droobieinop ..... Good to see you check back in, kind of wondered what happened to you.

Just a quick comment.... I'm a lone rider pretty much, once in awhile somebody will ride along with me but for the most part I ride by myself. So I have never ridden in a group (like the one that passed me last week, and didn't say HI or hello). I guess when they passed I was a bit intimidated more than anything, I had never been passed like that on a road (next to a curb). I don't think I'm erratic when I ride, I keep a pretty much straight line, I pay attention to those around me. But when they passed I got a bit white knuckled because I KNEW I had better keep a really straight line (curb to one side, riders to the other). And to be honest didn't notice how many abreast they were until I looked at the pictures later. Just went back and looked again now and they are at least 5 wide and maybe 6 wide in the picture. At the time I was too busy trying to keep a straight line when they passed to notice how wide we/they were when they passed. If they were 5 or 6 wide +ME when they passed that would have been out in the traffic lane quite a bit.

This is just an observation, not a rant or anything.... And the majority of cyclists I meet in groups or by themselves are courteous and give a wave or a nod or hello. The scary ones are the parents who have their kids out on the MUP's and don't teach them anything... But I love seeing ALL kinds of people out on the trails.... the more people using the trails.... the more trails we will all have in the future.

Anyway..... I should quit posting on here and go for a ride...... well this evening anyway..... (stuff is dried out from yesterday)....

Not at all, we're just enjoying encouraging each other. As for the overtaking other cyclists, I so rarely see one around here I almost always tell them hi... but you're right, I do need a bell, since I'm converting my MTB to a full commuter.

I didn't ride today, after having 2 flats yesterday, I'm out of good tubes, and the patch I put on it yesterday didn't hold. I don't feel like jumping on the spare MTB, and my chopper doesn't have a chain... okay, let's be real, I'm resting after 38 miles yesterday, just didn't feel like it. :) Cloudy with a chance of wuss.

I need to do some long training rides on the chopper again, I really love that bike. I was thinking of building something more useful, like a cargo bike, to use the Sturmey 8-speed hub on. It would be perfect for something with a 20" rear wheel, like the Madsen "bucket" bike. Hmmm... I bet I could build a clone of a Madsen for pretty cheap.

We spent this weekend at Mike Roess Gold Branch State Park in Keystone Heights. On Friday we rode all the roads through the park at least several times...only about 10 miles. Saturday we decided to head out of the Park and down towards Keystone Heights on the rail/trail. We didn't quite make it to Keystone Heights as it was getting really hot. Still ended up with a little over 10 miles.
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=162694
zzotherlandzz - mb trails in this park are not marked well at all!! Funny to as we happened to go down one of the roads and found a maintenance area that had a sign shop. Not sure what signs they do but they sure could use some for the trails. We did find a few of our own but they were basically short cuts to the lake or the Mill area. Lots of deer and hubby saw a flock of wild turkey. Deer were very tame. They wandered around our campsite several times. Our black lab wanted to go "play" with them.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=162693

Linda N

ps...really enjoy all the pictures....keep them coming. I'll be reading but not much riding. Knee surgery in less than 2 weeks and too much to do at work to get in any long rides before.

What no ride pictures. We had better see some of that knee then. I would put a couple of smiley faces here but for some reason they stopped working for me (frown face would go here)

I don't believe that Goldhead has any official bike trails. I have been known to ride the hiking trails around but, not down into the ravine. There seems to be an old roadway out towards the primative camp sites and a tram trail that crosses the main road for the park but, I don't recall any actual mtb trails. Besides which, that area is also quite sandy and difficult to ride. But it would be nice if there were some trails this close and with great camping.

yes, we tried to go down the tram trail and another but they were very sandy so we turned around. The Florida Trail does run through this area and we did take a couple of the cutoffs from it but made sure there was no foot traffic around. No way was I doing the ravine...heck, I could barely walk down it with this stupid knee. Was neat to see though.

LindaN

Sunday's ride got started a little later than I wanted. Sometimes it's hard to get moving. Still, I think I was out of the house by 8:30am. Not yet 80 degrees but pretty humid. What else is new.

FunkyStickman, I'm also gearing up for a commute. So Sunday's ride was a loop just shy of my commute destination. I headed to and through Piedmont Park and then back around through Virginia Highland towards home. The loop turned out to be almost 15 1/4 miles. I didn't take a break this time, just stopped a couple of times for pictures and water. For me it seems to be harder to stop and rest and then start again. When I hit the park I'm at around 7 miles or so and at that point where it feels like I can pedal forever. Well, until I hit a terrible hill. :-)

Looking back towards downtown, but you can't see it through the trees:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/...1a29cf44ef.jpg

Bridge towards Park Dr.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/...fa1d075ecc.jpg

Lovely crepe myrtles and other landscaping:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4115/...5272a74b0f.jpg

The view from that bridge. You can see some of the midtown/downtown buildings off to the right.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/...f171947b52.jpg

Are my embedded images annoying to you guys? Let me know if they are. I can always link to them or pick smaller ones.

So I had my first encounter with a honker. I was on Virginia coming up on Highland and I hear a sharp honk behind me. Not friendly, not super angry, but definitely a kind of annoyed honk. At the time I was riding about a third of the way into the lane to keep out of the door zone of a whole line of cars parked along the side of the road. So the guy had to wait 5 seconds to pass me. THE HORROR. And then stop at a light right in front of me. When I get up there, it's a Saab covered in Amnesty International, Peace symbols and one of those COEXIST bumpers tickers. Hilarious.

Was this cop trying to catch me blowing through a light? We were both heading towards a light from opposite directions. He was closer and faster and made it through before it turned red. It just turned red as I approached so I stopped. I looked behind me and he had pulled through the light but stopped on the other side and was just hanging out there. So I waited for the light to change, like I always do (ha!), and then went on my merry way. Maybe it wasn't all about me, but maybe I just avoided a ticket.

droobieinop, That didn't sound ranty to me at all. I still try to engage other rides I come across, but more often than not get no acknowledgment of my smile, head nod, etc. I don't take it personally. The weirdest ones though are the people that look you straight in the eyes, hold it for a couple of seconds and remain blank faced. I get that sometimes people are lost in their own thoughts, working hard up a hill, in conversation with their riding partner, but what's up with the stare down?

As for overtaking people, it's unlikely to happen. Me and my 34# bike are pretty slow. :-) 11mph average my last ride. In my defense that includes lights, stop signs, taking pics... As for warning people on the trails, I've just been calling out to them. I had a bell on my bike, but took it off because the roads around here are so bad that it was non-stop jingling. Annoying.

zzOtherlandzz, I also ride alone and have only ridden alone so far. That might change Saturday though. I'm taking a Bike Basics for Women class and after is the monthly Heels on Wheels ride. So I might do that. Would make for some interesting pictures for sure!

Lindaosm, good luck and speedy recovery from your upcoming surgery!

Monday 8/02 29.0 miles today.
75.5 miles this month
4189 miles this year
129 ride days LY vs. 133 ride days TY
3310 miles needed to hit 2010 goal (7500 miles)
I am @ 55% of my goal. I need to be @ 66.6% (5000 miles) by the end of August
439 miles ahead of last year at this date

Got out about 7:30 am today and the temp was already 76* with 95% humidity. When I got back the heat index was 94 with 76% humidity. This heat/humidity is rough on an old man like me.
had the camera with me today but nothing of note to photograph.

I'm impressed with all the photos. I've tried taking some photos on the routes I ride but I rarely see anything interesting, just trees and fields.

My last ride was a pretty fast 20 miler on Sunday (17.6 avg.). I'm still trying to work on running and get to where I can sustain a run for some kind of appreciable distance. It's amazing how much harder than bicycling running is when you're not accustomed to it. But I'm pretty sure that it will make me a better cyclist in the end.

abracapocus, nice photos and thanks for sharing, your posts are always interesting. :thumb::thumb:

Got my smiley faces back:)

My weekly & daily ride
 

Me and my buddy try to ride every week from Brooklyn to the George Washington Bridge along the west side. We go Saturday night and had an average of 14.7 miles an hour this past saturday. On the straight parts its about 20 mph and the occasional sprint. I get home all worked out after 35 miles, its a good feeling!

I commute daily to work for a 5 mile ride through brooklyn. Today i had to short stop for a opening door and an other time for a turning truck... the freaky thing is, there is a electric poll right next to my office with candles and T-shirt for a guy that died in a bicycle accident a few weeks back...

I wont be so long winded today, I'll keep it short. 21.88 mile ride, headwind on the 11 miles out, nice tail wind on the way back. Was getting really close to dark when I got back. Was still 88deg when I got home. Great ride felt strong almost the whole way. No pictures again, ran out of time to remount the camera on the road bike. Busy day tomorrow, might take the day off from riding..

abracapocus .... Great pictures!!!

shmuli ... Welcome to the forum... I don't know but your daily commute doesn't sound all that fun to me...

Not much to report today, did 5.25 miles around the 'hood, as my main bike has a flat, and I'm all out of spare tubes and patches. Didn't want to roam too far from home in case I had to walk it. I felt like a slug, I haven't ridden in the last two days, so I'm itching to get back in the saddle.

zzOtherlandzz: The ride aint that bad, I just have to be on the look out for the vehicles that are not aware of me... but NY is doing a good job at creating bike awareness, and I see it getting better every day.

zzOtherlandzz: The ride aint that bad, I just have to be on the look out for the vehicles that are not aware of me... but NY is doing a good job at creating bike awareness, and I see it getting better every day.

It seems I have read a little bit in the past months about cycling in NY. I think I remember reading a few articles about riding on the Brooklyn Bridge.

Got out for a morning ride today.... It was about 10:15am or so and it was real cloudy and the temp was in the LOW 80's..... So I figure busy day, earlier ride, clouds, lower temps..... time for a short ride anyway. I got about 2 miles from the house and the clouds were GONE!! Already sweaty too late now.... Ended up riding exactly 16 miles (didn't plan it that way... but when I stopped and looked the odo read 16.00).... 95deg when I got back... Good ride felt good..

First Commute!
 

Okay, I finally did it, I commuted to work on the bike this morning! The hardest part was paring down what I carried with me. I schlep way too much stuff around. Even pared down I had to leave my laptop at home to get my lunch to fit in my messenger bag. The bag went into basket on my rack on top of a pair of sandals. Clothes were inside the bag with my lunch. It pokes up out of the basket so I strap it down with a couple of bungie cords.

This was the first time I'd ridden with weight on the back like that. The added weight didn't feel like more work but I got to find out a couple of times how it can throw you off. While waiting at a light, for some reason I picked up my front tire a bit, maybe to get off a bump or something. And the bike started to pivot on the back wheel and head down. I recovered it pretty quickly so it was just a wobble. Not so later as I was getting into my building. The whole bike twisted nearly upside down as I was juggling my badge and the door. I'm sure that was a good show on the security cameras. :-)

The roads were definitely more crowded than my early morning weekend rides. Got stuck at more lights and for longer at stop signs. Cars crowded me a little but not too bad. Again, the only issue I had was on the MUP through Piedmont Park. A woman slowly cross in front of me with her dog completely taking her time. Even with those sorts of hazards the cut through is worth it.

A couple of miles in, a brake pad started dragging. Turned out to be the front left pad. I was able to hand tighten it enough to work properly and get me there. Luckily my multi-tool has the right allen wrench so it's fully tightened down now. Hooray for being prepared!

Oh, and this is fun...I was passed by a runner while spinning up a hill. See, slooooowwww.

It only took about 15 minutes for me to stop sweating once I got to my desk. There is a shower here, but I probably won't need it. Today I just waited until I stopped sweating, then toweled off, reapplied deodorant and changed clothes. My clothes are drying on the back of my bike as you can see in the pic.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/...d4d20a5b59.jpg

It's supposed to be 94 degrees when I head home. Not looking forward to that. Yesterday it stayed overcast and never got above 90. Maybe today will be the same. Just no storms please!

Oh, and this morning's route was 9.32 miles. This afternoon I'll go a slightly different way back and I make a stop as well.

Good job! I'm not looking forward to biking home in 100 degree weather, either.... I guess we'll see how it goes. Waiting for my pannier/saddlebags and some spare tubes.

Last few Days have just been work commute and no longer distances...Im bored so I'll post some from the last time the girls and I rode Baldwin..

http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4208.jpg

http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4213.jpg

http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4226.jpg

http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4231.jpg

http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4215.jpg

http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4537.jpg

http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4551.jpg

and here's an old one from winter....You know it's cold when the toilet waters froze !!
http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF3216.jpg

THATS GREAT !!!! The heat is a pain for sure but if your not already try wearing something like starter DriFit or a Jersey...Shorts also !!! You can also lighten your load by taking your clothes in ahead of time..Carry in a few days worth by car ..Congrats again on the first commute hopefully you'll grow to love it..I now despise driving to work and from June of 09 ive only done so three times..Lights...Lights...Lights...Get some lights !!!

abracapocus, good work on your commute.

As someone who has commuted for work, school and recreation I would like to share some things that I've learned over the years.

First, get the largest, or best, panniers that you can afford. There are some very nice ones out there, my personal favorite is Jandd. If you work in an office and need to wear nicer clothing get a garment type pannier.

Second, I like to have two sets shared between a front and rear rack. This can distribute the weight more evenly and improve the bikes handling, in comparison to only a rear rack. I've been known to seperate shoes to even weight, but I never had a computer to figure out what to do with either.

Third, leave plenty of room in your bags, if you can. I always found that, either out of the kindness of others or necessity I often came home with more than I left with.

Lastly, whenever possible, get there early. Take time to cool off in the summer or warm up in the winter before cleaning up. I personally can't stand to go through the day without scraping most of the sweat off my body. I work in a bike shop and sponge bath in the sink of the employee bathroom. The two or three of us take turns, I use some Dr Bronner's diluted in a little spray bottle with a packtowl, and they use an alcohol spray and paper towels. If you have access to a shower, use it (yes I'm talking about you) there are plenty of other people out there that have to use a sink.

Back to my ride. I rode up to the shop to see if anyone would show. The owner is in Louisville for Nationals and he and I are the only ones that ride everyday. With him gone I didn't know if anyone would show but, the guy who's been riding twice a week did show. We went out for our usual 23 miler. After work, I went out for another 20+ on the way home. Normally this should be broken into 3 laps when I download my garmin 500. However, the new firmware no longer automatically creates a new lap when the unit is turned back on. That doesn't mean much in the long run, its not lost data, I just like to compare my rides and break them up from morning and afternoon.

today 48.17 mi, time 2:44:24, 17.6 mph avg, 82 rpm avg cadence, 86.1 F avg temp, max spd 27 mph (on a flat with a tail wind)

Yesterday, my commute home got broken into two chunks because I needed to stop at 2nd work for a while. It rained about an hour before I left work so it was good and muggy. It was pretty hot, but other than sweat sweat sweat I did fine. Didn't feel queasy like I have in the past when riding in midday heat. My fitness level seems to be increasing pretty quickly so I'm sure that helps.

In the morning, I only saw a couple of other cyclists. But I do leave at 7 so hopefully more people are out a little later. In the afternoon, I think I found them. In this two block stretch, there must've been at least a dozen or so all doing their own thing. It was fun waiting at a light and seeing 4 or 5 others pull up.

Before I left for the final leg of my ride home, the skies in my direction home were dark. Uh oh, could I beat it? My boyfriend was there and could've driven me, but this is stuff I'm going to have to deal with if I'm going to ride, so I decided to go for it. About halfway home the sky starts spitting on me. So I pulled off, grabbed the garbage bag I had tucked into my bag, wrapped it up, turned on my headlight and continued on my way. It rained on my pretty steadily most of the ride home. At least it wasn't a full on storm. I could feel the cooler air pockets blowing in and mixing with the warm air. Neat! Overall, riding in the rain is not a tragedy. Total miles yesterday, 20.

Thanks, FunkyStickman! At least the heat is the ride home instead of to work. I feel less pressure that way.

CFXMarauder, right now I'm wearing cycling bottoms and t-shirts or wife beaters. I've been cruising ebay for jerseys I like. I'm kicking myself for not bidding on the lot of them I saw a while back. Oh well. Luckily I can wear what I want at work, so it's not like I've got fancy clothes to keep nice. Still, I'm probably going to take in a set of clothes by car today for another commute Thursday. Lights, I've got 'em! I think it's this set. I always use the back one and used the front one in the rain yesterday. I can see that I might want to upgrade the front light for night riding.

droobieinop, once I got used to the where the weight was sitting it wasn't that bad. I do plan to get some grocery panniers in the future so I can do my shopping from the bike. I have office mates, but they come in about an hour later than I do. So I didn't get there early, but I did just work in my biking clothes until I stopped sweating. Then I wiped down, reapplied deodorant and changed into other clothes. That seemed to work out fine. I do have a towel and soap at the office if I do decide to shower.

Wednesday 8/04 30.2 miles today.
101.7 miles this month
4219miles this year
130 ride days LY vs. 134 ride days TY
3310 miles needed to hit 2010 goal (7500 miles)
I am @ 55% of my goal. I need to be @ 66.6% (5000 miles) by the end of August
446 miles ahead of last year at this date

Got out about 7:30 am today and the temp was already 77* with 93% humidity. When I got back the heat index was 95 with 60% humidity. I rode my usual Seminole Wekiva Trail ride again this morning. I think the heat is keeping all of the wildlife bedded down. The only thing that I saw out and about was this armodilla.
Not much of a contribution to the photos but it was the best that I had today.

CFXMarauder, nice pixs of the family and the Baldwin Trail. My daughterand I have that trail on our list to do this summer.

It's a great trail and if you have the lights to get out there early enough you can always see several deer , rabbits, foxes and weve even rode up on A huge sow and her piglets..It usually gets busy from 7-10 am and on Saturdays it's packed by 8am..


Done my usual work ride today and have plans for a 10pm ride with Mr Brown on the Baldwin trail..Drop the car off with the wife and ride home from her job..If all goes as planned 44 miles for the day.. NO rain...no rain...no rain !!!

Mileage for the month 29.96 (weak)
Mileage for the year 2410.69

Mr Marauder
http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4623.jpg

Mr Brown being a doofus..
http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4627.jpg

Mr Brown basking in the glow of the Magicshine 900.
http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4621.jpg

Usually come back covered in Spiders !!
http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...s/DSCF4622.jpg

Thursday 8/05

35.5 miles today.
137.2 miles this month
4255 miles this year
131 ride days LY vs. 135 ride days TY
3244 miles needed to hit 2010 goal (7500 miles)
I am @ 56.7% of my goal. I need to be @ 66.6% (5000 miles) by the end of August
452 miles ahead of last year at this date

Today was a great ride day except for the 3Hs (heat, humidity and head wind) I rode the SWT (Seminole Wekiva Trail) north for about 10 miles to my favorite Panera Bread where I stopped for some breakfast, fresh fruit ,yogurt and granola all mixed together. With some fuel in the tank I then rode about 6 miles north on International Parkway then turned west on Wayfield Road. This took me over to Sylvan Lake Road which is used by many of the local bike clubs. Sylvan Lake Park is located at the intersection of Markum Lake Road and Sylvan Lake Road. This Park has a huge sports complex and today about a dozen girls Lacrosse Teams were playing and practicing.

After a ride through the park I started south on Lake Markum Rd. About a half a mile down the road I spotted some cloths hanging on a fence gate so I did a U turn and went back to take a picture of them. I guess the dry cleaner delivery man didn’t want to drive up to the house so he just left them on the gate. They looked like expensive cloths and were freshly pressed and in plastic bags. I hope the owner gets them.

The ride home was a little rough as it was into a 13 mph head wind all the way, but I will take it.

Photos 1-3 views around Lake Sylvan
Photo 4 some nice freshly dry cleaned cloths