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Archives for October 2013

October Washout

10.27.2013 by Ray Niekamp // 1 Comment

Well, here we are at the end of October, and I have this feeling that my biking efforts are falling short.

October ends in just a few days. I probably won’t get in another ride before the end of the month, so I’ll wind up with a total of 184 miles for the month.

Pitiful.

To be fair, there are reasons for my woeful performance this month. First, we’ve had a lot of rain. In fact, we had quite a thunderstorm in the early morning hours today, and I wound up canceling my participation in our club ride. In fact, the whole club ride was canceled, with several people getting in rides as the day wore on and the roads dried out. I went out about 2:30 this afternoon and did a 17-mile ride just on area streets.

The rain has been welcome. It’s eased our drought somewhat, although a PR type for the local water authority reminded everyone this week that a green lawn does not equate to an end to the drought. I’ll take as much rain as we can get, even if it does interfere with my cycling.

Then, there’s a tendency to ride fewer miles than usual. Last week, I was on my own instead of riding with the club, so I cobbled together a nice ride, but it was only 24 miles — well short of the 30 miles plus I expect to do on Sundays.

I notice, looking back at my riding log, that I have ridden 30 miles or more just once this month — and that was the first ride of the month. And that was for exactly 30 miles.

I also find myself riding only on weekends. I got in a Tuesday ride just once. Otherwise, it’s Friday, Saturday, Sunday — and one week, I didn’t even get in a Friday ride. Mileage is generally down — not just on my Sunday rides. Instead of rides in the 20-plus range, I’ve contented myself on a couple of occasions with rides of only 12 or 13 miles.

It’s easy to blame the weather. As I mentioned in my last post, our remodeling project has cut into riding time, too. But I think the main reason I’m riding less is that my body is telling me it wants a rest.

I’m not the greatest a pacing my rides. I typically don’t follow a fast workout with an easy neighborhood ride, or a long ride with a short one. The pace on most of my rides is roughly the same. That can wear down a fella.

So, I guess I’ll chalk October up as a rest month. Next weekend, I’ll try to build in some more miles to my schedule, depending upon how crowded my schedule is. Then we’ll see if it’s been the weather to blame — or myself.

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Categories // training Tags // mileage, rain

Non-Biking Project

10.25.2013 by Ray Niekamp // Leave a Comment

Things have been pretty quiet on the biking front around here. That’s because our lives have been taken over by a new project — we’re remodeling our kitchen.

To be accurate, I should say we’re having our kitchen remodeled. It’s involving the whole shebang — new cabinets, new lighting, new appliances, and new countertops (granite). For the past several days, we’ve been emptying our cabinets, storing all that stuff in the dining room, filling up our trash and recycling bins, and preparing ourselves for four weeks without a place to prepare food. The toaster and coffee maker are in the bathroom, so at least we can have breakfast while we brush our teeth.

This will be nice when it's finished. Unfortunately, it's just getting started. But if we're lucky, it'll all be done by Thanksgiving.
This will be nice when it’s finished. Unfortunately, it’s just getting started. But if we’re lucky, it’ll all be done by Thanksgiving.

Because of that, I haven’t been on the bike since last weekend, and those two rides were much shorter than I would usually go on weekends. We had to get back here to do more kitchen prep.

The guys delivering the cabinets weren’t due to show up until 10 this morning, so I got in a one-hour ride early. Riding east into the rising sun isn’t easy! I clipped a pile of cut branches some homeowner had left at the curb. A little bit more to the right and I would have crashed into them, and probably done an end over in the street. I never even saw the branches until I was right on top of them.

I think we might hold off on our weekend rides for another hour because of that. I’ve got a nice bright strobe tail light, and I will mount my headlight later today, but I’ll be more at ease if the sun is at a higher angle, and I’m sure traffic will have a better chance of seeing me.

I do love riding at this time of year, though. The morning temperatures are brisk, but not bone-chilling. It was 52 degrees (11C) when I left the house this morning. The day will warm up to about 80 (26C), so we really have our choice — do we put on some extra layers and ride in the morning, or wait until it warms up and ride in summertime conditions?

What’s that? Rain is forecast for the weekend? Hm, I might wind up spending my time cleaning up after the carpenters.

 

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Categories // Odds 'n ends Tags // autumn

Favorite Rides – Dripping Springs

10.20.2013 by Ray Niekamp // 2 Comments

As I left the house and headed down the road on a chilly fall morning, I was happy to be getting an early start on the day’s ride, and disappointed that I would miss out on one of my favorites. My friend Debra had posted that she would do a Dripping Springs ride, and invited us to come along.

But I had to finish early, and she wasn’t starting until 10 a.m. While my ride was enjoyable, I knew that hers would have been a lot better — both for the camaraderie and for the scenery.

Dripping Springs is a growing small town about 15 miles west of Austin. When I talk about a Dripping Springs ride, I really mean the network of roads south and west of the town. We start at a minimally-developed park that has a convenient place to park cars. Once we head out, we follow familiar roads for several miles.

A highlight of this stretch is when we make a sharp left turn, and follow a few twists and turns, crossing a creek that sometimes runs over the road. Just past the creek, the road takes a decided upturn, and we have our most challenging hill of the day. It’s not impossible, but it’s a good test of your climbing abilities. However, like most hills around here, it might be steep, but it’s relatively short.

Mrs. Noob gets up that big hill a couple of years ago.
Mrs. Noob gets up that big hill a couple of years ago.

We like to continue for a few more miles, then regroup and figure out where we’re going to go. The nice part about this area is that it has a lot of roads that serve the small ranches out here. The roads are in reasonably good shape, sometimes a bit rough, but traffic is quite light. Most of the folks out here are used to cyclists, and are generally courteous.

This map shows the 27-mile variation. Click the picture to go to the mapmyride page for this route, with the ability to zoom in and out.
This map shows the 27-mile variation. Click the picture to go to the mapmyride page for this route, with the ability to zoom in and out.
Waiting at one of the many cattle guards for everyone to catch up.
Waiting at one of the many cattle guards for everyone to catch up.
Regrouping at the J.D. Ranch.
Regrouping at the J.D. Ranch.
Approaching a gentle hill.
Approaching a gentle hill on the way to Longhorn Trail.

The map I’ve posted shows one of our favorite variations: Longhorn Trail.  From our regroup point at the J.D. Ranch, we Follow Mt. Sharp Road past some spectacular views, then turn onto Longhorn Trail. That road features a longish hill, but it’s downhill — and speeds of 35 mph are easy to reach. At the bottom of the hill, the road snakes through the middle of a ranch, and if we’re lucky, the guinea fowl will be out sounding the alarm for approaching bikers. As we go right past the ranch house, which sits next to the road, we might see other critters. Once, a flock of black sheep were along the road. Other times, we’ll see the ubiquitous horses or goats.

Texas Longhorns.
Texas Longhorns.
A herd of goats dashes away from a herd of cyclists.
A herd of goats dashes away from a herd of cyclists.

After the ranch, we have another choice to make. Longhorn Trail ends at a T intersection with Mt. Gainor Road. If we turn right (south), we can branch off on Ledgerock Road, or turn left onto Mt. Sharp Road. Mt. Sharp is the longer of the two, and takes us almost into Wimberley, another colorful small town. We usually turn back before we hit the town, because traffic gets heavy quickly, and the road has no shoulder.

Mt. Gainor Road will take us back to our starting point, but has its own highlights. One is a steepish downhill that isn’t very long, but ends with a sharp bend to the right, so if the cyclist throws caution to the wind, there’s a good chance of meeting an oncoming vehicle, and not in a good way.

These pictures are from various rides over the past several years.
These pictures are from various rides over the past several years. These are low-key, social events.

Depending upon which combination of roads we take, our rides can go anywhere from 19 to 27, 33, or 36 miles. We can even combine several of these routes for longer distances, if we want. But typically, we don’t. After we put the bikes back in or on our cars, we head for a local restaurant for a social meal.

I always got a kick out of the name of this road. Then I found out it's the name of a prominent Dripping Springs businessman.
I always got a kick out of the name of this road. Then I found out it’s the name of a prominent Dripping Springs businessman.

Riding a Dripping Springs route gets us out of Austin, into the country. It’s hilly, scenic, with little traffic and okay roads. What more could cyclists want?

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Categories // Favorite rides Tags // Dripping Springs

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