This past Saturday, I woke up at 5 a.m. Under normal circumstances, waking up at 5 a.m. is not pleasurable. But as I rolled out of bed with the prospect of a challenging bike ride to the Hamptons, I couldn’t help but smile. I was almost instantly awake and ready to go. I donned my riding outfit (form-fitting to ensure I will be completely embarrassed), put on my shoes and helmet, clipped in, and started pedaling to the 59th Street Bridge.
I met my two riding companions at the bridge and we began our trek at 6:03 a.m. The general route is: ride across the bridge, then follow Queens Blvd./RT 25 to Hillside Ave. Take a left on Hillside Ave. and then a right on Merrick Blvd. Merrick Blvd. turns into Merrick Rd. and runs parallel to Sunrise Highway. Somewhere on Merrick Rd., you will exit Queens and enter Suffolk County. If you are riding your bike, you’ll know immediately when this happens as the road goes from pothole-ridden asphalt to mirror-like smoothness.Merrick Rd. turns into Montauk Highway/27A. You will spend most of your day on Montauk Highway/27A and it will change names on a whim.
When you reach Southampton, you will note the 100-mile marker. This is also when you start riding through the villages passing motorists in Porsche, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Maserati, BMW and Mercedes convertibles. And,yes, I did say you will be passing them as they will be sitting in traffic while you pedal through.
The final stretch from East Hampton to Montauk features the most unexciting part of the trip. The road is dead flat and there is virtually nothing to see for about 10 miles. But, finally getting to Montauk and seeing the ocean spread out in front of you makes it all worthwhile. Or, maybe it was the fact that we knew we had steak and wine waiting for us.
Our actual stats given riding time were 126 total miles over about 8½ hours for an average riding pace of just under 15 mph. If you watched any of the Tour de France this past weekend, you’ll note that those guys rode in the Alps for 120 miles and completed their race in about 4 hours and 15 minutes for an average pace of just less than 30 mph – showoffs!
By To27 Contributor Damian Hartner
