I left early this morning so I could take the extra-long way in and ride some hills (okay, some of you would probably laugh at what I call 'hills,' but I'm getting better ) -- and in so doing encountered more dogs than I have ever seen on my morning commute. I'm guessing I ran into the whole of the canid-owning community walking their dogs before they had to leave for work. An excessively-friendly springer spaniel came bounding forward to play with my bike at the bottom of a steepish descent around a sharp corner -- almost didn't see him in time; thank God for good brakes!

Next time I leave that early, though, I'm going to take that descent and that corner waaaaaaaaay more slowly (that'll teach me to expect Cherokee Park to be empty at 7:00 AM!). It's fun to whiz down hills and zip around corners, but I don't want to run over any dogs. I like dogs!

Other than that, though, the dogs I encountered were all well-controlled (probably because their owners saw me coming, and I saw them coming, much sooner). The weather was pleasantly cool. I'm sure I looked like an idiot in my long johns-under-cargo-shorts getup, but for the moment, it's a decent compromise, and I'm sure everyone except other cyclists (okay, and maybe lycra fetishists?) would think I looked equally goofy if I was clad in lycra from head to toe (after my last two long rides, though I have finally decided to acquire some good bike shorts in the very near future -- if you have any recommendations, feel free to shoot them my way).

The sky is grey, but with temps in the teens (celsius), you won't hear a single complaint from me.