Saturday was the Homestead 100 out of Beatrice Nebraska, Beatrice is the home of the Homestead Monument of American so I suppose it's only natural to have a Homestead ride. We've done this ride a few times now, twice on "gravel" and at least once on the road route.
I was told this was going to be a casually paced ride, I was told nobody was worried about going fast and finishing quickly... so Pugsley got the call up for the ride. I always thought that Lady Liberty was a lot bigger than this, or at least she appears so in pictures.
The roll out from town was fairly mild but once we hit the limestone trail things ticked up markedly but I should have know that casual pace rarely ever is.
Despite the brisk headwind heading south, we scooted along fairly quickly and rode into the first SAG stop at mile 10 seemingly minutes after heading out. Skies were dark and threatening and I was sure we were going to end up getting soaked at any minute.
Just outside of Barneston was the second SAG, while we didn't stop there on the way out we would visit Barneston on the way back. I am always amazed and a little jealous when I ride this trail, the facilities are amazing compared to what is around Lincoln on this same trail. This gazebo and bathroom, yep and actual bathroom that doesn't look like a tree or a bush, sits just south of Barneston; a town of 111 people.
A short 3 miles from Barneston is the Kansas/Nebraska border or the Nebraska/Kansas border, whichever you prefer. Always a good spot for a dual state beer stop and some of us got way more excited about the border than others.
The original plan was to turn around at about mile 32 which would put us just shy of Marysville but get us a metric century. When we got there however some of the group decided to push on without us, had I known that I would have been more than content with just hitting the border and heading back. Oh well, that tailwind was nice on the way back and we met Todd and Isabell near Barnston on the way back and talked them into a pub stop.
Grand Avenue in Barnston is probably one of the last remaining businesses in town and it's a throw back to days gone by. Unlike the bar in Memphis I bought two bags of chips, a coke and a Mike's for $4.50 which is only 50 cents more than one drink in Memphis. Now that's how small town drinking is done. Being just a block of the trail you'd think that they bar would have neon signs on the trail directing cyclists to stop in and spend some money but that's not the case at all. While they will take your money, the lady who runs the place seemed a little less than excited about "herds of cyclists" showing up unannounced but that could just be some of that small town charm you hear so much about. In all fairness she has always seemed friendly and social when we've been there and I suppose 15 sweaty cyclists just showing up could put a bit of a rush into an otherwise dull day.
A quick 20 mile spin later and we were back in Beatrice where the Octoberfest was in full swing, I opted not to partake but head home instead. We never did see a single drop of rain so that was good, the head wind was a bit harsh but that is Nebraska for you and as usual I think the winds shifted a little bit so that we were fighting it in both directions... not that it seemed to effect the pace. 14.2 on a 50 lbs fat bike is plenty quick for me but it was a good ride with friends and a great day on the bike.
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