Cooky's Solo

The cold, snowy weather finally broke and with the month winding down, it was time to ride a 200k. No one I knew could ride this past weekend, so I took off on the Route 66 & Cooky's Pie Permanent on Sunday morning at 6:30 in a heavy fog. Rail traffic has been down, but I had to wait for a train at Nichols Junction. Fortunately, it was a short train. I had already gotten damp from the fog and would chill quickly whenever I stopped for any length of time. The ride outbound was uneventful, and the fog held up all the way to Golden City. Riding in the fog is almost like riding at night. Many of the landmarks disappear, so that the sense of time and distance is lost. Judy, my wife, met me at Cooky's for a leisurely lunch, and the fog had broken when I left a little after Noon.

The Cooky's route has a number of dogs that usually aren't much of a problem, but this time there were some new ones. I was chased by two large dogs at one time on the way out, but easily pulled away. Fortunately, they were not around on the way back. Inbound, there was a large German Shepard, with a cowbell tied to its neck, that charged about a hundred yards across his yard. Now why would anyone tie a cowbell to a dog unless it is to warn of your imminent demise. The Shepard stopped about 10 feet away after four or five sharp NOs, although he may have also recognized the can of Halt! I had in my hand.

As I was passing the Springfield airport, I heard the train whistle behind me and I was glad I beat it to the crossing on FR 124. I then heard the whistle ahead of me at Nichols Junction, so I expected it to be clear when I got there, but it was a coal train that was still adding cars in Wyoming. I made it back a minute after 17:00. That makes at least one 200k each of the last seven months.

Waiting for the train in the damp dark














Still foggy in Halltown














About 1/2-mile visibility














Ready to head back



















New signs on Historic Route 66














End of the coal train

Cycling in the Netherlands in the 1950s

I particularly like the family out for a ride in their cycle car.

First Ride of the Year

Springbike Bicycle Club held their annual New Year's Day ride even though the temperature was about 10 degrees below the 30 degree cutoff. The sky was clear, so once we got going I was not cold. The ride started from the Logan Elementary School, east of Springfield, at 11:00 a.m. There were 22.5 and 30 mile options. About 15 riders showed up. The four cyclists I rode with rode the 30-mile route.

Not a very good self portrait














Bundled up for the cold

RUSA 2000K Medal

Randonneurs USA members who ride at least 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 4,000, or 5,000K in qualifying events during a calendar year receive a medal. I rode 2,342K this year.

Marshfield Mash 112K Permanent Populaire

A new Permanent Populaire has been approved by Randonneurs USA. The Marshfield Mash 112K starts at the Kum & Go across from Sam's on East Sunshine, heads southeast to Rogersville and then northeast to Marshfield. It is an out-and-back. Let me know if you want to ride it. You must be a member of RUSA to ride.

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