Hooeee! It's a warm one today. Over lunch I rode 9 miles from our company location to a client's office. 93 degrees and blazing sun. When I arrived I was drenched in sweat. Good thing it's a pretty casual client office and I brought a change of clothes.

A few observations I made during my ride:

I've decided I really hate the new seat I put on my hybrid about a month ago. It feels like I'm sitting on a rock. I'm usually not too picky about saddles, but I think I'm going to have to break down and ditch this one. It's a WTB Speed Comp. I've got a WTB Speed V on another bike that I like and thought this one would be similar, but it's not. My old seat was the cheapest Bontrager they made and I really liked it, but the cover ripped on it. I can't find the same Bontrager seat anywhere, and this WTB saddle looked pretty close so that's why I bought it. Sure doesn't feel the same, though.

The last few weeks I've noticed a much higher police presence on the MUP. Almost every ride to/from work I'll see at least one cop patrolling. Usually they're on motorcycles, but today there were two of them riding quads. A woman was assaulted on the MUP in early May. She wasn't injured, but some guy came up and grabbed her then ran off when she resisted. I'm wondering if that's what prompted the police to keep a closer eye on the trail? Not sure. On my way home last night I saw one of the cops talking to a kid who he caught throwing rocks at birds.

Also, I'm seeing a non-officer "safety patrol" guy out riding on a bicycle quite a bit. He's not in uniform, but is wearing a fluorescent safety vest and carries a walkie-talkie. I'm speculating that maybe he's a city employee of some sort just giving some added surveillance to the MUP? Or perhaps doing some community service time? He doesn't look like a seasoned rider. I generally see him on the southwest side of town. Today when I saw him I was really tempted to catch up with him and offer to adjust his bike seat to make his ride more comfortable. The seat is slammed all the way down on his mountain bike and it's obvious the fit is way off. He rides about 8 mph and keeps the bike in a high gear so his legs are barely spinning. If he's riding around all day like that his knees have to be screaming. Had he been heading the same direction as I was I would have pulled up next to him and attempted to offer some assistance to help him enjoy his riding a bit more.