Pretty amazing Anne. Seems like if someone likes riding a bike, they'd like riding it rain or shine...
Today is drizzly/misty in SoCal, so I put on my skinny (36mm!!!) tires and mudguards <http://www.flickr.com/photos/cyclotourist/5090485054/>. I wasn't expecting to see anyone, but was happily surprised to cross paths with four other riders. That was over an hour, so comparable to my four hour/40 cyclists ride from yesterday (yes, I count cyclists). Who says SoCal cyclers don't go out if the temp dips below 65F!!! On Sun, Oct 17, 2010 at 11:30 AM, Anne Paulson <anne.paul...@gmail.com>wrote: > Don't know how this got sent before I finished it. Here's the complete > version: > > *************************************************** > I usually ride Saturday mornings with some cycling friends. They're > great guys and I always have fun riding with them, but these are guys > who not only won't ride when it's raining, they won't ride-- I am not > making this up-- when the roads are wet. Which not exactly my > attitude. I'm more of a bike anywhere for any reason kind of person. > > Yesterday morning was sunny and warm, but I didn't feel like getting > up so the ride went without me. So there I was at 3:00 this afternoon, > heading out on my Atlantis. Without the boys on their dainty carbon > bikes with fragile 23mm tires, I was free to enjoy some dirt, so I > turned off the standard paved loop to the fire road up Windy Hill. I > was determined to get all the way up to the top cleanly, trying to use > all the dirt suggestions you guys have been giving this week. All was > going well until I got to the very steepest pitch and for some reason > they'd put a load of loose gravel on the bottom section. Too slippy > for me, though I tried twice. But next week I'll try again. I think > maybe if I just try to spin faster up the bottom part of the steep > section I can get past the gravel, then hope to have enough energy to > continue as it gets even steeper for a few tens of yards. > > On the top of the ridge it was getting late and and the wind was > blowing. OK well, I guess that's why it's called Windy Hill. Happily I > had taken the elementary precaution of bringing along an Ibex wooly > zip-tee. All of you should buy one or more of those woolies-- they are > absolutely fantastic for an extra layer when it starts getting cold, > and they wad up so small. Not that carrying capacity is an issue on > this particular bike, as we will shortly see. Feeling a bit peckish, I > pulled out the bag of Quadratini cookies and munched a few. > > More climbing on pavement, and then it was time for the long descent. > With the low > clouds and the late hour, I was glad that the Atlantis has a generator > hub wired to head and taillights. No need to worry about approaching > darkness or dead batteries, I just flipped the light switch and I was > good to go zooming down the hill. > > At the bottom it was time to go home to cook dinner, but I had to buy > it first. Would my new Saddlesack, the arrival of which consoled me > for having to missing the RBW garage sale, be able to swallow up two > gallons of milk, five pounds of potatoes, pound and a half of chicken, > two onions, some garlic, a loaf of French bread and some other > assorted groceries? This was my first time using it for such a big > load. I was delighted to discover that the straps can reposition for > big loads. Everything fitted easily, with the French bread stuck > sideways on the outside under the straps. I put my lock in an outside > pocket, snapped the little wallet holder pocket back on top, and rode > home. > > My non-Riv friends just don't understand the biking life. > > > > -- > -- Anne Paulson > > My hovercraft is full of eels > > > > -- > -- Anne Paulson > > My hovercraft is full of eels > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com<rbw-owners-bunch%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com> > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > -- Cheers, David Redlands, CA *...in terms of recreational cycling there are many riders who would probably benefit more from improving their taste than from improving their performance.* - RTMS -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
