was finally able to get some weekend riding in... saturday i rode down to the dealership for a volunteer meeting for the rally in raleigh this coming weekend. ride down was good - traffic was light and temps were cool, although it was a little overcast. i wasn't sure if i was going to get there before it rained and was planning my rain strategy - if it started raining, would i pull over and get my rain gear on or would i keep riding. it's one of those decisions you never really make until it starts - if you're close enough and you're not going to get soaked, you keep going. of course what you forget about is all the water splashed up from the road - you always end up getting wetter than you expect. lucky for me, i didn't have to worry about it!!
i sit through the hour-long meeting... they gave us details of where everything was, which streets would be closed, what the parade route would be. they gave us maps, t-shirts and schedules. by the end of the meeting, i'm thinking i'm on information overload... if it's anything like last year, i'm figuring i'm going to be doing a lot of standing around watching people come and go... and if you manage to get down there, stop by and say hi - i'll be the one in the yellow shirt!!
the meeting finally ended and i headed home. the temps had risen since the morning and it was getting hot!!! sure made me miss and appreciate the cooler weather. this time of year is great for riding. nothing like bundling up and staying warm while riding with the cool, sometimes cold, air blowing by. sure beats riding in the heat. not only did i face the heat on the way home, i got to deal with the traffic. nothing in particular to complain about since no one cut me off or tried to push me out of my lane - just a bunch of cagers driving like they're the only ones on the road.
sunday i managed to get out for two rides. first one was the (no so) usual ride to get the paper and breakfast for my wife. summer seemed busy with teaching and stuff planned on the weekends, that i haven't been able to get the sunday ride in. i sure do miss those. now that things are slowing down, i may be able to get back into the routine. i decided to get donuts this morning - which afforded me a little longer ride. it was nice being out before the church traffic. temps were already warm, which meant the day would be even worse.
in the afternoon, i took another ride - this time with my wife. we didn't head anywhere in particular - just some nice back roads. with the heat, we didn't need to be mixed amongst other traffic. plus, being on the two lane roads would give us a slightly cooler ride. the heat didn't even seem to matter, we were moving and i was spending time with my wife. the only drawback was we did have a time limit. we needed to get back, so we kept the trip shorter. maybe when it gets a little cooler out and we don't have to worry about the time, we'll head out longer - discover some out-of-the-way small town, share a meal and build some more memories. although i think i'm going to have to invest in some new "crash" bars for my bike to make the ride more comfortable for her!!
we rolled home in time for me to go pick up our daughter. which, if you count picking kids up, means i actually got three rides in. we didn't take the most direct route home... and if dinner wasn't being prepared, the ride home may have taken even longer!!!
overall, despite the heat, it was good to be back on the bike again. and i really shouldn't complain about the heat too much. it may not be my favorite riding weather, but it really doesn't bother me that much. at least not enough to keep me off the bike!!!
ride on...
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