You don’t have to be a Cat 1 bike racer to find yourself thrilled at the thought of the peloton speeding down the narrow, winding, hilly dirt roads you’ve ridden yourself. And it’s particularly exciting when the race is a major event attracting pro teams such as Team OUCH, which includes Floyd Landis among its members.

 

 
I grew up in the shadow of the Taconic Mountains, and the Battenkill River coursed through my life as certainly as the blood flowing through my veins. I rode my bike along the riverside roads, cast flies into the river’s eddies and over green pools full of brown trout, paddled canoes from source to mouth, and swam in its cold flow under the Eagleville covered bridge during high summer. As I matured and advanced to a full-sized road bike, I negotiated the oiled, cobbled dirt roads that wind through the ancient wooded hills. I ground up the steep grades with salty rivulets of sweat leaving traces through the dust on my face. And my knees still show the scars of reckless downhill wipeouts. But back then there were few serious cyclists, and I never met anyone else on my rides along the rough town roads. That was then, this is now, and through the dedicated efforts of Dieter Drake, a pro race takes place annually along the same routes I know so well. The race is the Tour of the Battenkill, and it’s as rugged as any European event.

The Tour of the Battenkill takes place this coming weekend, April 18th and 19th. Here are the details:

 

• Saturday April 18: Pro/Am: 9 AM -5 PM
• Sunday April 19: Cyclo-Sportif Recreational Ride