Last week I mentioned that I was going away for the weekend. The Family gathered for a joyous occasion. That made it an obligation. ‘Nuff said.
The nature of the thing meant flying up there, and that meant that it would be extremely difficult to bring a bike with me. My most travel-ready bike is the Surly. Fixie. With a high gearing. Decidedly not the best choice for a region where “valley ride” means, “We only have a ¾ mile long 8 percent grade every other mile.”
So I decided to try a different tack. You see, there would be some significant down time in the weekend plan. That translates to time that could be used riding. So I did a bit of research, found a shop in Harrisonburg, VA, and contacted them. I had a rental arranged for Saturday.
My previous experiences with rental bikes has been, to put it mildly… spotty. But these folks sounded good over the phone, and… Well, even a rent-a-wreck would get some kind of wheels under me.
It helps that I know the area intimately. I knew there would be surprises (and there were) but I know the terrain, and the roads are quite familiar to me. I had several plans to choose from. I was ready for an inadequate bike, for weather, for whatever the situation would bring. Basically, I’m an optimist by nature, and a pessimist by policy.
Imagine my surprise when things went well.
A thank you, and some words of praise. I want to thank the folks at the Shenandoah Bicycle Company. They are located in Harrisoneburg, VA, right in the heart of town. They set me up with an exceptional bike, at a very reasonable rate. The bike was recent, clean, freshly tuned, full carbon frame, Ultegra equipped, and perfectly sized for me. It was a bit more aggressive than my usual rides, but that is not a quibble. I’m adaptable. (More on this soon.) The bike was ready for me at the appointed time, and the folks at SBC were efficient, courteous, knowledgeable, and a delight to work with. It’s a great shop. These folks get my highest recommendation. Should you ever find yourself in the Shenandoah Valley, I would strongly advise you to drop in.
The Ride:
The weather outlook was not bad. It was a bit cloudy, but the major rain event had been postponed until later.
I started out with a bit of “let’s get acquainted” riding around the town. I did not just want to jump blindly out into the back of beyond on a completely unknown ride. So I cruised around the town a bit.
The rental bike was more aggressively set up than most of my bikes. Longer reach to the bar. Bars a good bit lower. Controls more forward. But most significant was the gearing. I usually like to have a lot of low available. I prefer to downshift and spin an easier gear on climbs. (Especially on long or steep climbs!) This machine was not so geared. It was equipped with a road double (53-39) in the front, and a 12-25 cassette. (If you are not comfortable with tooth counts, let me assure you, this is a fairly high gear set.)
Harrisonburg is, as I’ve mentioned, not flat. Here there be hills. Big hills. Big steep hills. The higher gearing on the rental bike was noticeable. On the other hand, the bike was light and responsive. More, I felt good, strong, and well rested. I had to apply more muscle and less lung to my climbing, but nothing seemed too out of place. I decided to go for Plan A.
There is a wonderful mountain to the west of Harrisonburg. I’ve done the trip to the top of Reddish Knob before, by car, hiking, and by bike. I do this whenever I can. But it’s been a long time. My last ascent was over 15 years ago. The wonderful thing about Reddish Knob is that the road goes all the way to the summit of the mountain. Back in the 1920s a fire tower was built on this peak. The tower is long gone, but there is still a small paved flat parking area. The peak is the highest in Virginia, and it affords a 360 degree unobstructed view.
For the first five miles of the trip out, I was in roller country. The local rollers are a bit taller and steeper than our north Georgia variety, but not unmanageable. After the stretch from town, on US-33, my route turned toward Hinton. At this point the ride flattens out marvelously, becoming gentle swells through beautiful summer farm country. These are active, “small holder” family farms, mostly raising corn, grain, and dairy cattle. It’s definitely “cow and tractor country.”
After the turn at Ottobine, the road begins to climb toward the George Washington National Forest. It’s nothing tremendous, but the road is doing more up than down. Soon I was entering the forest, and passing the entrance to Hone Quarry. This is a significant point in the trip. From here on, the climbing starts in earnest.
The run from Hone Quarry is mostly uphill, becoming all uphill. This is the approach climb. “Not too bad,” I thought, knowing that the real work was still ahead.
I should mention, the fomula for rating climbs is complex and arcane. Two factors are considered. Distance, and elevation gain. No one has ever “officially” rated this particular ascent, but it would be a hors category climb by any standard. It is ten miles from Hone Quarry to the summit of Reddish Knob, and there is over a 4,000 foot gain. That’s an average of 7.6% grade! About four miles into this climb, the road goes around a bend in the mountain, and there is a small steel bridge. This marks the transition from the shoulder of the mountain to the main climb. The grade gets noticeably more stout, and the road narrows. There are no guard rails evident. Curves are blind.
The day was warm, but not intolerably so. Still, I was working. I was fighting to keep the sweat from blinding me. This is not a high traffic road, and none of the local colleges were in session, so traffic was very light. Still, there were a few cars. Each driver seemed to be surprised to see me, but all treated me well. Most waved with smiles.
This was serious work. I was alternately standing on the pedals, and sitting to grind. The air got thinner. I kept checking to make certain that I was in the lowest gear on the bike. Yep, there’s nothing below 1-1!
There is an intersection on near the top of the climb. The road flattens out briefly here. My legs were burning, and my lungs were not far behind them. Heart thumping hard and fast. I savored the (very brief) respite, and then went into the serious work of the final ascent. I estimate that the grade on this last stretch varies between 9% and 12%. I may be off, but it is steep!
Finally, there is a “killer kick” to the summit. The road is all gravel now, and not well maintained. It spirals around the summit, and pitches up to something like 25% grade. Fortunately this is only for about a quarter mile. I will confess, I walked that last pitch up.
The summit was as rewarding as it has ever been. It is silent, save for the soft rush of the constant wind, and a few distant cries from a circling hawk. The view is spectacular. The visual horizon, from this elevation, is over 100 miles distant. On a day this clear, it is possible to see most of that distance.
I finished off one of my water bottles, and rested. I did notice that there was weather approaching from the southwest. That would be the heavy rains in the forecast. Time to go.
The descent was astonishing. Fast and technical. By the time I passed Hone Quarry, the sky behind me was looking threatening. But I’d ridden the hard climbs. I up-shifted (for the first time in living memory) and put some power to the bike.
As is usual, I missed the turn at Ottobine, and, instead of returning directly to Harrisonburg, arrived in the small town of Dayton. This is about seven miles south of Harrisonburg, on US-42. The road was not flat, but it was gentle and well graded. It was a four lane for most of the trip, with intermittent bike lanes. Traffic was light, and I cruised the final miles into town.
Stats: 55 miles and change. 4+ hours. Over 8,000 feet gained. Summit above 4,300 feet above mean sea level. Geography and terrain are terrific. Vistas spectacular.
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