Rose and I traveled to Celina this morning to tackle Steve’s Bobcat Bite 100k permanent. We rolled out at 9:00 am, along with seven other riders. I rode my Stratus XP, and Rose and I rode our own pace, watching everyone else soon disappear off in the distance in front of us.

It was Rose’s first 100k, and the first time I’ve ridden that kind of distance on the SXP. Its more upright seat is less comfortable for me for a long ride than the Corsa’s Euromesh seat, but it’s more comfortable for this kind of distance than the Nimbus was (RANS mesh seat vs Sun EZ mesh seat). I have to work to keep up with Rose, when she’s on the Xstream and I’m on the SXP.

This route starts in Celina, heads northeast to the next control in Howe, a bit more north, then west and south to Tioga and Pilot Point, then east back to Celina. The first leg of the route to Howe isn’t very hilly, but it is a pretty steady elevation gain, and it was against a stiff northeast wind this morning, making it pretty tough for Rose and I.

Soon after Howe, though, we turned west and then south, and the tailwind was great. On one southbound uphill north of Gunter, we carried enough speed from the last downhill that we barely dipped below 30 mph before cresting the hill.

It was tailwind fun all the way to Pilot Point, then 12 miles of boulder-seal and rolling hills against the wind to get back to Celina. Rose was starting to fade on this stretch, and struggled with those hills, but then finished her first 100k strong. Big congrats on your first 100k, Dear!

I ended up with 64.2 miles, and we finished the ride in 5:30. Lunch at Lucy’s afterward was great, and we really enjoyed visiting with Steve, Peggy, Mark M, Linda, and Greg after the ride. Who understands the thrill of your first 100k better than other randonneurs?

After the ride.