Day 12: Latham, New York to Brattleboro, Vermont 79 miles, 5435 feet of climb, 90 degrees and humid.

Yes, I broke down and let someone take my picture.  I'm in front of the "home of Uncle Sam" sign welcoming you in to Troy.  What's that shit on your helmet, Jed?  That, is my new mirror.  The one I had that attached to my handlebar doesn't work nearly as well as this one.  Michelle talked me in to trying it and, after a few days, I have to admit that I'm really liking it.

Coming out of Latham, we were quickly crossing the Hudson River and into Troy.  This is where I got giddy this morning, as I was riding on roads I've driven on many, many times over the past 15 years.  Taking the back roads through Troy on the way to Vermont was like I was riding on home turf.

One more state down, one to go.

A better welcome to Vermont.  There as an even better view from atop Hog Back Mountain but, honestly, I was so damned tired by that point that I didn't stop and take the shot.  I was fresher this morning when I took this one.

That feeling of "I know where I am because I've been here before" lasted through to our ride through the city of Bennington, where Samantha went to college.  I recalled all the shops and restaurants, including the greasy spoon diner where Sammy and I would have breakfasts together.  Great memories.

Today's route map.  While we were climbing much of the morning, that 8-mile climb up an 8% grade of an unnamed mountain nearly wiped us all out.  The sweat was dripping off of everyone so much so that one of the SAG vans pulled off halfway up the steep climb just to top off everyone's water bottles.  The second steep climb, a 3-mile run up to Hog Back Mountain, also an 8% grade, seemed much easier by comparison.  But, by then, the sun was behind the clouds and it cooled a bit.  Some of the riders descended from Hog Back at over 50 miles per hour.  Not me Johnny!

In the cute town of Wilmington, a bunch of us stopped off, between the two climbs, for sandwiches and plenty of iced tea and ice water.  The service was slow, but the food and the shade were welcome relief.

The rest of the day was not as joyous, with only a nice stop for lunch in Wilmington to take the edge off of a very hot and humid day with two huge climbs.  I've learned one thing about myself that was reconfirmed today.  I'm not a fan of riding fast down hills.  While other riders were speeding by at upwards of 50+ miles per hour down the two steep descents, I was trying to keep it under 35 miles per hour.  I'm like that with skiing as well.  Nice and easy down the hill is fine by me.  The challenge is when you're trying to keep the bike on the road and the grade is upwards of 8 - 10 % on the descents.  Wears out your brakes pretty quickly.

Tomorrow is another roller coaster day with mountain climbs and more hot weather.  But we're almost there!