Category: ride

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Boston / Cycling and Running Thoughts

I was in Boston Thursday for a trade show at the Seaport World Trade Center. I watched the fishermen pictured above sorting their rigging as I navigated the seaport area for some lunch. I attended Build Boston, an architectural and construction trade show. I met with some clients, wandered the exhibition floor, and played around at the SketchUp booth with the Google boys. I’m probably going to upgrade my old old version of SketchUp – the new software has made leaps and bounds in regards to drawing and object management – which will help with the presentation end of the design work I do.

I had a tight schedule and missed out on a few bike related visits. I was hoping to drop in at Independent Fabrications and see how the new shop has come along since the last time I visited to finalize the design of my ClubRacer. I also wanted to stop at Harris Cyclery and browse for some winter / rain gear as well as look at a Carradice saddlebag for the IF. Between meetings I did have a chance to visit the Bill Rogers Running Center at Faneuil Hall. I picked up a new pair of Asics Nimbus shoes – which I hope treat my feet better as I rediscover running and my body remembers how good it feels to locomote on two feet.

All the driving I did to and from Boston left me plenty of time to start sorting out goals and event priorities for next season – and the training and fun that will get me there through the winter. Jen and I are building a work / play / training / event calendar so we can support each other in our goals. I’m planning an aggressive cycling schedule for next season and I have a few running events that I’d like to target. On the calendar for the bike is a full brevet series – of which I will probably combine rides from the Boston Brevet Series and the Berkshire Brevet Series. I’m on the fence about heading to France for Paris-Brest-Paris. It would be an incredible expereince – but the drain on the pocketbook and the logistics of flying across the pond for a 3 day endurance ride seems daunting at the moment. If I don’t do PBP I’ll be tackling a stateside 1000k – perhaps the Oregon Randonneurs Portland to Glacier ride, or their “Poor Man’s PBP”. I’m working up the running side of things for a half marathon or relay in the spring. There’s a great one here in Burlington, and it looks like they have a New Years Day 5k that I can use as a fitness benchmark, as well as an event called the “Half Marathon Unplugged”.

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Cold Rain

Went out Sunday for a long ride and was back within an hour and a half. Cold, cold rain and a gray day. I took a few snaps from the return home along the lakefront.

Detail of a sculpture on the waterfront…
Most days you can see NY state out there…

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Night Ride

I was inspired by this thread over at BikeForums – so I took out the digicam and the small tripod, velcro-ed everything up to the bike and played on the Burlington lakefront MUP and North Ave. Not a spectactular ride – but it felt great to spin the legs and get back in the saddle after the wedding, honeymoon, and this mystery never ending flu / sore throat / cough.

Somewhere along the Lakefront MUP.

Heading home on North Ave.

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Snow and Stillness

Cold and crisp. Mallets Bay and Lake Champlain were still this afternoon, reflecting the early season snow atop Mt. Mansfield. I spun the legs on the lakefront bike path, trying to shake this neverending cold / sore throat / flu bug that I’ve carried around since before Italy, and reawakening the legs after nearly two weeks off the bike.

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Utility

Did a “strength” training workout tonight. 24 miles to the pet food mega store, a stop at the bike shop, and City Market for groceries. The Nomad held all the goodies – about 30 pounds worth of pet stuff and groceries. Riding with the trailer has made me aware of my spin – under load the trailer “surges” a bit when my stroke is choppy. It’s got me focusing on higher cadence and smoother circles.

Petsmart may be getting a letter from me. There is not a single bike rack in view from the front of this very large store. The retailer is located in a neighboring town to Burlington – a 2005 “Bicycle Friendly Community“. One would think that mindful planning and proximity to a town full of cyclists of all sorts would have helped make the commercial areas of Williston a bit more bike and ped friendly. The only secure object available that I could get my cable locks around was the “Oops” pet cleanup kiosk. Locking up I got a ripe wiff of a foul bin of stuffed store bags. I may be switching stores to one a few miles closer – I just need to convince them to carry the brands of goods we like.

After City Market I turned on the lights and rode through town in the dark. Blinkies were blinkning and the headlights lit the way home. I’m testing out some wider tires for next seasons brevet series – and I like the way they have reflective material in the sidewall – its nice to see that I’m that much more visible as I cross an intersection.

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Birthday Ride

I turned 33 today.
Took the afternoon off and got a great 46 mile ride in. Spear St. out to Mt. Philo and back to the homestead in Burlington. Rode the IF, with full fenders and lights. Need to work on that mud flap for the next rainy ride.

Wonderful fall day.
Great views over Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks to the west, and Camel’s Hump and the Green Mountains to the east.


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Highlander, WNY Century


I rode the Highlander September 16 with a friend and colleague. Jonathan has only ridden a few centuries, and he was doing the VT 50 the following weekend – so I paced him through the Lowlander route. We toured 102 miles (with 6,095 feet of climbing) in and out of the valleys surrounding Honeoye and Canadaigua Lakes. It was pleasant being in my old neighborhood – the course passed my previous residence on Seneca Point Rd. in Canandaigua – and fun to see some of the Finger Lakes from behind the handlebars.

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Night Riding – with Rain

Got out tonight for 50 miles. Rode a loop from Burlington out Spear St. to somewhere near Mt. Philo, then back on Rt. 7. I started out putting on and taking off layers – and as the evening turned to night donned the reflective sash, headlight, and blinkie on my helmet. I left from home, ran an errand at the Staples plaza, and started my ride at dusk. Spear St. offers some wonderful scenery – so I’ll have to head back that way with some daylight.

The rain threatened for the first half of the ride – gentle, warm, even pleasant, compared to Sunday’s slog over Middlebury. Turning north on Rt. 7 I felt the wind shift from out of the SE to out of the NW, and the rain started dropping. Lights blazing, blinkies blinking I sloshed home – soaked to the bone – and chilled from the wind. Somewhere on Pine St. some hipsters in a modded Honda had fun plastering me through a puddle. Glad I was able to provide the entertainment for them tonight – but thanks – there was the whole rest of the road to use, you know…

As I got into town I ventured onto the lakefront MUP. I dodged a downed tree and plenty of branches – and spent my time leaning into the wind howling off the lake. According to the weather services we received anywhere from 1/2″ to 3/4″ of rain, with wind gusting to 24 m.p.h. (which was much faster than I was travelling).

The lakefront MUP was surreal. Leaves plastered to the pavement, branches down, and completely empty. The view to the lake with my headlamp revealed only the beam of my light in the mist. No waves, boats, or lights to be seen.

In all a great ride – including the last hour or so of incredibly windy and wet conditions. The wind was blowing the rain hard enough that it would hurt my face as it came off the lake! I’ve learned some more about navigating in the dark and wet – and need to make some tweaks to the bike. I’ve got to add a small “be seen” LED to the front for when I stop at lights (the E6’s I’m using go out when I stop moving). I need another vest or sash – the Amiphod I’ve been wearing since this summer’s brevet series is uncomfortable – it tends to creep up my back and doesn’t stay put. I’m also planning on leather or rubber mudflaps for the fenders – my shoes filled with water as I rode through the running water along Rt. 7 in Shelburne.

I thought of some fellow cyclists who qualified and rode BMB this year – as the area near Burlington and through the Champlain Islands is notorious for its conditions – especially at night, usually with rain and wind, breaking up the monotony of the 750 mile journey from Boston to Montreal and back.

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Favorite Time of Year

It’s fall here in Vermont, my favorite time of year. I prepped the ClubRacer for the weather and have been enjoying morning and late evening rides. The smell of the leaves in the crisp air, bright blue skies, sunsets, and stars at twilight have been fantastic.


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NYS Ride

Another ride over to NYS. I took the early ferry to Essex, NY this morning, hoping to do another century. The legs and stomach didn’t have it – I settled for 50 miles and took the ferry back to Burlington. Enjoyed a wonderful cafe in Essex, and chatting with cyclists on a tandem from Montreal circling Lake Champlain and staying in B&B’s along the route.