Friday 545 Breakfast Ride
This Ride: 27.5 mi
Kona Miles: 739.6 mi
2010 Total: 1156.6 mi
What a morning!
I dreamed that I got up ahead of my alarm this morning for the early breakfast ride, and had grabbed my riding gear before I realized that I got up before the alarm. I headed back into the bedroom to turn off the alarm (still dreaming) when the alarm went off. It woke me up and I was completely confused. I got dressed and looked at the temperature and did a double take. The forecast was for 53 degrees. It was 45. I changed my clothing into something warmer, pulled out the bike, and it had a rear flat! I had about 10 minutes before I had to dash off for the Rusty Bridge for the start of the ride. I added a little air, and heard the air escaping, so quickly I changed the tube (yes I checked the inside of the tire) and got off, only a minute or so late to the Rusty Bridge. A little over two miles into the ride I was riding on another rear flat. The peleton wouldn’t let me go, so we changed out the tube, pulled out a staple, and so far (knock on wood) the tire has held.
What a beautiful morning! We’ve got only a few minutes of darkness on these 545 rides now, and riding in the emerging light is glorious. A nearly full moon was in front of us a good part of the way. Sunrise over the water is great. The hills we do on the way to Annapolis are not as challenging as they were a month ago. That’s really encouraging.
We started with 9 riders. At the end of the trail we were down to 5, and 4 stayed for breakfast. Clint told us stories about the 275 mile ride last weekend, and although the writeup was great, hearing it first hand was a lot of fun. Several are riding the Wounded Warrior Ride today and tomorrow. That would be a fun thing to do. Unfortunately my schedule is jammed up.
I ended my ride with the B&A loop. That was a nice addition.
Now to get the bike into the shop. I think I’ll have them put new grips on, adjust the rear derailleur (it won’t stay in one of the gears), check the tire again, and replace the shifter. I wonder if I’ll have the bike back later today.
Rev Rider 
Earl –
It was great to see you this morning. No the Peloton will never let you go. It has a strict no drop policy. Want to see Clint turn red, tell him you left a rider on the other side of the river while continuing to breakfast one morning. (Yes, I’m ashamed to say I did that. Said rider assured me he was okay, and he was, but I came to understand the no drop rule that morning).
Good luck with the bike shop. You might call ahead and ask about appointments. They are pretty backed up this time of year. BD Arnold will take appointments so you can drop it in the evening and get it back late the next day, thus limiting yourself to only one day of missed rides.
As I mentioned, I moved my blog to http://chesapeakesailor.blogspot.com
My weekend is all twisted up. Not sure if I’ll see this weekend but I’m sure we’ll catch each other one day in the next week or so. ’til then, safe riding.
Mike