GOBA - the Great Ohio Bicycle Adventure
Last week was my 4th time riding GOBA, a week-long bicycle tour though Ohio. This year it started and ended - at least, in theory - in Van Wert. I drove through hours of torrential downpour to get there, arriving a little later than planned because of the torrential downpour and the need to stop to have my bicycle fixed on the way. Actually, I not only got my bike fixed (needed a derailleur hanger) but also stopped at REI to exchange my camping pillow for another model and buy some awesome pants. A downside of having lost weight this past year is that I have very little that fits me. The plus side (other than admiring myself in the mirror and feeling flattered when coworkers give me that approving once-over) is that I get to buy new stuff.
Once in Van Wert, I checked in at registration and then quickly found the group with whom Ann and I camp. I call them "the boys," even though technically they all qualify for senior discounts, and Susie and other Ann. Yes, two Anns in our group. While I set up my tent, the boys cleaned my bike off a bit, tightened the brakes, and affixed my rider flag to the bike in a quite ingenious way. They even had different colors of zip ties to match every one's bikes. Clever boys.
It poured Saturday night, but Sunday morning was merely overcast and not hot, good riding conditions. In fact, given that the forecast had called for rain and thunderstorms every day, we lucked out, getting rain only Saturday night, Thursday morning (an optional riding day, so I opted not), and Friday night into Saturday morning, our last day of riding. The route was flat and a bit boring - lots of corn and soy fields, reminding me of Illinois scenery. Our second and third towns were a bit dull (Bluffton and Defiance) but Bowling Green and Sauder Village made up for that. Riding to Sauder Village was nasty - headwinds that made us work hard to average 12 mph, compared to our more usual 15 mph, but the Delco Power Plant in the farmhouse basement, with its crazy rectangular glass batteries, made the ride worth it.
Thursday the boys and I visited Snooks Dream Cars, a great little car museum in Bowling Green. I recommend it to any one interested in pretty cars. We were fortunate enough to see a 1971 (I think that was the year) Triumph TR4 that was in the shop being worked on. Also, a Woodie that we got to inspect up-close and personal. The boys were a little surprised I wanted to go with them, but I am my father's daughter.
Friday's ride was amazing - a great tailwind such that we cruised into town doing 23 mph on the flat. One of the boys was feeling the effects of too much frisbee playing in Bowling Green (but that was a lot of fun!) so Ann and I were right with them for most of the day, which is unusual. It was a blast riding with them. If I train well next spring, I may ride with them the whole week, since Ann won't be there.
Saturday was the exciting day. It stormed all Friday night, rain and wind making me glad I own a good tent. I guess a number of other people got wet, but in my camp we were all dry (two of the boys had new tents from last year, because they did not stay dry last year). Saturday morning it was still raining, though not as hard, and the wind was still blowing. Many GOBA riders opted to find a way to their cars that did not involve biking, including the boys, but Ann and I were optimistic that the weather radar, which showed the storm blowing out of our area in the next 30 minutes or less, was correct. It was not, however, and we got rained on the whole ride. Our first leg, to the AM snack stop, was re-routed because part of the original route was under water. I have never been so happy to have a good raincoat for riding, because my arms and torso, at least, were dry. I'm pretty sure, however, that fish took up residence in my cycling shoes. At the snack stop, we were informed of another re-route, on the way to lunch and that we would be forced to stop riding at the lunch stop. We went back out into the rain and even though we were riding on the detour, we still ended up riding through multiple sections of road that had water flowing across it. One section was full of debris from a corn field so we walked - it was over the top of my cycling shoes! There were also wind gusts of 20 to 25 mph, which was fine when it was a tail wind and less fun when a crosswind. Also, the high was 60 degrees - in JUNE! At the lunch stop, the GOBA organizers announced that they were making arrangements for buses to come get us and drive us back to our cars, since the sheriff had told them he was shutting us down because of the flooding. They also announced that there were wreckers in the parking lot to help get our cars out, which made Ann a little nervous. I had a great parking spot, higher than the road and on spill off from a gravel heap, so I was not too worried.
Via email, we were all informed that never before, in the 26 years of GOBA preceding this year, had the organizers ever had to cancel a day of riding. Pretty impressive. Definitely a GOBA to remember.
Once in Van Wert, I checked in at registration and then quickly found the group with whom Ann and I camp. I call them "the boys," even though technically they all qualify for senior discounts, and Susie and other Ann. Yes, two Anns in our group. While I set up my tent, the boys cleaned my bike off a bit, tightened the brakes, and affixed my rider flag to the bike in a quite ingenious way. They even had different colors of zip ties to match every one's bikes. Clever boys.
It poured Saturday night, but Sunday morning was merely overcast and not hot, good riding conditions. In fact, given that the forecast had called for rain and thunderstorms every day, we lucked out, getting rain only Saturday night, Thursday morning (an optional riding day, so I opted not), and Friday night into Saturday morning, our last day of riding. The route was flat and a bit boring - lots of corn and soy fields, reminding me of Illinois scenery. Our second and third towns were a bit dull (Bluffton and Defiance) but Bowling Green and Sauder Village made up for that. Riding to Sauder Village was nasty - headwinds that made us work hard to average 12 mph, compared to our more usual 15 mph, but the Delco Power Plant in the farmhouse basement, with its crazy rectangular glass batteries, made the ride worth it.
Thursday the boys and I visited Snooks Dream Cars, a great little car museum in Bowling Green. I recommend it to any one interested in pretty cars. We were fortunate enough to see a 1971 (I think that was the year) Triumph TR4 that was in the shop being worked on. Also, a Woodie that we got to inspect up-close and personal. The boys were a little surprised I wanted to go with them, but I am my father's daughter.
Friday's ride was amazing - a great tailwind such that we cruised into town doing 23 mph on the flat. One of the boys was feeling the effects of too much frisbee playing in Bowling Green (but that was a lot of fun!) so Ann and I were right with them for most of the day, which is unusual. It was a blast riding with them. If I train well next spring, I may ride with them the whole week, since Ann won't be there.
Saturday was the exciting day. It stormed all Friday night, rain and wind making me glad I own a good tent. I guess a number of other people got wet, but in my camp we were all dry (two of the boys had new tents from last year, because they did not stay dry last year). Saturday morning it was still raining, though not as hard, and the wind was still blowing. Many GOBA riders opted to find a way to their cars that did not involve biking, including the boys, but Ann and I were optimistic that the weather radar, which showed the storm blowing out of our area in the next 30 minutes or less, was correct. It was not, however, and we got rained on the whole ride. Our first leg, to the AM snack stop, was re-routed because part of the original route was under water. I have never been so happy to have a good raincoat for riding, because my arms and torso, at least, were dry. I'm pretty sure, however, that fish took up residence in my cycling shoes. At the snack stop, we were informed of another re-route, on the way to lunch and that we would be forced to stop riding at the lunch stop. We went back out into the rain and even though we were riding on the detour, we still ended up riding through multiple sections of road that had water flowing across it. One section was full of debris from a corn field so we walked - it was over the top of my cycling shoes! There were also wind gusts of 20 to 25 mph, which was fine when it was a tail wind and less fun when a crosswind. Also, the high was 60 degrees - in JUNE! At the lunch stop, the GOBA organizers announced that they were making arrangements for buses to come get us and drive us back to our cars, since the sheriff had told them he was shutting us down because of the flooding. They also announced that there were wreckers in the parking lot to help get our cars out, which made Ann a little nervous. I had a great parking spot, higher than the road and on spill off from a gravel heap, so I was not too worried.
Via email, we were all informed that never before, in the 26 years of GOBA preceding this year, had the organizers ever had to cancel a day of riding. Pretty impressive. Definitely a GOBA to remember.