General Cycling Discussion - Great things about fall cycling

All the bikepaths are emtpy (excpet for those others going speedy too, which is not many), no more small children, no more jokers. Plus we can ride two abreast without worries even on what is the busiest summer paths!

That's about it for fall cycling advantages.... Are there others?

I like how it brings the best of summer and winter together (at least here in California). Bright sun, brilliant blue skys (all the smog has blown away ;)) and the smells. Nothing like the crisp fresh smell of the air with the faint smell of wood burning fireplaces at work.

Unfortunately, there arent a whole lot of trees that turn. There are some and they are spectacular, but it seems that lots of trees just go from green to brown then drop the leaves. In the central valley of CA tho, its a different story.

It isn't cool enough yet here in the south to clear out the paths and trails. The temperatures are "just right" for the walkers. You know, the ones who won't come out in the summer because it's too hot to walk. They like these comfortable fall temperatures. :crash:
But there are fewer cyclists on the road, paths, and trails. Only the "real" cyclists are out in these cool temperatures - low 50s to high 60s with little or no sun.
The weather guessers are predicting morning low temperatures in the 30s for this weekend. Guess I'll break out the tights and full finger gloves.

here in Tennessee the colors are beautiful right now. I love how the fallen leaves color the roads and paths. I love the cool air. I love the mist and fog. and of course the smell of nice little cosy fires burning :)

IN AZ, the fall weather let's you get a couple of rides in without having to launder the jersey:p

Originally posted by Ritalin
I love how the fallen leaves color the roads and paths.
This reminds me of one of the things I don't like about fall and winter.
When braking make sure there are no leaves (especially wet ones) or pine straw in the road or you will slip and slide all over the road. :crash:
This is the voice of experience speaking. :mad:

:) :) Hey spire,Didn't the leaves fall off the trees weeks a go.I need to move to CA and I'm not talking Canada:beer: To everyone in those southern states.I LOVE WINTER

For me, it's the start of huntung season. Fall is the Best!!! ;)

The conditioning I've gained is great for walking all day while Pheasant hunting out in South Dakota.

Last Saturday it was raining lightly when I went out for my road ride. The leaves looked like pastel water colors bathed in the gossamer mist. The Pa woods are always most beautiful when wet.

The best thing about the “bad” weather was that NO one was out – not even cars. I had the roads to myself and the resulting silence was so strong I could feel it. Even the birds were quiet. What a great balm for the soul!

The best thing about Fall is that it gets cold and rainy, which provides ample reason not to ride(cold, hypothermia,pnuemonia) and that way I don't have to feel bad.

Sorry, I miss summer riding. Being able to leave the house at 7:30 p.m. and still get in a 90 minute ride.

We're forecasted for a couple of inches of snow tonight and flurries through the weekend. They're skiing in Killington, VT (2 hours away) already. It's cold, windy and the wet leaves make the roads sketchy.

It's pretty, for sure, but it won't be in a couple of days. The leaves are dropping fast.

Originally posted by MikeR
Last Saturday it was raining lightly when I went out for my road ride. The leaves looked like pastel water colors bathed in the gossamer mist. The Pa woods are always most beautiful when wet.



Very poetic there Mike... Whereabouts in Central PA are you ?

-Jeff

Although I prefer the summer, there are good things about fall. Like Spire said, fewer idiots on the bikepaths. Not getting wiped out, less dehydration, sunburn, flies. ANd the colors are spectacular.

Spire... I know you think I'm nuts, but the thing I like about cycling in the fall is getting up for an early morning ride @ 6:00 and getting out in time to see the sun rise. Sure, it's cold, but when you get out and the sky is grey in the false dawn, and then the sun comes up and you see your shadow long and sharp against the ground, that's something special.

It's before the cars and the people and all the crap... and when I turn arund in Ste-Anne's or Senneville, I get to see all the poor slobs in the highway 20 gridlock heading to work.

I'd have to get up at 4:00 am to ride at dawn in the summer...

I prefer summer. I like the heat of a hard days work and no leaves burying my single track so I can't see it. :)...

Oh that and the mountain is open for riding. Right now all I can do is xc stuff with some good singletrack. :)

Originally posted by velocipedio
I know you think I'm nuts,

I don't think you're nuts, you do what you gotta do. But frankly, this morning was a killer, it was about -5C last night. What I am doing (as I mentioned in another thread) is gradually riding colder and colder. I did it when it went from +15C to +8C, and I'll continue :P. I can't let my conditioning continue to slip with this cold weather.

My fondest fall biking was at peak leave color, riding over the Coralville Lake Dam. The view was spectacular overlooking the Iowa River valley. The air was crisp and clear.

Now, I am savoring every ride as if it is my last ride before spring. I hope to keep riding during the winter months, but lack of sunshine coupled with road salt/sand will limit my rides.

I also like this level of fitness that I have attained. My heart, lungs, and legs function at a level that I haven't seen for a long time.

UK - south east and the leaves are in free fall. The forest areas (non conifer ones) look beautiful and I love scuffing along the ground sending showers of leaves into the air, and that wonderful smell of damp earth. I noticed some local trails cleared out over the past two months and that's good for me. I have a handful of great rides planned, and I don't want to let oncoming winter wreck my days out.

Only thing I don't like about the leaves is they act like a lubricating barrier between tire and ground - very slippery. Even if I don't ride, autumn/winter is great for walking. A nice time of year.

But right now it's peeing with rain, and the sky is grey, and everything looks miserable and wet.

I like all seasons and this is a very pretty on here in Virginia. But I do hate moonlight savings time - instead of moving the clocks ahead in the fall so there is some light to ride in after wook we move them back THE WRONG WAY. Ok so I've gotten some lights for me but I think I'll start a new thread on how folks make the run alonside pet more visiable.
Joe
:beer:

What fall! (Autumn).
In this part of the U.k. we have by-passed the season.

Its gone from Summer to Winter. :(

i like the air... it has a certain crispness.. not unlike winter.. but with a smell... i know this sounds weird.. but early morning rides down by the lakeshore, the fall air is filled with smells of wet leaves, mud, lake water, and even a dash of worms.
those smells make me think of the impending snow storms and i ride faster along the trails.. knowing that i can ride that morning
i don't care if its damp or cool.. because after a long ride.. i can go home, mellowed out, ready for work that day.

Originally posted by willic
What fall! (Autumn).
In this part of the U.k. we have by-passed the season.

Its gone from Summer to Winter. :(

Willic - let's get our terms of reference established. How do you define summer?:D

Very poetic there Mike... Whereabouts in Central PA are you ?

Thanks Jeff. The Pa countryside makes me wish I could be more poetic so I could convey its often overlooked beauty.

I'm 30 miles due north of Harrisburg. It's a great little area. Very rural – lightly rolling hills, lots of farms (many Amish), fields, streams, and the Susquehanna river. The river is 1 mile wide and usually less than 4 feet deep. The islands and rocks in it make it the most picturesque river I’ve ever seen. Every time the river depth changes the scene changes too.

Connecting all this is a nice web of rural roads, most are lightly traveled. The people on them are used to Amish buggies and so are very considerate of cyclists. All in all, a great place for a road cyclist to live. There are thousands of wooded acres in the State Game Lands so the trail bikers love it here too.

I love the fall. trails and road sides are simply spectacular this season - best in recent memory. The horse farms, the farms, the tree lined roadsides, the single track covering over with autumn colors, the crisp air refreshing you I could go on and on. basically when the snow forces me off road I go, when the wind and temp let me its back on road, otherwise its the trials for me in the winter and fall.

I also like the brief time that we get for dawn rides. I ride nearly every morning and most all weekend days, the fall weekend days are the best, but that pre-dawn / dawn ride in the fall in the cold weather is just great to do before work - nothing can get to me with that behind me and in front of me every day.

one thing that I think people forget about standard time (when we " fall back " the clocks) if that for the very same reason it gets colder it gets darker. If we didn't set the clock back, the most we would wind up with is light until abotu 6PM EST and it would be dark unitl nearly 8AM!! that would not suit anyones work day as even light unitl 6PM makes it hard to get a good ride in. Winter means shorter days regardless of daylight savings /standard time clock manipulations.

but with a smell...i

Ahh yes the smells. Autumn has the best smells.

They say that smell is the since that is closest to the emotions and memory, since it is so abstract. Just walk into a house and smell cinnamon and your back in your childhood with Mama cooking in the kitchen.

A question regarding the Amish, do they ride bikes?
or do they consider them as a modern tecno convience forbidden to them.

Originally posted by Spire
But frankly, this morning was a killer, it was about -5C last night...
Actually, it was colder than that. It was -5C in the sunshine this morning. Beautiful morning actually. The leaves were falling and the light was bright and watery. I saw a flock of geese in Valois Bay, no doubt preparing to migrate. This is a beautiful time of year.

Originally posted by velocipedio

Actually, it was colder than that. It was -5C in the sunshine this morning. Beautiful morning actually. The leaves were falling and the light was bright and watery. I saw a flock of geese in Valois Bay, no doubt preparing to migrate. This is a beautiful time of year.

Sorry, to deflate the ego for cold weather.... but it only got to -4C overnight last night :p. I never disputed that it wasn't beautiful, but I still got to believe that the beautiful to comfort level is better in the summer! It takes at least 5-7 minutes just to get dressed and get out of the house now.

The thing is though that the temperatues in Montreal have been about 5-8C below normal (10-15F) for 3-3.5 weeks now. The normal being about 10-12. I think we are long overdue for a warm spell!

Originally posted by MikeR


Thanks Jeff. The Pa countryside makes me wish I could be more poetic so I could convey its often overlooked beauty.

I'm 30 miles due north of Harrisburg. It's a great little area. Very rural – lightly rolling hills, lots of farms (many Amish), fields, streams, and the Susquehanna river. The river is 1 mile wide and usually less than 4 feet deep. The islands and rocks in it make it the most picturesque river I’ve ever seen. Every time the river depth changes the scene changes too.

Connecting all this is a nice web of rural roads, most are lightly traveled. The people on them are used to Amish buggies and so are very considerate of cyclists. All in all, a great place for a road cyclist to live. There are thousands of wooded acres in the State Game Lands so the trail bikers love it here too.

Ok.. yeah I now the area.. my wife grew up in State College.. i've been back there a few times.. it really is beautiful. Truly beats the suburban jungle here in SoCal... I always see roadies on TV on these long semi-winding country roads... and I wish I could find some around here... I keep trying to talk my wife into moving back to PA, and she looks at me with "THAT" look, and says "Hell, No !! I moved 3000 miles to live near the beach, I AM NOT going back" Oh well... guess I'll have to deal with stoplights and cars for the duration :-)


-Jeff

Originally posted by willic
A question regarding the Amish, do they ride bikes?
or do they consider them as a modern tecno convience forbidden to them.

The ones in Ontario do. You can find them riding older bikes though (I mean OLD) with the really big wheels and steel mud gaurds. :)

A question regarding the Amish, do they ride bikes?

They do a little here in Pa too. But again, they are OLD bikes. You see them on big scooters more than bikes. I guess they are called scooters. You see little versions of them in the city. A platform between 2 wheels with a handle in front. The rider stands on the platform and sometimes pushes with one foot.

Although the Amish don't cycle much they seem to be more friendly to me on the bike than they are to people in cars. Guess we share a common goal- not getting run over.

I think that it’s kind of neat to be able to pass a horse drawn buggy. Never thought I was faster than a trotting horse, but I am. Some of the tar and chip roads get pretty rutted from the metal on their wheels. Gota watch for those ruts, not to mention the road apples.

Cycling any time is a tactile thing. The different wind at different speeds, at your back or in your face. A cross wind grabbing your front wheel, a headwind pushing you back or a tailwind encouraging you. The texture of the pavement making itself known through your handlebars. Road imperfections magnified by your machinery, and smooth surfaces made smoother by the air in your tires.

It's an aural thing, too. You know those guys riding a paceline are about to pass because you can hear their six or eight hard tires hissing on the asphalt as they approach, even though the air you cut through complains loudly you are too blunt an object. Small pebbles ping from beneath your tires and the smallest piece of harmless metal debris you hear but do not see could always be an aluminum can you have just flattened.

In autumn the wind bites a little, sounds brittle because it drops dry leaves in your slipstream. The water in your bottles stays colder, the sun warms instead of bakes. On sunny days the autumn leaves flame in their yellows and reds, but whisper in muted tones when the sky is overcast.