Last Saturday, we went to McGehee (population 4500) so I could ride in the Tour de Hoot. It was a hoot! We had a great time. This ride was organized to support the Boys and Girls Club of McGehee. By the way, I believe the reason it’s called the Tour de Hoot is because the high school mascot is the owls. Get it.
McGehee is a two-hour drive from Little Rock and the ride started at 9:00. We could have driven there early in the morning, but we choose to spend the night. That was a good plan, especially since Ann went with me. On Friday night we met up with several friends from Little Rock. We had a nice dinner together and enjoyed the company.
The next morning we saw another of my biking friends who had driven from Little Rock that morning. He brought his wife, whom we also know. She and Ann spent the morning together. They had a good time while we were riding. They spend some time at the Japanese American Internment Museum, which is in McGehee.
McGehee is in southeast Arkansas not very far from the Mississippi River. The terrain is flat, very flat. There wasn’t much scenery but farm fields. The most talked about feature of the ride this year was the wind. The forecast was for 10 – 20 mph winds and I believe the wind was, indeed, blowing about 20 mph from the north. The course was roughly a rectangular pattern, so except for the last 16 or so miles we rode in a ferocious crosswind or head wind. We were thankful the last part of the ride included a tailwind. With the tailwind, I reached speeds of up to 24 mph. A headwind at the end would have been cruel.
It was dam-near a gale-force wind
There were about 60 folks who participated in the ride. The temperature at the start was in the upper 50’s, and with the wind, it felt kind of cold. Most people, like me, wore a windbreaker.
Here we go! It took me a few seconds to resent my odometer and heart rate monitor. I like to capture accurate data.
My legs felt tired when I first started and some people passed me whom ordinarily I could keep up with. But, after about 16 miles there was a rest stop, and I was rejuvenated after that. Then, I rode with some friends and was able to draft behind someone the rest of the way. Drafting was most beneficial when riding directly into the wind. There were several/many miles when the wind was at about a 45 degree angle from head-on. That made drafting very difficult. Even professional riders hate this kind of situation. When drafting in a crosswind, riders use what is called an echelon to draft. The drafting rider rides to the side and slightly behind the rider in front. This causes the pace line to spread out across the road. Since we were riding on narrow country roads, only 2 – 3 people could draft without riding in the oncoming traffic lane.
I enjoyed the ride a lot—not quite as much as last week’s Big Dam Bridge Ride. It’s hard to match the experience of riding with 3000 other riders. I finished this ride in less than four hours of riding time. My average speed, thanks to Brad, who pulled us most of the way, was 15.2. We stopped at all four rest stops to recharge. I’ll put this ride on my calendar for next year.
I felt great after the ride, and as usual, was high as a kite. The tiredness didn’t set in for a couple of hours later after the endorphins had diminished.
