October rides...

[north woods gal]

Love the pics, rebecca, as always. What a beautiful area.

As for encountering others on my trails, not an issue, since it is private land and we know all the neighbors. Also, on the two access points to enter, away from the house, I placed rocks and logs to negotiate to keep out ATVs and casual bikers. Have to be a fairly competent MTBer to get past those. With so many other MTB trails in our area, though, no interest in my setup, anyway, with the local MTB crowd. Encounters with deer, though, are a potential issue, so I have to keep an eye out for them. Have actually had some close calls as far as collisions when coming down off the steep drops.

I'd actually like to have some company, now and then, and despite inviting some local gals who want to try mountain biking, no takers, yet. Really would make a nice learning trail for mountain biking, since I've built by-passes to go around the trick stuff should you not want to test your skills. This has been done mostly with my husband in mind. Yup, I've managed to get my husband out on the easy trails with me, now. First time, ever, off the pavement for him. Doubt he'll ever be up to trying the scary climbs/drops or doing any trick stuff - has no interest in that and thinks I'm a little nutty for doing it - but it is nice to have him along. Star, our Border Collie, though, is my constant trail companion and knows the trails as well as I do. She takes shortcuts, now, across the trails to meet up with me, as I go. Be lost without her.

[north woods gal]

Don't know if all Border Collies are like ours, but Star is very much the look before you leap type. Anything new and different gets a good looking over and study before she proceeds. Even if I change the furniture around in the house, she notices and has to inspect, first. The good news is that we have no poisonous snakes, up here, though we do have plenty of garter snakes, right in the yard and our woods. Star has seen these and will follow them at a safe distance, but a simple command of "No" and she backs off. Same with deer and other animals. As I said, she's a great pal and very easy to work with.

On the other hand, our English Setter requires two of us, full-time, managing him when he's allowed to run in the woods for his daily workout. I have trained him not to chase deer, but off the leash, all he wants to do is hunt. Can't lose track of him for a second. Why we got a hunting dog when we don't hunt was a decision I do regret. Great dog, but not in the same class as Star as a companion or in terms of IQ.

Back to biking. Our leaves are about 75% fallen, now. Going to wait a few more days and then do a little trail clearing of leaves to get ready for winter. Will also be changing some of the tires on the fat bikes to more snow friendly design tires. Also, the last few days, have been riding my classic 26x2 MTBs for kicks and to get some time in on them before the snow comes. Then they go in the shed for the winter. Yeah, I love the fat bikes and the plus bikes, but those old standard 26ers still do the job. Like any other MTB, they have their strengths and weaknesses. On the skinny tire MTBs, mostly a matter of being careful in the soft stuff and when rolling over rocks.

[rebeccaC]

He does not have any sense of caution. His method of discovery is to dash up to something and stick his nose into it. What a goober.

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Golden retrievers ftw….had one growing up and he always liked having me in sight until we were day hiking, especially around the lakes of Huez and in the foret d’Huez in the nearby Alps, then he would dash off to explore, jump in the lakes, make birds take flight and generally be more of a manic mess….but then we’d get home and he would nuzzle me with pet me eyes, actually he'd do that with anyone ….i miss him, his personality and unconditional love. When we have children I’m getting another one.

[emily_in_nc]

My 15 year old Boston Terrier is a long legged guy who has always been very fit and strong. (30 pounds). He is such an inquisitive, clueless dog, I've never allowed him off-leash. He does not have any sense of caution. His method of discovery is to dash up to something and stick his nose into it. What a goober.

Oh god, you have just described Paisley (our 9.5 year old Boston Terrier) to a "t". They don't know caution, do they? Even on leash she has gotten herself in trouble. In Belize she got bit or stung by something on our after dinner walk (in the dark, so I couldn't see what it was), and her faced swelled up huge. Terrifying. Fortunate a Benedryl brought it down quickly, as this was at night on a weekend on a third-world island with only one vet, and us without a car. If it had been a true emergency, we might not have her today.

On the October rides subject, did our same 33 mile loop today and have found the best way to get back to our new RV park. Each route we try gets a little better. We have one more tweak we might try to this one tomorrow to avoid a busy four-way stop.

[emily_in_nc]

Scary, Emily. That is one thing that worries me about the idea of travel outside the US with my dog. Glad Paisley is okay.

Yes, and that is why, if we take her out of the country again, it will be back to Mexico, and only to a city with plenty of good vets. We had good luck in Playa del Carmen, where not only are there a ton of good vets, house calls are common and don't even cost extra!

Ended the week with a nice 32.3 mile ride on a windy day. The tweak to our going home route did not work out, as it involved a longer stretch on a road that ended up being brick surfaced (through downtown) for several blocks. We'll go back to the route we did yesterday, which has a busy-four-way stop followed by a quick left turn, but at least avoids the brick street. Plus it's 3/4 mile longer, extra miles!

[Crankin]

We did cancel the ride we were going to lead on the south coast of MA and RI. Going to try again in November.
So the forecast here was for occasional showers/rain, starting at 1. We left at 10:30, hoping to do 20-30 miles or so, and do a long ride tomorrow. At mile 5 it started raining. mostly a heavy mist, but it was getting uncomfortable, plus we both were dressed too warmly. It would have been OK for the temperature, but it was like 80% humidity. So, we turned in a direction to head home and then it stopped. We had more options, so we did not go straight home. Ended up at 12 measly miles. Fast, though, and I feel like I got a good work out. Just so sweaty.
After lunch, we went to an Oktoberfest in the next town. We went to the brew pub across the street from the little fair and had cider., brewed right in Boxborough, where I used to live. Of course, by then, it was sunny, drier, and 74. No rain in sight.
Hoping to do that ride we set out to do a few weeks ago and ended up doing something else. I found the correct route, by searching DH's rides by date.

[ny biker]

Okay I've been away for a few days. Or a week maybe? Not sure. I rode after work last Tuesday night, a week ago. Another uneventful ride, and I think it was warm-ish and humid but can't really remember.

On Thursday I danced for over two hours at the Foo Fighters concert in DC. Thought it was the best concert ever. Then on Saturday I danced for 3 and a quarter hours at the Foo Fighters concert in Richmond. It was beyond awesome. They were adding songs to the set list on the fly. And they did some old songs that were totally unexpected. So much fun.

On Sunday afternoon I rode 35 miles. It was supposed to be a 39-mile ride that I was leading for the bike club, but no one else showed up. And it turns out that dancing for 3:15 the night before kinda wore my legs out. So I took a few short cuts to cut out some hills, added a few miles in a flat area but still ended up with fewer miles than planned. Which was fine. It was another humid day, cloudy at first then the sun came out. It was actually comfortable as long as I was moving. It was 80 degrees when I finished.

And just like that, the Augtober weather is gone. We're under a frost warning tonight. It's expected to warm up again in a few days but I think the humidity it gone until next year.

p.s. Rebecca, they ended both shows with Everlong.

[Crankin]

You did a really good deed! I cannot imagine riding on an interstate highway in any of the 4 states I've lived in. Perhaps I am a wimp.
Like, you Sheila, I have not been doing a lot of miles, but I have been riding. I've accepted that this will be my lowest mileage year in about 13 years. That said, we are starting a string of gorgeous weather, and since today is a day I don't work and the group ride started way far from where I live, I rode with my friend Jack. I thought we were going to do a ride we did last time, but, no, we did our usual Friday ride we lead. As soon as I started, I knew my back would be acting up; not the thing that had me flat 10 days ago, just my usual SI/disc issues. It is gorgeous out and I was dressed correctly. I was fine on the climb up Strawberry Hill, perhaps because I could do it sleeping, but after that, I knew more climbing would just make me feel worse. After a longer not so steep climb, we stopped, Jack took off some gear and I rested. Then, we proceeded to the street with the 15-18% grade in one spot. It's not too long, but after an initial steep uphill, it flattens before a longer steep uphill. I told Jack I'd see him at the turn/top. I never lost sight of him, but I did see 5.0 mph on my GPS. Anyway, after another half mile climb, where he sprinted and I spun, we had a long downhill and then through a residential country road in terrrible condition. At the end of this I told him I was heading back to the start, and he didn't need to come. But, he did. The end of this ride has never thrilled me, through a business park, a community college, and the VA hospital and services campus. So, we got back on the flat road and ended up doing 24.5 miles instead of 31. I felt badly, since I asked him and then I wimp out, but I needed to stop. He slows for me, even when I am at my best, but not so much I feel badly!
Anyway, if I wake up feeling good tomorrow, I will go for a flat, dark ride at 5 AM. Going down the Cape to stay with friends this weekend, may or may not ride there. So another nice weekend, without long rides.

[north woods gal]

That was a very nice thing to do for those folks, Sheila. The way we bicyclists look out for each other is one of the things I love about our community. That tricky route where things fluctuate between good and bad sections sounds very much like what I experienced in the Chicago suburbs. All of the 'burbs are connected, of course, but they all varied a lot in how bike friendly their streets were. Just commuting to work required a mile plus of a road that I would never ride by choice, but it was the only way to get there.

As for grades, come for a visit. Have a surplus of ups and downs on my homemade trail system. Some of the steep ones require me to stand up and pedal to crest them, even with the lowest gear on the MTBs. They're what I call my leg burners. Going down is a real kamikaze thrill, for sure.

I ride a minimum of one hour a day, usually closer to two, seven days a week. Not a lot of miles, but they're trail miles, so no way for me to convert them to road miles. Enough to keep me in shape and fun, too, so that's what counts. For sure, no worries about getting hit by a car. A deer or bear, maybe, but not a car.

Our weather has been unusually warm all fall and continues to be so. Beautiful to be out riding in the woods in nice weather with all the leaves falling. Really spoiling me, because I know how drastically things will change any week, now. Will be getting the fat bikes ready, now. One thing I did on one of the Norco fat bikes that made a tremendous difference in performance was having my bike shop set up the wheels tubeless. Those fat bike inner tubes weigh about a pound, each. Not only does the bike handle, better with no tubes, but I'll be able to drop the pressure as low as I want, this winter, without having to worry about a pinch flat. Going to see about going tubeless on some of the other bikes, now.

[rebeccaC]

I hope they have a nice trip.

….and you were a wonderful contributing element in helping them having a good trip with your caring thoughtfulness and friendliness. I wish more people would understand that being nice to others is not only a good way to live but also helps the mood of the giver too!

We are a week away from the 3 day tour de pink and we are tapering our training this next week to this weekends long easy rides in the Santa Ynez valley on some of our favorite roads and staying at one of our favorite hotel/spa’s. There is a lot of emotional content in doing this ride for me and I am really thankful to have the strength of body and mind to do however much of it as I can. I also feel blessed that two of the women who I became good friends with in the support community here are doing the ride with Alex and I too. I'm a true believer that being a cyclist can be a positive force in our lives and in this family we are part of.........

[ny biker]

I led a 47-mile club ride today on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. The weather was perfect, sunshine, no wind, 70s. We rode a leisurely pace, 12-13 mph, and had a very nice ride.

Good luck at the tour de pink, Rebecca. I'm so glad you're able to take part in it.