April Showers bring... riding

[Pax]

Emily, that's one big thing I miss about our condo in FL, we had a pool about 20' from our front door. I'd step into a suit and be in that beautiful clear water in moments, did that several times a week. It was heavenly.

[north woods gal]

I love my rustic, north woods lifestyle, I really do, but all this talk of stopping at Trader Joe's and coffee shops makes me long for a taste of the city life I have known in Chicago, Portland (as in Oregon) and other places. I managed quite well with a bicycle as my only means of transport when living the city life. Spent a lot of time in coffee shops, food co-op type stores, book stores and, of course, my local bike stores where everyone knew me on a first name basis. Yeah, spending all day out in the woods or doing my usual long solo road rides doesn't make for much of a social life. I am ever the quiet, sit in the corner type, but I do miss having people around at times. Will have to work on that, somehow. Anyway, I do enjoy hearing about everyone else and their more urban experiences, so please keep posting.

As for riding, it's now an every day thing with only rare days off. Most of it is on my trails, which are lovely, right now, but some road work, too. Not going to bore everyone with daily/more of the same ride stuff, but will report on a bit, here and there, when something stands out, be it major or minor.

30 mph winds and whitecaps on the lake, this morning. Will have to check the trails for downed trees and tree limbs, later.

[Crankin]

Well, I hardly live in an urban area. It's a suburb, with a lot of rural-type areas and farms. When we bought our condo, we specifically wanted to be close to one of the 2 "downtowns," and while I am not as close as I had wished, it's only 2.2 miles, very walkable and rideable. I also enjoy being close enough to riding on quiet country roads.

[Pax]

Well, I hardly live in an urban area. It's a suburb, with a lot of rural-type areas and farms. When we bought our condo, we specifically wanted to be close to one of the 2 "downtowns," and while I am not as close as I had wished, it's only 2.2 miles, very walkable and rideable. I also enjoy being close enough to riding on quiet country roads.

That is my favorite part of our Florida condo, we are.5 mile from the beachside restaurants and shopping, .9 mile from the ocean (our place is on the water, but it's the intracoastal), and 1 mile (on a MUP) to the downtown area. Now that I can ride my bike again, it means we can enjoy what the area has to offer without dealing with the insane traffic.

[north woods gal]

Sorry, my mistake. I meant urban in general terms, not as in living in a downtown metro area. That kind of urban is beyond my experience. Most of my "city" life has, in fact, been suburban or even small town. Where I live, now, would definitely be classified as rural, though, and even though we are relatively close to our local small town, we are surrounded by water and forests. Very few farms in the area (not to mention coffee shops. ).

Anyway, as I said, I do enjoy hearing about the commuting, shopping, sightseeing and eating out trips. Brings back good memories for me. Thanks, all.

[ny biker]

I did 40 minutes of easy (and boring) pedaling on the indoor trainer two nights ago. There was no pain from the problematic ankle tendon. My knee hurt a little, probably because my cycling muscles are pretty much gone from lack of riding. I tested clipping in and out, and that also did not cause any pain. I actually don't have to move my foot much at all in order to clip out, which is good.

This weekend, probably Sunday, I plan to ride outside. I want to do an easy flat ride. Logically a MUP would be best for that, but they will all be crowded with the warmer weather that we're having. So I'm not sure yet where I'll be going.

The inertia of not riding for a long time has set in. I feel like just getting all the gear together is a huge undertaking. I need to muster up some energy and push through this.

[Crankin]

Ha, ha, NY, for me, the inertia never goes away, no matter how much I am riding.
I rode to work yesterday, wearing my wool Terry cycling dress and my cycling commuter pants and jacket. Since I already had appropriate shoes at work, it was perfect and I felt like a cool urban rider. The stoplight was out on the cross street of Main St, and that was a "fun" experience, trying to get across the intersection.
Since I was at work to just do my group, I kept my bike in my office, instead of locked in the chart room. So, I got lots of comments, like "how much did that bike cost?"