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  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    northern Virginia
    Posts
    5,897

    May flowers... and bike rides

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    Starting the May thread.

    No rides for me yet. Anyone else?

    - Gray 2010 carbon WSD road bike, Rivet Independence saddle
    - Red hardtail 26" aluminum mountain bike, Bontrager Evoke WSD saddle
    - Royal blue 2018 aluminum gravel bike, Rivet Pearl saddle

    Gone but not forgotten:
    - Silver 2003 aluminum road bike
    - Two awesome worn out Juliana saddles

  2. #2
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    north woods of Wisconsin
    Posts
    1,110
    Thanks for starting the May thread, NY.

    I already replied on the April thread, bit will repeat it, here. And yes, I still ride, every day, though pretty much the same-same, so I don't always post about it.

    As per the April thread:

    May 2 and some snow showers, here. Someone please send some spring weather, up here.

    Had a large tree come crashing down on one of my side trails. Took a lot of sawing and intelligent use of a steel rod to lever the log off the trail, but got it done. May use a smaller section of the log as a log to jump at some point. Hopping logs is a hoot.

    Was planning on getting another plus sized tire trail bike, this spring, but the only thing it would offer is a bit more speed on the trail, but would definitely not be as good for riding over rocks and logs or riding in the soft stuff as the fat bikes. Noticeable difference. In fact, most of the trails I have built have been designed for fat bike work. Have now been riding fat bikes long enough to have learned how to turn and maneuver them, quick, in tight spots. As always, experience and know-how is a big part of trail riding.

    As soon as I can get a nice day, I plan to dust off the road bike for some long miles. On these cold, windy wet days we've been having, much prefer to bike around home and head indoors, quick, when I get cold. That, and out on the road, wind and higher speeds add to the cold factor.
    Last edited by north woods gal; 05-02-2017 at 08:46 AM.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Concord, MA
    Posts
    13,394
    No riding here. The weather was quite weird today. The rain stopped at around noon, was still cool. It was 49 at 10 am when I got to work.
    At 4 pm, I had a free hour, the sun was out, so I walked for 20 minutes. It was warmer, about 70. Nice. By the time I left work at 6:45, it was windy, getting cloudy and felt cool.
    Have no idea what it will be for my group ride tomorrow, except windy.
    2015 Trek Silque SSL
    Specialized Oura

    2011 Guru Praemio
    Specialized Oura
    2017 Specialized Ariel Sport

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Concord, MA
    Posts
    13,394
    My ride today was nice. About 60, partly cloudy, and yes, windy. There were about 30 people on the longer ride and 6 on the 30 mile ride I did. The others were slower than me, but the leader, who is very good, was going a bit faster and I stayed with him. I took my arm warmers down, so the wind cooled me when I started sweating from the climbs. I've done this ride before and the middle part goes through a section of a town not known for it's beauty, but this is very rural and delightful. I think DH and I are going to steal the route and lead it for the other club!
    2015 Trek Silque SSL
    Specialized Oura

    2011 Guru Praemio
    Specialized Oura
    2017 Specialized Ariel Sport

  5. #5
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    northern Virginia
    Posts
    5,897
    I did 30 minutes of spinning on an indoor recumbent bike last night after work. After last week's rides I developed a lump in addition to sore spots from trying a different saddle position, and while the soreness is gone and lump is much smaller it's not gone yet. So I wanted to give it a few more days to subside before getting back on my road bike -- with the saddle back in its original position.

    Looking ahead to this weekend, we might have rain and/or wind on Saturday. This time of year wind = pollen sandblasting my eyes, so either condition will keep me indoors. Hopefully Sunday will be dry with low winds, even if it ends up cloudy and cool as is currently forecast.

    - Gray 2010 carbon WSD road bike, Rivet Independence saddle
    - Red hardtail 26" aluminum mountain bike, Bontrager Evoke WSD saddle
    - Royal blue 2018 aluminum gravel bike, Rivet Pearl saddle

    Gone but not forgotten:
    - Silver 2003 aluminum road bike
    - Two awesome worn out Juliana saddles

  6. #6
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    north woods of Wisconsin
    Posts
    1,110
    Hope the soreness leaves, NY, but if you've developed a lump, riding will probably aggravate it and possibly lead to an infection. Been there. You're right to hold off a bit.

    My allergies (pine pollen?) have been going nuts, too, this last week and every day being windy doesn't help.

    Tried the Trek Stashe with its 29+ 3" tires for trail work, today, but forgot that I had the tires inflated more for road work with almost max psi. Way too hard a ride on my trails. Felt like my teeth were rattling. Rather than mess with changing the tire pressure, just switched out bikes and headed back out with one of the fat bikes. Tire pressure is such a big deal with these plus size bikes and fat bikes. A little makes a big difference in the ride.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Concord, MA
    Posts
    13,394
    Sigh... had to cancel our ride this morning. Rain is predicted through noon time.
    This is a pretty low stress ride for us to lead, despite being show and go. We may re-post it, but it would be limited to people who can do the faster speed, as our co-leaders doing the slower pace will be away on the days we could do it.
    Anyway, we probably will do a short ride after lunch, as then DS and family are coming over later for an early Mother's Day, since we will be coming back from CA next Sunday.
    2015 Trek Silque SSL
    Specialized Oura

    2011 Guru Praemio
    Specialized Oura
    2017 Specialized Ariel Sport

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Concord, MA
    Posts
    13,394
    Ended up taking a 3 mile walk yesterday, as time got away. It was humid and sprinkling as we walked.
    Did a low stress 20 mile ride today, mostly in Sudbury and Wayland. We ended up on a couple of main roads, which interestingly had the most climbing of the ride. DH commented that he can't believe he rode this rather longish hill home everyday, when he commuted from the last town we lived in. It was a 44 mile round trip commute, too. Well, he was younger .
    It was breezy, but we had a tailwind on the way back. I actually was a bit too warm with what I wore, but, I dealt with it.
    Probably will commute tomorrow and hoping the group ride Wednesday has a close start, as I have a hair cut/color appt. at 2:30.
    2015 Trek Silque SSL
    Specialized Oura

    2011 Guru Praemio
    Specialized Oura
    2017 Specialized Ariel Sport

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    Tucson, AZ
    Posts
    1,973
    May is flying by!

    I have 4 commutes for the first week of May- and one that didn't happen due to a flat tire - 2 failed attempts to fix it and so much panic in having my husband drive me halfway i thought I left my regular glasses at home and ended up driving!

    Friday-Saturday we did the Tucson Audubon birdathon by bike. Friday sunset at Lakeside park, then a mostly moonlit and peaceful ride to Saguaro N.P. to look for nightbirds. We had 30 species including one Elf Owl... then got up to leave at 5 am to hit the east side desert and a little oasis before going up Mt. Lemmon.

    We did well with bird sightings but Chuck has been off his bike a lot this year and for unknown reasons, started feeling weak in the legs and a little light-headed just 5 miles up at Molino Basin. He made it to mile 7 and then we decided to turn around. Besides, the wind was starting and predicted to be sustained in the 20's with gusts to the 30's by noon, which is NOT good on the mountain. So we had already changed our original plan to go to the top and would only have gone to milepost 11.5 anyway.

    69 species - not too bad, and we raised over $500.
    Anyone who wants the full report, PM me with your email.
    2016 Specialized Ruby Comp disc - Ruby Expert ti 155
    2010 Surly Long Haul Trucker - Jett 143

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Twin Cities, Minnesota
    Posts
    486
    I've managed to get out and ride three times in May. The weather has been so beautiful. And I am getting my mph up there. I have 42.23 miles under my belt for May and a total 151.30 miles for this year. I am really trying for 800 miles this summer. I just wish Don were here to cheer me on.
    kajero
    2013 Trek FX 7.6 WSD
    2012 Specialized Ruby WSD
    2004 Schwinn (I think that is the year)

  11. #11
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    north woods of Wisconsin
    Posts
    1,110
    We'll cheer you on, kajero. Keep riding, girl. You're doing great.

    I'm still trying to break away for a few hours and do a long pavement ride, but it's just too easy to stay right at home, here, and hit the trails on our property for an hour of hard trail work. Does as much, if not more, in terms of aerobic and strength as three hours of road biking, but I do miss that steady, mesmerizing groove of road work.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Twin Cities, Minnesota
    Posts
    486
    Quote Originally Posted by north woods gal View Post
    We'll cheer you on, kajero. Keep riding, girl. You're doing great.

    I'm still trying to break away for a few hours and do a long pavement ride, but it's just too easy to stay right at home, here, and hit the trails on our property for an hour of hard trail work. Does as much, if not more, in terms of aerobic and strength as three hours of road biking, but I do miss that steady, mesmerizing groove of road work.

    All my rides are both flat and hilly. And I don't have to walk up any of the hills anymore. A couple hills took me forever to conquer but I did. Well, okay, I do have to walk up one. It's out at Fort Snelling and I don't think I will ever conquer that one.
    kajero
    2013 Trek FX 7.6 WSD
    2012 Specialized Ruby WSD
    2004 Schwinn (I think that is the year)

  13. #13
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    northern Virginia
    Posts
    5,897
    Quote Originally Posted by kajero View Post
    All my rides are both flat and hilly. And I don't have to walk up any of the hills anymore. A couple hills took me forever to conquer but I did. Well, okay, I do have to walk up one. It's out at Fort Snelling and I don't think I will ever conquer that one.
    Well you never know! Glad you're getting in some good rides.

    I did 36 miles on Sunday. It was supposed to be part of a big club ride on Saturday, but was postponed due to rain. I ended up as one of the ride leaders since some of the people who were going to lead on Saturday had other commitments for Sunday. It was breezy, 10-15 mph winds with 25 mph gusts according to the weather forecast, with a chance of pop-up showers. Temps in the 50s, more like March than May for us. I was worried that the wind would make it one of those un-fun rides where you just struggle the whole time, but once I agree to lead I was committed. It turned out to be a nice ride, only a few miles of struggling into a headwind. The turnout was not as good as it would have been the previous day but I still was able to catch up with some friends that I hadn't seen in a while.

    Unfortunately I'm still having the saddle problem, even though I'd moved my saddle back to its original position. The lump came back and by the end of the ride it felt like I was sitting on a small marble. It's under the skin, not a cyst or boil, on top of the narrow bone in front of the sit bone. No soreness or bruised feeling like I had the previous week. No bruise or skin discoloration. So I guess I need a longer break from my road bike to let it go away completely. The saddle is a new Affinity RXL, which I bought because the old Affinity RXL was feeling a bit too squishy like the foam was breaking down. I still have the old one and might put it back on the bike for a while.

    - Gray 2010 carbon WSD road bike, Rivet Independence saddle
    - Red hardtail 26" aluminum mountain bike, Bontrager Evoke WSD saddle
    - Royal blue 2018 aluminum gravel bike, Rivet Pearl saddle

    Gone but not forgotten:
    - Silver 2003 aluminum road bike
    - Two awesome worn out Juliana saddles

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    Concord, MA
    Posts
    13,394
    Hope that goes away, NY.
    I commuted yesterday. It was 48 and partly cloudy, breezy when I left. Since the clothing I had at work was way too spring-y for a day where it was going to be 52 and raw, I wore something I could ride in, and wear all day. Terry commuting tights (really no chamois, sort of a tri chamois), which are super warm, a lighter than normal long sleeved base layer, and my rarely worn wool cycling dress, with my commuting jacket which is always warmer than I remember. It had rained earlier in the morning and that jacket is also waterproof. I actually think it's bombproof. I was too lazy to pull on my booties, so I wore my winter cycling shoes, with wool socks. For a 2.8 mile ride, I felt very stylish, so I added a scarf.
    I felt a bit sweaty, even though it was very raw out! When I got to work, I deduced it was from the high humidity level. I had to take the scarf off for a bit, and wash up, as if it had been much warmer out. I went out to walk across the street to buy my lunch, and i felt freezing, even with the jacket on. On the way home, it was about the same temperature at 7 PM, and I felt sweaty again.
    Wearing those tights all day was a bit uncomfortable, as the seams started feeling itchy at one point.
    2015 Trek Silque SSL
    Specialized Oura

    2011 Guru Praemio
    Specialized Oura
    2017 Specialized Ariel Sport

  15. #15
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    california
    Posts
    1,232
    Quote Originally Posted by azfiddle View Post
    Friday-Saturday we did the Tucson Audubon birdathon by bike. Friday sunset at Lakeside park, then a mostly moonlit and peaceful ride to Saguaro N.P. to look for nightbirds. We had 30 species including one Elf Owl... then got up to leave at 5 am to hit the east side desert and a little oasis before going up Mt. Lemmon................69 species - not too bad, and we raised over $500.
    Such a nice way to be with other birding people and also getting some good exercise!!!.......and especially raising money for the conservation of birds and their habitats!!!!! Hoping Chuck feels better on your next ride together!!!


    Quote Originally Posted by kajero View Post
    All my rides are both flat and hilly. And I don't have to walk up any of the hills anymore. A couple hills took me forever to conquer but I did. Well, okay, I do have to walk up one. It's out at Fort Snelling and I don't think I will ever conquer that one.
    Thinking hills can get easier with more riding time ……..keep challenging yourself and good things can come from it…..wishing peace and strength for you!!!!


    Having a good day less frequently has meant not much riding for me. Quiet beach walks are replacing riding more now. Today was one of those days in the sequence of treatments that I usually feel good enough for a short ride. Just 6 miles to and back from the farmers market this afternoon but I enjoyed every mile in perfect weather……and brussel sprout, rice, white bean and shiitake soup for dinner ftw…
    ‘The negative feelings we all have can be addictive…just as the positive…it’s up to
    us to decide which ones we want to choose and feed”… Pema Chodron

 

 

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