To make a long story short (I hope) My Brooks B-17 got pretty wet on Monday despite my efforts to keep it dry while riding. We were in some very wet conditions. I wiped the saddle as well as I could and brought the bike into the cabin overnight. To my surprise it was nice and dry come morning and it didn't fall apart and the sides weren't splayed out and it rode just fine Tuesday. I treated it with Proofide this afternoon and will wipe off the excess tomorrow and buff. My question is what should my heart rate have been going up a 5 percent grade for a mile and a half. This post written with tongue planted firmly in cheek and my head somewhere else.

Drink a few more beers and call us in the morning.

...
*Scratches head*
Um...
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O...k...
-Gene-

But I'm a teetotaler, just think it I was a drinking man?

You have a heart rate monitor? cool.

NAW I just go until it feels like my heart is gonna blow up then I rest a while.

Getting a B-17 wet invokes Satan - who will destroy the Earth in flames and boiling sulfur. You must, at once, take the saddle to a Catholic Church and have it exorcised.

(Or, after it's dried, give it another small dab of Proofide on top (small amount), and keep re-treating the underbelly for 3 - 4 times total.)

I let the saddle dry out and then did the Proofide routine. Saddle did end up with some weird looking stains from the water but funny thing was they didn't show up till I buffed off the excess Proofide this morning. It looks kinda cool since this saddle was nearly pristine looking. Gonna treat it again tomorrow and call it good.

These things come from England. If they can't handle a little rain they still wouldn't be building them after a hundred and forty plus years...did they have poofide back then?

Depends: Was a bear chasing you while dragging a mint condition 1950s Les Paul in the gravel up that hill? If so you'd blown an artery or two in anger. Since there was no bear and no guitar involved, your heart rate should have been about 75-85. Was it higher?

Couldn't say, I didn't check. I was doing pretty good considering I haven't gotten to ride as much this summer just my daily commute. We did a nice hike at Mt. Rainier today. Nasty switchbacks the last half mile that got the old heart rate up there. Today the weather was in transition from the thunderstorms and hail of yesterday to back into the 90's by Tuesday. It was about 52 at near sea level and I would say the mid 40's or a bit less by the time we got to 6000 feet or so. Gonna do a 30 mile ride on Sunday so thats gonna be fun