Guy On A Bike: Miesville 56 Ride Report
A sure sign of spring: my first gravel ride of the season.
In its second year, the Miesville 56 was open to 250 registrants, and nearly filled up.
I had been checking the forecast often, as models earlier in the week indicated the ride would be a soaker. But as it got closer to race time, the weather outlook improved, with less and less precipitation in the forecast for the roll out.
I arrived with my two WCCO riding buddies, Mark and Jose, a few minutes after 8 a.m. We had nearly an hour to prep our bikes, choose the appropriate attire and register. They headed to the table, while I prepared my bike.
I treat gravel rides like a Sunday stroll, and my bicycle is more like a Buick than a Ferrari. While some riders are concerned about every ounce, I'd much rather have my MP3 player and speaker to enjoy some Viktor Tsoi while out on the roads. I like to smell the roses and ride in comfort.
Once I had my bicycle properly outfitted, I headed over to the registration table, with about 30 minutes before the start of the ride. Unfortunately, the registration process was brutally inefficient with only one line for nearly 200 riders. Hopefully next year they will have two lines, broken up alphabetically, in order to streamline the process.
Despite the fear of rain, 185 riders left the home of the Miesville Mudhens at 9:10 a.m., led by police escort.
Riding on gravel gives you the opportunity to take in scenery you might never otherwise encounter, and the Miesville 56 is no exception. Shortly after the ride began we passed Little Log House Pioneer Village, a private collection of old buildings that now make up a town, trapped in time, on a 160-acre farm.
Under overcast skies we rode on, with a fair amount of climbing and some wicked fun descents. Certain spots in the road were a bit saturated and felt like pedaling through chunky peanut butter. But all in all, course conditions were quite favorable. At one point, however, the route led us on to a "minimum maintenance road," which was covered in loose dirt, and made the going difficult as I slogged along at 6 mph.
The cue sheets were spot on, and I never felt unsure of the route. I noticed some riders, however, were a bit flummoxed at points in the ride where the route overlapped, and riders encountered others further along at a particular intersection. For example, the same intersection was encountered at mile 17.8 and 22.8.
As some riders went one way, and others another, it left some confused. This also happened when mile 30.8 and 55.5 converged at the same intersection.
Miesville Ravine Park and other beautiful scenery along the Cannon River allowed me to find that happy place, just spinning along without a care in the world. Just past the turnaround at Welch, a wonderful woman waited with free wieners for famished cyclists.
My group finished the ride in 4.5 hours, having stopped a few times along the way to grab a bite and enjoy the views. Afterwards, we went over to the infamous King's Bar and treated ourselves to some amazing burgers. I went with the Bench: peanut butter, bacon, lettuce, and mayo.
All in all, the Miesville 56 was a success. I'd suggest a couple more volunteers at registration and, perhaps, some signs at overlapping portions of the course. But, otherwise, it was an amazing ride, and I look forward to getting back out next year.
Kudos to the volunteers and organizers for their efforts.
