Got out for my first long solo ride of the spring (I did a group ride a couple few weekends ago which was mostly a blur of trying to hang on, albeit with some nice roads). The other half needed to be down near Sutton this morning for something non-bike related, so I had him drag me along and rode home. Started out cold, but quickly warmed up -- my new GPS claims it was in the mid-thirties when I started out, and broke 60 by the time I was home; somewhere in between I took off my jacket for the first short-sleeved ride of the year. It wasn't quite yet what I'd call nice out, but it was much nicer than most of the weather we've had.

Only one road, out somewhere near the start, was icy enough to need to walk; the rest was smooth (well, potholed, but free of ice) sailing. Came up back roads through lots of little towns I'd never done more than zoom past on the Pike in a car, till things started to look familiar in Framingham.

The ice was still thick enough on one reservoir I went past that someone was walking on the ice; elsewhere, many runners and walkers were out, but cyclists were still absent until about mile 45, somewhere Sudburyish or so, and then started springing up around every corner as I neared Lexington.

Bombed down Mass Ave homewards, only marred by somehow managing to drop my chain while turning left in Arlington Center and bruising myself and coasting wobbily through the intersection until I could pull it off the road and fix it. No harm done; the hazards of having a wide range of gears to select from and ending up in a poor choice.