July Rides

[ny biker]

My ride last night was very nice. I'm still trying to get back the fitness I lost over vacation, so I pushed the pace a bit and my legs were tired as a result. But that was the objective. Total ride was 19 miles with lots of short, steep hills.

My next ride will be a fundraiser for a volunteer fire department on Sunday. It's a long drive to get there, but it will give me a chance to explore some new roads, and I think I can modify their route to use a more convenient starting point for a future club ride. However I think it will rain on Sunday, which will make it somewhat less fun. I just hope there are no severe storms.

[Dragonfly5]

We just returned from our vacation in Grand Isle VT. The riding there is fantastic! Beautiful mountain and lake views, smooth pavement and wide bike lanes on the busier road, so unlike what we have here. I set a goal for myself to ride 100 miles in a week (Sat. to Sat.) I'm at 80.5 and will be riding with a group of ladies tomorrow morning so I'm confident I'll reach my goal. It's incredible to feel myself getting stronger and faster (a little) I'm totally inspired by the miles you ladies ride every week

[emily_in_nc]

Had my longest ride in Walla Walla so far today -- 56 miles. It's easy to put in pretty long mileages here because in the valley the terrain is mostly flat to near-flat with only a few rollers, nothing with really steep grades. The wind is more of a factor than the terrain, and the fact that a lot of the roads are chip-seal, so you do get tired and hands get numb, etc. We had a beautiful day today with light winds, so it was a great day to push the mileage just a bit. Yesterday I'd done just 22 miles so felt great today and ready for more mileage. It's been cooler than normal here lately, but supposed to get hot again starting tomorrow for the next week at least. Ah well, it's that time of year. This morning starting out in the mid 60s, it was downright chilly compared to what we've gotten used to.

Dragonfly, that sounds so beautiful. Vermont is one of my favorite states to ride in, though we haven't been there for years. It's absolutely gorgeous!

Crankin, I totally get what you're saying. I used to really enjoy my winters off the bike in NC, or just riding the trainer and not feeling compelled to go out in chilly weather. I would concentrate on weights and the dreadmill (which I really didn't mind, given good music on my MP3 player) and then be excited to hit the road again in the springtime. However, this year I've really enjoyed being outside in the sunshine all winter long -- it helps my mood just to get out there.

Here's the kind of views we see riding here. You can see why it makes me smile!

Attachment 17295

[kajero]

Woo! Woo! I rode 19 miles today and didn't get lost once. And it was a new route for me. It is the second time this year I rode a 19 mile route and didn't get lost.

I seem to have a problem getting lost when I ride over 16 miles. Yes, I have maps, but I am not good at the reading them. I don't have a smartphone or an expensive Garmin so those to options are not available to me.

OK, I know 19 miles is as much as most of you ride, but it is more than my friends who stay home and watch TV ride!

[khg]

I rode Hurricane Ridge yesterday--and if you're in the PNW, I highly recommend it! Even better, next weekend is the Ride the Hurricane event, where for the morning, the road is closed to cars. http://business.portangeles.org/even...hurricane-2773

Anyway, it was a hard ride, but so beautiful that it made the effort joyous. It also is much more do-able than I had anticipated, as there are no seriously steep bits, just constant climbing, usually around 6%. If you have low enough gears, don't care about setting a land speed record, and can just keep pedaling, it's an eminently attainable big impressive ride! I blathered on a lot about it here, with photos: http://mebikedolomitesoneday.wordpre...ridge-by-bike/

FYI, there are three short-but-unlit tunnels in quick succession--for these you want a taillight (I had mine on the whole ride) and a headlight that is good enough to see the road by, not just a be-seen blinky type of headlight. The road surface seems pretty good in there, the lanes are wide and there's even a bit of a sidewalk if you want to walk your bike through, so the tunnels feel pretty safe, but the transition from daylight to the tunnel is pretty intense. I brought my decent headlight, not my awesome headlight, and next time I will bring the awesome one...

The temperature at the bottom was in the 60's, and it was around 50 at the top. I had on a short-sleeved wool jersey, and my Rapha 3/4 winter bib knickers (probably my favorite piece of bike wear ever. I picked them up on sale, and look forward to weather cool enough to wear them. They are fleecy-soft warm happiness--I call them my Rapha pajamas--and I'm seriously tempted to buy another pair, even at full price... Ouch.) and I would have been fine with less clothing on the way up. But on the way down, even though I felt warm in the sun at the top, I bundled up, and am sure glad that I did. I had a wool cap, arm warmers, a windbreaker jacket, and full-finger wool gloves, and I wouldn't have minded a bit more clothing... So if you do the ride, bring warm things!

A little taste of the day:

[emily_in_nc]

khg, absolutely gorgeous photos and lovely blog post. Congratulations on your huge accomplishment! And here I thought riding up Spearfish Canyon (13 miles at a lower grade) was something to brag about...sheesh -- you ROCK!

[Crankin]

Today was interesting. I led a ride in Mystic, CT, as after 8-10 miles, the other leader had one of his spokes break and his wheel was totally untrued. He sat on the side of the road to figure out a way to get back, after we all tried to get it fixed enough for him to ride, but couldn't. So... on I went. It was humid a partly cloudy down there. There were only 5 people on the ride, a mix of typical AMC geeks and one person from CT who is a super runner, young, and trying to improve her cycling to do an Oly. There was only one mildly annoying guy who was riding up on my azz, but kept falling back on the climbs. Finally I told him to go ahead if he wanted, which he did not; I dropped him on a long hill instead. Meh. Why do some guys do this?
It was fun, no issues, but it did start raining, just sprinkles as we did the area by the water in W. Mystic and Groton. There is a lot of climbing in the last 6-7 miles and I was tired, but not like 2 weeks ago, because the sun was not beating down on me. This ride has country roads, water views, the Mystic River and harbor, beaches, vineyards, mansions, and a downtown. It's really pretty and the part by the beach is not crowded at all, like in NH or the Cape. No honky tonk.
I drove down with another woman from Concord, so it was nice to not have to drive back after leading. It was a little hairy when we went down a hill, coming into the downtown, with tons of traffic and tourists. I actually got off my bike and walked a bit, as we were being squeezed off the road, but since we had to go over a drawbridge, it was fine, as we had already decided to walk over the grated bridge. But stuff like that makes me super vigilant, and it tires me out, because I feel responsible for the people. 42 miles.
Going out for bad food and beer .

[khg]

khg, absolutely gorgeous photos and lovely blog post. Congratulations on your huge accomplishment! And here I thought riding up Spearfish Canyon (13 miles at a lower grade) was something to brag about...sheesh -- you ROCK!

Thanks, Emily! You made me curious, so I found your June post about Spearfish Canyon, and right back at you about the photos and blog post. Now I want to go to Spearfish Canyon! What an amazing day that must have been, and *definitely* something to brag about

I'm really getting hooked on these sorts of rides--if a place is scenic enough to drive to and through, then it'll be even better by bike. You miss so much whizzing by in a car, and with anything mountainous, the view is that much sweeter for having earned it. (And given my impending bike trip to the Alps and Dolomites, I guess it's a good thing that I'm coming to love this sort of thing...)

That said, I was ok with *not* riding up a mountain today!