On a late start

 Victor von Fleddermoose was taken on a Défi for the first time today. What with Covid-19 and all, the Défi Métropolitain, usually held on the last Sunday in May, was held today. It was also my first Défi since 2019. 

I think I left my place at the right time to get to Châteauguay for my 8:30 departure, or least what should have been the right time. However, despite Google Maps, construction, bad luck and worse bureaucratic planning intervened. The plan was to take Autoroute 20 West, get on the 138 to cross the Mercier Bridge then turn left to get on the 132 Westbound. The first snag emerged when the access ramp from the 20 to the 138 was closed for construction/maintenance. This meant having to take a detour in order to make what amounted to a U-turn a few kilometers up beside the 20. 

Having all but crossed the Mercier Bridge, I found that I couldn't turn right because of construction, and so had to turn left onto the Eastbound 132 until the first intersection where I was to make a U-turn to head West.  Unfortunately, traffic was held up by the fact that a Kahnawake peacekeeper was moving traffic cones into position. Then a beat-up pickup from Alberta broke down in the "detour" lane!!!

Net result, I only got to the start after my parents had left.

It was a glorious day for biking with cool temperatures despite the sunshine and a moderate consistent wind out of the West. Unfortunately, I had a seat-pedal interface issue namely the fact that I am out of shape. That is not to say there weren't some bits. Just leaving the start, there was a stretch of slight downhill with a tailwind. I was pleased so see that I was doing about 35 km/h, and was then passed fairly snappily by fitter people on faster bikes!

The parents were taking a route that was roughly 20 kms shorter than mine before lunch. Together with their early departure, they arrived at the lunch place about an hour before me.

I had pondered taking the second extra bit as it looked like it might have been interesting. But I was unsure of my fitness level. As it was after lunch, I had theoretically left the decision until I got to the intersection, but in truth, I knew I wasn't going to take it before I got to the intersection. Among other reasons, I got mildly stung in my upper lip by an insect that collided with me.  Coming back, I benefitted from the consistent West wind. I arrived at the end about 20 or 30 minutes after the Parents. Unfortunately, they were a shade too impatient to wait. As I rode back to parking lot after getting my chocolate milk, I saw them leave, turning away from me. Had they gone the other way, they would have seen me.

 

At the finish, there was a campervan with an unusual front license plate. For one thing, it was what I think of as European format. The sight of such is not that rare. However, at first glance it looked Russian or Ukrainian. However, when looked at more carefully, it was in fact phonetic Québécois:

The stats are: 4 hours, 39 minutes, 21 seconds of riding. 106.65 kms covered. Average of 22.9 km/h. Max speed, 36.8 km/h.