november rides....outside and inside

[rebeccaC]

outside for us who have mild weather or commute/ride regardless of the weather and inside trainer miles/experiences for those who don't want to venture outside

[ny biker]

Where is this rain coming from??????????????? Every weather forecast for days has said clear skies and seasonably warm all the way until the weekend. Now all of a sudden as I'm about to change and go for a bike ride, there's rain all over the place. And more rain tomorrow.

I could have gone for a ride last night if I'd known. But no, they kept it a secret.

I am not riding in the dark when it's raining and the temperature is dropping from the low 60s and there are leaves all over the ground.

Dammit.

[Crankin]

I wonder why I didn't notice the November thread...
That is weird, NY. No rain here, and clear skies, warm weather. I think there may be rain predicted for late tomorrow night, though.
Riding on wet leaves, no!

[ny biker]

It's coming up from the south. I'm hoping it's done in time to get out and ride tomorrow night. At least it will still be warm.

Why is it that long-range forecasts of terrible weather are always accurate, but forecasts of great weather are often overly optimistic?

[shootingstar]

Just doing small rides to work and back, plus minor food shopping using bike. Temp. is 0 degrees C or abit higher.

Whereas in Vancouver it will be over 50 mm of rain in 1 day..will be there eventually. We'll be in Seattle and may not even bring our bikes onto train.

[ny biker]

Wow Shootingstar, that is cold for November, at least compared to what I'm used to. I was not made for colder climates.

I did get out and ride after work last night. It was in the mid 60s and humid, the kind of weather where you warm up going uphill and then feel a bit of a chill going downhill. The rain had cleared out early in the day but the clouds lingered which limited the sunshine, so the road varied from totally dry to quite wet with everything in between. I took it slow on the turns in case of wet leaves. About a third of the way through the route I started to encounter fog in the low areas -- I think it was my first time riding in fog, definitely the first time after dark. Fortunately I was only riding through it for a couple of seconds at a time; if it had been constant I think I would have cut the ride short. When I finished the ride and took off my helmet, it was wet on the outside, so I guess conditions really were pretty damp.

I tried out a new pair of knee warmers on the ride. I got them for 50% off at the LBS. They were comfortable, but I really do not have the legs for that elastic at the top. Fine for riding, not so much if you're going to be walking around off the bike.

Next up for me will be a ride on Sunday afternoon. Current forecast calls for sunshine -- fingers crossed it doesn't change.

[Crankin]

It's currently 73 degrees. Creepy, but nice.
I rode to Bedford to meet my friend, Jack, for a ride. We listed it as an AMC ride, but no one showed up. Instead 2 of his other riding friends showed. Knew I was in trouble with them. Off we went, and just about the time we got to my street, and my average was over 16, I told Jack I was going to go home, if he didn't slow. He was fine with that, and so were the others, but the woman just had to let me know this was her recovery ride, so she needed to slow, as she had already done 4 rides this week. Ha, I just wanted to not get dropped, and we were heading up Strawberry Hill. I also knew another very steep, short climb was coming. So, we slowed a little to a nice pace, and enjoyed the beautiful day. I know this is a sign of climate change, but it's nice for cyclists. Anyway, I did not want to go back to Bedford with them, so I peeled off at a certain point and headed home, retracing some of what I had already ridden. I ended up with 29.5 miles, so I am happy, and I didn't suffer too much! Doing a ride out to Bolton and Harvard tomorrow, so trying to keep my legs ready.