August 5th Weekend Rides

[Jen12]

I did a 15 mile "newbie" ride with a local bike group today. It was quite nice. They stopped several times to collect everyone and were very helpful. I do have to spend some time working with the clipless pedals. No issues today clipping out at stoplights, but I had a hard time finding the position for clip-in.

[Nick]

Good luck with the clipless, Jen! I'm learning too, and have had a couple of falls trying. But, I think I'm finally getting the hang of it. My last ride went well. Glad to hear you had fun with the new group.

[Crankin]

We drove to Sharon Springs, NY, the half way point to the start of our tour.
It rained almost all of yesterday afternoon and night. The sun is out now, but the forecast is not looking good for the week.
I am pissed. I *don't* ride in the rain, purposely.
Well, I'll get to see anew part of the country.

[GingerbreadGirl]

Sorry about the weather Crankin. It is supposed to rain/thunderstorm the whole week here as well.

Was planning to hit the East Bay Bike Path in Bristol RI this weekend, but I caught my DH's stomach virus. Even if I could get on a bike, I haven't eaten much in a couple of days. Stationary bike will be my friend this week due to the terrible weather

[Owlie]

It rained until about 9 this morning. Since I aim to be back from my rides around 9:30 so I can get out of the trail parking lot (and beat the heat), I went for a walk instead--I need to do more of that.

Monday should be good for riding. I'm getting antsy--I haven't ridden since Thursday.

[redrhodie]

We drove to Sharon Springs, NY, the half way point to the start of our tour.
It rained almost all of yesterday afternoon and night. The sun is out now, but the forecast is not looking good for the week.
I am pissed. I *don't* ride in the rain, purposely.
Well, I'll get to see anew part of the country.

Are you not going to do the tour? That really is a bummer. It's been so nice until this week. Fingers crossed that it clears up for you.

It's pouring here, but I wouldn't ride today anyway because of Jazzfest, so just a normal rest day for me.

[skywalkerbeth]

Jen: good luck on clipless, let me know if you like them/keep them. I had mine for a month, fell twice which isn't unusual but couldn't get rid of the nagging fear of stopping. Back to cages and I'm happy again.

This morning: 35 miles. I got a late start for some reason, an hour later than my usual time.

I'm slow as molasses, not gonna post my time. Embarrassing. But I feel pretty good. My back hurt the last 5 miles. It was already a little tender when I got up but not too bad but I do think the fanny pack was starting to weigh down on it in the last 5 miles. Once I was done and took the fanny pack off I felt a lot better. (blackberry, house and car keys, two snacks, sani-wipes and paper towels, sunscreen, lip balm - feels weightless on a short ride but not so much on longer ones).

Yesterday was 15 miles. Saturdays are my warmup days.

[buffybike]

A total of 62 miles combining my weekend rides. A club ride on Saturday and a ride with a new partner on Sunday. Suoer hot outside, but still felt great.

[KathiCville]

I worked up the courage this morning to tackle the toughest climb I ever do in my area---a four-mile long climb on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I hadn't done it since last summer and wasn't sure I could make it all the way without taking a break. I had to granny gear it to the max, but managed to get to the top without stopping, yay!! There are other climbs on the ride, but that one is THE toughest by far, if only because of the length.

I did a total of 25 miles out and back, including (naturally) a fun four-mile descent on that same curvy stretch of road. I'm not brave enough to let 'er rip, so my fastest speed was 30 mph. Others do the same stretch at 40+ mph, whew!! At any rate, I feel tired AND triumphant tonight!

I can't take photos while climbing, so here are two after I made it to the top:

[emily_in_nc]

I did 26 miles this morning, just a nice solo ride around our neighborhood and a lot of others that hook into ours, some bike paths, mostly roads. Nice light traffic. I'd planned on more like 35, but I overslept big time and didn't get out until 9:30, and it was already HOT and sunny. I am not too upset, though; I hadn't been sleeping well lately, so I really needed that extra hour of sleep!

[MojoGrrl]

I did the Marin Century!! My first century (it was actually 106 miles, plus the 1 mile and terrible but short uphill driveway back to the hotel, ha ha) and I did it in about 9 hours, including an hour of stops!

View from the top of Marshall Wall: (edit: can't get it to work. Here's the link) http://www.flickr.com/photos/83876661@N00/6020016244/

[goride]

No ride Saturday, 37 miles today. The group I ride with usually rides out early. I was up by 4:30 a.m., and ready to go out 5:00. Went to the door to take out the bike and discovered it was raining, followed a few minutes later by thunder and lightening, which lasted until almost until 10:30. We finally rode at 11:00 a.m. Sunny, hot and very humid. Really took it out of me. I thought I took in plenty of fluids both on the ride and when I got home, but I am still feeling thirsty. However, since I am also feeling "sloshy" I am trying to be careful what and how fast I am replenishing.

[maggie's sister]

Saturday was rainy, so just a short 15 miles around town. Yesterday we did 70 miles in intermittent rain showers. Last long ride before the Philly Gran Fondo.

[redrhodie]

Did my regular 21 mile loop. Along the route, rescue teams were looking for a man who went into the water last night and didn't come out. He was trying to save another swimmer from drowning. Sad. The other guy is okay. No news yet on the one still missing. Not good. I think the surf was pretty big last night.

The rest of the ride was pretty tranquil. I felt light and fast. I focused on Oakleaf's description of counter steering, and I finally get it. I think I already do it intuitively, but it was interesting to notice how it works in practice. I felt very in control through the turns. It was good.

[deeannef]

Over the weekend I did the 50 mile, Tour de Big Bear in California. This was a high altitude ride starting at 6700 feet and went up and down from there. The scenery was great, the town of Big Bear, CA was so supportive for us riders which made it very enjoyable for all of us participants. This ride will be a must next year!