Breakfast courtesy of Ontario Power Generation, Starbucks in attendance and the LBS available to sell bike stuff and sort out minor mechanical problems.
The DJ played good morning music and gave us the rundown of what was going on.
So 9am start from Esplanade Park in Pickering, complete with police escort through the town to the lakefront trails. Seemed a bit overkill but Pickering wanted to get 250 cyclists down the hill and out of town with minimum fuss and maximum safety.
The first part of the day was a meandering mix of roads and multi-use paths. The paths are always pleasant to ride on but we have to moderate our speed for the sake of all the other users.
Lunch stop came early, at 10:20. This had been arranged when the intended start for the day was Fort York in Toronto and with the last minute scramble to reset the start to Pickering because of the Toronto strike it would be too difficult to arrange a new lunch stop with different location and vendors. It became an extended stop, a festive, picnic atmosphere.
The early afternoon found us more in mountain bike territory as some of the paths were more like single track. In places I found it smoother to ride in the grass beside the dirt/gravel track.
This also brought us to some challenging steep, gravel covered climbs. As I saw the first one approaching two other road bikes were attempting the climb. One had to unclip awkwardly part way up, the other fell attempting to do the same. When I saw a clear path I called out “coming through” and up I went. Having seen the challenge I started at a higher speed at the base and, motivated by not wanting to duplicate the other cyclist's fall, powered through to the top.
The second of these gravelly climbs began immediately after a very narrow gate. I decided discretion was the better part of valour, walked through the gate straddling the bike (the space between the poles was barely wider than my handlebars) and, since the alternative would have been to attempt a start already on the steep upslope, walked up the climb. One cyclist following actually, and impressively, rode through the gate and climbed the hill, real cyclocross stuff!
At some point in all this I broke a front spoke. Compared to the rear spoke I broke on day one this had even less effect on the wheel. A minimal wobble and very slight out-of-roundness, barely noticeable except on smooth pavement – the advantage of an old fashioned high spoke-count wheel. I made sure it was secure and carried on.
On into the ‘highlands’ of Northampton County with both rolling hills and long climbs. OK so it’s not the Pyrenees. They’re hills to us.
I love the rollers. If you get into a tuck and let gravity accelerate you, you can grab a big gear before the bottom and, with a push, let your momentum carry you to the top of the next hill. On one descent I hit my daily max speed of 60kph and was able to reach the top of the next grade still doing 45. Fun! The potholes and broken pavement left from the spring thaw add to the challenge. Look way down the road and plan your moves. Alert and alive!
The long grinding climbs were another matter. Standing on the pedals or concentrating on turning smooth circles, or changing your pedal stroke to use muscles somehow not yet tired out to get you up the climb, finding a bit of acceleration when you thought there was none left. OK stop laughing. Satisfaction at the top!
Finally the sign that says 10km to go. Then 7.5. Then 6, 5. The 3km sign is at the bottom of a long climb. 2 miles, I bet the first one is uphill. Yes the climb was just over 1.6 km. But so close to the end!
Then down the hill, around a corner, a slight rise and a descent to a small park. 98km on the computer. Shame it couldn’t be an honest metric century at least (be careful what you ask for). Where is everyone? I know I’m not first by a long way, and this parkette is much too small. No, it’s a welcoming committee from the town of Port Hope with a gift package and information about what the town offers. And directions to the camp ground. 2km and a couple more steep hills they neglected to mention and I have my 2nd metric century of this trip … 100.14km.
The day ends in Port Hope at the Town Park Recreation Centre. The library’s open till 8pm, with internet access so I can post to my blog. But that seems like a lot of trouble right now. Check in, have a beer, gather my luggage and set up the tent before it rains (confirmation later it’s still rain-tight, much to my relief). Grab a shower. Arrange to stop in Cobourg tomorrow at Sommerville’s Bike Shop to have the spoke replaced. More beer, with pizza this time. Sit and trade war stories from the day.
Earlier start tomorrow. Set the alarm.
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