Today I rode the Rosedale Bike Ride; what a beautiful day for a ride. The temperature was a bone-chilling fifty degrees at the start, but once the engine was warmed up, I never noticed. I did go back and put on my heavier jersey before the start. It was very overcast the entire day, so I didn’t need to worry about getting a sunburn on the first extended outing of the year, unlike two years ago when I got a good sunburn.
The route started at Samsung’s new FAB in northeast Austin and headed out eas,t past such such notable cities as Cele, Norman Crossing, Rices Crossing and Manda. (All with populations of less than 100.) In Cele, I rode along with a lady who was wearing a Fat Cycliest jersey. So we chatted about the blog for several miles. She said she is a regular reader. She was going a bit slower than I wanted, so after a mile or two I said good-bye and rode on. Then after that, at each rest stop I would pass her again. I guess I spend too much time eating, drinking and chatting. But that’s part of the fun.
Shortly after Norman Crossing, I started noticing that someone was drafting me, After several miles I slowed down for some riders in front, and a woman went around me. After I got around the next batch of riders, I caught up with her and started drafting her. After a little way, I decided I had better go up and introduce myself. Her name is Susan and she has a son who goes to Rosedale School. So we rode through Rices Crossing and I finally lost her at the Manda rest stop. She was very interesting to chat with, as she has done many of the big rides in the US and Europe. She also suggested that I read a book called Younger Next Year: Live Strong, Fit, and Sexy—Until You’re 80 and Beyond by Chris Crowley and M.D., Henry S. Lodge. When I got home I showed my wife the books on Amazon, she was so interested that she ordered them–the one for men and the one for women.
The wind was out of the north, probably about 5 – 10 MPH, so the ride back into Austin was really nice. Especially on the four miles leading into Manda, the road was as smooth as glass, no automobiles in sight (and if there were you could have seen them for miles) and no trees or big structures to block the wind.
I averaged 20 MPH on that stretch of the road with no effort. When I turned into the wind, I noticed considerable reduction in speed.
Here is the official record from Garmin: