Activity: road cycling
Location: Millerton, NY > Wassaic, NY > Kent, CT > Amenia, NY > Sheffield, MA > Copake, NY > Ancramdale, NY > Millerton
Distance: 103.2 miles (very hilly)
Duration: 5:36
Weather: partly to mostly cloudy, 73-84 degrees
Avg HR: 138 (max 170)
Type: aerobic

The Harlem Valley Rail Ride century, a wonderful, three-state route, was the object of today’s ride. The day dawned foggy, which made for a somewhat surreal start to the ride. Fortunately, the rain that wreaked havoc in NYC stayed south of the ride route.

I formed a small paceline with two guys from Brooklyn, Jay and Steve, who were with me for the first 13 miles until I dropped them on the first semi-hilly section, just south of the Wassaic rail station.

The climb out of Kent was brutal: Skiff Mountain Road is a long, 1,000-foot climb with a 3/4 mile section that’s over 12 percent grade – a tough, tough climb on any kind of bike, let alone a heavier steel one like my LeMond. But I made it up in a spin without problems, passing quite a few other riders in the process. The ride’s other climbs weren’t quite as bad, and I really flew up Mt. Washington Road (which started around mile 71), passing some local racers in the process – I was much stronger on this hill than was the case two days prior.

The uphill time trial came at mile 97, and I did okay, finishing less than three minutes behind a local CAT-1 racer who only rode 45 miles prior to the time trial.

This ride has a lot of great scenery and wonderful support. The only gripe is that I was bitten by a tick at one of the aid stations (fortunately, no signs of Lyme Disease). And the corn they served at the end-of-ride festival was from Rudy’s Corn Farm – sure, it’s not spelled quite right, but it was pretty darn good.

I can’t think of a better way to have a vacation day: great ride in the morning, and wonderful music afterward.