Ride To Cedar Crest Lodge

Ride Stats:

Distance: 83 mi
Avg Speed: 11.4 mph
Elevation Climbed: 3730 ft
Calories Burned: 4450
Temp: 58 ish
Extenuating Circumstances: Very Favorable Wind

This was a getaway trip for Angela and I to Cedar Crest Lodge, a Bed & Breakfast in a remote rural location south of Kansas City. It seemed like a perfect opportunity for me to stretch my range on the bike, by pedalling the distance while Angela drove to meet me there. It worked out very nicely. We both arrived within minutes of each other at 4 pm. Of course, I left home at 7 am...

I got in a good mixture of urban, suburban and rural biking. Wherever possible I use bike trails to get away from traffic. We're very fortunate to have a nice network of trails in and around Kansas City. They get more use by joggers and dog walkers than by bicyclists. The road bikers don't much use them because they can't go as fast. You have to watch out coming up behind walkers listening to music that can't hear your warning, and dog walkers with either a long leash or their dog off the leash. Dogs love bicyclists. More about that later.

There are hazards whether you're on a trail or on a road. It's fairly common in this part of the country to have almost no shoulder on rural roads. There's really not much road to share with the trucks and cars. When I see a sign like this, I think it probably means a bicyclist was hit on this stretch, and putting up a sign was the best solution the highway department could come up with. The good news is that I'm getting really good practice at riding a straight line close to the edge, and watching thru my helmet mirror as vehicles approach from behind. They generally give me a wide berth, but I feel sorry for the cars coming from ahead.

Especially in rural areas, dogs are a hazard. They hardly ever get to see bicyclists, and excitedly rush out to the road to greet them with all sorts of barking and snarling and baring of teeth. I haven't been bitten since I was a newspaperboy, but I still get a rush of adrenalin and a flight instinct when they come after me.
In about the middle of this ride, I got onto some really remote unpaved roads and got chased about a half dozen times. The dog in the picture is Duke, and he was actually a friendly one. What scared me at first is that he chased me without barking and got really close. He didn't back off when I yelled at him, and then I realized he just wanted to run alongside for the exercise.
It didn't take long before he was dissatisfied with my pace, and started running in front leading the way.
He was working the sides of the road looking for birds to flush, like a well trained bird dog. If I stopped, he'd come over and stand by me; and when I'd start up again, he'd lead the way. After about 4 mi of this we came to a busy paved crossroad with high speed traffic, and I was worried he'd get hit, so I checked his tags. I called his owner and left a message explaining the predicament. Meanwhile, Duke and I went to the nearest farm and waved down a guy mowing his lawn. He had an idea that another neighbor might know more about what to do, so we all waked over there. About that time the owner called me back. and I gave her the address. They had to restrain Duke as I rode off down the road. Like I say, dogs love bicyclists.

Riding in the country can also be tranquil and scenic. You can go for miles without seeing a car or a dog. This is just a field of purple weeds that caught my attention.

There's also the creative side of country life. This is a fine example of barbed wire folk art.

Well, I made it safe and sound. The bike passed it's unpaved roads test with flying colors. About 30% of the mileage was on unpaved roads. Luckily, they were neither wet nor dusty.

I eventually went out of my way to get on some paved roads just because the vibrations were getting to me. I decided not to spend Easter Sunday riding back to Kansas City because of rain, unfavorable wind, and an overwhelming desire to cook a ham.