Finally, the weather moderated yesterday and I got out to ride, for the first time in eight days. It felt good, although I could tell I had spent too much time off the bike. The ride seemed to require more effort from me.

There was no way I was going to miss another day, though. Last week was a total washout for me, with cold temperatures during the day, and several days of non-stop rain. Some of my friends reported via Facebook and Twitter that they had gotten out on the roads and put in some (or many) miles. But I couldn’t motivate myself to do so until the sun came out and the roads dried off.
Okay, I guess I’ve known all along that I’m just not enthusiastic about riding in lousy conditions. I’ve also decided that’s not a problem. We have decent enough weather most of the year that I can ride much more than many of my biking acquaintances farther north, so all I really have to do is sit tight for a few days (or in last week’s case, eight) and I’ll be able to get out there again.
So I’ve taken stock of my biking likes and dislikes. I’ll ride in temperatures as low as 40ºF (4ºC), although I don’t like it. I make it a point to avoid riding when it’s raining, or threatening rain, or if the roads are still wet from rain. I have faced the truth: I’m just a fair weather rider.
It looks like my mileage in January will be my lowest in months. On the bright side, this may also be nature’s way of telling me that I’ve been too wrapped up in biking, and it’s time to back off a bit. We’ll see.