Mean Streets 200K Ride Report: August 31, 2003
While most of the PBP veterans were basking in their well-earned glory, a small band of riders set out on Sunday to challenge the mean streets of Toronto.
We launched off at the very civilized hour of 8:00 a.m. from Allenby School on Avenue Road. The initial coast down to the waterfront was exhilarating as we sped through mostly empty streets under bright sunshine. Once onto the lakefront, Brian Armstrong and Scott Chisholm started to pull away, not to be seen again, but the remaining six riders - Isabelle Sheardown, Keith McEwen, Michel Potvin, Steve Rheault, Paul Dicks and I stuck together for most of the day. (Actually there were other participants: three songbirds that Brian had rescued downtown for release in the parklands. However, the birds failed to file route cards and thus became de-homolgated.)
The route consisted mostly of side streets and bike paths up to the first checkpoint, which we reached at a leisurely pace. However, shortly thereafter we found the mean in Mean Streets, as we transitioned onto the likes of Steeles Ave., Sheppard Ave., Finch Ave. and other such idyllic cycling meccas.
During the long haul across North York, Paul and I got the bit between our teeth and opened up a sizeable lead, but a ten-minute wait while a freight train shunted back and forth across Tapscott Road brought the pack back together again, and we rode mostly together until we hit checkpoint two, Reid's Dairy. With what appeared to be the skyline of Kingston in the distance we stopped for well-deserved loonie milkshakes and other fuel before dropping down into the Rouge River valley.
After a small navigational error (one of several for the day) caused us to climb a near vertical trail out of the valley, we re-descended and followed the bike path along Highland Creek. Near the UTSC campus we discovered that a key bridge was completely washed away. True randonneurs would have retrieved a climbing rope from their saddlebags, rappelled down to the river and forded across, or perhaps carved an expedient dugout canoe, but we meekly chose the go off route a few hundred metres to an alternate crossing site, then carried on.
Shortly afterwards, we discovered a route sheet error by choosing what turned out to be the wrong one of two conflicting instructions. This was our punishment for having surged ahead of Keith and Isabelle, who knew the route. However, what's an additional 6km between friends?
We finally caught up again at the top of Bluffer's Park hill, and after riding down and then riding up again (Steve - this time it really was part of the route! Honest!) we began to entertain serious thoughts about food. Fortunately our thoughtful ride organizer had stationed his daughter Helen at checkpoint three with iced tea and outstanding samosas, so we were able to fuel up for the final run in.
Not having learned our lesson, Paul, Steve and I again picked up the pace, and for our sins experienced another long off-piste excursion while Michel and Isabelle motored at a steady pace on the correct route. Moral of the story: ride with Isabelle and get there in good time; or ride ahead and suffer the consequences.
Thanks again to Bruce McCormick for organizing a great brevet, not to mention feeding a pack of hungry cyclists afterwards.
Conclusions:
1. Mean Streets proved to be an interesting challenge. With multiple stoplights and long sections of city bike paths to contend with, average speeds were low, making it the first 200k brevet I have experienced where flirting with the maximum time is a real possibility. Keep those breaks short!
2. For future Mean Streets aspirants, the ideal ride is probably a mountain bike with slicks, since there were few opportunities to get into the big ring and quite a few steepish hills.
Overall, a great ride.
Report by Tony Kaduck