"Traditional" First Ride

Total for this ride: 32.6 miles
Total for this year: 66.6 miles

The riding season never officially starts until I've climbed Boughton Hill.  Today was the day.  Did a fairly typical early season ride from home straight down to Bloomfield, then over to Canandaigua and home again.  It was fairly cool when I left the house about 10 - temps were still in the mid-40's - so I had on three layers.  I dropped the shell after climbing Boughton Hill, but it was much cooler down by the lake so I put it back on half way through the ride and kept it on until I got home.

Not much on this ride worth noting.  I saw a young girl with a lamb sitting in the driveway of a farm on Cooley Rd.  I should have stopped to take a pic, but I was climbing a hill and didn't feel like stopping.  I did take a few shots of the paddle wheeler Canandaigua Lady sitting on an enormous trailer in the parking lot of the municipal marina.  But other than that it was just an uneventful conditioning ride.

Didn't make great time, but I actually felt OK.  I even managed to climb up Lynaugh at the end of the ride.  I figure I need to start doing more rides of this length, since Bob and I are scheduled for a 58-mile ride down in NYC in about three weeks.  If all goes well I'll be able to commute in a couple of times this week.  That will help.

Post Office Run

Total for this ride: 5.6 miles
Total for this year: 34.0 miles

Just a quick ride on the new Trek down to the post office and the library.  I swapped out the Look pedals with a couple of toe clips, in anticipation of taking this bike down to NYC for the Five Boro Ride in a few weeks.  I think that swapping the pedals is going to make my road adventures a lot more enjoyable... I really hate walking around on cleats.  I won't mind using them if I'm going on a quick 20-30 miler on an old route.  But for longer rides where I'll be exploring, the toe clips are definitely the way to go.

Back in the Saddle

Total for this ride: 28.4 miles
Total for this year: 28.4 miles

It's been 110 days since I've ridden.  30% of a year.  2640 hours.  158,400 minutes.  9,504,000 seconds.  Practically an eternity.  But at long last, I'm back on my bike.

Did the typical round trip commute from Bushnell's Basin to RIT.  I was on the trail before the sun came up, and although the temperature was 35 degrees, it felt colder.  I was glad I went with 4 layers on top.

The outbound ride was fairly uneventful.  I stopped to take a self-portrait at Lock 32, and a shot of the twin guard gates south of the UofR.  But other than that, there was really nothing else worth noting.

After work, as I was leaving the Carlson Building, I saw one of my students, Joel, coming down the stairwell with a bike.  I asked him where he was going, and he said he was headed to his home in the city.  I asked which way he was going and he indicated that he planned to head north on Rt. 15.  I calmly explained to him that Rt. 15 would be a good way to go, IF HE HAD A DEATH WISH!  And I offered to let him ride with me on the Lehigh Valley Trail, which would be much safer.  Although it seemed like he really wanted to ride alone, he agreed to follow me as far as the UofR.  In the end, he was glad he did.  And I felt like I saved a life.

We had a little excitement crossing Jefferson - although we crossed at the crosswalk, with the "walk" light, some idiot coming from the other direction felt he had the right of way and tried to cut in front of us as we worked our way across the street.  I pressed on toward the curb (as I should, having the right of way), essentially cutting him off, which set the dolt into a bit of a rage.  He hit his horn and gestured wildly at us.  Where's a cop when you need one...

After that the ride was smooth sailing.  I rode with Joel as far as the canal towpath, then turned east and head for home.  With the temperature in the 60's there were a fair number of people on the trail.  A couple of interesting sights on the way.  Saw some guy riding either an old-style big wheel bicycle or a large unicycle.  I couldn't really tell because I was fumbling with my camera as he passed.  I completely missed the shot.  Also saw a couple of cute girls on a bright yellow tandem.  Kind of different.

Even though it's been 110 days since my last ride, today's commute didn't feel too bad.  The outbound was fine - the legs were a little stiff when I got to the office, but it was a good kind of stiff.  And I made pretty good time on the return.  Until I hit Pittsford.  I guess at that point I kind of ran out of gas.  I mean, I was able to keep going, but I could tell my pace had dropped off considerably.  Still, even though I was slowing down, I kept thinking to myself, "Every minute on my bike is a gift from God."  I got back to the truck eventually.

Don't know when I'll be able to ride again... looks like next week's weather is going to be a return to winter...

Oh, yeah.  Notice in the picture below how I celebrated St. Patrick's Day by wearing my green Tour de Cure jersey.

The End...

It snowed pretty hard today, which very likely means I've done my last ride for the 2010 season.

It was a great season though - in fact my best ever.  Notable accomplishments include:

- Greatest total mileage in a single year (2215.9 miles).  Beat the previous record by almost 200 miles.  And beat the next best after that by about 1000.

- Did four of my 10 longest rides ever this season, including my longest ride of all time - 115 miles.

- Did two centuries in a single year - first time ever.

- Did a whopping 16 rides longer than 50 miles.  Previous best for a single year was a mere six.

- Did rides of over 50 miles on three consecutive days - first time ever.

But this riding season wasn't just about setting personal records - it was about adventure.  And I definitely had some incredible two-wheeled adventures this year:

- I led a group of 10 kids fresh out of high school on the most memorable ride of their lives, and showed them in the process that they're capable of far more than they ever imagined.

- I rode with over 30,000 of my closest friends on the streets of one of the greatest cities in the world, and I rode completely alone on paths through remote wooded areas.

- I pushed my bike over trails that were covered with snow and black ice, and I struggled against heat exhaustion on the hottest day of the summer.

- I visited places of great historical significance, and places where I could relive my own personal history.

So what's in store for next year?  Well... there are still a few specific rides I want to take.  Like a ride around Cayuga Lake - close to 100 miles with some wicked hills along the way.  And a ride across the state along the Erie Canal.  But I don't think I'll push for any records next year.  If they happen - great.  But if not, it won't matter.  I just want to ride.

Harkness Memorial

Total for this ride: 22.9 miles
Total for this year: 2215.8 miles

Cold and windy in southern CT today (wind chills in the low 30's), but with brilliant sunshine and no demands on my time there was no way I was going to miss the chance to ride.  Shortly after breakfast I filled the tires on the Trek, layered up, and hit the road.

My plan was to ride to the Harkness Memorial State Park, a gorgeous 220-acre estate on the Long Island Sound which was donated to the State of Connecticut in 1950 by the Harkness family, who acquired the property in the early 1900's.  The outbound route was one I've traveled many times, most recently in the summer of 2009.  In spite of the fact that segments of the ride aren't really bike friendly (primarily because of moderate traffic and lack of adequate shoulders) it's one of my favorites when I visit my parents.  It's kind of the biking equivalent of comfort food.

I made good time as I worked my way down to the coast and rode east along Niantic's Main St.  I crossed the drawbridge over the Niantic River, rode past the entrance to the Millstone nuclear power plant, and then turned south toward Jordan's Cove.  I would have loved to take a few pics, but with my cold weather gloves on, and the camera stored in a pocket underneath my outer layer, it's almost impossible to shoot while riding.  I'd either drop the camera, or kill myself, or both.  I waited until I stopped at Harkness to get the camera out.

Knowing I would probably do some walking at the park, I brought a pair of sneakers with me in a backpack.  I really don't like riding with a backpack, but walking in cleats would have been a huge hassle, so the backpack was the lesser of two evils.  Besides, it wasn't going to be a long ride, so I figured I could tough it out.

When I rolled into Harkness I was surprised at the number of cars in the parking lot.  As cold and windy as it was, I expected the place to be almost empty.  But there were actually a fair number of people out enjoying the sunshine - bundled up in their winter parkas, scarves, hats, and gloves.  With my thin layers on they must have thought I was nuts.  But even though it was cold, it was certainly bearable.  I was relatively comfortable during the 20 minutes or so I was there taking pictures.

Before the ride I thought about going from Harkness over to Ocean Beach Park, just to the east in New London.  But then I realized that I'd been riding with the wind to this point, and that I'd be riding into it on the way back.  So having met all of my mileage goals for the year, I decided just to head back.

I took a new route on the return ride to my parents' house, through mostly residential areas of Waterford.  Some of the houses along Niantic River Rd. were absolutely incredible...  I survived the intersection at Flanders Four Corners and head back up the Post Rd. toward the house.  My last decision was whether to make the turn at Ancient Highway and make the steep climb up to Webster Rd., or keep going and turn at Lover's Lane, which is a longer, but not quite as steep, access into Mom and Dad's neighborhood.  I decided to man up...

Sacred Ground

Total for this ride: 34.4 miles
Total for this year: 2192.9 miles

It was cold today.  And windy.  Temps when I left the house were in the high 30's, and never got any better.  Winds were out of the east (unusual...) at 12.  So yes, it was cold.  But still no snow (or salt...), so I decided to layer up and hit the road.  I'm glad I did.

The plan was to ride in a big rectangle from Victor up to Rt 31, then east to Palmyra, south to Manchester, and west back to Victor.  The route would take me past some of the most sacred sites in the Mormon Church.

My first stop was the Joseph Smith Farm and Sacred Grove.  I've been near this site several times, but had never made an effort to see the farm.  In fact I hadn't planned to stop there today, but I saw a sign on Rt 21, and wasn't in any hurry, so I decided to make a little detour to see it.  I don't know if it's closed on Sunday (which would be kinda weird) but nobody was there when I pulled into the parking lot.  Fortunately I was still able to ride up to Smith's log house, where the Angel Moroni appeared to Smith in September 1823.  The Sacred Grove (where God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, visited the 14 year old Smith in 1820) was just beyond that, but I was wearing cleats, and didn't have a way to lock up the bike... so I hopped back on the bike and returned to my planned route.

Once I got back to Rt 21, it was a couple miles to Hill Cumorah, where Smith received the Golden Plates containing the Book of Mormon in 1823.  The site is now the scene every summer of an incredibly elaborate pageant which recounts the history of the Mormon faith.  I saw it a couple of years ago for the first time - breathtaking.

I stopped only long enough to grab the pic shown below, then head for home.  It took a while to warm up when I got back... my toes were numb for the next half hour...

Rescue Mission

Total for this ride: 2.5 miles

Total for this year: 2158.5 miles

Just a short ride to rescue my truck from the shop where it was in for a new muffler and tailpipe.  Rode in street clothes.  Cut through the school yard, over to Lane Rd., and down to 96.  Windy and cold...

Still no major snow in the forecast... I can keep riding until the salt trucks hit the road.