trike-ab-trike-2020

2020 mileage: 1596.1 We are experiencing a daylong rain today, so I figured it didn't much matter WHEN I rode ... it just mattered that I made up my mind to do it. So I threw on a poncho and went out at 10:00 a.m. I had hoped and thought that my gloves were now retired until late in the fall, but as it turned out, I wished I had worn them. It was 46°, which in and of itself would have been tolerable, but combined with the rain I was left with tingling fingers inside of the first five minutes. Accordingly, I just allowed myself to do a very modest ride of a single round trip to Marsh Park -- 10.2 miles in a relatively good time of 1:07. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1585.9 I felt extremely fortunate to be able to get in a ride today. As of last night when I went to bed, the forecast had been for rain pretty much all day today (I was thinking that most, I might be able to don my poncho and squeeze in a short ride in the rain)—but when I awoke, a window had opened up, allowing me to get in a decent ride (the Packard;/Platt Square) of 13.6 miles in 1:24 I was even able to ride comfortably in a t-shirt, at a temperature of 56°.. When I came in, though, all wet and muddy, Michelle asked me, "Is it raining?" I told her no, but that the rain overnight had left the ground and the trail quite wed. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1572.3 Today was another splendid day for a ride, like yesterday. But I was awfully glad to be able to get a ride in, as it may be a challenge even to squeeze in a short one tomorrow, since it's supposed to be raining pretty much all day. I went out just past noon today and once again rode a round trip to Baker Rd. (20.3 miles in 2:10). Under mostly sunny skies and very little wind at all, it was 62° when I began, and 69° at the end ... the nicest weather so far this year. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1552.0 GORGEOUS day for a ride today—a very comfortable temperature (61° at the start, 63° at the end), mostly sunny skies, and only a mild breeze. I went out at about 1:15 and rode another round trip to Baker Rd., doing 20.3 miles in 2:17 (one of my better times ever). Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1531.7 Today's ride was chilly,  but completely tolerable with my light gloves and a fleece over my hoodie. I went out at 9:30 in 46° cloudiness (that actually declined to 44° over the course of my ride), and rode another round trip to Baker Rd. One unusual occurrence today—as I neared my halfway turnaround point, I glanced back over my shoulder and noticed that my spinner was missing. This red and and blue twirler acts as a visibility flag; because of the way it spins, my grandson Danny observed a few years ago that it looked like a tornado. I was disappointed, because recently when I checked the website of the company for a friend, I read that after 40 years of owning the company, the man was retiring and closing up shop. However, whatever inventory he still had was available for now. Then, however, on my way home, I was cheered to find it, lying on the sidewalk—oddly, not where it would have been snagged and pulled out by an overhanging branch as has happened ...

2020 mileage: 1477.5 The weather today permitted me to do my first round trip to Baker Rd. in a week and a half (April 13). I went out at noon in 46° mostly cloudy conditions, and over the course of my ride (20.2 miles, 2:20) it warmed up to 56° and most of the clouds moved out for a time (but then returned again). Also, it felt good to reach a new mileage milestone (1500) for the year today. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1477.5 I went out at 9:45 this morning, grateful that I could do a fuller ride than yesterday. The conditions were more tolerable than yesterday, but not a lot more. It remained at 41° throughout my ride, under gray skies, and a iight but thoroughly chilling rain dogged me throughout much (but fortunately not all) of my ride. I'm back to having difficulty with my battery pack, too. A couple of days ago, the cord pulled out of the phone during the ride (though I didn't notice it at the time) and was subsequently lost. I've ordered a replacement through Amazon, but they are (understandably) not filling non-essential orders promptly right now, so it['ll be about three more weeks before it arrives. Meanwhile, the work-around that I've discovered is balky, but better than nothing. I can plug the cord from the battery pack right into my phone, but it is only about 4 inches long, and getting the MapMyRide app started quickly before the battery shuts off, a...

2020 mileage: 1463.8 Today when I went out at 12:15, it was 33° with a light mix of snow that changed over to a cold rain during my ride. I stupidly felt I could risk wearing my lighter gloves rather than my heavier, more cumbersome, quilted ones—BIG mistake. Within the first five minutes my fingers were tingling, and though I had intended to ride my 14-mile route, instead I turned into Stonebridge and managed to gut out two laps in there (though it was a challenge) before returning home for a total ride of 7.9 miles in 56 minutes. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1455.9 Today was a real battle. I went out at 11:30 in 38° conditions under partly sunny skies (which became mostly cloudy during the ride), with a fresh 23 mph wind from the west-northwest to keep me from overheating. 😎 Puzzlingly, despite the temperature being several degrees over freezing, I got to enjoy some light snowflakes at the beginning of my ride, and then again at the very end. Because of the weather, I opted for a modest ride, settling for a single round trip to Marsh Park. As it was, the stretches where I was riding into the wind were a Herculean task. Anyway, I ended with 10.2 miles in 1:11, and felt like I had been in a boxing ring when I was done. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1445.7 I went out today at 12:45 on an absolutely GORGEOUS day (sunny, and 49°, climbing to 56° by the time I finished), and rode the ride that I had hoped to do yesterday, but couldn't, due to the tire problem I had. But Wheels in Motion got me repaired, so that everything went fine today—I rode to Saline (the far west end, where the sidewalk that runs along parallel to Michigan Ave. (or US 12) stops, and then on the way back I went to Marsh Park, giving me a total ride of 20.0 miles, in 2:09. Michelle asks (very understandably, given my medical history and the plague of distracted drivers that we face) that I keep my riding off the road, and I consider myself highly fortunate that a good network of trails and sidewalks around here allows me to get clear down to Saline. I take the sidewalk beside Lohr Rd. down to Ellsworth Rd., and then jump on the Lohr-Textile Greenway (trail), taking it down to Textile, and then west to Woodland. I then take the sidewalk beside ...

2020 mileage: 1425.7 Today was a frustrating day in regard to riding, which, however, ended well. After yesterday's problem, once I put the rack on the car and went to pick up the trike and brought it home, I aired up the tire, so I figured I'd be good to go today. I went out about 1:00 p.m. in the nicest weather we've had in days (sunny, low fifties), intending to ride to Saline. But the tire was flat again, before I even started out. I texted Michelle about the situation, and then once more put the rack on the car, the trike on the rack, and hauled it over to Wheels in Motion here in town. Once I got to the store, their employee coma out and met me on the sidewalk in front of the store so that I didn't even have to wrestle it inside, and then quickly found that a small sharp stone had gone through the tire (but the tire was still usable) and punctured the tube. He quickly repaired it for me, and then when I asked what I owed, he smiled, waved me off, and said, ...

2020 mileage: 1425.7 Today's riding adventure was unsettling. I had been up since early, achieving a lengthy and productive session of composition this morning. then I went out about 12 noon on a lovely, sunny day with a temperature of 44°, and headed for Baker Rd. I got 3 miles into the ride, and then the rear end started skidding all over. I looked, and could see that the rear tire was nearly flat ... I had aired it up before leaving home, and evidently failed to get the valve properly resealed when I was done. I texted Michelle, who came promptly to pick me up, and when i got home I put the rack on the car and went back to pick up the trike, which I had locked up. Upon getting it home, I aired the tire back up, and by all rights should probably head out again now to ride. But the whole episode has taken enough out of me that I'm going to let it go for today. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1422.7 True Spring still hasn't really arrived here yet, as we got more snow today (pretty much all day long). Since going to LA Fitness isn't an option due to the coronavirus, and I didn't want to take the day off, I went out and rode laps in our complex in the snow. This was boring, but tolerable while listening to music on my phone, and I had hoped to do a more substantial ride. However, the snow and the vapor from my breath quickly rendered my glasses more hindrance than help, so in the end, I did just shy of 40 minutes, and was grateful to be able even to stick it out   that long. I took a brief video at one point to show the conditions. Without any way to mount the phone, though, and needing to handhold it while I rode, I slowed considerably for the video, but rode at a better pace the rest of the time. I wanted to include the video in this blog, as that is an option, but for some reason when I tried it (multiple times) I kept getting the nessage tha...

2020 mileage: 1417.4 After taking yesterday off because we were receiving a somewhat outrageous snowfall on April 15 (!), I got back to it today, and went out at 1:00 in 36° cloudy conditions that rose to 40° by the time I finished, accompanied by a vigorous 20 mph wind from the west which abated very slightly during the latter stages of my ride. I rode the Packard/Platt Square and augmented it with a loop in Stonebridge for a total ride of 16.4 miles in 1:46. Once again, I took it out fast and then slowed precipitously in the second half of the ride, so I need to continue to work on my ongoing stamina. In fairness, however, that was the part where I was riding into the wind. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1401.0 Today's conditions were highly challenging, if ever so slightly less so than yesterday. A westerly wind roared at me today at 18 mph, with gray skies and a temperature of 39°, even though I waited until 12:30 for it to 'warm up.' Springtime—HA! With the recent increase in speed I've been able to attain, I took it out well, and when I was at 10.4 mph over halfway through, I got greedy and hoped to finish with a speed of at least 10 mph. But riding home into the wind cut that down precipitously, and I finished at 9.4. Oh well, that's still much better than I had been doing until the last week. The temperature and the wind sure made me glad for my unwieldy, heavy winter gloves, though! Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1387.3 I had planned to ride this afternoon. But I ended up changing that and going this morning instead. I left about 7:30 and rode another round trip to Baker Rd., doing 20.1 miles in 2:10. My timing was providential, though. I decided to go early because a big weather front is coming through by midday today, on the back side of which the winds are to pick up very dramatically. However, even as it was, once I turned at Baker Rd. and began heading back home, the wind picked up substantially. Thank goodness it was at my back, though (coming from the west). Conditions were what I would have described as putrid anyway -- a beginning temperature of 51° (which, however, felt considerably colder due to the light drizzle which plagued me most of the way under gray, gloomy skies. But by the time I got home, the temperature had dropped to 44°, and that west wind was howling at 24 mph, bringing the wind-chill down to 35°!  I had one mechanical issue to battle,...

2020 mileage: 1367.2 Knowing that I would (unavoidably) be up early today, and that Michelle would be sleeping in, I decided I might as well do a ride early so that I could start this Holy Day well before turning to our church's live-streamed services (9:00 traditional, and 11:11 contemporary). So, keeping it deliberately modest, I went out at 7:00 (since sunrise today was at 6:58) and rode a single round trip to Marsh Park (10 miles in 1:10). It had rained overnight, and though the rain had stopped, the ground and atmosphere were still quite moist. Combined with the 44° temperature, this made me VERY glad to have my gloves, and I still finished with tingling fingers. For listening, I called up my favorite piece of contemporary (1998) Easter music on Spotify -- "Easter Song," as performed by the vocal ensemble Glad -- and listened to it on repeat (some 25 times as I rode). Glad -- "Easter Song" Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1357.2 On a GOREGOUS morning today, I rode another round trip to Baker Rd., leaving at 11:00 in lovely 47° sunshine and returning in 53° sunshine. I rode 20.2 miles in 2:10, which is one of my best times. Usually I do that ride in around 8.5 mph, but today I was able to turn it in 9.3 I tweaked my route slightly, too. As I was headed north along S Main St., instead of continuing all the way up to the Big House (Michigan Stadium) and then turning left (west) along Stadium Blvd., I turned earlier, before reaching Pioneer High School, and rode the sidewalk along Scio Church Rd. to Seventh St., and then up to Stadium. By doing this, I hated to forgo the nice downhill stretch past Pioneer, but it was a good route, and actually added slightly to my distance, so that I didn't have to add on the final lap in our complex when I got home. I did, however, have one curious 'social distancing' encounter, about 6 miles into the ride. A runner coming toward ran very clo...

2020 mileage: 1337.0 I always feel a little odd about riding on Good Friday, but nevertheless I got it done, going out at 9:00 a.m. and riding the Packard/Platt Square (13.6 miles in 1:38). While not as long as my rides to Baker Rd., this is still solid enough to feel like a good, substantial ride that is worth doing. With the coronavirus quarantine still in effect and thus in-person worship at our church prohibited, they are live-streaming a service at noon, and I wanted to be sure to make it home in plenty of time for that. Weather was a big factor today, as it was 33° when I began, and up to 40° by the end. However, for the second straight day, wind was a major factor—today, it was a frigid, knifing 18 mph wind out of the northwest that absolutely sliced right through me, and on those stretches where I was riding into it, it felt like I was wrestling a giant. The wind-chill when I finished, a bit before 11:00, was 31°. Also, when I went out to start my ride, I was dismayed t...

2020 mileage: 1323.4 The weather has changed very drastically in the last 24 hours, Whereas yesterday I started in 52° conditions, under partly cloudy skies that cleared throughout my ride until I finished in bright 62° sunshine, today when I started at 9:00, it was a brisk 39° (rising to 46° by the time I finished), with mostly sunny skies gradually graying over throughout the morning, as clouds moved in and by the end, it was even beginning to spit a little light rain at me. Most troublesome, though, was the return of the "cooling breeze" I have noted in the past. 😎It was totally unnecessary, as I was in no danger whatsoever of overheating, but I rode the first half of my ride right into the teeth of a stiff 20 mph WNW wind that knocked my speed (and energy) down quite sharply. This did, however, carry the compensation that it was at my back on the way home, when I was all worn out. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1303.4 After taking yesterday off, I was glad to get back to it today (and notch another mileage milestone as well, going over 1300 for the year). I went out just before 9:00 this morning and rode another round trip to Baker Rd., 20.1 miles in 2:24. The conditions were again glorious today ... 52° when I began, with mostly cloudy skies, but the clouds cleared out during the ride so that I finished under bright 62° sunshine. I was able to do my first ride of the year in a t-shirt this morning, with hope that such regular wardrobe is on the horizon in the near future, as in this picture that Michelle took of me in August 2017. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1283.3 After taking yesterday as a rest day, I was glad to get back at it today, and left at 12:45 to ride another round trip to Baker Rd. -- 20.1 miles in 2:22. It was 56° when I began, and 58° when I finished, with clouds moving in throughout the ride, so that while I began under mostly sunny skies, it was thoroughly overcast when I finished. Today's ride was later than I usually like to ride, because Michelle's (distance) teaching schedule necessitated that we do our daily walk this morning. So we went to Saginaw Forest and enjoyed a 40-minute around Third Sister Lake there. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1263.2 This morning I left about 9:15 under cloudy skies (43° when I started, a more pleasant 52° when I finished), and rode a round trip to Baker Rd. for the third consecutive day. I'd have to consult my records to be sure -- I think I have done this once or twice before, but am not sure I have ever done four consecutive days, so maybe tomorrow! It gave me a ride of 20.1 miles in 2:23. The following pictures show two hills that I am blessed to have the opportunity to tackle during these rides to Dexter. Neither looks to be a massive physical barrier, but both present huge psychological hurdles for me. The first one shows the view as I ride the sidewalk beside Jackson Rd., up to my turnaround point (halfway) at Baker Rd. in Dexter. The second one shows the view about 3 miles from home, just as I have turned from going eastward beside Stadium Boulevard, to southward alongside S. Main, right after turning at the corner where the Big House (Michigan Stadiu...

2020 mileage: 1243.1 We are currently enmeshed in a phenomenal stretch of weather -- so, almost unbelievably, today's weather was every bit as good as yesterday's, and even slightly better. We had another day of bright, unbroken sunshine, with a temperature of 52° when I began my ride at 11:00, rising to 60° by the finish! I rode again to Baker Rd. (Dexter), for a ride of 20.1 miles in 2:22. Link to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1223.0 On an absolutely gorgeous  day today (bright sunshine, and 51° when I began a bit past 11:00, up to 57° when I finished), I rode another round trip to Baker Rd. (Dexter), and then added a loop in our complex when I finished just to bump me up to 20 miles (an even 20.0 in 2:24). L ink to (Relive) video of today's ride

2020 mileage: 1203.0 After taking yesterday off because it was Michelle's birthday and we went hiking together at Nichols Arboretum, I climbed 'back in the saddle' this morning and went out at 8:00. I could not find my battery pack, as it had mysteriously migrated away from the place I left it after my ride on Monday, so I was unable to ride as far as I had wanted to. But this is just as well, as it remained bitterly cold for 'spring' weather (40° and what I would describe as 'raw' -- very moist, but fortunately lacking any wind whatsoever). I have been huddled beneath a blanket for the two hours or so since finishing up, trying to thaw out. I still got a fairly good ride in, though -- down to the center of Saline and back home, for 12.9 miles in 1:24. (As measured, though that shorted me about half a mile ... I began the app before leaving, but for some reason it didn't turn on, and it took me about half a mile to discover this and get it going.) T...