50 Mile Ride and First Bike Hash

It has been a long, very active day, and a day of firsts: first 50 mile bike ride, first bike hash, first ride in the rain (on purpose). With so many accomplishments in one day, this post is bound to be long, so hang on tight!

Prep
After a much needed long night's sleep, we started the day at 6:15 am, when we arose and started getting ready for our long ride. I ate a banana, got all my gear ready, and we were out the door by 7:10 (10 minutes later than planned). Since we always seem to forget something, Jason had the great idea of creating this visual biking checklist and taping it to the front door so we could spot check it on our way out. Below is a thumbnail of it; click on the image for a larger printable version in PDF form:

The Plan
The plan was for Jason and I to ride up Cady Way and the Cross Seminole Trail to Oviedo, pick up Lisa, Joe, and Andre at the Townhouse Restaurant, ride to Soldier's Field and back, have brunch at the Townhouse Restaurant, then head back home. We estimated we'd get there by 8:30 am, since we were taking it nice and slow because we knew we had a long trek ahead and this was more about endurance than speed. Check out this google map of Central Florida Trails for reference of where we rode.

First Leg: Cady Way-Cross Seminole Trail to Townhouse Restaurant
Even leaving 10 minutes late, we arrived just 5 minutes late, completing the first leg of our journey, 15.4 miles, in 1 hour and 15 minutes @ 12.30 mph. I had made this ride once before, but the last time was right after I got my road bike and I was miserable the whole way because of an uncomfortable seat and other ailments, so I did not take in the sights. This time I had time to really enjoy the trail and the weather was absolutely gorgeous. I want to come back, pack a picnic, and have lunch somewhere along the way.

Second Leg: Cross Seminole Trail to Soldier's Field (roundtrip)

back: Jason and Andre - front: Kitzzy, Lisa, Joe

We headed out with the our little bike gang for a leisurely 18.5 miles in 1 hour and 47 minutes at 10.4 mph. This was such an enjoyable ride that I could hardly believe we had already been riding for 50 minutes when we neared the halfway point. This trail is amazing. It has nice shade and lots to look at along the way. I am really glad I got to experience it without rushing through it. Jason took Lisa and Joe to do a bit of off-roading at Soldier's Field, while Andre and I (both on road bikes) waited at the trail and took pictures. When they got back, Andre and I took off on a speedy sprint to the end of the paved trail where we had to walk our bikes, then we all headed back to Townhouse for some much needed fuel.

Third Leg: Ride Home
After a yummy brunch at Townhouse Restaurant, Jason and I hurried back and tried to beat the rain home. We heard thunder the entire way and the sky threatened to pour, but it never rained. However, the threat of rain was enough motivation to yield us a whopping 13.2 mph average for the 16 miles home. I have no idea where I found the strength to ride this fast after riding 34 miles. As we neared the apartment, I was really close to an even 50 miles, so I rode to the end of the street and back. I was not really as tired as I thought I'd be when I got home, but I was filthy and chafed all over.

Summary of what we did this morning:

• total distance: 50 miles
• moving time: 4h 15m 18s
• total time out: 6h 17m 15s (including brunch at Townhouse, street crossings, etc)
• departure/return time: 7:10 am - 1:30 pm
• average speed: 11.75 mph
• max speed: 21.15 (probably downhill)
• splits:
• 15.4 in 1:15 @ 12:30 mph
• 18.55 in 1:46:58 @ 10.4 mph
• 16.06 in 1:13:16 @ 13.16 mph

We had such a great time that we are already planning a longer ride to Wekiva/Rock Springs where we plan to spend the day tubing before heading back.

Bike Hash

Because 50 miles was obviously not enough, we decided to attend our first bike hash today, and it was a blast! We rode our mountain bikes a little over a mile to the start and watched as the sky opened up and it started to drizzle while we waited for the hare to leave. Despite the rain, they had a huge turn out. Since it wasn't raining that hard, we pressed on and I wasn't miserable riding for almost 6.5 miles in the rain. Because of the rain, most of the trail got washed out and we lost it. We never did find it, but someone knew where the hare lived and guessed correctly that it was the end point. We eventually gave up and headed there. After the usual circle shenanigans, we enjoyed some yummy food: pasta, pizza, and bagels. I will absolutely be doing this again. I think I liked it better than the run hash because despite how tired I am, I can do a better job keeping up on the bike than on foot -- plus I think they always have food at the end :)