All of my ride posts of recent begin with a discussion of the horrifically humid conditions in Minnesota. To say the least, August has lived up to its reputation as a muggy month. This offers the challenges to any outdoor activity, let alone one involving a little bit of exercise.
I was able to meet up with a co-worker on Saturday morning for a simple trek through the Medina countryside. Early morning rides in the summer are rather peculiar. There is seldom a breeze in the air as the sun hasn’t gotten its chance to warm things up and stir it all around. There also isn’t much by means of traffic as most are just beginning to roll out of bed and greet the day. The morning air is often quite heavy and dewy – making it feel thick to even breath. But, all of this makes for a great experience to be on the bike.
Saturday morning’s light was a photographer’s dream. The high humidity provided heavy air that scattered the light – highlighting the rays of the sun.
Our Saturday ride targeted around 25 miles and hit the usual roads. Here are the stats if you are interested. While on the bikes, we encountered a large number of other riders – each with the same idea as ourselves. For morning rides, everyone seems to be over-friendly and there was nary a rider who didn’t wave back when presented with a greeting from us.
For me, Sunday was a day off from the bike. It’s not that I really needed time away from riding, but the 25+ mph wind gusts convinced me that some chores around the house were a welcome distraction to fighting the wind on a bike. Earlier in the week, I came upon a neat decorative wall design on one of the many design-related blogs that I follow. It was a grid of stretched canvas frames with either paint or fabric covering them. In the online post, I saw that they provided simple coverage for a large wall. It gave me the idea to repeat the same basic setup in my living room – since I also have a larger bare wall that needs some covering. Thus, it was off to Michaels for some pre-stretched canvas frames (six of them) and off to JoAnn Fabrics to find a large-patterned textile that would tie the colors I have between my couch (blue), my built-in cushion (rusty orange), and my pillows (golden). I got lucky to tie in all three colors with a single print and, after a few hours of tinkering, had a new custom decoration up on the wall. I will show it off later once I get a fresh coat of paint on the walls to tie in all the colors within the room.
The 2011 season will likely include an upgrade to my cycling shoes, as these have a good 5 years into their life.
Since Sunday was without riding time, I was itching to get on the bike after work on Monday. The wind was still up – close to 15 mph from the west – but I still decided to just fight it and keep the ride fairly short.
Here are the stats:
The biggest change for Monday’s ride was the weather. Whereas rides in the early part of August had dew points in the 70s, Monday’s weather provided a sharp contrast with dew points well into the low-50s and even a little “nip” in the air. Before I hopped on the bike, it passed through my head that it was “darn cold” to be on the bike and I looked forward to getting the first few warmup miles out of the way. Unlike most other sports, cycling provides a steady exposure to the wind and humidity with a great affect on comfort that cannot be sheltered easily during the ride. You need to dress appropriate and be willing to shed some clothes along the way to adjust to the conditions. Fortunately, I ended up not doing anything special and went out with a typical kit – jersey and shorts. It is still August, after all.
Long shadows in the early stages of the evening indicate that fall is just around the corner.
Even though it wasn’t cool enough to break out the leg-warmers. the feeling in the air presented the foreboding of cold weather riding to come. I’m not sure if I am mentally prepared to head out on a ride in the low 50s, even though I find it much more comfortable to ride in cooler conditions than I do in the recent heat/humidity of recent weeks. Fall riding is wonderful in Minnesota for a whole host of reasons – but I could stand to suffer through the summer conditions for a few more weeks before conceding to the inevitable.
This week’s riding is all in preparation for an extended ride that is planned for Saturday, August 21st. My brother and I will be riding the Tour de Prairie Lakes that is centered around our hometown of Glenwood, Minnesota. This is a 70 mile ride that first circles the local lake (Lake Minnewaska – which I have showcased many times on the blog), moves on to a neighboring town of Villard, and loops back through the countryside into Lowry and back to Glenwood before completing the journey. It’s main goal is a fundraiser for the local Habitat for Humanity chapter – but it also provides us cyclists with an event to enjoy.
Our goals for the event are simple – just finish. I can only hope that the weather will cooperate and the winds will stay light. Out on the prairie, the open road and cleared fields provide little shelter for any winds and they can truly howl along. Should half of our 70 mile journey take place into the wind, I will not be a happy cyclist. That said, I hope there is something that presents some adversity – like rain or even mechanical trouble. It wouldnt’ be much of a ride if we just pedaled along easily for a few hours.
