Phil Keoghan (The Amazing Race) came through my town in April '09; part of his time here included a war story or two from out on the road. He told us about rolling through the Southwest with such stiff crosswinds that he had to "lean into the wind at a 45-degree angle" (his words). Ironic, because as soon as the group cleared the city limits, we were slammed with a 40+ mph wind that was FIRST in our faces, then crossing the route. More than a few times on this section (a US highway, not an Interstate), I had to fight to keep from being blown out into 60-mph traffic; thus, I was quickly dropped, turned and rode home, and arrived home about an hour before he arrived at his next stop, one state over! (He was riding a Tarmac, I had a MTB, never a thought of finishing the whole ride with him, but I wanted to go further....)

Last month, commuting back and forth in 10-20F weather with 15-20mph winds, I had to fight a few uphills; still felt good about it, 'cause I WAS PEDALING...