Cycling

[fcgamer | 4,723]

I generally try to get out cycling two or three times a week - once on the weekends, for a somewhat longer ride (maybe about 65 - 100K), and then one or two shorter rides after work, through the week, ranging at about 30 - 50K.

I figure I'd start posting some of my rides here, and for anyone else who rides, feel free to do the same. I'd also love to just chat about cycling, share tips, etc with others who embrace this sort of lifestyle.

Edited March 22, 2020 by fcgamer

[Link | 2,709]

I don’t ride long distance, but I commute and get around town by bike as much as possible, all year (but not in the rain any more).

I have a 1.5x milk crate on back for cargo. It used to be on the front, but getting the thing up stairs with a full load wasn’t easy. I still have the front rack and might put another type of container on it.

I want to get some Bar Mitts before next winter. I saw them on the cop bikes at a rally a few weeks ago.

[Richardhead | 2,813]

Not gonna lie.... I’m probably out of the saddle for a bit. I have had lots of wrecks and don’t think me needing a hospital bed right now is a good idea. 

[fcgamer | 4,723]

Took the beater for a ride today, just lost myself in the countryside for awhile and took pictures, exploring some areas near where I used to live.

[fcgamer | 4,723]

A few more pictures I'll share with you guys from my ride.

[fcgamer | 4,723]

Haven't been out much this season, but my friend and I are heading out on a cycling trip today. We're planning to head down towards the coast, then go up through the rice fields, before going down the mountainous regions where the horror film the Tag-Along 2 was set.

[TDIRunner | 2,734]

I've only managed one ride this season which is pretty disappointing.  I just have too much going on in my life in the evenings right now.  If I could, I would ride at least twice a week.  I'm fortunate enough to have hundreds of miles worth of bike trails in my county and they are all interconnected in one huge system with an access point only 1 mile from my home.  Some of the trails can be pretty scenic.  I'll take some pics the next time I'm out.

Here's my ride.

 

 

 

 

[fcgamer | 4,723]

6 hours ago, TDIRunner said:

I'm fortunate enough to have hundreds of miles worth of bike trails in my county and they are all interconnected in one huge system with an access point only 1 mile from my home.  Some of the trails can be pretty scenic.  I'll take some pics the next time I'm out.

That sounds really, really nice! Where I'm living now, you have to cycle about 45 minutes to an hour to get out of the city and into the picturesque villages and fields. 

My cycling season has been terrible this year too. Do you usually go alone or with someone? My cycling partner got married a few years back, and since then we don't ride nearly as much, responsibilities - some of the places we'd ride are really out there, not really a good place to be stuck, especially alone.

Today was the ride from hell, unfortunately. I received short notice late last night asking if I wanted to ride, as it was late we decided to head out later, around 9:00. Things started out fine, but as we were going through the city, my bike skidded and jerked my arm funny in the process, it really hurts so we'll see how things feel over the next few days, or if I will need to see a doctor.

Then as we were going through the last stretch of city before freedom, I started feeling really sick. I couldn't breathe properly due to mask requirements, and thus stretch was going at a long, yet slight incline. So I got out of the saddle, rested, rehydrated, and then walked my bike to where my buddy was waiting, outside of a 7-11.

I told him I didn't think I'd be able to continue on, something I have never done during a ride. We talked about it some, I then proceeded to lean over and puke about five times. I told him I thought it was the heat combined with wearing a mask, the  temp was 88 with a feel like temperature of 95.

We waited a bit and then things settled, and I thought I could possibly do an amended route, though I didn't want to do the  100K+ route we had initially planned.

From there things went fine, we road around a ridge surrounding the city, saw the skyline, also saw some airplanes as we were riding near the airport. There were a lot if sweet potato farms too, up where we were.

 

[TDIRunner | 2,734]

4 hours ago, fcgamer said:

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That's pretty rough.  I'm glad you were able to eventually get back and even enjoy the ride a bit.  I typically ride by myself, but I also bring a cell phone with me when I go.  None of the trails around here are in locations where I'm too worried about my safety.  The cell phone is in case something happens where I won't be able to finish the ride.  

I don't really have any stories like that outside of one trip where I had a small accident.  It was several years ago.  The bike from my picture above was only a few weeks old.  At that time, I hadn't ridden in about 3 years, so I was really enjoying the scenery on the bike trails and I wasn't paying attention.  I slide off the trail into the grass.  Instead of being smart and coming to a stop, I tried to slowly make my way back into the trail.  Unfortunately, the tall grass hid the fact that the asphalt on the trail was about six inches taller and when my wheel hit that "curb" it put my bike right on its side.  I wasn't going super fast, but when it was over my bike was several feel further down the trail from where I ended up.  Luckily, my body took most of the impact, and my brand new bike had just the smallest amount of scratches on the handle and pedal.   I had some road rash on my elbow and ankle, and the next day I had a bruise about the size of a softball on my hip.  Other than that I was ok.  I finished out the ride.  

I didn't have a helmet on that day, or a cell phone with me.  I hear a helmet and bring a cell phone with me on all rides now.  

[Richardhead | 2,813]

Got this beauty for $400 today. That’s a steal in covid times. 
I have had 3 bike deals fall through the last couple months, so I was happy to get this. 
Gonna give it a good tuneup tonight and take it out tomorrow morning.

[fcgamer | 4,723]

Well it's that time of the year again! Went for my first ride of the new year, since I hadn't been out for awhile (eight or ten months?) decided just to do something basic around the city rather than go nuts and end up winded and "stuck". Did a simple 33.5k ride, just slightly under 21 miles. I'll try to head out again tomorrow.

[drxandy | 3,225]

Couple months ago we went to a wedding on mackinaw island and bought some former rental bikes, kinda on a whim since I haven't had one since I was much younger.  We just moved to an area that's way more bike friendly so i've been biking to work and it's been pretty nice. Lots of bike stuff round here that I always thought was cool like river trail and on campus at Michigan State that's just down the street from us now. 

[Richardhead | 2,813]

7 hours ago, fcgamer said:

Well it's that time of the year again! Went for my first ride of the new year, since I hadn't been out for awhile (eight or ten months?) decided just to do something basic around the city rather than go nuts and end up winded and "stuck". Did a simple 33.5k ride, just slightly under 21 miles. I'll try to head out again tomorrow.

Holy crap! I haven’t been for a decent ride in like 3 months. Lots of running, but no cycling. 

[Link | 2,709]

My chain snapped halfway to work this morning. I paddled it most of the way there, really wishing my seatpost had a quick release to lower so I could get more than a tiptoe of traction. But it was faster than walking. 

I planned to get to the bike shop after work and ask them to throw on a chain for me real quick. Then to the grocery store. The shop is closed all week I locked up and walked to the store, came back, put the groceries in my crate, and brought the bike on the train home; I'll put on a new chain tomorrow. All in all it killed about an hour of my day (and some awkward movement) but I am off tomorrow!

[fcgamer | 4,723]

I was planning on cycling tonight, then the temp dropped to about 56 when I got off work so I'm eating soup. I'd rather stay in and drink wine and watch Netflix, but I might brave the cold and cycle since I can't go tomorrow or any day afterwards until next Monday.

[GPX | 1,369]

3 hours ago, fcgamer said:

I was planning on cycling tonight, then the temp dropped to about 56 when I got off work so I'm eating soup. I'd rather stay in and drink wine and watch Netflix, but I might brave the cold and cycle since I can't go tomorrow or any day afterwards until next Monday.

I like this thread concept. Good fitness gain while enjoying the scenery. I haven’t been bike riding for over 10 years since being married, but in the past few months I’ve found the motivation to do a lot of running and tennis. Not quite the scenic route, but still the sporting/fitness mindset as your cycling goals. 

I play tennis with a local group of random middle age guys from 40s to 60s. 1-2 months ago, we had an all-day tennis arrangement with lunch/BBQ in between. I was able to play 8 sets of doubles and 7 beers throughout the day! My aim is to beat that this year..