The Saddle Tramps (Bees are welcome to join us) will
ride Wednesday July 27th, from Earl Powers Park. We will
ride on
Hawthorne Road west to Lakeshore Drive, then ride clockwise around the
lake
shore to east University Ave, then northeast on SR26 to CR234, then
south
on CR234 through Windsor to the Owens Illinois boat ramp park for a
restroom
stop, then backtrack on CR234 to CR1474 and go east a few miles to turn
south
onto SE163 street, which will jog east slightly at SE 24th Ave from which
we
will turn south onto SE 171 street (the Townsend Cemetary Road) which will
take
us back to Hawthorne Road. We will then jog west slightly on
Hawthorne
Road before turning south on SE 169th Street, which will take us to the
Hawthorne Rail Trail, which we will ride west to SE 30th street and cut
back to
Hawthorne Road there for the short ride west on it back to Earl Powers
Park,
avoiding the "hills and hummocks" part of the Trail. Maps will be
available at the ride start.
This is a ~32 mile ride with
smooth roads and very few hills. Anyone needing a
shorter ride is welcome to cut the ride short by riding from
the
restroom stop south on CR234 to Hawthorne Road, and from there
directly back to Earl Powers Park for a 22 mile
unescorted
ride. Restrooms are available at Earl Powers Park and at the
restroom/water stop in Windsor. Meet at 7:15AM for a
departure at 7:30AM so we get as much cool
morning riding as
possible. High temperatures and humidity are currently
forecast
in the low-90s later in the day, so bring plenty of water (at least 2
bottles!) and dress for hot weather. We can stop
briefly
as we cross Hawthorne Road to return to the Trail for cold drinks, but
other
than that there are no opportunities to purchase energy snacks or drinks,
so carry what you need on this ride.
Expect level-ground pedaling speeds
between
13-17 mph, and an average speed of 13-15 mph on this
relatively
flat route. This is a no-drop friendly ride; nobody
needs
to stress themselves to keep up with the leader or faster riders,
because we will stop and wait for everyone to regroup at
each
major turn. Helmets
are required,
suntan lotion is recommended, as some parts of this ride are in
sunny
open areas.
Earl Powers Park is located on
the east side of town on Hawthorne Road (SR 20), which has bike
lanes continuously on the east side of town. It can also be accessed
by
riding the Hawthorne Rail Trail approximately 4 miles east from Boulware
Springs, over the "hills and hummocks", until you get to SE 30th
Street, where you can cross directly from the Trail to Hawthorne
Road
and ride a few hundred feet west towards town to reach the Park.
There is no fee to enter and park at Earl Powers Park; we usually
meet
near the restrooms close to the entrance to the park.
If you would like to receive a preview
map of
the ride, or a Garmin .tcx file of the route, please email Ed at the
address
below.
This ride will be lead by Ed Gardner in
the
absence of our fearless leader Melinda, who continues working on her tan in
California while we work on our heat exhaustion tolerance
here.
Where: Earl Powers
Park,
just east of Gainesville on SR20 (Hawthorne Road)
When: 7:15AM
meeting,
7:30AM departure, Wednesday July 27th
Distance: ~32 miles, 1
restroom stop midway, available 22 mile shortcut version
Speed:
13-17
mph
Duration: ~3:00
hours total time full route, ~2:00 hours short route