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Return of that Big Old Ball of Gas! (a ride report w/pics)

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Return of that Big Old Ball of Gas! (a ride report w/pics)

Old 11-04-11, 01:34 PM
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Return of that Big Old Ball of Gas! (a ride report w/pics)

That's right. The 'Big Old Ball of Gas' is back, and all is well with the world! Just to be clear, I'm talking about the Sun, not that ghost who's been haunting my mirror these past several years.

We haven't seen much of the Sun this Autumn so having had two sunny days in the span of four days is wonderful. That I was on my weekend both of those days is fantastic, and that I squeezed in a couple of bike rides is positively great!!

I headed out on the Tour Easy today with the intention of meeting my bride for lunch mid-ride. I rode my normal "near to home" short loop through Holy Sepulchre Cemetery to the Genesee River Trail to the Lake Ontario State Parkway Trail, the 390 Trail, and finally through some housing tracts in the Town of Greece back to my house.

I had a thrill in the cemetery as I spied a pair of deer resting among the headstones. They were in the shadows and too far away for a picture, but close enough to watch and enjoy for a spell.

The leaves are displaying their Autumn colors at peak this week and though it's a year of mild color due to the great strees the trees have suffered, the show is still quite awesome. Here are a couple of shots from Genesee River Trail in Turning Point Park...






From the park I headed along the Trail down into the Turning Basin and stopped dead in my tracks. The view of the trees dressed in their Fall foliage along side the Genesee River reflecting the clear blue of the sky was worth the long wait for a sunny day! Here are a couple of feeble attempts at capturing some of that beauty (and yes, that bridge is the trail along the river's edge)...






From here I rode north back up out of the basin along the trail, constantly bedazzled by the brilliant blue sky I was seeing through the treetops...




Enough of the River Trail. I climbed up from the river, crossed Lake Avenue and headed West along the Lake Ontario State Parkway Trail to meet my bride for lunch. What a great idea that turned out to be. At one point early in the meal, a lady freind of ours happened by and accepted our offer to sit and visit for a couple of minutes. It occured to me at that point that the world and all in it was in proper alignment. I was sitting at a table with two wonderful women, out the window to my left was my favorite bike bathing in glorious sunshine. There were two juicy cheeseburgers in front of me, 15 miles of smooth peacefull riding ahead of me, and cold beer waiting for me at home. Life is good!

The balance of the ride was just as beautiful as the first half was. All told I rode just over 26 miles.

My mood is greatly improved as a result of having taken the opportunity to go out and frolic in the Sun. The beer tastes great, the sun is still shining, and Cranky's a happy camper!!

Last edited by cranky old dude; 11-04-11 at 01:53 PM.
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Old 11-04-11, 02:04 PM
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For a second I was ready to recommend probiotic therapy.

Nice pics. Glad you could get out there. Nice bike. I've been diddling around with a SWB Bacchetta. Harder than I thought it would be.
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Old 11-04-11, 02:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Dudelsack
For a second I was ready to recommend probiotic therapy.

Nice pics. Glad you could get out there. Nice bike. I've been diddling around with a SWB Bacchetta. Harder than I thought it would be.
Thank you!

Hang in there, that SWB gets easier as you get more accustomed to it. One of my other main rides is a Volae Tour (SWB). They're all fun!!
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Old 11-04-11, 02:37 PM
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Nice ride; we've had the sun, but now I'm anticipating snow. https://retrocycler.blogspot.com/2011...icipation.html
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Old 11-04-11, 03:25 PM
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Glad Fred got to go, I raked leafs Tomorrow for sure
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Old 11-04-11, 03:29 PM
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Nice pics. Thanks for sharing.
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Old 11-04-11, 04:16 PM
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Originally Posted by Dudelsack
Nice pics. Glad you could get out there. Nice bike. I've been diddling around with a SWB Bacchetta. Harder than I thought it would be.
Yeah, they are so responsive that it can be scary at first. You learn to relax and not move your arms unnecessarily. When you get comfortable enough that you realize that you can out-corner the other bikes because of your center of gravity is lower and because you never have to stop pedaling in a corner, it gets fun.
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Old 11-04-11, 06:18 PM
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Nice shots, Cranky. I expect to be coming through there on Sunday.

My camera is busted so I can't show you, but I strongly advise a trip to Mt Hope Cemetery.

The leaves in the older, northern (hilly) section were nothing short of magnificent this week. I was particularly impressed by a tree on the left just inside the north entrance, the overall "leafscape" from Susan B. Anthony's grave, and that enormous Japanese Maple behind the Strong mausoleum.
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Old 11-04-11, 08:05 PM
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Nice report and pics, as usual, Cranky.

It does make a difference when the sun is out. Good to hear the good conditions coincided with your weekend.

There's more green in your pictures than I had anticipated seeing from your corner of the world. I suppose I learned something.

P.S. The cheeseburgers sounded good as well.
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Old 11-06-11, 06:53 PM
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