Our goals for the spring originally included 3 bike-packing races in Virginia with a ride back home on the newly created Eastern Divide Trail. Mike and I spent months planning it all. That epic plan though, about 2500 miles, was cut short by a surprise surgery for me to resolve an issue in my small intestine. The surgeon told us to cancel our April-May plans but he’d have me out the door for the BT700 in Canada.
That Grand Depart is this Sunday, June 18. Originally 700 kilometers, the BT700, which starts and ends in St. Jacobs, now stands at 495 miles. Being a slow rider comes naturally for me, so I expect I won’t mind treating this “race” as part of my PT-recovery program and taking my time to sample all the Butter Tarts along the route! I am grateful the first 120 miles or so is the flattest of the course.
This race is the first in the St. Lawrence Triple Crown – just created this year. The Log Driver’s Waltz will follow in Ontario and Quebec on July 29, another 500-mile loop. The third and final race is The Adirondack Trail Ride (TATR), which starts and ends in our hometown, a course I have a fair bit of experience riding. As usual, I did not plan to ride TATR AGAIN, but it turned up in the Triple Crown and off I will go! If I finish this year, it will be my 6th TATR finish.
Back in April as I was grappling with the thought of a recovery that would take up our entire spring, it was a bit serendipitous that the Triple Crown was announced. The starting race just fit into my recovery schedule, and the longest race at 585+ miles is the final one.
I’ve left packing my bike until the last minute this time, since being ready to go a month early for Virginia didn’t work out so well J I’m looking forward to Canada, finding the best Butter Tart and biking some new scenery.
If you’d like to follow us on the route, here’s the link:
https://www.followmychallenge.com/live/bt700/?43.553523,-80.605029,7.33
Bikepacking 