The Duncan Dehydrator 2013

The Dehydrator...... just the name conjures up images of desert heat, buzzards waiting, skeletons of unfortunates who have expired in the heat...... Well......usually, this ride has all that ......

Buzzards......

Skeletons .....

And....omens of bad luck to start the ride.......

Hmmmm..... it was shaping up to be a definitely challenging ride. Honestly though, only the number was ominous, the buzzards were there, circling high above at times, and the ride tee this year brought back my favorite character "Boney" the ride's mascot ...... Glad to see him back in good form. The desert-like heat never materialized this year, it was in the 60's at the start, and only climbed into the 80's during the ride, there had been a lot of rain in that area in the last day or so, so dehydration wasn't really a concern. As humid as it was, you could have boiled to death had it gotten hot, however. Still, if you are going to do a tough ride..... you get a tough riding partner to keep you going... Meet Crystal, holding onto my bike, ...... Runs two or three full marathons a year, trains by running  12-15 mile runs a couple times a week for fun, and rides very, very strongly. Today, she was "Pinky".....

We were waiting on the drive for the ride to get started. Even with the heat on normal years, this is still one of the most popular and well supported rides in the state, and I saw numbers to indicate that there were over 500 riders here this year. And .....this year, there seemed to be less than previous years. Here's the group up ahead....

 This ride is usually held in conjunction with a very popular race, but for reasons unknown to me, they had to cancel the race this year. So, with the band playing (this ride benefits the High School Band), and the number 13 on my back ....... I was thinking about Titanic about now...... we slowly trundled out onto the road, jostling for position with all the other riders. It was a madhouse at first. Ten miles down the road, however, things looked a lot different.

 

 

 

The roads were, for the most part, empty, smooth and quiet, and, as you can see, mostly flat. There were, on the return, some hills, but for the most part, this ride is nothing like riding in my area of the state. This does, in part, explain why I could post a higher than normal average speed. We did, have a bit of a headwind all the way back, which gave us at least a little challenge. The wind can really get blowing here with all the open spaces..... today, not so much.

 

 



The route took us across the dam at Waurika Lake, and while it was still definitely low, it looked better than it has in several years..

By now, the early morning crowds of riders had thinned out. We had passed the cut-off for the 25, 50, and 62 mile routes, and those of us that were left were either doing the 80, or die trying.  

 

 

We went through a few metropolises like Hastings ......

 

 

 



 

 

And Temple, OK, which was, in fact a pretty good sized little town. I took some photos, but in digging the camera out of my pocket, I had inadvertently switched it over to the movie setting, and because I thought I was taking stills, they didn't turn out well. So, you only get to see two pictures of Temple, OK....

 

 



 I love trains .......and grain elevators, and here was both together. After we left Temple, we headed back east on county roads, and it seemed as though it just wouldn't stop going up. Long, long gradual uphill, it reminded me of a rail-trail. The grade was not really much to look at .... but it was there! I made the comment about "isn't the uphill ever going to stop"..... which brought on peals of laughter from my riding companion. I honestly think she was enjoying the challenge. A stop for a packet of Gu, in a quiet country lane gave me a minute to look at the surrounding countryside.... AND catch my breath........

  Plus, in addition to going up, we also had the pleasure of riding directly into the wind at the same time. Seven miles later, we finally turned north, none too soon for me. The wind was from the ENE, so while we still had a bit of headwind, it was very bearable heading north. By this time, it was just make the pedals go round, and do the miles until you got back. This was the last rest stop....

 

And, finally, a turn back to the east for a few miles brought us to the end of the ride, and a barrage of water from squirt guns at the finish. Here we are at the end, in front of the Simmons Center, Duncan, OK......

 

 



The finish mileage ....

And the rest of the stats for those who are interested, time pedalling, 4:56, average speed, 16.3mph.

After we put the bikes up, we went into the Simmons Center and showered, changed back into street clothes, and partook of a wonderful lunch with a mac and cheese casserole, salad, fresh fruit (great variety and lots) and a fresh home-made brownie for dessert. Hey ....it was chocolate..... I'm all over it!!! Great ride, great people, great roads and scenery, mild temperatures this year, and NO DOGS.... what's not to love!!! Oh ...... for those who might be interested, my almost brand new (200 miles on it now) did well for the entire 80 miles, giving me only the slightest bit of annoyance the last 5 miles or so. It's not anywhere near broke in yet, but each time I do a long ride, I find I can stretch it out further and further without any pain or discomfort. Century coming up in a month ..... it'll be ready .... will I?
Just received an update from the Dehydrator ....514 riders, 129 of them did the 80 miler. Pretty good turnout for Oklahoma in July, I'd say.