Tuesday Ride

It hit 80 degrees this afternoon and I was out there for another 2 hour ride, doing the reverse of the route from yesterday. The wind was very strong, from the south, and I caught up with a fellow rider at mile 18 who joined me for the 12 mile ride home. He was faster than I am but I managed to keep up with him slowing every now and then on hills.

So that makes 7 days in a row, and 30 miles each day for the last three.

And my right knee is a little sore so I am unsure about the ride tomorrow.

Monday Ride

Since this is a "dead" week at work, I arrived at my usual 7:30 but skipped out at 2:30 and was on my bike at 3 for a nice leisurely (14 mph) 2 hour ride. Still doesn't feel like "exercise" at this pace, but it must be doing something. Will weigh in at the end of the year and see where I am. Hopefully around 160. Weather tomorrow is supposed to be the same as today. It was sunny and 65 with no wind at 3 PM.

Sunday Ride

Managed to ride for 2 hours today. It was certainly nice and sunny and while there appeared to be little wind, it was there. Saw a lot of people riding today. First a single, then 4 folks then a group of six or seven, including 5 women, and finally on my road home a group of about 30. I didn't know which bike club it was as there are three in the area that large.

So that makes 5 days in a row, the same as Thanksgiving, although three of my days were one hour. The next few days promise to be sunny and I will continue to ride in the afternoon.

Sunday Weather

Calm winds, albeit a little chilly, but by 1 or 2 AM the temps should be around 55 and it's a sunny cloudless day so I will get an easy 2 hours in for my 5th day in a row.

Saturday Ride

Today is my sister's birthday. So Happy Birthday Julie!

It was very windy out there today; about as bad as it gets, and today is was from the west. Did one hour and that was enough. Could be doing 2 hours but lack the motivation and partnership out there. But I have ridden 4 days in a row.

Friday Ride

Despite the wind I rode on Friday, for an hour. It was an unbelievable 80 degrees. The wind was so strong that on one very gentle downhill I was racing along at nearly 40 mph, pedaling furiously in my biggest gear. Hope to get out on Saturday as well.

Friday

There is the proverbial good and bad news today. The good news is that it will be near 80. The bad news is that it's very windy, and I do mean very windy -- the type you can hear howling from in doors -- and it rained over night so the roads are still wet.

I will wait till later in the day and see what happens.

Christmas Ride

Merry Christmas!

There were very few people out on the road today, and while the afternoon was warm, in the low 60's, there was a strong south wind and the day was gray and overcast.

But I managed 2 hours out there and it certainly beats sitting at home. Will try again tomorrow for another 2 hours. I have a thought at the back of my mind to ride the year out; that would be another 10 days in a row.

Wednesday Ride

So, needless to say I never rode last Sunday, as the temps never got up over freezing and I had no way to keep my feet warm.

But I did get out this afternoon as it was sunny and 55, although the north wind made it feel much colder. It was an unusual ride in that I rode into the wind at the beginning, which I had I planned for, but also at the end -- where I was supposed to have the wind at my back all the way home. Instead the wind shifted. Bummer. Rode for almost an hour and half. Too cold to do 2 hours and didn't have enough motivation.

19 degrees this morning

This is about as cold as it gets here in Dallas. Matches our 10 year low. Pretty cold outside and I will wait until the sun warms up the air as we are suppose to hit 40 today. But it is sunny so it may feel warmer. Anyway, I will need to dress warmly, but it's generally just my feet that get cold.

Saturday Ride

Despite a very gray and windy day and one where I just as soon as sat and read in front of the fireplace I went out and biked for 2 hours. As always the most enjoyable moment was the last few miles, with a strong wind behind me -- so much so that I was able to creep up to 26 mph on the final road home.

But it was gloomy out there and the north wind was strong and biting.

My average speed was just over 14, and I am certainly glad that I was able to do it, and get it over. Better than not going out.

Friday Ride

I "snuck" out of the office at 3:30 PM because it was sunny (for the first time in a week) and warm -- in the high 60's -- and I thought I could get one hour in before night fell.

I know that I have written that I have "good" days and bad days as well as normal days and I never knew on any given days which one would show up. I have read that the same happens with pro bike riders, although their normal days way outstrip mine!

And I always know after a few minutes when these good days magically appear because I can sense that pedaling is effortless. Around my midpoint of my ride I noticed that my average speed was 15, and I had just spent the past few minutes climbing Pearson hill. I felt good and decided to really go for it and time trial all the way home at 18. For the most part I was able to ave 20 on the flats and even though I knew I was just on the threshold of going anerobic, I held it all the way home. Who knows when the next day like this will occur. And it's certainly not diet related because lunch was 3 slices of pepperoni pizza and an afternoon of chocolate!

I ended the ride with a average over 16 and averaged over 18 for the second half of the ride. It was certainly my best hour on a bike in a long time.

And yet another lost week

Last Sunday was beautiful, at 78 degrees and then Monday morning it was 28 degrees, and we had frozen precip and then fog and misty rain all week, until today, Friday where it's sunny and warm. If I am lucky, maybe I will get to sneak out today and ride after work. Otherwise, it's back to being a weekend warrior. On the plus side, my arm feels like it's healing, so I may get to swim one of these weeks.

Sunday Fun

My ride was excellent. My only regret was that it was only 2 1/2 hours. But had I chosen the 50 mile ride a very distraught mother might not have recovered her expensive smart phone, which I found in the middle of the road, circled back to pick it up, fond a home entry in the contact list and phoned it. she had dropped it while running that morning and miraculously no car had run over it. I biked to her house and dropped it off with her daughters.

How windy was it today? Well, with the wind behind me on two nice stretches that have a very slight decline, I was able to hold 32 mph for over a mile on basically flat ground. In both instances the speed limit was 30 and cars did not pass.

Wish I could do this every day!

Wimping Out

I decided to ride only for one hour today. Although the day was warm, at 65 degrees, the wind was unbearable and downright dangerous at times, almost blowing me off the bike several times. I rode a route that maximized south to north, to ride with the wind and minimized the ride home into the headwind. I did see two other cyclists out there, which was surprising. I may ride earlier tomorrow, as the wind picks up after noon.

Saturday Wind

It is supposed to be 65 out today, but very windy. The wind is already here, although the temperature is still only in the 50's so far. So my plan is to head out after lunch for a two hour giro.

Another Lost Week

OK, I can see a pattern here now that I can't swim and it's too dark to ride during the week; I will be a weekend cyclist (warrior) until March, with a brief interlude during the last 2 weeks of the year). I even find it too cold and dark to walk after -- or before work.

Met another fellow cyclist yesterday who rides my speed, which is always unusual -- but they are on the other side of town.

Sunday Wind

I traded wind for warmth on Sunday. In the morning there wasn't much wind, but it was 32. In the afternoon it was in the low sixties, but very windy: a steady 20 mph wind. I decided to route my ride to start with the wind, going north so that I would also finish going north, with the wind behind me. No matter, riding into the wind was a bear for 10 miles.

My one regret was passing a cyclist going up hill w/o saying anything, but I was moving so fast because of the downhill before it that I though they'd never hear me, and I also thought I would spook the person, and I wasn't going the stop and chat in any event. But still, I felt bad -- yet I didn't want to slow my momentum on the up hill.

Saturday Bike

While I am a big fan of riding as early as possible, in the winter in Texas there are on usually two distinct weather days. The morning can be very chilly, at 32 degrees, and the afternoon can be a pleasure, at 60 degrees. My ride on Saturday proved that waiting for the rise in temperature is well worth it. It was about 60 when I started out for an absolutely delightful 2 hours and 30 minute ride. I saw a lot of cyclists out there who had the same idea as I did, including one group of 6 that I joined briefly when we found ourselves waiting at a train crossing. I drafted them for 1/2 mile but they were booking at a 22 mph clip, up a light incline, and that's not a pace I can sustain.

But the afternoon was a delight, and I look forward to a repeat on Sunday.

Lost Week

Well, I "rested" all week, due o cold, darkness and lack of time I did no exercise the past five days. I still have tendonitis in my right arm that prevents me from swimming, which is a pain, and I hope to get out today. It's 9 am and 32 degrees, but it's suppose to hit almost 60 by the end of the day, and it's sunny and there's no wind.

Wednesday Rest Day

So I rested Monday. And Tuesday. And now Wednesday. Thursday is Italian lesson and I am sure I will beg off Friday as I need to have my right eye operated on in the afternoon.

And so a lost week.

But I can't get motivated after 10 hours at work and coming home in the cold and the dark of day. Ugh.