Club century ride completed in spite of tough weather conditions. Strong, persistent NW winds buffeted the group up to Belvidere, with stops in Sycamore and Kingston. Cloudy for the first half and then the skies cleared to present gorgeous, bright Fall day. Had a late start as I had a valve problem with rear tube and had to change, though my fingers had trouble handling this due to the cold. Started out with 12 (Wally, Rob, Tim, Chris, Angie, Beth, Troy S, Brian, Erin, Carrie and Julia. Bruce decided at start not to join (cannot blame him at all!). Carrie and Julia turned around at mile 5 as the temps and winds were too much. When we made if to Sycamore, the temps warmed enough that we decided to push on. Wally, Rob, Tim and Chris offered monster pulls as we were basically a single paceline for 45 miles. Stopped in Kingston for a quick break and then visited Subway in Belvidere after snaking through several neighborhoods. Had two stops on return in Genoa and Sycamore (different venue). Best ride sections were Pearl Street up to Belvidere and Huber, Cohoon, Reeds Crossing, N State Road, Whipple and Swanson (into the wind) on return. Stop in Genoa allowed Chris to get his ice cream (essential), where Tim decided to leave early as he had an engagement back home.
Encountered two gravel sections that need to be avoided in future routes (Spring Center Road & Brainard). Also recommend avoiding IL64 from Sabin St. to Airport as the shoulder was terrible. Group stayed together through most of the ride until Pleasant Street when the urge from most was to hammer it home. Brian and I finished last, but we finished. Averaged 15.9 mph, which was great for me for the distance and conditions.