Tom Bombadil

Took the day off and used a chunk of it to take a nice relaxing ride. Rode from New Glarus, WI to Albany, WI and then back on the Sugar River Trail. Total distance of 31 miles, a modest distance but the longest I've done in 2008. Just haven't gone out to do the 40 milers that I was doing last year.

I rode on my recumbent and from the outset decided it was going to be a relaxing ride, at a slow pace. Fastest speed that I maintained for any distance was between 12.5 to 13.0 mph. That eased down as the day went on, dropping to 11.5 then 11.0 then down to 10 over last 5 miles. Not because I was fatigued but because I was just enjoying the ride and taking in the sights.

Weather was beautiful - low 80's, low humidity, mostly sunny.

Mid-ride I stopped at the M&M Cafe in Monticello, home of the famous "I biked to the M&M for pie" button that Stapfam & I both have. Had another slice of their delicious Amish Creme pie.

The summer wildflowers were out in full bloom today. I tried to keep track of how many different flowers I saw, I think it was 17. All of them were yellow, purple, or white. Also saw a lot of butterflies, birds (including a red tailed hawk), dragonflies, and thousands of grasshoppers. Saw a lot of biting flies and mosquitoes in the damper, low-lying areas, but wasn't bitten. At times I was riding past thick patches of a half-dozen different types of flowers, my favorites were the tall yellow coneflowers and wild sunflowers.

Unlike other recent rides, where I saw no other riders on the trails, I had a streak going of having ridden 62 miles on Wisconsin's rail trails without having seen another rider, today there were a fair number of people. Probably saw around 25-30 other riders, but no walkers and no dogs. Most of them were 50+'ers. I saw 3 tandems, including a tandem tadpole trike. No road bikes though. Everyone was quite friendly, exchanging greetings as we passed.

Played around with the position of my seat. Recumbents can be difficult to find the right seat position. I switched my crankset out for one with 155mm cranks earlier this year and have been trying to find the perfect seat position every since. After riding 15 miles, I tried sliding it another 1/4" further from the crank and that seemed to work fine, until my right foot starting going numb about 3 miles later. Shook it off and the same thing happened after another 3 miles. So I moved it back to where it had been and was fine for the rest of the ride. Don't understand why my foot went numb, it felt comfortable enough and I was able to maintain a steady cadence.

George

I guess you could say, I was a little worn down with the heat and took a day off.
It sounds like you had a pretty nice day though and that's good.

DnvrFox

Nice ride and report

I have had several neat rides this week, including riding with a buddy on MOnday, and with a group of 8 65+'rs on Tuesday.

Today, I swam one hour, lifted weights a bit, then did a 16 mile ride - had a McD's sundae in the middle of the ride.

Glad you were able to "smell the roses!"

wife and I are off to Baltimore early tomorrow am for my conference presentation on Monday and Tuesday am. Back Tues evening.

That leaves me with only 98 miles this week - no Saturday ride! 3,100 yards of swimming, though.

OldCruiser

Sounds like you had a nice day for riding . A front came through here this morning and kicked up a nice breeze and felt a little cooler than it has been . I took off this afternoon on my Fugi MTB to do a little recovery ride after my longest ride yet yesterday . Just took my time and rode for about an hour . Felt pretty good not worrying about mileage and all. kirby

BikeWNC

It was a beautiful day for a ride but I had planned a rest day today. I couldn't resist though and headed up to the Blue Ridge Parkway for my usual late afternoon ride when I just want to get out on the bike. The ride starts at 4600' and I turn around at the summit at 6050'. There are a few downhills along the way so the total climb is about 1800' in the 18 mile round trip. It was about 60 degrees at the top and just a perfect day for a ride. Ride time about 1:15

dave_gt

Hey, Kirby...

You ridin' around Peachtree City this weekend?


dave

PAlt

Great ride reports! Had a day off today, and got back on the bike after last week's crash, along with cold / sore throat / cough as icing. Felt great, though struggled a bit. 50mi., in mid 80's, scattered clouds, and enough of a wind to be both challenging and refreshing. Being able to get back on the bike with no permanent damage would have made it a great ride for that reason alone.
Tomorrow promises similar weather.

BengeBoy 

Thanks for the reports...Since you asked, my ride(s) today:
10.3 miles to work
10.3 miles home

70 degrees, no rain, no wind, lots of other bikes out on the road...saw a beautiful vintage Colnago on my way in today.

Beverly

We did the usual Friday morning ride for lunch in a nearby town. It was actually cool enough for arm warmers this morning. That's hard to believe for the month of August.

It was a short 35 mile ride and the weather was absolutely perfect. We did have a slight headwind on the way out but the return ride we had tailwinds all the way. The corn and soy beans are at their peak, everything was green from recent rains and the smell of recently baled hay was a welcome change from some of the other farm smells we sometimes encounter.

Even the old farm dogs seemed to be enjoying the day. Not a one of them was out to bite us. All they wanted to do was bark and run along beside us

Mojo Slim

We also did the usual Friday ride. I think there were 11 of us. My legs felt a bit heavy starting out (I had done a 50 and a 65 miler the two days before), but after our Deli break, I felt better (Coca Cola does wonders). The ride back from the Deli is more downhill than up. We were riding in a group when Fred (his name, not his look) took off in a "breakaway". I wasn't about to let that happen. I shadowed him for the 5 or so miles of slight downhill, sprinters' hills and flats. It was fun. When we arrived at the usual regrouping spot, most of the others pulled in close behind. They had gotten caught up in the "go fast" attitude, too, and were all chattering about "fun" and "whew" and stuff like that. From there, we have a nice downhill, which was ridden free-for-all, followed by a very smooth flat that is great for drafting, which we did. Even the weaker riders enjoyed that. Only 35 miles, but mostly smiles. Here's a picture of one stretch.

Robert Foster

I had a great ride today. It was close to the same distance as Tom’s ride. I believe the ride was a success because things are starting to fall into place. It also helps that I am learning my riding area better. But what made the ride better than most was my confidence and my comfort. I joined our LBS club ride and it was on a route I had been on before. I broke down and got some Bibs, even though I wear them under my cargo shorts and a Tee shirt. So all in all I was ready for this ride. It lived up to my expectations.

Tom Bombadil

As I was on my recumbent and thus not in need of any additional padding, I wore my Levi denim cargo shorts. Very comfy.

gcottay

The weather was beautiful here too and I even made it out of the office early and got in the first half of a great ride.

Cell phones, alas, are tools of the devil.

OldCruiser

Don't know yet , My daughter is visiting tomorrow and if things work out I'll be riding my MTB on dirt roads in Jasper county Sunday. kirby

10 Wheels

61 miles, 6 riders, temp to 97*, had one flat.

Red Rider

Our weather is unusually cool; I rode to practice for a TT I'm doing on Sunday. I'm glad some of you posted pics and reported how much fun you had; I was too focused on my intervals to enjoy the views.

However, I did smell freshly-cut hay, recently-harvested tomatoes, newly-watered walnut orchards, horses in the sun, and a couple fields of late-blooming sunflowers. My eyes were focused on the road buy my nose caught the details. That added an element I wasn't expecting.

solveg

I only got to the apple store today.

tsl

The rear tire split open (but did not burst) last night on the Portland. My LBS is the promoter of the Rochester Omnium, and is closed for the three-day race weekend, so no new tire until Monday. Rather than screw around with spare tires from the basement, I rode Yellow Bike to work today.

Yellow Bike, as you may recall, is a fast and frisky ride that always manages to pull a few extra watts out of its tired old motor, just because it's so fun.

32.8 in a 30 this morning, on the flat and level, modest tailwind less than 10, and I wasn't even drafting anything.

Of course, I could only sustain the extralegal speeds for a couple of tenths, but even after that I stayed in the upper 20s.

Maybe I still have some of those extra red blood cells floating around from the week of riding the Rockies...

tsl

Dang. Just 6,000 feet short of a metric!

10 Wheels

The 97* Temp in The Hot Sun should count for something.

One Flat: The valve nut jambed inside the rim hole.
Stats: Rim 30,000 miles, Tire 8,000 miles w 3 boots, Tube 5 patches, Roy 72 y/o.

My bike thermometer got up to 100* during this flat stop.

cranky old dude

I actually haven't ridden in about three weeks. No problems, I just have
not been in the mood. I will be again soon as my moods are strong but
somewhat cyclical. I think I burnt myself out riding too many miles in
July while trying to be a Father, Husband and employee all at the same
time. I have however thoroughly enjoyed reading all of your ride reports
and am becoming anxious to return to the saddle. Threads like this one
tend to rekindle the spark and motivate these tired, lazy old bones back
into action.

Great thread Tom, thanks for the spark.

cyclinfool

No riding on Friday - early morning at work. Went to my daughters play (kids drama camp - as if they need training). Had a good day. Last night I went up to the Adirondaks. Today - up in the daks maybe a small ride to stretch out the legs but probably a little hiking. Tomorrow is an 85 mile ride in the mountains so I am saving myself.

John E

I missed out on my club ride this morning, because I discovered that one of the car tires was leaking. (It could have been much worse -- we are leaving tomorrow (Sunday) for a 400 mile each-way trip, and I could have discovered the problem then, instead.) I drove to the tire store with my bike in the car, rode back home, then returned on the bike two hours later to retrieve the car. This was a strictly utilitarian ride, but enjoyable, and it is always somehow very satisfying to take off on the bike after leaving the car for any sort of repairs.

roccobike

An absolutely great ride today with two personal bests. I rode with our club. I've been trying to move up from a "C" level rider (14-16 MPH to a "B" rider (18 MPH). Twice I've been able to ride with the B group for a third or half of the ride, then fall back to the C group. Today I completed a 64 mile ride, for the first time with the B group, average speed 17.7MPH. That's the longest ride I've ever completed and for rides over 30 miles, that's by far the fastest time. Also, my first metric century. I wonder if anyone noticed the huge grin on my face as we pulled into the parking lot.

OldCruiser

My daughter (25) came to visit my wife and I , today . She's about to start her second year of law school at UGA . She went for a short ride with me on a Trek 800 ,I'd picked up from a yardsale . She's never really ridden a bike a lot and is a little afraid , especially of any speed . So we took our time and rode about 6 miles just before dark. She really likes the bike and is getting better at her riding . This was one of the most enjoyable rides I've had. kirby