With the weather of Spring 2010 dramatically better than last year's, I continue to set new records for April mileage.
Since I worked on Saturday, April 17th, I decided in advance to take a vacation day on Monday, April 19th, thereby giving me two possible riding days that weekend. Since the weather forecast predicted a warmer day on Monday, my plan was to ride a relatively short ride on Sunday -- basically to keep myself in shape and add a few miles to my total -- and then stage a longer route on Monday. Little did I know how long it would be.
On Sunday, April 18th, with temperatures hovering around 50, I set out around 3:30 for what would be a modest ride of 13.5 miles along the Bartlett and Hawk Hollow trails. Despite the fact that skies were mostly sunny, the moderate northeasterly breezes made it feel quite chilly.
The following day's ride started around 1:30. Originally, I set out simply to ride to Busse Woods and back, perhaps taking a slightly less direct route back along Schaumburg's Weathersfield Way to ease the boredom and slightly increase my mileage. Skies were partly sunny to partly cloudy with temperatures in the low to mid 50s and light easterly breezes. Thankfully, the wind was not the enemy it had been in previous rides.
I arrived at Busse Woods, completed one loop in a clockwise direction, and headed back. I felt really strong on the way back, in part because my clothing layers were perfect for conditions and because there were far less headwinds to fight than in previous outings. So I kept riding . . . to the Starbucks on Irving Park Road . . . and then continued westward on Walnut Avenue to Bartlett, where I paid a visit to the Spin Doctors Bike Shop. I turned south, and when I reached the start of the Wilcox Trail on Bartlett Road, I decided not to take the trail back home. Instead, I would push myself onward from a 30+ mile ride to a 40 mile ride. I still felt pretty strong and I was confident that I could break my own record for such a long ride so early in the season. So I continued southward along the West Branch bike trails before heading east on Lies Road and back north along Kuhn Road to home. In the end, I not only reached 40 miles, but I bested that figure by 3.7 miles. Later, I determined that this had been my third longest ride in the past three years, exceeded only by my July half-century rides of 2008 and 2009.
When it was done, I had catapulted my seasonal total to 237 miles, a figure that I didn't reach in 2007 until June 20 . . . in 2008 on May 25th (at Bike the Drive) . . . and in 2009 on May 24th (also at Bike the Drive). I don't know what the rest of my 2010 season will hold, but it is certainly off to a fantastic start!
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
My early-April rides, part 2
My fourth and fifth rides of April were on the weekend of April 10-11. By completing these two rides, I set a record for the number of miles that I've ridden in the month of April (110.4), and I'm less than halfway through the month!
On Saturday, April 10th, with temperatures approaching 70, I rode to Busse Woods, completed two loops of their bicycle path, and rode home. I started my ride at 10 a.m. and returned home at 2:00 p.m. The skies were mostly sunny with temperatures that started in the upper 50s and ended near 70. Winds started out light but increased with time and became moderately strong from the southwest. The return trip was largely spent riding directly into these strong headwinds, which provided an unwelcome bout of resistance training. I rode most of the ride with Livestrong jersey over base layer and tights over shorts. However, as temperatures edged near 70, I removed these extra layers on the return trip. My total mileage that day was 37.2 miles, which is the earliest date that I've ever ridden such a long ride. I never rode that far in 2007, and it wasn't until the Memorial Day weekend that I did so in 2008 and 2009 (at Bike the Drive).
On the following day, I rode an additional 18.5 miles, bringing my April subtotal to 110.4 and my seasonal total to 179.8. This day's ride was a familar ride through Bartlett, Hanover Park, Schaumburg, and Roselle. I started my ride at 2:15 p.m. Skies were partly sunny to partly cloudy with temperatures in the low 60s with moderate easterly breezes. I wore base layers under my Livestrong jersey.
Largely because of the favorable weather that I've enjoyed so far in 2010, my current mileage figure is far ahead of this same date in previous years. In previous years, the 179.8 miles that I reached on April 11, 2010 wasn't achieved until June 9 (in 2007), May 8 (in 2008) and May 10 (in 2009). Hopefully, I will have good weather for the latter part of April, so that I can add more miles to this total.
On Saturday, April 10th, with temperatures approaching 70, I rode to Busse Woods, completed two loops of their bicycle path, and rode home. I started my ride at 10 a.m. and returned home at 2:00 p.m. The skies were mostly sunny with temperatures that started in the upper 50s and ended near 70. Winds started out light but increased with time and became moderately strong from the southwest. The return trip was largely spent riding directly into these strong headwinds, which provided an unwelcome bout of resistance training. I rode most of the ride with Livestrong jersey over base layer and tights over shorts. However, as temperatures edged near 70, I removed these extra layers on the return trip. My total mileage that day was 37.2 miles, which is the earliest date that I've ever ridden such a long ride. I never rode that far in 2007, and it wasn't until the Memorial Day weekend that I did so in 2008 and 2009 (at Bike the Drive).
On the following day, I rode an additional 18.5 miles, bringing my April subtotal to 110.4 and my seasonal total to 179.8. This day's ride was a familar ride through Bartlett, Hanover Park, Schaumburg, and Roselle. I started my ride at 2:15 p.m. Skies were partly sunny to partly cloudy with temperatures in the low 60s with moderate easterly breezes. I wore base layers under my Livestrong jersey.
Largely because of the favorable weather that I've enjoyed so far in 2010, my current mileage figure is far ahead of this same date in previous years. In previous years, the 179.8 miles that I reached on April 11, 2010 wasn't achieved until June 9 (in 2007), May 8 (in 2008) and May 10 (in 2009). Hopefully, I will have good weather for the latter part of April, so that I can add more miles to this total.
My early-April rides, part 1
My first three April rides were on my "extended" weekend of April 1-4, during which time I rode a total distance of 54.7 miles.
My April 1st late afternoon ride took me to the Spin Doctors Cycle Shop in Bartlett, then along side streets in Hanover Park and Schaumburg. The ride covered 13.3 miles. Skies were mostly sunny with a record high temperature of 83 and moderate southerly breezes. For the first time this season, I rode without base layers -- just my Livestrong jersey and shorts. It felt great!
My April 2nd ride took me in the opposite direction -- to the Roselle Starbucks and Metra Station and then in a wide loop westward through Schaumburg, Hanover Park and Bartlett. The ride covered 27.1 miles. I started my ride at 10:35 a.m. Skies were partly sunny with temperatures in the upper 70s and moderate southerly breezes. Once again, I did not need base layers for warmth.
After a Saturday cold front laid down some rain and cooled things off, my Sunday, April 4th ride was considerably cooler. Skies were partly sunny with temperatures in the mid 60s and moderate southerly breezes. As a result, I had to wear base layers under my Livestrong jersey. I started my ride at 11:45 a.m. and ended it around 1 o'clock. I rode a significant part of my ride off-road, following the Hawk Hollow and West Branch trails in Bartlett. The ride covered 14.3 miles.
My April 1st late afternoon ride took me to the Spin Doctors Cycle Shop in Bartlett, then along side streets in Hanover Park and Schaumburg. The ride covered 13.3 miles. Skies were mostly sunny with a record high temperature of 83 and moderate southerly breezes. For the first time this season, I rode without base layers -- just my Livestrong jersey and shorts. It felt great!
My April 2nd ride took me in the opposite direction -- to the Roselle Starbucks and Metra Station and then in a wide loop westward through Schaumburg, Hanover Park and Bartlett. The ride covered 27.1 miles. I started my ride at 10:35 a.m. Skies were partly sunny with temperatures in the upper 70s and moderate southerly breezes. Once again, I did not need base layers for warmth.
After a Saturday cold front laid down some rain and cooled things off, my Sunday, April 4th ride was considerably cooler. Skies were partly sunny with temperatures in the mid 60s and moderate southerly breezes. As a result, I had to wear base layers under my Livestrong jersey. I started my ride at 11:45 a.m. and ended it around 1 o'clock. I rode a significant part of my ride off-road, following the Hawk Hollow and West Branch trails in Bartlett. The ride covered 14.3 miles.
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