Nice ride yesterday.  Weather cleared well before the ride, so other than a few spots with standing water or mud, the roads were in good shape.  The organizers did a great job of traffic management and the rest stops were well-equipped and staffed with enthusiastic volunteers.
I did the 40 mile route, and glad I didn't decide to take off on one of the longer ones.  The route was very hilly, and 40 miles is about all I can do, given the difficulty, at my current level of fitness.  Met a coworker from the office and some other friends but didn't see anyone I knew from the rbent crowd.  Maybe some were there I just didn't run in to them.  On guy on a slick looking low racer passed me about about 8 miles out but I never saw him again.  Only saw one other bent.  At least I got finished with no cramps and feeling pretty good about being on the right track headed for the MS150, which is significantly easier course than this one.
I did convince my coworker to give the bent a try after the ride.  He started off great and drove it down the road a bit, came back with a big grin and something like "wow, that's really fun."

I rode but Alexis did not.   I ended up giving the registraton away to someone onthe bikeforums website, so thankfully someone got to use it.  Unfortunately he broke a spoke 20 miles into the ride and had to sag back.  I didn'tthink I'd make it to the ride at all, considering the rain the nigh before, but there were only a few wet spots and a small amount of mud to contend with.  I only saw two bents at the start, but I was right at the front.  I saw one Bachetta highracer, and a burley.  I rode the full 75 miles - very few riders out on that route.
 
Thank goodness Bud and I rode in Aledo last week; otherwise I am not sure I'd have made the whole 75 miles.  Bud, the first 50 were pretty easy.  There were a few long grades, a few short and steep ones, and one long and steep, but I was able to climb them all in the middle ring of my new crankset, which performed beautifully.  Thanks to Bud's tune-up, it was the quietest ride I've ever had on the P-38.  I was maintaining a little over a 16mph average, which meant that almost no single rider passed me.  I was passed by the occasional triathlete hunched into his aerobars, and by several pacelines, but with the stiff wind I managed to reel in anyone else that passed me, and in the later miles left a few pacelines in the dust as well.  Some of the downhills were brutal against the wind, having to pedal just to make 12mph.
 
Somewhere between mile 50 and 55 came Cattle Barron road.  Supposedly the toughest 3.5 mile stretch of Parker county.  It was actually kind of tame.  It would have a long medium grade hill, level off, then another.  Plenty of time to rest between stretches except for the last hill, which was VERY STEEP - I almost had to stop halfway to get my breath back, but I persevered and rested at the top.  There was one funny thing about CB road - I got a whiff of what i thought was a nasty pig farm, and instead passed by the sign for the (I kid you not) J.M. Smelley Dairy.    
 
No, CB road wasn't the big deal - but after it, you had to endure a solid ten miles  of medium grade hills that went on for a full mile, then a short downhill before seeing the same again, and mostly into the wind.  It was extremely demoralizing and I took my first break for more than a quick pee stop just to rest my knees.  On the last leg I ran into a guy on an upright who would calf cramp when he tried to stand on the pedals and climb, and quad cramp whenever he tried to spin up a hill.  Several times I towed him up by having him grab onto the back of the seat.  
 
Had one paceline from the last rest stop on the 75 mile part of the route finally get withing taling distance of me and said "you're awesome - we've been trying to catch you for miles."  I didn't have the heart to tell them it wasn't any skill of mine - I was practically dead and running the granny much of the way - they just sucked worse.  
 
About five miles from the finish who do I run into but Terry on his dual 26" wheeled Baron.  Poor fella was doing the walk of shame up one of the very last hills back to the school (and of course I had to tell on him!).  We finished the ride together and had lunch, which was free for the riders.  At lunch we met Ken who had done the 75 mile route as well.  I recognized him as soon as he sat down, but I'm so horrible with names.  Sorry Ken!
 
Anyway here's what you need to know.  Awesome scenery, awesome support, awesome food and rest stops, and easily one of the most challenging rides I've ever been on.  Make sure you include hill training if you're going to ride this ride, which you SHOULD.  Get it on your calendar for next year.

It was a wonderful day.  A little windy, but that doesnt much bother us recumbent riders.  I started late for the first group and passed several bents.  Robert was that you on the Action-Bent?  I passed you on Hwy-30 just after the bridge.   I had only a 13.4 average speed because I walked up 5 hills.  Around the 32 mile mark their was a 3 mile down hill run where I was flying around 35mph.  I finshed the 53 mile route in exactly 4 hours and 6 seconds.   Greg said he averaged over 16mph on the 72 mile route.  I was very thankful I ran into him near the end.  I was looking for some company at lunch
 
I will see if I can post a photo of my Barron with the Dual 26' pig-heavy mtb wheels.  It really changes the appearanch and makes it look like a mid-racer rather then a low-racer.   These are my "Beater Wheels".  Hopefully I can get the remaining parts needed for my upgrade in the next month.  So I can start running my Spinergy Rev-X carbon Wheels.
 
The Barron with blinky light at white rock was likely Mark Leuck.  I remeber him from the Bent-Bash last fall.    
 

Terry

Het Greg
In your estimate/opinion where any of the hills on RFH low-racer killers?  I know you  
pedaled up all of them on your Lighting, but would any of them been walk-ups for you on a low racer?
 
Terry

Quote from terranimo on Apr 2^nd, 2007, 4:55pm:

 
 
Good question.  That last hill on cattle barron road was tough enough that I was tempted to stop and rest halfway up.  But I'm of the opinion that I'm actually a better climber on the lowracer anyway.  That high bottom bracket position that puts so many people off seems to play into the strength of my legs - the hamstrings.  So I think that a couple hills on that ride would be walkers for some lowracer riders, I don't think it would have been for most.  
 
lowracers are one bike you've definately got to put the miles in on, though.  I really hope I get the tica again soon.  I really want to take it to austin and put it through the armadillo ride again, where I had to walk up two hills last year.