Did You Ride Today?



70 degrees and rain drops hit just as soon as I got the bike loaded in the car and all my gear ready. ****! The rain was only two minutes early though. That was the third shower of the afternoon and the forecast was spot on the monet all three times.

Windy again at 13 To 17 MPH steady with gusts to 24 MPH.

I hit the train for 1 hour and 36 minutes. I must have been going pretty good up and then down into the Jungle and right back up out of the hole I screamed. The track bike was rocking on the Kurt Kinetic Rock & Roll trainer and no one passed me on the climb out of the Jungle and back onto Watopia!

Not only was I killing it and drilling it, I was rewarded with a new high FTP for my effort.

Zwift was updated recently and the graphics team crammed a bunch more detail into the scenery. Only 1150-1300 riders in the game, but it sure beats not riding on a rainy afternoon and no bike cleanup afterwards!
 
Well I haven't ridden in several weeks now..... the trainer ,that is. I have had a good consistent run on the road, nothing notable just staying in the game. Pleasant low humidity right now but that will change in a couple of days.
 
Yeah, the road is our home!

80 degrees and sunny today with the wind right at 8 MPH. A beautiful day!

I spent way too much time in the fields and only had time for a short 15-mile sprint. Only a laughable 350' of climbing. Still a fun little fast blast.
 
80 degrees, the humidity up a little, a sunny morning and an overcast afternoon. The wind was a mild 6 to 7 MPH.

I was in a neighboring city on business and took the bike with me. I know the roads well, so I struck out from a local high school parking lot and headed North to the the next city area.

The back roads weren't quite deserted, what with a little commuter traffic on a Friday afternoon, but no one seemed to be driving stoopid so I stayed with the route I chose.

32 miles of pretty flat terrain. Only 825' of climbing and most of that was shallow, big ring stuff. Easy peasy.

A nice loop that I will extend the mileage on next time I'm rolling out that direction.

The predicted rain hit on the drive back home and again just before sundown. Rain tonight. Rain tomorrow. Possible rain Sunday morning.
 
Weird day. Heavy fog this morning and I mowed from 9 AM to 12:30 PM.

Took a break and the wife mowed while I hit the trainer and Zwift for for 1 hour and 50 minutes. I came up after a killer workout, changed back into my work duds and got back on the garden tractor in a light drizzle.

My wife said it sprinkled on and off the entire time I was on the trainer and she was mowing. The vehicles in the driveway were wet and water-spotted.

The longer I mowed, the nicer it got! The sun actually came out around 4 PM and that was the nicest part of the day. I finished up and cleaned off the mower at 5:30 PM and it got dark and cloudy again! The radar was never clear as rain was all around the area pretty much all day!

At 78 degrees and a light wind a 7 MPH it would have been a good ride, too!

While I was on the trainer my Garmin kept popping up county wide flood warnings and flood watches. One of our relatives that lives about 25 miles South of us did have his driveway bridge over a creek in his front yard washed out yesterday.

Rain starting around 9 PM and continuing on and off all day tomorrow if they have the forecast correct!

Like I said, the weather pattern is all weird so far this Summer!
 
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Weird day. Heavy fog this morning and I mowed from 9 AM to 12:30 PM.

Took a break and the wife mowed while I hit the trainer and Zwift for for 1 hour and 50 minutes. I came up after a killer workout, changed back into my work duds and got back on the garden tractor in a light drizzle.

My wife said it sprinkled on and off the entire time I was on the trainer and she was mowing. The vehicles in the driveway were wet and water-spotted.

The longer I mowed, the nicer it got! The sun actually came out around 4 PM and that was the nicest part of the day. I finished up and cleaned off the mower at 5:30 PM and it got dark and cloudy again! The radar was never clear as rain was all around the area pretty much all day!

At 78 degrees and a light wind a 7 MPH it would have been a good ride, too!

While I was on the trainer my Garmin kept popping up county wide flood warnings and flood watches. One of our relatives that lives about 25 miles South of us did have his driveway bridge over a creek in his front yard washed out yesterday.

Rain starting around 9 PM and continuing on and off all day tomorrow if they have the forecast correct!

Like I said, the weather pattern is all weird so far this Summer!

I can't remember a Spring with so much rain.

Today was a double barrel day on the bike. After church I rolled out a nice hilly 35 miles, and got home ran in the house and grabbed the 29 plus bike and rolled out 18 miles playing on the trails. So I had an idea for my next future ride project and to ride the road bike, TT bike, and SS bike all in a row on the same day.
 
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Oh, Zipp...if only you got to see last night and today's Biblical downpours and deluges!

1"-2" hard rain last night. My area was probably in the 2" range. This morning the roads were soaking wet, had huge puddles and ponding. The humidity was sky high in the morning fog and nothing was going to dry out by noon.

77 degrees and really overcast when I hit the trainer for the first session at 10 AM. An hour and a half later I climbed off, soaking wet with sweat. 68 degrees in the basement and the humidity down there is as close to zero as I can get it! With 5 fans running full tilt boogie I was still gripping the bars through a towel and using another towel to wipe my face.

Had to make a run to a nearby town and any place the roads were low or under the cover of trees...wet pavement to standing water to water running across the road.

And then...the sky really let loose around 4:30 PM! Maybe another 2" in under an hour! My low pasture had a river 30'-40' wide running through it for the next 2 hours!

I hit the trainer again at 5:15 PM for a 53-minute sprint session.

The wife and I went out to inspect the water damage and found none, but it started raining hard again. Supposedly another 1/2" before dark and another 1/2" overnight.

This is getting weird...way too much like last Spring and Summer.
 
69 degrees. Cooler, but still seriously overcast with weird looking clouds in the sky. Looked like it could rain any minute, but the showers stopped at sunrise.

It kind of dried out. At least most of the roads. Lots of huge puddles to get around and damp spots under the shady areas. The wind was a mild 8 to 9 MPH and not a problem despite tired legs.

One local death. 80-year old woman went out to check on her goats and was swept away and drowned. Lots of roads still closed and one local factory had to cancel midnight shift as there was no way in through the high water.

Anywhere from 3" to 8" of rain locally. By no means a record, but for sure a royal pain.

23 miles this afternoon. Lots of slowing for water and one minor detour. 1200' of climbing and a fun ride! It took 9 miles for the legs to come around from the double Zwift sessions yesterday. That virtual reality stuff will tear your legs off!
 
77 degrees today with some morning sunshine. It clouded up around noon and rain was supposed to hit around 4-5 Pm and then it was pushed back to 7 PM. The wind was 10 to 12 MPH.

I climbed aboard under darkening skies...

It kept getting darker blue and I could see rain falling off to the West and to the South. Weird. The wind was out of the East and the nasty clouds were moving in from the Northwest! Confused? I was!

I tried dodging the rain and made a run for the car. Unfortunately, there was some more climbing to do in between me and the car.

Spun it hard and felt rain drops the last 3/4 mile. Shoved the bike in the back seat and jumped into the driver's seat just as it really opened up.

I'm guessing it put down 1/4" in 5 minutes and the sun came out! It was nasty looking again by the time I pulled in the driveway. Weird weather for sure.

Only 850' of climbing, but it was an adventure in trying to out-guess the weather. I got lucky again!
 
85 degrees and the humidity was up a bit today. Lots of sunshine and a 40% chance of afternoon showers which translates to a 100% chance of a downpour where Bob is riding! The wind was a bit tough at a steady 12 to 14 MPH with gusts just a bit higher.

Again, the wind was weird. From the South. From the West. From the East. Damn!

I got 24 miles in with 825' of climbing.

I could see rain off to the South, but I managed to skirt around it again. Got home, cleaned up and we got a 5-minute light rain with the sun continuing to shine.

Warmer and more sun in the forecast for the next four days!
 
78 degrees and sunny today with the wind at 8 to 10 MPH.

Just time for a fast 12 miles and I tried to make them all count. Pushed it hard and had some fun. Slid the rear tire coming through one turn on the ragged edge and felt like Mario for a split second.

A fun ride! Only 325' of climbing on a flat course. The flooded section of my starting road was clear for the first time in about a week!
 
Friday, 06/15/2018

76 degrees and sunny with the wind a calm 7 MPH. Just a soft 12 miles to keep the legs loose. Only 275' of vertical on a flat course.

Going long today, Saturday.
 
60 degrees at the 7:30 AM start and it quickly climbed to 86 degrees. An overcast morning with a light tailwind running the initial 45 miles North gave way to bright sunshine by 11:30 AM and a 10 to 13 MPH headwind for 40 miles running back South.

I ended up with 86 miles to math the high temp. 3550' of climbing.

A nice ride and a nice workout!
 
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I snapped this at the 46-mile mark right at the turn for home. Nice sign!

Craig Beach is a Summer lake resort community that ranges from white trash vacation shacks and cottages to million dollar+ McMansions and sits at the North end of Lake Milton.

Forgot to add: I dropped into the car, hit the A/C, started to empty my Jersey pockets and despite there not being a cloud in the super sunny sky it began to RAIN! LOL!

For the next five minutes the rain fell lightly and then quit.

Now at 7 PM the air is booming with distant thunder!

http://www.craigbeachvillage.com/
 
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Holy carp! That guy I met on his cross-country ride three years ago did 106 miles yesterday with SIX thound feet of climbing and four crossings of the Hudson River.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1642890986/shareable_images/map_based?hl=en-US&v=1529180026

Worse! My old team mate Robert Vogt and his son, Robert Vogt Jr. did 161 miles yesterday!!! At nearly 20 MPH average speed!

https://www.relive.cc/view/1643005182

Note the return / Southbound leg they were on the world class Rails-To-Trail Western Reserve Greenway that runs from Ashtabula on Lake Erie South to Lisbon, Ohio! That's about 70 miles worth of nearly continuous, no motor vehicles riding!

KUDOS to all three!

I've got to get out there and up my game!
 
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91 degrees and glorious sunshine today! Well..maybe rain later this evening! The humidity is right at 90% and the wind was a mild 6 MPH all day.

Only had time to roll a 37-miles ride in with 1225' of climbing. The legs were a little sluggish and down on power, but carried me along nicely over roller after roller after roller. No problems! Just warmth and sun! Perfect!
 
Hot, humid and I sucked today. The computer read 17 mph average but I felt more like 10 mph. I need a young potent. The good news it is getting warmer and stickier this week and by warmer I mean Lycra melting point.
 
92, warm and humid with the wind raging at 10 to 17 MPH. Heat and humidity I can deal with. Wind? My powerless ass has to work hard to get through that ****.

Just 19 miles and only 500' of climbing.

Hay is being loaded onto semi trucks about every 5 miles or so. Sometimes multiple semi's lined up on the roadside or in the fields getting bales piled on them. The smell of hay drying down was everywhere on my weekend rides and tractors were rolling in every hay field it seemed like.

Damn! I love Summer!
 
Hi there

I've had a few decent rides since arriving in belgium on the 14th. Have done quite a few of the cobbled climbs like Oude Kwaremont, Paterberg, Muur van Geraardsbergen and some others I can't remember. Was busy with riders and people over the weekend so my times up them were ****. There is a good bunch that leaves Gent most days called the Scheldepeloton, inrng has a good article about them here; http://inrng.com/2014/01/schelde-river-path-fietspad/ . If you're ever in the area, it's worth joining for a 2-3 hours before hitting the bergs for a couple more - that's the plan for today :cool:

120km - Gent and return: https://www.strava.com/activities/1640006630
120km - Oudenaarde - Geraardsbergen - Oudenaarde: https://www.strava.com/activities/1641868421
147km - Oude Kwaremont, Paterberg then to Tournai (near the French border), back to Gent then home: https://www.strava.com/activities/1644398815
111km - Schelde bunch ride: https://www.strava.com/activities/1646096168

I'm racing on friday the 22nd also the 23rd and 25th. Basically 2 sometimes 3 times a week for the next two months :D

Feel free to follow me on strava https://www.strava.com/athletes/1561543 i'll try to post some interesting photos most days.

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