FreeWheel 2009 Day 5: Thomas to Fairview
Thursday started out a little lazy, and we all had the same idea to ignore our alarm clock and sleep in a little. Perhaps it was a subconscious rebellion against our neighbors, whom we overhead the night before, planning their day ahead. I heard them say they were waking up at 3:15 in the morning, and when their conversations and tent zippers woke me up in the middle of the night, I knew they were not kidding around. I don't care how other people work out their FreeWheel trip, that's their biz. But I just can't understand how it benefits anyone to wake up at three in the morning, and start riding. I understand the cool of the day. I understand that the winds don't generally pick up until closer to noon. Still, why ride in the dark? You miss all the scenery. And you might miss some turns. You certainly miss the conversations with other riders. I don't understand it, but God bless them anyway. We left at 8:00am.
It was a short day, only 54 miles. So Paul and I decided to take it easy, and ride a slow, steady pace. We only made one rest stop, and managed to keep an average of about 16.5mph. Considering the wind was out of the north all day, that's not too bad. Spencer pressed on ahead, and got in with an average speed of 17.5. After yesterday's hammerfest, I needed a break.
Fairview is a great town. Very hip. We ate lunch at a little coffee shop down on Main Street. I complimented the owner on what a nice establishment she had, and she said, "Not bad for a hick town, huh?" Later, we drove six miles south of town, to the Plymouth Valley winery. Dennis is the owner—he spent his career doing custom wheat harvesting, and when he retired, he went to chef's school. Not wanting to run a restaurant, he returned to his old stomping grounds, and started a winery. It is a really nice little place, and worth a trip out from Tulsa or OKC.
Tonight is Speed Wheel, the race event that always accompanies FreeWheel. There will be some pretty top notch amatuer racers from Tulsa, OKC, and Dallas who will come and compete for prize money. It's no Tulsa Tough, but there is always some good racing. I'll post some photos from that on tomorrow's update.
Tomorrow is a long day, the longest so far, at 70+ miles. The forecast is calling for warm temps, and a northeast wind—that's right, it will be right in our faces all day. Not cool. We're kicking around the idea of getting up a little extra early tomorrow (but not 3:00am), and trying to get most of the ride in before the winds really pick up. Look for us out on the road by 6:00am.
Here is the link to today's ride on my Garmin site. And here are some pics.
Doing the work of a "cyclevangelist," the store clerk asked us about bicycling. I tried to convert her.
This is Patrick, from Dallas. I told him that anyone who was studly enough to ride a fixie on FW needed
to be featured someplace. Why not here?
My kind of cycling team.
Dogs love cycling too.
My Facebook friend Heidi, AKA "Supermom"
My trusty steed, "The Mad One."
It was a short day, only 54 miles. So Paul and I decided to take it easy, and ride a slow, steady pace. We only made one rest stop, and managed to keep an average of about 16.5mph. Considering the wind was out of the north all day, that's not too bad. Spencer pressed on ahead, and got in with an average speed of 17.5. After yesterday's hammerfest, I needed a break.
Fairview is a great town. Very hip. We ate lunch at a little coffee shop down on Main Street. I complimented the owner on what a nice establishment she had, and she said, "Not bad for a hick town, huh?" Later, we drove six miles south of town, to the Plymouth Valley winery. Dennis is the owner—he spent his career doing custom wheat harvesting, and when he retired, he went to chef's school. Not wanting to run a restaurant, he returned to his old stomping grounds, and started a winery. It is a really nice little place, and worth a trip out from Tulsa or OKC.
Tonight is Speed Wheel, the race event that always accompanies FreeWheel. There will be some pretty top notch amatuer racers from Tulsa, OKC, and Dallas who will come and compete for prize money. It's no Tulsa Tough, but there is always some good racing. I'll post some photos from that on tomorrow's update.
Tomorrow is a long day, the longest so far, at 70+ miles. The forecast is calling for warm temps, and a northeast wind—that's right, it will be right in our faces all day. Not cool. We're kicking around the idea of getting up a little extra early tomorrow (but not 3:00am), and trying to get most of the ride in before the winds really pick up. Look for us out on the road by 6:00am.
Here is the link to today's ride on my Garmin site. And here are some pics.
Doing the work of a "cyclevangelist," the store clerk asked us about bicycling. I tried to convert her.
This is Patrick, from Dallas. I told him that anyone who was studly enough to ride a fixie on FW needed
to be featured someplace. Why not here?
My kind of cycling team.
Dogs love cycling too.
My Facebook friend Heidi, AKA "Supermom"
My trusty steed, "The Mad One."
JK,
Keep up the good work. Thanks for the info on Fairview. The lovely Mrs. L's family grew up there. It is a beautiful place.
When you have the chance, you might want to check this out:
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20090610_82_A1_Mangle509819
When I lived in SS, I rode Hwy 51 to the dam on a regular basis. Quite a tragedy.
Bring 'the mad one' to SF, and you can ride along with 'el tigre rojo.'
Yours, Lee
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Hi Jason,
I can't seem to find you on facebook. I found many with the name jason kearney but is there a simpler way to know which is you? The ones that are from Tulsa (and others) show minimal info unless you add the person.
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Lee, we might just take you up on that, maybe next month. I'd love to ride the circle with you.
I heard from someone this morning that HWY 51 is now off their regular route. I haven't ridden there in years, I mostly stick with Avery Drive, and the country lanes near my house.
Jo Ray,
I'm actually in Sand Springs, so you might look at that. Email me your last name, and I'll add you!
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