Bored in the saddle...

[Popoki_Nui]

Anyone else get bored in the saddle, and what can I do to get past it? I love riding, I love my bikes. I wear an iPod (yep, shame on me, but I'd get nowhere without it), I alternate between it, local radio, and to keep things interesting I even use a miniature shortwave receiver for something different. I talk to myself. I talk to the passing critters. I talk to my bikes. I've talked to trees. They almost never talk back.

Still, after 40-50km, I just get to the point where keeping the cranks turning becomes....well....just plain boring, and the ride becomes less enjoyable with each kilometer.
Anyone have some spiffy ideas how to keep boredom from setting in on longer rides? Much appreciated.

~Sherry.

[Grog]

I know that's a hard one, but... : riding partner.

Otherwise, going "somewhere" is also nice. Taking a break and having ice cream/coffee can be nice. Doing some sort of a workout like intervals or progressively increasing speed, 10 minutes at a time, or cadence...

Just my 2 cents...

[Starfish]

I find it helps to go exploring...pick an area, and then take all the little roads I haven't done before.

Sometimes I go house-scouting...I'll keep an eye open for all the houses for sale and check them out.

Today, the thing that kept it from being boring was that I was climbing at only about 4.5 mph, and I had lots of time to look into the beautiful forests and at the mountain vistas while I rode! LOL

[jobob]

Geeze, PN, you have such lovely riding up there!

Perhaps what Grog suggested, heading out to a coffee shop or ice cream shop? I often plan my rides around available food options It breaks up the ride and is a destination. Plus, calories don't count when you're biking, we all know that ...!

When I was up in Victoria a few summers ago, I remember a really nice coffee shop a bit north of Victoria, just off the Lockside Trail. They had scones to die for.

Have you ever ridden out to Butchart Gardens? Or ridden up to Sydney & hopped on a ferry for a day trip to the San Juan Islands?

Dang, you're making me want to go back there!

[Starfish]

Dang, you're making me want to go back there!

Hey, if you get up this way, let us know!

PN, I was just reading about Mt. Constitution on Orcas Island...maybe that's your next challenge!

[jobob]

Been there, done that.

It's a pretty demanding climb, but the view from the top is gorgeous !

My husband had a spectacular blowout as we were descending Mt. Constitution - it was moderately steep with a lot of switchbacks and we had to brake a lot, so he probably overheated his rims.

I was up ahead of him and at at first I thought it was a gunshot

Happily, he had just gotten around one of the tight switchbacks and was on a straight stretch of road when the blowout happened. Even more happily, it was the rear tire, not the front.

But, come to find out, he was carrying narrow 700c tubes (as was I), but he was riding his Atlantis with wide, 26" tires. idjit. So he pumped up his tire best he could and we hightailed it to the bike shop in town just before it closed so he could buy some tubes that were actually the correct size for his tires.

[Grog]

Sometimes I go house-scouting...I'll keep an eye open for all the houses for sale and check them out.

Haha I like that one.

Ride on a Sunday, visit as many "open-house" as possible. See the face of the real estate agent when you walk on the freshly polished floor with your cleats... oops!

[Starfish]

Haha I like that one.

Ride on a Sunday, visit as many "open-house" as possible. See the face of the real estate agent when you walk on the freshly polished floor with your cleats... oops!

Oh...no, no. I just ride by, grab the flier out of the little box on the for sale sign, that kind of thing. It is kind of an excuse to go down a side road if I see a for sale sign yonder!

[Popoki_Nui]

Interesting suggestions, thanks. Especially touring some of the smaller islands. Can't do Orcas or the other San Juans (getting medical insurance for the U.S. is a must and an expensive hassle, and I dont have a passport anyway), but I haven't ridden the Gulf Islands since the 70's. After 40 years of riding the roads and trails on this area, there isn't much left to discover. I'll definitely have to consider the Gulf Islands.
After a couple of post-ride beers, it occured to me that one could combine riding with geocaching. Many caches are located just off/beside the trails, so it might be an interesting combination. Cyclocaching. Hmmm. I won't be racking up as many km's as I'd like, but it would add a little something to riding.

~S.