June 4 Weekend Rides

[okraftw]

I did 12 miles today. I am trying to get my friend into biking, so I gave her my old bike, and today we bike down the Schuylkill river trail to watch the pro racers come through (Philadelphia International Championship.) A lovely six miles ride down, we watched the peloton ride by (Awesome!) A lovely six miles back! I think it worked.

[emily_in_nc]

52 miles today. Rode with DH (who did extra miles to get 70). Suburban to urban to rural hills with a nice stop at the ice cream store on the way home. It was humid and hot, started out overcast but soon turned sunny, so I was totally drenched when I got done, but I actually felt fairly good. I think I ate enough this time but may not have had quite enough to drink as I'd lost 1.5 lbs immediately after returning home AND having a large glass of OJ. I continued drinking fluids all afternoon.

My longest ride since my accident in 2005.

[luv2climb]

Finally got some decent weather to do some climbing! I went to El Dorado Hills to climb another nice steep one I discovered last month while looking for Boulder Ridge Road. This one is Marble Ridge Road. It has a maximum gradient of 16%, with a pretty consistent 15% section after the switchback on the first part of the climb.

I had my video camera recording as always, and got another dog encounter on camera. This one was more positive than the last one I posted here, where the dog escaped the yard and chased me near the top of another climb. This time the dog was waiting for me near the top of a switchback. He barked a little, then proceeded to trot alongside me until I reached the top of the climb. Since the dog wasn't being threatening, I figured it was safe to make my usual puppy sound. I slowed down at the top so the dog would be on camera again.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/90479831

Here's the video. You can see the dog starting at 4:52.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAelTvtOHYw

View from the top:


view from top of Marble Ridge Road by kittyz202, on Flickr

[owlice]

I set out this afternoon after cleaning my bike a bit. I noticed that my head was sweating before I was done oiling the chain (the back of my head sweats like 16 horses after running the Preakness, and it's not as if I even have all that much hair!)... hmmm... warmed up, didn't it?

Well yes. Yes it did. I rode some of my usual trails and got in 25 miles; should have stopped for water a little sooner than I did, not because I felt dehydrated, but because I was so hot, I sucked it down and swallowed some air with it. Which made my chest hurt. Which gave me the fleeting thought: Gee, this would not be a good place to have a heart attack. (My older brother having prodigious talent in the belching arts, he got it all; I am seriously deficient in that area. Having a bubble of swallowed air hurts!)

But I digress. It was sunny and warm; I saw a Great Blue Heron in the swamp, a turkey vulture hanging out on a mud flat in the Anacostia River, a lot of mallards, and a good number of red-winged blackbirds. Also bunnies and a turtle. No deer, however, which surprised me a little.

I was not fast -- 11.5 MPH. There were a lot of people out. I chastised only one person, handed out many many compliments to children who followed directions/paid attention very well (thereby avoiding injury, woo-hoo!), and managed to avoid running into any of the clueless parents. A good day!

[emily_in_nc]

I set out this afternoon after cleaning my bike a bit. I noticed that my head was sweating before I was done oiling the chain (the back of my head sweats like 16 horses after running the Preakness, and it's not as if I even have all that much hair!).

LOL...too funny. My head is the same. The back of my short hair gets absolutely drenched and drips everywhere. I've ridden with gals who take off their helmets, shake out their dry hair without any apparent sweat, and go. Truly an unfair genetic advantage they have.