Solo Sunday Ride

My legs were sore last night from the ride yesterday. Slept VERY late - the body needed some recovery time. I was thinking of just taking down lights from the eaves of the house.

When I got out the weather was pretty good - nice, "filtered sunshine", mids 40s day. I did my work removing the lights (climbing up/down the stepladder). Found that my riding mower had been repaired and returned, so stowed that in the garage. It was time to change clothes and RIDE!

Started from the Trail Center, rode to the trailer park. I was hoping Indian Creek trail might be clear. From the trailer park connector - is sure did not looking like. With that, I returned to the Trail Center.

My tires were still soft from letting some air out of them yesterday. With the trail clear, I pumped up the tires and headed toward Ameristar.

Was thinking of going on up to Harrahs, but that section of the trail was still snow covered. I rode that section 4 times yesterday, not wanting to do that again.

It was not a long ride, and I did not push it. I rode a "recovery" ride. Just what I needed.

Xtreme Winterfest Ride

Beautiful day for January - sunny, with a light wind. Great weather for a bicycle ride! Luckily, today was the Xtreme Winterfest Ride.

We met at the Western Heritage Trail Center. The ride was up the River Trail to Riverside Grill. Hot dogs and chili were available for a small fee. Some rode back to the Trail Center for a presentation by Ron Hopp - CB Parks & Recreation. Ron talked about the CB trail system, history, present, and planned.

Met up with Todd & Dan (THOR) and I joined them with a longer ride. The trail between the 2 casinos was mostly snow packed. Later of the afternoon, the sun began to melt the snow - making sections the trail difficult to ride. Sure glad I have my fat, knobby tires!

All-in-all, it was a great day to be riding a bicycle.

BRRRR

Happy New Year!

Well, I made it to the New Year's Day ride. It was about 12 deg, with wind chill well below zero. I managed a little over 4 miles, 50 minutes. That was enough.

The thing is that I ended 2007 with a bike ride and started 2008 with a bike ride.

With the warmer weather coming the next few days, the riding is just about over for a while. Looking forward to the Xtreme Winterfest Ride (forecast mid 40s) Saturday.

At the evening, I went to our Edwards campaign headquarters since Edwards was schedule to stop by. I just could not stay -- the office was just tooooo crowded, and more were still arriving and trying to get inside.

Last Ride of the Year

Today, I just HAD to end the year with a singletrack ride. Headed over to Manawa and ride the trails I rode yesterday. Rode better today than yesterday. Thanks again RF and Martin to deflate my tires.

Weather was upper 20s, sunny, and with some wind. By the time I had finished riding, I was quite warm - wearing too many layers. Tomorrow, I will probably need it.

Here's shots of the same place on Fast Track - December vs September

First snow singletrack ride

This morning I decided to join (late) the group riding in the snow at Lake Manawa. This was the first time I rode singletrack in the snow. I had been seeing all of the posts on MBTOmaha, had to get out and try it.

It was like learning to ride all over again. My balance and coordination seemed to be all screwed up. I took my time, but made a very short lap.

Meeting the group, Ryan and Martin let a bunch of the air out of my tires. Guess "soft" means "almost flat"! It did make a big difference.

Maybe I will ride again tomorrow - before the big thaw forecast later in the week.

New Year Day ride (in the snow) at Manawa - 2pm. Thanks for calling the ride, Martin. See you Tuesday.

Iowa Caucus

It is just 6 days to the Iowa Caucus. This entry is aimed at my fellow Iowa residents.

Normally I would not express political issues in my bicycling blog, but this is a pivotal campaign. It has been MANY years since there is no sitting President or Vice-President running. Our "First-In-The Nation" caucuses start the process to elect our next president.

With all of the issues facing our country, it is imperative that Iowans get out to the caucuses. Even if you are an independent, I understand you can register a party affiliation at the caucus.

Caucuses start at 6:30pm, January 3rd. You must be in the caucus location before 7:00pm - that's when the doors are locked.

Get out and exercise your right.

If you are interested, I am a Precinct Captain for John Edwards for President 08.

41 Degrees and dropping

I had to get out and ride today. The temperature when I started was 41, sky cloudy, and very light wind. Good time to check my gear for another 5 degrees colder. Rode for about an hour, felt great.

Since I was riding on the paved trails in Lake Manawa, I rode over to the mountain bike trails. Did not even have to try riding - they are very soft. Looks like we are now into the freeze/thaw cycle for the season.