Tuesday: Coffee Ride

What an interesting morning!  There was a week’s worth of activity within one single ride.

It started with me getting out of the house just a little earlier than usual, allowing me to put in nearly 7 miles before meeting up at the Rusty Bridge.

My new riding glasses came in yesterday and it was good to take them out on a test run.  The previous version had the focus all wrong, so I sent them back to be redone.  This time everything is good.  I can see on the bike better than I’ve ever seen before.  They are also transition lenses, so it was nice to have them darken a bit as the sun came up.  I’m liking them.  The only issue I’m having is that the mirror I wear on the glasses is nearly as heavy as the glasses are and so I feel the weight of them.  I may just transition to a helmet mounted mirror system, carrying the glasses mounted mirror as a backup.

Tuesday is usually a fast day on the bike.  Dan announced yesterday that he wasn’t going to ride fast for the next two weeks.  He doesn’t want something bad to happen that would cause him to drop out of the LOL ride.  That’s not a bad plan.  Even so, Scott W didn’t get the memo and pulled out fast.  When Dan got about 150-200 yards ahead, I started a sprint that included Clint to catch him and hold him back.  Just as we caught Dan, he flatted.  We all stopped and helped him fix the flat.  We had a couple of beginner riders with us who marveled at the flat fixing dance that the three of us performed, each taking tasks that needed to be done and that kept the time to change the tube out at a minimum.  It is indeed poetry in motion … all without a single comment about what needs to be done.

The flat repaired, we pressed on at a comfortable pace.  Jeff (NoScho) arrived for a brief stretch and he challenged us with another sprint, this time to the end of the trail and we saw speeds of 27+ mph.  At the turn around, Dan stopped again, this time to tighten the cleat on his shoes.  We made our way back into Severna Park.  As we made it toward what I refer to as “Little Sprint Hill”, my Garmin noted the segment and challenged me to beat the previous best time.  It was not to be, but this was the first time I tried the Garmin segment on the new Edge 1000.

We lingered a long time at the coffee shop, talking LOL details and final planning.  We leave in 2 weeks.  Everyone is dialing in their bikes, lists, supplies, etc.  Today I go to tweek my bike fit.  The new Kona frame’s geometry is just different enough that I might need a longer stem.  We will see with the fitting.  Besides, this will give me a chance to talk to Steve about his recently finished RAAM race (8 person team).

Chatting about the nice feature of the Edge 1000 where it uploads my ride details to Garmin over wifi as soon as I get home, Mike B reminded me about CopyMySports.com.  I logged on and was amazed at how easy it was.  Now my Strava page will also get uploaded automatically!  The downside of all of this is now I’m going to have to remember to plug in my Garmin to recharge it, since I no longer need to plug it in to upload the ride details.  (Well, that’s how it is supposed to work.  Two hours later, there is no update to Strava.)

See … busy morning!

Bible Verses for the Day:

You shall have one law for the alien and for the citizen: for I am the LORD your God. (Leviticus 24:22 NRSV)

What! Do you not have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you show contempt for the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What should I say to you? Should I commend you? In this matter I do not commend you! (1 Corinthians 11:22 NRSV)