Fifty Plus (50+) - I think Spring has sprung!

I rode with the guys in Eatonton today for a good 34 mile workout. It was nice to have such good company on a sunny, warm day with mild wind and light traffic. Great to see the green and other colors coming out after the drab of winter.

Randy made us work to keep up on the way out and kicked our tails on the return. :p

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/72940292

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/sets/72157626259292830/show/

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5094/5523692663_2abfdeb6ef.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5523692663/)
all (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5523692663/) by BluesDawg (http://www.flickr.com/people/bluesdawg/), on Flickr
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5175/5523697725_a3d2749ed0.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5523697725/)
line (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5523697725/) by BluesDawg (http://www.flickr.com/people/bluesdawg/), on Flickr
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5138/5523698985_4b37ba39dc.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5523698985/)
resting (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5523698985/) by BluesDawg (http://www.flickr.com/people/bluesdawg/), on Flickr
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5260/5524291876_c513c246bd.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5524291876/)
return (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bluesdawg/5524291876/) by BluesDawg (http://www.flickr.com/people/bluesdawg/), on Flickr

Color me green with envy. It does look like a slice of Heaven on Earth.

They're still including Snow Flurries in our short-range forecast, and there is still some residual snow-pack left on the MUP's. However the large puddles, dirty piles of melting snow, and soft and squishy ground indicates that Spring is coming soon to the North East also.

Thanks for the great pictures. They help to cause my whole being to embrace with joyous anticipation rides that are soon to be!!

^^^^ Me too.

There is still snow in the yard but I can see some grass in spots now. Big piles by the road but the shoulders are now clear. The roads are less dirty. It was 41 when I drove home from the mountains today and if I was not so tired when I got home I could have gone for a short ride - it would have been the first outdoor ride of the season. This weekend I cleaned out my locker on the Mountain, brought all the gear home - I am anticipating a possible ride next weekend. I will still ski for a few more weekends, but it's getting time to transition.

I think Spring has sprung!


I can tell by my allergies kcking in... Two great days--with good milage, and my eyes are watering-- you'd think I was crying :)

train safe-

I was in Athens on Sat. and it felt hot. I have a narrow comfort range for temperature.

I think Spring has sprung!


I can tell by my allergies kcking in... Two great days--with good milage, and my eyes are watering-- you'd think I was crying :)

train safe-

Zyrtec to the rescue (or the generic version at a fraction of the cost of the name brand).

Here is Spring in the Pacific Northwest. http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=47.20557536955534&lon=-122.22427368164062&site=sew&smap=1&marine=0&unit=0&lg=en :(

Here is Spring in the Pacific Northwest. http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=47.20557536955534&lon=-122.22427368164062&site=sew&smap=1&marine=0&unit=0&lg=en :(
No kidding. In the southern Willamette valley we've got numerous road closures from downed trees and power lines and one building that moved off its foundation to the roadway. I wasn't going to ride today anyway, but it would have been no fun at all riding into that beast.

Here is Spring in the Pacific Northwest. http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=47.20557536955534&lon=-122.22427368164062&site=sew&smap=1&marine=0&unit=0&lg=en :(

Ahhh. One word: fenders.:)

It's supposed to hit 59f around here this coming week.

3 hours today in 38 degrees makes makes me want to hate you. However, let's compare in July when we are 74 degrees with 50% humidity.;)

3 hours today in 38 degrees makes makes me want to hate you. However, let's compare in July when we are 74 degrees with 50% humidity.;)

It will be 90s on both counts here, but I'll be riding.

50-65F for the Solvang century on Saturday; horses and cows grazing, acres of vineyards.

Oh man, shorts ! Man, am I jealous or what !! I won't be riding with just those on for a while yet !

Spring is coming, the Red Wing Blackbirds are back but all the sea ducks from the Arctic that winter here are still hanging around so we're almost there. That means that the raccoons should be staying awake more and opening up peoples garbage cans again. :notamused:

I'm still waiting for the last of the salt to get washed off the roads. I've seen a couple of guys who couldn't wait anymore out on the road this weekend (shudder) . That salt dust gets into everything. :notamused: The roads aren't too bad but lot of the MUP's (unsalted) are still covered in ice especially in the shade. Most of the snowbanks by the roadside are melting but they have a ton of salt in them so I'll have to wait for the next good rain to wash it all away.

I went out for a 10K fast walk yesterday and it was a bit of an adventure walking out there on the melting ice. I had my shoes for running on instead of hiking boots so I couldn't bypass the icy parts on the snow without getting soaked . It was a good thing I still had my x-country skiing legs. When you do a lot skiing in icy conditions you learn a lot about proper committed weight transfer in a hurry or you wind sledding using your behind as a sled.

My wife and I are also gearing up for summer. We went out for some advanced instruction in kayaking from a couple who rent out a local swimming pool and I had a blast ! Learning how to do eskimo rolls (barrel rolls) and how to do rescues was a LOT of fun especially since you're doing it in a heated pool. We're also going to be doing some more lessons for most of next month. My wife is a very experienced canoe paddler and she found that kayaking is totally different from what she is used to.

I had to laugh when the instructor asked if we could bring our own boats. I said that there's still probably about 3-4 feet of melting snow at our cottage right now and digging them out and carrying them up a staircase with 40 steps just wasn't going to happen. :lol:

They're calling for rain mid week but it's supposed to be going up to the low 50's towards the end of the week. I can't wait. :)

Spring? I guess it will be here soon enough. Right now I'm just pleased with the extra hour of daylight after work.

Like Cyclingfool I'm transitioning fron skiing to cycling. I'll likely get another day of skiing in at a telemark festival at Brettonwoods in New Hampshire that features ski lessons as well as good beer and cheer and a reggae band. The snow is gone locally and I'm riding the bike path so far. Telemark skiing builds up the quads which I can feel on what hills we have but skiing does nothing for lung power and I can feel that on the hills also. I'll be looking to improve speed and climbing this year so as to sign up and complete a century.

For some unexplained reason I moved the saddle forward and then forgot about that adjustment. As I began riding this year, butt discomfort was present but has gone away within a few rides. Hand discomfort was also present also and persisted. Yesterday as I rode along contemplating this issue I remembered that the boys and girls at Bikeforums recommend moving the saddle back to take weight off the hands. So I stopped and whipping out my trusty multitool, moved the saddle back about 8mm. Instant relief. People here are so smaht.

Zyrtec to the rescue (or the generic version at a fraction of the cost of the name brand).

Or Claritin for those of us with High Blood Pressure or Glaucoma.

Most of the snow is gone on the north shore of Lake Ontario. There is still some traces of the snowbanks on the side of the street, but most of the grass is exposed.
The Waterfront Trail was clear and dry today. First time out for the 3 speed fixie this year. Sure was nice to get back out on that bike.
Took this shot at about 2:00 this afternoon.
http://i51.tinypic.com/o9mipc.jpg

We just had a horrible weekend,gale force north easterly winds , about 10 in of wet snow,more in the Cairngorms.
temps been just above freezing,grey skytoday, more snow trurning to rain tommorow, spring in Scotland,pah.

Yes Dan, I could see the clear skies accross the lake as I peered out from under our seemingly perpetual cloud cover. :innocent:

Actually though, the weather is improving somewhat. Today may have actually been nice though I'm not sure as I was sleeping all day from working the Night Shift. I did have the pleasure of riding home this morning through a thin snow-cover of about 1/2 inch.....good thing I leave the winter wheels on till April!! That snow is now gone and tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and approaching 50*F!!

My lawn appeared two days ago from it's winter hide-away beneath the blanket of snow. It's been a long time since I've seen it and it sure is nice to see colors other than white when I glance out the window!!

Yep, I think Spring is nigh.

Yep, spring has sprung. It was in the upper 80's yesterday. Suppposed to be 90 by Wednesday. Rode this morning (@5am) without a jacket or skull cap (just lycra arm and leg warmers with my shorts and short-sleeved jersy). I can hardly wait until it gets warm! :innocent:

Somebody mentioned 50% humidity. That is humid to me. We run between 10-15% in the summer, but the temp is 80/90's, so perhaps it is a wash.

Tomorrow I have had my arm twisted into trying Glendora Mountain Ridge road with a few riders from my work. I am going to give it a try, but I told them I wouldn't be able to do the whole thing and may only do a couple miles and turn around. I am terrified, but it is better to try and fail than to not have tried at all. I am hoping I can do it in about 6 months. I'll report what happened. ;)
http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=547195

Somebody mentioned 50% humidity. That is humid to me. We run between 10-15% in the summer, but the temp is 80/90's, so perhaps it is a wash.

We call 50% humidity "arid". :lol:

Our temps run 80s to 100s in summer with 60-90% humidity.

I'd need several showers a day instead of several bottles of water a day. ;)

It is just wrong to ride without wind! Just wrong.....

Most of the snow is gone on the north shore of Lake Ontario. There is still some traces of the snowbanks on the side of the street, but most of the grass is exposed.
The Waterfront Trail was clear and dry today. First time out for the 3 speed fixie this year. Sure was nice to get back out on that bike.
Took this shot at about 2:00 this afternoon.
http://i51.tinypic.com/o9mipc.jpg
+1 and it's starting to look even better. The birds are coming back. I was out walking on the Waterfront Trail yesterday near mty place and there were about 2000 Canada geese offshore at Petticoat creek
http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Petticoat+Creek+Conservation+Area,+Pickering,+Ontario&aq=0&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=38.991179,79.013672&ie=UTF8&hq=Petticoat+Creek+Conservation+Area&hnear=Petticoat+Creek+Conservation+Area,+Pickering,+Durham+Regional+Municipality,+Ontario&t=h&z=15

Time to get out there.

Spring does have it's downside.
Zyrtec or Claritin or Allegra or whatever aside, when the pollen kicks in full force around here, the sinuses start draining, the nose running and the coughing begins. I can't believe the amount of gunk draining out of my head!

I haven't got hit ... yet.. Once the trees start budding, my eyes look like a bowl of tomato soup, the nose runs and all the rest that comes with it will hit me like a ton of bricks.

FInally got the Roubaix out for my lunchtime workout. Spent a little more time than usual (90 min) getting acclimatized to riding with a compact double instead of a triple, riding around the neighbourhood getting the feel of it. Flats, rollers, a couple of long hill climbs, what an improvement from an aluminium frame ! Smooth and responsive with no flexing anywhere even when I put some muscle into it. If I didn't have a self imposed time limit (some of us still have to work), I would have stayed out all afternoon.

The 3 week layoff after xc-ski season ended was really hitting me though so I only put in about 15 miles . I haven't mounted the Sigma sensor kit on this one yet and I keep forgetting to press start on my Garmin and I know I covered over twice the mileage than it was telling me.

St. Patty's Day and our first day of 90 degrees . . . a bit early even for this part of Arizona.