July 4th Saturday RIDES

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

DH and I had a really nice 14 mile ride this morning- the first chance I'd had since last weekend to ride at all, mostly due to relentless rain in our area.

It was very welcome, since yesterday I spent 4 hours gardening and stooping to plant Fall crop seeds, and I woke up very sore all over, especially my hamstrings and lower back muscles. The leisurely bike ride was just what the doctor ordered to get gently stretched out and feeling more normal again. Plus it's always fun to ride with DH and chat about the world and Life in general.
I love riding my bike.

[Biciclista]

Glad the weather has improved over there!

[Tri Girl]

I just did a short group ride of 35 miles this morning. It was actually overcast and decent temperature wise. Now it's eleventy billion degrees, but it was nice this morning. There was so little traffic, it was ultra pleasant. A storm started to roll in as we took off, but it disappeared after a little while. I saw some neat things along the way and took pictures, but I can't seem to resize them on the laptop, so you'll have to use your imagination.
I saw miniature donkeys (really tiny, but they packed a LOUD hee haw),
the Lazy E Arena (local big time rodeo place), and a cool cloud scene when the thunderstorm was rolling in.

It was a great way to celebrate Independence Day.

[TrekTheKaty]

It's a torrential downpour here in St. Louis. SO, no ride but went to the bookstore and bought three books on cycling. I'm out there with you in spirit

[Crankin]

Went with cycling friends on a lovely 27.5 mile ride through Boxborough, Harvard, and Bolton and back to Acton. We left early (9:30) and it was good. No cars and hardly any cyclists. My friend wasn't having a good day and felt tired, so we shortened our ride a bit, but it was still really nice; 73 degrees, partly sunny, breezy. It finally feels like summer. Of course, our friend, in his relentless need to climb, took us up a a few streets we always go down. It's a series of 5 hills, where only the first one is really steep, but, still, it slowed me down! And, it's always fun to see things from the opposite direction. I reminded my DH that he had taken me up this route, when I first started riding, on my old mountain bike, with sneakers, on a 95 degree day...
Watching the end of the first stage of the Tour and getting ready to go back to friends for BBQ.
And this morning we got the good news that our son is coming home from Iraq a month early! Only 4.5 more weeks.

[Reesha]

I think I'm going to spite the rain here in St. Louis and ride grants trail out and back twice... should be a nice 32 mile ride. I need to get comfortable in the rain again after my rainy crash last August and Grant's Trail is fairly protected from traffic. Plus it's right near the Alpine Shop where I'm headed to put my downpayment on my new, future mountain bike!

Also, I wanted an excuse to have a big bowl of white rice for lunch

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

And this morning we got the good news that our son is coming home from Iraq a month early! Only 4.5 more weeks.

That is good news indeed- I'm happy for you!

[Mr. Bloom]

It's a torrential downpour here in St. Louis. SO, no ride but went to the bookstore and bought three books on cycling. I'm out there with you in spirit

Well, it came this way, but I got 20 miles in before it hit. It was lovely - in the 60's.

NOW, it's just cold and rainy

[mudmucker]

I'm finally on vacation. The past couple of days I've been parking 15-20 miles outside of town and have been biking to the Longsjo Classics a 4-stage road race held anually in Fitchburg, MA.

For those of you in the vicinity, there is still one last stage race tomorrow when the criterium races will run. For the most part, the weather finally broke (as in sun) and has held some during the races, but some start times had downpours.

Fifty-year old cycling legend Jeannie Longo is participating in the race this year.

I basically have been going in the morning when the women are racing. It's fun to watch and to provide encouragement and support to some of the local women as well. I have a friend racing as a Cat 3 so I have someone specific to cheer for. She's moving up to Cat 2 and will abrubtly lose her Cat 3/4 "comfort".

Tomorrow I may ride from the house to the back side of Fitchburg to watch the criterium, around 50 some odd miles or so. Don't know yet.

Speaking of weather, I finally also got out to mow the lawn. Because of schedule or work but mostly rain and more rain I haven't gotten a chance to mow it since May!

[RolliePollie]

25 miles for me this morning. I realized I do not have any patriotic cycling socks and I think I need to remedy this situation.

After my ride I went up the street to watch our local 4th of July parade. It's the epitome of a small town parade...some fire engines, a handful of horses, a band consisting of approximately 6 people, and lots of folks driving their pick-ups and Jeeps and lawn mower tractors throwing candy at the kids. Now I am praying that no one lights off fireworks tonight and starts a big forest fire...all fireworks are illegal here but people set them off anyway. It's really scary because this area is all forest and the fire danger is really high.

[Zen]

After my ride I went up the street to watch our local 4th of July parade. It's the epitome of a small town parade...

Didn't you post photos of that before? If it's the one I'm thinking about they were great.

[Biciclista]

today was a traffic avoiding bike ride. My son and Daughter in law invited me to a street scramble, which is kind of like a scavenger hunt or orienteering. The problem is the start and finish for the street scramble is also where half of seattle go to watch the fireworks, so not only was it a car free area, it was also extremely crowded. So I rode 11 miles there, then we did the 3 hour street scramble, then i put my sorry butt back onto the bike and rode home.
Discovery: even when you are totally spent from walking for 3 hours in the heat of the sun, with tired legs and achy feet, your BIKE muscles in your legs are STILL FRESH! so even though i was totally totally tired and depleted, i rode the 11 miles home in good time.
I am very happy to be home now.
BTW, for those of you who wonder about the effectiveness of those "wings" I have the DeSoto Sport Arm coolers. I was out in the sun from 11am until 5pm with those things on. I decided that by 5 the sun would be cool enough to take them off. I did. To my surprise, the sun felt so much hotter on my skin that I put them back on. They do really work!

[Fredwina]

maybe I should put this in adventure stories. It certainly turned into one!

[Zen]

Oh that's not so bad (cept for the cramps and lost valve)
No one was injured in the telling of that story

[shootingstar]

43 kms. Nothing special, but it always is special in our neck of the woods when it's sunny, warm, not too hot and not much wind.

It's a usual route but I need to remind myself not allow daily beautiful vistas to become like a painting on a living rm. wall, that one forgets to truly notice or SEE.