Wednesday, June 29, 2005

Lexington to Roanoke, VA

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As the week progressed we managed to get earlier starts each day. Since today was the final day of the tour, we tried especially hard to get on the road early so that we wouldn't be making the five hour drive north to Reston late at night. We had another excellent breakfast at the Hampton Inn, dropped our bags off and were riding toward Roanoke by around 7:30 a.m. Once again the skies were cloudy and there was talk of rain. I figured I would haul my rain gear another day in hopes of once again warding off the wet weather. We almost succeeded.

After a while the weather cleared and we started to climb. The first 15 miles was gradually uphill, climbing from about 1000 feet to 1500 feet. We followed the Adventure Cycling TransAm cross country route, known as Bicycle Route 76. It is one of the few signed bicycle routes in Virginia. This section is very scenic, with very little traffic. Just before we reached the first rest stop at High Bridge Presbyterian Church there was a short but very steep climb. We ran into a couple of friends from Northern Virginia, Walter and Bob, former and present members of the non-motorized transportation committee. There were generous amounts of homemade cookies and banana nut bread.

From the first rest stop at mile 19.2 the route was mostly downhill to the second stop in Buchanan at mile 28.7. We soon learned that Buchanan is not pronounced "beu'-canon", it's "buck'-anon". It was a short stop since we wanted to try to beat the storm that predicted for later in the day. We left so soon that we forgot to check out the suspension pedestrian bridge over the James River. We stopped later on the drive north.

Once again there was a steady climb to rest stop three at Fincastle Vineyard & Winery. I tasted a few of the wines, deciding to purchase the very smooth Cabernet Franc at $14 a bottle. We continued on Bicycle Route 76 along rolling terrain to the free lunch at Troutville Town Park at mile 44.4. The veggie sub was truly vegetarian, with no cheese hiding inside. The pizzas were gone as well. I shouldn't complain, as there was ample food throughout the rides and there was never a chance that one would go hungry. We ran into our friend Ron, the Bike Friday owner and world traveler. He plans to ride in southern France this year.

There were no more planned stops after lunch, which after a few climbs was generally downhill. It felt a bit like a race, as we all seemed anxious to get to the cars before the rain started. With the gradual descent we were able to make good time, probably averaging around 17 or 18 mph at the end. As we entered Roanoke the sky became very dark. The route to the stadium where the cars were parked was rather circuitous, and most of us didn't appreciate the tour of Roanoke backstreets as we might have on a sunnier day.

The rain started just as we entered the downtown area, about a mile from the end of the ride. It was a light rain, and when we could get the fenders to stay attached, we were OK. The Planet Bike fenders Kerie was using kept popping off, which was annoying and potentially dangerous. At the end of the ride we had the ritual piece of cake cut by Mary Turnbull, one of the ride organizers. We picked up the bottles of wine we had purchased earlier in the week and headed for the car and luggage. The luggage had been dropped off in a field next to the parking lot, and luckily the rain hadn't had time to penetrate very deep. We quickly loaded up the car, changed into some dry clothes, and headed north.

We decided to take Route 11 for the first part of the trip, which happened to be along the route of incoming riders. We passed Walter and Dennis who looked a bit drenched, and Penny, who was still smiling and looked like she was enjoying the ride in the rain. I didn't last long in the driver's seat, nearly falling asleep after about 20 miles. In Buchanan, after we walked the suspension bridge, Kerie took over and drove most of the way home while I snoozed.

It was another excellent Bike Virginia tour. Most of the logistics were very well-planned, with plenty of food, port-a-johns, shuttle buses, etc. There were a few minor glitches, but those were usually soon corrected. Apparently the food portions at the last dinner at the Virginia Horse Center were meager, so Alan went out and bought many pizzas that were handed out at the concert later that evening. The ride is highly recommended.

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