galen_52657
Or..... weekend half tour from hell...
The learning curve can be as steep as the climbs in York County PA, or so I have found out! So, I had a little tour in mind for this weekend - ride the tandem from home to Columbia, PA, stay overnight and ride back the next day. But, several miscalculations on my part made for a half-tour and sag ride home from a friend.
I had ridden to Columbia before on my single bike with a BBC tour. But, it had been a while and my memory was a little foggy on the details. For route planning I did a MapQuest route - shortest and avoiding highways. Then, I modified the route somewhat with a paper map. The MapQuest route was 52 miles, which I thought would take at most 4 hours of actual riding. Boy, was I wrong!
I had purchased a rear rack and panniers as well as a wide-range cassette with a 32 tooth low gear. I installed the wide-range cassette as well as a new chain and new rear tire. Nancy and I each packed one set of street clothing and a change of cycling clothing plus toiletries. at 9:15 AM Sunday we set off for parts unknown.....
Things were going smoothly out towards the PA line. I know the roads well and the route was as flat as possible. But not long after crossing the PA line and getting off the beaten path we began to have some problems. We were climbing up a steep little grind on Rt 851 when the rear tire blew off the rim! This was the same new tire I had installed the night before - a Kevlar beaded Conti 700 x 28. I inspected the tire and could not find anything wrong with it, so it must have been an overheating/to much pressure situation due to the extra weight of the panniers. I installed a new tube but only inflated the tire to about 90 psi instead of my usual 120. Again underway, we were being baked in the noonday sun. Nothing but semi-barren corn fields an both sides of the road. By this time it was almost lunchtime and we were more than halfway. But my map did not agree with a road name sign. We stopped at a little antique store on 851 just east of Stewartstown where we were supposed to turn off and asked directions. Thankfully, the store also had a cooler with bottled water and Gatorade and some candy bars. We refilled our bottles, had a snack and got back on the road planning to stop for lunch at Crossroads, the next town shown on the map. We make our way to Crossroads...but... there is not a store anywhere! Nothing! As I study the map a local driving by asked if we were lost (which we were not...this time). He said the closest place to get something to eat was Stewartstown (south and west of us) or Red Lion (not on our route). We pressed on and the roads got smaller and rougher - nothing but tar and chip. We descended a long winding grade into the Muddy Creek valley and crossed the north branch. We took a break by the stream side. The climb out of the valley was steep and switch-backed. At the top again the road names did not match my map. I got directions from a guy cutting his grass. Seems I had taken a wrong turn in the valley and was on a road so small it was not on my map! Luckily, I was only slightly east of where I thought I was. He was kind enough to direct me out to PA route 74. By this time, Nancy was wearing down. It was hot and we had been riding about 4 hours and were still a long way off. And, worst of all we could not find a store. The roads were still rollers. Just about every climb was in the granny now. We got out to Rt. 74. What a Godawful cycling road! 55 MPH 2 lane highway with an intermittent 3 foot shoulder. Thankfully we were only on it for about a mile before turning north towards New Bridgeville. Now we were close to the Susquehanna but still, the hills were with us. Being leery of overheating the tires I was concerned with the long downhills. Finally, in Craley, PA we found an open store (a liquor store of all things) and replenished our fluids and got some more snacks. The friendly cashier said it was only 5 minutes by car into Columbia on PA route 624 (River Road). Looking at my map I knew it was longer, but I did not want to say anything for fear of upsetting Nancy. Craley is up on the ridge overlooking the river so after a short climb it was a long, long descent to the water. Along the water's edge people were camping, boating, fishing and enjoying the holiday. But....River road takes a cruel turn! A few miles before town the road diverts from the river's edge and goes inland... and up...and down...and up again...and down again. The road was horrendous for cycling...worse than Rt. 74. No shoulder with pickup truck after pickup truck towing boats on trailers... groups of Harley's with strait pipes roaring by... drunks... the only thing missing was a tractor trailer towing an over-sized load...
We were grinding up the last two climbs riding on the white line at about 3 MPH. Nancy was at the breaking point. I was just trying to convince her that we had to press on. Finally, the road emptied out into Wrightsville, which is across the river from Columbia. We wind through town, turn onto PA Route 462 and cross the river. We arrive at The Columbian, the B & B where we are staying after seven hours on the road including stops. I quickly get us checked in while Nancy just about passes out on a rocker on the porch... We get cleaned up and want to eat! But no! Nothing is open! Every restaurant in town is closed! What kind of town is this???? (must be a PA thing...)...if worse came to worse our place was right next to a convenience store....But, we wonder around and finally find a biker bar called Smitty's about a mile away on Lancaster Street. Three draft beers and a cheese-steak sub never tasted so good....
So we bribed a friend of Nancy's to come fetch us the next day....
What I learned:
50 miles with a load = 100 miles without a load if there is any climbing
Better check the route with topo software (any suggestions??)
Deflate the tires or better yet, install larger tires
There is not such thing as to low of a low gear on a loaded tandem
Stay away from bodies of water on holidays
Little towns in PA are not 'towns' at all..just crossroads.
Medium sized towns in PA roll up the sidewalks on Sunday
There have got to be more Harley motorcycles in southeastern PA than any other place on earth. Mufflers are optional.
PS...the few fixed up old homes in Columbia PA are quaint, but the town is basically a dump.
The learning curve can be as steep as the climbs in York County PA, or so I have found out! So, I had a little tour in mind for this weekend - ride the tandem from home to Columbia, PA, stay overnight and ride back the next day. But, several miscalculations on my part made for a half-tour and sag ride home from a friend.
I had ridden to Columbia before on my single bike with a BBC tour. But, it had been a while and my memory was a little foggy on the details. For route planning I did a MapQuest route - shortest and avoiding highways. Then, I modified the route somewhat with a paper map. The MapQuest route was 52 miles, which I thought would take at most 4 hours of actual riding. Boy, was I wrong!
I had purchased a rear rack and panniers as well as a wide-range cassette with a 32 tooth low gear. I installed the wide-range cassette as well as a new chain and new rear tire. Nancy and I each packed one set of street clothing and a change of cycling clothing plus toiletries. at 9:15 AM Sunday we set off for parts unknown.....
Things were going smoothly out towards the PA line. I know the roads well and the route was as flat as possible. But not long after crossing the PA line and getting off the beaten path we began to have some problems. We were climbing up a steep little grind on Rt 851 when the rear tire blew off the rim! This was the same new tire I had installed the night before - a Kevlar beaded Conti 700 x 28. I inspected the tire and could not find anything wrong with it, so it must have been an overheating/to much pressure situation due to the extra weight of the panniers. I installed a new tube but only inflated the tire to about 90 psi instead of my usual 120. Again underway, we were being baked in the noonday sun. Nothing but semi-barren corn fields an both sides of the road. By this time it was almost lunchtime and we were more than halfway. But my map did not agree with a road name sign. We stopped at a little antique store on 851 just east of Stewartstown where we were supposed to turn off and asked directions. Thankfully, the store also had a cooler with bottled water and Gatorade and some candy bars. We refilled our bottles, had a snack and got back on the road planning to stop for lunch at Crossroads, the next town shown on the map. We make our way to Crossroads...but... there is not a store anywhere! Nothing! As I study the map a local driving by asked if we were lost (which we were not...this time). He said the closest place to get something to eat was Stewartstown (south and west of us) or Red Lion (not on our route). We pressed on and the roads got smaller and rougher - nothing but tar and chip. We descended a long winding grade into the Muddy Creek valley and crossed the north branch. We took a break by the stream side. The climb out of the valley was steep and switch-backed. At the top again the road names did not match my map. I got directions from a guy cutting his grass. Seems I had taken a wrong turn in the valley and was on a road so small it was not on my map! Luckily, I was only slightly east of where I thought I was. He was kind enough to direct me out to PA route 74. By this time, Nancy was wearing down. It was hot and we had been riding about 4 hours and were still a long way off. And, worst of all we could not find a store. The roads were still rollers. Just about every climb was in the granny now. We got out to Rt. 74. What a Godawful cycling road! 55 MPH 2 lane highway with an intermittent 3 foot shoulder. Thankfully we were only on it for about a mile before turning north towards New Bridgeville. Now we were close to the Susquehanna but still, the hills were with us. Being leery of overheating the tires I was concerned with the long downhills. Finally, in Craley, PA we found an open store (a liquor store of all things) and replenished our fluids and got some more snacks. The friendly cashier said it was only 5 minutes by car into Columbia on PA route 624 (River Road). Looking at my map I knew it was longer, but I did not want to say anything for fear of upsetting Nancy. Craley is up on the ridge overlooking the river so after a short climb it was a long, long descent to the water. Along the water's edge people were camping, boating, fishing and enjoying the holiday. But....River road takes a cruel turn! A few miles before town the road diverts from the river's edge and goes inland... and up...and down...and up again...and down again. The road was horrendous for cycling...worse than Rt. 74. No shoulder with pickup truck after pickup truck towing boats on trailers... groups of Harley's with strait pipes roaring by... drunks... the only thing missing was a tractor trailer towing an over-sized load...
We were grinding up the last two climbs riding on the white line at about 3 MPH. Nancy was at the breaking point. I was just trying to convince her that we had to press on. Finally, the road emptied out into Wrightsville, which is across the river from Columbia. We wind through town, turn onto PA Route 462 and cross the river. We arrive at The Columbian, the B & B where we are staying after seven hours on the road including stops. I quickly get us checked in while Nancy just about passes out on a rocker on the porch... We get cleaned up and want to eat! But no! Nothing is open! Every restaurant in town is closed! What kind of town is this???? (must be a PA thing...)...if worse came to worse our place was right next to a convenience store....But, we wonder around and finally find a biker bar called Smitty's about a mile away on Lancaster Street. Three draft beers and a cheese-steak sub never tasted so good....
So we bribed a friend of Nancy's to come fetch us the next day....
What I learned:
50 miles with a load = 100 miles without a load if there is any climbing
Better check the route with topo software (any suggestions??)
Deflate the tires or better yet, install larger tires
There is not such thing as to low of a low gear on a loaded tandem
Stay away from bodies of water on holidays
Little towns in PA are not 'towns' at all..just crossroads.
Medium sized towns in PA roll up the sidewalks on Sunday
There have got to be more Harley motorcycles in southeastern PA than any other place on earth. Mufflers are optional.
PS...the few fixed up old homes in Columbia PA are quaint, but the town is basically a dump.