September riding

[Crankin]

Emily, I wish we could ride together.... I still have a few rides a year with a 15-16 average, but since I live in a hilly area, it's not too often. For me, it's a little bit age and chronic health stuff, but mostly this year, my back. I finally looked at my total mileage the other day, and I just haven't been riding enough. I've been on a roll for the past month, but with cooler weather coming, I know I won't be riding as much during the week. I usually ride into December, on a regular basis, but I love to hike in the fall, and that always takes over.

[emily_in_nc]

Emily, I wish we could ride together.... I still have a few rides a year with a 15-16 average, but since I live in a hilly area, it's not too often. For me, it's a little bit age and chronic health stuff, but mostly this year, my back. I finally looked at my total mileage the other day, and I just haven't been riding enough. I've been on a roll for the past month, but with cooler weather coming, I know I won't be riding as much during the week. I usually ride into December, on a regular basis, but I love to hike in the fall, and that always takes over.

Sounds like you're doing very well, despite any health issues! I can't even remember the last time I averaged over 15 mph, even in ideal conditions. I think if I had a lighter bike I could be a little faster, of course, but I've finally gotten my Trek Pilot dialed in with lower gearing, saddle that works for me, stem extension (I need my bars higher than my saddle for my back issues), so even though it's not as light as the newer models, it fits me well, and a new bike just isn't in the budget right now.

It's definitely a lot easier to rack up the miles being in Florida most of the year than in New England, though I am way behind where I would have been had I not broken my jaw -- that cost me 3.5 months of riding. I went over 2300 miles on the year this week.

Today's ride was tougher; we went west into hillier Lake County, and I had a terrible night of sleep last night. Plus we had head winds on the way back and the temps hit 93 on that return leg. Ugh. I was having visions of cold, icy drinks instead of the very warm water I had to drink and slogged out the miles with a 13.9 mph average for 35 miles. Ready for cooler weather!

[Crankin]

Wind can be as bad as hills.

[north woods gal]

Have to commend all of you doing so many miles out on the road and anyone who can manage 15 mph for an average speed has me beat for sure. Ever since I built MTB trials on our property and now ride them every day, though, just haven't managed to get out on the road all that much. Only ride the trails one to two hours day, but that's everyday and I'm now up to 7 to 10 miles of trail riding, per day, so that's still a decent weekly and monthly total. By my count, have actually only missed about four days all summer. Wish there was a way to accurately convert MTB miles to road miles, but at least in terms of hours, I am riding probably more this summer than summers where it was mostly road biking.

Anyway, I LOVE reading everyone's road adventures. Just don't want to give anyone the impression that I'm not riding, much. Just wish I had more to share in the type of riding everyone else is doing, though. All the same, my heart is with you.

[emily_in_nc]

NWG, I love reading about your trail (and other rides)! And I know from experience that MTB miles are much, much harder than road miles, under most circumstances. I have only rarely averaged over 10 mph on my mountain bike, usually less than that.

Today's ride was our usual route east, and although it wasn't quite as hot and there was less sun and wind, it was sooooo humid as we are getting a tropical front in from the south and east. I was absolutely drenched in no time, very unpleasant. To top off the unpleasantness, we got behind a leaf blower vehicle for a short while and got absolutely covered in a fine leaf dust that was just nasty (not to mention bad for eyes and lungs!) At my rest stop, I wiped off as much of it as I could with my bandanna, because it stuck to my damp, sweaty, and sunscreen-coated skin. The bandanna was absolutely brown when I finished. UGH!

32 miles to finish up the week. We leave the bike paths to the families and weekend warriers on the weekends and do other things (walking, at-home workouts), and I am ready for my two-day break after riding four days this week. First time I've done that since spring!

Hope everyone has a good weekend!

[rebeccaC]

I spent two days at a desert art collective refuge for eclectic artists….East Jesus, which is just outside of Niland Ca. by the Salton Sea. It’s an interesting self sufficient, communitarian creative collective in the middle of nowhere. An artist friend is doing some work there and invited me out.

I used the trip to ride the east side of the Salton Sea…78 miles of basically flat road, with a good shoulder, not much traffic (the west side has a busy state highway which is used by most of the north/south traffic). The east side road is broken up by sections of fun rollers, which I assume makes up the 700 ft of gain on the ride. A good headwind going north but I knew that so I just saw it as a good challenge and then a blessing coming back…..and with temps in the high 90’s it was a challenge. The success of the ride was probably as much about my preparation for it, some hot yoga, hydration/nutrition (before/during/after) and having balanced electrolytes for the entire ride. Hard riding in dry desert heat means salty sweat stains and deposits’ for me so I also washed off my head a few times during the ride. Just three places to get water on the ride, mostly just abandoned buildings/business’s on the route, so I planned water carefully. It was a good ride for me…..still slower than before but with the same positive determination I always try to put into a hard ride.

No hipster reward food to be had out in that area of the desert….sitting in the shade with a quart of chocolate milk from the only grocery store in Niland, helped when I got back. The woman I stayed with also fixed a wonderfully nutritious roasted sweet potato salad for a recovery meal when I got back too.

Just three weekends left before the Tour de Pink. With the rides I’ve done in my training plan I feel good about where I’m at. Doing a long ride this weekend with Alex on the first day's route of the tour and then cut back until we do the 3 day tour.
















+1 on emily's wish for a good weekend for all........

[north woods gal]

Emily, I continue to be impressed with the way you've bounced back from your injuries! That would be a good week for me, anytime. Not sure how long it would take me to acclimate to that heat and humidity, though, should we ever venture down to Florida, again. Will never forget the way I bonked in it on our Florida trip, last year. That was close. Too close.

Rebecca, that is some very interesting country and, as always, beautiful pics. Looks like it could be fun for mountain biking or, better yet, fat biking.

50s for highs, here, the last couple days and frost, tonight. Still have a lot of tomatoes in the garden that have yet to ripen. Oh, well. Par for the course, up here. Gardening is a challenge with our very short growing season.

Been working hard on my trails, doing some improvements on those flatter sections which will double as cross country ski trails. (The steep sections are just too steep for my cross country ski skill level. Tricky enough with the fat bikes.) Hard labor, for sure, but it keeps me out in the woods all day and that's a good thing. Kind of allergic, now, to being cooped up indoors after spending so much time out in the woods, this summer.

[Catrin]

Emily, it's SO good to see how you've recovered and are back to doing what you love!

Rebecca, those are just incredible pics and the ride itself just sounds wonderful. Hard, challenging, with the temps requiring planning, but an incredible landscape for a long bike ride!

NW Gal, I love your plan to keep youself in the woods all day, sounds like fun!