70 in November!

I got out for 3 hours this morning in perfect weather. Everyone else must have had the same idea it seems. Tons of riders out there.

This pic was taken in a parking garage near the train station on the way back. It just might be a great place to do hill repeats in the middle of winter!

Decision Time.

Riding in 40 degree rain? Indoors on the trainer listening to podcasts? Sitting in the front of the TV with a beer? Pretty obvious choice there eh?

New inFormation.

I've had the Scott CR1 about 1 year now. It's been good to me, but 6000+ miles later, besides the snapped SRAM 1090R Chain and worn out tires, the saddle is the weak link. It's never been comfortable really, so today after Lunch I headed over to the bike shop for a butt fitting. They make you sit on a board covered in what looks like cake icing under a sheet of clear plastic. The impression that's left is like a walk-of-fame impression for butt cheeks. The width is then measured, color coded and matched to a saddle. Anyway, I now have the new Bontrager inForm RL and matching PRO handlebar tape.

I'll put them on this evening and if the weather gets better tomorrow will be their maiden voyage. Wish me luck.

Top of the Hill.

I caught this pic at the top of Geist Road today. It felt good to be riding in 70 degree temps one more time? Get out and ride if you get a chance.

Dark Hollow Road.

Right next to this gate is one of the many horse jump crossings in the area where I ride. Sadly I didn't get that in the shot, but I liked this one anyway. This road is called Dark Hollow road. Funny thing is it's not particularly dark. Back home in PA the Dark Hollow Road is actually very dark, no matter what time of day.

I had a pretty hard ride today. 55 miles. I caught up to and rode along with a guy named Paul from Route 1 Velo out near Westminster. Eventually he continued south and I headed east back towards home.

Stone Bridge

It was another perfect day here in Maryland for a lunchtime ride. I usually don't like stopping when I'm out there on the road, but then how would I get these pics? This one was taken on a twisty descent a few miles from work.

The Old Walnut Tree.

I pass this old walnut tree all the time when I'm out there on the road. Today I stopped for a closer look.

They Loved My Bike.

When I pulled off the road to take a pic these horses ran over and showed way more interest in my bike than they did me. I thought the middle one was going to take a bite out of my Saddle. The short one was super friendly.

A Tricky Commute.

The Impossible Journey from John Bonner on Vimeo.

This is well done in so many ways. Worth a watch. Thanks to Karl's Site for bringing it to my attention.

Riding at Lunchtime.

I found a really great 1 hour loop that can be varied from 17 to 22 miles depending on how fast I'm feeling on a particular day. I feel really fortunate to live and work in an area with great roads for riding. I know the blog has taken a real hit in volume of updates this year, but I'm gonna try to keep it going, with at least pics from my rides like you see above. They don't take much time to do and will be a great reminder for me as to why I ride in the first place.