Bikeforums.net is a forum about nothing but bikes. Our community can help you find information about hard-to-find and localized information like bicycle tours, specialties like where in your area to have your recumbent bike serviced, or what are the best bicycle tires and seats for the activities you use your bike for.cranky old dude
05-05-12, 05:12 PM
After a full morning of digging the porch and yard furniture out of storage followed by a light lunch consisting of a serving of Peach flavored Yogurt and a bottle of Gatorade, it was finally time for a ride. I bid my dear bride goodbye, scratched the cat behind his ears, and made a bee-line for the garage. After a few moments of deliberation I opted to ride ‘Little Blue Bike’ today. You see, earlier in the morning I had been finishing up a little project on her and while she was in the repair stand I had pumped up the tires. Knowing that I wouldn’t need to pump them up now for the ride was enough to draw me to her. Not too lazy, am I?
Though I wore my denim shorts I still put a fleece over my t-shirt and a light cycling jacket over the fleece. It was 01:00pm and the temperature was only 49 degrees with the wind out of a northerly direction so there was little chance of it warming up much. More about that later.
From my house I headed south along Lake Avenue to the head of….yep; you guessed it, The Genesee River Trail. I was astounded that the trail was all but abandoned today. I saw four people over the entire three mile trail. It was sweet; just me, the trees, and the river. What a great way to start my first ride in ten days! Normally my first impulse would be to open it up and fly along this nice smooth empty trail, but today I felt blessed to just tool along at about twelve miles an hour and drink in the peace and tranquility. By the time I reached the mouth of the river at Lake Ontario I felt renewed and whole again.
As I cruised along in the park I couldn’t help but chuckle as I spied all these picnic tables bunching together as if to keep warm.
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r152/crankyolddude/May%202012/IMG_0128.jpg
I know I’ve posted a similar picture in the past, but I just get a kick out it. O.K., a few paragraphs ago I mentioned I’d discuss why northerly winds in May mean cold temperatures. It’s because the air has traveled thirty five to forty mile across this…..
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r152/crankyolddude/May%202012/IMG_0129.jpg
….393 cubic miles of 49 degree water!! Ladies and Gentleman, meet Lake Ontario. In early Winter it tempers the cold for its devoted shoreline area residents and in late Spring and early Summer in lessens the impact of the heat. Did you notice the winter coats? That 49 degree wind feels icy cold when as it rushes in off the lake.
I rode west along the shore for a few miles and then followed the detour south on Greenleaf Road. The bridge over Round Pond outlet is still being rebuilt. I’m excited about that. The bridge is just beyond the base of a nice 9% grade. Though it’s only about a fifty or sixty foot drop it’s enough to give me a thrilling launch, especially if I’m on one of the Long Wheel Base recumbents. The old bridge had a steel grated deck so I always felt the need to slow down before crossing it. The new bridge has a concrete deck. I was chatting with the construction crew the last time I rode in that area and they assured me that I’ll be able to take the bridge at speed. I’m stoked!!
From Greenleaf Road I took the Lake Ontario State Parkway trail west to Island Cottage Road and turned once more into the wind. Another mile west along the shore and it was time to wander homeward. Southward bound on busy Long Pond Road I crossed up over the Parkway and turned west to meander through a nice peaceful housing tract. Housing tracts are fun. Lotsa kids are out playing, mothers are out gardening, and fathers are cutting the lawn or washing the car. People wave or say hello and sometimes an adventurous youngster on his bike starts racing alongside me. They are always so proud when they win. He he.
A quick jaunt east on Janes Road brought me to the Interstate 390 bicycle trail. I took it south towards Rt. 104 and noticed that I was getting warmer. By the time I reached Basil A. Marcella Park I was glad that I had my panniers on the bike. It was finally time to lose the fleece and cycling jacket. The rest of the trip up the trail went smoothly enough but when I reached Rt. 104 I was a bit disappointed. The afternoon was almost gone, my tummy was grumbling, and it was only five miles to home….bummer, the ride is almost over. Trust me, it was more fun riding it than it was reading my post about it. You’d have been bummed too!!
Total ride distance….28 miles
Average speed…..I haven’t a clue
Ride time….um, a while. :D
Though I wore my denim shorts I still put a fleece over my t-shirt and a light cycling jacket over the fleece. It was 01:00pm and the temperature was only 49 degrees with the wind out of a northerly direction so there was little chance of it warming up much. More about that later.
From my house I headed south along Lake Avenue to the head of….yep; you guessed it, The Genesee River Trail. I was astounded that the trail was all but abandoned today. I saw four people over the entire three mile trail. It was sweet; just me, the trees, and the river. What a great way to start my first ride in ten days! Normally my first impulse would be to open it up and fly along this nice smooth empty trail, but today I felt blessed to just tool along at about twelve miles an hour and drink in the peace and tranquility. By the time I reached the mouth of the river at Lake Ontario I felt renewed and whole again.
As I cruised along in the park I couldn’t help but chuckle as I spied all these picnic tables bunching together as if to keep warm.
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r152/crankyolddude/May%202012/IMG_0128.jpg
I know I’ve posted a similar picture in the past, but I just get a kick out it. O.K., a few paragraphs ago I mentioned I’d discuss why northerly winds in May mean cold temperatures. It’s because the air has traveled thirty five to forty mile across this…..
http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r152/crankyolddude/May%202012/IMG_0129.jpg
….393 cubic miles of 49 degree water!! Ladies and Gentleman, meet Lake Ontario. In early Winter it tempers the cold for its devoted shoreline area residents and in late Spring and early Summer in lessens the impact of the heat. Did you notice the winter coats? That 49 degree wind feels icy cold when as it rushes in off the lake.
I rode west along the shore for a few miles and then followed the detour south on Greenleaf Road. The bridge over Round Pond outlet is still being rebuilt. I’m excited about that. The bridge is just beyond the base of a nice 9% grade. Though it’s only about a fifty or sixty foot drop it’s enough to give me a thrilling launch, especially if I’m on one of the Long Wheel Base recumbents. The old bridge had a steel grated deck so I always felt the need to slow down before crossing it. The new bridge has a concrete deck. I was chatting with the construction crew the last time I rode in that area and they assured me that I’ll be able to take the bridge at speed. I’m stoked!!
From Greenleaf Road I took the Lake Ontario State Parkway trail west to Island Cottage Road and turned once more into the wind. Another mile west along the shore and it was time to wander homeward. Southward bound on busy Long Pond Road I crossed up over the Parkway and turned west to meander through a nice peaceful housing tract. Housing tracts are fun. Lotsa kids are out playing, mothers are out gardening, and fathers are cutting the lawn or washing the car. People wave or say hello and sometimes an adventurous youngster on his bike starts racing alongside me. They are always so proud when they win. He he.
A quick jaunt east on Janes Road brought me to the Interstate 390 bicycle trail. I took it south towards Rt. 104 and noticed that I was getting warmer. By the time I reached Basil A. Marcella Park I was glad that I had my panniers on the bike. It was finally time to lose the fleece and cycling jacket. The rest of the trip up the trail went smoothly enough but when I reached Rt. 104 I was a bit disappointed. The afternoon was almost gone, my tummy was grumbling, and it was only five miles to home….bummer, the ride is almost over. Trust me, it was more fun riding it than it was reading my post about it. You’d have been bummed too!!
Total ride distance….28 miles
Average speed…..I haven’t a clue
Ride time….um, a while. :D