To me! That's right and my only wish is to be number 1 on the Hot List next season.

I would like to take a moment to salute Dan Reiners upon this, the day memorializing his fine birth.

Dan Reiners is a smart fellah who's always down for some high-fiving, strategy-talking, break-chasing, lead-outting. At Race for the Wine this summer he got into a late four-man break that built up and held a slim lead over the peleton over the final two laps. It was very exciting to watch that unfold and a great result for him. Holler!

Happy Birthday, Mister President.

What brown nose! But happy birthday Dan.

Happy bday!

Thank you all. I am looking forward to 2011 being another year of High-Fivin', Lead-Outtin', Break Drivin', Strategy-talkin' and general Kissena good times.

Sooooo - Wednesday is my birthday and I have taken the day off of work. With my significant other unfortunately out of town, I think the best way to celebrate is a nice long distance bike ride.

When we started looking at places to get married, we looked at some vineyards on 9W near the Mid Hudson bridge, and the joke became "I am going to ride my bike to our wedding".

Alas, we are not getting married on 9W, we chose a place in Old Saybrook CT (on the Long Island Sound, about 125 miles away). And the joke about riding to the wedding has now become a plan (I am riding up a few days before hand instead of driving).

So, this Wednesday I plan on doing a bad ass course recon ride, so I can get it right when the big day rolls around! Anyone want to join me ?

details:
* Planning on about 125 miles (the google map says 129 but I am going to deviate from its route leaving Queens).
* Leaving at 5am from Long Island City
* map of route is here: http://g.co/maps/85f4c
* most of the route follows the "East Coast Greenway" through CT (though its not actually a green way, its on quiet street routes)
* I know the way up to Stamford (bike commuted it many times) - after that we follow the map\signs.
* Lunch break at SUPER DUPER WEENIE (first dogs on me)
* public transit on the way back (Shore Line East + Metro North) (I plan on either being on a 7:05pm to 9:42pm train or an 8:03 to 10:46 train (arriving in Grand Central)
* pace will be reasonable but not snails pace so we can achieve the mileage.

any questions ?

First, Happy Birthday!

Second, KAHN!

it sounds like fun, and a good day for riding, but I have work that day.

Happy Birthday Josh!
Sounds like a great plan; wish I could join. That's 25 miles longer than I've ever ridden by the way...

I'll be at work too, but man that sounds like fun.

Happy birthday Josh!

:smile:

not to encourage widespread truancy from work, but...

the taking off of work to ride for one's birthday is a fine tradition. Love the personal twist on it.

would love to join you, Josh, but Wednesday will be a particularly snarky day at the office for me. but that sounds like a total blast - enjoy it and happy birthday!

Happy Birthday Josh! Can't make the ride, but hope you enjoy every wheel rotation of it --and eat lots of birthday cake flavor gels along the way!

Josh - happy birthday. Say hello to Gary at Super Duper Weenie - he's the bald guy with the stars and stripes bandana. If you drop my name he'll be extra grouchy. ;-) I grew up in Fairfield and knew Gary back when all he had was his truck. My personal favorite is the Chicago dog.

Chicago dogs are my favorite as well - and my brain has already gone to birthday mode. trying to concentrate for work right now...not working!

So how did the less than pleasant weather impact the Birthday ride?

I hope you had an awesome birthday, and we all want to hear stories, even if they include the abomination that is a Chicago dog (WTF is celery salt and florescent pickle relish doing on a hotdog?)

How did it go? Eight and a half hours is EPIC.
(pictures or it didn't happen )

SLEEP

write up in the morning

this is very cool.

Great idea. Happy birthday!

ok, so, my plan for 120+ miles at the high level
1) leave at 5am (not horrible, its about when I leave for races)
2) have a pal who is about 60 miles away meet me for lunch at 11am (when Super Duper Weenie opens)
3) enjoy a dog or two, get moving by 11:30 or 11:45
4) ride the next 60ish miles , get to destination on time to grab food, putz around, and get on a 7pm train home.

I allocated an hour for every 10 miles - mostly to account for missing turns, stopping to read the map, etc and getting slow towards the end.

Except I couldn't concentrate Tuesday night, and when I should have been preparing and printing out my queue sheets, laying out my clothing, etc, I was watching TV. So I went to bed without doing any of my pre-ride prep, figured I would wake up, bang it out, and still leave on time.

Alarm set for 4am, wide awake at 3:45. The prep I gave myself an hour for, once I got off facebook and got to work, took almost 2.5 hrs (had to bring extra sunscreen to re-apply, had to bring straps so I could secure my bike on the train, etc). So instead of 5am, I left at 6:45. Ends up, this was a great move. I missed any early morning chills, I left in sunlight vs dark, and I took under 5 hours to ride the 60 miles, not 6. I would have gotten to the lunch spot before they opened - that would have sucked!

The ride fell into a couple of distinct sections in my mind. The first was Queens to Stamford. I knew 85% of the route by heart, I thought the rest would be easy, and since I was "late" I put some hustle on it. Cut my time to the CT state line by about 5 minutes from my normal time. Somewhere in between Greenwich and Stamford (once I was off my old commute route), I missed my first turn. A lot of the route was through backways, sleepy communities, etc. Found myself at a fork leading to two dead ends. OK, turned around, followed a car out, found myself on Route 1. The majority of the route danced around interstate 95, route 1, and the Amtrak/Metro North rail line, but you were normally secluded enough not to know it.

Route 1 is a blessing and a curse. I knew it would take me in the right direction, but I also knew it had some REALLY scary parts with lack of shoulder and people racing their cars around full steam ahead.

In this instance, I got on 1 in what was not the nicest part of Stamford, but the shoulder space was there, car speeds were reasonable, and soon I was in downtown and back on my route. One more "I know what I am doing, I swear" wrong turn later, and then I was back on route again, and I made it to the Stamford\Darien border.

This starts part 2 - Darien \ Norwalk \ Westport \ Fairfield.
Now I am virgin territory. Every so often I will stumble upon a road I know, but by and large I am blindly following the queue sheet. The part on RT 1 here had a 9W like very wide shoulder. Somehow I am not missing anything, the streets are marked, stuff shows up when I expect it to, etc. I text my buddy at 10:15, tell him I am 15 miles away, to meet me at 11:45. Most of the time the sun was out, as I got closer to lunch it did get slightly darker and a couple of drops of rain came out here and there.

I missed the final turn (blew a quarter of a mile past it it ends up) , so when I looked for it, the street had a different name. "Thats OK" I thought, I'll just head down this street, then cut over, its a grid over here. But it wasn't . I found a police officer who gave me directions to turn right, and soon I found myself back at the turn I should not have taken in the first place. OK, I want to eat, and I was gonna be EARLY (11:30 instead of 11:45) , I take out my phone, fire up VZ navigator, and use the GPS to get me there I threw it in my pocket , road forwards, and waited for it to announce loudly "in a quarter of a mile, turn right", etc. Pulled in to lunch at 11:43, still early !

Got to put my bike in a secure area , went inside and we ordered .
I had a cream soda, and two dogs:
New Englander: Sauerkraut, Bacon, Mustard, Sweet Relish & Raw Onion
Chicagoan: Lettuce, Tomato, Mustard, Celery Salt, Hot Relish & Pickle

once we were there, the place got PACKED with the lunch crowd, we headed out, took some pics in front of their sign. Before we left I got both bottles filled with water and ice and Perpetuem . ICE - like I needed to keep my drink cold, more on that in a moment. It didn't mix well right away, but as the ice melted later on it was oh so perfect.

TO BE CONTINUED

Part 3 - post lunch Fairfield \ Bridgeport \ Stratford \ Milford \ West Haven \ New Haven
So, when I left lunch, it was raining. Not horribly heavy, but enough that my seat was wet, my head was cold, some ass yelled at me from the OPPOSITE side of the road, etc. Because it was raining, when I took out my directions, I only kept 3 sheets out, and kept the rest in my pocket in a plastic bag. This worked well, I was getting through each sheet it was getting close to it's point of no return from water damage. I picked some scary looking parts of Fairfield and Bridgeport to ride through - I was not looking forwards to any rain related woes (ie, flatting) at the time.

I pass the Bridgeport train station, take a right, and go over a bridge with steel grating. the kind that isn't smart to ride over in the sun...and it was raining and REALLY slick . I just let go of the brakes, stopped pedaling, and coasted through what felt really really long. putting a foot down was not going to happen, the motion of clipping out probably would have thrown me over. Battenkill's sand roads were practice for this moment.

It is here that I should mention what the CT coast line looks like for those that don't know. It has a million rivers and bays that break it up. So if you are following the coast (where the quiet roads are) , you dip in and out of all these peninsulas, and then find the bridge that cross the inlets, then do it all over again. If you stay inland, its more direct, but not always as nice.

So in Stratford, I turn onto E Broadway, and the directions have me taking a right, a left, another right, and another left, to stay on that road. But not all the insersections are marked, and if they are, often it is just with one sign, but not both streets. SOOO, I find myself lost. OK, head due North, find that spot to cross the next river. I see a large road up ahead, is it CT 162 ? It is. Nice, I follow this east, thinking I will be back on route in a few blocks (the route came right up to it) . NOPE, didn't find my way. Ends up this road was not bad, see my note on Route 1 above, I had the same concerns. I had enough of missing the turns, and to add insult to injury, my last batch of direction sheets was in my saddle bag, and got soaked, so was really hard to look at anyway. I found a shop (woooooo), they told me how to get back on route (booo, I was PO-ed at the route at that moment) , but I was on "New Haven Ave" . They told me if I kept following it, I would get where I wanted, and it "wasn't sketch" . Made a pit stop, purchased some extra gels, and was on my way.

Got into Milford, was back on route to New Haven, things are going great, and I notice sand in the road. After my bridge crossing (see above), I am trying to be more careful than normal about dirt, bumps, etc, I desired no flats! I felt I was pushing my luck. I come around the bend, and the road is closed, they are repairing the beach . So I have to go up a LONG hill. I get to the top, go a few blocks over, and I am hesitant to go back down, since I really don't want to turn this into a hill climb\descend cycle if they have more blocks closed. This is probably the 10th road repair I ran into for the day, but the first that was full road closure. Got waved through a section in Norwalk, cop told me he didn't want me to stop and unclip, I might fall over. back to Milford. So I go up to this lady hosing her driveway, and she tells me where to go. But did I want to "ride on the boardwalk?" she asks. The town has a cement pedestrian walkway that goes to a wooden boardwalk - but I didn't look like a "boardwalk cyclist" . Well, my directions had me going through it! She got me onto a better course.

So I am now in New Haven, and the turn I have the most concern over for the whole ride is coming up:
Take the I-95 N exit toward New Haven - go 240 feet
Slight right onto Ella T Grasso Blvd

It looks sketchy on the sheet, but up the interstate on ramp (in the shoulder) I go. It becomes obvious very quickly that the 240 feet slight right, was onto a rocky, garbage strewn "path" that lead to a road in the distance. I ride said path CX style (so much for being careful) back out to the main road, I am not going the distance to the other side .

So now I am riding through New Haven on the north side of 95, and I know I want to get to the streets on the south side of the road. Soon I see signs for "Long Wharf", woo thats where I want to be, I follow those through a couple turns, and find myself on a long desolate strip, with some food trucks (mainly taco trucks and what not)...WAIT, TACO TRUCKS. I am feeling a little bonkish, and tacos felt like the perfect solution. Between the cold rain, the bad turns, the freaking interstate on ramp, etc, I am feeling frustrated, and two tacos and some water are the perfect pick me up. From lunch to here was 25 miles and it took me 3 hours .

TO BE CONTINUED

Part 4
Route 1 from New Haven to Old Saybrook

The tacos were fabulous. They also came with this slightly fried potato (they appeared to be pan fried)+ other stuff salad concoction. and no forks. I didn't care. I got the pick me up I needed, it was time to get moving.
It was around 3:30, I had just shy of 40 miles of riding left. Mental calculation time. I could bail early, get on the train in New Haven, have a nice easy evening. 87 miles is not a bad ride, right ?
Nope, I was finishing it. So, leaving Long Wharf I had 2 turns and I would be on a street that became route one. I would then take route 1 the rest of the way to Old Saybrook.

East of New Haven, RT 1 is not a bad road. Decent but not amazing shoulder space, very often only 1 lane of traffic in each direction. Best of all, no more queue sheet. This was just point the bike forwards and focus on the ride.
Nice riding, but what was funny was that now I had expectations. Earlier in the ride, I was not really judging "ok, I should be in the next town now" . But out in the boonies, I would see signs for Branford, then a bunch of non developed space, then more signs for Branford, it never ended. I felt like I was in Branford FOREVER.

I was making nice time down RT 1, eat and drinking on schedule, felt ok, did a few intervals to spice things up (at this point I was so deep in the ride, it didn't matter, I knew physically I was not going to over do it).
Got a nice mental kick at the 100 mile mark .

At 102 miles, I hear thump thump thump. Now, I have been rattling all day (large saddle bag with cell charger for post ride reviewing facebook, talking to family, etc), lights, bento box, my bike has a lot of STUFF. But this was different - but not quite the "oh shit, I flatted" thump thump.

Pull over. Front wheel's ok. Rear wheel's ok visually. touch it and it is at about half of it's normal air pressure. No visible gashes, no audible air escape, so I pump some air in to see if it holds, and it does, WOOOO.
I start riding again and it loses air , drat. Pulled over at 104 miles in. I could change the flat (I am not really in the mood) , but what if my wheel is untrue, I have something bigger wrong, etc ? Its my birthday, I am due the luxury of a flat fix from a shop. I know there should be a shop coming up on route 1 soon, so I call my mother.

JC: Mom, I need a two part favor
Mom: OK
JC: Your in front of a computer right ? Can you lookup the address of the Ford Dealer in Madison CT
Mom: Are you looking at a car?
JC: Mom, I am riding, spandex, not car shopping. I just need the address.
Mom: You do need a new car
JC: Can you throw the addr into google maps, and see if you can find a shop nearby, preferably east so it is on the route ?
Mom: there is one 2.1 miles east , and one 8 miles west. Do you want the #, you should call to see if they are open, if not you can go west.
JC: no mom, I am not tacking on 16 extra miles to the trip, I'll change my "flat" if the other place is not open.
Mom: OK, I also see a "world famous" bike shop, Zanes, you can go there.
JC: ok

So I go the 2.1 miles (tough to tell since above 100 the garmin no longer shows decimal increments), find the address of the shop, but it is long gone. A carpenter tells me it has not existed in years (he was there getting a new store ready). So I am in the middle of this little downtown, changing my flat, and this lady walks up and offers me help. And she is holding a "Zane's world famous" bike shop bag. She offers me a ride home, where do I live? I tell her I live over 100 miles away, and tell her I am headed to Old Saybrook, but I think I have it. Old Saybrook was only 15 miles she said, she insisted on driving me. I am not accepting a ride, I want to finish this thing! She waits to make sure I get the wheel back on, and tells me if I change my mind, to come into the library to find her. G-d bless her, I was just in total shock. She and her friend that walked up were like "Bike New York huh? you know some of us go down to do the Five Boro Bike Tour. We should just start Bike Madison CT!" They were in total shock that I had ridden up from the city, and even more shock that I was changing my tube.

10 to 15 miles to go, wooooooooooooo

TO BE CONCLUDED

Part 5, the conclusion:

Found the "Action Sports" that I thought was in Old Saybrook, but I hadn't hit the town line sign yet. Went in and got a tube (since now I had no spare), some protein bars (recovery) and helped the guy demo how cleats worked to a lady that came in to buy a pair of spin shoes. Chatted with the guy for a bit, and he told me I only had 1.5 miles to go to the train station ( I thought I had 5 to 7 more) . Alright!

Left the shop, got back on the road, and found the town sign. Stopped for a photo, got to the Junction for the train station, turned the other way. It was 6:45, I had 117 miles, there was a 7:05pm train, followed by a 8:03 train home. I decided to get some food, go down and take a picture or two by the water at the hotel (where we are getting married) , relax for a bit and then make my way over to the 8:03 train.

Went into a cute little deli, got a lamb sandwich for there, and a humus wrap for later. The lady's 3 year old son decided it was his job to harrass me (he took my soda back, tried to write on my gloves, came around and wanted to inspect my jersey pockets, ran for the door saying he was going to move my bike "to the wooden bike thing" (the rack I had not seen). Got my food, enjoyed me meal (even with more kid harrassement), jettisoned some trash, and went down to the hotel. Took a few pictures and road back to the train (about 3 miles away).

By the time I got back to town, refilled my bottles (the deli from before didn't have water), and got towards the train station it was 7:40-something. I had 123 miles. I could push real hard to hit the next 2 miles and get to 125, and risk missing the 8:03 and getting an 8:58 train, but nope, I wanted to go home. Went over to the platform, and called Alice to catch up.

The train ride itself was fine - it was two trains. Shore Line East from Old Saybrook to New Haven. older train, but it had a flip up seat for the handicapped that I could use to put the bike at.
I secured the bike, hung my helmet from the luggage racks, plugged my phone in (yep, there was an outlet!), and put my feet up on the second bench seat for the 45 min ride. wooooo. We left the station late due to construction, so a 20 minute transfer in NH was going to be close, the conductor warned me I may only have 2 minutes. Got in with about 5 minutes, so that worked out.

Got a M8 train home from New Haven to Grand Central (newer model train, with designated bike areas, with hooks for you strap the bike up to, more flip up bench seats, and lots and lots of outlets.
played email and facebook catchup, ate my humus sandwich and two protein bars, had a bunch to drink. It was amazing hearing all the station names, all the towns I labored through, the train making much faster time through them Got back to NYC rather quickly, I feared I would be bored out of my skull but the time passed easily.

Riding in Manhattan to get home was a bit of culture shock afterwards. Road in a sea of blinkies going over the Queensboro, and got to my door at 11:24pm.

All in all a great day. I was frustrated navigating, but I think it adds to the fun as well, in a weird way. The route I did take was really nice, I may use that route again next time (vs trying to use the one I was attempting to follow). I was out cold when I went to bed - I could barely keep my eyes open long enough to reach over and turn off the light. My previous longest day was 118 miles, I hit 124 here (+4 more from GCT to home) , and felt a million times better physically at the end. Gran Fondo NY - 105 miles? Sounds like a walk in the park. 145 miles to Montauk in June? sure thing, lets give that a go. D2R2 in August - YES (but that one still will require some more work, its got plenty of HILLS).

Pictures are on facebook - I'll post a few on here later.

Thanks for reading!

Excellent work Josh.

damn

that was epic

lovely adventure, josh!

solo treks are always the best

ask Woj about that

josh, adventure/endurance/persistance, bravo! -h;>

I'm planning to ride out to Peekskill, NY via Skyline Drive and Harriman for my birthday.

the date is Monday, June 25. I am planning on rolling out of my house at 9:30am. The plan is to catch a Metro-North train back to the city. The ride from my house to Peekskill is 72 miles and about 4400' feet of climbing (according to WKO, PowerAgent sayd 5200), with the brutal Skyline Drive after 30 miles and the endless Arden Valley climb after 50.

If you want to ride back all the way, it's 110miles round trip from my house.

Right now, 50% chance of rain for monday. Will consider the weather again Sunday.

Happy Birthday JP. Looks like the weather is crappy for a long ride today.

I bailed on the ride thanks to threats of rain.  Maybe I'll get it in tomorrow.