaurant and a great view of the Ohio River. Another welcome sight was the small cooler of beer Stan, probably a Boy Scout in his younger days, had the foresight to pack. Apparently that organization does not award a “church key” badge, as a bottle opener failed to accompany the aforementioned cooler. A screw driver, procured from the Clifty Inn front desk, saved the day.

Enjoying a downhill on Hwy 250

Mark and Kathy

While Kathy and Mark enjoyed the Inn’s restaurant (desserts come highly recommended), the rest of the group drove five minutes to downtown Madison in search of dinner. A classic car show was in progress on Main St. but protein trumped Packer, and a hasty retreat was made to a bar and grill. The evening ended with a pleasant walk along the Ohio River and a stop at the Madison Creamery to replenish calcium stores.

The Ohio was shrouded in fog Sunday when riders gathered at the well-stocked breakfast buffet to gird their loins for the long journey home. By the time the last pancake disappeared the fog had lifted and a clear sky boded the warm day ahead. Mark took the wheel of a second SAG vehicle and five cyclists; Kathy, Mike, Paul, Stan and Steve, started the day. Riders enjoyed descending the steep mile to the south park gate and set out on the gentle climb out of the river valley on Highway 56.

A short stretch on Highway 62 with the accompanying traffic was the price to pay for beautiful, no-traffic Highway 356 to Lexington. Saturday’s first stop was slated for Scottsburg, short of mile 30, where riders stocked up on liquids for the lonely, non-commercial stretches ahead. In about ten miles the exhaust, fast-food, concrete and litter of US 65 was forgotten in the tranquil, tidy environs of Little York.

Cooling off before the Rooster Hill climb with knob escarpment in background

Detouring around another high water closure on Highway 39, the five riders made their way to the heretofore unknown hills and valleys of Mt. Eden Road. The road skirted the base of the wooded knobs in this area, providing some good climbs, intermittent shade, and views of flooded fields in the bottoms. Temperatures had hit the upper eighties and riders were consuming a lot of water. A sympathetic farmer unlocked his well pump and offered cool water for head-soaking. Thus refreshed, they climbed 2 miles over a knob via Rooster Hill Road. The farmer was impressed.

For the Cutters, Stan Ellis

Recovery drink. Hey, that's not chocolate milk!

Back on Highway 135 the group encountered another “road closed” sign blocking access to Medora from the east via Highway 235. They retired to the Vallonia Gas and Grill for lunch (homemade sweet breads for sale at the register) and to take stock of the situation. Saturday’s rides had taken a toll and now, at mile 65, heat and lack of shade were upping the ante and slowing the pace. Reaching Medora to rejoin the route (which included some healthy climbing on Old US Highway 50 to Leesville and a few packs of energetic dogs) would require a 15 mile detour. Satisfied with another 60+ mile ride, Kathy decided to join Mark for an air-conditioned ride home. The remaining four riders chose to abandon the route and continue north on Highway 135, picking up Highway 58 near Freetown, and suffering the chip and seal of Highway 446 for a no hassle, familiar slog home. SAG stops where now requested every 15 miles (or the next batch of shade, whichever came first) so the salt-encrusted riders could continue consuming the gallons of water and Gatorade needed to keep them upright. Stan suffered some cramping and at the 58/446 junction, with nearly 160 miles under his belt (jersey) for the weekend , he agreed to help (wo)man the SAG truck. Not too shabby after a serious injury and 6 weeks off the bike!

The smell of hay was strong at our final stop, the Fishin’ Shedd, and spirits lifted when plans were made to reconnoiter at Mike’s house for a celebratory beer. Much deserved after 213 miles!

Thanks to the participants for signing on to this BBC adventure.

Virtual Bike Lanes

There's an interesting video of a prototype laser-type gadget that projects a moving bike lane on both sides of your bike as you ride along. Take a look at a video at Virtual Bike Lane.

OWLS do Victor, Old 37, Strain Ridge, August 11

Greg Simmons led a group of 21 OWLS riders on a pleasant 25 mile ride southwest of town. Mike from New Orleans made a short speech about how much he had enjoyed riding with the club over the summer. He's heading to Ohio State for graduate school now. He's already made contact with some riders there.

Greg went over the route in detail and we left the staging area promptly at 5:45. I tried to get a few shots of the group heading out. Ordinarily I tend to be toward the back of the group and it's often hard to get far enough ahead to stop and take pictures.

Here are a couple of shots take at 5:45-5:46 as we left:

We headed south on Sare Road, then through Olcott Park to pick up the standard club route south out of town. We continued through neighborhoods to Church Lane, then west, picking up Victor Pike as we crossed 37.

We traveled south on Victor, to Ketcham, then south on Old 37 to near Harrodsburg, where we headed toward Lake Monroe. We picked up Strain Ridge toward Smithville. Then we came back into town on Fairfax, Moffet, Harrell, etc.

Here we are at our stop after turning onto Strain Ridge road:

Our final stop in Smithville at the PO. Tom is really enjoying how well he was able to pull Klaus's leg with his story about riding all of RAAM in his big chain ring, even through the mountains.


Stops were at the service station at Victor Pike and 37, the Ketcham turn onto Old 37, Strain Ridge after turning off Monroe Dam Rd, and the Old Post Office in Smithville.

One feature of OWLS riding this summer has been that we often do a route again but in the opposite direction. We've now done this one twice in the counterclockwise direction and once in the clockwise direction.

Here's a link to a map of the route we took: Victor, Old 37, Strain Ridge Route

M and M, Saturday, August 8

There was a plethora of riding opportunities this Saturday. The scheduled club ride was "Dr. T's Funky 50". Meanwhile a group was doing the Madison Double Century, riding to Madison on Saturday and back home on Sunday. There was also a charity ride, the Mother Hubbard Ride, that some club members planned to do. So many rides....so little time.

To complicate matters, some OWLS decided among themselves to do the M and M Ride up north, on the grounds that we had just been down south the week before and also didn't much want to ride on the still fresh chip and seal on 446.

Eight of us opted for M and M. Riders on the other options are encouraged to submit ride reports for the blog.


First regroup at the entrance to the Morgan Monroe State Forest.

(Click to enlarge.)


The first half of the ride was uneventful as we made our way in the cool of the morning up to our usual stop at the Shell Station in Martinsville.

Out of Martinsville we headed into the prevailing south/southwest wind in our traditional pace line while the road was flat.

At about the half way point of this sixty mile ride a dog suddenly darted out from across the road and CE ran over it and went down hard. Some folks came by in a car and helped when we at first thought we'd need an ambulance. But CE soon perked up and after cleaning up a bit was amazingly able to ride on, with only a skinned elbow, a bent derailleur and bunged up shifter.

Ron had been right behind CE and hit CE's bike, but did not go down. Maybe that's how CE's derailleur got bent. In any case Ron realized his wheel was way out of true and pulled out a spoke tool to work on it.

[Added 8/15/09: Ron subsequently explained better what happened. He wrote, "I was not behind him but rather even with him on his right side. When CE hit the dog I surged ahead of him. This was a combination of CE slowing down and me accelerating to get out of the way. After CE hit the dog he fell or turned to his right clipping my back wheel.]

Three ponies came over to learn wheel truing technique from Ron:

(Click to enlarge.)

The rest of the ride was mostly uneventful, although the afternoon was warming up considerably. When he got back to the park CE headed straight to a local bike shop to get necessary repairs done. I imagine he was pretty sore the next day.

There was little that could have been done by us to prevent this accident. According to the people who stopped to help, it was well known in the area that this dog was allowed to wander free. The owners did not present themselves. Altogether two things are certainly clear, though: You can't be too careful around dogs. And it pays to ride in a group in case something does happen.s

Northern Exposure. Thursday, August 6

Tom Reynolds led this ride, which he calls "Simpson Chapel Ride".

Here's Tom getting us organized, complete with custom maps, before we set out.

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Tom led us out north through town to Bottom Rd, where we flew along the bottom lands. We then climbed Simpson Chapel, where we regrouped shortly before getting to Sample Rd. Then we went across on Sample Rd, toward town on Old 37, up Fire House Hill, for our last regrouping. We then headed down to Griffey Lake and up Headley and home through town.

We had 18 riders on a nice summer evening. Shelley broke a derailleur cable on the way out and wisely decided to head back toward town before climbing Simpson Chapel. Reports are that she did need to walk on the way back up the hill from Bottom Rd. CE accompanied her back home. (By Saturday's ride she had apparently gotten a full tune up, with new cables, as well as a new chain and cassette to boot.)

Here are some of the group at the rest and water stop on Firehouse Hill.

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Overall we had a ride of about 28 miles, with several good hill climbs: Club House Dr (or should we call it Monastery Hill?) in Cascades, Simpson Chapel, Firehouse Hill, and Hinkle Rd up from Griffey Lake. As usual on the way back into town the group split up into twos and threes as people headed home.

Oh We of Little Faith, Tuesday, August 4

After a stormy afternoon with heavy rains and high winds in the area, five intrepid riders showed up for the Tuesday OWLS ride. Interestingly enough, those who showed up were all people who had been unable to ride this last weekend with the club and were itchy for a ride, come hell or even, more likely, high water.

After some discussion of opting for a shorter ride they eventually decided to do the scheduled basic out and back ride to Muscatuck, which comes in at over 28 miles or so, from the usual OWLS starting place. Rains were predicted with probability of 50% by 7 pm, but it now looks like they lucked out and got the whole ride in before the rains came. Yours truly just showed up on my hybrid to take a picture of the brave souls before they set out. No way I could keep up on my hybrid anyway. Hope to see a bigger group on Thursday.

Dan, Klaus, Greg, Leader Shelley, and Kathy, Bravehearts All

Annual Pool Party, Sunday, August 2

Club members and their families enjoyed a nice evening at Bryan Park Pool. The turnout seemed a little lower than usual, with many people out of town. We hoped to see more of those completing Rudy's Double Century, but just talked to a few who only did the morning half.

Club VP Tom Whitehead was selling our club jerseys and several people got them. If you'd like one, just contact Tom by email at . As a special bonus, surplus 2009 RAIN t-shirts were offered for free to any club member at the party.

Linda shows her new club jersey.

Mark displays his new club jersey, while Bob looks on.

Most people just talked and ate. But most kids swam and even a few adults.

Proof that at least one club member swam a lap.

I still can't understand why more people don't take advantage of the opportunity to fly down the water slide a few times. When else does a grownup get such a chance? And with no wait in line to boot.

There was lots of Avers pizza. A number of people took some home. And we even gave pizza to the lifeguards when the end of the evening came.

Larry Limestone Tour, August 1

By Allan Edmonds

It was an almost unbelievably perfect summer day and a perfect ride.

Jerry Arveson developed this new "drive and ride" route for a 56 mile loop starting at Heltonville, encompassing new territory on the south side and encompassing parts of Hoosier Hills rides on the north side. He included a 42 mile short option, cutting off a good part of the upper left loop heading back to Heltonville.

Larry Limestone Route Map

There were three riding groups taking part. A group of 8 or so "hammerheads" who opted to ride in the 22 miles or thereabouts from Bloomington, turning this touring ride into a century. A group of 6 or 8 OWLS types drove to the meeting place at the old elementary school on State Road 58. There was also a good female contingent, including one on her first Saturday club ride. Of course the dividing line between these groups wasn't entirely fixed. Altogether around 20 riders took part.

As Jerry reported, he adapted this route from a local fund raising ride he discovered on the web. He scouted it out carefully and prepared good maps for everyone. He made sure no one missed a turn at the two or three places he thought someone might go wrong.

Jerry planned three refueling stops. We stopped briefly in Leesville. Each group stopped at a little store old-fashioned shop in Buddha for quick refueling. Most took a second stop at a service station at the intersection of State Road 446 and US 50, requiring a 1 mile out and back on a slightly busy highway. (And those Hammerheads refueled again in Heltonville before heading for home.)

Stop in Buddha

I can't speak for the other groups, but the OWLS had a great day. It was a good distance and the weather was a treat. And it was fun to explore some new territory. And it was nice to sit comfortably in a car for the half hour drive back to Btown.

P.S. Whoever named that stretch along the southern edge of the route the Devil's Backbone knew what he was doing!

P.S.S. Mike Conway took the photo above and some more, which you can view at

Larry Limestone Album.