5000!

Well, this morning on my way to Frankfort to meet up with the Frankfort Breakfast Club, I turned over 5000 miles. FWIW (for what its worth) it felt just like 4999.

Today was supposed to be mostly cloudy and chance of rain. It turned out to be mostly sunny and no rain clouds in sight, at least in the morning. The group rode out to Peotone for breakfast. It was a fairly unevenful ride, but a good breakfast. I totalled 43 miles on the ride.

In the afternoon, it remained sunny. So, I went out to run some errands. I took Big Blue (my 2002 Sedona, the bicycle equivalent of a 1953 Buick). After my first stop, the sky to the north was darkening, and I still had three stops to make. I decided to cut out one stop. Well, needless to say, not only did I still get caught in the rain (t-storm), but I was on a bike that I couldn't ride particularly fast, esp into the wind, up a hill. For a weather geek like me, this is really bad. The nice weather in the morning lulled me into a false sense of security. But I did get another 4 miles, so I had 47 for the day.

Tomorrow promises to be sunny and mid-70s. No chance of rain. Hope to have a mileage filled FOS ride. And, since Da Bears are playing at night, maybe I can finish my errands.

Getting Closer!

Well the weather gods have cooperated so far this week. I have amassed a little over 50 miles in the last two days. I currently have 4,971 miles. I don't think I can get 29 miles tonight. But, its supposed to be dry, but cool tomorrow, so at least I will have a chance to reach the 5,000 mile mark before the weekend.

So, with a little more luck from the weather gods I should have another "modified" Wednesday night ride tonight and a very chilly ride tomorrow.

Confidential to Professor Pedal: beware of "Radioactive Squirrel" on your after-dark commutes:

For my other two readers: check out this blog, its a good read.

Sneakin' Up on 5,000!

Well the National Weather Service ("NWS") folk were right, at least with their end of day prediction yesterday. It was cool but dry today. The FOS ride was supposed to go to Momence, but that would have meant head winds all the way home (and there was at least one of us, me, who didn't want that). So, today we rode out towards Joliet and Lockport. Head winds on the way out and a nice push home. I ended up with 53 miles for the ride.

We stopped in Frankfort on the way home so I could show off my new jersey (as opposed to my Illinois, or Ohio......ok, insert groan here___________).



This afternoon I had to run some errands so I picked up another four miles. That gives me 57 miles for the day, 156 for the week, 4,920 for the year. So, unless the NWS is on crack with their forecast for the upcoming week, I should turn over 5,000 sometime in the next 7 days, hopefully sooner.

On another happy note, Da Bears pulled a out victory over the Vikings. I became a little excited when Rex threw the TD with less than 2 minutes left. I hope my cat forgives me for throwing her in the air. My Boys of Summer won as well in that great state of Texas. Congratulations Grady for your two HR game, one which was an inside the park HR!

And the best news of all: the Stillers lost!

I Am Not A Wuss!!!!

But apparently many of my friends are. You will not melt with a little drizzle and fog, yeah, I'm talking to you. //end rant//

I did have an enjoyable visit with Bill Lang and a few hardy souls who showed up at the meeting place in Frankfort this morning. I ended up riding alone, because I wanted to get some miles and I live in the opposite direction with the only other cyclists who chose to ride. I rode out through Hickory Creek. It's one of my favorite places to ride, even on a dreary day like this. So today, I had 31 lonely miles. Though I did stop at the coffee, er, bike shop this morning for some Jittery Joe's.

On Thursday, I had a really nice ride (the weather was still good.) I had 26 miles which gives me 99 miles since Monday. Tomorrow, the FOS ride destination is Momence. The forecast changes every half hour or so but currently, the good folk at the National Weather Service are predicting a dry day.

Hopefully, it will be a mileage filled day.

A Modified Wednesday Night Ride

Well, it's Wednesday and even with sunset at 6:52 PM, one must get out and ride whenever possible. Well, this week we ended up changing things around a little. My friends who I usually ride with had plans this evening. I had a conference call for work that was scheduled for 6:3o tonight. So I suggested that we go out earlier, before 5:00, enjoy the sunshine and get done by 6:00. It worked out nicely. Got exactly 18 miles, averaged 17.4 mph. Winds were a little stronger tonight.

So, adding up 24 miles on Monday plus 18 miles tonight, I have 4,804 for the year. Weather looks good for tomorrow, I'll have to get out and squeeze some more miles as the weather isn't looking too good for the weekend.

This Week's Rides

On Sundays, the FOS group meets at the parking lot at Target in Matteson. It's not as quaint as Breidert's Green in Frankfort, but it's also closer to home. Here is a picture taken Sunday at Target of a deep conversation about either beer or Robert Schumann (the mid 19th century composer). At least you get my best side.

Monday brought cooler, but sunny weather. I managed a 24 mile bike ride before I started fighting the sunset (Rage, rage against the dying of the light). Yes, I know the Bard Thomas was mourning the loss of his father. I'm mourning the end of summer.

But, the good news is the Stillers lost. And the White Sux, er Sox lost. And the Indians won!

(Picture courtesy of Hugh Hillebrand)

Good Times on a Sunday

What a wonderful Sunday. The slim and trim Bears are starting to look like they can really dominate the NFC North. (Yes, I'm from Cleveland. Yes, I'm an Indians fan. But Art [rot in Hell] Modell turned me into a Bears fan.) But hating the Steelers is a birthright of all true Clevelanders. And I really hate the Stillers.

Now that we have that cleared up, I should get to the subject at hand. Today's ride was a bit different than most Sunday rides. I started out with my FOS friends, but they could only ride for about an hour. So we wound our way out to Frankfort (ground zero for bike rides) and I met up with some other friends and rode with them. We rode to Monee Reservoir and hung out there while sucking down some Gatorade and eating carbs. Conversations ranged from the movie The Black Dahlia to stuffed olives to Da Bears. We are a diverse group. After a good break, the rest of the group went back to Frankfort and I decided to go straight home. It was so cool (actually warm) to have a tailwind going north for a change!

I also went grocery shopping this afternoon which piled a couple of extra miles on the day. So my total for the day was 43 miles. Total for the year is 4,764.

Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop

We had crappy weather last Sunday through Wednesday - no riding. I had a few attempts, but nothing significant. Thursday was a beautiful day and I rode out to Frankfort to the beer, er bike shop. 20 miles. I rode yesterday. I normally don't ride on Fridays because I like a rest day before the weekend, but I couldn't pass up 80 degrees and sunny. 31 miles.

Today the Frankfort Breakfast Club rode out to Joliet. We had breakfast in downtown Joliet and then I parted ways with the rest of the group. I was supposed to cut the grass on Friday, but obviously didn't, so I decided to go home and be The Happy Homeowner and get the grass cut, trimmed, etc. I did manage 51 miles in my "shortened" ride. I think the rest of the group went out and rode the Joliet trails. I could have joined them. I would have had 70+ miles for the day. For a mileage junkie like me, this was a significant decision.

Tomorrow the FOS ride is supposed to go to Lockport. My friends who I usually ride with won't be able to do the whole ride, so I'm not sure what my destination, mileage target will be. However, there are supposed to be strong south winds (where were they 2 weeks ago!) and I may head south so I can have some tail winds, for a change, going north on the way home.

Speaking of the other shoe, the bottom is supposed to drop out and we will have our first true autumnal weather starting Sunday night continuing through most of the week. We will have high temperatures in the upper 50s, low 60s and lows in the 40s. I guess I'm going to have to start finding some of my cool weather clothing. I have to admit 55 degrees feels a LOT colder in September than it does in November. With the sun setting earlier and earlier every night, I guess my 200 mile weeks are done for the year, unless I take time off from work. I guess it depends how badly I need my mileage fix.

Confidential to Pete: I just turned over 4700 miles. I noticed you only had 4500+ at printing time in the newsletter. Hmmmmm, I'm getting thirsty.

Autumn Has Fallen Fast....

Drizzly and cool today. No bike ride again. Instead I watched my boys get SWEPT BY THE ROYALS. Ok, caps lock off and no more beer until this entry is finished.

I bribed the guys at the National Weather Service and they promise nice weather tomorrow. In fact, if you believe them, its supposed to be 80 and sunny both Saturday and Sunday!

The Miles Weren't Meant To Be

On Sunday, FOS had a scheduled ride to Momence. It was raining at 7:00am and the decision was made not to ride. I was OK with that. Work has been busy and I was kind of tired.

It rained all day Monday and I pretty much wrote off a ride. A friend rode by after work and talked me into riding. The weather had cleared and the evening promised a nice 25 miler. Unfortunately, my friend ended up with a mechanical issue with his bike and I ended up sprinting home to go pick him up. I ended up with 13 miles.

It rained on and off today. But the radar was all clear about 4:00. The sun even peaked out from behind the clouds. Alas, a few thunderstorms popped right around 5:00 and I turned around and went home. I had 2.12 miles. Mind you, I have no problem getting caught in rain, especially if its warm out. But I have a healthy respect for thunderstorms. My bike may be carbon fiber (i.e. non-conductive) but I don't want to win any Darwin Awards.

Maybe tomorrow.......

Weekend Happenings

It was nice to sleep in a little this morning and meet up with the Frankfort Breakfast Club at 9 am. We had a small group for breakfast. I ended up with just a little under 40 miles for the day. I'm OK with the shorter ride. I think I'm still a little tired from my trip. The extra time also gave me some time to finally finish my trip blog. Enjoy.

(For the techni-phobes, click on "trip blog").

The Miles are Piling Up

Somewhere on my trip across Illinois, I passed my total miles for last year, which was 4,173. I expect to have around 6,000 when all is said and done. Since I returned home I have done the Wednesday night ride and I went out tonight to enjoy the nice weather. I have 4,564. If the weather holds this weekend, I should be pushing 4,700.

I think I'm just as excited that the Frankfort Breakfast Club meets at 9 starting this month. That means I get to sleep in until 7:00 on Saturday. Woohoo!

A Day Off from Riding

Before today, I rode 10 straight days in a row. During that 10 day period I rode 650 miles. Of those 650 miles over 500 were with head winds. I am still memorializing my trip across Illinois. As soon as that is complete, I will post a link for it here.

I wonder how all those miles with a heavier bike and panniers will affect me tomorrow night on my nice light carbon fiber bike on the Wednesday night ride?

526 Miles Later......

I just completed a week long ride through Illinois. Last Monday, we rode down to Kankakee and took the train to Carbondale. On Tuesday morning, we faced north and started pedalling. I got home at 2:00 today. Lots of stories and lots of pix coming. Stay tuned.