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Tantalizing sunshine with a 65 degree temperature – February 8th Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:29:00 +0000

Tantalizing sunshine with a 65 degree temperature pulled me out to ride but the 13 mph north wind chilled me even though I tried to dress for it. I put on a windbreaker which seemed to have holes in it with the wind coming in. My long sleeve jersey over the short sleeve one helped some once I got heated from the exercise but whenever the sun went behind one of the many clouds the chill came on strong. I wore half finger gloves but there times when full finger ones were needed. As long as I was going with the wind I felt warmer but turning into the wind brought the wind chill up. My road bike allowed for more speed than my mountain bike did yesterday and I figured I needed to get some road miles in.

My original plan called for a 24 to 25 mile ride but once the wind chill became apparent I modified this to the 21.73 mile route I ended up with. My average speed stayed above 15 mph until the last 5 miles when I rode mainly into the 13 mph wind. So I ended with 14.8 mph average speed and 22.5 mph max speed. Average cadence ended at 79.7 RPM just .1 RPM below yesterday. February miles: 112.45, YTD miles 379.70. The weather is supposed to be cooler the next two days so I may not get out on the bike.

Garmin Connect data link. RideWithgps.com data link.

2-8-2012 Bike Ride and Route Map

2-8-2012 Home Weather Station End

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Sunscreen, Presto Rain Repellant – February 3rd Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:30:23 +0000

Where do I begin? First I put on sunscreen but needed water repellant. Second I ran into rain around the 3 mile mark but did not turn back. Third I really prefer to ride on dry roads especially on my birthday. Even with these I did manage to ride 18.38 miles but the average speed was really low at 12.3 mph, a max speed of 20.6 mph, average cadence a low 70.1 RPM. I stopped at the 4.86 mile point to wait for the rain to stop. After about 15 minutes the rain did stop so I got back on the bike. The rain held off until about the 10 mile point when the sprinkles resumed with some thunder in the distance. As usual when the rain began shelter was not readily available so I pedaled on. Reaching a dry place I again waited about 10 minutes but I needed a “nature” break so back on the bike to the closest option, the Atascocita Library Branch. From there the ride was in light rain all the way home. Once I got home I wiped my bike down. The prize for this ride: grit and grime plus a stripe up my back.

Thankfully I chose a long sleeve jersey even though the temperature was 73 degrees at the start, 70 degrees at the end. So I did not chill out when I did stop. One of the weather slides below shows the rain on the radar at the start but I thought it would not have enough momentum to get to the ride area before I got back home. The slide at the end of the ride shows the rain still south of where I biked but the rain fell anyway. Rain is forecast for tomorrow so the plan to ride in Katy at the Puddle for the Ducks will probably not happen for me.

February mileage standings:

47.83 miles
YTD 315.07 miles

Garmin Connect data link RideWithgps.com data link

2-3-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

2-3-2012 Home Weather Station End

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One Should Not Despair – February 1st Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 23:19:09 +0000

When I got up this morning the weather did not look a biking day could come out of this. Fog and intermittent rain sure tried to doom the day. But one should not despair. By 11 AM the sun arrived and the clouds thinned. The streets needed to dry out but around here that does not take long. By 1 PM it appeared I could go biking. After lunch I dressed with the intention of riding my mountain bike. I even had my mountain bike shoes on and headed to leave when I decided the road bike should be the vehicle for today. To along with the sun the thermometer showed 78 degrees (77 at the finish of the ride). Partly cloudy skies and a light WSW breeze made today a spring one. I will take as many as I can get.

Riding my Motobecane Le Champion the 29.44 miles today got me to 296.69 miles for the year. I thought I might get a little closer to the 300 mile mark. January miles totaled 267.25 since I did not get to bike yesterday due to rain off and on all day. Other stats for today: 15.3 mph average speed, 22.0 mph max speed, 80.5 RPM average cadence. Tomorrow could repeat today’s weather and if this happens I should bike some more.

Garmin Connect data link. RideWithgps.com data link.

2-1-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

2-1-2012 Home Weather Station End

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A Sea of Large Yellow Boxes – January 23rd Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 22:57:21 +0000

I did not bike yesterday. It was too dreary and the wind kept blowing at 23+ mph. I was out today though. The wind died down to 6.9 mph from the NE and the clouds thinned out to mostly cloudy to overcast at times. The weather forecast was a little optimistic on the temperature reaching 72 with 69 at the start of the ride and 70 at the end. I stuck to my guideline and rode into the wind at the start and the tailwind was nice on the way back. I paid the price speed wise until the turnaround at 12 miles or so. I was averaging under 15 mph up to that point. Tomorrow afternoon rain storms are supposed to roll in so I will have to get out ride earlier than today.

For a change I guessed right on my attire.: long sleeve jersey, leg warmers and windbreaker. It was warm enough that half finger gloves were comfortable. Add sunscreen and I was all set.

The 29.89 miles I biked today moved the January total 231.67 miles. I am almost up to December’s 269.41 miles. I looked at my old spreadsheet biking log and learned that my January average miles has been 209 for 1988 to 2009. The average speed landed at 15.3 mph which means the leg headed south more than compensated for the slower northbound one. I sped along with 80.6 RPM cadence which allowed a max speed of 23.1 mph. Towards the end of my ride I got to observe the school buses shuttling students. I did not realize the fleet activity for this. It was a sea of large yellow boxes on the road. I did not see other bikers.

Garmin Connect data link. RideWithgps.com data link.

1-23-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

1-23-2012 Home Weather Station End

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Today’s ride put me over my… – January 21st Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 23:04:49 +0000

Today’s ride put me over my average January mileage of 200 miles. The 30.54 mile route was long enough that my January totals 201.79. With 10 days left I there is the possibility that I can added more miles. With the strong wind from yesterday I averaged 15.5 mph, max speed of 22.3 mph and an average cadence of 81.4 RPM. The cadence and average speed are significantly up from yesterday.

Even though the weather did not match the forecast it was not that far off. The temperature started at 73 and ended at 71. The clouds were heavy as a front moves in slowly from the northwest via the 8.1 mph NW breeze. I wore a long sleeve jersey which was a little too chilly when I was riding into the wind but just right with the wind. Maybe another jersey over the top would have helped but it might be too warm. In a few months this won’t be a question. Apparently 5 other bikers thought the weather good enough to be out biking. I passed them spread out on the route. Tomorrow is supposed to 77 degrees so I plan on enjoying the warmth while it is here.

Garmin Connect data link RideWithgps.com data link

1-21-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

1-21-2012 Home Weather Station End

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When you don’t follow your guidelines you pay the price – January 20th Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 22:59:53 +0000

When you don’t follow your guidelines you pay the price. Today was one of those days. I decided to ride north at first today for some variety and this happened to be with the wind. The guideline bike into the wind at the start and enjoy the tailwind coming back. Most of the time the is not a serious issue but today the 12 mph south wind with 22 mph gusts got serious. As forecast by our trusty weatherman, it got up to 77 degrees settling down to 75 when I finished. Clouds rolled in and out some so the sun peeked out once in awhile. Even with this temperature I decided to wear a long sleeve jersey in case I hit some cool air and for some sun protection.

Paying the price was when I turned back toward home into the wind. The 29.4 mile route did not offer much shelter from the wind so while I could spin along at up to 24 mph going north heading south I slowed to below 10 mph at times when I got hit with some strong gusts. The road bike handled it much better than I did. I should have lowered my gears going south but I hung with the big gear and pedaled slower RPM. I ended up with 14.8 mph average speed but at the turn around point the average was almost 15.6 mph. With the strong tailwind I maxed out at 23.9 mph, averaged cadence 76.0 RPM. The RPM’s would be higher if I used lower gears. Tomorrow’s weather is supposed to repeat today’s. January miles reached 171.24.

Garmin Connect data link Ridewithgps.com data link

1-20-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

1-20-2012 Home Weather Station End

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Planning today’s ride I took… – January 16th Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 22:39:14 +0000

Planning today’s ride I took several things into consideration.

South wind at 13.8 mph with gusts to 21 mph
Biking over Lake Houston for about 1 1/2 miles each way
Gathering clouds
My physical condition for road bike riding
Route modification if the clouds started dropping rain

The rule I try to follow; start biking into the wind and return with the wind. This addresses two points in my planning: the strong wind and my questionable conditioning since not road biking for so long. With a 75 degree temperature at the start and some sun peeking through the clouds I expected the ride to be warm for a change. This brought me to the riding over Lake Houston point. When I bike over the lake with a cooler water temperature the strong wind blowing over the water is much cooler than the air off the lake. I did not want to dress for the lower temperature for just the 3 miles so I compromised by wearing a long sleeve jersey and a short sleeve one over top. This also handled using sun screen and covered my healing incision on my left arm.

So with all of this planning how did the ride go? The increased to 17 mph from the south with 24 mph gusts so heading into the wind was a good move. It was chilly biking over the lake when I was going to the east but not as much as when I returned back over the lake going west. I rode into the wind going west and the traffic did not block it much. When I was headed east the water was not too far to my right so I expected it to be cooler but because of the tailwind I biked at a faster speed so the exposure time was short. Going west my speed dropped and the exposure time increased even though the cooler water was now the causeway width away. The clouds thickened but no rain fell so I did need to modify my route. This route offers several places to get shelter whereas my northerly route does not.

My physical condition turned out to be good enough for a 15.1 mph average speed over the 29.77 mile route. I pedaled a 22.4 mph max speed as well with an average cadence of 78.9 RPM.With the wind I was not expecting this high of an average speed. Riding into the wind at the start worked well and I enjoyed the tailwind most of the way back. With the mileage today January is at 105.42 miles. Of course this is also the YTD total.

Bike ride data and route map at Garmin Connect and RideWithgps.com.

1-16-2012 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

1-16-2012 Home Weather Station End

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The weatherman nailed the forecast today – December 30th Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 22:35:54 +0000

The weatherman nailed the forecast today. The temperature was 72 degrees, skies were a clear blue and the wind was a light 6.1 mph from the south-southwest. There was some fog early in the morning but it burned off right on schedule. I delayed the start unti1:30 so that I would not be tempted to over dress. I ended up wearing bike shorts, a long sleeve jersey and a short sleeve jersey. At first until I warmed up it was a little cool but by the time I rode 3 or 4 miles I did not notice the cool any more. This probably had more with being the sunshine than it getting too much warmer.

I thought I might see some other bikers out with school being on vacation and some businesses on shorter hours this week but there was only one that I saw from a distance.

After my previous ride on my mountain bike my rear end was more comfortable on my road bike saddle. The muscles were cooperating much better. The 29.19 mile route was good for a 15.6 mph average speed. The max speed was an even 21 mph with my average cadence at 82.3 RPM. The average speed and cadence are much higher than my mountain bike ride a couple of days ago. This is probably why my heart is into road biking. December is now up to 251.44 miles and year to date I biked 5622.74 miles.

Before my ride I was looking at some of my logbooks from 1990, 1991 and 1988. I was getting ready to scan them so that I could get rid of the paper before it becomes unreadable. Back then my annual mileage was 4300 to 4400 miles. It was harder to fit biking in with the rest of my life.

Link to the Bike Ride at Garmin Connect. Link to the Bike Ride at RideWithGPS.com.

12-30-2011 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

12-30-2011 Home Weather Station End

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With today’s 29.74 mile ride – December 19th Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 23:02:41 +0000

With today’s 29.74 mile ride I accomplished my typical December 200 miles with the total reaching 201.76 miles (YTD now is 5573.06 miles). This was battling a 24 mph wind with gusts to 28 mph. I could tell when I rolled out of the driveway that I would be facing some strong gusts as I rode into the southeast wind. There were a couple of places the wind was strong enough that I had to stand up and pedal. One spot was around the 15 mile mark when I rode down a slight decline and then had to pedal back up after rounding a tree-protected corner headed straight into the wind. My speed went from about 18 mph to less than 10 mph in about 100 feet. My stretch goal for December is now 300 miles. I passed two women bikers around the 6 mile mark.

Even with the wind, or maybe because of it, I averaged 15.5 mph with a max speed of 23.8 mph. The average cadence was 81.3 RPM. Riding time was 1:55:01.

Before I left I today checked to see how many miles I needed to get over the 200 mile mark and plotted my route accordingly. The heavy clouds today point to some kind of weather change coming so I might not get to ride tomorrow. It was 70 degrees when I started today and 68 at the end. Tomorrow’s high is 67 degrees with some rain possible during the night.

12-19-2011 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

Link to my Garmin Connect data. Link to my RideWithGPS.com data.

12-19-2011 Home Weather Station End

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After several bouts of rain showers earlier today – December 15th Bike Ride

Rick Ankrum — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 23:26:01 +0000

After several bouts of rain showers earlier today the opportunity to ride appeared. The weather radar did not show any rain and the clouds were stable so off I rode. The temperature was a comfortable 74 degrees when I started and 73 at the end. The clouds were covering the sky but by the time I got back home the sky was almost clear of all the clouds. Wind was not much at 9 mph from the east. Since I have riding to the southeast so much I figured today I should go north. The extended route was 28.87 miles long with an average speed of 15.0 mph, a maximum speed of 21.2 mph and average cadence of 80.0 RPM. No other bikers were out along the route but there were plenty of school buses due to the time of my ride.

Mileage update:

December 156.24
This week 92.90
Year to date 5527.54

Tomorrow is an iffy biking day with a 50% chance of rain and the temperature not getting above 65 degrees. I may have to work at hitting my usual mileage for December of 200.

12-15-2011 Bike Ride Data and Route Map

Link to my RideWithGps.com data and route map. The elevation chart at Ridewithgps.com shows good variation in the terrain although the actual area is pretty flat. SportTracks elevation mirrors the same change.

12-15-2011 Home Weather Station End

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