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Great day ... great ride

As a week of vacation nears its end, I must say it's been a good week away from the Belleville News-Democrat. It's been a "working" vacation of sorts as I've done some Web site work and other preparations for the Tour de Stooges, the site for the documentary "Tour de Donut: Gluttons for Punishment" and the site for the Tour de Grape, which makes its debut May 12-13, 2007.

Part of the "work" today involved riding the route for the second day of the Tour de Grape, which will be a major fund-raiser for HavenHouse St. Louis, an organization that provides lodging for families of children receiving treatment at St. Louis-area hospitals. Joining me on the ride were HavenHouse Executive Director Kathy Sindel and her husband, Charley, and their friends Larry and Mary Jo Keith.

We couldn't have asked for a better day for cycling. The high temperature hit a seasonable 68 degrees with plenty of sunshine.

But the route we did today was even better. We started the ride in historic Ste. Genevieve, Mo., past several French-style home built in the 1700s. We proceeded down to St. Mary, then to the bridge linking Missouri with Chester, Ill. Chester is the home of the Popeye Statue, which honors Chester native and Popeye creator Elize Segar. Segar based Popeye on a real-life Chester resident, Frank "Rocky" Fiegel.

We passed the Menard Correctional Center, the home of some of Illinois' most dangerous criminals. The imposing structure left an impression with my cycling partners. We then passed the Pierre Menard home, which was the home of Illinois' first lieutenant governor. Kaskaskia was Illinois' first state capital, from 1818 to 1820. Most of the original village was destroyed in the late 1800s when the Mississippi River changed its course, but the Menard home was on high enough ground to survive the shift.

We then climbed into the small town of Ellis Grove and ate lunch at the Pop-A-Top bar and grill. Then the went back down into the scenic Mississippi River valley, enjoying a tailwind and the beautiful bluffs on one side and acres and acres of farmland on the other. We are planning two options for the route, a short one of 45 miles and a longer one of 60 miles that will take cyclists to Fort de Chartres State Historic Site, a restored French Colonial fort.

We did the 45-mile version and took the Modoc Ferry back into Ste. Genevieve. All in all, we all thought this route will be winner with Tour de Grape participants. Most of the route is flat, but there are enough hills to keep you honest. The French Colonial history of the region will provide plenty of opportunities to stop and learn about the early white settlers in the region.

Tour de Grape's first day will take people to the rolling-to-hilly countryside near Farmington and Fredericktown, Mo. We agreed the first day will be more challenging for cyclists, especially for an early season ride, but we thought people likely will enjoy the second day even more because all the reasons listed above.

It is probably a good thing I did this ride instead of going over to Elletsville, Ind., for the Hilly Hundred ride. Hilly is one of my favorite rides because of the great routes, food and live music, but I would not have been in good enough shape to enjoy the ride. I was climbing reasonably well before my July accident, but I have yet to recover that form in the weeks since then.

Here's hoping the folks on Hilly -- which include my older sister, Teresa Parod, and her son, Julius -- have a great weekend exploring the hills of Indiana.

Roger 0 comments 10:12 PM