Boatdesigner

Looked like rain this morning so I waited around a while. Once the sun peeked out I rode 13.4 miles. A little shorter than usual, but better than not going at all! It may be rainy tomorrow, so don't know if I'll be riding.

c.miller64

Heading out now to Flatwoods Loop (Tampa). I know it's short notice, but I'd love to meet up and ride with any other BF members that ride there.

I'll be the big dummy on a silver Cannondale six-13 going round and round in circles. Probably be there from 3 to closing.

qmsdc15

I rode all day in cold rain. I do not know the distance or average speed.

Boatdesigner

Got a late start as it looked like rain again. Then the sun came out for a few hours and it was actually beautiful! I rode 16.6 miles. Hopefully tomorrow will be nice from the beginning and I can get out early. This weekend is supposed to be nice and cool, with lows all the way down in the 40's! That's downright cold around here.

qmsdc15

Late start? Today was only 34 minutes old when you posted about today's ride. 16.6 miles by 12:34 am is impressive!

I rode in cold rain again today. It wasn't as bad as yesterday. While I don't measure my distance or speed, I often check how long it takes me to get to my third stop. Today was 65 minutes. My best time was 46min, average is around one hour.

Boatdesigner

That's why I am going bald, the wind ripping through my hair at 249 mph! Just think how fast I'd go on one of those fancy carbon bikes. Didn't ride today, I am a bit of a wimp when it comes to riding in the rain. Tomorrow is supposed to be nice and cool and sunny, so we'll see!

qmsdc15

I was thinking about riding Bike DC today, but I couldn't bring myself to pulling on the still damp rain gear again. I'll probably ride to the library and the store, but no hours long slog for me today. I'm a bit of a wimp too, I only ride in rain if I have to. Hauling freight on a flat bed trailer is not a job that should be performed on rainy days, but my boss doesn't understand that.

Avanti73

did 32 this morning with drew55

uberalles

17.76miles today in alittle less then a hr...had to rush it..to make it to my kids baseball garm
i walked outside at 7am and found that i was way under dressed for a ride...
it was cold ...and windy

Boatdesigner

I worked on the bikes a little this morning, cleaning and lubing chains. Then around 12:30 felt it was warm enough for a ride, so I took off on the '83 Puch. The wind was blowing pretty steady out of he North, so I headed into it when I got on the trail just to see how bad it was as I would have to ride back against it later. It wasn't too horrible so I turned around at the trailhead and headed South with a nice tailwind. I was going to turn around after about 8 miles, but found myself rolling on all the way down to Hernando. Then I got off the trail and rode down to Lake Tsala Apopka to look out at the water.

On the ride back home the wind switched to the West, but picked up steam. Good thing I wasn't going directly into it! The last mile was a bit tough as it was mostly against the wind and has a few big hills. Not too bad a ride, a little chilly, but it felt good to get out after not riding yesterday. Total was around 26.3 miles. Tomorrow we are only getting into the mid 60's. Supposed to be in the 40's tonight, pretty cold for down here in October! Just think, 4 days ago it was 90 degrees!

va_cyclist

I went ahead and did BikeDC. It was about as miserable a ride as I've ever done. About 40 degrees at the start, steady rain, and breezy. My upper body was mostly OK, but my feet (in wool socks and hiking shoes) were quickly soaked, and went completely numb a half hour into the ride. I had to stop a couple of times to take off my socks and gloves and wring them out. I was seriously concerned about hypothermia and frostbite.

That's two years in a row it's been in the rain, and this year was much worse than last. If they don't move the date of this ride up by a month, I will probably skip it next year.

Avanti73

I went out this morning with the Ride&Roll guys/gals. Got myself a new top speed, I'm very happy!!
90min 15.4avg ::: 40.6MPH MAX ::: 24.9miles

qmsdc15

That's hard riding. 40º and raining is as bad as it gets. Liner socks inside of neoprene socks inside of plastic bags inside of waterproof boots, poly base layer under goretex base layer under raingear. Liner gloves under goretex gloves, helmet, helmet liner, helmet cover, you get the idea. Layers.

What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I respect what you did yesterday, it's a ride you will remember.

c.miller64

Had a great ride yesterday out at Flatwood Loop here in Tampa. A little cold, but felt great after a couple of laps. Ended up doing 7 laps for a total of 50 miles.

I encounter an amazing amount of wildlife everytime I ride there (Deer, turkeys, armadillos, snakes, turtles, alligators, hogs)

Here's some pics I took yesterday (sorry for the crappy cell phone quality)
https://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...6&l=bde767f980

Lindaosm

We rode both Saturday and Sunday but didn't get a chance to post. Saturday we rode the backroads through horse country. Some pretty challenging hills but only about 12 miles. Beautiful ride but you really have to watch out for the pick up trucks that fly by. One of them probably came within a foot of me. DH says he will recognize the truck if we see it again. Sunday we rode about 20 miles of the Gainesville/Hawthorne trail. It was still pretty cool and I now realize that if I am going to ride in the winter I will need gloves. My hands kept getting numb. Took some neat pictures of gators sunning themselves down by the LaChala trail.

CMiller - we have been on that trail and seen lots of wildlife also. Lots of wild turkeys anyway. Nice area to ride. Unfortunately when we were there it was raining so we only did one or 2 loops around.

LindaN

Boatdesigner

I didn't ride yesterday because I'm a wimp! Temps near 60 and 20 knot winds just don't sound fun, so I watched the Brazilian Grand Prix and then cut the lawn. Today I waited until almost 3 before I went out. The wind is still howling but at least it was a little warmer. Even with a long sleeve shirt, I still was getting chilly on the way home. It is too warm for long pants and too cold for shorts! I did my usual 22.4 miles at an average of 14.3 mph. Not bad for me considering all the wind.

I did see a Black Racer trying to get warm in the middle of the trail. He didn't even move when I went by, either he didn't feel me coming or was too cold to react. I also had one of those green grasshoppers land on my bike and hitch a ride on the brake cable. I don't know when he got off, but he was hanging on pretty good for a while.

Avanti73

rode a quick 12.56 miles out on the beach with a friend tonight

kjc9640

Tuesday 10/20/09... Been off the bike since Tuesday 10/13 due to an unplanned trip to the hospital. Got released at 7 PM yesterday so I did a slow 20.5 mile flat, ride with my daughter today. Weather was just outstanding. After being in isolation for 5 days getting outside felt great. Hope to get back to my 30 mile per ride tomorrow. Mileage and ride days will be a little low this month... Oh well it is what it is.......

All is well in Slo Spoke Jim's world.

20.51 (s)miles tonight
295.44 (s)miles this month
5495.07 (s)miles this year
8 ride days this month (Oct.)

RonH

Great weather today. Left home wearing arm warmers, knee warmers, and vest. Temp was 55F.
Ditched the knee warmers after 11 miles and unzipped the vest. Did a lap around Stone Mountain. Then removed the arm warmers and unzipped my jersey part way. 65F when I got home.
I used sunscreen on my face but it sure feels warm.
I like days like this. I just need bigger rear pockets to stash my warmers.

Abu Jack

Rode 21 today at lunch time in 1:14. It's my first bike and I have had it for about 2 weeks. The weather was great here in Tampa. I did fall over for the first time. I got my right foot out but then lost my balance and fell to the left. It was right at the Macdill gate. I think the line of cars behind me got a good laugh.

Boatdesigner

Did the usual today, 22.3 miles. Will this wind ever let up!?! It was blowing 10-15 knots again, it's starting to get a bit old. At least it was nice and warm. Supposed to be fairly warm tomorrow, so maybe I can go back to riding early in the morning.

Jim, good to hear you are doing better. I didn't enjoy my week in the hospital last May, so I know where you are coming from. Take it easy getting back up to speed, don't want to give the docs any excuse to put you back in again!

ken_matthews

I too did the BikeDC ride...and agree that it was nothing short of miserable. I had polypros with wool socks over them and still got soaked. Of course, the mesh toe cover sneakers didn't help. I had two layers for gloves too, but not waterproof enough and I fiddled with taking out/putting back my camera for shots enough that I had wet hands by the time we got started.

Definitely some lessons learned for me. I don't know about you VA_CYCLIST but my hands warmed up first after continuous riding and eventually my feet did too.

If anything, we earned bragging rights!
KEN

va_cyclist

My hands held up pretty well despite being wet, and pedaling effort kept the rest of my body from getting too cold -- I only felt the big shivers on the GW parkway downhills, and the last few miles after the Air Force memorial. But the feet never warmed at all. Still, I'm kind of glad I went through with it -- I would have felt bad if I had wimped out. Maybe now it's time to invest in some real foul-weather cycling gear.

FYI, my waterproof GPS captured the route, linked below if anyone's interested.

https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UT...7cadea193&z=12

Ex Pres 

Hey, it quit raining, and I had a chance to ride. Our Tuesday night hill-climb extravaganza. We had about 20 on the ride. Good times.

kjc9640

Thanks Boatdesigner...

Wednesday 10/21/09... I did a slow 21.38 mile flat, ride with my daughter again today. The legs are still not up to speed. Weather was just outstanding but very windy. Hope to get back to my 30 mile per ride tomorrow. Mileage and ride days will be a little low this month... Oh well it is what it is.......

All is well in Slo Spoke Jim's world.

21.38 (s)miles tonight
316.82 (s)miles this month
5516.45 (s)miles this year
9 ride days this month (Oct.)