North High Heat

I survived my first major ride in Columbus this past weekend. Survived is the correct word. Temperatures were easily into the mid-90's with a heat index several degrees higher, which is the type of stuff that will only bring out the most dedicated or psychotic cyclists. Despite the excessive heat, Saturday was a beautiful day for cycling. There was a minor amount of cloud cover and a slight breeze when I arrived for the ride meet up on Columbus' first green way, the Scioto Mile:

When I said it only brings out the most dedicated or psychotic cyclists, that apparently also includes my girlfriend now:

Tough to see, but that's her blue Specialized in the background there. Welcome to the dark side, baby. It's nothing to be afraid of. We have beer:

...Which was largely the point of this whole endeavor. The ride was sponsored by Roll Bicycle and North High Brewing, and all of the stops on the way were bars or restaurants that featured North High beers on tap.

Beer is actually how I found out about the ride. I was at Southern Tier Brewing in Upstate New York a couple weeks ago when I ran into a couple from Columbus who mentioned it in casual conversation (small world, huh?). They ended up not showing up, and I guess I can't blame them. They were an older couple, and even I wasn't sure if I was willing to tough out an alleged 30 miles on one of the hottest days of the year (so far).

The coordinators ended up shortening the ride by about half. That said, including the ride from home to the meet up, I did come close to 30 miles on the afternoon:

I'm extremely glad I went, and extremely proud that my girlfriend toughed it out too. It was actually a lot more fun than I'm sure either of us wanted to admit by the time we got home. We met a few really awesome people on the way, and finally crossed a few new spots off our list. These guys coordinate a ride every month, and I'm sure this won't be my/our last. Next time, I hopefully won't have to be spending so much time chugging water so I can take some more pictures...