Frozen Apple Butter

I went to Baxter Springs again on Saturday, December 5, to ride the Apple Butter 200K permanent with Nancy and Mike Myers. We started the ride at 7:00AM and 24 degrees. The high for the day was only about 42 degrees, so we were bundled up all day. I started with four layers (all long sleeve): a silk T, a synthetic T, a smartwool jersey and a cotton jacket. I removed the synthetic T in Sarcoxie and my helmet cover in Mt. Vernon. I was a little chilled on the return after the sun went down. This was the first 200K I have ridden where I never really sweated. On the way to Mt Vernon, we had a little bit of a push from the 12 to 20 mph wind that started out from the south but then shifted to the SSW. Fortunately, it shifted back to the south as the afternoon progressed so that we did not have to push against it all the way back to Baxter Springs. The skies were mostly clear all day, which helped make for a relatively pleasant ride in the cold. I did not take many pictures because it is too hard to handle the camera while riding with my winter gloves.

Congratulations to Nancy and Mike for completing a 200K, or further, each month over the past 12 months, qualifying them for RUSA's R-12 award. I am now halfway to the R-12.

At the control in Mount Vernon

Black Friday on the Frisco Highline Trail

I am a little late on this post. Rae, Doug, Tom and I rode up to Bolivar on the Friday after Thanksgiving. We rode the Frisco Highline Trail to Bolivar and a combination of the trail and road on the way back. I hope to establish a RUSA permanent populaire on the route, and the ride provided mileage and feet of climb for the application.

We left the Kearney Street trailhead at 8:00AM when the temperature was predicted to be just above freezing. We started out on packed gravel until about half way to Willard where we hit the new pavement that has lately raised some controversy with the running community. The pavement continues through Willard where it changes back to packed gravel. We saw a bald eagle in a field near the trail between Willard and Walnut Grove. It flew off when we came close.

After the Willard Trailhead, the quality of the trail surface is not as good. There are a number of locations where the trail has washed out in the past, so the surface is not packed. There was only one little place where we actually had to dismount because of a washout, which was pretty good considering I was only running 28mm tires. The trail did not match up well with some of the bridge surfaces, and we had to dismount rather than risk a pinch flat. We rode and carried the bikes across Missouri Highway 13 rather than take the streets into town. On the north side of Highway 13, the trail turns into a single track for about 1/2 mile. We arrived at the trailhead about 11:00AM. Total climb was 1,030 feet.

We had a late breakfast at Norma's Restaurant on East Maupin. The pancakes were so big they almost hung over the edge of the plates.

We rode the trail back south to U Highway where we took to the road. We stopped at Bolton's General Store on BB Highway, and got back on the trail in Willard. Total feet of climb for the return was 1,630 feet. Most of the additional climbing was on the hill coming into Morrisville and the climb out of the Little Sac River valley.

The ride was a much better way than shopping to spend Black Friday. We hope to make it an annual tradition.

Heading out from the Kearney Street trailhead














Walnut Grove trailhead














Doug on the Little Sac River bridge














Passing under the trail on the ride back

Apple Butter 200K

Yesterday was another great day to ride a 200K. I joined Nancy and Mike Myers for the inaugural run of their Apple Butter 200K permanent from Baxter Springs, KS, to Mt. Vernon, MO. Mt. Vernon has an annual apple butter festival. With the change from daylight savings time, we planned to leave at 6:30AM. We ran into a glitch when the first control was not open, but we were able to get a gas receipt. The time switch was a problem at several of the controls because their cash register clocks had not been reset. The temperature at the start was 48 degrees, slightly warmer than predicted, and the wind was out of the south. The route goes right through Joplin on 20th Street, but traffic was light both outbound and inbound. It probably helped that it was a Sunday. The temperature was close to 60 degrees when we got to the second control in Sarcoxie, MO, so we shed most of our outerwear. The south wind held until we started back from Mt. Vernon when it shifted to the southwest. It was stronger than predicted, at 14 to 19 miles per hour. To keep up with the low-profile recumbent, I drafted quite a bit on the way back. An interesting feature of the route is that there is a significant hill as you enter almost every city or town. There is a fair amount of climbing on the route. Overall, I measured 4,500 feet, and at the turnaround in Mt. Vernon, it was 2,130 feet. This gets me through five of the 12 months I need for the RUSA R-12 award. Nancy and Mike will have 12 months when they complete a 200K in December.

Sunrise in Galena














Nancy & Mike outbound














Getting ready to leave Mt. Vernon














The wind shifted to the southwest

2010 Southwest Missouri Brevets

The Southwest Missouri brevets will again be run through the St. Louis region for 2010. The 200K brevet is on March 20, 2010 and the 300K on April 17, 2010. Both brevets will start in Springfield and follow the same routes as last year. Both events are sanctioned by Audax Club Parisien (ACP). Additional brevets can be found on the RUSA web site.

To Err Again

John Dilsaver and I had planned to ride the Route 66 & Cooky's Pie Permanent on Saturday, but John was not feeling well. Mike and Nancy Myers were riding the To Err is Humansville Permanent, so I decided to ride with them with some apprehension. The Myers ride a recumbent tandem and I have not been riding much, so I was not sure I could keep up with them. We left Strafford at 7:00 AM with the temperature a chilly 34 degrees but no wind. We hit the first control in Buffalo just after 9:00 AM. The wind began to blow out of the southwest at 6-8 miles per hour, but we made good time to Humansville, getting to the control right at noon. The temperature had warmed to a toasty 60 degrees, and the wind picked up to about 14 miles per hour giving us a good push back to Buffalo. Unfortunately, it shifted out of the south as we were leaving Buffalo and I began to tire. The Myers built a lead on me, although they stopped once because they were unsure of a turn. They were soon ahead of me again and were topping the route's biggest and steepest hill on Farm Road 223 as I came off of MO 125. I pulled into the Travel America in Strafford at 5:45 PM, 15 minutes after the Myers. The constant hills helped me generally stay with the Myers because while they were faster on the flats and downhills, I was able to catch up on the climbs. My higher profile into the wind contributed to my slower pace on the last leg south out of Buffalo. I am glad I went because it preserves my string of 200K rides in pursuit of the RUSA R-12 award.

Nancy & Mike Myers

Winter Riding in October

It is already getting too cold for most cyclists to ride in this area. Doug, Rae, Tom, Neil and I headed out this morning at 7:30AM for pancakes at the VFW in Strafford. The temperature was about 40 degrees, and it had rained during the night, so the roads were wet. It looked like the sun was going to breakout on the way to Strafford, but more clouds moved in while we were eating breakfast. As usual, the vets bent over backwards to make sure we got enough pancakes, juice and coffee. We left the VFW just after 9:00AM for Fair Grove, We were going to turn back towards Springfield short of Fair Grove, but we missed the turn and headed on into town rather than backtrack. We had a tailwind on the way back to Springfield, so we made good time. The County paved several of the farm roads this past summer, making for a smooth ride. The sun never came out, but then it never rained either. Hopefully, we will see a warming trend soon. John and I still have a 200K permanent to ride this month.

Kum & Go in Fair Grove

To Err is Humansville 205K

John Dilsaver and I rode this permanent on Saturday. It is the toughest local permanent with 8,930 feet of climb. Fortunately, we picked a great day to ride. It was mostly overcast with no wind. We managed to avoid the rain that was predicted. It was a pretty unremarkable ride. We were chased by a few dogs and saw historic buildings; Texas longhorns; mules; great blue herons as we crossed Pomme de Terre Lake; a bevy of quail in the road and lots of goldfinches feeding along the road. As we were pulling into Humansville on Business MO Highway 13, a couple of ambulances came screaming the other way. When we got into town, we saw a van that had slammed into a telephone pole. We heard later at Nana's Country Cafe that the driver was a local and had a heart attack. Nana's was decorated with a John Deer theme.

John at the 6:00AM start














Control in Buffalo














We saw mules














Lunch stop in Humansville














We saw Texas longhorns, but they stampeded
away when they saw the camera














Log one-room schoolhouse just north of
Fair Grove in Dallas County














Log cabin next to the school house














W.C. Potter House (circa 1888) north of
Fair Grove on FR 221