jaxgtr

Damn I'm tired. It's been a while since I've ridden the Trek and man can I feel it. Hard to believe that 11 pounds can make that much of a difference. Forecast called for possible rain and my CAAD9 has yet to see rain and I want to keep it that way. Was planning on 50 miles on a different route, but with the wind blowing about 12-15 from the East and Northeast, that route would have been miserable, so I did the Southside Loop through the business parks and the 40 miles gave me the workout that 50 miles would have done, plus the last 7 miles would have the wind at my back for the most part.

So it was a fairly uneventful ride until I crossed Southside Blvd going East into the Deerwood business park where I witnessed a hit and run between 2 cars. Luckily the driver in the car that stopped was ok, I called 911 and when the police got there I made my report and continued my ride. I was hating the delay as the wind was building as time was ticking away waiting to be released.

I rode down Baymeadows and had the wind at my back which was nice, but I knew the return trip would be hell. The overcast conditions made the temps pleasant and it kept me from overheating as the time was approaching 11 am. Someone please tell the University of North Florida to repave the road that loops around the campus. My brain is still loose from the rough road. On my way out of the Town Center area, there were about 6 runners heading west in the bike lane even though the nice brand new wide and not in the bike lane side walk was available. The Town Center is a major busy area and cars believe they should never give way to a bike. Please people, run on the side walk in that area.

I make it back to Southside to start my way home and luckily see the light is about to change so I take the lane behind a few cars and the dufus in the car behind me starts honking the horn and giving me crap cause I am in the lane. I turn an wave an they flip me off, but I maintain my position. Karma was on my side cause when they went through the intersection, they threw something at me, some kind of fast food bag full of garbage which ended up all over the road. Kindly Mr. police office was sitting at the light waiting to turn right on the same road, saw it and promptly pulled them over. As I approached the cop, I asked if he needed my name as the victim of a drive by garbage throwing, he laughed and said sure and as I continued my ride, I smuggly told the two guys in the car to have a great day and and gave them a little wave. All the time, I could hear the cop laughing. By the way, littering in Florida is a $500 fine. From the looks of the car, they don't have it.

I'm now about 5 miles form the house and I start having massive leg cramps in my front thigh. Obviously the weight of the bike and the wind have really stressed my legs. I make it back to the hood and I start to feel like my rear tire is a little squishy. I look and damn if I am not getting a flat. Crap, I am 1/4 mile from the house and I have a flat and my quads are tweaking pretty bad. I stop and walk home which was quite a chore with the cramping. I look at my Garmin and see that I am .6 miles from hitting the 40 mile mark. Just damn. I open the garage, pull the wheel, replace the tube and go back out for 1 lap around the the neighborhood. I ended up with 40.22 miles.

This was the first flat I have had on these tires ever, and I have close to 2300 miles on them and they look brand new. I highly recommend the Bontrager Race Lite Hardcase for any looking for a flat resistance tire. They roll nice and are fairly lite and very easy to get on and off the rim. I can almost get them off the rims just using my hand, so I only need to carry one tire tool.

Whew, quite an entry for todays ride.