So your home internet service is gonna be down for 48 hours, whaddaya do? If you’re Ornoth, you might as well bang out another century ride, right?

I didn’t have much of a plan when I set out, but began with the GAP trail along the Monongahela River to McKeesport, then down Bunola Road to Mon city. I love that stretch of road; where else (around here, at least) can you ride for ten miles right along the banks of a river and be passed by just two cars?

Back to McKeesport via the same roads before taking the loop trail down to Boston (PA) and back, following the Yuck (Youghiogheny River) branch. By this point we were in the heat of a very warm day, about 1pm.

Followed the Mon all the way back downtown to the Point, where I hoped to catch a lit »more

Sunday saw the return of the Mon Valley Century, which I rode once in 2016, but which was not held for the past two years due to landslides: a fact of life in Western PA.

After driving down to Monongahela city and getting kitted up, I set out at 6:35am in foggy and chilly weather, the route following wooded (and mostly flat) creek beds. The first segment was a long 40 miles: 2.5h in the saddle without a break. The sun slowly burned through the fog, leaving yet another near-perfect day for riding.

Although I’d been told at the start that about ten riders started before me, I was the first to arrive at the eventual rest stop, despite only passing one other rider; three others arrived a few minutes later.

The middle part of the ride followed the (mostly fla »more

The calendar said: ride the Pittsburgh Randonneurs’ First Sunday 100k. But their plan was to ride the PMTCC 3-State loop, which includes a number of roads I’d rather not ride more than once a year, if at all.

So I punted and decided on a solo century, extending my favored Days Run / Sun Mine / Deer Creek / Guys Run / Old Mill / Squaw Run route up through Saxonburg to Butler.

Another absolutely perfect day. On my way up to Freeport I stopped for a selfie at “Brilliant Physical Health”. Got up the Sun Mine climb—despite the road being closed—by riding underneath the arch made by a bucket-loader’s arm across the road.

The extension through Saxonburg provided endless steep rollers through typical Pennsylvania farmland, which meant endless wind sprints a »more