I rode my second organized gravel ride this past weekend, The Everyone Loves Raymond gravel ride, organized by the Fresno Cycling Club. It had a mix of 50/50 pavement/gravel in the foothills about an hour north of town. The route my buddy and I chose was the shortest of the three offered, 35 miles with 2,800 feet of elevation climbing, which was tough enough for me. So. Much. Fun.
This is actually the fourth organized ride of the year for me, but the second i rode off pavement. I've just taken up riding again with some passion after a hiatus of around 3 decades. My buddy and I usually go slow, calling them rides, not races, and we take many breaks, most are smoke-breaks. I often stop to take photos.
Some of the highlights for this ride included stopping and listening to woodpeckers a-peckin', watching a flock of wild turkeys and making Thanksgiving jokes, helping a woman with a malfunctioning front derailleur on her first ride who was NOT ready for hill climbing (riding a used mountain bike she had just bought), leaving an inspirational Go! Go! Go! Monique! message for her in the road made from sticks a few miles further down the road, and just generally enjoying the scenery and ride. I think we came in near last.
Oh, the big grade we had to climb which reached 18% forced me to walk with my 2x 11-32 cassette, 48/32 front, and not nearly enough conditioning, but the screaming descents along paved county roads, seemingly near-groomed dirt private rangeland roads, and listening to Elton John's Rocketman, followed by the Eagles, emanating from a house across the street on our last break, just 2 miles from the finish were also highlights.
My buddy rode his steel Surly Disc Trucker, I rode my steel Norco Search XR 105. Tacos and beer and aguas frescas were inhaled afterwards. It was a great event and we hope to do it again next year, dragging another buddy with his new Niner RLT along for the ride. Next time, I'll bring a couple of GoPros for video.
Here are some photos.
eric/fresno, ca.
