Machka 

Happy Chinese New Year!! As it happens, it is a long weekend in the Hobart area too ... Hobart Regatta Day. I think certain parts of Canada might be having a long weekend now too ... or maybe it is next weekend. So, with all the celebrations and long weekends etc. ... tell us about the cycling you're doing!!

Post your stories ... cycling inside or out, long distance or short, snowy or sunny and warm ...
Post your other cross-training activities too.


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Friday - we walked approx. 2 km to get dinner.


Saturday - so far we have cycled 37.6 km, mainly along the foreshore, enjoying the views over the ocean and the sunshine and warmth.

Machka 

We finished up with 45.02 km, after cycling to and from dinner and a rather impressive sound and lasar show depicting the story of the shipwreck of the Loch Ard.

jbchybridrider 

Did my rather long drive for my favorite ride

Got all geared up locked the car "oh" cleats don't fit the pedals, rode a different bike last weekend "doh"

Drove home

Bassmanbob

65 miles Saturday. The first 41 were with the local cycling association and the last 24 were solo. We headed north for the first half of the 40, and there was a 10mph headwind. Ive been able to keep up with the B group the last two weeks. But today, the wind exposed that I've been riding to my limit all along. One other person also couldn't keep up, so a few of us dropped back from the pack to form a C level ride for a large part of the ride. The club leaders have been patient with me and a couple of other riders. I offered to drop back to a C ride, but there aren't enough to form a C group. Instead, they've been encouraging me to keep going each week. They've really been great. They also said that they see me trying, so they are happy to keep working with me. I feel very fortunate.

This afternoon, the bikes got degreased and bathed. They will further dry inside the house tonight (in air conditioning), and be lubed tomorrow.

No no plans to ride tomorrow.

FeltF2Tarmac

Only did 14 miles, shakedown ride on a new wheel set. I will get in another ride Sunday before the game. Unfortunately I will be limited on my riding until I once again deal with neck issues and another potential surgery. Good news is today's ride was great even though short. New wheels are exceptional BTW

Machka 

Sunday -- We cycled 84.7 km today!

We decided to try the rail trail to the next town and back. Our information suggested that the route is 37.7 km and that the trail is made of packed limestone, with short sealed sections, and a bit of packed quartz.

What they didn't mention were the sections of rather rough gravel!

We cycled over to the foreshore trail, which is all sealed and really quite nice ... and from there all the way to the start of the official trail. The start of the official trail was quite nice, and that bit went on for about 6 km. The next 4 or 5 km wasn't particularly nice and our speed slowed. So when we got to a paved road again, we decided to ride the road the rest of the way to the town we were aiming for.

By the time we sat down for lunch we had done over 38 km.

On the way back, however, we decided to take the rail trail from that town back ... give it a second try. Last time we rode that bit of the trail it really wasn't good at all, but I had read that they were making some improvements, and they had! For one thing,it was much wider and not overgrown anymore, and we think the surface was better too. This time we made it within 10 km of our destination before we got fed up with the light gravel and returned to the road.

The trail has lots of potential, and some good points, and they are well on their way, but could probably use a bit more work.

Nevertheless, it was a good ride and we tackled hills we once thought were huge with no difficulty at all ... what a difference a couple years in Tasmania makes!

After freshening up a bit, we cycled into town for dinner ... and back.

Jakedatc

And now for something completely different Sat. I was invited to hike with my dad and some friends of his in NH. 7.6mi round trip up 2 of NH's 4000 footers. I had done these before but from the other direction so i only knew the trail in between the peaks. It was nice packed snow down low but the steep parts up top were ice of varying textures. some of the ice was more like frozen snow that we could grip well with our microspikes (slip on shoe grippers) other ice was from water flow and was too hard/slick to grip so we had to hold onto trees on the way up and down. most of the group were regular cyclists too so we made decent time considering the conditions.

View from one of the overlooks.. that is the Hairpin of the Kanc if anyone knows NH

My dad (front) and one of the guys showing what much of the trail was like

Nachoman

A small group of us cycled up the coast to Del Mar, watched some big waves for a few minutes, and then we cycled back to Point Loma.
At the end of the ride we stopped for mochas.

slimyfrog

Was planning on a 72 mile ride, but after 40 or so my friend's leg started hurting too much from a quad injury. His pain, plus my not sleeping well for the last week prompted us to avoid the extra, final 10 miles, which would have been climbing miles...
https://www.strava.com/activities/487479583

Still great ride, great time, great weather Leg injuries and sleep issues will be gone soon enough.

bobbyl1966

I am so bussy i used to ride 20 miles daily last time i do that is was 3 years ago. No have time to ride as i want too. maybe is sounds funny but i ride one Bmx bike 20" wheels for 2 minutes in parking lot yesterday. But in real i want start again as i used too i had make with old steel bike too tall for me 40 miles in bike trail with elevation from 700 feet to 900 feet. Now i think is time to stop i be so bubby start ride again and my goal is i want try make 100 miles. I have TT bike i not have ride yet just five minutes I have 3 road bikes one is ready to ride only and i need work in the other bikes. And one old steel hardtail mountain bike i have put in that bike crank 52/42 from road bike. But i not have ride yet in trail see how is if i can keep up with road bikes.

kbarch

Yesterday I just did a little bit on the rollers, but today was a group ride: 56 miles, nearly 2600 feet. Average speed, just over 16 mph. Nothing to sneeze at maybe, but nothing extraordinary, either. But it was particularly encouraging, because, aside from races, I'm not sure I've ever broken 16 mph average, and certainly not over that length of time. But it explains why I feel sore already, more sore than I think I've ever felt immediately after a ride; although I've done much longer, faster, and climby-er, I guess I've never done a ride that combined so much.

Most of the morning felt quite average, but the last dozen miles or so felt like a rocket blast; we had a really nice paceline going. However, the funny thing is; looking back at performance on various segments, it was actually the first half of the ride that was significantly faster than average, while the last few miles were just average. On the larger climb toward the end of the first half, I thought I was taking it easy, but I got a PR. Then on the sprints on the way back, I felt like I was racing, but I got nowhere near my best times.

All in all it was a great ride - although it was below freezing when I left the house, it was upper 30s when we got half way, and over 40 when we finished. Mostly sunny, no wind to speak of... And it was great seeing so much of "the gang!" It was a huge, enthusiastic group. I know that kind of ride isn't for everyone, but it's great when you feel "in the zone," like the ride's hard enough to keep you on your toes, but not so hard you question yourself. Some do better on climbs, some do better on flats, but there's just enough challenge to go around as the specialists do their thing; a couple of guys dropped, and a handful got caught at a light and missed the paceline at the end, but almost everyone finished within a couple of minutes of the guys up front. I needed a good workout, too, so it was a really great ride.

woodcraft

Did the ride planned for last weekend, until I caught a cold.

104 miles, 5,800' bakery run.

Three of us, but practically no drafting, so I was pretty happy with my over all speed.

Great weather, but passed probably forty road-kill skunks.

Six weeks 'til the Solvang DC.

FeltF2Tarmac

Another short ride (16 miles) on the new wheels with a drop in tire pressure. May have found the sweet spot. I really like the wider rim for an all around better ride. Wheels can make a bike feel so much different and now that the testing is over bring on Summer. Had an opportunity to ride a little with my daughter first and we have decided at 14 were going to buy her first road bike. We also learned she grew out of her current bike. I love bike shopping.

JonnyV

My first ride outside this year was a quick 13 mile ride before. Felt great!

Machka 

Monday -- 51 km (Rowan rode about 53 km, just slightly more than me because of shopping run he did first thing in the morning).

Today's ride went out to "Cheese World" which was supposed to be a significant tourist attraction ... but was a little bit of a letdown in that regard. Almost tempted to post some helpful hints on Trip Advisor.

Rowan has been having a bit of trouble with his rear tire, and flatted again just as we got there. So we spent a bit of time there while he patched the tube ... I wandered through the gift shop and cheese shop.

We were going to go further but it was getting late and so we returned to town and rode along the foreshore again plus some meandering up and down streets. Then we went to dinner ... we found another Mexican place. That's Mexican food two nights in a row!

And after we got back, we walked up to the shops and back ... 2 km.

tmh657

I am in Houston working for 6 weeks so I brought my Serotta Atlanta with me. I put on the biggest tires possible since the surfaces here a just a bit older and rougher than Irvine, CA. Sunday morning started with cool temps but warmed up nicely. The bike path along Braeswood Bayou is where I go for a solo ride on the weekend. 31 miles.

bikecrate

Saturday was a little gloomy and cool in the morning. I put on all the warm cycling clothes I have and went for a 36 mile ride around S. Tampa. Sunday was even colder. I'd say it was about 50 degrees when I started. This is about the lowest I'll go out. Once again I put on the warmest stuff I got. Sadly, it wasn't the temps but the wind that killed me. I think it was around 15 - 20 mph with some higher gust. I rode 18 miles into a headwind, by the time I turned around my legs were cooked. Even the return trip there wasn't much wind relief. It was a miserable 36 miles to Upper Tampa Bay Trail and back. Funny I didn't see but a handful of fellow cyclist. A hot spa bath and warm soup made it better when I got home.

cleansheet

Upstate NY winter like never before. Biking as much this winter as I do in the typical summer.

Friday - 19 mile night time (undeveloped) rail trail ride at 28 degrees
Saturday 34 miles with temps around 40
Sunday 33 miles at a balmy 45.

Next weekend South Florida awaits for six days of riding A1A.

rfmarotti

38 miles around lake natoma. Pace a little over 16mph. Gorgeous day.

kbarch

... when it will be below zero in upstate NY. Seriously, predicted low down here in Bergen County NJ on Saturday is Zero, low of 10 on Sunday. It was beautiful yesterday, though.

kbarch

Mexican food in Tasmania... Hard to imagine. Being from Texas, I grew up on it, but being in the NYC area so long, I miss authentic Tex-Mex desperately! I'd have gone for a big cheese plate instead.

SHBR

Not knowing a soul, and having no idea what to expect (previous blog posts indicated 30km/hr+ pace) I fully expected getting dropped in short order.

Somewhere between 20-30 riders showed up.

Vastly different styles of bikes, riders, and abilities. I think my late 1990's bike was the oldest, and I was also one of the more senior riders, most being under the age of 30, some of them teenagers.

As we started off, there was no clear idea of what the route would be, or who the leader was. Every major intersection was a guess of, left, right, straight, stop or go? Traffic signals and oncoming vehicles were an afterthought, lots of random signalling of hazards. My personal favourite was the turn signals after passing through intersections, not before.

The youngest riders went to the front and treated the ride as a race, bringing the pace up to 50km/hr at times. On the way out we had a tailwind, so it wasn't too hard to keep up.

After maybe 90 minutes or so we arrive at the destination, newly built elevated highways that were closed to traffic. We were only able to ride a couple km or so before encountering a roadblock with security guards, that wouldn't let us pass through.

This is about as close as we got:

The group stayed together for around 30 minutes or so, mostly chatting, taking random pictures etc.

Riders started to splinter off, some were bored, some had no water, some were hungry, and then there was a homeless puppy that may have been adopted. I followed one of the older riders, stopped at a fuel station to refill on water, and use the toilet. We soon caught up with another smaller group of riders that kept going after we stopped to get water. They had no idea how to get back. I told them there are multiple routes that we could take, it depends on what they prefer. They didn't seem to care, just didn't want to get lost. Ended up leading the smaller group most of the way back, into a nasty headwind at my normal pace of 25-30km/hr.

I was most impressed with two of the female riders in this smaller group, (7 of us) they took pulls at 30km/hr into that headwind, something I can only dream about while riding with my wife.

At the end there were just four of us, apparently we all lived within a 1km radius of the cafe we agreed to stop at.

I only clocked in 69km total, not sure who thought it would be 90km?

Machka 

Tuesday -- 13.75 km ... out to a LBS to check out their stock. The only thing that interested me was a Met helmet (Xilo) in blue and white. I am in the market for a helmet, and usually go with Bell but they aren't very common here, so I'm checking out other options.

Then we rode to the beach and spent a bit of time there, before going for fish and chips and then returning to our caravan park to pack up the bicycles for the trip home.

bikecrate

Went out Monday night for some more wind pain. Nice temps but the wind speed was still 15 - 20 mph. I decided I had to go out because the rest of the week looked worse. It turned out to be a pretty good 32 mile ride around Davis Is.

cleansheet

9 is the high and -8 the low here for this Sunday. Low of 61 in Boca Raton. No need for tights, hats, gloves, foot warmers.