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Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Sisters, OR
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McKenzie Bridge to Sisters, OR
Via Hwy 126. 54.6 miles. It was a very hard day. We rode over Santaim Pass (McKenzie Pass, which is shorter but steeper, was closed). From McKenzie Bridge to the top of the pass was 35 miles of mostly uphill terrain, with several sections of steep climbing that seemed to go on forever. In addition, it was very hot (it was 99 degrees when we staggered into Sisters) and there was a lot of traffic, particularly RVs and huge logging and other trucks.* Despite all that it was a good day, at least until we hit the heat of the afternoon.
We met a couple of other cyclists today, including a guy traveling with his dog and a young couple from St. Louis who were on their way to the west coast. The dog guy was definitely unique. He asked us whether we knew of any nearby campgrounds (there were lots of them; we were traversing a national forest) but he didn't appear to have any camping equipment (the dog had the entire bike trailer to himself). He said that on the steep sections he makes the dog get out and walk with him! The couple, who could not have been older than 25, reminded us of those pictures from the '70s of people riding across country on Schwinn Varsity bikes in cutoffs and tennis shoes. While they were both wearing cycling shorts,** he had on a tee shirt and was bear handed (i.e., no gloves). She was riding in open-toed sandals on rat trap pedals (no cleats). She said she had never worn cleated cycling shoes, so she didn't know if they might be an improvement. We thought she was very 'backward' but I have to admit she looked fit enough to (rapidly) ride circles around me. I made a joke about people our age needing to take advantage of every technological advance that exists and, much to my disappointment, neither of them laughed or said "oh, you two can't be that old".
*BLFTs (Big Friggin' Logging Trucks)
**You only have to ride once in jeans or any other pants with a seam to appreciate the benefits of seamless cycling shorts.
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We met a couple of other cyclists today, including a guy traveling with his dog and a young couple from St. Louis who were on their way to the west coast. The dog guy was definitely unique. He asked us whether we knew of any nearby campgrounds (there were lots of them; we were traversing a national forest) but he didn't appear to have any camping equipment (the dog had the entire bike trailer to himself). He said that on the steep sections he makes the dog get out and walk with him! The couple, who could not have been older than 25, reminded us of those pictures from the '70s of people riding across country on Schwinn Varsity bikes in cutoffs and tennis shoes. While they were both wearing cycling shorts,** he had on a tee shirt and was bear handed (i.e., no gloves). She was riding in open-toed sandals on rat trap pedals (no cleats). She said she had never worn cleated cycling shoes, so she didn't know if they might be an improvement. We thought she was very 'backward' but I have to admit she looked fit enough to (rapidly) ride circles around me. I made a joke about people our age needing to take advantage of every technological advance that exists and, much to my disappointment, neither of them laughed or said "oh, you two can't be that old".
*BLFTs (Big Friggin' Logging Trucks)
**You only have to ride once in jeans or any other pants with a seam to appreciate the benefits of seamless cycling shorts.
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Cyclist traveling with his dog
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It's a long way to the top...
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