First off sorry for no pics, I am working on getting them uploaded. as for now enjoy the read. 

Yesterday (Wed April 23, 2008) I headed up to Rumford, ME for what would turn out to be a truly epic ride.

The weather was perfect, temps in the mid 70's not much wind, and lots and lots of sun! My loop was going to be leaving Rumford on RT2 east and take Maine Scenic Highway 17west towards the Rangely Lake Region. Then take RT 16 west into Errol NH, hop onto RT 26 south through Grafton Notch State Park, and head back into Rumford on Rt 2 East. Here is the map. 

I was wearing team issue Bikeman.com jersey, shorts, and sleeveless base layer. Socks were provided by Salsa. I was rocking out in my Lake cx 220's from a year or two ago. For eye wear I chose my Oakley Radars.   

The ride starts out pretty flat. Rt 17 runs along a river valley. After a few miles you start climbing! The climb wasn't super steep, but long and gradual.  Here I am at mile 10, 110 more to go!

For the most part all the high ways were in good condition. I say good condition for Maine, seeing how our elected officials at the Capital have an over spending problem, can't fix our falling apart roads, and like to tax the hell out of us (Maine is the highest taxed state in the nation) So only a few cracks and no major pot holes was a good sign. Here is what some of Rt 17 looked like, this is one of the worse sections. Still not bad

Even though my Campeon is a few years old it still offers the same smooth ride it did the first time I took it out for a ride. The parts/drive train is a completely different story. The carbon seat stays, carbon fork and carbon post help out a lot. I don't think you really need any more carbon than that. Its nice to have a smooth ride under your bum when you are on the bike for such a long time. Plus the bike is quick in acceleration which is nice to make it up over all the small ups and downs we have here in Maine.  My Salsa even got a little AT (Appalachian Trail) action. Here is where the AT crosses rt 17. 

From rt 17 to rt 16 its about 40 miles. In that 40 mile stretch I saw 5 cars, and one bull moose! Not to shabby if I must say. Rt 16 wasn't as much fun as 17, its more straight. Here is an example

I had a head wind on Rt 16. When the wind wasn't blowing I was going 22-24mph. I was cranking, but when the wind kicked in I saw my speed drop to 18mph or so. I got to ride by what used to be the worlds largest dam (before the Hoover Dam), the Aziscohos (spell) dam.  

After a few hours in the saddle I had gone through my 70oz bladder, and two 24oz bottles. I made a pit stop at the only store on rt 16 somewhere in NH before Errol. Gatoraid and H2o went into my bottles until Errol where I would get a snack and some more liquid  

Once I made it into Errol I saw I was avg just under 18mph. I thought it would be cool to bring that up to 19 or so by the end of the ride. In order to do that I would need to refuel the body. Thankfully in Maine and NH every corner store sells Whoopie pies. What is a whoopie pie ? (read  there web page, "great for everyday snacking") Well it can be directly linked to Maine's over weight epidemic problem. But in more simple terms its a shit ton of simple sugar in a plastic wrap. Eat on and 1/2 a Coke and you are ready to go. Now I am not talking about diet coke, or coke zero, flavored fruit coke, or any of that crap. I am talking about a real Coke. I drink half and put the other half mixed with water in a bottle. After taking 5 min to eat (after 4+hrs in the saddle and 80+miles) it was time to head on. 

I saw another bull moose on rt 26. This time I actually got a picture. its blurry, but you can tell there is a moose there. 

The ride on 26 went pretty quick. I was making good time since its mostly down hill and I had that slight head wind on 16 pushing me on 26. I again crossed the AT on 26. And again my Salsa got to see some AT trails.

When I made it through 26 and back onto rt 2 it had been over 5.5hrs and 100miles. I had only seen 3 cars and one motorcycle on 26. I did see two bull moose, and a woodock (the bird).  My avg mph was up to 18.6! The legs were feeling great. I was starting to show some whit sweat spots on my shoulders though! The ride back to my car on rt 2 wasn't to bad. After hitting the 115mile mark I was starting to get a little tired. My eyes were heavy and I wanted dinner! When I rolled into the parking lot it had been 6.5hrs, 120.7 miles, avg mph 18.7, avg cadence 87 (thats higher then my normal), and 5,000 less calories. Not to shabby.

Salsa in Rumford ME.

me after 120 miles.  

Overall it was an amazing ride. I would love to go back and do it again with a small group of people, or even a pace car! As for today I am back on the bike and into the gym.