June rides....hopefully a pleasant month of weather and rides for all

[Crankin]

Led our bike club rally 30 mile ride today. It was hot! 80-85 degrees. We had the largest group, but we broke into 2 groups, with DH and I leading/sweeping the faster group. Unlike most AMC rides, we had some really fast people, and I spent my time at the back with 3-4 of them. I was pissed at DH for not slowing a bit, but after talking to the couple that were behind him, they kinda had an edge and I can see why he didn't. Everyone was happy, we had no mechanicals, but I had a couple of incidents where the group right in front of me just weren't taking the lane on some of the more difficult left turns. They were timid and i had to yell at them to get over. Near the end of the ride, they told me to get in front of them, and I did, leading them back to the start.
DH and I went home, showered, changed, and then went back to Verill Farm for happy hour, a speaker about the history of cycling in Boston, and dinner. Food was great, and the speaker was good. Afterwards, we went with our friends to get ice cream. A really nice day.
And a funny thing was we were talking to someone in the line for dinner, and he told me his name and that he was the president of another local bike club. I knew right away that he was the dad of one of my former students. This kid was 12 and had the same bike I did and always wrote in his journal about his average on rides! He ended up being a very successful scientist. It's always nice to hear this stuff, and it doesn't happen very often.

[SheFly]

I met Larry at the Harvard Road Race last week, and then again before and after the Pioneers Ride from Ride Studio Cafe yesterday. He is very entertaining, and quite nice to chat with!

My rides this week were eclectic! After being away on business with no bike from Mon through Weds, I was itching to get back out on Thurs, but the weather was miserable - rain, and cool temps. That didn't deter us from an MTB ride out the rail trail to Estabrook, despite the rain, and all of the mud it left in its wake. By the time we were done, the sun was shining, but I still had to stand in the shower with my bike clothes on to get the mud out BEFORE putting the kit in the laundry.

Friday I had planned to head out on the trails with local pro and friend, Mo Bruno Roy. What I neglected to take into account was the toll that 40 miles of MTB at a fairly fast pace was going to take on my legs. With my competitive side, I wasn't smart enough to go at an easier pace, plus I wanted to show Mo all of the good stuff. Lesson learned.

Yesterday was the launch of a new Ride Studio Cafe team - the Expedition team. This is a team of 6 women who will ride/ race together wherever the road/dirt takes us. Our kickoff ride was at the shop's Pioneer Ride, and was 111 miles with about 5700 feet of climbing on both paved and dirt roads. This normally wouldn't be an issue for me, but the two days of riding leading into it, the heat, and the frequent prolonged stops did me an, and had me suffering later in the ride. The route was spectacular, however, and the day ended up being a great amount of fun.

Today was about resting and recovery. My biggest accomplishment was vacuuming the house and walking to the supermarket for lemonade

SheFly

[Crankin]

Because we were busy all day yesterday, I spent the AM, grocery shopping and lounging around the house, while DH did yard work. We went for a shorter, 21 mile ride around Concord, mostly Carlisle, took pictures and enjoyed the day. It was humid, not quite as hot as yesterday, but still up there, around 80-82. There were clouds, so that saved me. However, I drank 2 bottles, which is odd for me, for a shorter ride.
I probably will ride to work tomorrow, after the gym, as Tuesday looks like a rain out, with thunder.

[emily_in_nc]

A beautiful day today after buckets of rain yesterday! We rode the Constitution Trail, plus some extra rural roads, in Bloomington-Normal, IL, as we continue our trek westward across the US. Got in 60 fun miles, mostly flat to slightly rolling. 70s with sunshine and a fairly stiff breeze from the north. Ate some amazing ice cream in downtown Normal...YUM!

Attachment 17171

[Veronica]

We got a late start to our ride today - 8:30 AM and it was already 84 degrees. Thom and I split up on our ride today, since I didn't feel like doing the 25%+ grades to get to the ridge and was not feeling great in the heat. We rode to "Cow Corner" together and then he headed up to the ridge and I continued on to the Water Tower descent. I absolutely love descending this trail when there are no hikers on it. Initially it has sweeping turns with good sight lines, but right by the water tower it gets super steep with some switchbacks. It's a fire road, so the switchbacks aren't hard to navigate and you have to cut your speed as you head into it to be sure there aren't any hikers or equestrians that you couldn't see. Today it was totally open and I flew down it, hitting 28 mph! Once you can see into the second switchback, you can just let the bike go. That was enough to convince me that I had another lap in me despite the heat. On the second lap I did have a couple of hikers that I needed to slow for on the descent, but that's okay. There was plenty of room to pass them, but I think flying by is rude.

I also discovered that I can change my rear shock while riding. On the first lap Thom and I were talking about it. I routinely change the front one from climbing to cross county mode, occasionally put it into downhill, but not often. I had had difficulty finding the lever for the rear one. You really cant' see it, you have to go by feel. By following the top tube down to the shock, you just automatically hit the lever. Climbing mode is very stiff! When it is in climbing mode, it's easier to find it using your left hand to put it back into cross country. On some of the flattish sections I practiced just moving it back and forth. This is my first fully suspended bike, with a dropper saddle, so I'm still figuring out what I can do with it. It's a lot to coordinate sometimes as you start a descent - put the the bike in the middle ring. Change the shocks to descending mode, drop the saddle - all as the bike is moving and picking up speed.

It was 92 when we finished our ride at 9:45. Yeah, it was short, just 7.25 miles, but with 1050 feet of climbing.

Veronica

[ny biker]

I did a 57-mile club ride yesterday in Fauquier County, VA, which is a rural area southwest of DC. Joe Dombrowski (Team Sky racer) is from this area. It was warm and humid, strong sun in the beginning, but then clouds rolled in and it got windy as a front approached. We started to see rain clouds nearby during the last hour or so, but it was an isolated shower that stayed north of us.

I had major contact lens problems about halfway through the ride, caused by the headwinds. My eyes got really dry, I put drops in them, then the right lens shifted way up high inside my eye. I had to ride that way for about half an hour until we reached a rest stop with a bathroom so I could wash my hands, remove the lens and put it back in my eye. At first I couldn't get the lens out, and for a few seconds I thought maybe it had fallen out and I'd lost it, but I put more drops in and that helped the lens shift down to where I could remove it, put more drops on it and put it back in my eye. After that it was fine.

I've had similar problems a few times this spring, and once one of the lenses popped out of my eye and I had to stop, take it off my face with my finger, get my half-finger gloves off, get the drops out of my top tube bag and remove the cap, put drops on the lens and get it back into my eye, all while standing on a rail trail trying to keep the wind from blowing the lens away.

I think the Patanol antihistamine eye drops that get me through pollen season are having a drying effect on my eyes, especially when I'm in a area with certain trees that I'm allergic to. The problem only seems to happen in certain places, and it's happened twice in the same part of southern Maryland. Since we're a week into June and tree pollen levels are lower, I'm going to stop using the Patanol and hopefully that will help the dry eye problem. When it's not pollen season, I usually put Blink drops in my eyes when I first wake up if it's very early in the morning (which usually only happens if I'm heading out for a long bike ride) because my eyes tend to be dry on those days. Anyway I hope the problem goes away now.

[colorisnt]

Rode around the neighborhood when I got to my parent's house yesterday afternoon (and holy Chicago traffic and road construction on a Sunday, batman!). It was a long drive that I am glad is done for a day. I got here in good time because I know the roads but had I followed the I-DOT detour, I would have added an hour on!

Rode about 15 miles this afternoon and have forgotten how to deal with flat roads! I was faster on the section with the mile long incline and serious climb for about a quarter of a mile than I was on the downhill and flat sections. Rode out on country roads and enjoyed the beautiful day. May go out with my Dad again later or may go out again on my own - depends on how he feels.

Up to Toronto tomorrow! Will be landing around 3 PM EST.

ETA: rode around downtown and saw my good friend from HS whose shop made me this custom:

[Veronica]

Took my road bike out this morning for a short two hour ride with a friend. My road bike is so light! Road descents are easier than trail and mountain biking has given me a nice bit of acceleration both on the flats and the hills. She had a meeting starting at 8:30 so we met at 5:45. Sunrise was at 5:44. It was really nice to get out so early - 67 degrees when I started. We had a good time chatting and riding.

Veronica

[Irulan]

Our ladies' group MTB rides are a huge success. Twice monthly, response is overwhelming.

[colorisnt]

Our ladies' group MTB rides are a huge success. Twice monthly, response is overwhelming.

That's awesome! Great picture.

I rode around Toronto a bit and have been out 2-3 times/day here in Ottawa. Got 20 miles in today and it was like I didn't even know it. Went down to the best bike shop for women (per the cyclists I am staying with) and bought a new kit (first pair of bibs on sale) and another pair of LG shorts that I haven't seen anywhere in the US yet - also on sale. I got twice as much as I could get at the LBS at home for the price. Went to West Fest for a bit in Westboro and then the nut free bakery before I picked up some glass and watched my tire slowly deflate on the way home. Limped home okay, so not a blow out.

Was going to do an organized ride tomorrow but I don't think it's going to be as much mileage as I will feel like, so I think I will opt to go solo and ride a route myself.

[Crankin]

I hadn't been on my bike since last Sunday; a little because of weather, and a lot because I've been sick with my twice yearly sinus infection. I have been taking it really easy, since I am flying out to San Diego next Saturday, to see my dad and help my brother deal with all the stuff with my dad. Anyway, I was good and took a walk yesterday, even though it ended up being a pretty nice day. Today was perfect. We hung around and read the paper, ate bagels, etc., in honor of Father's Day. I knew I wasn't up to the metric I wanted to do, but I did want to ride. The medication I'm taking is making my stomach very upset, but it's working, so I've been plowing on, because the sinus stuff is gone. As soon as I got on the bike, I knew this was not a good idea. Not only did I just feel "off," my speed was really low, and I just felt like i was struggling. We rode on some roads that we don't do that often, in Sudbury, mostly in the opposite direction that we usually do. DH was really far ahead, which is not usually the case. At one point, I thought I would puke, but I think drinking Skratch helped that, a lot.
OK, we finally got back to our street and I told DH I seriously didn't think I could do the climb. He checked my bike, and guess what? Brakes f*cked up again. He's been working on them for a month. We got them good enough to ride, I kept my speed low on the climb, and I did feel not so bad. We came to the conclusion that the new "fancy" housing for the cables is not working on my bike. It's too stiff, and is pushing the cable, which causes the pads to stick, because of the position of where the cable enters the brake mechanism. Anyway, DH just replaced them with the old fashioned kind, and once again, I am glad we have an inventory of just about everything at home.
I have another 1.5 days of taking the meds and I don't want to, but I don't want to be sick, either. I will make my mileage goal of 1K by July 1, but it will be close with me going away.
23 miserable miles, in very nice weather. Going to meet DS and DIL for dinner now, for Father's Day.

[Jolt]

Well, if it makes you feel any better I had a yucky ride today too despite the nice weather. I didn't ride last week either, between weather, work and then being a bit sick Thursday from what I suspect was some bad fish (ugh). It has taken a couple of days to get feeling more or less back to normal. Today I decided to do a fairly hilly 25-mile loop that I have done before, and I was just not firing on all cylinders...started out feeling not so great, hoped that would improve after the first 15-20 minutes or so (as often happens) but it didn't really. Used the little ring (which always feels like giving up) way more than I normally would have and still struggled to finish the ride...before the halfway point I considered turning around but decided that if I did that I'd be totally disgusted with myself so I kept going. I'm not sure whether to chalk this one up to 1) not having done much for a few days, 2) the weather being warmer than I am used to so far this season, or 3) something else, but it was definitely an "off" day.

[colorisnt]

Sorry you guys had some rough bit of rides.

I got lost (didn't quite make it up to Meech lake as planned) but still got about 25 miles in. Had about 75 miles in the previous week despite about 19 hours of driving!

Here are some pics from the ride:




Rode around Parliament and the like today and then rode into QC quite a bit. FORCED myself to speak French for a second day in a week. Went to an all-french immersion dinner right after getting here and it was rough. I think my ear is either getting better or my brain has just had plenty of sleep, either way, it's easier.

Loving Ottawa so much!

Gonna blog about it later.

[ny biker]

So I had a great bike ride on Saturday. And I'm not going to be humble here -- I designed a seriously awesome route. I lead a club ride in northern Maryland, with a few miles in Pennsylvania for good measure. I used some roads I knew from the Civil War Century, a few that I picked up on a Baltimore Bike Club ride a couple of years ago, and some that I had never seen in person before but was able to scout out virtually using Google Street View. The result of 50 miles, with many quiet country lanes, lots of creek crossings, two covered bridges, an Oreo cow sighting (http://beltie.org), and just a whole day of fun rural cycling with friends. The weather was near perfect; after several days of rain and humidity, the skies cleared and it was actually cooler than normal for mid-June, with a just a bit of a breeze at times.

Every day should be this good!!

[Crankin]

I commuted for the first time in a week or two? I can't remember. Anyway, I went to boot camp this morning, came home, showered, got ready, got in my bike clothes, ate, and went to work. It was cooler this morning, around 64, and perfect. Tonight, I left the latest I've ever left, probably was 7:20 before I actually clipped in. Still nice, about 74, but you can feel the humidity rolling in. Thinking about commuting tomorrow, but I do need a rest day, because I have stuff planned for the rest of the week. Even though it's still light out at 7:30, I had my headlight flashing; it gets very shadowy and dark around the big trees.