I joined rando friend Vickie Tyer this morning and rode the Goatneck 200k permanent which starts in Cleburne. It’s 128 miles of mostly rolling hills, a tough route that I like to tackle at least once every year, just to make sure I can still pedal all those hills.

The route is an out and back route that goes from Cleburne to Glen Rose, then on to Bluff Dale, then back. There are hills the entire route, but the biggest climbing is between Glen Rose and Bluff Dale. What I didn’t know was that Vickie had done long rides two days in a row before this ride. Her only speed after all that riding was slow, so I rode an easy pace and stayed with her.

It’s easy to forget how much easier a tough route is if you ride it at an easy pace. I stayed in the middle chainring while climbing both County Line Hill at mile 101 and Goatneck Hill at mile 110. There’s no way I can do that when I’ve been hammering on the rest of the ride.

The winds stayed light and it was cloudy on and off, a beautiful day to ride, even if it did get a little hot this afternoon. I finished with 128.5 miles in 10:38.

Goatneck 200k elevation chart from a previous ride.

Goatneck 200K route.