(Note. This is a very long post with a lot of pictures. You were warned.)
This is my bike.
Well, it’s one of my bikes. You see, after I built this one I kind of got hooked on building bikes. Fortunately I have a wife that indulges my bike habit.
Odds are you don’t have a bike that looks like this. Most people don’t. I certainly don’t pass myself going the other way on the bike path.
It’s not my most expensive bike, or my fastest, but it’s my favorite. If I could only have one bike, this would be the one. Ha! One bike! Who am I kidding?
“Blue”, as my wife named her, is an elegant French lady.
At least she looks like French. I designed her to look like a classic French randonneur.
In reality she’s a mix of parts from various places. A veritable United Nations of cycling. Velo Orange is an American company but they probably make their frames in Taiwan, as most do these days. She’s got a bit of Italian in her (Campagnolo), some Japanese (Honjo), and there’s a modern German light, powered by a hub dynamo, hiding inside that antique French headlight. The saddle and front bag are French (Berthoud). The handlebar tape is British (Brooks).
Her frame is steel. Yes, I’m one of those “steel is real” people. I have an expensive carbon fiber Colnago that I bought for my 50th birthday and have never really warmed up to it. Other than my aluminum Vitus 992, the rest of my bikes are steel. I think steel gives a better ride plus I like the classic looks of the skinny tubing.
I also like shiny bits on my bike. Somewhere along the way the powers that be decided that all bike components had to be black. I prefer more of a classic look for my bikes. Think E-Type Jaguar versus Cadillac CTS.
Sure, Blue’s a bit heavy at 28 pounds (without bags) but I really only notice the weight on climbs. With the 3x10 drivetrain I can gear down to a 24x30 combination and grind my way up most hills. On flat ground it’s about as fast as anything else plus able to go where the fast road bikes don’t dare.
What really makes her special are the extra wide 650b x 42 tires. With gravel bikes being all the rage today, fat tires are making a comeback. People sometimes forget that bikes had fat tires before they went to skinny tires. At 50-60 psi they make for a smooth ride and handle rough roads and light gravel easily.
I built her to go the distance and that’s exactly what I plan to do. For years now I’ve wanted to ride the length of the Ohio to Erie Trail, all the way from Cleveland to Cincinnati. Officially it’s 326 miles and I plan on doing it in four days.
I plan on staying at hotels and at my house in Columbus along the way. I’m a bit old to be sleeping in a tent. Air Force survival school got camping out of my system for life. I have no desire to drag a bunch of camping gear along on this ride and sleep on the ground. My idea of roughing it is if the hotel doesn’t have a bar.
Day 1 — Cleveland to Millersburg
We drive to Cleveland the day prior and spend the night in a hotel downtown. The plan is for Mrs. Kong to drive partway, ride part of the trail with me, and then meet me at the hotel in Millersburg. That way she gets to do more than just drive the car but still gets to ride within her limits.
Edgewater Park in Cleveland is a popular starting point.
I set out from Cleveland early and have no trouble getting out of the city. Just south of downtown I pick up the Erie Canal Towpath, which will take me all the way to Massillon.
Heading out of downtown.
There are a few ominous looking clouds over Lake Erie but the weather to the south looks good as I head out.
Looking back at downtown Cleveland.
The trip was almost over shortly after it started. Rain the day prior had left the trail wet with puddles in some spots. I go to swerve around a particularly deep looking puddle, hit a slick patch, and almost go down. Spooked me pretty good. After that I gave up trying to miss the puddles. After all, that’s what fenders are for.
The Towpath starts just south of Cleveland.
The Towpath is mostly crushed limestone and it can be rough in spots. You could ride it on skinny tires (I see people do it) but fat tires definitely help smooth out the vibrations.
A typical section of the Towpath.
A section of the trail was closed for repaving. Fortunately I knew about the detour ahead of time from social media so I wasn’t surprised by it. Getting around it took about 5 miles of riding on the roads plus a rather steep descent down a gravel path to get back to the trail. This would be the first of three detours I would have to contend with.
Detours are unfortunately a fact of life.
After passing through the Cuyahoga National Forest the Towpath goes through Akron, Canal Fulton, and just past Massillon. I will break off at Massillon and ride west on the Sippo Valley Trail.
Crossing a wetland north of Akron
Riding north from Dalton on her e-bike, Mrs. Kong meets me somewhere between Akron and Canal Fulton. We stop in Canal Fulton for lunch and I ride back to Dalton with her. She takes the car while I have another 25-30 miles left to ride.
There is a bit of a climb into downtown Akron but it’s not too difficult.
Following the canal south of Akron
Canal Fulton is a cute little town that boasts a couple of restaurants, a coffee shop and a very popular ice cream stand.
This is a popular stop for cyclists in Canal Fulton
On the Sippo Valley Trail just west of Massillon.
The Sippo Valley Trail is mostly paved but it’s very bumpy in spots. Even with the fat tires I have to slow down in spots to avoid a pinch-flat or getting bounced out of the saddle. My front bag bounces out of its mount once or twice, which almost never happens.
The Sippo Valley Trail ends at Dalton. There’s not much in Dalton except a park and a couple convenience stores. From there I will have to ride about 15 miles on country roads through what’s called “The Amish Country” before I pick up the Holmes County Trail in Fredericksburg.
Amish buggies are a common sight on the roads in this part of Ohio but they also have taken a liking to E-bikes in recent years. Makes about as much sense as anything else I suppose. Must be a loophole in the bylaws that allows E-bikes.
Typical road through the Amish Country
The prevailing winds in Ohio tend to be from the southwest, which just so happens to be the direction I’m going. I’ll end up bucking headwinds for the entire ride. It’s also hot. Close to 90 degrees. Despite trying to stay hydrated I’m feeling the effects of the afternoon sun.
This part of Ohio is rolling hills and there is one pretty good climb just outside of Fredericksburg. It’s just under a mile and tops out at 11% grade. This is the only time on the entire trip I will need my small chainring and of course I drop the chain when shifting down to it. Doh!
Trying to balance a heavy bike on an incline while struggling to put the chain back on I have my first “I’m 61 years old. Why am I doing this to myself?” moment of the trip. There will be others.
Starting back up the hill my bike starts making a horrible noise. I’m certain I got the chain back on correctly so I have no I idea what’s causing. I think the asphalt has actually melted in the heat because my tires are coated with asphalt and gravel and I’m hearing it getting flung into my aluminum fenders.
I slowly grind my way to the top while my bike makes rock-crusher noises and an impatient SUV glues itself to by back fender. Sorry pal, I’m doing the best I can here. This is the point where I really start questioning my life choices.
In all my years of riding I’ve never seen this happen.
Fortunately Fredericksburg has a hardware store downtown. I buy a paint scraper and scrape what looked like a good quarter inch of tar, sand and gravel off my tires. This is also why I carry a set of mechanics gloves, a rag and alcohol wipes in my bag.
From Fredericksburg it’s a mercifully short ride down the Holmes County Trail to Millersburg where Mrs. Kong is waiting at the hotel. Total mileage for the day is 106 with 2800 feet of vertical.
Between the heat, hills and headwinds I’m ready to get off the bike for a while.
To be continued.
