20160724 cycling

too many excuses not to ride

Monday
76° humidity 76% wind 5 ENE
Pumped up tired and felt good. A little wind. Got to Alchester and heard tink tink tink. I had a nail in my rear tire. It took some effort to get it off. The guy with the baseball hat stopped and asked if I was OK. Met Cindy with the swaying ponytail. She stopped for a couple of minutes. 
Changed flat and went back home. Only got to Whitlock and my rear tire was flat again. Huh? I tried to pump it up but it wouldn't inflate. 
I called dad. I called twice then texted Andy to tell poppa to call him. I called once more and he picked up.
I walked instead of waiting. 
Andy was waiting for us in the road. 
2.2 miles 12.67 mph

i never even see these things on the road

Tuesday
74° humidity 72% wind 4 NE
I rode my 820. I had to pump up the tires. It always feels so strange to switch bikes. I feel so much taller on this one. It is bigger but I am also riding more upright. 
The bike computer is still off. I switch to distance or time since average speed is wrong. 
A guy in a Honda Fit yelled something at me when he passed me on CLR. Jerk. 
I rode the path on SR56. It is still broken up at Hueland Pond. I cannot ride the 1220 over those bumps. 
A garbage truck rode past me on Mansfield. It stirred up the dust and sand. I closed one eye and turned away as much as I could but still got some sand in my eye. 
The dead alligator is just a flat carcass now. 
9 miles 13 mph

even if I did see it, i would probably think it was just a twig

Wednesday
I changed my tire and even changed the rotation. Will it make a difference? Andy kept coming out to make sure I didn't ride. It was getting close to when we needed to leave for swimming.

Thursday
76° humidity 75% wind 3 NE
Back on my road bike. My body couldn't muster much energy. 
Uneventful ride. 
9 miles 13.8 mph

Friday
78° humidity 79% wind 2 NE
I didn't want to ride. I was sleepy. 
My legs didn't want to ride. The wind felt stronger. 
10 miles 13.6 mph

Saturday
72° humidity 79% wind 2 E
Late start. 
It actually felt a little cooler. 
Rode to MPB and back. 
5.4 miles 13.6 mph

I don't know if it was flipping to tire rotation of my tired body, but my bike felt slower. 

This week: 35.9 miles
This year: 1376 miles

20160717 cycling

too many grey blocks

Monday
Slept in and did a layout. Skipped my ride. 

heavy winds knocked over the signs

Tuesday
76° wind 4 SE humidity 77%
Late start but I couldn't skip a second day. 
Storm damage was not much. Sycamore leaves along Stetson. 
Broken glass on Beardsley east of Broughton. 
Traffic lights out at SR56 and Mansfield. Surprisingly easy to cross. 
9 miles 14.1 mph

Wednesday
75° wind 1 E humidity 75%
I finally got out at a decent time. Pumped up my tires. 
Found I had no legs. It felt like a struggle the whole way. I kept losing speed and had to push myself. 
Headwind along Mansfield. 
Car turning left from Wrencrest very slowly. He came very close to me and I yelled "three feet" as he started to pass. I saw his window was down. He slowed down and I thought he might yell back. He didn't but he forced me to ride into the gutter. WTF. Asshole. He passed again and I saw he was old. Hell. 
I finally got up to 14 mph on CLR. I pushed it to keep it there. 
10 miles 13.99 mph

Thursday
74° humidity 76% wind 3 E
Foot was less sore. I was less tired. (I got 7 hours of sleep) I couldn't keep my mind engaged. 
Bike lane blocked by construction barrels at WRB. 
Headwind along Mansfield. 
Small, dead alligator on CLR east of Morningmist. That is the first time I ever saw an alligator as roadkill. 
9 miles 14.1 mph

Friday
Swimming with Andy

short ride, no rest stop

Saturday
75° humidity 77% wind 4 E
Late start but didn't want to ride against the wind on SR56 and didn't want to have to avoid broken glass on Kinnan. I went up to Oldwoods and turned around at Gwynhurst Blvd. Alligator still on CLR but now back to normal size with the bloat gone. Gross. 
8 miles 14.1 mph

This week 36.4 miles
This year 1340 miles

20160710 cycling

It was not a very good week for riding. Work was stressful. I worked hard on the weekend to prepare for a corporate visit on Tuesday. Too much climbing up and down the ladder did a number on my foot and ankle. I could barely walk on Monday.

Monday
Didn't ride because my ankle hurt too much.

Tuesday
80° humidity 76% wind 2 SE
Foot hurt. It has never hurt before on a ride. It must be all the ladder climbing. It hurt on the instep.
Started out easy but then picked up the pace.
Skipped WRB but stopped at the light. The sidewalk is closed again.
Finished hard.
9 miles 14.5 mph

Wednesday
78° humidity 74% wind 1 NE
Foot still sore and tired from working late. I pushed through.
9 miles 14.3 mph

installed new panaracer pasela tire on my rear wheel

Thursday
Tired and lazy, no ride

Friday
80° humidity 77% wind 1 WSW
Tire felt grippier. I felt good though my foot is still a bit sore.
Path is open east of Wiregrass. I still rode in the bike lane. Broken glass west of new construction access.
I felt the wind along MPB.
I ran over a stick on Beardsley.
11 miles 14.4 mph

discovered that i installed the tire backwards

Saturday
78° humidity humidity 74% wind 2 NE
Late start. Rode the short loop.
Dead turtle on Aronwood.
Rode in the MUP east of Wiregrass. The patch is smooth.
Couldn't find the energy.
7 miles 14.1 mph

This week: 36.7 miles
This year: 1304 miles

20160703 cycling

too many blank days

Monday
72° 95% humidity wind 2 WNW
Ryan was leaving at the same time as me. I pumped up his tires. He rode fast out to CLR and turned right. I turned left to BBD. Wind was light which made it feel like it was always against me. 
Ride was OK. 
11 miles 14.6 mph

Tuesday
I worked late on Monday and was tired. I skipped my ride.

Wednesday
76° humidity 77% wind 3 SSE
Ryan and I left at the same time. We raced a bit but he was on the sidewalk and had to slow down for pedestrians. 
I left him at Mansfield. 
Watering sod along Beardsley made me ride in the car lane. 
Felt a flutter and saw my heart rate rise. I stopped at Alchester to try to slow it down. Slow breathing brought it from 222 down to 178 but nothing lower. I decided to try riding a bit then turned around at Whitlock. I rode home at a casual pace. I didn't feel bad. I got home at sat and it immediately dropped to its regular pace. Sigh. 
4.95 miles 13.2 mph

storm clouds far away

77° humidity 79% wind 3 SSE
Rear tire showing signs of wear. 
A little apprehensive about riding hard. I didn't want another episode. 
Watering sod on Beardsley. 
Broken glass on MPB north of MPIII clubhouse. I didn't see it and rode over it. 
I started riding harder on SR56. 
Bike lane blocked by traffic cones east of WRB. 
Sign in bike lane on Mansfield south of WRHS. 
I pushed it on the way home. 
10 miles 14.2 mph

290 km for June 180 miles

my tires are showing wear

Friday
76° humidity 80% wind 3 WSW
Muggy. Late start. Decided to do a short ride. Good legs in the beginning. At 14.1 when I got to Aronwood. 
Struggled when I turned on SR56. Wind was against me. I was surprised to see my heart rate lower than it felt. I was breathing hard. I saw three hot air balloons as I started but they disappeared and I couldn't find them again. Stopped at PHSC to take a photo of the thunderhead clouds but the brush was in the way. 
Sign still in the road on Mansfield. 
Garage door closed but it opened up as I turned into the drive. Andy was alone and let me ok gout for me. 
7 miles 14.2 mph

Saturday
76° humidity 77% wind 2 SW
Late start, short ride, no legs. 
Rode out to BBD. I was surprised to see Ryan riding that way. He wanted to race. I have a faster bike. Good thing because I had no energy. 
Wind hit me on Mansfield. Struggled to keep my pace. 
Sign still in bike lane
7 miles 14.3 mph

This week 40.5 miles
This year 1260 miles

20160626 cycling

I was determined to ride at least 5 days this week. 

Monday
71° wind 7 NNE
Cooler but windy. I just couldn't get the energy to ride any faster. 
Summer school started today so I saw a few buses. Lots of broken glass on Mansfield just before the new school. 
10 miles 14.07 mph

construction continues. crews leave the barrels in the bike lane instead of moving them to the shoulder.

Tuesday
71° wind 5 NE
Pumped up the tires which may have helped some. Felt a little stronger but wind kept my speed down. Laying sod on Beardsley so much of the road blocked with no one directing traffic. 
10 miles 14.29 mph

blue skies are boring.

Wednesday
71° wind 4 NE
Tired. Wasn't paying attention and had to stop quickly for school bus at Vermillion. Watering new sod on Beardsley, had to ride in car lane. Wind was a little bother but I pushed through. 
After my stop at SR56, my legs were done. It took everything to maintain my speed. 
10 miles 14.3 mph

moon is visible about the wires

Thursday
76° 77% humidity wind 3 ESE
Muggy. Watering new sod on Beardsley, had to ride in car lane. 
Wind hit me when I turned around on WRB. I was up to 14.7. Lost some on the way back because of wind. 
10 miles 14.58 mph

Friday
Lazy and tired. I didn't ride. 

Saturday
77° humidity 70% wind 4 SSE
As usual, I warmed up and rode hard. I was at 14 mph by the time I got to Oldwoods. I was up to 14.8 when I turned at WRB. The wind was annoying. When I stopped to rest, I didn't realize I hit lap instead of pause. My average dropped to 13.7. I rode hard to bring it back up to 14.04 even though my computer said 14.7. 
10 miles. 14.7 mph

A decent week. I realized that 50 miles is a good average for me. I just don’t have the time nor drive to ride more.

This week 50.4 miles
This year 1227 miles

20160619 cycling

clouds are moving in

Monday
79° 84% wind 3 WNW
I didn't want to ride. I was tired and my head hurt. 
I went out CLR to BBD and felt better. My legs were strong and I pushed it. Car on shoulder on SR56. It moved a couple feet over when it saw me approaching. I still had to ride in the car lane. MPII blocking bike lane on CLR to clean sidewalks? 
My head still hurts but I am glad that I rode. 
11 miles 14.8 mph

Tuesday
Tired and lazy. I didn't ride but I did go swimming with Andy. 

Wednesday
79° 77% humidity wind 3 WSW
Went out CLR to BBD. I was at 14mph by the time I hit BBD. Rode hard. Wind was not a factor. Flirted with 15.1 mph
Bum did not bother me. 
11 miles 15.07 mph

Thursday
81° humidity 79% wind 5-8mph
Didn't feel like riding and the wind hit me right away. I went out to BBD. I only got up to 14.8 mph and lost much of when I hit Beardsley. Legs felt weak. 
11 miles 14.3 mph

Friday
I had some computer woes. iTunes wouldn't work and we rely on it for downloads and syncing for all of our devices. I thought I found the fix but the fix wouldn't work. I spent my morning trying and failing to fix it.

Saturday
I tried another solution for the continued computer woes. It worked but I was "late" and decided not to ride. I think I need to get up at 5 on Saturdays.

Another sad week of biking. Only three rides. 

This week: 30.2 miles
This year: 1176 miles

20160612 cycling

i hate when most of the boxes are not filled in

This week sucked for riding. Tropical Storm Colin came in and brough so much rain. Sometimes the rain wasn't too hard but I just prefer NOT to ride in the rain. 
Then, after three days off, I couldn't muster the energy to ride when conditions were fairly good. At least Andy & I went swimming on Wednesday.
I am happy that my speed is still above 14 mph even when I am tired. 

a pathetic week for miles

Monday
Tropical Storm Colin

ryan was happy to be out of school and ride everyday

Tuesday
Tropical Storm Colin

ryan still doesn't use his brakes but hops of the bike to stop

Wednesday
Lazy, tired and some rain

overcast and grey skies were the norm this week

Thursday
77° wind 2 ESE 94% humidity
I didn't want to ride but I needed to. Four days off makes me lazy and cranky and sleep poorly. 
I felt and saw some drops but not enough to even take off my glasses. My legs were strong after so much time off. My bum didn't even notice the hard saddle until the last mile. 
Dump trucks turning left from SR56 to WRB. They cut me off though I was turning as well. 
I was in the turn lane to turn left from CLR to Stetson. A car was stopped to turn left from Stetson to CLR. As I goy near, he started to pull out. I had to swerve around him and yelled HEY. He had his window down and yelled something at me that I didn't understand. Ugh. What did he think I was going to do while in that lane?
10 miles 14.4 mph

Friday
76° wind 2 SE humid
Headache. I was hoping it would go away with the pedaling. 
No incidents today but my head was elsewhere. 
10 miles 14.4 mph

Saturday
76° wind 1 ENE 81%
Body was tired from working late. I tried to push it but my legs weren't having it. 
10 miles 14.1 mph

This week: 30 miles
This year: 1143 miles

20160605 cycling

everyday i look to see which pasture the cows are in

Monday
76° wind 1 W to 5 NW
I went out to BBD. Bum is getting used to saddle. No discomfort today. 
I stopped by the cows to rest. I didn't quite hit resume and "lost" almost two miles. Good ride despite the wind and heat. 
11.15 miles 14.4 mph

no cows today

Tuesday
75° wind 2 WSW
I went out to BBD. Good speed. I was up to 15.4 mph by the time I got to Beardsley. It didn't like I was pedaling that much harder. Wind hit me on Beardsley and I had to fight to keep above 14 mph. It was warm and sunny. 
11 miles 15.2 mph

i hate tuesdays

Wednesday
72° wind 1 ENE
Good power. Not quite as fast as yesterday but still faster than normal. 
10 miles 14.8 mph

at least they left the bike lane clear

Thursday
74° wind 3 ENE
76° wind 2 ESE
I love how the wind shifts and I move around the loop. I must need the challenge. 
10 miles 14.5 mph

clear skies are boing

Friday
76° wind 3 ESE
Tired from working late last night. I thought to take it easy. My legs were fine and went faster than I expected. My head hurt and I don't remember much of the ride. 
10 miles 14.5 mph

Saturday
75° wind 3 E
Legs weren't happy. Stomach wasn't happy. It took every effort to keep my pace above 14 mph. 
10 miles 14.2 mph

This Week 60.8 (actually 62.8 with the miles I lost)
This year 1115 miles

20160529 cycling

Monday
69° wind 2 N
Running late. Did a hard ride to BBD to SR56. Legs felt good but the rest of me was tired.
7 miles 14.5 mph

new brooks cambium saddle

Tuesday
Drove the boys to school

new carradice bag

Wednesday
70° wind 5 E
I went out towards BBD to ride a short loop. I had to stop at SPES because of the crossing guards. I should have stayed home. I got a flat on SR56 near Mansfield. I thought walking home would be quicker. I was wrong. It took me 45 minutes to walk 2.5 miles. And then FitBit said I had only walked 1.9 miles.
I was almost at CLR and a truck stopped, the driver asked if I wanted a ride home. I declined even though my ankle really hurt.
4.6 miles 13.2 mph

Thursday
70° wind 3 ENE
I was lazy and thought to just ride the 820. I couldn't get the iPhone case clicked on and decided to just change the tire. It only took me twenty minutes. I then decided to installed my new saddle and bag. That took another 10 minutes.
It was windier when I finally started at 10:05. The saddle felt good for the first couple of miles. I could start to feel it in my bum. But my soft parts felt fine. I think I had it today forward. I felt heavy on my hands.
The wind helped my on SR56 but then I turned on WRB and slowed down from 13.9.
When I stopped at SR56, Dark Sky said it was 77° and with 2mph wind. That is just plain wrong. The Verizon flags don't waiver with 2mph winds.
10 miles 13.6mph

Friday
65° wind 3 NE
I moved the seat back a bit. It felt better on my hands.
Good ride. Light wind didn't bother me.
Cars turning left from Mansfield to SR56 looked like they weren't going to stop. Ugh.
0 miles 14 mph

Saturday
71° wind 3 NE
My bum is a bit sore from the new saddle. I tried to ride hard but my legs weren't cooperating.
I glanced away and ran over a wood spike. It really jolted me and everything tingled.
I hit pause twice so I wasn't really paused and my pace went down from 13.8 to 12.9 when I stopped at SR56. My bike computer said I finished at 13.9 but Wahoo only recorded 13.3. Oh well.
10 miles 13.3 mph

i have never had a saddle fall apart like this from bontrager

this week : 41.9 miles
this year :  1052 miles

20160522 cycling

Monday
68° wind 3 NE
I was running so I had to keep it short. I went out to BBD despite the wind direction. I was up to 14.9 mph when I got to SR56. I saw Rose going to work. Why was she going in so early? I lost a little speed on SR56 because of the wind. It was stronger than 3 mph. I finished strong.
7 miles 14.8mph

Tuesday
Bus late. Drove the boys to school and no time to ride before work.

thunderheads far south of us

Wednesday
72° wind 2 SE (felt like SW and stronger)
Tried to ride hard but had some stomach pains.
More construction traffic on WRB. They are extending it to SR54.
LMP blocking bike lane on CLR. I realized they hadn't been blocking me for a few weeks.
10 miles 14mph

Thursday
74° wind 4 SSE (stronger)
Started out well enough. Wind definitely felt stronger. Started coughing on SR56 after I smelled what I thought was fresh cut wood.  I was up to 14.5 when I turned around on WRB. Dusty from dirt haulers. Wind and coughing slowed me down to 14.2 but I pushed into hang on to that.
10 miles 14.2 mph

Friday
74° wind 2 SSW (felt like SSE)
Rode well. Went to BBD believing the weather app. Wind was light but against me on SR56 and MPB.
11 miles 14.6 mph
Only 38 miles this week. At least I crossed the 1000 miles for this year

Saturday
State Games. No ride.

This week: 38.3 miles
This year: 1010 miles