Salt Lake Century 5-21-2011

What a great day for the ride, 49F leaving the house and light winds. Running a little late I made the choice to join the ride at 700 North and Redwood road. That proved to be a good decision placing me about 1/3 back from the front.  All the hard chargers out of view so no chance of thinking I could  catch them.

The ride had 36, 67 and 100 mile routes; I chose the 67 mile knowing that I would end up just short of 80 miles by riding to and from the event start/finish from home. 

The Salt Lake sections had good intersection management, after that you were pretty much on your own. Most everyone did a great job of passing and crossing major road intersections.  The section along Redwood Road by the Skypark Airport  was kept short, north bound does not have a real bike lane, south does have wide section that helps keep some distance between cars and bicyclists. 

Crossing over to the east side of I-15 the route headed north eventually arriving at South Park for the first rest stop and the turnaround for the 36 mile route.  Lots of food items and liquids to replenish whatever needs you might have.

Leaving there you headed north to Glover lane, crossing over I-15  and starting the journey zigzagging finally going west on Gentile street connecting to Bluff going North West. Turning left on Gordon Ave and then a right on 3000 west to the lunch rest stop.  This was a welcome stop with a great choice for lunch, snacks and drinks.

I have learned riding the MS 150 to not spend too much down time, enjoy the break but get rolling after eating and extra hydration.  I took 1 large water bottle and that was barely enough, any warmer and it would have been too little.

The return was going to be the challenge as forecast winds should have been 8 mph SW, they felt less and at times felt NW along the section south of Glover Lane east of I-15. One more time stopping  at South Park for more water, couple of bars and back on the road.

Don’t let rides of this kind scare you off, they are great way to challenge your abilities, plus most everyone has been at the same point of getting into condition. Ride at what you are comfortable with, these are not races, there are some that would like to make them races, it’s your personal goals that are important.  Getting fit and having a good time, that’s says it all.

Airport to Saltair

5-12-2011

Out to Saltair and back, Thursday evening and what a nice ride, well other than the bugs. Huge columns along the route in the water areas, of which there are many. 

39 miles for me from home and back, I took the long way out and short back, this changes the ride length about 4 miles. Some construction debris along the road in a couple of sections and the concrete section that runs for 1.5 miles, this ends at just south of the transmitter tower, KSL I believe.

Gates on the airport having conflicting times, one side says open from 5:00 am to 10:00 pm, others say 5:30 am to 10:00 pm, should not really affect many. 

You can park just east of the gate for the airport on the old North Temple and head out from there, this makes a 21 mile ride round trip that is flat and if the winds are mild its easy in both directions.

I generally ride into the wind I determine this by using the following site,  http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/forecast/wxtables/index.php?lat=40.80861223601287&lon=-111.96441650390625&table=custom&duration=1&interval=1

You will want to change settings for your needs, things like interval and duration in days and the actual location.  You can enter different information in the window for personalizing the map. I use this map all the time and it has been very good information, just knowing expected conditions in those early and late season rides can make a big difference.

Legacy 5-6-2011

The Legacy Parkway out and back is in great condition other than a section north of I215. It appears that some construction is going on just prior to the wood decked bridge there, as a result a lot of mud/rocks and other debris is scattered about.

Bugs, yes they are out, I rode around 4:00 pm along the path and they were plentiful. Lucky for me my helmet has a bill that if I tuck down it helps send them around the side. I have seen many riding with bandanas over their nose and mouth, problem also exists along the Jordan River. Middle of the day is better if you’re fortunate enough to have time then.

No matter what get out and ride, Often!