Normally, I am not documenting my “first ride of the year” until sometime in late February. This is when the dark winter days are finally starting to get longer and there may be a break of a couple of days with above-freezing temperatures to clear the roads for a short ride.
But – this year is truly an exception. There is hardly a drop of snow on the ground. We have had as many 40 degree days as those below freezing. The only snow that resulted in me shoveling the driveway was on New Years Eve – which is long gone due to several days of melting since then.
Thus, when the forecast called for mild conditions and temperatures near 40 degrees on Sunday afternoon – I needed to head out for some outdoor miles. Although the bike computer settled in at 41F for most of the ride, my temperature sensor at my house said it was about 38F. That is pretty much my threshold for outdoor cycling as I’ve grown too wimpy to ride in really cold conditions and avoid temps dropping near/below the freezing point.
Prior to the ride, I had to swap the pedals from my Old Steed (my Trek 560) and put them on my New Steed. The Old Steed has been serving its duty on the bike trainer in front of the TV – thus acting as my main ride for the past several weeks. The New Steed sits patiently in my basement, waiting for such a day to come out from hiding and travel on some real pavement. While hauling it upstairs, I noticed a slight layer of dust on the wheels – indicating that it has been quite a few weeks since the bike was put into action.
As usual, I overdressed for the ride, and battled as much over-heating as any other challenge (hills and wind). I still don’t ride enough in cooler conditions to hone my skills at proper clothing selection. On a bike, it seems that every 5 degree increment calls for a different strategy with clothing options/layers and I most often choose the cold side of the equation. Still, being a little too warm will beat being a little too cold any day in my book – especially at 38F.
In terms of performance, the ride sucked. I’ve gotten out of cycling shape – big time – and suffered for my lack of initiative during the entire ride. But the point wasn’t to put in a good time or hit a high average speed. The only goal was to do the one thing that bikes are meant to do – cover a lot of miles in a short period of time while hauling my butt around nature’s beautiful countryside.
I achieved that in spades!
Even cold fresh air does a body some good every once in a while. Although it did result in me coughing uncontrollably for several minutes after dismounting while my body made it known that it did NOT appreciate the experience. Yet, that is normal because cycling and suffering go hand-in-hand. The masochist in me often enjoys the pain as much as the ride itself.
While on the road, I also noticed that I was not the only one willing to suffer. In a few patches of frost that were in the low, shady spots, I noticed a single set of bicycle tracks that had preceded my ride. It’s good to know that I am not the only obsessive cyclist to seize the same opportunity when nature presents it during the winter months.
