Veterans Day Ride

Escape Route: Park Avenue North

N.Y. Roll called me up the other day and part of the conversation went like this: "So...... We're doing a ride on Veterans Day, right?"

Before this question nothing had been said about a Veterans Day Ride, at least not in a concrete sense. I answered him that we were doing a ride anyway. However; I informed him that this ride would need to be done in the morning. 

A little later he texted me to say he wanted to do the original 3GR route. I had actually been wanting to do this route after not having been on it for years. So, it was set. N.Y. Roll would swing by the house and we'd go off on a gravel grinder at 8:00am. 

Now, it is nearly mid-November and the Sun doesn't come up all that early now. So it was a bit dark in spots as we got going through downtown Waterloo. It also was chilly. 42°F to start out with a light Northerly breeze in our faces. I was glad I brought my Summer weight Hand Up gloves. I was wearing a Twin Six Thermo Cargo bib knickers with that old Bontrager wool jersey I have and the Twin Six wind vest over the top. I used the old shopping bag trick for my feet and wore my regular gravel shoes. On my head I had a bandana and my Bontrager Circuit helmet. It all worked to perfection. 

The Sun cam out in fits and Spurts. This is Moline Road

 

N.Y. Roll had to stop to get some real estate info here. 

The old 3GR route went out from Gates Park swimming pool parking lot (no longer there), went a mile East on Donald Street, and then turned Left onto Moline Road which turns to gravel in about a half mile. Then it is straight North until you get just to the East of Denver, Iowa. 

We were going at a decent clip, but Moline Road was covered in deep loose gravel all across the roadway making going up hill or on the flats a real chore. Fortunately the roads were just the opposite once we crossed over into Bremer County. Smooth and fast dirt due to the gravel having been pushed down into the road base.  

Still in Black Hawk County here.

 

And here in Bremer County. Notice the lack of loose gravel. 

A little over ten years ago houses were being built along the gravel road on the East side of Denver. There was a street next to the gravel, but I was telling anyone who'd listen back then that this was going to end up getting paved. Well, now, ten years later, it is chip seal, as is the next mile North across the blacktop. 

Hate to see it, but not surprised. 

We were nearing a left turn to go West and Northwest on my favorite part of this route. It is a road off-grid called Ivanhoe Road. I believe it was a stage coach/wagon road from Denver Iowa to Waverly, but I could have that wrong. At any rate, I believe it is the most scenic, fun bit of gravel around. 

 

Ivanhoe Road meanders off to the Northwest over rolling hills. 

This section was why I wanted to do the 3GR rides. I thought this bit of road was inspiring, beautiful, and unique. There really is not much around like it. Hopefully those folks who get to ride it now are appreciating how special this road is. 

 Ivanhoe eventually ends and you head West over to Hilton Avenue to go back South again. The road was still buttery smooth but now we had to traverse those rollers heading down past Camp Ingawanis. If you hit this section just right, you can roll several of these hills without pedaling. It's fun, and the descents are fast. 

On the way down we came across two other riders heading North. Neither N.Y. Roll or I recognized them, but they did wave back. 

Headed South on Hilton.

Hilton near Camp Ingawanis (right)

Hilton ends at a "T" intersection where the 3GR routes split off. When the ride was being held out of Cedar Falls, we stair-stepped North from Garden Avenue.and then went past the South section of Camp Ingawanis. We turned onto Hilton at that "T" intersection. That 3GR route went clockwise and the second, Waterloo based 3GR was anticlockwise. However; the Waterloo 3GR turned left at the "T" intersection, went past a rock quarry, and turned South on Ivory Road. 

We were doing the Ivory Road bit, so we were now heading East and South. There wasn't much wind, but what there was of it blew against our backs now so were were feeling fast, despite my now feeling tired. I hadn't ridden this far in quite some time!

There was still some harvesting going on. 

Now Ivory turns into Streeter Road in Black Hawk County. We were headed South on it until we reached Bennington Road where we went Left. This would have been the road back to Moline Road and the eventual end of the Waterloo based 3GR, but N.Y. Roll and I decided to come back on Burton Avenue instead..

Back in Waterloo heading through Exchange Park

 

We utilized the bike path along the Cedar River to Park Avenue and then back home. 

Eventually we made it back to Waterloo, and I got back home again. I had 40 miles and done in 3.5 hours total time. I was toast when I got back home and then I had to work as well.But spending time with my friend was worth it all, and what a great day! We may not see a day like this until next year. 

Veteran's Day Ride

Escape Route: An invitation from N.Y. Roll

Last weekend N.Y. Roll reached out to me and asked if I would want to join him on a 40-ish mile ride North toward Waverly and back again. I accepted his offer, so the plans were put into place to ride on Tuesday morning at 9:00am. 

I decided I'd ride the Peregrine MK4, of course, and since I was finished with the Schwalbe tires I went and did a wheel swap to get the SOMA Cazadero 700 X 50mm tires on the bike. This entailed swapping cassettes and rotors as well, since I wanted to keep the drive train and brakes the same. 

I got this finished up in time, so the evening before I laid out some gear and got to bed early so I would be as rested as possible. The temperatures were to start out in the mid-30's, but with a stiff Southwesterly breeze, it was feeling chillier than that. 

I ended up wearing the Twin Six Thermal Cargo Bibs with the T-6 base layer and a Smart Wool short-sleeved jersey gifted to me by a Trans Iowa rider. Over this I wore my Voler-made Pirate Cycling League thermal jacket. On my feet I had my 12" Sock Guy wool socks, Northwave winter boots, and that was it. On the noggin I wore a buff from another Trans Iowa rider who lives in Germany and gave me this Berlin Cycling Club branded buff to wear. Then my Circuit Wave Cell helmet went over this. On my hands I wore HandUp Winter gloves. 

As it turned out the only thing I would have done differently would be to have an extra pair of gloves to put on at halfway, and I could have used a plastic shopping bag vapor barrier for the feet. I sweat a lot more than I thought I would on this ride! 

The Veteran's Memorial in Downtown Waterloo

I waited outside for N.Y. Roll and he arrived right at 9:00am. So, the plan, as stated, was to ride North, and as we chatted at the beginning of this ride, N.Y. Roll was realizing we'd be heading straight into a headwind if we used his original route. So, not a half a mile in, he "called an audible", and we decided to roll out towards Evansdale, along the Cedar River, hit the CVNT for a bit, and then see what we felt like. 

It was no big deal to me to change up the route on the fly, and I kind of liked the spontaneity of this decision. Plus, we hadn't gone much over a mile and we rode right by the Waterloo Veteran's Memorial display, replete with someones remote PA set up and microphone just sitting there. We did not see anyone around, which I thought was strange because Waterloo folks have "sticky fingers" and anything left out and about without oversight or strong tethers, well...... Let's just say it would be gone. 

We figured it was too cold for ne're-do-wells and we rolled onward.  

And for the record, we rode past three veteran's memorials on this ride. It was meant to be! 

Trail on the North side of the Cedar River going to Evansdale. 

Approach to the CVNT and another crossing of the Cedar River. 

The wind wasn't fun, so we took this into our calculations as we rode to Evansdale, through the city, and onward to the CVNT. We decided to head up Foulk Road, and yes, into the wind, but then turning left onto McKellar Road, we'd get two Level B Roads in series, and then end up in Washburn, Iowa. From there we'd make another decision. 

The Eastern end of McKellar Road

Weiden Road's Level B Section looking toward Washburn, Iowa. 

There were several wet spots we had to pay attention to on both Level B Roads. It was a tiny bit sketchy, but we made it through just fine. The dirt was a nice change of pace from pavement. However; we'd be getting a big dose of pavement yet coming up. 

We decided to head over to the CVNT from where we popped out at in Washburn. This right turn would take us to LaPorte City, then we'd leave town to the Northeast, cross the Cedar River (again!) and head towards some remote Black Hawk County gravel. 

I like N.Y. Roll, but sometimes he's a little bossy!

 

A remote gravel called Miller Creek Road, which doesn't get a lot of riders on it. 

We were heading into flood plain territory. Very flat, so it was very windy! Heading South on Girsch Road was a chore. Turning East on Miller Creek Road was a big relief. This territory is not common for cyclists as it sits in a pocket between Highway 218 and the Cedar River. It isn't easy to access, and there are better through-routes for recreationalists like the CVNT. But we had stuck our little dirt road sections in, and going "out of our way" through Gilbertville on the CVNT was not what we wanted to do. So, here we were. 

I had not been out on these roads since 2020 when I did "The Quest" to ride all the gravel and dirt roads in Black Hawk County, which I ended up getting done. As I stated back then, there were roads I'd likely never ride again, and these roads were some of them! Guess I was wrong!

We returned to the CVNT, stopped briefly for a "nature break", and rolled on through LaPorte City and exited on the Northeast side. This is a hardtop road called Brandon Road, and it is usually very busy. It wasn't bad on Tuesday, but it wasn't slow in terms of traffic. 

(Looking back the way we came here) Crossing the Cedar.....again!

Another criminally under-ridden road. Ashley Road here looking Northwest

We went North on South Canfield Road, (another busy County hardtop road) and skipped Bryan Road for the diagonally placed Ashley Road. This is a remnant of an ancient footpath of the Native Americans and was an original pioneer trail which became part of the Red Ball Route. Parts of the Red Ball Route are still Highway 218 to this day. Ashley Road is an old segment of the Red Ball Route. 

Barns For Jason

 

More Ashley Road

We ended up essentially following the Cedar River and older paths which reflected how Native Americans, and then the pioneers after them, used the land to traverse from one area to another. It was said that the paths the Native Americans took were so often used the grasses wouldn't grow where they walked and these pathways were easily seen by the later Europeans who came and settled the lands around here. 

Coffee stop. Mile 30

Leaving Gilbertville on old Highway 218

Eventually, after a real estate inspection by N.Y. Roll, we made our way into Gilbertville. We decided we would either stop at a Casey's Convenience store, or at a cafe if we came across one. N.Y. Roll actually found the 1854 Cafe in Gilbertville and we stopped and had a cup of coffee. 

This stop was kind of funny. Here we were, all geared up in our cold weather cycling garb, tromping in with our cycling shoes on, making a scene. It was almost as if it really were 1854 and some rogue band of ruffians had walked in amongst some decent citizens. We were getting side-eyed and look-aways like crazy. Too funny. 

The oak trees were spectacular this Fall. More red than usual. 

N.Y. Roll looking for an open restroom. Did not find anything!

We left Gilbertville on old Highway 218 which is really pretty scenic any time of the year. But it was especially so this Fall since this road has a lot of oak trees around it.The oaks were especially red this year. Usually they are a more rusty-brown color. So, that was a good distraction as I was riding along.

Apparently coffee runs right through N.Y. Roll because by the time we reached Elk Run Heights he needed to find a place to relieve himself. Nothing we went by had any open doors. All the recreational sites had locked up for the season. So, he ended up finding a secluded spot in the woods of a local park to, you know...... take a nature break. 

Then it was just slogging into a quartering headwind to get all the way home again. We did 40 plus miles in less than four hours time, including stops, so this was pretty good, I thought. Especially considering the wind factor. All in all, it was a good training day for the upcoming Virtual Turkey Burn Ride Challenge.