December rides...

[ny biker]

Congrats Emily, and also to you NWG for still getting out there in the cold weather.

I thought about riding after work last night but figured it might have been too cold and damp, and also I had a bunch of shopping I needed to do and then had to make cranberry sauce for work, as I mentioned in another thread. When I finally got home I decided that it would have been fine weather for a bike ride, but by then it was too late (and I still hadn't made the cranberry sauce...).

Tonight is a bit colder, only by 6-8 degrees but just enough. So this morning I reprogrammed my thermostat to not warm the house up this evening before I get home from work. Arriving home to a chill will be an incentive to set up the bike in the living room and get in a workout. For another incentive, I have eaten way too much food today thanks to the holiday potluck lunch at work. It's funny, so much of what was there did not appeal to me, but it only takes a few really good things to make me indulge. This year we had the usual key lime pie and orange cranberry bread that I love, plus some good cookies and another kind of bread. There was also homemade flan that was really good. And it was authentic; I asked for the recipe and the person who made it said she would have to translate it from Spanish to English. Excellent. And someone made crepes, which I haven't had in ages. They were very good, too, with some berry jam. Plus a few steamed dumplings and some salmon with rice. Lots of food, very good food. So yes I have incentive to get in some high-intensity intervals when I get home.

[Crankin]

Sigh, I don't know if I am going to ride outside again this year. Today was lovely, but too much ice on the sides of the road for me to ride. I skipped the club's hike/Xmas party because the weight on the scale this morning was way too high. And, I didn't want to drive 20 miles to get to the start. However, the Chanukah party is in 2 weeks and close to me, so I am hoping I might get an outdoor ride in there, although who knows. There is also an alternate hike, which I've done twice.
Polar vortex arrives here tomorrow afternoon, followed by now, rain, and 50 by Sunday.

[azfiddle]

I too love the pictures and admire those of you who get out in the colder temperatures.

I have a few questions about cold weather clothes but I'm going to start a separate thread for it- I hope you cold weather riders will chime in.

[ny biker]

Ditto for me on not getting out to ride again this year -- the chances are dwindling. As it turned out, I probably could have ridden outside last night, since the actual temp at 10 pm was above 40 (vs the hourly forecast in the mid-30s by then). But I didn't even ride in the living room, despite all my intentions. I needed to go to a shopping mall to return something, and that particular mall is utter traffic hell on weekends in December, so I figured I'd stop there quickly last night on the way home. But once I was there I ended up going in several stores, because I still have some Christmas shopping to do, and by the time I got home it was after 9 and I was pretty sleepy.

And now the polar vortex is here, to be followed by warmth and rain, then another bout of cold. They're expecting it to warm up just as I leave to spend Christmas in NY. I'm hoping we'll get enough of a break from the rain this weekend to get in a quick spin around the neighborhood, but not very optimistic.

[Crankin]

We thought about fat bikes, but decided we wouldn't use them enough to justify the cost. And I couldn't do a 29-er..
Right now, I just want to x country ski, but it might be another week. I just saw it may be ok for riding on Xmas, so while everyone else is celebrating, we go ride.
The wind is sure whipping it up out there.

[north woods gal]

I do hope you get to XC ski. Has a lot in common with winter biking, but still very different, too. I find it almost spiritual at times with its beautiful flowing rhythm. Truly more graceful a thing than plowing a fat bike though heavy snow. Love them both, but with a big storm headed our way, my fat biking will now be limited to plowed roads or groomed trails.

[Crankin]

I love skiing. For some reason, although I really want the season to start, I am not feeling as crazy about it as usual. I think i am just burned out on exercise, and today my back was hurting in tabata class, so I feel like I just want to chill. Tomorrow's a rest day, but not sure what will happen this weekend. It will be snowing Sat. morning, when we usually go to the gym in this in between season, so maybe a snowy short hike or snow shoe. And then we will be visiting with my son all weekend, too.
My favorite nordic ski area is open (the one about an hour away), but not up to full speed. The good thing is, when we get to Franconia for New Years, it should be really nice and snowy.

[north woods gal]

I was a little reluctant to start XC this month, too. Really wasn't mentally ready to give up on my fat biking, I guess. Kept the biking going right up to where the fat bikes get bogged down and wouldn't go in the ever deepening snow. Of course, once I put on the skis and started the old rhythm, I wondered what took me so long. Anyway, enjoy it when the time is right for you.

[north woods gal]

Yup, crazy old lady me is still riding her fatties out on the snow packed roads, a bit. That probably says more about how much I dislike riding, indoors, on the trainer than anything, though. Another 5" plus of snow, last night, so the snow is way more than the fatties can handle on the trails. It's all skiing, now, on the trails. Sigh! I really miss my trail riding, even to the point where I fantasize about stealing hubby's snow blower to clear trails. Of course, if I broke it, I'd be in the doghouse, big time.

[rebeccaC]

For the last weekend we are going to be home until January we spent Friday and yesterday night in Los Olivos to ride the quiet country roads in the Santa Ynez valley yesterday. Had a small storm/cold system come through southern ca. the end of the week but we had a beautiful sunny low 60’s day of relaxing and riding in this wonderful valley of lightly traveled side roads with no hard climbing…..even though it took some mental strength for me not to want to ride Mt. Figueroa.

It felt good after the last few weekends of climbing feasts to just be in the quiet moments of feeling blessed to be with Alex on the roads I’ve come to know and enjoy so well over the last few years……and taking time to relax together before our holiday trip….and of course having a wonderful hotel with the best spa and masseuses outside of L.A., excellent healthy food and friendly, engaging people. We rode from a little after 8am to 4pm, some highlights were visiting the Mission Santa Ines, visiting some wineries, watching baby goats doing their crazy dances in a field and having the best squash soup and a nutritious salad for lunch. Didn’t keep track of mileage as this wasn’t about any of that this weekend.

Hoping all here have a holiday season of feeling togetherness and caring…………….

[north woods gal]

That's my kind of list, Rebecca. Wonderful.

Our best to everyone, too, from up here in the frozen north country.

[azfiddle]

I got on the bike to ride to work today. It was close to 50 degrees but I still wore my new jacket (too warm, really, for this tempereature) and happily cruised passed a pair of Great Horned Owls just as the sky was getting light, with plenty of time to get to work and change clothes before the 7:30 am meeting. I turned the corner on the path, not even 4 miles in, and BANG! My tire blew out. I am not blaming my husband for pumping up my tires (even though this is the second time this has happened in a month), especially since he generously got in to the car and picked me up and took me to work. (And brought me an extra tire and tube just to be sure). I'm hoping the ride home will be less eventful.

[north woods gal]

Flats are always a bummer.

Did a little road work with one of the fat bikes around the neighborhood, just to be out riding. All snow packed roads, but, even so, not much of a challenge for the fat bike. Hit the freezing point, today and maybe some fresh snow, tomorrow, so the skiing is good, at least.

AZ, had a Northern Shrike eyeball our feeders, yesterday. Cool bird.

[azfiddle]

North woods gal- that would be a life bird for me. They don't really make it down to southern Arizona.

[north woods gal]

If I see it, again, I'll tell it to give Arizona a try. We don't have anywhere near the species diversity, up here, deep in the north woods, but I have picked up some life birds, too, by moving up here. Kind of like my biking. Everywhere I have lived, biking has been my favorite way to get to know the country and in the process, have added new birds to my life list.