Earlier in the week, I rode out to Stanford, Indiana, using the same route as this ride, only I rode the loop in the opposite direction. I thought it would be easier this way. I suppose it might have been a little easier, but the hills are nearly constant either way. This ride offers great training opportunities with many, many hills, but more importantly, it has some wonderful scenery. Here’s the map.

The temperature has been a little cooler (mid to upper 80s) the past few days, but it seems like the humidity has been even higher than before, so the cooler temps haven’t really felt like much relief. I was sweating profusely throughout the ride. The humidity was such that haze was visible as the hills rolled into the distance.

The ride started with some hills, mostly of the rolling variety.

After a tough climb, I was on flat ground briefly.

But it wouldn’t last long. The haze, combined with the evening light, was quite stunning.

When I stopped to take photos, sweat literally dripped from my body. It was incredibly muggy. It was worth putting up with the extra sweat, though.

I turned around in Stanford, IN, and headed back along different roads. Again a brief flat section.

Thousands of birds took flight near a barn.

Soon, the road turned up. A climb out of the flat valley wasn’t as hard as I had imagined.

Then, the bigger rolling hills started … there were quite a few of them.

I passed a couple of quarries.

As the crow flies, I was never more than about eight miles from home. There was a great variety of scenery, for such a short distance. The ride totaled around 22 miles, but it felt like more — they were tough miles.

File under: Bicycling, Road Biking