#10weeksto100 - Preparing for Your First Long Ride or Century

After learning to ride in comfort and at a reasonable pace, riding farther becomes the next goal for many new riders. Where the focus on power, speed and bike handling of competitive cycling can be intimidating, distance or endurance cycling events are both personally rewarding and fun experiences for riders at any age or skill level.

There are many different ways to be introduced to endurance riding:

• As part of a health goal to improve overall fitness or to lose weight.
• Participating in a charity ride like the Tour De Cure or MS150, that may include daily distances up to 100 miles.
• Vacationing on a multi-day bicycle tour like Ohio's GOBA, Iowa's RAGBRAI or Michigan's DALMAC.
• A more ambitious goal, like the160 mile RAIN (Ride Across Indiana In One Day).
• Or just for the fun it!

Ohio's TOSRV, held every May

Whatever your interest or goal, over the next 10 installments, this series will help you prepare for a fun and comfortable ride through a progressive, weekly riding plan. While this series is focused on a 100-mile ride, (also referred to as a century), this program can be used for preparing for rides of 50 miles (roughly 3 hours of saddle time) or more. In general, riding for 3-4 hours or more can be considered endurance riding. This series can also help you prepare for a multi-day bicycle tour.

It is important to understand that Endurance training is preparing your body in three different ways:

• Cardio Conditioning: Training your heart and lungs for long, steady workouts
• Muscular Conditioning: Legs, back, shoulders, neck and arms all play a role in endurance riding
• Mental Conditioning: This is developing the habits of training, nutrition, pacing and most of all, confidence. Your mental conditioning may also be in making the shift from shorter running or gym workouts to an “all-day” activity like a century or multi-day tour.

During the course of the series, I will also share advice on bike maintenance, clothing, gear and nutrition. I am going to assume you have the bicycle basics covered; a bike you are comfortable riding, a basic understanding of riding safely, and basic cycling skills like shifting. It is also important that you have a bike computer for tracking your speed and miles. You will learn more as you progress, and I am available to answer questions and give advice on all the related aspects.

Week 1:  Three Questions to Ask
Week 2:  The Training Plan
Week 3:  Faster is as Important as Farther
Week 4: Your Bike is Your Training Partner
Week 5: Getting Your Bike Gear in Order
Week 6: Training Aches and Pains
Week 7: How To Find the Time
Week 8: Drink, Eat, Repeat
Week 9: Be Visible, Be Predictable, Be Aware
Week 10: Ten Tips from Experience

Jay on RAIN, 2012

About Jay Hardcastle:  I rode my first century in 1974, riding in cut-off jeans and a t-shirt on a steel-wheeled bike.  Since that first ride, I have ridden over 167 100+ mile events, including the Tour of the Scioto River Valley (2 days 210 miles), the Cascades Bicycle Club Seattle To Portland (1-day, 210 miles), The RAIN Ride (160 miles), the Apple Cider Century and dozens of smaller and ad-hoc centuries.  This experience also includes over 40 events on tandems, and over a half dozen done on a loaded touring bike.

Since 2005, I have taken a special interest in offering guidance to first time century riders, often accompanying them on spring and summer rides here in Indiana.  This series grew from that experience, and was also presented as a special clinic sessions for Bicycle Garage Indy in 2013 and 2014

Coaching vs. Mentoring: This series is intended as mentoring, rather than athlete specific coaching. That being the case, these are broad, general guidelines of a riding style and philosophy.

Medical Advisory: PLEASE consult your physician if you have a chronic condition requiring medication. Endurance riding and training, and the hydration and nutrition changes they bring about, may all have an impact on your medication’s effectiveness and daily needs.

June 2021 Update:  My century total is now 167, and in October of 2018 I rolled over 200,000 lifetime road miles. 

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2015: Road Tire Update

I have already covered our tandem tires for the 2015 season, so I thought I would cover my road bikes experiences.   This was the year I decided that one size does fit all for my road bikes. I had run 700x25 Continental Gatorskins on my Domane for last couple of season.  However, when it came time to replace them, just before TOSRV (2015), I decided to go with 700x28 Bontrager AW R2.   I made the switch for comfort, durability and some KISS convenience.

My tire test lab documentation.

First off, I was looking for little bit more forgiving ride on secondary, chip-n-seal roads, and for my road riding in general.   And the general conditions of road were a factor, wanting a little more insurance for the holes and patching on so many road today.  Combined with the general consensus that larger diameter tires have a lower rolling resistance, it made sense to make the change.

The other reason for the switch was to standardize my spare tubes and bike kits.  For some of my all-day endurance events riding the Domane, I swap the seat bag for an Arkel Randoneur rack and Tailrider rack trunk combo.  The Tailrider is normally on my Assenmacher, my full time sport-touring bike with a rear rack.  By going to 700x28 on both bikes, I didn’t have to worry about a tube miss-match when fixing a flat, or the hassle of moving the correct tubes between bags.

About the only downside for this was the need for a computer reset after changing the tire size. And even that is becoming less important in a GPS-based world. (And I will reset Domane’s computers once I have to change the battery.)

I was also curious to try the Bontrager AW series (I am basically my own tire test lab), having run a set of RL All Weathers on my Assenmacher until the spring of 2014.  So far, I have been very pleased  AW 2 (Hard Case Lite, Aramid bead, 60 TPI casing and 330 grams).  They are an easy mounting Kevlar bead tire, and have run flat-free for over 2,000 miles.  They have no significant cuts, and based on the siping wear, I am likely to see them go over 3,500 miles, especially after rotating the front to rear during upcoming off-season.

Anecdotally, they were a great riding.  Since I was riding the wired bead 700x25, the weight different was only 25grams per wheel.  They handled well for both club and endurance rides (4 centuries and a half dozen 50 mile plus rides) on just about every road surface from crushed limestone to new pavement.

The Hard Case compound has been very cut resistant, and does not "grab" stone chips.
The earlier RL AWs had a soft tread compound that allowed stone chips to embed, resulting in some annoying road flats as they pushed through case, or ended up causing cuts in the tread.

Softer compound tires can be problematic in that way, and is always one of the trade-offs in tire choice.  Prior to 2011, I had been running the Serfas FPV tires, a great value in steel beaded tires, running very high (3,000+) miles.  But then about 2009-10 Serfas switched to a softer compound and my subsequent sets began to regularly pick up stone chips, resulting in more frequent flats.  It had gotten to the point were I was inspecting the tires every couple of weeks, and using a the edge of knife to pull stone chips out of tread before they could cut through the Kevlar flat prevention band.

While I still inspect tires regularly, the newer, harder AW series (and the Gatorskins) do not require this regular vigilance.  One more bit of maintenance I mentioned in my tandem tire article, I am going to rotate tires front to rear during the cold weather season this year.  Im expecting an extra couple of riding months per tire set, along with cutting down my collection of "leftover" high mileage front tires.

My Domane with Arkel rack and Tailrider, TOSRV 2015

As a side bar, how have I kept track of the tires I am using? I have pretty simple method, and it is not tied directly to my extensive bike logs.  When I mount a new set of tires (or install any new component), I write the install date and the bike on the packaging  (or just the cut out details), and that is tossed into into a file drawer on the bottom shelf of my tool bench.  At one time, I had a complete collection of empty component boxes almost every component I had purchased.  But over time, it became impractical to explain this large quantity of empty boxes to my more sensible spouse, who also did not want a large collection of empty boxes packed and moved, regardless of the origin and history.


And now that the 2015 riding season is officially closed, I can share this; I decided to pickup CO-2 inflators for 2015.  And then I went the whole season without a flat on the road*. When tires run trouble free for 4,000+ miles, the bicycle life is good.


*Tire karma will prevent me from EVER mentioning this again.

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1975: My First Tandem

From my start with my first road bike in January of 1973, things happened very fast.  After just one full season, I had my eyes set on a bike upgrade, and in July of 1974 I went from steel wheels on an unknown tubing to alloy wheels and components on a cromoly, double-butted frame.  And then in June of 1975, I bought a tandem.

Ready to leave for Toledo, my brother Todd and I - 1976

I graduated high school in 1975, with no real plans except working and taking a few community college classes in the fall.  The only thing I was was looking forward too was another DALMAC, and that soon evolved into to riding with a some friends to Lansing for the start, and then riding back from Mackinaw City.  But that all came later.

As was local tradition, my high school graduation included an open house, and I accumulated a pretty large (for the `70’s) amount of cash, almost $200.  For an aspiring cook/dishwasher, that was a couple of weeks pay.  About that same time, at a meeting of my bike club at the time, the Jackson Freewheelers, I heard at about a used tandem.  It was already on its third owner, who had to let it go due to some health issues.  The bikes was being sold for $100, and the week after my open house, I made some calls, and it was mine. I borrowed Dad’s pickup truck to bring it home, and found a spot for it on the wall in my bedroom, resting on my rollers (another bicycle related acquisition).

It was a Gitane Interclub Men’s/Mixte tandem, with a frame built from no-name steel.  It was painted white with red lettering and some black pin-striping.  It had drop bars in front and flat bars for the rear, downtube shifters, and steel Suntour derailleurs.  The back of the tandem was only about 20 inches, and there was only about 21” between the seat tubes, making the fit very difficult for any adult with any height at all, for for anyone who wanted to lean over.  (I would only learn about the significance of the fit issues later).

The wheels had chrome steel rims and the rear wheel had a massive hub brake (I would learn it was actually intended for use on mopeds).  The steel cranks were cottered, meaning a pin through the crank arm wedged against a flat spot on the bottom bracket axle to hold them in place.  The tandem probably weighed at least 60 pounds.

I first had to learn how to keep a tandem running, from finding tandem length cables for the rear derailleurs and brakes, adjusting the timing chain tension with the eccentric on the front bottom bracket and learning how to keep it adjusted for riding.  It was a 10 speed (2x10, back in the dark ages).  And once I had it rolling, stopping it was a challenge to, since the dried out Mafac rubber brake pads (on Mafac cantilever brakes) had almost grab on the steel rims, and the drum brake, at best,  barely slowed the bike.

Next,  I had to figure out was who to ride it with.  I had been fascinated with tandems since encountering one on the 1974 DALMAC.  I was hoping it would be fun riding with other riders (specifically, girls!).  It turned out that finding other riders proved to be very challenging, due in part to the small nearby cycling community and my lack of transportation for the first few years I owned it.

Over the next 3 years, while it was ridden just a handful of times each year, I did have some memorable tandem outings.  One of my younger brothers joined me for a 50-mile ride to Toledo to visit our grandparent’s, with Mom driving us home.  I took a few non-riding friends out for random rides of 10 miles or so.  The longest ride came when a friend from my bike club and I rode it 60 miles on our club’s annual fall ride.

I moved to Lansing in 1978, and by the time I met Linda the following summer,  the tandem had not been ridden in 5 or 6 months, and had been partially disassembled for the move and for some cable replacements.  The end result was our first tandem ride was more memorable for all the things that went wrong, rather than the start of lifelong tandem love affair.

Walt of Walt's Bike Shop, adding a second set of cantilevers - 1981

A year later, Linda and I were both living in Missouri for her last year of college, and we began to ride the tandem in earnest that fall. I had spent the summer fixing up the tandem, and that fall, after I started working full-time at Walt’s Bike Shop, I was able to actually begin improving things.  I added better saddles for both us, and found new brake pads.  We were fortunate in that Linda even fit ok on the back for the short, 10-15 mile rides we were starting to enjoy.

But after what I thought would be some routine maintenance, we uncovered the tandems achilles heel. Overhauling the bottom brackets had required removing the factory cotter pins, and that became a running disaster.  Despite trying new cotter pins from multiple sources, I could not find a replacement cotter that would last for more than 20 miles of riding. Within the very first miles, we would start hearing squeaks, and finally one of the four crank arms, usually the front right,  would begin moving on its spindle. I would have to start soft-pedaling for the rest of the ride. On one longer ride, I had to set another pin to get us back to our apartments.  So after a handful of rides in the fall of 1980, the tandem was put up for the winter.

I did some research and found the only readily available crankset for a tandem and my budget was the French-made Specialites T.A. Tandem crankset. This was not sold as a set, I had to order it piecemeal, specifying all the parts; French threaded bottom bracket cups, 2 different length bottom bracket spindles, and the correct combinations of timing rings, drive rings, crank arms, and bolt sets to create a complete tandem crankset. Putting together that crankset order contributed to my reputation with my new co-workers as a tandem expert.

I put together and placed my order, and soon it all arrived, each set of parts sealed in plastic bags with the blue T.A. globe logo and french descriptions.  I carefully assembled the chainrings and crank arms, and we pulled the steel cranks for the last time.  I carefully packed the loose bearing bottom brackets with Phil Wood grease, and installed the cotterless crank arms. With pedals and chains in place, I adjusted the derailleurs for the triple crankset, which gave us our first “granny” gear, and this opened the door to new riding possibilities on the hills and valley’s around Columbia, Missouri.

So in the spring of 1981 we began our first set of longer rides, no longer limited by an impending crank failure. We packed a small picnic, and rode south from Columbia to Easley on the Missouri River, learning the patience for long granny climbs and the excitement of fast tandem descents.  With each ride, we began to realize that tandeming was our thing.

Yet at the same, we were learning that the Gitane was ill-suited for our tandem future.   The brakes squealed like a wounded animal when applied on any hill, and even with 3 brakes, there remained an uncertainty in my ability to stop the bike. To do away with the near useless hub brake, and to prepare for alloy wheels I was saving for, I worked with with Walt Garrard of Walt’s who brazed an additional set of cantilever brake bosses to the the mixte stays.

With our new confidence in the drivetrain, we could both began to pedal aggressively, and when we did the bike would sway and shimmy, to the point that Linda once asked “Can this bike break up?”.  And while the front sizing put me in a good position, we realized the the stoker compartment would never be comfortable for Linda on any longer rides.

By late spring our schedule was consumed with our impending wedding, along with Linda’s graduation and grad school plans. I already knew a custom builder, who had 14-month waiting list for his tandems, and I was researching brands like Jack Taylor and others.  I was going to a bike rally later in the summer and would look for more tandems then.   So I put the word out that the tandem was for sale, and a week later, I had an offer of $500!  Another rider was looking for a “kid-back” tandem to get his young kids riding, something the Gitane was perfect for.

So with a little bit of hesitation, in the spring of 1981,  we let the Gitane move on to owner number five.  We knew we had the tandem “bug”, but for now we had to focus on the next phase of our lives that was about to begin.  We knew another tandem would come along in a few years, after our lives had settled down.

Or so we thought.

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2015: The un-ridden tour

So after wrapping up my ride from Missouri to Indiana, the next next step in my connect the dots campaign was a ride to Michigan.  Effectively, I only needed to ride from the Ft. Wayne area to my childhood home in Brooklyn to connect those miles, however, I wanted start the ride from our driveway in Carmel.   My 40th high school reunion was coming up in 2015, and that would be the perfect timing.  Throughout the fall and winter, that next tour was in the back of my mind.

1979 -with Mom at the farm near Brooklyn, MI.

I thought about gear changes, a different bike (something more gravel friendly, probably the Trek 920), a few changes in electronics, and a schedule that was not quite as aggressive (60 to 75 miles per day).  I would have the vacation time, a plan for the new bike and confidence it would all fall into place.

There would be a some variations on the route to consider.  One option was to go straight north (the Indiana USBR option), and along the way “touch” rides in Northern Indiana and southwest Michigan, plus enjoy an night’s camping near Lake Michigan.  Or there was the northeast route, following the Wabash to Ft. Wayne, then the across from Coldwater, riding near US 12, or maybe up the Indiana/Ohio border.

Whatever the route, I would end up home in Brooklyn.  From there my connected dots would go from my grandparents’ in Toledo (1975), to Lansing and DALMAC (`74, 75, 79, `08 & `09), and then from Detour Village (solo in `77 & `79) in the eastern UP, across the Soo into Canada (`79) and all the way to Green Bay, Wisconsin (Linda and I on the tandem, `83).  All told, I have over 20,000 “Michigan” miles, from the years before I left in 1980, and the biking trips since.

1983 - Leaving the farm, headed for the UP.

But one other important part of the trip, would be again ride up to the house and to see Mom. Before leaving home, my longest multi-day ride and many weekend had started from home.  I moved to Lansing in the fall 1978, and the following spring I had ridden home for a weekend, when this picture was taken, Mom and I, with my touring bike, in the front yard.

Mom had been the reliable enabler of all my early biking, starting with running me around to the few bike shops near home, where I purchased the limited gear I could afford.  She dropped me off at many of the first rides I attended before I could drive myself.  And most important of all, for signing off on me riding my first DALMAC adventure, even though I was little less responsible than I should have been in keeping touch while on the road.

This picture was just a few weeks before I met Linda, the summer that what would be the “peak” of my single bike touring.  That same summer I would ride a week-long trip in Michigan’s UP, a weekend trip with Linda, and another DALMAC. I was using my home-made front bags on a British made Karrimor rack, my Svea stove and cook kit, and my 1 & ½ man A-frame tent.  The only miracle fabric I wore was wool, and the chamois in cycling shorts was still leather.  My shoes for touring were canvas and rubber Beta Bikers, and I was still wearing tube socks. I had stopped packing jeans, but still rode with a rugby shirt.

I assume that Dad took the picture, and in looking back that is very special.  Dad had helped me get my first SLR camera in time for my `74 DALMAC. I used that same camera to shoot pictures for my high school yearbook (Dad had shot pictures for his high school yearbook with an Argus C3, which I used before my SLR). It was thanks to Dad, and others, that I usually shot slide film.  During the summer of 1979 I was shooting black and white for a number of projects, including photos for the early Michigan (Bicycle) League newsletter.   We lost Dad in 2012; he couldn’t take the picture, but I knew we could stage it, and I would make sure Mom had both the old and new pictures on her iPad.  She had thousands of picture of family and friends, and added new ones almost every day.

In any case, I went through winter thinking about the plan.  I contacted classmates about my high school reunion, learning the date was set in late August.  That was a tight schedule with with work, but with the late Labor Day, there was no conflict.  The last detail would be getting home by car, but that could wait until all the details were set.

But then some life got in the way.  In May, both Linda and my employment situation changed with little warning, and suddenly everything was up in the air.  We were on the emotional roller coaster of resumes, applications, interviews and rejection.  We both found peace in riding, but no firm plans could be made.  As days turned into weeks, and the the weeks into months, other plans and trips fell victim to the uncertainty.

And then in late July, the never expected call was the biggest blow of all.  A traffic accident took Mom from us too soon.  Thankfully my sister, her twin brother, and my sister’s daughter came away with minor physical injuries, but my entire family was shocked and saddened by news that came in such an unexpected way.  The one anchor for us all that just a few days before their 60th wedding anniversary, Mom and Dad were together again.

Another riding season now winds down, and the un-ridden tour falls into place as something delayed, but not lost.  A summer of tragedy, disappointments and change puts everything in perspective.  Across the years and miles, the memories will still connect, though not always along the path we had planned.

2014: Wrapping up - Day 6

(Day 6, the final day,  of my 2014 Connect the Dots Tour)

Tent packed, finishing loading up.

I woke up without an alarm in the pre-dawn twilight. I had heard a brief, light rain overnight, but it was hard to tell with the dampness of the heavily wooded campground. With the picnic table so wet, I finally had a reason to open up my sling chair to use while I ate breakfast.

I broke camp and packed, but didn’t change into riding clothes. I decided to get the shower I had missed night before, riding by the showers on the way out. Freshened up and dressed for the road, I started the day, the first mile under the cover of the trees, and finally out into the surrounding farmland. I expected to ride about 60 miles today, and figured I would connect with Linda around 5 pm.

Short lived company on my final day.

I was starting out under yet another day of overcast, with temps around 60. Riding along, I noticed something I hadn’t seen in almost a week, my shadow! The sun was making a rare appearance through scattered breaks in the clouds. It was a great start to the day, but it was very short lived, as the clouds closed in again after just a few miles.

I was headed straight north for a 5 mile stretch, and then turned east on US-36. At Hume I stopped for two bottles of Gatorade and ice for my Camelbak, along with a muffin for second breakfast. Next came Chrisman, followed by Scotland, my last town in Illinois. I was enjoying the good run on the smooth, wide road, with very light traffic in either direction. It was flat terrain, and for awhile I was counting the miles between trees and landmarks on the horizon.

Back home again!

It wasn’t long after Scotland that the Indiana state line rolled into view. This was the third state for the trip, and it meant that connecting the dots was almost complete. I stopped for a picture, of course. The first Indiana town was Dana, and here I turned heading toward the Wabash valley, and my rendezvous with Linda.

I have many riding connections with the Wabash River. While living in West Lafayette during the `80’s, we frequently rode in the valley, eventually riding all the way from Huntington to the Ohio River. I have also crossed the Wabash near Terra Haute while riding RAIN. Covington would be my physical intersection, and that was where I was due to mean Linda.

One surprise for my day was that while I had been on the road since a little after 8:00 am, Linda had been driving since before 7! This meant she was going to be getting to Covington before I would arrive, So rather than a relaxed ride with a wait at the end, I now had to pick up the pace up so Linda would not be waiting for me.

Crossing the Wabash south of Covington, IN.

After leaving Dana, headed north, I was riding the wide shoulder on 4-lane SR-63. While a little noisy, I had 6 feet of pavement to myself with the light traffic moving over most of the time. I continued on this route for about 15 miles, making good time, then headed east to cross the river. With that crossing, I finally connected the dots, hitting one of the Wabash River Run routes south of Covington. I had mapped and marked many parts of this ride almost 30 years before.

I had not stopped for food since 10 am, and was grazing through the last of my fresh fruit and Clif bars as I rode. I heard from Linda while about a half dozen miles south of town. She was parking the car on the town square and going for a walk. I was soon climbing the short bluff out of the valley to enter town, crossing over I-74 along the way. I came up the center of town and recognized a corner from the Wabash River Ride a couple of summers before. I found our Caravan on the town square, and then rode a couple blocks up the street to meet Linda on her walk. We snapped a picture, and I loaded my bike for the drive home.

I had finished my last day with a little over 65 miles. In 6 days on the road, I had ridden 460 miles, averaging almost 80 miles day. My longest day day had been 104, my shortest 45. I had camped 4 nights, with 1 motel night. I had only had 1 day of rain, but it had rained the entire day.

So now I could connect all my riding from Richmond, Indiana to Omaha, Nebraska and dozens, if not hundreds of cities and towns in between, all in a period of 30 years of cycling. My experience and choices had paid off in a number of ways, and I had learned some things to change for the next ride.

6 days and 460 miles - Covington, IN

What was next? While Linda napped on the drive home, I began the plan for next summer (2015). I only had to connect Ft. Wayne to my home in the family farm in Brooklyn, Michigan to connect the next set of dots, my early years of riding while growing up in Michigan.

2014: The miles roll by - Day 5

(Day 5 of my 2014 Connect the Dots Tour)

I slept well in the quiet campground, and woke to another sunless sunrise through grey overcast.

Breakfast in a bag ala Jet Boil

It was Saturday morning, and with only two days left, I had decided the night before I was not going to ride the two 100-mile plus days it would take to finish at home Sunday night.

With two good days, I could make it to the Indiana border, but not all the way home. In a couple of phone calls Linda and I worked out a tentative schedule, where I would meet her Sunday afternoon where I-74 crosses the Wabash River.

There was some sense of letdown, but I didn’t let it overwhelm me. I was still having a great time, despite the weather and other surprises. I wanted to stay focused on the fun, rather than being bound to a tough schedule. With the final plan in place, I looked to the day of riding ahead.

Some campground maintenance.

I was out of meals, so I would need to provision today, and find camping meals for the Jet Boil, if possible. I also needed some batteries for my taillight and headlight. Before I could hit the road, I had some maintenance tasks after 330 miles. My right / rear bar-end shifter was loose in the handlebars, which required some disassembly to resolve. I then checked every single rack, fender, chain ring, and bottle cage bolt, and that took care of a few more items.   I also went ahead and patched the two pinch flats from Day 2, so I now had three good spare tubes.


With my bike back together, I broke camp and was riding a little before 10. Once again my interstate impressions were betrayed, as I discovered that Effingham had a reservoir lake and active summer community of boating, cottages and vacationeers. I crossed a handful of feeder creeks before finally entering the outskirts of town. The quiet streets were soon overpowered by the rumble of interstate traffic, with a half dozen gas station and restaurant signs towering over the quiet ranch homes.

My 1 mile pickup ride over "brick & seal"

I always feel a quiet sense of satisfaction when biking into a location I have only driven too before. Over the years we have stopped in Effingham dozens of times for gas and meals, but never ventured more than a mile from the off ramp. But now it was another connected dot on my travels with a more intimate knowledge of the surrounding countryside.


I had hoped to hit a McD for 2nd breakfast (what can I say, I like the biscuits!), but I missed by 10 minutes. Then I spotted a Walmart sign, and decided to take care of provisions first. I wheeled my loaded bike into the front alcove, locked it, and smiled at the greeter as I headed in. The hunting and camping section had the 2 more meals (dinner and breakfast) I needed, and then I picked up some fresh fruit, a few more Clif bars, and batteries. I loaded everything up, installed the batteries and was ready to roll again.

On the way out of town, I found a bike shop, and that meant a floor pump! I stopped in and topped off the tires, and was set for the last two days. It was just after noon when I left the Effingham city limits.

It was more small farmlands and backroads as I rolled along. My destination was Walnut Point State Park, about 75 miles northeast. It was mostly grid roads paralleling I-57 for the early afternoon before turning east. The quiet back roads gradually moved me farther and farther east, and eventually out earshot of the interstate for the last time.

One of the biggest challenges continued to be fresh chip-n-seal, of in this case, small-rock, big rocks, pieces of bricks and seal. Yes, one road had a bunch of broken up bricks dropped in tar. It was about 20 miles out of Effingham when I hit a road that was impassible for a bike, or at least one with 700x28 wheels. I was between intersections and resigned to walking, and changed into my camp shoes to portage the bike, since the side of the road was also rock strewn.

After 10 minutes of walking, the road beyond the next corner was just as bad, and after another ¼ mile of walking, I was able to wave down a passing pickup to ask about the road ahead. The young driver thought it would go back to pavement in about a mile, and said he could give us (bike and me!) a lift. It was bumpy mile ride in the back the pick-up truck, sitting on an implement tire while holding my bike upright.  Thankfully that portage took me over the worst road for the rest of the day.

A unique trail between the towers.

I stopped for lunch in Mantoon, and from there I picked up the Lincoln Prairie Grass Trail, which took me east to Charleston. It was a very quiet rail trail, riding beneath and between a line of double power lines. It was crushed limestone, but I made very good time. I passed a few bike riders along the way, the first I had seen since leaving the Katy.

I was riding under overcast skies with temps in the low 70’s. I had not seen sun since the sunset in Hermann on the first day, but at least I had not had more rain since day 3. The winds were mild, but almost always headwinds. For all the expectations and concerns about heat and humidity, it felt more like early fall or late spring.

After I left the trail, I was riding mostly north. The overcast was again quickly darkening the early evening sky, and I made the campground entrance a little before 7:30. By the time I had checked in and set camp, the heavily wooded campground was gloomily dark under the overcast sky. 

Though my riding had been dry, there had been rain over the campground earlier that afternoon, and it had never dried out. By the light of my headlamp, I quickly set my tent, and then fired up the Jetboil for dinner. The campground was pitch black around me as I finished dinner, with a just a few campsites visible through the surrounding foliage. I actually turned on my bike taillight to find my way back to my tent, since there was no lighting anywhere near the tent sites.

It was after dinner that I realized the camp showers were on the other side of the lake, almost a mile away. I considered riding my bike, but the campground was so dark, I didn’t feel safe picking my way with a single cell headlamp. So I headed back to my tent and settled in for the night.

Continue to Day 6: Wrapping Up

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2014: The Make Up Day - Tour Day 4

(Day 4 of my 2014 Connect the Dots Tour)

Drying out

Check-in at the Quality Inn went quickly. I was also able to get a ground floor room, a relief since I was not looking forward to taking my drenched gear and bike on an elevator. I rolled my bike into the tiled lobby, where I stripped all my panniers off the bike and loaded a baggage cart.

The hotel clerk had given me with a handful of used cleaning towels for my bike, and some plastic trash bags I could use underneath my gear. That let me wipe my bike down before I rolled it to my room. In the the room I spread out the trash bags a began unloading my bags.

This had been my third day of riding, and that meant it was laundry day for cycling clothes. When I had asked about a laundry room, the hotel did not offer one, however they did do laundry for $10. So I changed into my (thankfully) dry camp clothing, and took my 3 days of cycling clothing down to the front desk.

With the laundry was taken care, I finished unpacking rest of my things to let them dry out. Just about everything was wet and I ended up with gear draped everywhere in the room. One pleasant surprise was that that the day of rain had removed the white “corrosion” that had frozen up some of the zippers on my panniers.

With the housekeeping done, I ordered a pizza and sat down with my iPad and Google maps to evaluate where I was. I had ridden 45 miles, and combined with my wrong turn the night before, I was now over 40 miles behind my plan. I was spending the night near where I should have been eating lunch, or even second breakfast! While I would save some time by not having to pack a tent the next morning, I still had a lot of miles to make up over the next few days.

By the time I had finished my pizza, it was time to run down to the front desk for my laundry. I had requested no drying, so three days of cycling clothing were now added to the gear spread across my room to dry. It was finally time to settle in for the night.

I woke early and began packing. There were still some lingering showers, so I took my time in loading and enjoyed some fruit and bagels on the hotel. It was overcast and the roads were damp, but no rain was falling as I rolled out at 7:30 am.

Into the corn - Illinois Nickel Plate Trail

I had been able to fully recharge both my backup batteries, however I was still nervous about running out of “phone” too early. So I started the habit of checking the GPS maps, and then putting my phone into “Airplane” mode for few miles. (I had given up any hope of recording the day’s ride.) I soon became adept at flipping this mode on and off while rolling, thanks again to the Eclipse Handlebar bag.

My previous day and ended climbing the Mississippi river bluffs, so I was already riding on the Illinois prairie. Just a few miles east of the hotel, I connected with a local trail network and was soon riding the Illinois Nickel Plate Trail, heading north east. The trail was paved to the city limits, then I was back on crushed limestone. I was making great time riding through fields of tall corn, soybeans, and winter wheat. I soon crossed under I55, and after passing through Alhambra, I left the trail and began heading due east on county grid roads.

This is flat Illinois?

Using the Google and iPhone map apps, I was able to navigate a mix of county grid roads and state trunk roads, alternating east and north roads, crabbing my way along, roughly 5 to 10 miles north of I70.   After a three decades of driving I-70 across Illinois, it is easy to think the state is flat. When you bicycle the back roads, it becomes apparent that I70 just happens to be where Illinois happens to be flat! The riding had a lot of up and down, crossing streams, creeks and small rivers. Thankfully, the none the climbs were as steep as those in Missouri, and many were easy roller coasters, shifting back and forth across the freewheel and chainrings. The load adjustments of the the prior couple of days made my bike more easier to control while climbing.

More corn (& beans) ahead

I decided to continue a grazing meal schedule for first part of the day, picking up a muffin, cookies and a couple of GatorAdes from a quick shop, and then eating while rolling. I was still under overcast skies, and was again riding into a headwind. While it was not raining, the humidity was so high there was a damp chill to the air, even though I was sweating through my jersey, the occasional cool patch of of air had me slipping on my rain jacket to avoid chilling throughout the day. It was one weird week of August weather.

As the day went on, I cycled on through the small towns of Sorento and Panama. A little after 1 in the afternoon, I was finally at my original day 3 destination at Coffen Lake, with almost 50 miles in. I then set my sights on making it to Effingham, which looked like another 50 miles. Overnighting there would leave me 25 miles behind schedule, though still having a good chance of making it home on Sunday.

The Conductor with his orchestra.

Passing though another mile wide river bottom, filled with miles of soy beans, coming up to the edge of the road.  As I approached the small climb out of the bottom, a single tree in the center of opening seems to be poised as a conductor of an orchestra, another picture I had to pause for.

I kept moving east. As I70 angled north, I had to ride a busier state route for at least the next 15 miles. For this stretch, I took my small headlight and set it up as a strobe tail-light on my left pannier. For the most part, all of the overtaking traffic gave me plenty of room. Anecdotal, but a datapoint on the trend toward riding with running lights.

Small Town Memories

By late afternoon I was running parallel to I70 on old US40, and could hear the the muted rumble of big diesel trucks across the corn fields.  At about 70 miles I stopped at a small quick shop for a reload of Gatorade and snacks. An hour later, a little before 6pm I stopped at a McDonalds for a sandwich, a coke and some recharge time for phone and batteries. I was again stimied by only having a single charger, but I got my phone back to over 80% before hitting the road, passing through the rest of Altamont on may way out of town.

It was sill light overcast, and for a while it was almost a misting rain; I didn’t mind since I was wearing my rain jacket for visibility anyways. My eastward travel was again reducing my daylight, and after a 5 mile run north, I turned east to head straight into Effingham. I was at almost a hundred miles at 7:30 with less than a half hour of daylight. Based on my my phone maps, I was at least 10 miles out, and would be on the road until dark at best. Finally, after another half dozen miles, I found a campground sign. Not wanting to ride after dark, I settled for 107 miles, and called it day, Only the next morning would I learn it was over 10 more miles through Effingham to my planned campground on the east side of town.

A square mile or more of Soy Beans

I quickly set up my tent, and used the JetBoil to prep my dinner by twilight. Eating with my headlight, and despite the the overcast, it was easy to tell I was far away from any big city lights. There were only a few RV’s on the other side of the campground, and no tent campers close to mine. It was very quiet as I settled in for night four on the road. I was less than a ½ day behind schedule, with a good forecast ahead. It was time to get some sleep.

Continue to Day 5:  The Miles Roll By

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