31 miles this morning on Ted's Big Boy Birthday Breakfast Ride. Ted is a cyclist friend and train enthusiast, and Big Boy, the largest steam engine in operation, has been in Fort Worth the last few days and was due to leave this morning, so Ted set up a birthday ride to see the train as it left Fort Worth (so we could see it in action): https://photos.app.goo.gl/im91ugV8AMXN8hFj9

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An early start

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Birthday boy Ted sporting a WHO TOOTED? shirt

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Lots of people met us at the train crossing

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Here comes Big Boy!

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Here comes Big Boy!

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Off to breakfast

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On my way home: "FREE TACOS WITH HOME PURCHASE" :D

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some shots from the GAP (Rockwood PA to Frostburg MD)

You have really beautiful country to ride in.

we are fortunate - a number of great rail trails and mups in the area … largely a product of the remains of a once strong industrial base (that barely or no longer exists)

we are basically sandwiched between two of the top rail trails in the country: the OTET (Ohio To Erie Trail) to the west and GAP (Great Allegheny Passsge) to the east … and the Montour trail (almost a smaller ‘poor mans’ version of the GAP) is very close

I rode today. Just 7 miles on my fixed gear to and from the Bills Backers bar to watch Buffalo squeak by the Jets. I'll take any Bills win I can get. With that ride I have 100 miles over the last three days.


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that was a squeaker !

and a little odd at times …

the one Bills DB had a heckuva game … (Rapp) …

And Johnson had the big INT to seal it at the end.

In spite of a brisk wind and somewhat cooler temps I managed a 21 mile ride on my local path. Nothing extraordinary but grateful to get out and enjoy the fresh air and changing colors. I feel like I am making some progress towards regaining fitness. All in all a nice day.

Rode a modern 29er mountain bike with 1x drivetrain, hydraulic disks, full suspension, and dropper post for the first time. Wow! A completely different world from my 26er hardtail.

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I'm a bit late (ride was Sunday, today is Wednesday) but my significant other and I took our first ride on the new-to-me tandem (Cannondale RT1000). She has never learned to ride a bicycle but wanted to be able to come along on some rides. I bought her a used bike in excellent shape (Scott Speedster "Contessa" women's specific geometry in XS frame size - she's only 5' tall) but she never got comfortable with balance, pedaling, steering, shifting and braking. I found the tandem 4.5 hours away. It just had a full professional tune up, with new tires, chains, and cables. I negotiated the asking price and it was accepted!
We went to a local MUP that is flat and in very good shape. It's only 4 miles, but good enough to get acquainted with riding a tandem. I can tell you it's a lot different being a Captain with a stoker on board than riding solo! The first mile or so was a bit shaky, learning how to set the pedals for starts and stops, and I had to ask her to please not try to lean to look over my shoulder! I did manage to make a U-turn at the end of the path without dismounting. It felt a bit like turning around driving a large motorhome compared to my Scott Addict.
The return trip was much better. A few changes in store to make things more comfortable for her (different saddle and bars) and some more practice, and we'll be fine!


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Very very cool. Congrats to the Mrs!

I'm starting another training block; Inters, gym time, and going to really try to get in one 4+ hr Z2 pull per week. I thought I started the block on Monday but neglected to test and set my FTP, so those were just random workouts. :)

I got out this morning at 9 am and rode for 15 miles due to time. It was a chilly 45 degrees and windy but I was out riding so...all is good. I will need to get accustomed to colder temps if I want to get out and ride early am.

Almost 11 miles total today. Definitely not a single un-broken ride.

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The usual stuff- stopping for coffee.

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On the return loop home.
Pretty stout s/s/w breezes today.
It's a good thing I don't time myself that often. That stiff head wind on the outbound side was a bit more than I expected from the forecast. Lucky if we made 45 F today. Leaves are turning late this year. Most are skipping the red phase and going yellow to brown, and then dropping.
Good to get out and ride. I had been off the bike a couple of days.

-D.S.

Made it out 2 times today.

1st ride at 12:46AM for a very windy/chilly 62 ℉ - feels like 55 ℉ 34.43 miles

2nd ride at 7:06AM for an even chillier 56 ℉ - feels like 47 ℉ UNDER the FULL MOON 11.11 miles Publix food store go-to.

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22 miles in 1:37 yesterday evening. Enjoying the last few weeks of after work rides.

It amazes me what some riders think of as 'chilly' :)

I got out this morning at 7am for a ride. The temp at that time was 34 f degrees. I had told myself if I wanted to ride I would just have to dress for the cold. So off I went and had a nice 20 mile ride this morning.

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digging the fall colors on the Montour trail

Just a quick 9 miles here this morning. First ride in a while.

Ordered new tires for my Allez today. The current tires (Continental Grand Prix) are old. worn down. and getting some serious dry rot.
Replacements will be the same tire.

Got out for the first time in too long. Just got over a cold.
The weather here in North Texas just begs for a ride.
6 miles around my local lake showed me how much conditioning I lost but it felt great.

Chilliness is seasonal for me. In the autumn under 60° is chilly but in February-March 60° will be toasty warm.

I changed ride plans this week because the start temperature was too low at 55°... and since I've started whining why stop now? I don't like riding through > 10° temperature changes, where I'm too cold or too hot. This time of year I'm a Goldilocks cyclist. 😜
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Another good start to my day, as I headed out the door at 7am and got a 20 mile ride in. The mup wasn't busy at that hour of the morning making riding very pleasant.

I used to run with a youth mentoring program that trained with teens for half marathons. Their biggest fundraiser every year was an 8k race through a nature preserve outside of town. The last three years, I have been a bike marshal leading the runners through the course, going back out and sweeping for stragglers and injured runners.

There was one young lady that I ran 5 half marathons with logging about 750 training miles. These days she runs full marathons, and half Ironman competitions while carrying a 4.0 in pre-med school. This year she took a bit of time out from all those things to ride the OK route with me.

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Unlike my 2 rides on 10/17, today's 3 rides were warmer BUT WINDIER and totaled fewer miles.

1st ride out at 12:37AM for 9.99 miles

2nd ride out at 1:26AM for 12.21 miles

3rd ride out at 2:48AM for 16.61 miles

Due to my Prostate Cancer treatment protocol, I had to take a rest break between ride 2 and 3 compared to as recently as a few years ago when I would have been able to ride 100 miles non-stop.