4-6-70

The question: What's the combination for a good gravel ride?

Four gravel loving fools

Six hours of sunshine

Seventy miles of dense pack limestone

That's me and doing just short of a rebuild in the lot. The day before I spend three hours trying to get things right and fail. I flat no more then 2 miles in. Blow the spare tube and get a replacement from Blake.

Yes, those are steel toe work boots. I switch to bike shoes. It's a good look on me, right?

 I'm the ring leader and just happy as hell to be on the rough.

 My buddy Pete joins me to experience the gravel.

 Blake is in the Heck with me. He's loving the solitude.

 Duane doesn't have a gravel bike but cowboys up and pushes the big tire.

 Pete's not to be trusted with sanity. He finds madness more to his liking.

 This is the first time they get to eat gravel. They love it. Low maintenance roads as soft as oatmeal cookies, not withstanding.

 Duane's killing it. He only took his lid off for this shot.

 We have a long way to go to make seventy miles.

 I really get gravel after this ride. It really is about friends just out to enjoy the day.

 Small gear problems but it makes you a better mechanic and better prepared for the longer rides.

 For those readers that have never seen a cue sheet. They look like this. Mileage on the left, turn graphic in the middle and road name on the right.

 Lunch or more accurately, Munch.

 Pre-dinner, Call it Dunch or Linner.

 Heath's Hill, Uffta.

 This is a $100 view. I don't know how to share the feeling. You just have to come down and ride a lot of dirt roads.

It's a form of freedom. Everyone has their share of highs and lows but when the sun is low and the shadows are long your mood is elevated for spending a long, somewhat hard, day riding the country side.

We end at 69.96 miles in 5 hours and a lot of change so call it, 6.