Vic is a very strong rider, and the picture above captures my usual view of Vic.
At one time, Don and Vic swore they would not bike when the temperature was under 40 degrees. The other day the weather was clear, but the temperature began at 24 degrees and climbed to 41 by late afternoon. That was the day we chose to ride Comstock to Sand Lake.
The day started as briskly as the weather. Don was loading my bike 5 minutes before he was supposed to pick me up. We had to turn around and get my helmet, which was next to my bike. I had a large to-go cup of coffee and my new bike thermos loaded up, so I woke up gradually between 6:45 and 8:00. Thanks to Don's liberal interpretation of traffic laws, we got to Comstock Riverside Park (whatever it's called) right on time. Vic was already there, staying warm in his car. Vic drives down from Lansing.
At this point, opening day jitters began to fade, and we began to relax and enjoy the day.
The picture above shows Vic fixing the first flat -- the one he discovered on his bike when he unloaded it from the car.
I was "chillin" in the freezing temperatures. I was so cold I wore socks on the bike for the first time in years.
We were off like a herd of turtles about 8:30 or so and made about 3 miles before I noticed Don's rear tire sagging.
Vic fixing Don's flat, while Don supervises.
A picture of beauty. And the river. This is across from a minor league ballpark -- 5th-3rd park. We made it another mile before fixing the flat again.
Don forgot his pump, so he watched Vic pump up his tire again.
Off again, long enough to grab an action shot (above).
Once we were able to prove that the bikes rolled, we went back to fixing them. At the base of the hill upon which they once rolled.
OK, finally we got the bike fixed and on the road. It was 10:30 and we'd gone about 7 miles, one of our slower days. We were all out of road tubes, so Don used one of my 700x35mm tubes, and that seemed to do the trick. And at the end, when Vic was exhausted from pumping, Don remembered he had a CO2 cartridge to pump tires. Once Don's bike was rolling, Vic pointed out to Don that CO2 is heavier than air, so he might be going slower. I argued (incorrectly) that CO2 was lighter than air. My evidence was 1) Global warming -- co2 rises up above the atmosphere and blocks UV from escaping; 2) when you are in a fire, you sink to the ground to get air. The CO2 rises. This drove Vic nuts.
We also had a discussion about Presta. I thought they held more pressure than Schraeder, but there's a web site that says otherwise. I still think that, as built, Presta holds more pressure, but Schraeder can be built to withstand higher pressures if necessary. It's my blog, and unless Vic knows where it is and how to comment, I get the last word.
Before we left the last repair stop (where we also changed the red tire to the matching blue tire), Don is showing above that he was able to get new tubes on his bike without getting dirty. The technique, apparently, involves gullible relatives and forgetting tools.
At Arnies we had what was officially "breakfast", and I refilled my coffee mug (not my water bottle).
In the picture above, Vic is admiring my new Sojourn outside Arnies in Rockport.
The rest of the ride to Sand Lake and back was uneventful. I had 48.5 miles, 4:31 for riding time, 17 minutes above my cardio heart rate zone (i.e., I didn't work too hard). Vic had exactly 50 miles on his speedometer, so I'm sure his is set too liberally.
I actually told Don, "make sure the Sand Lake water tower is sticking out of my head". And he did.
Me at the end of the trail.
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Our first ride last year was torture for me. I was so tired, I never wanted to ride again. I had not been biking for 10 years, and it showed. I had been going to the gym, so I didn't actually die on the way back, but getting the bike to go over 7 at the end was impossible. Every ride I did last year, at mile 40 my butt began aching. My butt was not sore on my new bike, probably due to better fit and a Brooks B-17. I still had very painful sections of skin -- I discovered those at the following spin class at the gym. I was not exhausted, and I drove back alert and happy. Maybe two thermos's of coffee helped too. This ride felt very easy.
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