Weekend Rides?

[limewave]

I rode my bike home from my Aunt's house after our Easter dinner yesterday. She lives about 30 miles north of us and, conveniently, there's a bike path that starts just a few miles from my home that goes all the way to her house! It was a nice way to end the evening. I added a few extra miles for a 36 mile ride.

[Melalvai]

I should have worn sunscreen.

A couple weeks ago we did this ride (scroll down to "Hwy K Ride Report"--for some reason it's not giving me the url for that specific post). Someone emailed me after she read that post and said "The house in that picture is mine. Knock on our door if you ever need water, or if no one is home there's a pump in the yard."

One problem I've had with riding around here is that it is SO rural, there's no stores or any place to get water. I drink a bottle per hour, so a 5-hr ride means I need 5 bottles of water! That's a lot of water to carry.

If I could just get in the mindset though, because it is so rural, people are super friendly like her, and I know they'd love to refill my water bottle if I'd just knock on their door.

[goldfinch]

I should have worn sunscreen.

A couple weeks ago we did this ride (scroll down to "Hwy K Ride Report"--for some reason it's not giving me the url for that specific post). Someone emailed me after she read that post and said "The house in that picture is mine. Knock on our door if you ever need water, or if no one is home there's a pump in the yard."

One problem I've had with riding around here is that it is SO rural, there's no stores or any place to get water. I drink a bottle per hour, so a 5-hr ride means I need 5 bottles of water! That's a lot of water to carry.

If I could just get in the mindset though, because it is so rural, people are super friendly like her, and I know they'd love to refill my water bottle if I'd just knock on their door.

When I ride in the rural area of Minnesota where I grew up I only carry one bottle of water because I can stop at just about any isolated home or cabin and refill and have a chat. Maybe even a cookie.

[limewave]

We live in kind of a "free-way" for local cyclists. It is not unusual for friends and acquaintances to stop by our house for a bathroom break, water-bottle fill, emergency snack, directions, quick bike-repair . . . .

And beginning next year the bike path to the north of us will be extended and go right by our house! I'm really excited about this. I imagine we'll have even more cyclists stopping by when that happens. I'm thinking about getting a bench to put in our front yard where weary cyclists can stop and sit a spell.

[Melalvai]

And beginning next year the bike path to the north of us will be extended and go right by our house! I'm really excited about this. I imagine we'll have even more cyclists stopping by when that happens. I'm thinking about getting a bench to put in our front yard where weary cyclists can stop and sit a spell.

That's awesome. If I lived on a bike path or bike route I would absolutely do that. Maybe a bench and rig up a pump or water spigot somehow.

[Fredwina]

I'm Visiting my Mother this weekend, Mainly to check up on her. I decided to rent a bike:

KHS urban Xcape
Beale St.

Sun Studios

Where my mother now lives:

Across the street in Overton Park. Site of Elvis First Concert:

North Parkway:

The Pyramid:

The Mississippi:

Back Downtown:

Not the Peabody:

Lunch:

What the LBS Owner showed up on:

[rubysoho]

Left at 6am yesterday morning to travel down to Raleigh, NC (4 hour drive) for a meetup with my Tour de Cure team. We met with the ride's organizer and then went on a fun 20 mile ride. The first hill right at the beginning of the ride wasn't great and I think not being warmed up was the issue but after that it was a great ride. We mostly ranged between 16 and 20 mph. On a downhill I was able to get up to 31mph! I didn't switch off the middle gear so I think I could have gone faster if I had used my full range of gears. It was really windy though and that made my bike be a smidge squirrely so I didn't want to push the envelope too much.

At the end I definitely felt I could have either pushed to go faster for the entire ride or could have ridden a longer route. There was the option to go on a longer ride but a few of us opted to go the a Beer Fest.

[Crankin]

Got my first 50+ mile ride of the season over with! I say that, because, despite being in good shape, it's still painful when it involves 2500 ft. of climbing.
But, it was great. We rode out to Bolton Orchards, about 24 miles, and a couple of miles of getting lost right before lunch. Most of the tough climbing is before lunch, thankfully. The farm market was quiet, it's only April, but it was about 72 degrees out. After lunch, we slowly rode up the 4 mile moderate climb into Harvard center and then took a different way home, which involved less climbing. I was feeling a little bonky as we were heading into west Concord, so I stopped and finished my Luna Bar and drank a ton of Nuun. So, as we headed from there into Concord center, we were stopped at the light to cross the highway. A cyclist pulled up behind me. We said hi and when we crossed the highway, he took off, really fast. Then, there were some cars stopped for someone taking a left. As I was slowing, a car full of teens drove by us; I heard them yelling, but I couldn't really tell if they were just talking or yelling at us. All of a sudden, I see DH take off. I thought he was getting a burst of testosterone and chasing the fast cyclist. When I caught him, he said that as he was slowly passing the teens, one of them purposely opened his door to hit DH . He pounded on their car and said he wanted to smash the window, but of course, he didn't. I asked if got the license plate, but he didn't.
It's pretty rare that stuff like this happens around here. It's very busy, with lots of tourists here for Patriot's Day celebration tomorrow and people not knowing where they are going, so I was super alert yesterday. But, I don't think they were tourists. They looked like super entitled little Concord boys.