Rode about an hour in between business calls today. Really wanted to get a ride in since I won’t be able to ride for a few days. I’m having a small procedure tomorrow. Nothing major (oral surgery,) but there is cutting, stitching and recovery time involved. The expectation is that the pain will keep me inactive for a few days or so. I will miss my near-daily rides.

I've had a week of hot-hot mid-day rides (3/32-inch sweat layer on entire body surface, utterly drenched) (lesson learned: don't squeeze your helmet down onto your head after a week of that unless you want an eye full of salt). Last night I rode after dark and 89F felt like a nice spring day. Thunderheads on the horizon and a thunderbolt from above gave a nice show.

Up in the hills this morning for some climbing and shredding:
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IMG_9823 by 2cam16, on Flickr

Speed drills for about an hour, just before sunset.

16 miles, some intervals - humid, windy, very cloudy, rain and thunder due a 2.5 hours after I started. 45 minutes into the ride, I saw lightning a few miles North (I thought), so I rode home. South. Tomorrow is supposed to mid 70s, sunny, no rain, high wind, though

60 miles with 3000’ of hills in our Carolinas 90+ degree heat.....right after walking 18 holes of golf. Boy am I dehydrated.

First WNCX (Wednesday Night Cyclocross) since 2017. I ended up with the 45-minute race - would've liked to start with the 30-minute race, but I was too late getting outta work. I was impressed with my fitness considering I've been focused on endurance riding all year. My heart-rate was 'maxed' out for the whole 45 minutes, but never felt like I'd blow up. I took two low-impact falls, one was me being over confident in a fast turn and just laid it down; the other was a pile up in front of me, I stopped but my track-stand skills failed ... I tipped over :lol: I finished 32nd place of the 51 riders in this group (kinda typical for me in CX against this group of riders)

True to my endurance focus, I rode to-from the race. So total ride was 24 miles. I was whining about riding home as I left, but once I got rolling, I felt really good riding home into the sunset. Great evening on the bike!

Next week, my kid (27yo kid) is planning to race too :love:

Speed run to the greenway, on a PR pace but blocked by 5PM shift-change traffic that filled the turn lane where I leave the forest cut-through and enter the highway. Maybe next time.

Broke the (aluminum, 2013-vintage) frame though. There's a crack across the front of the seat tube and back around the sides above the weld with the top tube. It was creaking and pinging like a can full of broken marbles during the warm-up ride today and some during my previous ride, and I thought it would be the bottom bracket needing adjustment, but then I found the crack.

It's not too surprising -- I'm a big boy, I ride hills and like to crank on it, and the mass-market frame turned out to be too small so I've been using a setback seat post. This bike came to me used and I don't think the previous owner was gentle. This was my learning bike, and, well, lessons learned. I'll be spinning up Bike 2.0 now. Front hub has been serviced, I got the cranks off last week, I opened the rear hub last night, and I'm waiting for the tool to remove the BB cartridge. It won't be long.

8/22 - low 70s and windy, almost 28 miles about which I have mixed feelings. First, I felt cold ... I never expected I'd feel cold at 70 degrees. Second, the wind sapped my spirit. It seemed to be from the North or Northeast as I rode North and Northeast, and then seemed to be from the East when I was close to Lake Michigan which is on my way home. I was afraid I'd be really wiped out after the ride. That's the bad. But it was sunny. The Lake was gorgeous. (I wanted to take a photo of the Lake because the colors were so amazing, but I couldn't see my phone in the sun.) The sky was gorgeous. I felt strong. My 'puter said my speed and cadence were higher than earlier this year, which makes some sense, since I was in a higher gear, than earlier this year. And I had a quick recovery and plenty of energy after the ride.

So...mixed feelings which add up to: another great ride.

I apologize for all the words.

An hour of hill repeats today while searching for longer grades. Most everything nearby is short and steep. Getting stronger... s-l-o-w-l-y but surely.

Got up early as dawn was breaking to beat the 100 degree forecast today.
Plus being Saturday, there are few cars on the road.. but quite a few bikes :)
Rode 10 miles then my bottom bracket began to disassemble itself (cup and cone).
hand tightened it back together and had to head for home.

Rode an egg sucking 70 miles today and felt like doggie doo doo during and now feel like run-over doo doo. Getting s-l-o-w-e-r.....faster than desired.

U B A lucky dog horatio. ENJOY!!!!

26 mi. Hills and flats. 2.5 hrs. Pretty typical. Felt good after a break of a few days.

Raining quite a bit today, going to commute to work in the AM early. Maybe not. Don't want to be soaked on arrival. Be Well. Bluesfrog.

20 miles today, JRA.

..

old, but not done
 

I'm 64 years old. I commute to work several times a week. Here in north texas, it gets hot for sure. All the youngsters I work for think Im crazy - they might be right. The other day a co-worker asked me if I'd ridden my bike my whole life. I quickly responded "Not yet!"

39 miles early this morning. Hot weather has broken so it was a very nice 64 degrees.

30 miles at a charity bike ride. Perfect day, perfect weather, perfect ride. Volunteered afterwards.

Good for you! Many years ago I had a co-worker who commuted by bike, three miles each way. I thought he was nuts. Now, I’m thinking otherwise.

I forgot to post Friday's epic fatbike adventure ride - 60 miles of mixed surfaces.

I can't think of anything I missed for summer time surfaces: paved roads, gravel roads, paved trails, limestone trails, rail-ballast trails, grass trails (mown and unmown), mud trails, trailblasing when the old trail had been washed out. I guess I missed some beach sand ... there was some sandy sections but not what I'd call beach sand.

Mud caked on tires from the soft silt/clay/mud fields in the riverbottoms - lots of walking since I'd just spin out in these conditions.
For the record - these is a riverbottoms trail, not the typical trail where riding muddy conditions will create erosion issues. These trails have been underwater for most of the year, a tire rolling over this trail is nothing compared with a powerful river flowing over it over the last 6 months. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4dccc035f3.jpg

There were lots of brick factories along the river a century ago, this fallen tree must have been in a production area ... still searching for some history for this location

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To the point about the power of the flooding over the last few months, the "trail" goes through this mess of trees. I was able to find a way under these trees through the shallow pool on the bottom left of the pic.

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Vernon, NJ Lake

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What a day!!! I walked 18 holes of golf this morning. 3 birdies and 3 bogeys for an even par round of 72. Then rode 34 miles on a loop around the house. It was a rare day where I was either feeling strong or it felt like I had a tailwind in every direction that I rode. I was hitting hills in a gear or two harder than normal and my overall speed was well above what it normally would be. Riding is crazy and sometimes unpredictable. Saturday I had a sucky 70 miler at a lot slower speed than normal.

loving the cooler and lower humidity weather!!

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Took the day off and went for a ride with the Wife along Route 45 Don Valley. Nice paved path connecting north mid-Toronto to Downtown/Lake.
The path runs parallel with the highway on one side and the Don River on the other. Ran into ET later on in the ride (near home)
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