June 20 ride reports...

[DrBee]

I did a quick ride before work today. 18 miles. Nice weather, except for the 90% humidity - really. No dogs this time and the cars gave me plenty of space.

Happy riding!

[Geonz]

I was once again unsuccessful in getting out early enough to do extra miles, but since I'm still unpacking and have to go to work half an hour earlier (but get Fridays except this one off), I'm not too disappointed.
Yesterday I thought I'd have to settle for a few-more-than-the-commute since the brakes were maladjusted on my Trek, but I left work early on the grounds that storms were coming (and my last student left), had time to at least sort of fix it, and ride out and do the club ride - so 58 miles for the day :) 720 for the month... shooting for a 1000 ...

[Running Mommy]

Two words for today... HILL REPEATS!!
Wheww doggy it was one heck of a ride today! While I hate hill repeats when I'm doing them, I love that achy sore "I really worked today" feeling in my legs when I'm finished. I took on tuthill- and I WON!! :D
Averaged 16 mph. Not bad for hill repeats!!
BTW- you know it's gonna be a warm day when you start out at 6:30 am and it's already 84 degrees!! :eek:

[AuntieK]

Did a chilly 25 miles up the canyon this morning. Had a mechanical when my chain decided to bind up mid-shift. So I didn't get to climb as far as I had planned, but it was still a beautiful ride.

[hibiscus09]

I waited until 11:30 to do my bike ride and rode 10 miles in 85 degree heat and it's muggy out there. I walked out the front door and my sunglasses immediately fogged over so much that I had to take them off so I could see. I had to wipe them off twice during the ride. Hot, hot, hot. However, mission accomplished as far as today's scheduled ride is concerned. :D

[Fredwina]

I did a little shorter ride than normal, which turned to be a good thing, since when I got dressed for work, I had a bit of trouble finding the shoes I wanted to wear and had to wait for a train.

[tulip]

I hemmed and hawed about riding to work today because it was threatening rain. I just got on the bike and I'm so glad I did. The commute was a delightfully cool 14 miles. Going home in a few hours will be hot!

[limewave]

I managed to pull myself out of bed this morning for a 17 mile ride before work. It was beautiful and sunny and not too hot. I couldn't believe people were already at the beach at 6:30 AM. Averaged only 15 mph.

[Crankin]

I went out at 5 AM with my husband. even though it was only about 69 out, it was so humid, I was dripping by 2 miles in. Saw lots of turkeys and a deer. Only 15.2 miles, but my average was 16.1, my highest ever, including going up my street and driveway (10-15%).

[makbike]

I had hoped to get in a quick 15 - 20 miles before the sunset but only managed 4 due to the young men who tossed the live firecrackers at me. I spent my ride time talking to the police. There is always tomorrow!

[btchance]

Well, I went on my first ride in my new town since moving and just took some time to explore. Was out there for about an hour, but I have no idea how far I went.

[Bad JuJu]

Had a great ride going this morning--I actually got out before it got too hot, and it was my first run (since a couple of injuries last year) at the high section of a local bridge. I reached the top feeling pretty good and without reaching too far into the granny gears.

Then, on the way down, I got a flat. Had to fix that sucker with bridge traffic pounding by me.:eek: But obviously I survived, and the rest of the ride was excellent!

[emily_in_nc]

I rode ~19 miles after work on my mountain bike with two friends. Mostly packed gravel fire roads, some paved greenways, and a couple miles of pretty bumpy, narrow double-track. Great fun! It was hot (90) and humid, but we were in the shade most of the time so not too bad. I did make a mistake in only taking one water bottle (of Accelerade) as I didn't realize we'd be going so far (~2 hours of riding), but I'd had a full ice water before the ride so made it okay.

It was FUNNNNNN!!! :p

Emily

P.S. Robyn, congratulations on your highest average speed ever!

[caligurl]

i didn't want to ride tonight..... it was windy..... and i just didn't feel like riding.... but i rode anyways... set out for one of my 15 mile out and backs that puts the wind at my back on the way home.... at 6.5 miles my hands were hurting.... so that on top of the wind and heat.... i just went home!

as soon as i got home... hubby switched the bar tape (and i poured a glass of wine) so we'll see how tomorrow goes!

[KnottedYet]

Again no ride. Still sick. It's making me crazy. Two days of beautiful weather and I've been home SLEEPING. No commuting, no evening rides. I'm bound and determined to go to work tomorrow (drive) and then go for a little ride in the evening. Must. Ride. Bike.

[climbingbiker]

I just returned from a 15 mile ride. It's a beautiful evening, but a bit windy in my neighborhood - rode in a headwind for the most exposed part of the ride. I did add a new hill today, so I'm feeling fiesty :D

[Kitsune06]

1st ride with my partner today! We switched bikes so she didn't have to deal with her finicky shifters/derailleurs, and could enjoy my cushy, plush seat with her newbie butt. Took Rosedale to River Rd, stopped and had lunch at the little bar on River and Farmington, then back down Farmington to home. It was great! =) Probably only 4-5 miles, but who cares? That and I had to go to work today...

[EvilTwin]

Rode this afternoon for 35 miles. It's been close to 2 weeks off the bike because of work and vacation. Snorkeling in Hawaii doesn't do much for the bike legs, but it sure was fun! The weather was beautiful today.. about 70, minimal wind. Manage to fall at an intersection when I unclipped my left foot and then lost my balance and fell right. BF saw the whole "graceful" maneuver and laughed his lips off at me... The only thing hurt was my pride. Oh well, laughter is good for the soul!
Barb

[uk elephant]

Did my first group ride yesterday. An informal group ride organized by the local council since this week is National Bike Week. Only 5 people turned up, so it was a small group. Nice people, but I was the only one wearing a helmet. What's up with that?! We did a short (9mile) ride out to a nearby village pub, had a break and then rode back. Felt like I was flying out there. Was able to keep up 16-17mph on the flats. Wheeeee! Turns out it was just the wind. I was struggling to keep up 12mph on the same stretch coming back. And the wind just kept getting stronger. On the last downhill bit coming home, I had to keep pedalling hard just to move forward. As soon as I tried coasting, I just stopped. But a nice ride anyway, and the bike adjustments seem to be getting closer to right now that I've moved the handlebars closer and higher and the seat further back. Still not a very comfy seat, but better.

[Lise]

Felt like I was flying out there. Was able to keep up 16-17mph on the flats. Wheeeee! Turns out it was just the wind. I was struggling to keep up 12mph on the same stretch coming back. And the wind just kept getting stronger.
Story of my life, UK! I'll think, "I am so powerful! This bike is amazing!" Then I'll make the turn around and lose 7 mph immediately. Oh. Rats. It was the wind! :p Glad to hear the bike's feeling good. L.

[SandyLS]

20 miles after work last night. A white tail deer jumped out in front of me so close that I could hear the sound of her hoofs on the pavement. Luckily she kept going and so did I. Too close for comfort. I will be watching even closer for the critters now. A car-deer accident can be bad enough. I don't even want to think about how bad a bike-deer one would be!

[mimitabby]

Rode my new Bianchi last night; the new neck came in. It's as adjusted as it's going to get; the rest is up to me. Everyone said "you look comfortable there"

It handles wonderfully, it is a fast bike. What i don't like is all the pressure on the fleshy part of my thumb (where it connects to the palm)
I only rode 7 miles and it was not comfortable. After 100 years of riding with handlebars i could wrap my hands around, leaning on my palms is not really
comfortable or comforting.

[Triskeliongirl]

Mimi- if you are describing the problem correctly, you don't feel too stretched out, just like there is too much pressure between your thumb and forefinger, right? If that is the case, perhaps you have too much weight being supported there. To shift the balance slightly, you could first try to tip your handlebars up so the brake hoods are continuous with the top of the bar rather than below. Try that and see how it feels. You could also try raising the bars higher if you still have adjustment there. If turning the bars up helps, but then the drops become unrideable, you could either try a different bar (I love the nitto noodle bar which is flat on top even when the drops are parallel to the ground not upturned) or you could try raising the brake levers up on the bars you have, although this requires you to unwrap the bar tape. Another nice thing with the nitto noodle, is that since it is a long reach bar you get an extra position between the flat part and hoods that you can grab, kind of like on a mountain bar. Good luck and let us know how it works itself out! -e

[mimitabby]

Mimi- if you are describing the problem correctly, you don't feel too stretched out, just like there is too much pressure between your thumb and forefinger, right?

perhaps more towards the ball of your hand that the thumb is attached to.
I have the bars up as high as they can go, and i rotated them up too so I can touch the brakes.
I can hardly use the drops because they are so low, i still don't get what they are for :confused:
I have small gal salsabars already. All the "experts" are saying i look great
etc, but this still remains.
I am fantasizing about handlebars that look nothing like rams horns.
This weekend i hope to go riding some and see if it all settles in.
thanks so much for your interest and suggestions.

[Triskeliongirl]

Mimi- it sounds like maybe you still have your bars too low. You say you rotated them up to reach the brake levers, and that the drops are too low to use. This likely means the bars must come up higher. If you measure the height of the saddle to floor, and top of handlebars flat section to floor, what is the difference? Many women prefer these heights to be the same. You said you just got a new stem, but perhaps they didn't order you one that angles up high enough. Look at my bike pix on bike journal, to see if the stems I have might help you. If so, email me privately and I can tell you where I got them.-e