September rides, bringing in the fall.

[Crankin]

Personally, I have found that the further south you go, the less you see helmets, especially in areas with a large "retirement" population.
I rode 21.5 miles this morning. It is just slightly less humid and hot than yesterday, probably about 80-83 while I rode. I was delayed a bit by having to deal with one of my young adult clients who has fallen apart. Oy, always on my day off.
I rode 5 miles, up a street that's a series of hills, which are not steep, but keep coming, with some nice breaks, across the highway, and down a hill to the bike trail. It is really shady and was a good choice for today. It was quiet, too. Probably rode about 9 miles on the trail; I didn't go as far as I usually do, as I didn't want to do an out and back, as I am a little sick of riding home on the road I climbed to get to the trail. I stopped at the point where the new part of the trail ends and turned onto a lovely super shady road in the town of Carlisle. From there, I accessed the main road into Concord Center, which is pretty flat. Made it through the center, despite some ugly road construction and then scooted around West Concord center, by doing the reroute I do when I commute. The last 4 miles were not so shady, but it didn't feel half as bad as Monday's ride.
Tomorrow is the peak of our heatwave, with a real feel of 105 predicted. Although I may ride early AM (like 5), I will be safely inside my office. After that, looks like beautiful, typical New England, crisp, cooler (50's-70's) for a long stretch. And, my horrible allergy thing is finally gone, after 2 weeks.

[emily_in_nc]

Yeah, re. helmets, we see a lot of folks without them (even younger guys wearing fancy kits and riding road bikes much higher-end than mine) here, and of course lots of casual cyclists on hybrids and various other comfort bikes with unprotected heads, even occasionally a kid without one, which I hate and always feel like calling the parents out on (but don't). Riding on the paved trail, I guess they feel invincible, but I'd still rather be protected, as there are plenty of road crossings, and occasional close calls with other cyclists coming around curves.

Did our usual 35-miler today and felt better than I have in awhile. Favorable wind direction, so I actually averaged 14, rare for me, given the number of stops and starts and in-town riding at the beginning an end of each ride. Even though it was in the 80s with humidity, the sunshine was a bit hazier, and the sun angle is noticeably more acute than even a month ago, so it doesn't feel quite as bad. Not that I'm not completely drenched during the ride, as I am, but I just don't feel so horrible!

[north woods gal]

I'm with you, Emily, on not pushing others to do the smart thing and wear a helmet, though when it's with people I know, I do stop and try to convince them. Have even offered to give a helmet, free of charge, to a couple of neighbors, but to no avail. Go figure.

Did better in the 90 degree heat and humidity, today, with 17 miles. I really could have done more with a better fitting bike. The junker I rented has a horrible, skinny guy saddle with only room for one cheek at a time for full support. Yuk! The handlebars are high rise bars that make me feel like I'm riding a Harley chopper. The old 21 speed gearing and twist shift are fine, though. After all, I ride single speeds a lot. Oh, well. That's par for the course renting a bike in a tourist area.

While taking a water break on a local park bench, I met a wonderful senior. He asked if he could join me on the bench, because it was his regular rest stop on his daily 3 mile walk. The guy looked in great shape. He then told me had just celebrated his 89th birthday. Couldn't believe it. Wow! Made my day.

I really think I could adapt to this and climate, given enough time. Lovely area, for sure, though I'm sure living here would be way out of our budget.

[Crankin]

You might get sick of endless summer, NWG!

I did not ride this morning. Woke with the sinuses pounding again, but I don't feel sick, like achy and all the other stuff I've had. The front finally came through around 5, pouring rain and thunder. It's still lightly raining. Thank God. This weather is so depressing to me. We broke a record for heat today.
Just went and put the GPS and "big" light on the Ariel, put air in the tires, to ride to the gym at 5:15 am. It will be my first attempt with the flat side of the campus pedals. It's only 1.3 miles, so I probably won't have to put my foot down!
If I feel OK, I will then ride to work at 8:15. I am working all day tomorrow, because of Labor Day this week. Won't be able to use the dirt path, though, after this rain.
I've had so many client crises this week I am fried. People mouthing off to the medical prescribers, one on the way to the hospital now, another had to leave college before classes even started.
I need to ride.

[north woods gal]

Yeah, I'm definitely a four seasons type of gal, but, as always, I can adapt when need be, Florida, included. Today was my best day, yet, on my Florida visit. Made it a point to get out, earlier, and that did help with the heat. Did 21 miles on the rental clunker and, once again, could have done more with a better fitting bike. That, and I had to be back in time for one of the conference meetings at the motel.

Tomorrow, the bike goes back and on Sunday, so do we, back to our north woods home and 70 degree high temps. Can't wait.

[Crankin]

Sheila, hope the hurricane stays far away from both of us!

I rode to the gym with the flat pedal side of my campus pedals. Ugh. The left one flipped over and I was riding on top of the cleat. I felt like if I kicked it, my other foot would fly off, so I just pedaled like that for 1.3 miles. Going home it was better, as it was light out, but at one point it did the same thing, but I was almost home. My legs felt fried from the class and riding.
Then, of course, I rode to work. I didn't have too much in the Topeak bag, as I wore the clothes I rode in all day and I bought lunch. So, just shoes, my mini flat iron and snacks. I still felt like the gears were either too hard or easy, in a way I don't when the bag is not on. But, it was nice and cloudy and cool. On the way home, I took the dirt road, where I did fine avoiding the mud from yesterday's rain. However, the next little path, a combo of dirt, gravel and grass has lots of roots. I got off of my bike right before my street, but taking these 2 paths really eliminates all traffic headaches.
I hope to ride both days this weekend, but we have an early dinner with friends tomorrow and preparing for Rosh Hashanah Sunday night. I suspect they won't be as long as I would like. Getting ready to go to the grocery store, now, so I won't have to do it tomorrow.

[north woods gal]

I've never had good performance with 50/50 style pedals. Really a pain in the butt. You always end up wasting time trying to get the correct side up when you want it and the clip in side tends to be awkward to use when you use cleats. They're also heavier than need be. I use flats, exclusively, now, and have been for three years. I wouldn't go back to SPD if you held a gun to my head. Do yourself a favor with flats and get a good set with replaceable metal pins. They can be had for a reasonable price and are the only fair test to see if flats are right for you. A good set of flats can be used with any type of shoe - don'get conned into thinking you need special shoes. This time of year, I use Wal-mart sneakers and have never had a foot slip on a good flat with pins and I'm talking aggressive trail riding, here, not just road biking.

Lastly, keep an open mind when testing flat pedals and give them a fair test, using a good set. Yes, they may feel different at first, but you may actually find, the way I did, after a summer of careful testing, that there was NO difference, NADA, as far as your average speed. As far as SPD being more "efficient"' that has been repeated so often as to be a gospel with many, but the fact is that it has NOT been strongly supported with scientific testing. Not trying to convert anyone, here. Just saying that your choice of pedal type should be based on what you, yourself, have tested and not what someone else tells you is best for you, same as with any other part of your bike and biking.