Bailed Out

Just about to step out the door this morning for a ride and the rain and sleet started! We weren't supposed to see this until 10:00 AM. So, taking a day off. Gonna watch the Giants and Jets instead.

Colder Today, But a Better Ride

This morning's ride started at 34F but, for some reason, it felt more comfortable than Thursday's "Turkey Day" ride. No half-measures with the kit today: full shoe covers and ski gloves, but just a cycling cap under the helmet, balaclava was in the wash!

I headed out solo to do the Brands route and West Hills but bumped into Mike and Bob just a mile in. We rode together for about 10 miles, to about the midpoint on Round Swamp Rd. At that point, I wanted to pick up the pace so I headed off on my own. Wind was favorable heading east on the LIE service road to the turnaround. Now into a headwind but not too bad. The sun was out by this time and really started to warm things up.

Felt great back at Round Swamp Rd. so proceeded through West Hills, seeing the horses out and running around a bit in the paddocks off of Sweet Hollow Rd. Through the preserve then a fast return down Round Swamp Rd. passing Bethpage State Park and the golf courses there.

By surprise, caught back up with Mike and Bob on Central Ave., now joined by Harvey, too. We rode in the last 5 miles together to Jerusalem Ave. and I then took the shortcut home. All in all a really great ride for the end of November. Hoping for another good one tomorrow!

Hard to Disconnect

Hard to get in the groove for today's ride. Hands got numb quickly due to my last minute substitution of neoprene cycling gloves instead of my ski gloves. Also had a stiff back, I think due to having to stand the past two nights for the train ride home from work. Thinking about a lot of things that need to be taken care of before the end of the year. Anyway, I carried on and by mile 20 I started to loosen up and get more comfortable on the bike and getting a little into the "zone".

Very light traffic in the morning so it was a nice quiet ride. No howling winds today.

Did the 50-mile Brands/West Hills route again, solo. A lot of other cyclists and joggers out to burn some calories before today's traditional Thanksgiving feast. Can't wait!

The Difference a Day Makes

Today I did the 50-miler that I wimped out of yesterday. Temperature was still only 27F at the 7:00 AM start but much less windy. I was outfitted the same as yesterday but felt good at the LIE and decided to go for the 50. Nice tailwind as I headed west, and light traffic. At the turnaround, I hit into the wind. The sun started to come out a little bit by then and I tried to catch every bit of it that I could.

Starting the West Hills route on Sweet Hollow Rd., I was surprised to meet Mike W.! We chatted a bit as we climbed up through West Hills on Sweet Hollow Rd. and Mt. Misery Rd. (great names!). We split at Round Swamp and I got into a good cruising mode, especially when I headed back south.

Numb feet by the time I got home but good to get in a long ride!

Hey, check this out! I always thought it would be cool for my picture to appear on cyclingnews.com, now here it is, but unfortunately, its not me on the bike! I'm crouched between the 1st and 2nd riders, taking a photo (blue hat).

A Day at the Races

I went to Southampton this afternoon to catch some professional cyclocross racing, the 2008 Whitmores Landscaping Super Cross Cup. It was a bitter cold and windy day, but the racing action was HOT! Here is an article from VeloNews.com, too.

Here is a slideshow:


Some video too:

Elite Women

Elite Men

Barriers

And finally, a picture of a (small) group of fans from the moveitfred blog. I'm the guy with the blue hat pulled down over my ears.

Earned that Hot Cup of Coffee

Was planning on the usual 50-mile Brands route this weekend but a glance at the weather forecast last night started to but some doubts in my mind. Predicted temperature of 24F and 20-30 MPH winds, wind chill of 12F! I do have cold weather gear but 3 hours in sub freezing temperature and high winds gets uncomforatble no matter what you're wearing on the bike.

I settled on a planned 25-mile ride up to the LIE and back, via Round Swamp Rd. Going to see the cyclocross races in Southampton this afternoon and I figured if those guys could race an hour in this cold then I should be able to get my ride in too! Depending on how I felt at the halfway point I could extend to 30 miles by doing the West Hills loop or 40 miles by doing the whole service road. Since this was going to be a shorter-than-normal ride, I skipped the pre-ride meal and kitted up for a 7:00 AM start. Broke out all the cold weather clothes: balaclava, ski gloves, barrier jacket, windproof bib tights, full shoe covers.

Started right off into the headwind. Tough going but at least it kept my core warm. Predictably, fingers and toes were the first victims of the cold. At the LIE, I felt okay and decided to go for West Hills. I took my last sip of water at mile 14 as the water bottle froze up at this point.

Got the tail wind for the return loop but it actually seemed to be colder coming back, maybe due to the increased wind chill or maybe because I wasn't working as hard without the headwind to fight. Back home in under two hours and fumbled to get out my house key with numb fingers. First order of business after peeling off all the extra layers...get the coffee going!

Brrrrr! Looks like a COLD Ride Tomorrow AM!

Weather.com says it will be 30F tomorrow morning, winds 22 MPH and a wind chill of 18F! Some real winter weather. Breaking out the AMFib bib tights!

Rain One Day, Wind the Next

It rained all day on Saturday, so no riding for me.

This morning I met Mike W. at Brands to do the regular route, 7:00 AM start time. Heavy rain last night so I took the rain bike thinking it would be a wet ride. The strong wind dried everything out so the roads were in good shape after all. We had favorable winds for the first 20 miles, out to the turnaround point on the LIE service road.

Then the fun started!!! We did the next 28 miles into a 22 MPH headwind/crosswind. It was a hard ride. Usually this is a 2 hour 40 minute ride, today it was 3 hours! I was drained at the end but glad that the weekend was not totally washed out. Temperature was about 50F, so not bad for the middle of November.

Need to lube the Trek drivetrain, it was squeaking like a rust bucket for most of the ride, probably since I didn't have a chance to clean it after Thursday's and Friday's morning wet rides.

Crisp!

Thats how I would describe this morning. The rain from the past couple of days left and this morning I headed out under cloudless, sunny skies, no wind, and temp around 51F. Nice fall cycling weather and the cool temperature kind of woke me up and got me motivated for a vigorous ride.

I started at 7:00 AM, solo, as I didn't want to wait until 8:30 AM to meet up with the Brands group (although I did see Mike, Bob, and a couple of other riders starting out as I was almost home). Did the usual Brands route and West Hills on the Specialized. Little or no wind for the first 20 miles, then the wind seemed to pick up and I had headwinds and crosswinds for the last 30.

Fall foliage was lit up by the morning sun so it was a colorful ride, in contrast to yesterday's rainy, gray day. Just need to do some minor bike cleanup and chain lube later this afternoon. Hope we get a few more weekends like this before things get really cold.

Wet and Windy Saturday Ride

Some time constraints this morning in order to make it to my daughters' 9:00 AM soccer game, her last of the season. No way to make it to PyZahl's RP2IPBP ride :-(.

Up and out at 6:00 AM, fueled with banana, yogurt, and granola. Lots of rain last night and possibility of showers this morning, so I used the rain bike (the Trek). Still dark at 6 AM so I attached my headlight and red blinkie and headed out. Splashing through the wet roads and leaves, taking it slow around the corners.

Tried hard to keep a good pace. At the midpoint turnaround, already 1 hour and 10 minutes, so I knew I would not have time for the West Hills loop and this ride would have to be kept to 40 miles. Against the wind on the way back but, luckily, no real rain on the ride, just wet roads and occasional mist or drizzle.

Passed a cement company on Round Swamp Rd. and got covered with cement mud that had run out into the street. Hard to see through my glasses. Home by 8:15 AM and just enough time for a shower, make a hot cup of coffee, and head over to the soccer game. On a side note, my headlight lasted for the whole 2 hr and 15 min ride so that was a successful experiment!

Dirty bike sat outside in the rain all day until I finally had a chance to clean it up this afternoon. But this probably won't last long since I'll most likely be facing another wet ride tomorrow.

Planning on the same ride again tomorrow except that I will start later and probably get my usual 50 miles in. Tried to hook up with Mike W. for Sunday but he is doing the Brands ride and 8:30 AM is a bit too late for me. Check out the blog for Sunday's report.

Maintenance Rides

Home after Sunday's chilly ride.

Recap of the week's rides...

Did the 15-mile pre-work ride on the Jones' Beach bike path Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday (Wednesday was wet). Cold mornings so I was usually wearing a balaclava, ski gloves, and winter cyclinging jacket.

Saturday warmed up into the 50's. I did a good early morning solo ride on the Brands route and through West Hills park. Sunny skies and light wind. Especially nice was riding through the tunnel of gold leaves on Sweet Hollow Rd.

Set the clocks back an hour on Saturday night but I was still up and out early (6:00 AM instead of 7:00 AM) today (Sunday). Same route as yesterday but made more challenging due to the colder temperature (40F) and windy conditions. Riding against the wind for the first 35 miles, then got the tailwind when I turned back for home. Thought I might see the Brands group at some point on my way back but didn't maybe it was too cold for everyone? Or, possibly, I just missed them.

This time of year, I'm not really training for any specific long-distance rides or races, so just trying to make sure I get out on the bike for a few hours every weekend.

Coming up later in November, hoping to head out to South Hampton to catch the cyclocross races. These are the last two races of the NACT series. Should be good!

Two 50-milers This Warm Weekend

Got in two good 50-mile rides this weekend as things warmed up, compared to this past week. All week long my morning rides were down in the low 40F's. Temperatures were at least 10-15 degrees warmer for the weekend.

On Saturday, I headed out at 6:30AM for a Brands route and West Hills ride. Still dark at that hour of the morning so I brought the light for the first hour of riding until the sun came up. Rain was forecast for the day but not likely until after 10:00AM. Nevertheless, about one mile into my ride, some light drizzle started and continued for the first 10 miles of the ride, just about until I reached the LIE. If the rain got any heavier, I was planning to turn back at this point. But it stopped and I continued on for the rest of the ride, albeit on wet roads.

Back home, I cleaned up the bike (it was due anyway) and relubed the chain. Getting ready for what was supposed to be a nice Sunday. There were heavey rain and winds overnight and I started to have some doubts about Sunday. Around 10:00PM, checking e-mail and watching some of the delayed World Series game 3, an e-mail popped up from Mike W. with an FYI that the Brands ride would be continuing on Sunday (instead of Saturday) and with a later start time (8:30AM). Great!

So, this morning, headed out for 15 warmup miles on the Jones Beach path (full of leaves and sticks from last night's storm) then cruised into the Brands lot at 8:30AM. We started of with a total of 9 riders but various groups broke off here and there for different reasons. Ed was staying with a new rider and quickly went out the back. Ariel, Jamie, and Scott(?) had ridden to the ride start from Babylon, so they left for home at Deer Park Ave. That left Mike, Paul, James, and I as a group of four for the last 25 miles or so. We kept an easy but steady pace, most of the time ;-}, regrouping for a few minutes with Ed and the new rider, before speeding up to the finish at Brands. Nice ride and a sunny, autumn day.

Winter is Approaching

Another cold morning today, and even a bit windier than yesterday. Dug out the windproof tights, vest, hat, and neoprene gloves. I delayed my ride start to 7:30AM, hoping for some sun. Did the same Brands route again (Round Swamp Rd. - LIE Service Road - Round Swamp Rd.). This time I was riding solo.

I was riding against the wind on the way out. At mile 15.25, in the middle of a short, steep hill, I flatted in the rear after running over some piece of metal on the road. Made a quick repair and continued the short climb. Turnaround at mile 20 and got some more favorable winds for the return trip.

Back home, I usually would just toss the damaged tube but this one only had a couple of hundred miles on it (just replaced a month ago when I flatted on the Highlander ride). So, I took the time to patch it and put it back on the bike. We'll see if its still holding air by tomorrow morning!

Last Brands Saturday AM Ride for the Season

Nine of us showed up at Brands this morning for the last Saturday morning ride of the season. Everyone in good spirits and bundled up against the 42F temperature and wind. We set out all together, a few minutes after 7:00AM. Together until Round Swamp Rd. I went to the front and kept a moderate but steady pace, trying to get warm. Unfortunately, by the time we got to the LIE, my little group was down to three. I thought it was a fairly moderate pace but I think a lot of riders' efforts were muted by the cold temperatures and wind. For me, I felt that the fastest way to warm up would be to push a little harder. After a couple of hills, we lost James, and it was just Patrick and I for the next 30 miles.

We really did not push the pace, probably averaging out 18 mph eastbound and about 20 mph when we turned back around. It was really kind of cool, trading pulls for 30 miles with barely a word needing to be spoken. Just enough pace and hills to keep it interesting. A well deserved handshake at the end, back at the Brands lot. Good ride!

New Headlight - DiNotte 200L-AA-S

Put a new chain on the Specialized (SRAM PC 991) after yesterday's ride. It was due after 2,700 miles on the old chain. After removing the old chain and laying it side-by-side with the new chain, it was easy to see that the old one was stretched at least 1/4 inch. I put the new one on, made a slight adjustment to the rear deraileur with the barrel adjuster and it was good to go.

I got up early today to try out my new headlight. Four laps on the Jones Beach bike path, 25 miles or so, for about 1 hr and 20 min. There are no street lights along the path so it important to have a good, bright, reliable light for these dark morning rides.

I replaced my defunct NiteHawk 10 watt halogen with a new DiNotte 200L-AA-S led.


On the left is the old halogen and the big, heavy, SLA (sealed lead acid) battery. On the right, the DiNotte led batteries and battery pack.

The new light seems to be at least as bright as the old one. The difference in weight is tremendous! The whole DiNotte package (light and batteries is only 200 grams) is probably only about 20% of the weight of the battery alone from the old system. It worked great on this ride and the light was strong for the whole 80 minute ride. It seems to be well-made, the aluminum body also acts as a heat sink for the light.

Benefits of the new light:
light weight
easy mounting and easy to move between bikes
easy-to-find AA rechargeable batteries
handlebar and helmet mounts (included)
three beam intensities
2+ hour runtime
backlit power switch
waterproof light unit


Here is the light (turned on) and battery pack mounted on my handlebars. Only 200 grams so hardly noticeable. Check out the cool blue backlight on the power switch!

The light mounts with a silicone rubber O-ring stretched from a groove on the back of the light, around the bars, and then looped back over the front of the light. Benefits of this mounting system are that it can be installed and removed without tools and it works great even over cables and oddly shaped bars.


O-ring mounting system.

So, after one ride, I'm really happy with the DiNotte. It was a little pricey but its gotten great reviews online and really fit all of my criteria for a new light. I would say the only concern so far is with the longevity of the rubber O-ring mount. Two are supplied with the light. I'll see how they hold up after a winter of riding.

On a different note, I found this little video clip of the Highlander. I think it was done the year before I started doing the ride but it gives a little idea of what the ride is like. Check it out!

Great Fall Cycling Weather This Weekend

Two cool but sunny riding days this weekend, and, best of all, DRY for a change!

On Saturday I met up with the Brands group for a 40 mile ride on the usual route up Round Swamp Rd., LIE service road, then back to the shop. Eleven riders all together at the start but we split up into two groups by the end. We were missing our "leader", Jamie, as he had a minor run-in with car the day prior. I met up with him after the ride and he is doing okay, considering being hit by a car! The car clipped his rear wheel and he went down, resulting in some road rash on his knee. His rear wheel and chain stay are a bit messed up but he was bring the bike in to the shop to be repaired. Looks like next Saturday may be the last LBS ride of the season, due to darkness.

This morning I headed out on a solo ride, same route as yesterday plus a loop through West Hills. Again, perfect fall weather, just needed a long-sleeve base layer. Skipped the Early Birds again but kind of a busy day, so I needed to get home early.

Bike-wise, I need to replace my chain today, about 2,700 miles on the current chain and it is starting to make some noise. Also got my new light so I may give it a try tomorrow morning. Stay tuned for a review!

Sunday Soaker

The weekend started on a promising note with a nice ride with the Brands group on Saturday. It was a cool start at around 48F, but there was no threat of rain and a light wind. About 10 of us started out on a shortened route so that the LBS guys could get back early for a busy sale day at the shop. Just straight up Round Swamp Rd. to Rt. 25 and back.

Four of us peeled off to do the LIE service road rollers that are part of the usual Brands route. Then I went for a solo loop through West Hills. It turned out to be a great riding day.

Today (Sunday) I was really looking forward to doing the Early Birds, but when I got up at 5:30AM the roads were wet from overnight rain. I check a couple of online radar maps and forecasts and things didn't look to promising. I decided that I would just stay close to home and do a solo ride.

I headed out at 7:45AM on the Trek, just overcast skies and wet roads. Drizzle started almost immediately, then the heavy rain hit just 3 or 4 miles in. I though a few times about turning back but I didn't want to waste a weekend ride. Besides, I was already soaked through, so I figured I'd stay reasonably warm as long as I kept riding.

I ended up doing the Brands route and West Hills, solo, on the Trek. First hour was in steady rain, very heavy at times. Then the rain blew out after about 20 miles, just at the turnaround point on the LIE. Probably would have ended up with the same result with the EB's but by doing the solo ride I avoided the long trip home and got to use the rain bike instead of the Specialized.

A little bummed not to do the EB's but glad to have pushed through the rain and get the miles. Hopefully better luck next weekend.

Wet Ride With the Early Birds

I knew this was going to be a wet ride this morning but I decided to head out to Manorville for the weekly Early Birds ride anyway, hoping that roads would dry up once we got under way. Only a 30 percent chance of rain was forecast.

Oatmeal, banana, coffee, then out the door for the drive to Manorville. About 15 or so riders showed up, mostly the usual crowd with one or two new faces. The roads did not dry up as I hoped so this turned into a wet, dirty ride. I know 15 people who will be cleaning bikes today! No wind at all, so we were dialed up to 25 mph within the first 1/2 mile and kept a fast but comfortable pace for the whole ride.

But, as anyone could predict, the wet roads led to flat tires. Three flats in the first 30 miles. Flat number 3 was ME, just about 1/2 mile before the deli in Cutchogue. The group was going to bypass the deli stop to make up time lost fixing the previous two flats. John and Chris stayed with me while I repaired the flat on my front tire, but when we proceeded on to the deli we were pleasantly surprised to see that the whole group had waited after all. Thanks guys (and gal)!

The last 20 miles were at a high pace. Over the hill on Rt. 51 I stayed with the lead group of 6 or 7. Turning right onto Rt. 111, we had a slight tailwind and flew up the last big climb. Then, it was 30+ mph down Rt. 111 to the end.

Too bad about the flats but it was nice to play around at these high speeds for a change.

Beat the Rain (Almost!)

Weather.com predicted 80% chance of thundershowers this morning, so I didn't hold out much hope for the Saturday morning Brands ride. When I got up, it was not actually raining but still too dark to get a good look at the roads. I got ready to ride anyway and by 6:45am, the sky was very overcast but didn't look too stormy, so I headed out to Brands on my rain bike to see if any other riders were going to chance the weather.

No one there, so I went out and did the 40 mile route solo. The roads were wet but the rain held off until about six miles to go. It was a light but steady rain for those last 15-20 minutes but a good ride none the less. Nice and warm today so getting wet was not really a problem. I was still in shorts and short sleeve jersey.

Weather looks even worse for tomorrow, so I'm glad I got the ride in today!

2008 Tour of the Hamptons Ride Report

Did my 5th Tour of the Hamptons ride today. Traditionally, this ride is in mid-August. For some reason it was pushed back to September this year. Frankly, this worked out great weather-wise since we've had a couple of the August rides where 90+ degree temperatures really wear you out.

Fresh off last weekend's Highlander, the legs are fully recovered and probably in good shape from all that climbing. Did the usual early morning pre-work rides all week and a nice warmup yesterday with the Brands crew of about 40 miles. Talking with riders at the Brands ride, it turns out that they had a group of seven or eight who were planning on riding the TOH as well, some doing the century and some doing the 65 mile version. I already had plans to meet the East End group and do the century with them.

So, up at 5:00am for some breakfast, getting the gear together and loaded in the car. On my way by 5:35am for ride to Southampton High School, the starting point of the ride. Got there by 6:45 but registration was a little delayed. Our group's planned start time was 7:30am so there was plenty of time to get ready. The forcasted high was 77F but the morning was cool so I started out with arm warmers and long-fingered gloves. Also was wearing my brand new Brands jersey, in yellow. I stood out a little in the group who were mostly in their East End Team jerseys.

Our group of 15 headed out on time, and with the good weather and a favorable wind, we were up to a cruising speed of about 23mph in no time. The group missed one turn early on and things were broken up for a couple of miles until we pulled everyone back together.

First rest stop after about an hour at mile 23 in Amagansett. Easy ride so far as the route is pretty much dead flat to this point and we had good wind. I grabbed some fig newtons, a bannana, and 1/2 PB&J. Then we mounted up for the loop to Montauk Point. A couple of people faded through Hither Hills. We took it slow through the middle of the town of Montauk and then hit the climbs out to Montauk Point. Some riders dropped off on the climbs and 2 or 3 just cut out the climbs all together. I was with the lead group to the lighthouse and then the loop back west.

At one point, aroung mile 45, on the way back to Amagansett, we saw a road marking indicating a right turn. Myself and 5 others took the turn and kept going. Some riders in the group thought it was the wrong way. The majority decided NOT to take the turn so we were split (for good, as it turned out). Our small group rode for about 5 miles until we hit a DEAD END! So, we backtracked to the turnoff and proceeded back the way the rest of the group had gone. Unfortunately, now we were about 10 miles (approx. 30 minutes) behind.

One more small misdirection and we finally arrived back at the Amagansett rest stop with about 68 miles on the cycle computer. No sign of the big group but there was really no concern as we had a strong group of 6 to share the work for the rest of the ride. More fig newtons, banana, and PB&J for me, plus a bottle refill.

We were now in a difficult section of the route with lots of rolling hills. The work was shared pretty well. It was a tiring effort but mostly nice woods and scenery. I noticed that the route was changed from previous years and avoided the dangerous section on Noyac which is normally plagued with alot of traffic on a road with little or no shoulder.

At the third and last rest stop, we rolled in with 101 miles already, and there we ended up catching the big group last seen at mile 45. It turns out they were delayed by a mechanical issue (broken chain). They were just heading out to leave as we arrived so we were resigned to doing the last 10 miles with out small group. More fig newtons, 1/2 banana and a bottle of water and we set out for the finish.

Some small rollers and then some fast, flat sections around the mansions in Southampton. I finished up back at the ride start with 111 miles, about 5hr 25min riding time. Talked a while with the big group that had just come in before us and I saw Jamie, Paul, and Ann from the Brands ride and talked to the for a few minutes, too.

Finally, packed up and headed home. Everything turned out great, especially so since we had really nice weather even with the late date. This is probably my last organized century for this year. Proabably get caought up with the rest of the Brands group at next Saturday's LBS ride.