Now that I'm transitioning (reluctantly) to the off-season, I thought it would be fun to study the anatomy of one of my favorite rides, Ithaca - Lansing - Dryden - Yellow Barn Rd. - Ellis Hollow - Brooktondale - Ithaca. What's not to love about this ride? There are plenty of challenges, exceptionally scenery, very light traffic on most roads, and the roads with traffic have wide and well-paved shoulders. I think that the best aspect is the climbs and where they occur along the way. I'll isolate out the biggest and most memorable individual climbs and focus on the specific challenges, as well as my state of mind as I'm climbing.
Remington is the best way to escape the flats of Ithaca. As you can see, it's the second-steepest climb of the trip, second only to Ringwood. The climb up to Sunset, then up to Cayuga Heights, is almost exactly 400 ft. in just over 1 mile. The road is nothing short of perfect, with smooth pavement, little-to-no traffic, and lots of twists and turns. It's best to stand on the pedals right away for the first 100 yards at least, until the first slight leveling off. When you're standing on the pedals, it's nice to have the entire lane to yourself, and drivers will always give you plenty of clearance. This is a popular road for cycling and walking, and pedestrians always seem to outnumber drivers. The challenge of this initial climb is counterbalanced by the fact that I typically have fresh legs at this point. I tend to stand two or three more times on the way up to Sunset, and alway on the last turn leading up to Sunset. After a very brief respite, there's another steep, short climb up to Cayuga Heights Rd. which involves standing and gets my BPM up into the 160s. Then, after crossing Rt. 13, there's a short, moderate descent before the easier Oakcrest climb up to Triphammer.
After this intense beginning, Triphammer up to Lansing is a much less intensive endeavor. The grade is in the 3-5% realm, as opposed to 8-10% for the first part. Triphammer may be a bit boring, but there are great views of Cayuga Lake as you climb. At this point, I'm starting to feel in the groove, and there are some stretches where I'm standing on and off and getting upwards of 25 mph heading toward Terpening Corners. The total ascent for this stretch is a little over 200 ft., so there are lots of sprinting opportunities here. I usually reach Terpening Corners at around the 28 minute point in my ride, and I can gauge my energy level or the effect of the wind when the numbers are different.
Triphammer flattens out for a stretch, and then as you head west toward Dryden the road gets gradually steeper, but is almost completely devoid of traffic. This is beautiful farm country, and while the roads aren't great (chip seal), it doesn't much matter. This part of the ride is quietly contemplative, and my worries and daily concerns are slowly diminishing, replaced by inane musings. I often fixate on little details, like decorations on houses, what it would cost to heat a house up on these hills, country vs. city living, etc. This is the most comforting part of the ride.
After the descent into Dryden, there's a nice plateau that takes you into Freeville, which serves as the rest before the insane ascent of the day, Yellow Barn Rd. This is a great place to fuel up with a gel or a power bar, and you really need it. With 800 ft. of climbing over less than 4 miles, this is a ridiculously tough challenge. The other alternative is to take Ringwood Rd., which is 600 ft. spread over a similar distance. This is a deceiving climb, since the road twists and turns, and you can't get a good read on how long and how steep it truly is. And it just keeps going and going until you think you can't climb anymore.
Remington is the best way to escape the flats of Ithaca. As you can see, it's the second-steepest climb of the trip, second only to Ringwood. The climb up to Sunset, then up to Cayuga Heights, is almost exactly 400 ft. in just over 1 mile. The road is nothing short of perfect, with smooth pavement, little-to-no traffic, and lots of twists and turns. It's best to stand on the pedals right away for the first 100 yards at least, until the first slight leveling off. When you're standing on the pedals, it's nice to have the entire lane to yourself, and drivers will always give you plenty of clearance. This is a popular road for cycling and walking, and pedestrians always seem to outnumber drivers. The challenge of this initial climb is counterbalanced by the fact that I typically have fresh legs at this point. I tend to stand two or three more times on the way up to Sunset, and alway on the last turn leading up to Sunset. After a very brief respite, there's another steep, short climb up to Cayuga Heights Rd. which involves standing and gets my BPM up into the 160s. Then, after crossing Rt. 13, there's a short, moderate descent before the easier Oakcrest climb up to Triphammer.
After this intense beginning, Triphammer up to Lansing is a much less intensive endeavor. The grade is in the 3-5% realm, as opposed to 8-10% for the first part. Triphammer may be a bit boring, but there are great views of Cayuga Lake as you climb. At this point, I'm starting to feel in the groove, and there are some stretches where I'm standing on and off and getting upwards of 25 mph heading toward Terpening Corners. The total ascent for this stretch is a little over 200 ft., so there are lots of sprinting opportunities here. I usually reach Terpening Corners at around the 28 minute point in my ride, and I can gauge my energy level or the effect of the wind when the numbers are different.
Triphammer flattens out for a stretch, and then as you head west toward Dryden the road gets gradually steeper, but is almost completely devoid of traffic. This is beautiful farm country, and while the roads aren't great (chip seal), it doesn't much matter. This part of the ride is quietly contemplative, and my worries and daily concerns are slowly diminishing, replaced by inane musings. I often fixate on little details, like decorations on houses, what it would cost to heat a house up on these hills, country vs. city living, etc. This is the most comforting part of the ride.
After the descent into Dryden, there's a nice plateau that takes you into Freeville, which serves as the rest before the insane ascent of the day, Yellow Barn Rd. This is a great place to fuel up with a gel or a power bar, and you really need it. With 800 ft. of climbing over less than 4 miles, this is a ridiculously tough challenge. The other alternative is to take Ringwood Rd., which is 600 ft. spread over a similar distance. This is a deceiving climb, since the road twists and turns, and you can't get a good read on how long and how steep it truly is. And it just keeps going and going until you think you can't climb anymore.After the ascent, my legs are rubber for a while, but then there's this incredible downhill that takes you all the way through Ellis Hollow and down into Brooktondale. The ride is essentially over, save for the obligatory last push into Ithaca. At this point I'm elated, exhausted and feeling triumphant.
This loop has so much variety and character, with discrete sections, well-timed climbs, great scenery and just the right distance for this much elevation climb. I think that taking the loop counter-clockwise would be a bit easier, so that's something to explore for next season.
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