Helderberg

Went for a ride yesterday and found I was bucking a good 5 mph headwind on the first leg of my four point compass rout. Figured I would have it easy on my trip back as it would be my pushing tail wind. Turned at the end point and headed back only to find that I was still pushing the wind in my face. As I turned from the east/west direction to my North heading I again found I was pushing air. It seemed no matter what direction I turned I was heading into the wind. Got a good workout but it definitely took the "wind out of my sails". See what I did there?
Be safe all, Frank.

Flip Flop Rider

wind

JohnnyCyclist

I distinctly remember an out-and-back where I fought a brutal head wind for n distance and thought "no problem - enjoy 25+mph on the way back". When I returned to that point, the wind had shifted 180 degrees and was again directly in my face

Maybe if I had left an hour earlier (or later), I would have caught a tail wind both times

Cychologist

jaws7

That's like when I had to walk to and from school uphill both ways (in 2 feet of snow).

OldTryGuy

A 5 mph headwind is definitely a good headwind and 20+mph headwind is a BAD headwind. Too many days and nights with BAD headwinds here in SW FL so I'll take those good headwinds 24/7 and be -it.

Baldy1953

I find I have the same situation. I look at the weather before I leave the house and try to go against the wind. It seems that sort of works and by the time I begin to return home, the wind has also shifted to blow in my face. That gets really old, but I figure it is making me a stronger rider.

Mainiac

5 mph hardly counts as a headwind. 10 to 15 is common along the Maine coast. In the warmer times of the year, the wind heads toward the ocean in the morning, and as it warms up, the warm air over the land rises and the cooler air from the ocean rushes in to fill the void. I always seem to end up with the wind in my face when I do a ride.

BlazingPedals

Yeah, we call 5 mph, "calm." Having 15-20 in my face can be aggravating, mostly because I tend to watch the speedo and it's not showing the speed I want.

gregf83 

If possible, I prefer to start with a tailwind. That way I'm guaranteed to have at least a portion of the ride with the wood at my back

Kurt Erlenbach

One of the coolest things to happen with wind is when you have a strong (20 - 25 mph) wind directly at your back and you're able to exactly match the speed. All the wind noise in your ears fades away, but you still the sound of wind blowing through the trees by the road. It's a really nice effect, until you remember that you have to turn around and head back home.

canklecat

Check graphical representations for the regional wind patterns rather than the simple weather forecasts that claim the wind is blowing in any one particularly direction.

In some areas the wind is often swirling around an entire region and rarely really blowing in one direction. Terrain and temperature differentials can redirect the prevailing wind for a region and make it seem as if the wind is coming from the "wrong" direction. Happens all the time on a couple of segments along my favorite rural route. In particular a roller coaster segment, an access road adjacent to a highway on one side and a mix of trees and open prairie on the other, often has wind that feels very different from anyplace else in the area. It's tough to get a tailwind assisted boost on that segment, while there are other segments along that route where it's easy to take advantage of a steady tailwind because the wind is consistent, not redirected by terrain and temperature differentials.

This wind map site, and the Windy app, are excellent for checking the actual wind patterns.

KraneXL

Wait, was this in the bazarro world where the wind comes from every directing simultaneously? I'm inclined to think you compass must have been off?

Machka 

Um ... that's calm!! That's like 8 km/h. It's rare to have a calm day like that over here on this little island.

Machka 

Check out the wind directions where you are ...

pdlamb

And one of the worst things to happen with wind is when you're climbing a long hill on a hot sunny day with a tailwind that exactly matches your speed. Zero cooling, you create a bubble of air around you with 100% humidity from your own sweat.

But 5 mph headwind all the way around a route? Double your speed and you'll have a 10 mph headwind!

tcs

The Astrodome. Fly balls would sail out on the infield air-conditioning and die on the outfield air-conditioning. The scoreboard always showed the wind on the field as '5 mph NSEW'.

Harumph

The only way to get stronger is to get up front and push wind....

Carbonfiberboy 

When I have a headwind all the way around a course, I know I'm doing well.

gif4445

The last time we had a 5 mph wind in Nebraska, most of us fell over. Now 30 mph, that's where you can really start training!

mrFreel

Riding into headwinds is how we train for hills on the relatively flat bike trails of central Iowa.

tclune

I thought us geezers all knew you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.

GeneO 

I wish for 5 mph winds. gets up to 20=30 mph here sometimes. I don't like it above 10 but will ride a little south of 20 mph.

Here is a neat little site for you. Shows wind patterns and speed graphically on a US map updated in real-time. Click on an area to zoom in and hover get the instantaneous speed there:

Wind Map

.

bogydave

BlazingPedals

I'm glad you didn't say, "break wind." We'll have none of that in my group!