Monday, 1 April 2013

My Butt Hurts!

I think I can safely say that I rode 20 of the most unpleasant miles that I have ever ridden. We left the west side of Del Rio TX this morning at a leisurely pace, stopping to look at a few shops on the way through. On the eastern outskirts we rode by Laughlin Air Force Base and saw some high tech flying machines landing and taking off. All was going swimmingly on this "recovery" day until we hit the Kinney County line at about 24 miles. Then - chip seal from you-know-where (my mother is reading this blog or I might be more specific). OMG - ouch! Oh, and a bit of a headwind to make sure we spent lots of time out there.

But then - things turned around as soon as we exited into the Fort Clark Springs gated community. This is an old fort from the 1850's. It was closed down as a military establishment in the 1946 and turned into a private gated community in 1971. We're staying the night in the lovely refurbished officer's barracks. I toured around on my bike and had a lengthy chat with a retired policeman from Sault Ste. Marie ON who now winters here. A quick dip of my toes in the beautiful swimming pool, an early dinner and then an "ice cream social" with another cross-country cycling group - Bubba's Pampered Pedaler - who we have been crossing paths with for about a week now.

Stats for the day: 47 miles, 1100 feet climbed, 16 bazillion pebbles of chip seal cycled over.



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4 comments:

  1. Sheila1 April 2013 at 22:14

    Here is the report of my ride today! Rode 13.14 miles with 255 ft. gain. I was having a great ride til I turned west and saw the black sky. I hurried back home but by then the headwind was brutal. I even had to ride on a little chip seal in the last 5 miles. I think this is one of my longest rides......not nearly what you are doing, but good for me. Lost 24 pounds and working hard to get 30 before the end of next week. Mack is doing awesome at Boot Camp. He got moved to a new camp. Emily posted a picture on Sunday morning that someone sent him. It turned out that Rick Angel was the Branch President and his son Richie were at church. They took a picture of him and sent it to me.....best Easter ever other than the year Abby was born on Easter. After we got the picture....Bishop Angel called us and chatted with us about him, but we couldn't talk to Mack. It was just nice to know that he has someone down there that he knows. Anyway....he is doing well. I hope you continue to have good health for your adventure. Love reading the blog!

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    1. Sueontour2 April 2013 at 04:41

      Hi Sheila. - congrats on the weight loss, and on the biking. I saw the picture of Mack on FB. Sure looks like he's doing well. Where is he now? Was thinking about you on Easter and the year you gave us the great basket of goodies on our way through to hiking. Cheers,

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  2. Merv1 April 2013 at 23:08

    Yeah, chip seal is bad, not only for the ride but also for the noise it makes with vehicle tires. Re comfort, consider putting on the fattest tires you can get on that iron horse of yours (1.5 inches maybe) and then only inflating them to near-minimum pressure. I guess this will absorb some of the vibration, but will trade off with more rolling friction. Check this idea out with a knowledgeable cyclist - I don't really know if it will help much.

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  3. Lynn C2 April 2013 at 06:55

    Congrats on your 'century' Easter Sunday! I'd have put more than my toes in that pool tho'... Temps in the +30s sounds devine - it's -2c here (in TO) and -9c with the wind-chill. Sure doesn't feel like April!!

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