Unusually warm and dry day on Monday and I was able to get out for a long ride.
Down to the lower valley on the Snoqualmie Valley Trail (SVT) to Carnation.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...12369543_k.jpgLeaving the upper valley by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

So warm, I was able to ride pretty much all day without wearing a jacket
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...6514e012_k.jpg1st ride without a jacket this year by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...2661de97_k.jpgTook the SVT to Carnation by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

Out onto the pavement past Carnation Dairy Farm, up n over Union Hill to Redmond.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...17075e75_k.jpgCarnation Dairy Farm / Camp Corey by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

I rode south along the East Lake Sammamish Trail to Issaquah, stopping for an Ice Cream at Bohems Chocolates Haus.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b3d9593c_k.jpgIceCream break at Bohems in Issaquah by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

Back on the bike I head east on the Issaquah Preston Trail. I wanted to try out a new way to get back into the lower Snoqualmie Valley I’d heard about.
Starting in Upper Preston a beautifully paved road climbs steeply up Mitchell Hill. The pavement ends at the top by a microwave tower.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...d05f9080_k.jpgMitchell Hill by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

There’s an old logging road that drops down the other side, petering out to a dirt trail.
Quite steep with some loose gravel and muddy waterbars in sections, I descended carefully.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...939d8f55_k.jpgThe descent of Mitchell Hill to the Issaquah-Fall City road.. by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

The trail eventually ends at the Issaquah-Fall City road in the Lower Snoqualmie Valley. I ride past Fall City and take the SVT back home to North Bend, 78 miles for the day.

Pre-groundhog day ride. 20 miles post-trabajo.

My new route takes me behind some mysterious derelict greenhouses.

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Haven’t been able to find out the story on these. Been this way for decades and the land is worth a mint.

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Mid-ride, I found the source if the wobble. Second spoke break in the last 2 months. Was counting on a longer winter to have time for a rebuild.

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Metra train at Linden

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Happy to get out. Mid-day it was 52. Right before ride time, the wind flipped around to NE off the lake and put the temps in the upper 30s - grrr.

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Took the touring bike out for a shakedown ride after fitting it with some new components, including 8-speed downtube mechs. Temps were right around freezing, so I wasn’t out there long, but it was good to see the sun after a very overcast week.

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Got about 40 miles in yesterday afternoon.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...3931ba9c_h.jpgA view from my bike today by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

29 miles today on my Elance 400T on the Le Tour De Ham Saturday Stroll group ride and a solo ride after lunch.


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Sun was out, chill wind had died down and temps pushed toward 50. I’ve been riding pretty regularly but mostly short rides. Today was my first ride over 25 miles in about 6 weeks. Rode the Breakaway to check it out as I have a warm weather bike trip coming soon!

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No pics cuz I don‘t do Tapatalk but 31 miles around Palm Springs CA today on the 88 Cannondale ST.
Was not rearended by a truck, which was a nice improvement.

What more could you ask for?

I set a low bar.

Aired up the tires of the Champion Mondial semi-race and took it for a short ride to see if it needed anything for the upcoming season. It was very windy. Taking this picture without the bike falling over was a bit of a challenge.

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Looks like one of those days where you ride 30 miles downwind and then call for a pickup.

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My ride, an around 45 year old Bridgestone road bike with bare metal finish.

Always thankful to post this thread
 

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Rode with a favored alter-ego. The guy who thinks he’s a hardcore enthusiast cycler. End of the ride proved he is only softcore, at best. But warm on chilly day. 42*f at 3pm.

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You're tougher than I as well.
Those bars look like hand chillers.
If that was your kit today, the booties might be the only thang that would keep one part of my body warm.
Put me in the softcore category as well.
By

Chalk it up to, "A little sunshine goes a long way". :thumb:

edit: some layers are effective but hidden.

Wheat harvest underway...
 

Summer finally arrived here after a cool, cloudy start. The wheat harvest began a few weeks ago and today the paddocks close to home are being harvested. I've ridden several times in recent weeks, two different bikes, the Woodrup and the "rat rod" modified 'REK . With the wheat harvested, summer's days are numbered....
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I live in the town in the trees in the distance.
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Heading out to Seven Sisters Road, a popular route for me.

Still not much riding in Fairplay CO a couple of feet of snow the last week or so after several weeks of freezing temps. Did get out for a short ride today fairly nice in the 40's so a nice combo of snow, ice. slush, mud and a bit of dry pavement. Just a couple pics by what they call a lake and a beach here.

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Lake and Beach.
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Trail.

Calm between the storms. SF bay trail through Richmond CA.
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Train ferry at ferry pt.
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Stranded.

10 miles today on my Austro Daimler Puch Vent Noir II.
I did get in 21 miles yesterday on my Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo but no pictures.

Here's one from today on the Vent Noir.

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Squeezed in 21 miles after work. Staying light until about 5:30.

Stopped at Gilson Park. Lake was still beyond the dunes.

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The Wilmette Harbor Club with its boat crane.

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Wilmette Marina is empty for winter. Every slip is full in the summer. Long waitlist.

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There’s still a thin glaze of ice on the North Shore Channel.

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Glad to get out. 45 degrees at ride time, calm winds.

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Fairplay CO more snow more cold and more snow cold coming.

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Mostly sunny and near 60 in the Boston area today, pretty amazing for early Feb., so I figured it was a good day to ride long. I also needed to attend a memorial service in Providence, RI, so in the morning I took the commuter rail from Boston to Providence, attended the service and then biked home, almost exactly a metric century.

Waiting on the train:

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A fairly long section of this route was on a MUP, half of which was paved, the other half very wet and muddy (though not slippery). My Fitz and I were very splattered.
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What do you think of those wheels, @nlerner ? I'm thinking of buying a set for the breakaway.

It was pretty nice in my part of the world today too.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...b1c25939_b.jpgWelcome to my world today.. by Matthew Pendergast, on Flickr

Merino is always deployed, a little goes a long way, it can be a great regulator. ;)

Matt, I like them a lot, particularly paired with those 38mm RH tires. They might be the least expensive ones Hunt sells and they’re not particularly light for carbon rims, but they are smooth, durable, stiff in the right places.