White Lake HIM bike course preview

Bike:
2h 50m 09s 59.47 miles 20.97 Mi/hr

8:30 AM

Preview of WLH course. We did not do the Over Lyon spur, but did add one loop of the WLS course. Man, that course is fast, right up until you turn back onto 53 again. My legs were cooked by then, and I couldn't push more than 20mph...definite mental hurdle for the second half of the race. Glad I rode it to learn that!



My friend Paul and I rode the White Lake half-iron course today. All except the Over Lyon spur, then we added one lap of the sprint course. The half course was very fast until we turned right onto 53, then it was 23 miles of headwind. That is brutal. I'll take the hills on Duke half course anyday. We parked on Clinton Road, right next to the FFA, and rode out from there. The dogwoods and azaleas in the area are really starting to pop, as is the wisteria. Should be really pretty for the race.

Course notes: very rough on White Lake Road, with recent road construction, so a lot of dirt/sand on the road. It had been raining all morning, drizzling on us on the way down, but did not rain during our ride. Lots of wet roads. Hwy. 41 is pretty good, especially if you get out near the white line, to avoid the seams. Not recommended on rainy days though. 210 was a good ride as well, not too many things to avoid. We both managed to hit the same hole that popped up, no damage. Lots of squirrels were trying to commit suicide today for some reason. We counted no less than 10 dead possums in the road during this ride...yuck. Lots of road kill-deer, raccoons, possums, etc. A lot of turkey buzzards out there too, huge guys. There were a few dogs that wanted to get frisky, primarily on 210. 53, man, I'm glad I rode it, but it was a tough mental ride. It's a very open road, not much tree cover, and the wind just keeps on coming. Today's winds were only 10mph from the WNW.

I was very glad to see the FFA center again :)