Machka 

Tell us about your cycling this weekend ... or other sports you might be involved in.


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Saturday -- the sun is finally shining again, and we're getting ready to go for a ride!!

Machka 

Saturday -- 41.58 km out to one of many "local beaches" and back.

Some hills, some wind, lots of sun! And beautifully nice warm temps of about 27C.

We stopped at the beach for about 45 min and tried to fly a kite ... which Rowan carried out there and back ... but the wind wasn't right and there wasn't really enough room. The tide was quite high. So then I waded up and down in the water.

Machka 

A photo from today ... there will be more ...


This is Rowan building the kite, while I stand in the water ... and of course, our bicycles ...

2manybikes

Does friday count as the weekend? I say yes.

77 miles 42f high 30f low. Overcast all day. Very windy. A great ride. 28 lbs steel touring bike with 15 lbs in the panniers.

Machka 

Yes, absolutely!

As far as I'm concerned, if someone wanted to post about their Wednesday ride, that would be fine with me.


And sounds like a challenging ride!

2manybikes

Having a heavy bike when crossing a big bridge in crosswinds, is very nice. But, you know that.

alexaschwanden

Saturday: Today i rode 61.9 miles from palo alto to san mateo and back. The weather was a cold 45F with light winds.
sunday: either relax or 15-20 miles.

BigC_82

Today I rode my new bike again as the weather was in me 40's and did 12.5 miles. I tested it on mile of local rail trail gravel and next I need lower psi some in the front tire. Sunday I hope try it on my small hills route to really test climbing ability.

jbchybridrider 

Did around 50k today and explored around Adelaide's new stadium that's only 10min walk from the city centre.

It's the day after the 1st Test between Australia & India. Here's some simple scores on the historic board for the US residents to work out

Machka 

Sunday -- 43.68 km today.

We drove into town and parked in a convenient location, then cycled out to the end of the cycleway and beyond. That part was great. Sailing along nicely. Then we turned around. Can we say "sea breeze" ... gusting to about 30 km/h. The trip back was something of a slog.

But the rest of the weather was nice ... sunshine and about 19C.

We stopped at Fish Frenzy for dinner ... they make make some great seafood dishes (fish and chips type of stuff with a bit more variety ... delicious!) and then made our way to the local Carols By Candlelight. Lovely.

Fastfwd01

I randomly decided to go for my second Full Century yesterday. I hoped my second Century would have a vastly improved time – the first one I had no other goal than to complete it. Unfortunately it was pretty windy – 21mph winds, but very warm for this time of year. So, it looks like I may have only shaved a few minutes off my time (6 hours 22 minutes). I’ll be looking for the perfect day this spring to get it under 6 hours.

bbattle

I drove out to my favorite riding area, Coldwater, Tennessee. I don't believe the temperature made it to 40F. The area is very hilly but I picked a road that went downhill just a mile after I started so I was Freezing to Death®. Spooked 8 does in a field next to the road; good sized ones, too. Later, a doe was coming up the embankment right at me. She swerved as I swerved and she crossed the road behind me. I thought only the squirrels did that.

I never could warm up, even with the steep hills. I decided to try some of the gravel roads. Very lovely scenery and lots of climbing got me warmer. I saw more does in a field; we must be in between deer seasons. Finally got back onto pavement but another interesting looking gravel road caught my eye and off I went. Came upon a flock of white sheep guarded by a llama, then a small herd of cows guarded by a donkey. A couple of dogs encouraged me to do some interval training.

A very gray day. Thankfully, there was no wind. A short 22 mile ride with about 8 of them on gravel roads. I was on my Domane with 700 x 25 tires. I hit 34mph on a dirt road which was a bit unnerving; the surface was hardpacked with not a lot of loose gravel.

kbarch

Another delightful group ride led by Gruppo Sportivo for Gran Fondo New York aspirants! (Actually, many had done it before, even a number of my fellow C group riders.) Chilly, overcast, and some damp roads, but a very warm and friendly group of people!

Again, we weren't supposed to pass the leader, and again, I worked on my paceline technique, but again I took the opportunity to charge up the biggest hill, from the back, past everyone, and past the guys that tried to pass our group - dropped the hammer on the lot of them!

Toward the top, I thought I slowed down too soon. Maybe I did, but once I got home and checked the Strava, I was thrilled to discover I'd not only gotten a PR, but I'd actually gotten the best time of the day so far (of 66 fellow recorders - also 2nd/316 for the month), and best of all, bested that SOB Cat 4 who's still hanging out in the "Cat 5 Crew" making us all look bad It's silly in a way, I know, but I was warmed up. I ordinarily get dropped from the faster training rides, and though I've raced a bit, I've never yet even finished with the field. But this,... This was something I knew I was pretty good at. So I did it. I had to.

But back to the friendly folks: although we left at different times, another rider from the group (but whom I hadn't actually met) caught up to me on the way home. Turns out we were both going all the way back downtown (about 10 miles), and we are both architects! I'd been dreading the ride home, not because it's especially tiring, but just because it can be so boring and seemingly interminable. So it was great having someone to chat with, and fortunately the somewhat gloomy weather kept the way from being too busy or crowded.

Jakedatc

Steve you are nuts.. riding that far this time of year is crazy and with all that crap packed. what are you carrying haha

Sun: 30mi with some hills with a friend from one of my groups. 40F not too windy. took them up a leg tester that is 1/4mi long but gets up to 18-22% in sections. only relief is 2 road crossings where you can breathe and evaluate your gear selection haha

Rowan

No hope whatsoever of them working out what the scoreboard says!!!

And it's worth pointing out that is real grass or turf on the stadium surface.

Adelaide is certainly one of the prettiest cricket/football grounds in Australia, even after the major upgrade of grandstands.

kbarch

Seriously. Sundries? What's that - gum, ink pens, toiletries, etc.?

timmy29er

I did 20.6 miles of mountain biking today. I hit a slick spot (lots of wet leaves) which caused me to clip a tree and send me to the ground. I'm happy to report that the bike is OK. :thumb:


Well in that case, I'll mention my Monday ride because I actually took some pics. And we all know how you like pics. :)
I did 33.8 miles Monday. It's been in the mid 30's here and almost dark when I get home from work. I'm not too eager about the trainer so I've been doing what I can to be able to tolerate the cold and see in the dark. As a result, the colder rides haven't been that bad once I get going, and I've found a new love for night rides. I came across a park out in the country that was decked out in Christmas lights. I rode in to check it out and took a few pics.

Machka 

Nice shot with the bicycle, lights and all.


(even if it is sideways ... good excuse to stretch a bit)

2manybikes

This is only visible from a dead end street and primarily just for bikes and peds on an off road paved bike path.
Not an MUP, a bike path. These are right side up.


https://www.flickr.com/photos/946973...7649251743048/

BigC_82

I did only 3 laps of my small hills route due to bad fog. I also achieved a new PR on segment beating my HT time by 10 seconds. I only had one minor issue switching to drops on descent. Still taking learning to build my confidence on my new road bike. So far I have about 36 miles total on road bike.

Carbonfiberboy 

Working on a two rides per weekend schedule on the tandem, weather permitting.
Saturday we left ahead of the main group and pulled a few riders away with us. We are still getting over a week-long flu bout so we kept a conservative z2 pace the whole way. 33 miles and 1850', 41°-46°.
Sunday we again left ahead of the group and stayed ahead all the way to the lunch stop even though we were 95% z2. Tandems can fly along with little power if you concentrate on flow. Then we joined up with them and toured some sunny highland viewpoints overlooking the fog-shrouded and butt-freezing valleys where we had been earlier. Sorry, no photos, really too bad. We hit a couple of the short hills really hard with decent results. PRs. 35 miles and 1700', 32°-55°.

YOJiMBO20

Haven't had much desire to ride for the last few months. Got out for 24.4 mi with 2,470' of climbing on Saturday.

Wheever

Saturday was 35- 40°, sunny and gusty. Went for a 15 miler in and around Larchmont/New Rochelle, NY, in my new PI ELite biking Jacket. Got a pinch flat, and by the time I got it fixed it was getting dark, so I headed in. Was shooting for 20 miles.

Set a new PR on a silly .5 mile strava segment! (the KOM's avg speed is 9 mph faster than mine. Ain't touching that in my lifetime.)

A good ride, in spite of the flat!

Machka 

A few more from Saturday ...

2manybikes

That looks like little boat houses. Did you see what kind of boat would go in there? Or?