Riding with the wind?
Does anybody else do it?
I ride for only two reasons: enjoyment and to stay healthy. Take away one or the other reason, and I’d probably be a slug, content to spend all my time behind my computer the way I did for a lot of years before serious health issues forced me to exercise and I chose biking over the numerous other less appealing options.
But I’m 75, and the daily rides can sometimes be awfully strenuous if I’m riding into heavy winds (and 2014 has been a very windy year so far). Since bucking a strong headwind reduces the fun of riding for me, I’ve had a tendency this spring to wimp out and plan most of my routes with the wind behind me all the way.
Fortunately, I’ve got a very cooperative wife who is happy to drop me off at my starting point and pick me up at the end of my run. The bike trails in my area provide enough variety that I can ride any distance up to about 25 miles with the wind at my back. By bucking the wind for relatively short distances, I can still enjoy even longer rides if I choose to do so.
Yesterday, I planned a relatively easy 20-mile evening ride that would end about two miles from my home, but when the wind got stronger and changed directions so that I was riding directly into it, I opted to phone my wife for an earlier pick-up at 15 miles. I might be lazy, but I’m also flexible!