July 8, 2012...the close of my first year

It's hard to believe that it's now been a full year since I first got back on the bike.  I guess I'm no longer 36 and just getting back onto it!  Looking back at my first few posts, it's like another person with many trials and tribulations of bicycling now behind me, from falling off the bike and getting hurt (twice) to weather that just won't cooperate to the point of extreme frustration, it's been really a great year, and I feel a lot better for it (okay, not so much for the road rash, but even those are battle scars).  So I may be 37 now, I really do feel much better now than I did at even 30.  Last year, I got the bike (which was replaced), so this year, I got a fun new jersey for my birthday that reflects me Star Wars fandom...

Through the course of this year, I've gotten supplies and gear for various types of weather, some still barely used since the weather that prompted the purchase sometimes past by the time I found the items at a price I was okay with (like a balaclava).  But it'll be nice to already have it all ready to go with the shifting seasons and will be able to continue without delays.

I've also learned to do some things on my own with the bike, like cleaning and greasing the chain, but there are still some things I can't...maybe a class somewhere?  I can change a flat in less than 20 minutes now, to the hour and half it took me the first time.

So, today we set out to do a family ride, but my wife's bike didn't want to cooperate...apparently, when she got that flat a couple weeks ago, the wheel must've taken a bit of a hit, so the brake was hitting it and stopping it.  We ended up having to leave it at Dick's over night so one of the bike guys could fix it.  I have to say, I know that there's a lot that says that the local bike shops are best, but I we've been pleased at the service we've gotten there.  I do admit, too, that in looking at the road bikes, there's something stirring in the back of my mind.  Not to replace my hybrid but maybe something in addition to.  I don't know.  Something to think about, I suppose.

Tomorrow might find me more reflective, but in the meantime, here's me from about a year ago to now (notice even the change in tennis shoes and platform pedals to my bike shoes and clipless pedals):

September 24, 2011 (leaving from the house for a nice 30-mile bike ride):

July 8, 2012 (heading out onto the greenway for about a 26-mile bike ride):

June 26,2012

I don't think that anyone who knows me would ever have expected that I'd have taken so much to the bicycle, including me!  It's heading onto a year now, and I'm starting to reflect on that year (that'll actually wait until it is a year :).  Now I find myself doing little tweaks to the bike, like having the chain squeak a little yesterday so I stopped and cleaned and regreased the chain and gears.

I have been braving this horrible heat, but it has meant getting out early.  I about gave in and called my wife to come and get me on Sunday...it was just so hot!  I ended up planning the return route based upon how to get home the fastest, which did mean a major road with no bike lane...I was too hot to care about being on the sidewalk, which is where there was the little bit of shade I could find from tees in people's backyards.  I did end up going 24.46 miles by the time I finally made it home.  Monday's rides are shorter, just a bit over 12 miles as I go to both the nearby Walmarts.  Tuesdays, though, are nice long rides.

Today, I made it out a bit after 6am, and it was already 64F!  I made it to the Walmarts then headed up to Target, which wasn't open when I got there.  Instead of going and sitting to wait for it to open, I found myself more inclined to just bike around the store, making to laps before they opened their doors.  Of course, nothing I was looking for was there, either, so I got back on the bike and made my way back home.  I just didn't feel like dealing with traffic, so I got back on the path at its end then working my way back with more shade and some cool coming off the river the path follows.  It took me about two hours, but I did make it 27.94 miles before getting home as the temps were climbing.

One skill I know I need to work on is standing as I go up hills.  I find that I just shift the gears and stay seated, but I see cyclists powering up hills all the time.  I have decided I need to work on that, too.  I do it already to get going at stoplights or on the trail with the kids in the trailer, so I figured it was just a matter of doing it.  So I tried it today going up a steep hill on the road.  Okay, that hurt like my legs were on fire!  Obviously, it's going to take a few times to figure out which gear is best...I'm assuming it's stand up instead of shifting, but man, the tops of my legs were on fire!  I have to admit, avoiding the heat and traffic of the road was part of the decision to take the path to get home, but I also couldn't face some of hills required of the road route!  I guess it'll just take time to master this....

June 21, 2012

Well, I went on a short ride this morning, just up to Walmart.  It was really bugging me that the front derailleur isn't  working right...today I tested and theory and was correct that if I shift all the way up, the darn thing won't go to the smallest cog while down takes it onto the chain guard!  We really like the guy at Dick's from whom we bought my bike, but the guy that worked on it last leaves little to be desired.  He said it'd shift easier to the largest cog, but failed to mention the problem there or the lack of getting to the smallest one!  Well, I did dink with it and think I got it.  Or, I hope I did!  I had to loosen the bracket that holds the derailleur to the frame of the bike.  It took a bit of trial and error (one being not keeping the shifting cable taut and the derailleur above the teeth of the cog), but I think I have it.  I guess I'll find out tomorrow, though maybe I should take it quickly around the block tonight....

June 20, 2012

This summer's heat is certainly trying to dampen the bike riding!  It's a new experience to be out in the heat that hits so early.  I'm not big on being out when it's too hot, but it is easier to do than with the extreme cold. But to top it off, my second water bottle has started to leak and now wrapped in duct tape!
   Yesterday, I actually made it out and got in 25.5 miles.  I'm a bit disappointed that the winter weight isn't melting off like last summer.  My wife insists that I look fine and that it's from muscle-building, but it'd be nice if the scale were being as supportive!  In the meantime, I do feel better with getting back out again.  I've been trying to get out four of the five work days then at least one of the weekend days, though I do need that to be both days.  I did give myself today as a rest day to sleep in a little bit rather than jump on the bike.  

   Another fun offshoot of all the biking is the tan line.  I had it a bit last year on my legs and arms (with the farmer arm, I also have raccoon hands), but it's getting much worse this summer!  Of course, I've never had an athletic tan of any sort before (though plenty of farmer arm), so it's kind of like a badge of honor that I now have a rather odd looking tan that'll just keep getting worse!  Of course, I'm not alone--now that my wife is getting out on the bike, too, she's getting her own cyclist tan, so I guess she won't be mocking me much longer!
   On a technical note, I am struggling with my front derailleur.  I took it to Dick's because it was rubbing, and he adjusted it so now the chain goes onto the chain guard all the time.  I've tried to figure it out and dink with it a little bit, but I haven't had any luck.  I'd rather not have to take it back again, but I'm getting frustrated that every time I shift too hard, it slips off.  Thank goodness for the chain guard!  Now to just find a YouTube tutorial that actually makes sense....

June 12, 2012

I almost didn't go this morning, though...living in Colorado, we have a major fire burning north of here near Fort Collins, and when I opened the garage door this morning, what I thought was fog turned out to be a heavy layer of smoke from the fire....

Anyway, not even quite a year ago, I never would have expected to have my cyclo-computer (okay, this time last year, I didn't even know what that was) to hit 1000 miles!  Of course, the old bike was up to almost 500 miles (I started the new computer and bike at 0), but it's something very cool getting to see this one flip to 1000, and I just happened to be on the odometer by accident when it turned!

I'm trying to see if I can limit the amount of car usage this summer.  We'll see how it works out since during the day, I'd have to stick the kids into the trailer and bike them there with me.  But I can certainly do that, and it'd be better for me and lower my gas usage.  We'll see!

The whole family went out last night for a ride after I'd already gotten an 11-mile ride in the morning, so hit 23 miles while we were out!  It was a beautiful night, and I'm always impressed how friendly most of the people on the path are, whether biking, walking, jogging, or rollerblading!  I'm also surprised at how many people I see bent over a road bike and with their knees pointing outward because the bike's not adjusted right...if you're going to spend the time and money on a road bike then cruise through greenways, zooming past the rest of us who are being leisurely, you'd think the bike would fit!

June 1, 2012

With my wife off today, I had the chance to get out on the bike for a longer ride this morning, though I still ended up cutting it a bit short!  It started out a bit chilly but warmed up fast, so that made it a nice ride.  Probably the best part of it was that I took part of the old route I did for a chunk of last summer, and I was most of the way up a hill that about killed me last summer (as in having to stop part way up and chug water) before I noticed that I hadn't shifted at all but was making it up just fine!  It'd been since last year since I felt a huge leap or change in my ability to overcome a challenge on the bike, so it really made my ride today that I could do that!  Here's hoping for another good ride tomorrow!

May 29, 2011

The bicycling season has officially begun!  For the first time in months, I went out both Sunday and Monday (Memorial day) and then again this morning.  On Sunday, my wife and kids joined me at the trail head by car after I'd biked there, so I'd already gone 6.1 miles before they even got there.  We then went as a family up to Target then returned to the greenway, putting in another 12 miles.  My wife now has her own bike instead of a borrowed one, so she seems to be much happier.

For Monday, I got out on my own (with my wife being too sore), and made it about 22 miles.  It was a touch windy but it wasn't insurmountable.  I guess in Colorado, I'm just going to have to be okay with windy or get no ride.  Since January, I  have been keeping a riding journal is a free "Mileage Guide and Training Log" I received for free with trying Bicycling magazine, which didn't work for me.  I know that I went about 400 miles on the old bike then have gone about 890 miles on the new bike, so since July, I've gone over 1200 miles on the bicycle, which is crazy anyway!  With keeping track in the journal, I know that I've gone about 354 miles since the start of the year.  Of course, the downside is seeing the long gaps when I wasn't getting out for various reasons.

It is a reminder that it's still just spring, though, when I got up this morning to head to Walmart and little country ride and it was only 40 degrees and I had to wear my thermal tights, compression base layer, long sleeve jersey, and jacket.  I even ended up with the thermal cap on!  I made it to Walmart in just over seven minutes when it used to take me between 12 and 15 minutes last year, so pretty good time.  It's funny when it just really doesn't seem that far.  I probably couldn't drive there much faster.

When I got back on the bike after getting my instant breakfast, I was faced with a strange discomfort: the breeze was cold, so all my gear was perfect, but the sun was rising higher and was making me too warm.  In the end, I only got about six miles in so as to make it back home for me wife to head off to work...it's going to take a few times to figure out timing again.  But it's a good start to the summer...