Winthrop to Wilbur
Long, long day. All kinds of fun stuff happened. Let's see.
First off, here's the Strava ride.
Added about 15 miles on the "plan," because the "plan" included Google Maps' suggestion to ride over a mountain on Forest Service roads that the locals say are definitely unpaved. So, I had a nice, easy spin down 153 into Pateros, got a snack, and rolled through Brewster to Bridgeport for lunch at the Chief Joseph tavern. Best part about this was the big German Shepherd that decided I looked tasty; dude chased me for a solid 200 meters. That's why Strava claims a max of over 1100W; I did a hard seated acceleration, and that doge just kept coming. So I accelerated more. Felt like sprints with Eddie, for those of you who remember American Flyers.
This would have been much more pleasant had the smoke not socked in overnight; there are a couple of decent-sized wildfires burning west of 20/153, and the smoke seems to be flowing straight down the valley today. Definitely the worst smoke I've ever ridden in; Purple Air claims an AQI of 274 for Twisp today. Honestly, it didn't really seem to bother me much; as long as you chew the air well before you inhale it, it goes down fine.
Then back on the bike, bucking a terrible headwind/false flat into Grand Coulee, where things got really fun: On the way down the steep-ass hill into Grand Coulee, the bike started making a TERRIBLE noise. Sounded for all the world like something was rubbing the front wheel. So I pulled over--not a mark on the front wheel or the back wheel. Started again, got up to about 28mph, and had the same issue. So, I rode the brakes all the way down the hill, kept it under 25 or so.
A couple theories about this. First, because it's what's different, I blame the panniers. Buuuut there isn't so much as a scratch on the rear wheel (brake track, tire, etc), and there isn't a single mark on the bags or the rack itself. So that seems right out. The other option is the front hub; there was a liiiiiittle bit of play in it when I checked the bike out in the hotel room tonight, so I got that tightened down a bit (no more play), and we'll see if that helps tomorrow. It definitely didn't happen yesterday coming down off of Washington Pass (much higher speeds, pushing 50), so who knows. If I do get any of that tomorrow, I can detour through Spokane and find a bike shop. But when the repro steps are "here, ride my fully loaded bike at 30mph plus," I'm not sure what they're going to do about it either.
Anyway. It turns out there's a big ol' 3 mile hill between Grand Coulee and Wilbur, so that was an unpleasant surprise 95+ miles into the ride. But I got here, and had dinner at Doxies (because the Alibi was randomly closed, which surprised both me and the motel owner at the Willows Motel...), and came home with second dinner. Going to munch on that a little bit and then collapse; another big day tomorrow. Willows Motel is awesome, BTW, but the proprietor is selling it this month, so your mileage may vary in the future.
Oh, and FWIW: Legs feel good, body feels good. Saddle sores trying to take hold; at this point, if there's a thing that puts me off schedule (or into a rental car), it'll be that.
First off, here's the Strava ride.
Added about 15 miles on the "plan," because the "plan" included Google Maps' suggestion to ride over a mountain on Forest Service roads that the locals say are definitely unpaved. So, I had a nice, easy spin down 153 into Pateros, got a snack, and rolled through Brewster to Bridgeport for lunch at the Chief Joseph tavern. Best part about this was the big German Shepherd that decided I looked tasty; dude chased me for a solid 200 meters. That's why Strava claims a max of over 1100W; I did a hard seated acceleration, and that doge just kept coming. So I accelerated more. Felt like sprints with Eddie, for those of you who remember American Flyers.
This would have been much more pleasant had the smoke not socked in overnight; there are a couple of decent-sized wildfires burning west of 20/153, and the smoke seems to be flowing straight down the valley today. Definitely the worst smoke I've ever ridden in; Purple Air claims an AQI of 274 for Twisp today. Honestly, it didn't really seem to bother me much; as long as you chew the air well before you inhale it, it goes down fine.
Then back on the bike, bucking a terrible headwind/false flat into Grand Coulee, where things got really fun: On the way down the steep-ass hill into Grand Coulee, the bike started making a TERRIBLE noise. Sounded for all the world like something was rubbing the front wheel. So I pulled over--not a mark on the front wheel or the back wheel. Started again, got up to about 28mph, and had the same issue. So, I rode the brakes all the way down the hill, kept it under 25 or so.
A couple theories about this. First, because it's what's different, I blame the panniers. Buuuut there isn't so much as a scratch on the rear wheel (brake track, tire, etc), and there isn't a single mark on the bags or the rack itself. So that seems right out. The other option is the front hub; there was a liiiiiittle bit of play in it when I checked the bike out in the hotel room tonight, so I got that tightened down a bit (no more play), and we'll see if that helps tomorrow. It definitely didn't happen yesterday coming down off of Washington Pass (much higher speeds, pushing 50), so who knows. If I do get any of that tomorrow, I can detour through Spokane and find a bike shop. But when the repro steps are "here, ride my fully loaded bike at 30mph plus," I'm not sure what they're going to do about it either.
Anyway. It turns out there's a big ol' 3 mile hill between Grand Coulee and Wilbur, so that was an unpleasant surprise 95+ miles into the ride. But I got here, and had dinner at Doxies (because the Alibi was randomly closed, which surprised both me and the motel owner at the Willows Motel...), and came home with second dinner. Going to munch on that a little bit and then collapse; another big day tomorrow. Willows Motel is awesome, BTW, but the proprietor is selling it this month, so your mileage may vary in the future.
Oh, and FWIW: Legs feel good, body feels good. Saddle sores trying to take hold; at this point, if there's a thing that puts me off schedule (or into a rental car), it'll be that.
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