If yer gonna dig a hole make sure it's a deep one, Century Plus
A tale of three faces:
1) Mile 35: I’m going on adventure!
2) Mile 90: Ahhh fuggit if you’re gonna dig a hole make it a deep one.
3) Mile 120: I feel funny not haha funny.
Saturday was one of those adventure days that just unfolds as it progresses as that little voice in your head keeps nudging you along and the miles easily tick on by. Legs good. Back good. Belly good. Head good. Heart good. Ok let’s keep rollin!
My previous longest mileage was 114 but that was on the road and with some fantastic training partners to trade pulls. This was my gravel bike loaded with ten pounds of waffles, Red Bull, and extra water because I had no idea what open shops I would find. The route was mostly on the beautiful and sweet smelling GAP trail along the Youghiogheny River. However once I returned north on the surprisingly quiet Montour trail it was just monotonous and flat and I could... not... stop... pedaling. Like the longest Zwift torture session ever.
Dad as my chaperone into the city at 6:30AM because he's always awake at that hour.
Cute goats eating weeds along the Mon River. We chatted for a bit.
The Youghiogheny River is just beautiful this time of year. It almost smelled like salt water, but that might have been me
The last 3 miles were the worst. A few ounces of warm sticky sugary iced tea in my bottle, the sun beaming down, and nothing but 500 feet of climbing to the house to really kick me in the head. There is a certain short steep hill in the middle of Scrubgrass (YOU KNOW THE ONE)....I almost walked but stayed on my bike and just swerved a lot..LOL.
This is what you see rambling on your bike. Trees hollowed out by a lightning strike.
I'm surprised at my ability to keep up my strength for so many hours with no prepping at all, but mostly I'm supremely grateful given that I was suspended in grief and cortisol for the first five weeks of the pandemic and my body could barely get out of bed. I'm grateful to be surrounded by a community that snapped me out of it and gave me the answers to move again. Wishing everyone the willpower to keep going one pedal stroke at a time. It's really quite beautiful out there so go find it.
NO JUDGING. That was the smallest bag of chips at Rite Aid (yes I brought and wore my mask!). Devoured most of them at mile 95. Waffles with peanut butter and honey wrapped in foil. And my devoted can of Red Bull. No regrets.
I would take up fishing for daily scenes like this.
Quiet morning with my bike and the lilac trees.
The Route
Once in the city, the ride commenced along the Monongahela River on the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) trail. In McKeesport the GAP continued south along the Youghiogheny River with a dreamy, quiet trail of crushed limestone. I stopped in the small blip of Whitsett, 10 miles south of West Newton for a short break before turning back north. West Newton is a great supply town, with a well-stocked and knowledgeable bike shop, a large drug store, and small eateries. Once back in McKeesport I picked up the Steel Valley Trail through Glassport and across the Mon River again to Clairton and the beginning of the Montour Trail. I exited the Montour in Cecil to return on roads back home.