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Os Rouges - 21 July, 2011 My ride today included three HC (hors categorie) climbs. And temperatures approaching 90 (hors temperature?) with moderately high humidity. Phew! I rolled away from home at 6:10am and made Weston Center 6 miles away about 5 minutes before the designated 6:40am meetup/departure time. In the good company of several Macgregor riders (Y.F.O.G.), six of us completed a 20 mile or so circuit through Wayland, Sudbury, and Lincoln, arriving back at 7:50am. A number of Crack O' Dawn and associated riders joined to swell the ranks to 15 or so for the 8:00am main event. We set off in a direction that ranged from north to east, with one destination in mind: Redbones, and more specifically, their breakfast buffet. 
We covered the 16 miles quickly enough, with a several hundred yard stretch of large gravel/small rocks thrown in for good measure. The ride included a brisk (perhaps too brisk, but we didn't hit anyone) pace along the Minuteman Bike Path. By the time we arrived a shade after 9:00am, the sun was already beating down with intensity, so we valet-parked our bikes and retreated into the nicely air conditioned restaurant. The place was already quite full, with the buffet line snaking amidst the tables. We used our helmets to stake out space to stand or sit, loaded up our plates (fruit, yoghurt, granola, and the real foods of eggs, hash browns, sausages, and bacon), and then settled in to watch Stage 18 of the Tour de France. About those HC climbs. While our ride technically "included" them in the sense of being visible on any one of four television sets, the rides of yellow jersey wearer Thomas Voeckler et.al. included them in a slightly more involved and substantial way. No spoiler here, but it was a great stage that reshaped the Tour in advance of Friday's final mountain stage, Saturday's individual time trial, and Sunday's ceremonial (unless your name happens to be Mark Cavendish or Tyler Farrar) ride to Paris. 
While the Tour riders clearly bore the brunt of the day, our stuffed stomachs didn't exactly set us up in ideal fashion for the return ride home. We set off around noon in sweltering heat through Harvard Square and then along the Charles for the 16 or so mile return swing, riders peeling off at different points toward their various destinations. Mine was a cool bath and a do-nothing afternoon. Distance: 58.8mi Time in the saddle: 3h 27m Average speed: 17.0mph Max speed: 34.7mph Buffet cost: $8 Not having to crest any HC climbs: priceless |