July 4th Saturday RIDES

[TrekTheKaty]

That was part of the 60-mile loop I did today on a rented bike. My normal one is making its way to Seattle for the STP, so I rented a Madone 5.2 from my LBS. It was my first time on a carbon fiber bike and I loved the feel. I didn't love the SRAM Rival components, the gearing, or the agonizing not-my-shape saddle, though, so it was a very mixed bag as far as cycling enjoyment went. However, the bike was clearly built for speed, and I averaged 19.3 mph on the 46 miles that my GPS worked -- and that was uphill into Princeton, alone, against a decent headwind. Normally I average about 15 mph on these rides, so it was really fun to blaze along at speeds normally way outside of my ability range. Plus it didn't rain and I didn't get lost, so I'd peg it as a pretty darn successful ride.

You're not helping--I want a Madone really bad, but I'm trying to wait another year. DH says when I keep up with him, I can have the Madone--but I need the Madone to keep up with him! UUGGHHHH

[7rider]

And the descent? So, so scary! I would much rather climb up that mountain than be scared to death flying down! It was a great ride - beautiful weather, beautiful scenery, and great company. I ended up doing 82 miles - 20 miles more than my longest ride. I know - what was I thinking?! I have a good sore feeling in my legs and I've eaten enough food today to feed a family of 5.

You are da BOMB!!!!
Way to go. Congrats.
And your impression of Sugarloaf matches mine. Oh, lordy. I thought I was going to freak out coming back down!
We'll have to talk Aziz into do another training session so he can teach you pedalling technique, hill climbing, and pace lines. Wait a minute. Maybe not. You may get too fast.
Oh, and DH says that the all day eat-fests are one of his favorite perks of those long Sugarloaf rides!

Good luck DB and MDHS!

[HillSlugger]

There you go. That's why I didn't ride with you and Kalidurga today. I was done with my 22 miles (from the Greenbelt Metro up to the Patuxent Wildlife Refuge and over to Bowie) by noon, before it got hot, with plenty of time to go out to the Indian buffet for lunch.



I'll wave when you blow past me.

The race info is up. I'm in wave 11 and you're in wave 12; they haven't posted the wave times, however.

[Zen]

After my ride I went up the street to watch our local 4th of July parade. It's the epitome of a small town parade...

Didn't you post photos of that before? If it's the one I'm thinking about they were great.

[Biciclista]

today was a traffic avoiding bike ride. My son and Daughter in law invited me to a street scramble, which is kind of like a scavenger hunt or orienteering. The problem is the start and finish for the street scramble is also where half of seattle go to watch the fireworks, so not only was it a car free area, it was also extremely crowded. So I rode 11 miles there, then we did the 3 hour street scramble, then i put my sorry butt back onto the bike and rode home.
Discovery: even when you are totally spent from walking for 3 hours in the heat of the sun, with tired legs and achy feet, your BIKE muscles in your legs are STILL FRESH! so even though i was totally totally tired and depleted, i rode the 11 miles home in good time.
I am very happy to be home now.
BTW, for those of you who wonder about the effectiveness of those "wings" I have the DeSoto Sport Arm coolers. I was out in the sun from 11am until 5pm with those things on. I decided that by 5 the sun would be cool enough to take them off. I did. To my surprise, the sun felt so much hotter on my skin that I put them back on. They do really work!

[Fredwina]

maybe I should put this in adventure stories. It certainly turned into one!

[Zen]

Oh that's not so bad (cept for the cramps and lost valve)
No one was injured in the telling of that story

[Cataboo]

44 windy flat beach miles. Actually, all of them seemed slightly uphill both ways.

[Crankin]

Fredwina, your Circle K comment made me laugh. When they filmed "Bill and Ted," it was at the Circle K on Southern and Hardy, in Tempe. They were doing it at 4:30 in the morning, with all of those giant lights, as I was on my way to teach my 5AM aerobics class. It was quite a sight.

[ridebikeme]

Ahhh reading about everyones rides gives me hope that I someday will be back out there! It was pouring all day here again, so hopped on the trainer for a quick 25 miles. I'm thankful I have a trainer because without it the past month I would be going crazy:

[ASammy1]

Did a short 21 mile club ride in the windy area of VB called Pungo. I never in a million years thought I would be the one pulling into the headwind riding at 16 mph! I'm definitely getting stronger

[uforgot]

Fastdogs and I rode the Acorn Trail and through some neighborhoods in Rolla. We were dodging thunderstorms. It was good to see her again. It's been too long. I don't know how fast our bikes went, but our mouths were going at least 80mph.

[Owlie]

I did a 2.3 mi ride (yeah, I know) on my new bike yesterday. I took it out on the bike trail. I didn't think my bum could handle anything more.

[Reesha]

Owlie, we've allll been there. There were days early this year when I'd get on my bike and curse myself to high hell for forgetting to take ibuprofen. I usually just push through it.

It will get easier every time!

[skinimini]

I did an easy 28 miles meandering through my community. There were some little hills, a couple of big hills, and about 10 miles of flats. I felt great, but I've been having some saddle issues, so my bum was anxious to cut short the ride.

I spent literally hours on this forum yesterday looking at all the posts about saddle issues. Finally decided to order a Selle Italia SLR Lady Gelflow--hope it works!