Tuesday, March 6, 2012

A Ride on the South Maui Coast

I mentioned yesterday that I was hoping to move my bike reservation up by a couple of days. I was successful. Apparently not that many people are interested in renting a road bike this week. So after a phone call to the bike store, I was on my way and shortly had my Look Keo pedals installed on a Specialized Robaix.

The all-carbon frame was incredibly light and I easily flipped it upside down and loaded it into the back seat of my rented Mustang. A short while after getting it home, I decided I might as well go out for a ride so off I went. My route took me east along the Hanoapillani Highway just east of Lahaina. Thought it is very busy, the road has a nice shoulder with distinct markings for cyclists and frequent "Share the Road" signs. I felt safe.

It was a great ride. How can you go wrong cruising along a Hawaiian coast in seventy-something degree weather on a light carbon bike. That's right--you just about can't. Being a road bike, the Robaix did not have aero bars, but I spent a fair amount of time in the drops and kept up a pretty good pace. 

While there is much more I could tell you about the ride, I was able to capture it on my GoPro and I've turned one hour and twenty-two minutes into something more like five plus. I'm not a videographer and of course the point of the GoPro is that I can press a button and forget about it. You can be sure it was not on my mind as I climbed over 500 feet at the end of the ride. So though it can be a little jerky in places I think you'll get a pretty good idea of what it's like to ride on that highway. Enjoy!


No comments:

Post a Comment