I took off from Midlothian at 7:30 this morning and rode my Itasca Disasta 207k permanent route. It ended up being a solo ride. Most of the randonneurs around here are getting ready for the Texas Stampede 1200k, and didn’t ride anything as long as a 200k today. I don’t usually ride that long solo, but I’m going to be in DC next weekend and won’t get to ride at all, so I wanted my 200k this weekend.

This route goes from Midlothian out to Itasca, climbing Orpan Hill from the opposite direction as all other rides I do which go over it. With a front coming, that leg was pretty much against a southwest, then west wind. By the time I got to Itasca, it was already a northwest wind.

The next control is a long ways, over 55 miles, as the route next goes to Rice. It was pretty much a crosswind for this stretch today. The last stretch goes through Ennis and Waxahachie on the way back to Midlothian. It’s steady elevation gain on that stretch, and today, a lot of it was also against the wind. I was definitely a tired camper when I finished, 9:51 after I started. I ended up with 129.1 miles.

I haven’t crossed Lake Bardwell on a bike in quite a while, so couldn’t resist taking this photo on the bridge.

Itasca Disasta route.

I took off from Arlington at 7:30 this morning and rode my Peachy Keene 200k permanent route. It was a small crew on the ride, with just John and Susan on their tandem, Mark M, and me. This route goes south out to Cleburne, then on south to just west of Covington, turns east and goes through Covington, then on to Itasca before finally turning back north and going through Maypearl and Alvarado on the way back.

The south wind wasn’t that bad early, but was really blowing by late morning. Those last few miles to Itasca were really tough. But we kept a fairly easy pace much of the ride, and I finished still feeling pretty good. I always have trouble keeping up on the stretch from Maypearl to Alvarado, and today was no exception, but John, Susan, and Mark slowed down before Alvarado, and I rejoined them for the rest of the ride.

Though a bit windy, it was a beautiful day, with all the spring blooming wildflower fragrances to take in along the way. Add good company to that, and it reminds why I like these rides so much. I ended up with 125 miles and finished the ride in 9:38.

The Peachy Keene route.