Senior Bicycling on Shaklee Stuff: Quillians Quickie 25 and the CCG 66 - Clermont - Cornelia

Ride - Party - Ride - Party

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Saturday started out like most Saturdays when the weather is nice. Decisions had to be made about where one should ride the bicycle that day. The weather was a little misty but that was not going to deter me from my quest to ride 2007 miles in 2007.

Should I ride from Murrayville since I had to go by the bank to get that stuff that stores require when you want snacks, drinks, end of ride food, etc. As I approached Murrayville, the mist got a bit heavier so I made an executive decision to move on toward Clermont. The mist got heavier the closer I got to Clermont. I decided to delay the ride and make a run to my favorite bike shop.

This is the inside of the expanded Habersham Bicycles in famous downtown Smithville off Georgia Highway 365 before you get to Cornelia. And, no trip to HB is complete without seeing the master mechanic Brody pictured below. He and I engineered adding a new flasher light to my bike so now I can be seen from quite a distance away. Still doesn't mean someone will not run me down but they can't say I wasn't lite up.

Finally, the weather cleared up a bit, the mist stopped, and I made my way back to Quillian's Corner for a quick 25 mile ride. It may have been the least traffic I've encountered since I think most everyone in the North Hall school zone was at the Georgia Dome watching the semi-final football game between North Hall and Cairo (Karo for you none learned people). Unfortunately, it was not a successful outing for the Trojans but we are proud of them for going this far. The picture below was just one of many I saw with Trojans painted on the grass in yards .

The scene below was just a nice view of a small pond that is down about 3 to 5 feet versus the level of Lake Lanier which is down about 20 feet now.

And then, it was time for Party #1 at Chateau Elan and compliments of Summit Consulting. A good time was had by all or so I've been told. Beautiful presentation on the chicken, steak, 2 spears of asparagus, 1 baby carrot, mashed potatoes, and a medallion of some kind of squash,

After dinner and an evening of Casino, it was time for the entertainment. We were provided a fantastic band (name unknown at this point - I'll ask). But, we almost lost an underwriter who really stole the show from the paid performer. Ciecily Thornton did a great job of singing Old Time Rock and Roll. The paid performer had to rip the mike out of her hand and we all think it was because she knew when she had met her match and might lose her job.

And then, it was home for the night and an early morning on Sunday to make another decision of where to ride. The weather was much better and I finally decided to do the CCG loop which I have planned for over a year. Note to self - next time do it in reverse since the climbing at the end of this ride was not what I really wanted to do.

Started in Clermont and made it to Cornelia just in time to get caught in the after church traffic at the intersection of old US 441 and GA Hwy 365. Everyone in those powered vehicles were considerate and I made it to downtown to visit the Big Red Apple and take the obligatory picture.

From downtown Cornelia, I took the Old Gainesville Highway (I guess you call it that). We call it the Old Cornelia Highway from the Gainesville side. After climbing a long hill out of the Oconee River valley, I arrived in Rabbittown which is best known for the Rabbittown Cafe and the big rabbit statue. Rode on in to downtown Gainesville and returned to Clermont via Clarks Bridge Road. Nothing of signiicance on that trip except two bicyclists blew past me on the climb up after crossing Lake Lanier. I am sure they were fresh and had not been 54 miles at that point. Otherwise, they would have never caught me - RIGHT!