What a morning to be outside. As expected a sizable group rolled out to tackle a new route aptly named The Ring of Fire. Warm temps & sunshine o’plenty brought out some folks I haven’t seen all winter. The route by itself is a whopper. What I did not factor in was a 20+ mph south wind. So we had 4 solid climbs to get over plus the wind really making a fifth climb and probably the hardest of them all. Punishing crosswinds in the first 45 minutes saw our group split in two. There is just not enough road to fit 20 people in a single echelon. Racing season is just around the corner so the pace had spirit from the first pedal stroke. Bob N came up with the route and name. Thanks for the pain sir! The route incorporates Wedington Blacktop, Four Corners, Hell’s Kitchen and CR 29 climbs. Each one more difficult than the other. Good times. With good peeps.

 A bit of jockeying for position early on. 20+ mph crosswind from left to right.

 Into to the teeth of it now.

 Due south.

  The B group A.1 group decided to ride steady. 

 Regroup before the first of four climbs. 

  And so it begins. Wedington Blacktop. Only .5 miles with 230 feet gain.

  This was going to be a hard day on the saddle.

 Conservative estimates had this wall valued at $70,000.

 Refueled and ready to rock.

  Ahhh, one of my favorite stretches…Canehill Rd.

 Superb views and rolling twisty roads.

 Dropping down to Greasy Valley.

 Four Corners climb. About 1 mile, 316 feet gain.

 Looking back.

 Ozarkia.

 Only a few short miles away is the legendary Hell’s Kitchen climb. 1.3 miles, 408 feet gain.

 With ramps above 20%.

 You start to think you can walk faster. 

 One of the harder pictures to take this morning. No relief even for a photog.

 Then after a few short miles after Hell’s Kitchen there is CR 29. I whopper just by itself.

 Every pedal stroke now. About 1 mile, 400 feet gain. 

 Round the corner only to see another ramp. The headwind was an added bonus of suffering. A great morning to tackle a hard route. Good job folks!