Willamette Valley Scenic Bikeway, day 2

Doak and I wanted to get an early start to get as much of the return done as we could before the anticipated headwind became a factor.  We were ready to roll out shortly after 6 AM.

Since this was an out and back, I didn't bother creating a separate route on the Garmin for the return.  The only place that made a difference was on one way streets in towns. That would not be a major concern as we skirted most towns with one way streets.  We did start out having to navigate the twisting bike paths/freeway interchanges by the seat of our cycling shorts to get out of Eugene.

We enjoyed a sun dog show as we made our way north of Coburg.

We were relieved to get the first few miles finished without any headwind. The miles from Coburg to the hill are quite exposed.

See, I really was in front of Doak at times!

 We got over the hill and stopped at a convenience store for a morning snack. We continued on to Brownsville where the scene was much more subdued that when we passed through yesterday afternoon. 

 We had 50 miles under our belts before the wind became an issue.

A country church on Sunday morning

 We arrived in Albany and took a bit of a detour into Bryant Park.

Doak doing his own version of "Road Bike Party"

 Having taking enough break, we continued on northward. I stopped to take the following photos as we pedaled through the Ankeny Game Refuge.  Doak continued on. It would be the last I saw him until we finished up in Wilsonville!

 As with yesterday, the winds were more intense in the south valley.  We never experienced more that a 10-12 mph wind.  We both were grateful. As I approached Salem, I was ready for a break.  I stopped at the convenience store near the golf course on River Road.  I spent nearly 30 minutes there resting, filling water, snacking, and nursing a big cup of Sprite.  I was concerned about drinking something fizzy while biking, given my history, but something ice cold sounded so good.  While the wind was less than yesterday, the temperature was about 10 degrees warmer.  Doak texted me just as I was ready to pedal out saying he was in Keizer and would meet me at a favorite watering hole in Wilsonville.  He was about 45 minutes ahead of me at that point.

I pushed hard and stayed on the aerobars most of the way. The rest and recharge and done well.  I was able to hold in the high teens, even into the wind.

I arrived back in Wilsonville, a bit tired, but pleased that I had nearly closed the gap on Doak.

We had a cold adult beverage and debriefed the weekend of riding. It was fun!

..........road bike..........rollers........mtb.........lifecycle....total
Today.........153...............0..............0...............0...........153 Jan............710................0..............0...............0...........710
Feb........... 578...............0..............0...............0............578
March ...........701.............0..............0...............0............701
April..........749.................0..............0...............0..........749
May...........613.................0..............0...............0...........613
 June............309...............0..............0...............0...........309 Total..........3668...............0..............0...............0..........3668