Ride Report June 14

[Crankin]

Wow, I'm first today... went out at 5:05 AM. First I ran into a wild turkey going down my hill! There's a flock of about 30 that live in my neighborhood, but it was a little weird to see it run across the road. I love going out early in the morning. Rode down behind the Old North Bridge and around my usual loop, but in the opposite direction, since there was no nasty after work traffic. The air was really clear and there was a slight mist hanging above the fields and farms. Saw lots of jack rabbits too.
15.2 miles in 59 minutes. I only saw one other cyclist, when I almost was home.

The 170 mm cranks on my new bike have to go!!

[songlady]

Robyn,
Are the 170's too big or too small? Just curious...

[betagirl]

More exploring today. Did 27 miles before I ran out of time and had to come back. My legs felt like garbage. Must be the lack of sleep combined with running around all day with the kids at camp. Had a deer decide to cross the road in front of me. Why do they always stop and look at you?

[hibiscus09]

No ride today courtesy of Tropical Storm Alberto. I'm going to head to the gym and do legs and cardio.

[Duck on Wheels]

Just a quickie today -- to the gym for spin class, then home again. On the way home it rained, which shouldn't bother a duck like me but I did worry about RubySlipperz. Remembered to keep feathering the brakes to keep them dry, remembered to avoid wet manhole covers, and made it home fine. Now Ruby is drying off in her personal parking space in the kitchen while I wait for my french toast slices to soak. Spin class was fun, as usual. Today's surprise was when we "saw somebody up the road who'd had a flat". One guy was volunteered to fix the flat while the rest of us waited, but to keep our hr's up, we had to do squats for about 5 minutes. Of course the "volunteer" was doing them too, but that was to work the pump fixing that flat. Otherwise a moderate intensity endurance session, 75 minutes. Also did my core series for warmups before class.

[Fredwina]

lost the keys to casa Fredwina. Grr! I'm waiting for the landlord to show, and them I need to commiserate with el boss. I imagine I'll wind up taking today off instead of friday.... hope yet!

[mtbdarby]

You'll love this report, lol. I got my splint off on Monday and did 4 whole miles on my trainer yesterday. I'm finally able to wrap my hand around the handle bar but I don't have the strength to put my weight on it for long. Ten days before my week-long tour starts and I'm getting nervous.....why do I always crash the month of a big ride??

[mtkitchn]

Congrats on getting your splint off and getting some miles on the trainer, mtbdarby!

I got out at 4:45 this morning, but there wasn't even a hint of coolness in the air (84 degrees, I think). Sweated like a pig through the 20 miles, but it was nice to ride anyway! Very little traffic and not many cyclists out at that time of morning. Is always pleasant to ride before dawn.

[Duck on Wheels]

You'll love this report, lol. I got my splint off on Monday and did 4 whole miles on my trainer yesterday. I'm finally able to wrap my hand around the handle bar but I don't have the strength to put my weight on it for long. Ten days before my week-long tour starts and I'm getting nervous.....why do I always crash the month of a big ride??

Hmmm, could it be you've got your eyes on those red bike shorts instead of on the road?
Get well quick, whatever the cause was!

[mtbdarby]

But Team Polska was no where to be seen Musta been daydreaming...

[janetsplanet]

Okay Mtdarby you got your splint off and I got one on. I found out that jamming your finger on a box = torn tendon. 6 weeks on the pinkie and if I bend it --we start over..bummer
That was the 1st thing I learned today. The second thing I learned was
+++very cushy comuting seat =wet butt on the way home if it rained....+++

By the way that tour you are taking doesn't start in Southern WI? Szar is also taking a tour around then. She posts here too.

[Dogmama]

I got out at 4:45 this morning, but there wasn't even a hint of coolness in the air (84 degrees, I think). Sweated like a pig through the 20 miles, but it was nice to ride anyway! Very little traffic and not many cyclists out at that time of morning. Is always pleasant to ride before dawn.

80 degrees in Tucson - I'm with ya, mtkitchn! 19 miles through the foothills starting at 5:15. Nice ride, bombed downhill & dried off most of the sweat before getting home.

[makbike]

I got in a nice 46 miles this afternoon. The 3 hours I spent on the bike were heaven and h*ll. My legs did not want to pump the first 20 miles or so and I almost turned around and headed home. I also have a bad case of poison ivy on my neck, chin and face and the straps on my helmet were rubbing and I was at times very uncomfortable. However, I found a Clif bar in my bag, downed it and decided to finish the route (I was riding a route I had put together on paper for a club ride I'm hosting next week). I'm glad I finished the ride for I finally found my rhythm and had a great second half. I saw some quail, a doe and a beautiful orange bird (I think it was a Baltimore Oriole but I have to look it up in my bird book this evening). The weather is great here, mid 70's, low humidity, slight breeze. Time for dinner and some quiet time on the couch with my cross stitch and my cats/kittens.

[uk elephant]

Did a short version of my ride from the station before my town, loop through countryside, home. 14 miles total and for some reason today my legs moved as if through treacle (which I have only just figured out what is since I moved here to UK). Slow going. I blame it on the winds. Which will hopefully at some point make me strong enough to tackle hills at some point in the future. Less than a year to AidsRide! AAAA!! Panic!!!!

Did a bit of exploring on my ride too. Found a website for a local farm offering pick-your-own berries not too far from town. Turns out it is only 4.5 miles from my house. And next door to that farm is another one with a plant nursery and tea room. Could make for a nice Sunday outing if I can convince people to join me. I think at least BF is up for it.

And on a completely unrelated side-note: Susie Q the cat is being very cute. She for some reason prefers curling up on paper or cardboard. She has now made herself cozy in my cardboard box full of papers I'm supposedly using as references for my thesis. She is putting the papers to much better use than me.....

[Lise]

Nothing much, 3 miles to the clinic and 3 miles home on the Marin, because the Bianchi's back tire was flat this morning--broken valve on both front and back tires. While it took me over an hour and a lot of swear words and tears, not to mention self-deprecatory pleadings for help on this very forum to change the first tire Monday night, it took me an easy 10 min to change the back one today! Whoo-hoo! The Green Hornet rides again, and if she flats, I can fix it! Even with a short ride to and from work, it felt so good. This is my favorite weather, cool, sunny, everything in bloom and smelling good. Reminds me of summer as a kid, when you'd just gotten out of school and got to ride your bike all over.

beta--where are you? I go offline for a weekend, and you're exploring a deer-infested countryside populated by camp-going children? Toto, I don't think we're in Oak Park anymore!

ukeliphant--SusieQ?! How adorable. I'll have to scan and upload a picture of Isaac the cat sleeping on my keyboard when I was in grad school. One time I got up to go the kitchen while I was working on my thesis. When I came back, the screen was blank. Had I saved my work before getting up? Of course not. Oh, the sick feeling my the pit of my stomach. Fortunately, Isaac had just put his head down on the "tab" key and inserted 5 pages of tabs. Whew.

mtbdarby and janet--good luck with the hands. What precious tools they are.