Bike Noob

Because I'm Always Learning Something New

Check The Radar!

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I waited at Starbucks for other B riders to show up for this morning’s ride, but only one did. He was new to the club, and this would be his first ride with us. I wondered where the other B’s were, because it sounded from their posts earlier this week that they would be out.

But as I walked by Bruce, one of the A riders, he remarked that we would be in for some wet riding.

“What?” I exclaimed. “The forecast didn’t say anything about rain.”

But Bruce called up the Weather Channel radar on his iPhone, and sure enough, there was a line of showers bearing down on us from the northwest.

I should have known better. Last week, we got lots of rain — and the various TV weathercasters and other sources blew that, too. Why would this week be any different? Now I knew why there were no other B riders this morning. They had been smart enough to check their weather radar, and decided not to ride in those conditions.

Since the ride was headed south, we figured we could stay ahead of the rain for awhile. We made fantastic time, getting to Buda about 15 minutes sooner than it usually takes me. The other new guy and I had no trouble keeping pace with the A riders as we sailed along the road.

At an intersection, though, we had to make a decision. The clouds hung dark and low to the north. We could turn back toward the rain, or continue south. The new rider said he wasn’t ready for the kind of distance a southerly ride would involve, so we turned north — smack into the wind that had pushed us out so kindly.

In about a mile, we were in a downpour. We took shelter under some trees along the road, and waited for the rain to pass. It didn’t take too long, and the sun came out and dried things quickly. After going another mile or so, we were back on mostly dry pavement.

I suppose if I had done what I usually do on ride mornings — check the weather radar — I too, would have stayed home until the rain came through. As it was, it wasn’t as bad as it looked on the radar, and it was nice to get in a decent ride.

A Million Miles?

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Over the last couple of days, messages have been flying back and forth on our bike club’s Yahoo group concerning miles ridden. One member posted an item that a 92-year-old from the Baltimore area has ridden his bike about 150,000 in his lifetime. He wondered if any of our members would ever even come close.

Immediately, he got his answer. Steve said he was near that mark, at 176,475 miles since 1994. And he has actually been riding since 1985, but didn’t want to dig out his spiral notebooks to look up his mileage totals from ’85-’94. Steve’s advantage is that he’s 28 years younger than the guy from Baltimore, so he figures he’s got plenty more miles to come under his pedals.

Mike B. said he averaged about 8,000 miles per year between 1983-2007. Since moving from California to Texas, his annual mileage is down to about 5,000 per year — but that still brings his to about 217,000.

David, our bike club mechanic, noted that he’s been riding since 1989, and over the last decade has averaged about 6,500 miles per year. He thinks his total to date is about 142,000 miles. But David is still in his ’30s. “I didn’t wait to get old before I began riding,” he said.

Let’s see…I started biking in mid-2007. My mileage to date is a whopping 20,105. Looks like it’s a long shot for me to even make 100,000 in my lifetime.

How about you and your riding friends? Anybody with ridiculous mileage totals?

Here’s the story about the guy from Baltimore. You’ll have to sit through a commercial before the video runs.

Oh, and it turns out 150,000 miles is not such a big deal anyway. It appears the guy with the most lifetime bike miles is a fellow named Freddie Hoffman. He’s had over a million miles under his belt — for years. Here’s his story.

By the way, riding long doesn’t necessarily mean riding better. Mike B. from my club observed, “I tell people that my bike riding is like my pool playing — for the amount of time I spend doing it, I should be a lot better than I am.”

Home Made Electrolyte Drink

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Summer is here. Lately, when I stick my head outdoors in the early morning, the temperature hadn’t dropped below 70 overnight. That can make for some uncomfortable riding. There’s plenty of material online about drinking enough during a ride, and eating, too. Today I want to share a trick I learned last year from another online source.

I just wish I knew who it was whose idea I’m stealing. No doubt one of the many blogs I read. I came across this tip right after I had run out of an electrolyte replenisher that I’d been using regularly, and it seemed like it might work. Here it is:

Fill a water bottle almost to the top with cold water, then add a pinch of salt. There should be enough salt that you can taste it in the water, but not so much that the salty flavor overwhelms you. To cut the taste of the salt, spritz in a generous shot of lemon juice. I use the plastic squeeze bottle juice, but there’s no reason you can’t use fresh whole lemons.

Voila! Instant electrolyte replenisher! Oh, sure — it doesn’t have all the mineral salts you find in “real” electrolyte drinks. But sodium and chlorine seem to take care of most of my needs. And for a guy who doesn’t ride farther than 50 miles at a crack, this concoction works fine.

Try it on your next longish ride, and see what you think.

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