WORLD’S BEST ROAD CYCLING! - SW Wisconsin - Driftless Randonneurs 125k & 150k Weekend!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ต.ค. 2024
- I’ve come to believe that the best road cycling in the world is right here in Southwestern WI. And yes, I'd like to be proven wrong!
Known as The Driftless Area, we enjoy a small, unique geological anomaly where the glaciers ceased to flow, right where MN, IA, IL and WI come together as the Mississippi River picks up the Wisconsin river.
It’s very hilly, remote, fertile farm land, so there’s very little traffic, and thanks to the dairy lobby, all of the roads are paved and well maintained for the milk trucks.
This video is my attempt to show the world a bit about what Randonneuring is like and hopefully demonstrate this landscape that I’ve grown to love via my bicycle since discovering it myself!
I didn't expect to be busted for trespassing on day one and to find a dead body or be attacked by a dog on day two, but that's what I get for seeking adventure!
125k Route - ridewithgps.co...
150k Route - ridewithgps.co...
Really enjoyed watching this. I live in India, but went to school at UW-Madison. This makes me want to return and explore/ride these parts of Wisconsin that I never got to experience....
Awesome video! Back in 2017 I rode the Million Meters of Milk 1000k in Wisconsin and the Great Lakes Mac & Cheese 1227k which started in Michigan and led into Wisconsin. Beautiful country, great people.
Agreed!
Been singing the praises of biking SW. Wisconsin for a while now.
Truly some of the best riding in the world!
Nice dog owner. 'He likes to bike'. AKA 'Get off my land or get mauled'.
Lovely video. Inspirational to get out riding of course!
Glad to see your subs are taking off Andy. Enjoying the good mix of content. Keep it up
I graduated from a hybrid to a road bike this year. Covid kept me from getting the new road bike for a couple of years. Thankfully it finally came to the shop! That looks like a lot of fun! The drivers there are no different than the drivers here in S.C.. They are in a hurry and they have no respect for cyclists. We have a lot of hills here. Some of the climbs are brutal, but I enjoy it.
Covid is the reason I got a new bike lol.
@@blaze1148When I decided to make the switch my local bike shop didn't have any bikes. I was on a waiting list and the bike that I ended up buying was not the bike I was waiting on. I bought a bike that was about double the price after taxes in February. The bike I was going to buy came in at the end of April. Sure I could have traveled to a shop that had the bike in stock, but that wasn't supporting my local bike shop. They take good care of me and my family so I refused to go anywhere else.
Good music. Curious on your source for some future videos.
Man the roads look so familiar for this transplanted Cheesehead. Thanks for the great content!
Brought to mind my motorcycle rides in my youth. Saturday mornings around Holy Hill. I'm sure a lot has changed.
Looooks like funnnn great video don’t put ur self down ur videos are great
Thanks hey!
Beautiful region. I toured through the area earlier this year and can't wait to get back.
Lovely vid and great ride.. like your channel 😊 subscribed 😊 🚴🏻👍 ride on dude.. Pete
Like 20 years ago I was on a work related 2 weeks in Pennsylvania, coming from Belgium. Over the weekend some colleagues planned to go mountain-biking in some woods somewhere in the area. I joined, hardly doing any sports for several years. In the more rural areas, the resemblance to some areas in Belgium was stunning. Same type of mountains, same abandoned steel/coal industry and railroads and people over the weekend making the steam locomotives ride again... So much like several towns in the South of Belgium. Also the autumn colors, gave the same feeling as on the other side of the Atlantic ocean. And I got totally confused when one of the guys had brought his own pedals and shoes from the UK over to the US to ride a bike... Now I understand.
I remember the exhausted feeling at night after the ride, but I loved. It was the start of now many years of bike riding and falling in love with bike mechanics. And being a micro-electronics engineer, I hated moving things in the past... Also I shared this love of riding with my 2 sons -one who took it serious and became a pro rider.
The images of your video bring me back that experience of 20 years ago; similar landscape, same beautiful autumn colors.
And kudos for the bike build! I like it ;-).
Darkstar!😂🚀🧑🚀 also: PIZZA is always a climactic ending!🍕
RAGBRAI 2022 ended in Lansing IA, the same terrain in NE Iowa that is in SW WI. Last day had some tough climbs, doing them on a 90's Burley tandem with my brother. We would alternate pedaling easy for 20 seconds, then come back in. We made it up the hills and there were tons of walkers. Who said tandems can't climb?
Love it. Just your luck you stop with a pissed off dog 😂
Can never trust an A-hole mechanic to get the job done right...LOL Really enjoy the ride footage. Shots were very well framed and the camera was not bouncing around too much.
Simplicity IS Beauty...
I'm a mountain biker, but I found your channel because I like to watch videos of people working on bikes and I like to see the vintage bikes as well. 50 miles is about as much as I can stand on a mountain bike in one day, but I can see how Randonnerring would be fun on the right bike. Greetings from Bavaria, Germany !
P.S. you should come over here and ride in the hills south of Munich, we have some incredible back country highways and views along the way!
Thanks!
Thanks hey!!
Oh ya hey! No problem! Minesotah feller here!
@@garyt066 ok then!
Just my opinion, but your bike is waaaay sicker than the Pin! Even with a dropped chain! LOL!
Wow, people there seem like such arseholes, is it just a cyclist's perspective or is this usual for the US?
The dog likes to bite comment, that wouldn't fly where I'm from. But almost everyone was being very unfriendly.
I lived in Wisconsin for 13 years. Grew up in California where a 6000 ft. elevation ride was very common. Considering the highest elevation in Wisconsin is 1900 ft. Tim's Hill, your ride was EPIC!
However, the guy at the Wright place and the guy with the barking dogs have the asshole personalities of 75% of the state. Wisconsinites are a very paranoid, protective people. Most are nosey as hell and not very "friendly" at all.
And, you are very brave for ridind on those roads with no shoulders. I encountered many abusive to bikers drivers in Wisconsin. Many times got honked at, cussed at, thrown stuff and "buzzed" by those fheads.
Stay safe. .
The Driftless Area is very different. Most of the motorists are very courteous. When you get into the more conservative rural areas, it gets noticeably worse. You'll know when you're there by the Busch Light cans in the ditches.
This looks amazing - will need to take a visit from PA soon 😎🚲
LOL ,always fear a man in tights TIGHTS! tights... Definately not a motivated seller.
Thanks for the great video. Y'all are the nearest club to me, I may try to join you on a ride or two next year.
That Shimano RD-7700-GS is pretty fancy.
We are blessed to live in the driftless, the cycling is fantastic. I live in Baraboo but we ride to the Richland Center area and back often, very little traffic and great roads.
I also use that word! Blessed indeed!
Hey Andy, this video is a great introduction to rando riding, sir- nicely done. BTW I just finished riding across the USA solo and I stayed at that Ramada in Richland Center back in July! I was on US 14 from La Crosse to Middleton so not nearly as quiet as those awesome roads you folks were riding.
Yikes! I designed a route with 1 mile of HWY 14 and it was rejected! I don’t mind it though. Nice big shoulder. Plenty of room!
@@bkefrmr When I go from Madison to Black Earth I ride 14. Wide shoulders and good sight lines. Steady traffic, true enough. Better than Mineral Point Rd. Or, Old Sauk.
Hamm’s beer!!
From the land of sky blue waters. I built my first "beeramid" from a case of Hamm's.
@@bkefrmr you are a good representative of your great State of Wisconsin. Keep ‘em coming and have a great Thanksgiving.
I visited this area decades back. Nice country. The local farmers and local radio station were all talking about "The Drought" as It hadn't rained for 6 weeks and folks were getting worried. I told em come down to Missouri it might not rain all summer!
On that bridge, you don't like taking the lane? Shoulder riding invites close calls I believe.
I don’t ever like taking the lane. I feel like an asshole getting in the way. I think that’s what pisses people off. I like making enough room for everyone to do as they please. I don’t expect anyone to understand that.
That area does have an awesome road network for cycling. I rode "Cheese Country Hell Week", which was a collaboration of Texas Hell Week's Nick Gerlich and the Big Dogs Endurance Cycling club, three times starting in 2004. It was based in Richland Center and had some amazing rides. The only thing it really lacked was mountains. Is the Coulee Challenge 1200K still around? I would love to ride it.
In you area what type if tires were you and ghe others riding on? I am always curious they choices riders make in different parts of the US.
man oh man, I love this video...great stuff and I believe I rode through some of the places you showed in this video when I rode across the US from Vancouver Wa down to Oregon and across to Portland Maine and down to NYC to take the train home to Tampa. I am in the process of building me a Rivendell A.Homer Nilsen for randoneuring and I would love to come up and ride it out with you fellows. Any good rear lights to attach to a metal fender that you can recommend? Great stuff. Cheers.
Dude you're awesome and this content is gold!
Rode the Horrible Hilly 100k in 2017 on my Trek Domane, the 34 chainring and 32 cog didn't cut the mustard for sure. I did love the area though and also the logged my fastest speed ever on a bike at 55mph.
About two cars meeting each, each driver see’s you, they see each othe, they brake! Cussing all to meet at the same time. After riding ride along the Wisconsin rider 7 day 500 miles ride 35 years in a row, this has happened to me thousands of time’s. Wisconsin a nice place to ride
OBTW, what's your lowest gear? Is it 30t by 34t by what I'm guessing is a 700c that you took up that 15% grade at 12:22?
If so, that's only about 25 gear-inches (or 2 meters development), which I think is on the high side for a climbing gear. At least for my sorry butt lol.
Just curious, thanks!
O.M.G. what absolutely glorious countryside! God's own country, as the saying goes. I've never gone 150Km at a go, but with scenery like that, I think I could almost manage it!
32:10 Bwaaa hahahaha! Sounds like me lol. You should(n't) hear me swear until I realize, "oh, shit, _I_ made that adjustment."
Nice rides! I grew up in Wisconsin and briefly lived in Arena, near Spring Green. About 10 years ago I rode the Wright Stuff Century, which was a blast, but it sure wasn't fully paved (unless people wiping out in pea gravel counts as paved). In 2016 I did RAW when it was "only" the ~175 mile route, but a big chunk of that was through the Driftless Area. Both of those were on a Milwaukee road bike with an Athena 11 group and skinny tires, but now I keep a light touring bike ('83 Trek 720 frame built up with modern components & 650b*42mm tires) at my parents' place in Lake Mills so I can ride the Glacial Drumlin Trail and whatever else I need to do. Maybe it's time to head back for some randonneuring...
I live in Lake Mills and own the bike shop downtown.
@@bkefrmrI'll swing by the next time I'm in town! Keep up the good work!
Enjoyed the video, what do you use to edit your videos?
Enjoyed the video.
Curious what brakes you have on the Grey bike?
Liked and subscribed.
Geez. Not sure I’m undergeared enough for that area. Also running 46/30 front 11-34 rear.
Driftless for the Win! If your channel keeps growing, I will no longer be able to say SW Wisconsin is one of cycling's best kept secrets. All great routes start in RC :) Thanks for sharing the joy.
So randonneuring=bunch of people going on a bike ride.
Did you miss the parts about terrain that is unique for the Midwest, the low traffic, and the camaraderie?
Just found your channel, I’m enjoying your content! What was the riding pace and the average for the day? I’ve been interested in trying a randonneur event, just wondering if I can keep up!
About 15mph
Be me to owner: "Control that dog!" (chuckling) ... ;)
Nice video !
What a nice video. You did a great job showcasing the scenery. Can you tell me what music you used?
"If you don't have a minivan, you're doing this wrong."
Thank you for your videos. They inspire me to do more riding. I'm 70 and did a lot when I was younger. My style has changed through the years to a more upright style. Your videos are also helping me think about my bikes that I don't ride as much anymore. I'll be contacting you someday about my Bridgestone MB1, just not quite yet ;)
We moved to New Mexico, but still have a cabin in Elroy, Wisconsin. Where is your shop?
@@rickjenkins1238lake Mills
If i lived in a freakshow house like that id be a cranky darren too. Let him eat his stale salty fish heads in peace. 😂
Hello what was the asking price on that house and land looked like a nice place to put a landfill
Can you use furniture polish on a carbon fiber frame with a flat finish?
Did I see a Mountain Dew, wow your video bring back memories of hard day riding, only to throwback two bottles of Mountain Dew to enjoy the last 20 miles of hundred mile day. Caffeine and sugar get you home. Nice video.
Oh yes! Mt. Dew Real Sugar is like 174% your daily sugar recommendation. It's so good!
Okay, I'm confused. I'm a pretty fit guy, 59, but can run 8 minute miles still and ride regularly but after about 60k on my bike I'm gassed! How do you guys and gals ride so far? Serious question. Thanks
Really enjoyed coming along with you. Thank you.
So there's no drifting on that tour then, huh?😜
Thanks for taking me along for your ride. Always wanted to take a tour in Wisconsin. My wife’s folks had a cottage up on green lake that we used to visit in the summer. Thanks again!
Very cool!
What was that bike you were riding, Andy?
Thank you very much for the great video. Impressive landscape. Greetings from beautiful Switzerland 😊👍
I LOVE SWITZERLAND!
I grew up in that area in the 80s and 90s. We would ride all over the place. West of Elroy, down towards Wildcat is a blast.
How nice less traffic
Sconnie here, curious, where is your shop? Give yourself a shoutout
Lake Mills
@@bkefrmr May I ask the name of the shop? A little sign in your vid says bike clinic with a phone number.. why not put an informational sign over your bench with shop name, phone .
Nice vid. I'm liking your bike too.. I use a 1983 Cannondale st500 for Rando..
@@toddhoskins4196 I hate phone calls. And the shop is closed in the off season. And tbh, I’m not doing this channel to promote the shop.
Enjoyed the video. I live in Lone Rock, which is a tiny village about 5 miles west of Spring Green. All the places you cycled past are very familiar. Great biking area!
SF Bay area has some nice cycling routes. Enjoyed the video. I like your gas prices too.
Gas prices are old hat. I'm more keen on Midwest electricity prices. It's about 7 cents a kilowatt in Chicago.....and now that it appears EV batteries suffer less from the cold than from the heat, it looks more interesting than ever to switch in this part of the country.
I hear that, it's £5.97 a Gallon over here
@@simant5361 and 27p per kilowatt or about 33 US cents per kilowatt at the current price cap for electricity -- four and a half times our rate in Chicago.
Live in western Sauk county. Maybe I'll see you riding sometime. Don't get over to Richland spring green much but maybe I will soon
I've biked the Winona to the Lewiston area on the MN side of the river. I've not tried the Driftless portion. Will have to give this area a try this coming summer. Thanks for bringing this up.
An episode of the podcast Nocturne got me interested in Randoneurring and this again makes me want to. I still haven't managed to get our and ride rando but still want to
I need to get over there and meet up with that group sometime. In my completely unbiased opinion the best cycling is where I do most of mine: in Crawford County, just to the west of where you were.
"CAN I HELP YOU?"
I like the idea of an old school ride with paper trail controls over modern technology.
Enjoyed the video
What fluid do you use to clean your bike?
Furniture spray
Nice! Can you put a link with the route please.
Doneski! In the description.
Thanks.
looks good for hammock camping and flyfishing.
Howdy from Lancaster PA 🤠 I'll have to check out Wisconsin
If I had a penny everytime someone said i was on private property
I really enjoy your channel. I rode the horribly hilly hundred 2 years ago and I agree that general area is great for cycling. What town is your shop in?
It's in Lake Mills, between Milwaukee and Madison.
please show and discuss all bikes
Actually, he's an extremely friendly guy. To be fair, he is correct, you were on private property without permission. Other than that looks like a great route in an area I know very well!
Too friendly! He should’ve put up a sign. Looked pretty welcoming!
i love wisconsin
That's a pretty big claim to have the best cycling route in the world 😆👍 a nice ride yes, but here in Europe a 300 mile bike ride may well take you through 3-4 different countries with 3-4 different languages and cultures, foods, completely different styles of medieval architecture, smooth cycle lanes where Billy Bob in his jacked up truck don't have the right of way and nobody yells out of doors 'private property, your trespassing buddy! " 😆 I saw a lot of generic American cracked concrete roads, not one cycle lane, same generic American wooden sheds and silos....you could of just been doing laps around the same town and slept in your own bed at the end of the day....didn't even see the sea or a castle😆👍 I'd feel like I was flogging a dead horse cycling in America.. Good to get out though ay👍
Hey, ,this is the area that made Trek great. the frequency of medium sized hills which you can rip up and down is unique .Most drivers respect the biking culture of the area. It's a great place to ride. Freeze thaw cycles does a number on the roads but there are improved roads to be found
@@thuggoethe people seemed rude and not pleased to see him though. The guy that said his dog likes to bike, seems very rude to me from where I'm from.
Ouch!!!
What is it with "cyclists" that they can't just let other people be happy? I've only been at it a short time, but the levels of pretentiousness and condescension I've seen and experienced in this "community" is bonkers.
Nice area but one vehicle is one too many for me compared to where I ride. I do not trust people in their vehicles today unless it is related to law enforcement.
Horribly Hilly Hundred.
TRIGGERED! I rode it a few years back when it was 90° and sunny. Hardest day on a bike ever! And I’ve done 3 Alps in a a day and a few 400k Driftless brevets. HHH is flat out silly! (But I’m glad I did it)
at 10:50 you move to the right so that a clueless motorist can perform the motorist manage a trios. i wouldnt do that: i pull into the lane, turn around and look at them directly. theyre blocked, period. sure, they can run me over and kill me...but im 61, over 12000 miles a year every year since age 27, and have been protecting my lane since then. and while im sure there are folks with psychological problems who will run me over, it hasnt happened yet. and frankly, if it were to happen thats ok with me...but americans are cowards, in the main, and if confronted directly will back down. since law enforcement CLEARLy doesnt care about bicyclists, or enforcing any road laws anymore, bicyclists are on their own. (the claim about law enforcement is not hyperbole: research it. traffic stops for violations are now statistically insignificant.) oh, and by the way: theres zero evidence that "high vis" clothing matters: see the research on blindsight. plus, lifes too short to be encased in day-glo out of fear...
You know what? I think you are absolutely right about all of this! By default is to always stay as far to the right as possible. I think I kind of get stuck in that line of thinking in this instance, I definitely should’ve taken the lane. I literally saw it coming from a mile away, I pride myself on being self-aware Out there, but what good does that to me if I’m making the wrong decision!? Thank you for your comment, and stay safe!