Day 38 - Monday, June 18th - Marysville to Wooster, OH

Distance: 98.3 miles

Elevation Gain: 4470 ft. or 45.5 ft./mile

Net elevation change: -87 ft.

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With nearly 100 miles and nearly 4500 feet of elevation this is the toughest day in this stage of the tour. It actually turned out to be two very different rides in one. The first 75 miles was very similar to yesterday with about 2700 feet of the climbing across rolling terrain, roughly 36 feet per mile. Only one section from mile 33 to 41 that qualified as a climb, but it was pretty gradual. The last 24 miles as we got near Wooster had about 1400 feet of climbing concentrated in five short but steep buggers that ranged from 1 mile to 2.5 miles in length spread over 16 miles. Roughly 87 feet of climbing per mile. We were fortunate to have a tailwind which really helped in the first part of the ride across mostly country roads that were relatively quiet. The tailwind (actually any wind) really helped at the top of a couple of those five climbs when I had to just stop and rest a bit.

We continued on a northeast track using state and county roads to make the roughly 31 right and left hand turns to get to Wooster. Today was not a day for woolgathering. We started out going east on US-36 but two miles down the road we turned north to start a series of maneuvers that ended with us crossing the Scioto River at the 12-mile mark.

At mile 15 we reach the western boundary of Delaware, the county seat of Delaware County and a city of about 35,000 that also happens to be located in the center of Ohio. Founded in 1807 with the first recorded settler being Joseph Barber. After the war of 1812 settlers started to arrive in greater numbers and those early settlers included the parents of Rutherford B Hayes, the 19th president of the United States. A sulfur spring was located northwest of his cabin and by 1833 a hotel was built near the spring as a health spa which ultimately was a failure. By 1841 citizens began raising funds to purchase the hotel with the intent of giving the property to the Methodist Church for the formation of a Methodist college which became Ohio Wesleyan University in 1844.

At mile 20 we got off of US-36 and headed east on County Road 84. At mile 25 we reached Kilbourne, a village of about 140 people founded in 1837 by the surveyor/politician James Kilbourne.

Here are some pictures from this portion of the ride. Apologies but I don't have specific locations.  Just some shots of what I thought looked interesting or different in some way.

At about mile 28 we reached this.

Another road closure on OH-24 north because of a bridge being damaged. Once again we were fortunate that we could walk through as the damaged portion had not yet been removed. Only one worker on site and he was a bit bemused as we explained we were heading to Boston. His reply was something along the lines that we picked an awful warm day to do that, but he let us pass.

At mile 33 we turned east on OH-229 and at mile 36 reached Marengo, a village of about 340 people founded in 1873 on the site of a permanent settlement that dated back to the 1840's. It was also the site of our first SAG stop.

After passing the 47 mile mark we entered Chesterville, a village of 225 that was laid out in 1829 and named after Chester Township, which was in turn named after Chester County, PA, the original home of several of the original settlers to the area. In the center of town we turn southeast on OH-95 before we reach the 48 mile mark.

Here are some pictures from this portion of the ride.

I have no idea

OH-95 took us into Fredericktown at mile 55, a village of 2500 founded in 1807 and named after Frederick, MD, the home of an early settler. Webb C Ball was born in Fredericktown in 1847 and later settled in Cleveland. He was the first jeweler to use time signals from the US Naval Observatory. In 1891 he was hired to be the chief time inspector for the railroad and was responsible for synchronizing the watches for railroad engineers over 125,000 miles of track in the US Canada and Mexico.

Yes it's a rabbit. No clue why.

At mile 60 we reached Ankenytown and then Butler at mile 66, a village of 930 people. Before Butler was settled and named, the Delaware Indians used it as a hunting grounds known as Helltown, chosen for its plentiful games and fertile farmlands. Butler was settled around 1818 when Joseph Craig settled in the area acting on a land grant given to him by President James Monroe. Originally named Independence, the name was changed to Butler in 1870 after Mexican war hero, General William Butler.

Getting hillier

At mile 74 we have our second SAG stop. Right after this we continued east on OH-95 and at mile 75 started the five climbs that I mentioned earlier. Each climb was followed by a descent that admittedly was fun, but the spacing and length of the climbs was such that there wasn't much time for recovery before the next climb started. I stopped at the top of the third climb at about mile 81 before starting the descent. Bruce and Cathy passed me and I caught up to them at the top of the fourth climb at mile 84 where they have picked an ideal spot in the shade of some large trees to rest. I didn't hesitate to join them. Once back on the road we came to Funk. It is so small I can't imagine why it even has a sign.

The last climb began at about mile 89 and was about 2-3 miles long. Longer than the others but not as steep.  After this we took a short water stop from the van and went the final 7 miles to the hotel in Wooster.

Sneak Peek At Tomorrow

94 Miles to Niles, OH with 3500 feet of climbing. On the surface it should be easier than today. Lots of turns as we spend the first 60 miles stair-stepping our way northeast. We then head due east  for 18 miles before turning due north for the final 16 miles, about half of which looks like it is on a bike path/trail.

The city of 19,000 was founded in 1806 by James Heaton who owned one of the first iron-ore processing plants in Ohio. Originally named Heaton’s Furnace the name was changed to Nilestown after Hezekiah Niles, the editor of the Niles Weekly Register, a national weekly news magazine based in Baltimore MD. The name was shortened to Niles in 1843. Niles is also the birthplace of William McKinley, the 25th President of the United States as well as Harry Mosley Stevens, the inventor of the hotdog.