Rev Rider

Yeah, it is going to be one of those months where I do more than 1 200k in a month.  This winter has made it tough to get the miles in outside, and it is 45 days until the Fleche and 118 days to Lap around the Lake.

I received an invitation to ride on Tuesday and the weather forecast was 45-65 degrees.  Perfect!  Four of us rode Pastries & Coffee Clockwise, the same route I rode on President’s Day last month with Steve H.

We pushed off as daylight was trying to make its presence felt and quickly slipped into a comfortable pace.  It wasn’t fast, but it was comfortable as we meandered along the rural roads of central and southern Anne Arundel County.  We caught snatches of the sunrise, but only snatches as there was a heavy cloud cover that lingered all day.  I am always amazed at the ebb and flow of conversation in these “group rides” and also the dynamics of who rides together and when.

I kept looking for signs of spring and only found residue of winter in the occasional dirty snow piles and some ice remaining on ponds tucked into the woods along the sides the road.  I found myself longing for the sounds of the “peepers” as the first real harbingers of spring.  It shouldn’t be long now.

Hours of steady riding were punctuated by moments of beauty, wonder, amazement, and grinding up one hill or another.  About 30 miles into the ride, one instant had Janet and I laughing hard as a squirrel attempted a “flying drop kick” on Ravi.  It bolted from the side of the road, launched itself at Ravi, and after making contact with his bike frame ahead of the pedals, re-launched itself back toward the safety of the woods on the right hand side of the road.  Ravi only saw the blur of motion.  Janet and I had front row seats to the spectacle.

We arrived at Honey Haven, about 40 miles into the ride and decided to eat a light meal and rest a bit.  It was there we encountered John Z who was riding a solo 100k that day.  He found a duck head from a decoy along his route and decided to decorate his helmet with the trophy.

I’ve learned to eat lightly at these “meal” stops, and so I had a cup of turkey chili and an 8 oz bottle of Coke.  It really hit the spot!  I don’t see many 8 oz bottles any more.  It was just the right amount.

Soon enough we were on our way again.  The terrain seemed to flatten out some over the next 40 miles of the route.  I know I appreciated that.  We took a short detour to see where Lynn K and Maile were hit by a car a couple weeks ago.  As we resumed our route, John Z showed up and we rode with him for a time where our routes overlapped.  Soon another 40 miles had rolled by and it was time for another stop for “fuel”.

We stopped at Caribou Coffee in Crofton where I had a tasty Blueberry Almond Oatmeal and a Chocolate Chip Cookie.  I neglected a beverage and suffered for that later.  Leaving Crofton, we also knew that some of the most significant climbing of the day lay about an hour ahead.  The day had warmed up enough that I went to short fingered gloves and had no hat under my helmet.  That was  a nice departure from all of the cold weather we’ve experienced this year.

I noted significant differences on this ride compared to three weeks ago.  Around the airport we were able to use the trail on this ride.  Three weeks ago the trail was snow covered.  Climbing Landing Road toward Ellicott City took me 2/3 of the time it did 3 weeks ago, and I rode it without stopping.  That was a nice accomplishment.  This ride we didn’t have to worry about ice on the roads.  Three weeks ago, there was ice everywhere.  Mostly, we were able to take the planned route rather than having to find an alternative 3 weeks ago because snowpack prevented traversing through Patapsco State Park.  That meant that there was a stretch of about 3 miles that was completely new to me and I loved every second of it.  That part that was new was a wonderful descent where we let the bikes run a bit, braking only for debris on the curves.  We glided through Patapsco, and because of some road construction had to negotiate through some very sloppy and muddy sections at the end of the park section.  We picked up more mud than we expected.

About 10 miles from home, with both of my water bottles empty, I was regretting the no beverage at Caribou Coffee.  Still we pressed on.  On Brookwood, with about 2 miles left, Janet and I saw 5 deer run at full speed in front of us, requiring a hard braking stop to avoid hitting them.  A 6th deer veered around us to cross the road behind us.  Had we not hit the brakes, there would have been cyclists and deer all competing for the same identical space.

Janet had noted that it might be possible to finish the ride in under 10 hours and pulled hard to make that happen.  We rolled into the 7-11 at the finish, bought our chocolate milk, and got the receipt with 4:56 p.m. time stamped.  A 9 hour 56 minute ride!

We adjourned to Severna Park Taphouse to rehash the ride and get some well appreciated food and drink.

What a miserable March this has been thus far.  Weekends have been nice, but I rarely ride on the weekends.  We’ve had a major snowstorm.  We’ve had bitter cold.  We’ve had threat of freezing rain.  And my mood has been foul.

I climbed on the trainer on March 4 for an hour long hard work of intervals.  But that was my only “ride” through the first 9 days of March!  Awful!

Then, this morning, something new happened.  The temperature was 39°F.  Above freezing!

I jumped on the Kona and met 7 others at the Rusty Bridge.  We had a Mosey Monday pace going for the first half of the ride, then Dan got in front and started picking up the pace.  Everyone responded, although some of us grumbled a bit.  The pace kept accelerating until finally on the last little hill all were competing for King of the Mountain.  I spiked my heart rate and it felt good!

As it turns out, this was the fastest ride of the year outside (so far).  It wasn’t a high speed, but what a difference it makes when there is not snow and ice to avoid.

Now it is time to rack up the miles and get these legs back into shape.  I’ve got some big rides coming up and need to have a lot of miles in the legs in order to ride them comfortably.

Here I sit in yet another snowstorm with yet another forecast for very cold temperatures tonight wondering when spring will arrive and with it even “seasonal” temperatures.  February was a hard month to ride outside in Maryland, especially the weekdays.  We had some nice weekend weather, but I don’t often ride on the weekends because of family and work commitments.

And yet, the Malaria Campaign goes on.

I rode only 13 days (3 more than last month) and logged 365 miles in February, including one ride of 125 miles to keep the string alive.

For the month, 384 miles.

Total distance since June 1, 2013 = 4,980 

Total funds raised for the Malaria Campaign = $6,745

Four hearty riders were out this morning for a ride in predicted snow flurries.  It had been snowing for hours … but none of it had made it to the ground until about 5 minutes before our start time at the Rusty Bridge.  In those last 5 minutes of pre-ride, the road and trail surfaces started to pick up a light dusting of snow and we were all prepared to ride on accumulating snow.  But, before we knew it, it was as if the snow evaporated and the pavement was dry again … except for the icy patches.

As you might guess, ice is quite dangerous for us on road bikes.  We are riding on about 2 square inches of rubber while balanced on the bike.  Any change in power to the wheel (accelerating or slowing) as well as any kind of lateral movement can send us sliding.  It was good that we could mostly see the icy patches before we hit them.  Most we just rolled over.  Some we slid across.  It really wasn’t too bad, except the wooden bridges that were both snow and ice covered from yesterday’s snow.  Three bridge were traversed.  Three times we held our breath and attempted to maintain control.  Three times we successfully negotiated those hazards.   (Dan made it 5 times.)  I’m pleased to say there were no incidents.

We are all ready for winter to be over … except the weather controllers are not listening to us.  In two days lows will be in the lower “teens” F.  There is talk about a huge winter storm possible next week.

To give you an idea about how tough this year has been: Today was the first time all year I’ve ridden outside 3 consecutive days.  Last year, that milestone was accomplished on January 4th.

Updating the Malaria Campaign:

Malaria Campaign: 4,955 miles
Total Contributed & Pledged: $6,733

Has it really been over 3 weeks since I posted?

Riding has been a grind here in Maryland.  We’ve had snowstorms.  There has been a lot of ice.  It has been cold.

This morning’s ride is the first one in a very long time that just felt good.  It felt really good.  We had 8 riders out.  Our speed was up.  The ice was gone.  Temperatures were in the upper 30s F.  We had daylight for more of the ride.  Why, I might enjoy riding again if this keeps up.  I missed some nice 50-60 degree rides over the weekend, but that’s ok.  What’s critical for me are these morning rides.

The enjoyable ride was tempered by the fact that two friends from DC were hit by a “hit and run” driver on Saturday.  One of those is in shock trauma with severe injuries.  I’ll post about that later.

But the cold temps are returning.  The rest of this week might have ice and snow again.  We are about 2 months out from the Fleche and not only does the attitude have to change, but I need time on the bike!

So far, February has seen me log 298 miles.  Pathetic.

Home from a Super Bowl party and in bed by 10:30 pm.  As I fall asleep, I’m uncertain about riding in the morning because of the late night and forecast of rain/sleet/snow.

The alarm goes off at 4:45 am.  I check the weather before even getting out of bed.  Rain and 40°F.  Ugh.  If I lay there another 30 minutes, I can get on the trainer and get a decent trainer ride in.  I lay in bed for about 2 minutes and do not fall asleep.  I get up, and decide then and there that I’m riding outside.  Riding the trainer sounds like torture.

I get ready, dressed for cold rain, and step outside into a steady rain.  It’s not too bad, but it is wet.  I make my way to the Rusty Bridge, and wait.  No lights indicating bikes.  At 5:45 I push off, hoping a little that I’ll still run into Dan somewhere along the route, but it is dark and raining and chilly.

It is about mile 7 before I feel the cold water seep into my right boot.  It sloshes a little.  I’m glad I’m wearing wool socks.  Within a couple more miles, my left foot is now getting wet.  The water is blowing back off the front of my front tire and hitting my shin and getting down into the boot that way.

The solitary ride continues.  There is a steady drumbeat of rain on my helmet that is at times soothing and at other times irritating.  Drivers of cars are quite courteous to this lone rider.  As each one passes, I wonder what they are thinking.  Is it about how crazy this guy is?  Is it feeling sorry for the rider in the rain?  Are they irritated that I’m taking more of the roadway than usual?  I have to because the potholes are full of water and it is hard to determine which are deep and which are shallow.

The  headlights from oncoming cars blinds me with dozens of bright stars because of the water on my glasses.  The tires splash through running streams of water.  The rain is steady and persistent.

The water in my boots gets deep enough that I feel it sloshing with each pedal stroke.  It is not unpleasant, but I’m glad that my ride will only be about an hour.

When I arrive home, the porch light is on and a towel is laid out for me.  Gloves, helmet, and shoes all come off on the porch under that stark white light.  Water pours out of my boots and drips off of my socks.  My bare feet have patches of red skin, but they don’t feel overly cold.  The thermometer now reads 38.

I linger in the hot shower just a little longer than usual, enjoying the comfort it brings and extending the peaceful morning.

I really did enjoy the ride.  Too bad others slept in.

It was a short ride … I rode the winter route just because I didn’t want to be along a dark isolated trail if I flatted.

The amount of salt dumped on Maryland roads is quite astonishing.  Streets are white.  Cars are white.  Today as the weather is warming up some and it is dry, there is a white dust in the air making it look like there is a light fog along the roadways.  A bunch of that salt coated the fixie and I needed to get it cleaned off.  Salt and steel frames just don’t go well together.  While I was washing it off, I discovered that the rear wheel was not turning properly and a couple of other minor things needed to be adjusted.  The fixie is now all tuned up and ready to roll.

I also changed the saddle on the trainer.  That required a new saddle clamp.

Both jobs were quite typical.  They took longer than expected and required a trip to the bike shop.

Wooo Hooo!  Six degrees F!

The plan was for three of us to ride this morning no matter what.  We are tired of being cooped up inside.  I wasn’t so sure about my sanity when I saw the 6°F thermometer reading and was still getting dressed.

I threw on just about everything I could think of and wouldn’t you know it … I overdressed.  I was sweating by the time I got to the Rusty Bridge.

Dan and I made it.  Mike says he overslept.  We kept the route short.  I only logged between 12 & 13 miles.  Only one part of my body was cold enough to be concerned about: my hips.  Who would have guessed?

Check out the frost on the scarf I wore!

Just for future reference, my Garmin read a low of 1.2°F.

Brrrrrrrr

I was nearly giddy with excitement to see the thermometer reading of 38°F this morning at 5 am.  I planned to ride outdoors this morning and posted an invite to the SPP group, but I was expecting mid twenties.  Thirty-eight was more than I could ask for!  The forecast is for temps below 15 the next two mornings, so this is a real treat.

There were six out this morning.  We all commented about how good it was to be out again.  We rode the “winter route” which essentially avoids the B&A Trail.  Much of the Trail is impassible by road bike because of crusty snow and ice.  There were still patches of sketchy road surfaces, and along the highways, there remains enough salt on the roads that the passing cars stir it up into dust.  Instead of “eat my dust” it is “eat my salt” these days.

It was an easy ride on the fixie this morning.  We did encounter one large deer that thought better of crossing in front of us.  We appreciated the courtesy demonstrated by that decision.

I found myself lacking in the conversation department.  It was just nice to be out.

I’m behind my goal miles for the month, with little chance of catching up by the end of the week.  The monthly distance will have to be what it is.  I will say that I’m ahead of my 4 year average distance for January!

Malaria Campaign: 4,555 miles
Total Contributed & Pledged: $6,533