Shakedown Ride

Today, I rode part of the route I’d mapped out for the 327 Words Half-Century Ralleycat and discovered that my eyes are bigger than my legs, so to speak; consequently, some changes are in order that will shorten the route, in hopes of making it more fun and festive for riders and organizers alike.

The main thing I think I’m going to do is take West Seattle and Kenmore off the map; the route I took today, which carried me from the Central District, through downtown, along Eastlake to the UW, on the Burke-Gilman to Matthews Beach, then backtracking a bit before going over Ravenna around the south end of Greenlake to Phinney, across the Fremont Bridge and west to Queen Anne, down through Pioneer Square and up Jackson, then right on 12th across the bridge to Beacon Hill, and finally down into Columbia City, and over to Seward Park before finishing up in Madrona was all but fifty miles from start to finish—48.69 according to my uncalibrated odometer, but who’s counting?

It took me from ten-fifteen in the morning to almost four, a wee bit more than three hours and twenty-seven minutes, although cycling time, according my cyclocomputer, was just under four and half hours, so it’s conceivable that somebody really fast could do the whole route in the allotted time.

I’m really hoping people consider doing teams; I think a group of three or four could pretty easily make all the stops and do so in a way that didn’t require everyone to bust ass the whole time.

I saw a bunch of the city and a whole variety of weathers: on Phinney Ridge it was warm and misty; in Columbia City, I got seriously hailed on.

I stopped for a tofu sandwich at the Saigon Deli but then I wasn’t hungry when I got to the taco truck on Rainier.

I’ll just have to save that for another ride, maybe the Ralleycat itself.