3 November 2011 Ride: When Life Hands You Wind...

I'm starting this entry in the morning with the skies still heavily overcast, the temperature at a balmy 38 and the wind gusting into the 20s with the windchill a pleasant 29 degrees.  The plan is to get some chores done around the house, bake an apple crisp then run some errands before heading out on the bike as the clouds part, the sun beats down and raises the temperature to a steamy 45 degrees and the windchill sizzles at 37.  The wind should be gusting even harder then.

Sometime during the night, maybe it was before I even fell asleep last night, the winds shifted in my head.  "Stop your whining," the voices said.  "Embrace the day.  Enjoy the wild ride the wind will give me going south or east and laugh while I curse at the wind as I plod my way going north or west. 

Whatever went on during the night, I woke up in a great mood and ready to put myself out there, pedal what I can and at the end say, "Yes, that was good." 

And, lo and behold, look what tomorrow's forecast is now showing:  a high of 59 with a wind of only 5mph; I just need to think of today's ride as one long uphill with the rewards of a long downhill waiting for me tomorrow.  Till later...

I'm back.  The evening is growing late.   Apple crisp came out well.  Floors swept and vacuumed, groceries restocked (though still need to be unloaded).   The mindset from the night/morning worked well and the wind wasn't very troublesome.  I ended up doing the entire ride on the trail, starting somewhat in the middle and working my way back and forth a couple of times.  Because of the way the trails runs and it being somewhat sheltered by trees, I never really ever had a strong tailwind to take advantage of.  By the same token, I never had much of a headwind.  But the crosswind kept the pace down.  Lots of pictures reflective of the gray, mostly overcast day.

This is a sculpture near the Botanical Garden which I don't normally care for all that much.  But, today, against the blue-gray sky, it seemed very fitting.  The sculpture is about 6 feet high.

I love these two irons in the window. 


I was eager to get home but I was more eager to log a couple of more miles.  As a result, I was rewarded with the sun peeking out and lighting the trees below on my final half mile. 

Yes, the day was good; it will definitely do.

Today's Ride:  3hrs 6mins  33.02miles  50°  15-20mph   Miles YTD:  8,352.53

Number of miles per day needed to reach 10,000 miles by the end of the year:  28.40

Donations for Biking for Food, which support the Community Meals at St Paul’s Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, AR, can be sent to:  Biking for Food,  St Paul’s Episcopal Church,   224 N. East Ave.,   Fayetteville, AR  72701

Or, make a pledge per bike miles ridden at  www.stpaulsfay.org/bikingforfood.html.

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