Left work Friday afternoon only to find that my front tube's valve stem had let go and flatted on me. Took about 5-6 minutes to change it then hit the road for my ride home on a fairly soft front tire. I couldn't outrun the impending rain and was soon caught in an absolute deluge. I was in between shelter points and was thoroughly soaked so I just kept riding-at least it was cleaning the residue from my recent 4 day ride in the dirt. Then, my chain started to slip everytime I'd bear down and try to accelerate. My middle and top gears just wouldn't catch so I had to ride home gently (a good excuse for the crank/cassette/chain upgrad that I'd been thinking about). In addition, after a trying weekend (truck breaking down on my way to deliver it to charity), I awoke to find that my new HRM is not working-no display (have to return it to Nashbar after just a few weeks of use).

Other than that, this morning's ride was nice; cool with moderate humidity. I took my backup commuter (roadie) and cruised in trying to guesstimate my heart rate for a cardio workout. This afternoon should be tough with heat indices nearing 100, but, as another commuter mentioned this morning "at least the wind is always in your face" when you're riding.