Putting this ride under commuting, since for me, it's a utility ride. While I have two clients I can ride to, I've only ridden to one of them, a couple of times.
So, I decided to ride to the gym for my circuit training class, which starts at 5:30 AM. I generally get up very early at this time f the year, but I set the alarm for 4:20, in case.
OK, the gym is really only about 3.5- 4 miles from my house, but the route includes a traffic circle that is the most notorious in the state. While I probably could do it at 4:50 AM, I really don't feel like getting t-boned by some half awake motorist. I am entering and exiting the 2 "local road" streets, which no one pays attention to. So, my route to the gym by bike is 6.8 miles, through Concord center, and across the highway, into West Concord, where the gym is. It's a gorgeous morning, about 64 when I left. It was still a little dark, so I had my lights. When I got to the highway, I realized that my bike would not trigger the signal and there were no cars coming from my direction. So I actually rode across to the median (absolutely no cars, although there is a walk signal) and pressed the walk button on the median, which stopped the steady stream of cars heading into Boston. Wasted a couple of minutes there, but now I know I have to do this. Got to the gym about 5:20, which allowed me to change my shoes, etc. Brought my bike inside, since the rack on my bike made it impossible to fit in the bike rack. I had worn my new Terry Liberty shorts, which are long, tight on the top, baggy on the bottom shorts (kinda like a cross between road and mtb shorts), and my normal gym tank, with a LS jersey over it. The shorts are a little weird on me, possibly too big, but I think they will shrink in the laundry.
The class is getting progressively filled with more and more cardio intervals, so I took it a little easy (not too easy). I brought my bolero to wear over my gym top on the way home, which was perfect. And, I had a little taste of nasty commuting. The train was stopped in West Concord, and there was a long line of cars stopped. I was able to zip up to the front, in the parking lane, but after that the cars were being very aggressive; I got in the lane and they were still squeezing me right, so it kind of made me turn aggressive! I stuck my left arm out and shook it at the car behind me a couple of times, and I decided to turn left and cross the highway at a calmer intersection, since it was late enough for there to be cars to trigger the light. It was a good thing I didn't come this way, though, since there's no walk signal.
Saw my DH riding to work when I was about 2.5 miles from home. I will do this again, since it's a good option for utility cycling. I had a total of 15.5 miles.