I got up at 4:30 this morning to drive to Lufkin for the Pineywoods Purgatory Bike Ride. After getting ready I actually left the garage around 5:35 AM. The weather forecast called for partly cloudy skies, a light NE wind and a high of 79 degrees. When I got to Lufkin about 7:30 the sky was overcast with a light NNE breeze. The temperature was around 65 degrees and it did not move far from that the whole ride. Fortunately the cool front wind did not arrive while I rode either because it probably kick up to 10 to 15 mph from the NW. I almost made a mistake on my riding attire based on the forecast by not wearing a long sleeve jersey but thankfully I put it on thinking I can always take it off if I get too hot. That problem did not happen. I felt cool at the start of the ride and whenever I stopped at a rest stop but while I rode I needed the short sleeve and long sleeve jerseys. Going down hills I wished for a light jacket as well.

The Lufkin Civic Center starting location looked strange when I got there because of a big construction project to expand the facility. Since I did not ride the Pineywoods Purgatory last year I would see some other changes as well. I stopped to ask a policeman where the parking lot was and he pointed me in the right direction. Along with an expanded building the parking lot moved and grew. Because the weather can be iffy this time of the year I did not preregister but it did not take long once I found the entrance. After registering I stood at the entrance to hand out Texbiker.net business cards. Not one person refused a card.

People gathered at the start line and the ride started after a rifle blast from the Lufkin mayor at 8:04 AM. We rolled out safely with no crashes that I saw. Later at the finish line when I ate lunch some riders from Beaumont talked about two people they knew that crashed. One ended up going to the hospital. The video shows some highlights of the 72 mile route I rode.

All four routes start together with each distance eventually turning off from the others. I rode the 72 mile route with the 102 mile route leaving us after the second rest stop. The 50 mile route soon separated from the 72 mile group.

Normally I do mention elevation gain or loss but today’s ride included lots of up and down. SportTracks reports 6169 feet of climbing and 6231 feet descending. Garmin Connect shows significantly different elevation gain of 2736 feet and elevation loss of 2734 feet. RideWithGPS.com comes closer to the Garmin numbers with Elevation:   + 2688 / – 2669 ft. I know my legs pedaled up hill a lot. This is the first time I rode the Motobecane Le Champion CF bike on this ride but the compact crank and rear gears had not been tested on the hills. I can say that the gearing matched the hilly terrain although my speed going up at times was 7 mph. On the descents I had a problem with my front wheel making some wild sounds on rough surfaced roads. Riding on a smooth surface seemed to not cause the problem. I don’t know if the front wheel bearings need replaced or if the blade spokes cutting through the wind cause the problem. More investigation to follow.

I was surprised at how fresh I felt at the end. In year’s past the Highway 7 stretch always seemed to go on forever but today I could believe how fast I rode it. Going up and down the hills around Lake Nacogdoches also did not overpower me either. I geared down and pedaled slowly up the hills sometimes passing fellow riders. There were times when I could not see other riders but it usually did not take too long for me to catchup with some or they caught up with me. Even with all of the hills I still averaged 15.5 mph and recorded a 38 mph max speed. With the slow pedaling up hill I averaged 771. RPM cadence too. The 72 mile route turned out to be 70.56 miles which I appreciate; it might have been more than 72 miles. The riding time totaled 4:32:58 but I only stopped 37:29. The time stopped came from four rest stop visitations.

Other changes from previous Pineywoods Purgatory rides include the first wooden one lane bridge replaced by a wide concrete one (the second one remains) and fajitas replaced by hamburger and chicken sandwiches for lunch. Overall I enjoyed the ride despite the cooler than expected weather thanks to the correct gearing on my bike. I look forward to next year’s ride.

Mileage standings after the ride: 198.9 miles this week and for October; 5495.74 miles YTD. Alternate views of the ride metrics at Garmin Connect and RideWithGPS.com.

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