Fat Biking (Pavement/trail/gravel) 6:40:00 [3] 39.0 mi (10:15 / mi)
shoes: Studded tires
I signed up for the virtual Canadian Birkie. The window for doing it was extended due to the polar vortex, but I thought I had better get it done this weekend while we are still locked down. And today looked like the best day of the weekend in terms of the weather. I picked the 55 km with the pack.....sucker for punishment, I guess.
I put a jug of water in my pack along with snacks and extra clothes. The fat bike has a stock saddle, which I haven't quite come to fully appreciate. I do like my Brooks saddle. And I was dreaming of the comforts of the Brooks saddle as the weight of the pack became increasingly evident (!)
The gravel roads were snowy/icy, so the studded tires were a dream. I made a stop at a butcher shop to pick up some pepperoni sticks....yummy. Originally I had a lot of gravel planned, but I thought I'd check out the rail trail. Thanks to everyone doing so much walking, the trail was fairly well packed down near town, with a couple inches of fresher snow on it. Further away from town it was less packed down and more of a slog. When I turned south at McGregor, it was not packed down at all and quite a slog. Lots of breaks along the way to drink some water and have a small snack.....and give my backside a break.
South of McGregor I turned on to a gravel road I often ride, and had a nice tailwind. A jig and a jog later I was headed south on the Greenway where there was enough snow to ski. In fact, I think skiing would have been faster (or at least easier) than biking. At County Road 18, I could see the "open" flag at the winery, so I detoured into there to pick up a bottle of red for Paul (last minute Valentine's shopping). I changed into dry gloves once I started riding in the open. On one of our favourite local gravel roads, a bald eagle swooped down and proceeded to eat something dead out in the field. Oh to have a great camera!
After that, I stopped to put on a second pair of socks as north wind was working its way through my winter boots (they weren't my usual Sorels). A few more jigs and jogs and I was on the Greenway heading home. To my frustration, snowmobiles had been on the trail within the last few hours.
I finally made into Kingsville.....thoroughly worn out!