Group ride, interrupted

The Bike Me DC group met up at the Herndon Depot yesterday for a casual ride to the Vienna Depot and back, and I rode the three miles from home to Herndon to meet the group for the ride. We had lovely weather despite one member wearing his cursed jersey again. It rains every time he wears that jersey (the Reston Century riders can thank him), except for last night. Hooray!

We took off shortly after 6pm and the speed demons left six of us in the dust. Eventually, another woman -- Rebecca -- and I pulled ahead of the last four folks. Rebecca and I had wound up pushing our bikes up the final hill during last year's Great Pumpkin Ride and discovered that our cruising speeds are compatible. We rode side by side and chattered happily about upcoming group rides, vacation plans, and bicycle maintenance. We even continued chatting as we rode up the hills that both of us find troubling. It felt great to have a riding companion with similar strength.

A couple of miles outside of Vienna, I hit a pothole. It jarred me and Lily, but she seemed okay. I heard an odd sound and thought that I might have damaged one of my tires, but they weren't losing air. Rebecca pulled ahead of me and eventually left me in the dust. I couldn't get any speed and momentum was nil. My body was starting to hurt, too: hands, back, sides, tush, and feet. I was only ten miles in, with fourteen to go, and I was miserable. As I approached the Depot, two ladies from the far behind group passed me. When I joined the group, I examined my back tire and realized that the brake clamped down on the rim at certain points. I told the ride leader that I was going to take my bike up to the Vienna branch of Spokes, Etc, and have them take a look. The guys, of course, flocked to my bike and tried to fix the problem. I stepped back and let them tweak to their hearts' content. Despite the team's best efforts, my brake still wouldn't let go of the tire. One of the guys did notice that the tire was slightly out of true and that was most likely causing the problem.

The group didn't like leaving me behind but I told them I'd be fine and would have my husband come rescue me if the bike couldn't be fixed this evening. With that, I walked my bike the half mile or so to the bike shop. The diagnosis was that I'd broken a spoke and, happily, the fix was quick and cheap. I phoned Scott, who was halfway to the shop, and told him I was good to ride back home. Since he was in my car, I didn't feel too guilty about his burning gas and toll road money for the wasted trip. He was concerned about the fading light, but I assured him I was okay with my blinky headlight and do-not-look-into-laser-with-remaining-eye tail light.

And I was okay. At least until I got out of Vienna proper when I realized that I'd left my water bottle at the service counter of the shop. Guh. Reston wasn't that far away and I could snag a bottle of water at the McD's next to the trail on Wiehle. I chased the fading light and was in full-on darkness as I approached Herndon. The ninja joggers and cyclists were out in force and I gave my bell a workout warning folks of my passing. I'm VERY happy not to have found any deer on the trail since my spotlight-the-next-county headlight was on the kitchen counter at home. I'm also VERY happy not to have hit the skunk which trundled out of the underbrush just before I got to Sterling Blvd. I don't think I've ever seen a live one in the wild and I'm glad that we passed each another without physical or aerosolized contact.

I thought that I'd be exhausted when I got home, but coasting for a mile or so revitalized me. I was tired and hurting because it's been a while since I've ridden over twenty miles, but I did manage a total of 24 miles in just over two hours, plus the twenty minutes or so of bike repair. And one of these days I'll get to complete a Bike Me DC ride with the whole group.

So dirty

Lily and I got in two very soggy rides this week: Monday evening's commute and Wednesday evening's group ride from Herndon to Ashburn. Monday wasn't planned; I left work slightly later than planned and the rain started just after I unlocked the bike. A couple of coworkers kindly offered to drive me home because I'd mentioned in the past that I was nervous about slipping on wet streets. I figured, though, that since we'd had a fair amount of rain on Sunday, oil and whatnot on the roads would have washed away. Plus, I had my lights and I was fairly sure I wouldn't melt. It turns out that I wound up being only slightly more damp from the evening's commute (rain) that I'd gotten from the morning's commute (sweat). Funny, that.

Grimy grimy.

The whole of Wednesday was pretty nice, but as soon as I hit the trail to meet the bike club at the Herndon Depot, the drizzle started. Skies were clear in Herndon, but our plan was to ride west to Ashburn and into the wet. Our little group got to Church Road and took sanctuary under the bridge to wait out the rain. A couple of folks turned around while an intrepid few continued west into the chilly and stinging rain. We crossed 28, arrived at Pacific and decided that even we had had enough. Of course, as soon as we got back to Sterling proper, the skies cleared. The other three continued east and I turned toward home to dry off and warm up. Fun, but chilly.

The back rack saves me from a skunk stripe but doesn't protect the seat tube or stays.

The result of all these rainy rides is that Lily is FILTHY. I know that she needs a good cleaning, but I'd rather ride than clean. I guess that since Sunday is supposed to be a wash-out, I'll use the cooped-up time to give my beloved steed a much deserved wipe down and lube. And maybe Circe will be my bike of choice for tomorrow's 20+ miler to Leesburg and back.

Bike DC 2012

Starting line crush.

Aside from some unpleasantness before and during the Bike DC event, Scott and I enjoyed ourselves immensely. I'll start with the bad:

 - Waking at an ungodly hour so that we could get to Gravelly Point by 6am to meet our bike club and get registration materials. Seriously, I don't know how you early morning commuters do it. I'm unhappy if I have to get up before 7:30am.

- The choke points at 50/Meade, all of Marshall, and Washington Blvd/Columbia Pike. The mixture of speedsters and children as the full ride and family ride converged made all of those especially fun.

- And speaking of little kids: eleven miles up and down strenuous hills is really too much for a "family fun ride". If I were supreme ruler, I would have kept the little ones on a downtown course around the Mall or something. More fun, and safer, for everybody.

These guys planned to ride the entire 24-mile route.

- Food, or rather lack of choices in the food. There were apples, bananas, water, granola bars, and candy at the two rest stops. I didn't see any food at the beginning -- I would have maimed someone for a bagel with cream cheese -- and the food at the end was bananas, bags of chips, and Jolly Ranchers. I expected maybe something like a cookout atmosphere with burgers and hot dogs at the finish line. My expectations of supported tours has been completely ruined by the fantastic spread that the Backroads Century provides at rest stops and the end, but come on! I can't eat apples, Twizzlers, or Jolly Ranchers because of my braces. I've now eaten enough bananas that I'm sure I'll make a Geiger counter click.

That being said, we did have a good time on the full route. I got to go places and see things I haven't experienced before. I'd never personally seen the front of the White House before. I'd never been on a cycle track. I'd never ridden behind unicyclists.

Not as impressive as the back, but still pretty.

I've driven on Rock Creek Parkway less than a handful of times and traveling it via bike was one of the more amazing things I've done. What can I say, I lead a boring life.

 We rode on the GW Parkway of DEATH. I've now seen the Iwo Jima Memorial in person and the Air Force Memorial from the base. I'm still buzzing about riding through the K Street tunnel and up and down car-free DC streets. I do wish, though, that more of the ride had been in the actual DC boundaries. I mean, it was fun riding in Virginia, but DC, man. And now that I think about it, all of the congestion was in the Virginia half of the ride. Coincidence? I think not.

We got to ride our bikes on an INTERSTATE HIGHWAY, y'all. Mind, blown.

It's just another 25 miles west to home.

After crossing the finish line and not finding any suitable food, we snagged our T-shirts, purchased a couple of "vintage" ride shirts, and cruised across town back to Virginia on non-car-free streets. I wasn't entirely sure how to get where we needed to go, but I did know that once we hit Constitution, my bearings would return. We rode through the Mall and wound our way past the Vietnam Wall and on to the Lincoln Memorial which I haven't been up close and personal with since my family visited during Spring Break 1990.

All in all, and aside from the snafus, we had fun. Unless something more important or pressing comes up next year, we'll probably ride in Bike DC again. I do hope that my girlfriends become stronger and more confident cyclists by then so we can ride together.

I promise I did not photoshop our bikes onto a postcard.

Another fun point is that I got lots of compliments on the floral basket. So many in fact that Scott was disappointed no one commented on his Hula girl shirt. People eventually noticed his sartorial flair and we wound up about even on comments. One guy even suggested that Scott invest in a dashboard Hula girl to attach to his helmet for the next group ride. We're both pretty keen on that idea.

Bike DC 2012 videos

Both Scott and I had a blast riding in BikeDC this morning. I have scads of photos to edit and upload. In the meantime, here are some shakey-cam videos from the northbound lanes of the George Washington Parkway in Mclean, VA, and the westbound lanes of the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge over the Potomac River. 

I'm kind of kicking myself for not taking some video along the Rock Creek Parkway because that section was bee-you-tiful. On the other hand, we were still pretty much in a pack and I needed both hands on the bars and brakes both going up and coming back down. Next year, I'll actually use the camera mount I put on my handlebar.

This is totally a bikeyface. (I was too happy to be at all self-conscious about my braces.)

Getting closer to the big day

It's only 31 days until the National Capital Tour de Cure and I'm at 85% of my fundraising goal of $1,000. THANK YOU to those dear folks who have donated to this worthy cause and who are supporting me on this journey. If you feel so included to help me reach my personal goal and help the American Diabetes Association with their goal of eliminating diabetes, please click the link below. And if you donate, please comment here or there with the name of someone you would like for me to ride in honor or in memory of. My bike will be adorned with ribbons emblazoned with the names of those loved ones. I'm also happily accepting "atta girl!"s. :)

I've decided to ride the 50 mile route -- it's actually 54.7 miles -- plus the twelve or so mile round trip from home to the start/finish line. That'll put me at just over a metric century which, at this point, will be a challenge but won't damage me. This Saturday will offer another chance at a decent training ride as Bike Me DC again conducts the crowd favorite "Fireworks Pizza Ride". The group will ride from Raflo Park in Leesburg to the trail head in Purcellville and back with a group lunch at Fireworks Pizza in Market Station. If I'm feeling especially spry and sassy, I will ride from home to the meet-up and back which should give me just about 47 miles when I include riding to and from the pizza joint. The temperature isn't supposed to be stinking hot like the past few days, but it'll be the warmest I've felt while riding for distance. Good training for the first weekend of June when it's usually REALLY stinking hot. Heh, spending Memorial Day weekend in New Orleans may actually benefit me by reminding me what REAL heat and humidity are like.

In semi-related news, a dear friend (hi Barb!) has signed up to ride in the Tour de Cure as well. I am incredibly proud of her for taking this step and getting out there. I've promised to be a gentle-yet-firm coach and help her get up to speed, so to speak, to prepare for the Fun Ride. Riding the trails together in her neck of the 'burbs will be a lot of fun.

Paul's Ride for Life

This coming Saturday is the fourth annual Paul's Ride for Life in Reston, VA. According to the event's website, this ride is dedicated to the memory of a cyclist, Paul Rossmeissl, who died in June 2006 from injuries sustained in a bicycle accident on the W&OD. Paul's unfortunate death allowed three organ recipients to live. All proceeds from the ride go to the Washington Regional Transplant Community. 



If you're localish, this event might be of interest. It looks like Saturday is going to be pretty nice for cycling with overcast skies and a high of 55F. Well, it'll be nice for me as I prefer chillier days. Scott and I are being punks and riding the twenty mile route, but we are going to ride our bikes to and from the event which will put another ten miles onto the day for us.

In addition to the ride, the sixth annual Cyclefest Expo will be going on from 10a-3p in Reston Town Center. "Multiple vendors"? Oh, yeah; I'm there. Although, I'll be on the Dolce which doesn't have much in the way of cargo capacity... Hrm. I suppose putting Lily's metal or Kate's wicker basket on Circe would be the peak of silliness.

Sleep & maintenance

I got very little sleep this weekend due to staying up much too late working on year-end financial reports, insomnia, and early-for-me morning obligations both Saturday and Sunday. Between Friday night to Sunday morning, I got roughly ten hours of sleep. Seeing as how I typically sleep nine hours a night, I was not the brightest or bushiest tailed of the bunch. Saturday morning was the worst since I got three hours of sleep before getting up super early so that I could be in Alexandria by 8am for the Bike Me DC maintenance class at the Belle View location of Spokes, Etc.

The lecture portion of the day included topics such as gearing, brakes, derailleurs, wheels, leveling screws, chain "stretch", removing the rear wheel and changing a tire. My brain was overflowing by lunch time and I'm very glad that I took pages of notes as well as received an instructional DVD as part of tuition cost. I also jotted down the names and part numbers of some useful looking tools.

Park Tool Chain Checker

After lunch was the lab portion of the class and we got to work on our own bikes. To be honest, beyond measuring my chain I wasn't sure what else I should do. I should have tried taking off my rear wheel and putting it back on as well as practice changing a tire, just to see if I could do it, but I can work on that at home. The first (and only, as it turns out) item of "maintenance" I did was check my chain length. One should replace a chain as it nears 1 so the chain doesn't damage the cassette (back gear wheels). According to the tool, my chain was between .75 and 1. I knit my brow and called over the instructor to verify that I was seeing what I thought I was seeing. He agreed with my observation and told me that while I could continue to ride for another month or so, but I should get the chain replaced sooner rather than later. The lady next to me was shocked since she knew that I got my bike in July. I told her and the instructor that I'd put about 1,000 miles on the bike since then.

"Yep, that'll do it," replied the instructor. The lady was flabbergasted at the mileage and then said, "Oh, that's right: you commute."

I struggled getting my bike back up the steep staircase. To be honest, I was struggling before I even got up the first stair, and an associate ran over and carried Rose up for me. He set her up on a stand and showed me how to remove the chain and then how to replace it. It looked like a fairly easy process if it's something that one does fairly often. He patiently explained each step and answered my questions. After attaching the new chain, he checked over the other parts and declared my bike ready fit for duty.

At that point, I was ready to fall over. I decided that since my bike was already at street level, I would head on home. I said my good-byes to the group, paid for some new tools and the chain, and headed toward home. I hit a snow squall on the Dulles Toll Road which gave Rose an impromptu bath. This turned out to be a blessing because the damp made cleaning the grime off her frame that much easier. She's not showroom clean, but she's as clean as she's been since her post Outer Banks scrub. And I don't have to worry about her chain for a while.

Some upcoming events

Stop, Swap, & Save: Sunday, February 12. An indoor bike swap and consumer expo in Westminster, MD.

WABA 2012 Vasa Ride: Sunday, March 4. Per the site, "four hundred riders of all ages and experience levels will gather at the House of Sweden on the morning of Sunday, March 4th for a noncompetitive ride to brave the coldness of winter and traverse DC and Maryland's terrain." There are 59-, 31-, and 15-mile routes for this event. Scott and I are signed up for the 31-miler.

Plus, the Bike Me DC Meetup group has several events scheduled such as a maintenance course this coming Saturday, a "Lost Blossom" tour of lesser known cherry trees at the end of March, and a tour along Skyline Drive, as well as spur of the moment bike tours of the C&O, MVT, and other scenic areas around the DC area. I'm looking forward to the maintenance class. Hopefully, it'll make me less of a bike hypochondriac and more empowered when I know how to fix the squeaks and squawks coming from my beloved velo.

Impromptu Mid-Winter Bike Ride, part un

The Bike Me DC meetup group held an impromptu mid-winter bike ride from the Alexandria Marina down to Mount Vernon. I'd never been to Mount Vernon (or the marina for that matter) and jumped at the chance to see new sights and sites.

Alexandria Marina

I miscalculated how terrible traffic would be -- not at all terrible, in fact -- and wound up arriving half an hour before everybody else. Ah well. When the six other participants arrived, many of them complained about the cold. Buh? It was mid- to upper 40s which is poifect! Once we got moving, everybody was fine.

My camera, on the other hand, was not fine and I have no photos from the outbound leg of the trip. It was, however, exciting to see the bottom end of the Mount Vernon Trail, even if it was clogged with pedestrians. At one point, our fearless leader decided to cross the GW Parkway and ride through wide open neighborhood streets. My heart leapt into my throat and my brain screamed cyclists DIE crossing the GW Parkway!!! Obviously -- I hope it's obvious -- I did not perish while crossing the road nor did any of the other cyclists in our group.

I did nearly kick the bucket while climbing one of the hills through the neighborhood. I have no idea what street we were on and was completely lost, but I did not get off my bike to push. I used the granniest of granny gears, stopped halfway up the hill to gulp air and keep my heart from exploding, and finally made it to the top where the group had patiently waited for me. We eventually returned to the trail and our fearless leader warned us about the hills and switchbacks and blind corners ahead. He told us all it was good gearing practice. I dead-panned, "I didn't know there was going to be a test on this ride."

We survived the switchbacks, and thank goodness for his warning! If I'd been flying along that end of the trail by myself, I would have most likely sailed off of the trail and into the woods faaaaar below. After climbing and climbing and climbing, we finally made it to the end of the trail and the parking lot of Mount Vernon. I was the only one who hadn't seen the grounds and everybody else had to get back home for some reason or another and we parted ways. I didn't actually tour the grounds as I'd forgotten my lock and I didn't feel like renting one. After a quick lunch of a banana and a Honey Stinger Waffle, I turned my bike around and headed back north.

To be continued...

Seminar, test ride, & snow

On Sunday the Bike Me DC meet-up group convened on the Vienna branch of Spokes, Etc for a "Winter Cycling" seminar. The staff went over the usual information of which clothes and accessories will keep a cyclist warm, plus the idea of layering so one can cool off as the exertion increases the body temperature. They also covered winter bike maintenance. I hadn't thought to check the brake pads for bits of gravel and other detritus which gets washed up/blown onto the road and/or trail. They covered lights (of both the "see" and "be seen" varieties) and reflective items. I didn't feel comfortable piping up with ideas for cheaper alternatives for clothing and accessories during the seminar itself, but Scott sent a couple of non-standard-sized cyclist women in my direction for info on the products I use and where to purchase them (Novara vented windbreaker and Canari padded cycling shorts for instance...). I'm all for supporting my local bike shop(s), and trust me I do buy lots of bits and bobs whenever I succumb to bike hypochondria, but sometimes they don't offer the larger-sized cyclist the gear she wants and/or needs.





Bike Me DC at Spokes
<vanity>My hair looks pretty good from the back</vanity>  
After the seminar, Scott and I went our separate ways in the store. I browsed through the road bikes and asked the closest associate, Nate, if he could pull out a Specialized Dolce for me to examine. He happily pulled down a Comp style and gave me tons of information about the bike. I mean, tons. He picked up the bike and handed it over to me. WOW! As light as I thought Rose was compared to the Schwinn (before I loaded Rose down with all her commuting gear), this bike was even lighter! Nate explained how the shifters worked -- I've ridden a road bike once, as a tween, and it was one of the more terrifying experiences of my life -- and gave me a run-down of the components. We geeked about last year's Backroads Century (he did the full century; I did the 30 mile route) and he said I should skip the half century and train up for the full century this year since I'm already putting so many miles on my commuter. And then he said the most dangerous thing of all: did I want to take a test ride down to the W&OD and see how it handled.




Dolce Comp Compact I'm not wild about the colorway being almost the same as Rose's, but I'll deal. #firstworldproblem

*gulp* Okay. He gave me a helmet, I rolled up my pants leg and left Scott as collateral, and then hit the sidewalk for the most beautifully smooth ride I've ever known. Again, as smoothly as Rose felt, compared to the Schwinn, this ride was Uh-May-Zing. I hardly felt the brick sidewalk as I pedaled along and played with the shifters and brakes. I turned around at the trail and rode back to the store as I didn't want anything to happen to the bike on a test ride.

I was smitten. I was sad to give her back to Nate, but if it comes down to a mortgage payment or a bike, I will pay for the bike the mortgage. But! I now know where my bonus is going. And yes, I know I said that I wouldn't buy another bike until I'd had Rose for a year, but I do need to get used to the bike before I ride a hundred miles on it, don't I?

In my mind, I've already named the bike "Nancy". I'm not sure why as it's not a particularly fast-sounding name but it felt natural. In fact, because it's called a Dolce, I feel like I should name it something Italian. We'll see what happens when I actually get one home.

In other news, it's been snowing off and on this afternoon and it's been more on for the past half hour or so. The grass and cars have a decent covering and the parking lot is wet. The deeply closeted daredevil side of me wishes I'd been feeling well enough to bike in the cold air this morning so that I could feel all bad@ss on the commute home.

Halloween Costume Ride

On Sunday, Scott and I donned our costumes (Seattle biker and cheerleader, respectively) and slogged through horrific traffic (due to road closures for the Marine Corps Marathon) to Gravelly Point Park where we joined the Bike Me DC! group for an in-costume ride through the streets of DC. Happily, the sun was out, the temperature wasn't bad considering the snow storm the day before, and everyone was in high spirits.We had to have a group picture before setting off, of course.


We rode up the Mount Vernon Trail...


...and across the 14th Street Bridge...


...and on up to the Jefferson Memorial.


Our leader, "Charlie Brown", wanted us to carry our bikes up the steps so we could get a group picture in front of Jefferson. The rest of the group rebelled because 1) his was the lightest bike in the group and we were too lazy to lug our heavier bikes all the way up there, and 2) we didn't want to tangle with park police. If you squint, you can see "Chuck" in the yellow shirt just right of center goading us to join him.


From there we tried riding the path along the Mall, but there were just too many people out and about to do that safely or responsibly. After a quick debate, we took to the streets and left the foot paths for the pedestrians. I was keeping an eye out for cars coming up behind and possible doorings ahead and did not snap any photos of the Smithsonian museums nor the colorful foliage.

Next up on the tour was the Capitol.


We crossed the Mall and snapped a few group shoots in front of the building.


Because we had to wait so long for other group members to arrive (yay, DC traffic), we had to skedaddle back to our origin point so we could make our reservation for the after-ride party. I accidentally snapped a photo of the 1st quarter of the cue sheet (which wound up being the only part of our tour we completed).


We took to the surface streets again, this time much faster. A few in our group, including our fearless leader, race a lot and really kicked up the speed. We were mostly able to congregate back up at stop lights. Again, no photos because I was keeping an eye on cars behind and car doors ahead and flying along with the pace-setters.

When we got back on the bridge, I did chance a couple overhead and over-shoulder shots of Rosslyn...


...and DC.


Obligatory panda.


I really enjoyed biking in a skirt. I mean, I bike in my Ruu-Muus all the time, but those feel like workout clothes. This skirt was actual real life clothing (albeit altered with appliqued orange and white triangles). I also liked my zip-tied orange pom-poms as streamers despite the left one occasionally covering my rear view mirror.

I asked Scott how he liked biking in a skirt (he wore a Utilikilt) and he said it was "an interesting sensation". He also wore bike tights underneath for warmth and propriety. :)

The party afterwards at the Shirlington Bungalow Billiards was a lot of fun and we got to know everybody a little better. Our fearless leader says he's working on a "lost cherry blossom" ride for next spring. We won't ride around the Tidal Basin because that will be way too mobbed with tourists; instead we'll bike around Northwest (yay. hills. please, oh please let's not bike up [or DOWN!] Wisconsin Avenue.). Can't wait!

Bike Me DC! - Fireworks Pizza Ride

Scott and I got up not so bright and early to join the Bike Me DC meet-up group in Leesburg for a ride west to Purcellville, VA, and back. Happily, the meet up point was next to the same park that Scott and I had found during our last bike trip to Leesburg.


The Sterling chaper of Bike Me! DC in Leesburg before riding west to Purcellville. Photo taken by John, the ride organizer, , 9/25/11.

I rode in my Ruu-Muu which has pockets on the back in which I stowed my handkerchief and camera. The ride to Purcellville is mostly uphill and I kept both hands on the handlebars while struggling along. Happily, for me anyway, I was not the slowest rider in the group: Scott and I jockeyed for position one of the four slow-pokes. :)




Scott and I round the bend. I've forgotten where this was. John, the ride organizer, was waiting for us slow-pokes and snapping photos of everybody, 9/25/11.


Scott and I reach the western terminus of the W&OD in Purcellville, VA. Photo taken by John, the ride organizer, 9/25/11.

Scott and I jogged across the street to check out Trail's End Cycling where I spotted a sweet-looking Specialized Allez in red and white. I'm still not buying a second bike until next summer at the earliest, and I'm starting to think I might want an actual road bike if I'm going to start riding in half- or metric centuries. Or maybe I'll just get some slicks for my hybrid. That decision can wait until next spring. I did buy up a bunch of Honey Stinger waffles in preparation for long rides on the Outer Banks.


I finally pulled out my camera and started snapping photos. Coasting downhill back to Leesburg, 9/25/11.


Scary steep switchback next to Dry Mill Rd. It doesn't look it in this photo, but the patch ahead is SERIOUSLY steep. The climb up nearly killed me. There's a scarier switchback to my left which I didn't photograph because I needed to control my brakes and watch the wet leaves so I didn't fly off the trail, 9/25/11.


Scott in the tunnel. I couldn't get the camera into my hand fast enough to photograph this stone bridge as I approached but I did snap Scott riding through the tunnel behind me. Too bad it's so blurry, but I'm not too disappointed with this blind, over-the-shoulder shot, 9/25/11.


Coasting REALLY fast along Dry Mill Rd. Wheeeeee! Most of the ride to Purcellville is uphill which means the return trip is mostly downhill , 9/25/11.


Celebratory pizza, salad, and cold beverages at Fireworks Pizza. Three newbies and two veterans. The other half of the group is sitting at the table to our left. Photo taken by John, the ride organizer.

We had a blast and I'm looking forward to riding with these fine folks again. I'm seriously considering the 24 mile route of the Great Pumpkin Ride in Warrenton on October 22. And then there's the 1st Annual Halloween Bike Ride & Party (in costume!) on the 29th. Very, very tempting...

And lastly, today's stats: 21.2 miles in 1:41 with an average speed of 12.5mph. I started to think that the downhills must've increased my average but then I realized that I made it Purcellville in 53 minutes. Hm, that means the return trip was 48 minutes... Yeah, I guess the downhills did improve my speed.