Charity Bike Ride

Sorry you missed the boat early on. It was the second paragraph on FIRST post stating the bike was pedal powered. Then a lot of history about Schwinn Stingrays. I dont bother with specialized forums like fitness and bikes. Like most places they are full of egos and arseholes. I would get run off the site with some lowly coverage of a few charity rides I have attended.

I dont have any name brand equipment, dont know the technical jargon or the correct lingo. One thing for sure is not using the latest and greatest onboard computer with GPS calculating and analyzing every inch of the route. So automatically this thread would be tossed in the trashcan.

Posting here someone that might consider a bike(pedal powered) as an alternative escape vehicle can get some insight riding one. Even kids today dont bother with bikes like when most of us were growing up. So there goes a whole generation down the drain in any type of apocalyptic event.

At least I know one person has read part of this thread. That is a plus.



I dont know if this counts a a cycle, but just got my old pit bike put back together and fired up today. Still have a few things left before calling it good.

 

End of May 2025

Tonight I am once again running laps preparing for the yearly charity bike ride. This is one located just across town. Next fall, one farther out of town is worth super prepping for. It is fun and stretches out a good distance from the local town.

Something was amiss tonight. I dont know how to account for it. The temp was not anything to concern myself about. Hovering in the mid 70's is not bad at all. But mix that with 63% humidity and 63% dew point, then maybe there is something in the air. It did feel heavy. Not that I was sweating, but there was some density out there tonight working against me.

Unless I miss counted laps again, which has been a common problem, my overall time sucked bigly. I even made a gear change to lighten the load on my legs. Maybe that is why the time tanked. I will likely attempt one more practice before the charity bike ride. I want to get it done early enough to have plenty of time for my muscles to recuperate.

Hopefully the next session I can push myself or at least attempt to double the laps. If this is successful, I wont have any problems like running out of steam towards the end of the ride. It will be smooth sailing to the finish line. Until next time...

Follow up on ride June 2025

Man talking about one major disappointment. I was so ill prepared for this ride, it was scandalous. I started off coming on the fourth year this September riding these charity events. I thought they were a great excuse to get out and actually build up some stamina and endurance.

With each ride, I did improve. I stepped up the challenge by riding the longer courses. Trying this last year adding 20% more ride time sure opened my eyes. There is a threshold to how far someone can ride at a given speed. That is when considering how little that person might prepare before hand.

I made a point to get ahead of the curve this year. The one event was cancelled last year. This time around was a great turnout and they added distance to the most popular course. An additional 7+ miles split at the beginning that was also in the return at the end. Originally the 21 mile ride was just not long enough.

Maybe that is the problem I did not consider. You push yourself the first 10 miles, then take a break. We usually wait up for the rest of our group until all back together. Maybe ten minutes at the most. This gives time to stretch, drink some pickle juice, more water, Gatorade and dont forget some over processed snack bar that is supposed to be good.

One year I did bother to eat a bowl of fresh cut fruits, with the blue berries, melon, cantaloupe, strawberries, and some other tasty ones. Then during the ride they were serving fresh sliced mangos. Now those are very useful when riding. There are plenty of good choices, just some a lot messier than others.

So this time I kept putting off making laps. I managed a few early on within the month preceding the ride. I kept getting sidetracked and even the rain put a damper of the scheduled practices. Making the usual 10 mile sessions was now easy enough, but I did not step up the distance on the last few, that never happened anyway.

There is one thing I finally took care of on the bike itself. Many several decades ago, a friend was horsing around on my dinosaur bike in the shop. It had not been ridden for about ten years, but I kept it up and in good running condition. He was sitting on it and tried to pop a wheelie. That was a total failure as the rear wheel folded over like a taco shell. So the wheel got taco'ed as in bike slang terms.

I managed to hammer the rim back into serviceable condition. But it was not close to perfect. Or round or running true. Despite what some people think, you cant fix a bent rim by tightening the spokes. Dont confuse that with aligning the wheel. There is a big difference.

If the rim is nice and round and flat, then you align it to run true on the hub. All of the spokes are adjusted so the rim is running concentric and has no runout from side to side. My old rim was severely kinked and the more I beat on it the less chance of fixing the problem.

With the rim no where close to being right, it was at least not rubbing the frame or on the brake pads. There was definitely a major wiggle as it went round and round, except it was not round either. Adjusting apposing spokes moves the rim up and down. Spokes next to each other can move the rim side to side.

If you have to overtighten one spoke to get the rim moved over, the other spoke is too lose. The rim is pulled down and ends up running eccentric, or even flat spotted. I did what I could with what I had to work with and it was rideable all this time.

But a few nights before the big charity ride, I did an almost bad thing. You dont go changing out a lot of things very close to ride time. At least not when there is distance involved. When swapping out parts, you need to spend extra time testing the waters to make sure nothing is overlooked.

I decided to borrow a rear wheel from another frame that was not in use. It was nearly identical in every way possible. I even swapped over back to my original tire and tube. So far there has been no issues with the original parts from 1982. But they do have a limited lifespan. Which is going to be much sooner than later at the age of everything.

The swap was perfect. I even powdered the tube so no problem when it gets aired up. The tube can easily adjust itself inside the tire. After this quick change over, I did a short three mile run to shake out anything overlooked. It worked out just fine.

I was surprised to discover just how much difference in the bent wheel compared to one that now runs true. It is not that I could feel the bike wobbling around like you might first think tho. Now the bike did not have what I could only describe as drag when moving in a straight line. I was glad to feel the difference. It can only help.

It was too close to the ride, just a few days before when parts were swapped, so I didnt put in the usual 10 miles. Otherwise I would been in more hurt for the ride. Too close together on distance rides will wear out your legs and they turn to rubber.

The night before I was not tired and could not get to sleep for any reason. I laid there most of the time with eyes shut but my brain not willing to shut down. Finally decided to grab a drink of water at 3:45 AM. Then laid there for another hour and a half. At this point, it was useless to attempt to sleep.

I got busy checking over the bike. Aired up the tires and then loaded up the truck. There is little to no reason to carry a lot of spare parts. I should have included a tube from the beginning, but if you break during the ride, not much can be done except fixing a flat, if the tire is not damaged.

I dont even carry a pump on the bike. This is not a competition, but a charity event. If I break, then a free ride back to the finish line. No big deal. So far I have seen a lot of people sidelined fixing a flat. They usually just leave the dead tube laying there. But at least back to finishing out their ride.

I am actually surprised to see just how many people did have flats and made roadside repairs. There is nothing wrong with making roadside repairs. Especially if only dealing with a flat. The one problem tho is it breaks your concentration and causes you to loose focus. It is also more difficult to get back rolling in this situation.

For the last 5 rides I have made, not one problem with any in our group. They all do have spare parts, but limited at that. There is an occasional loose bolt that needs to be attended. Somethings you cant work around, so is good idea to have a multitool that fits everything on bike.

Most tire repairs I have seen were usually very early in the ride. This time out there was a lot of them. Only a few other things I took notice of that was reason for stopping. Like running off the road or running out of steam.

So I am up too early, got no sleep, and now headed out to the location. I saw the sunrise and it was already leftover warm from the previous day and humidity was high. I get there way before the others in our group. Not that it made any difference for me or them.

While sitting on the tailgate with nothing to do, there was a extremely loud snappy sounding pop very close by. I knew immediately what it was. Looking behind me I noticed the rear tire was flat. So all this time preparing and now a flat. With no spare parts. Everything has gone metric and 27 inch is not so popular anymore and nothing that is considered competitive.

My bike is 43 years old and still all original except for this weeks alterations. I still dont know how the tires are just as soft like back when new. Any other bike this old, the tires are hard as a rock. I made the decision at that moment, to cancel the ride and just hang out for the morning until everyone else had finished. I did not see any reason to punish myself attempting to locate a new tube, that no one would have out there and attempt a fix.

Mainly I didnt want to put that burden on everyone else. If I had a spare tube then no problem. But my fault I did not bother to keep one handy. After each ride, my decision is to look for a newer more professional level bike, one that is half the weight of my dinosaur. But so far has not happened. One of these days, I will find a bike that fits the bill. For now, I keep riding what I got.

Everyone finally strolls in, all of them running late. I help out as best I can to unload, but not much needed to be done. I didnt want to get in their way either. Then I get a break. A 700c is very close to the 27 inch tire on my bike. Nothing to loose here. It either works or it dont.

The one major problem is this current 700c tube has an extended presta valve stem for carbon fiber wheels. It is about 3 inches long. I figure so long as the nut ring holds the tube tightly, then should not be an issue. At least now I am back in the running.

After the quick repairs and everyone else was gearing up, realizing it was about time for the ride to commence. This became very obvious since all of the other participants were already lined up for the start. I get finished and realize I had not picked up my packet. In fact no one else had either, since they had arrived so late. I jog up to registration and get all of our wristbands, then hand them out, running back to the truck to drop off some things and grab what else I was missing. Then a quick last minute pit stop.

The charity ride had already started. I was zig-zagging between the moving bikes to get across to where we were grouped. At least the longer distance riders were leaving the starting grid. I was suiting up as the grid was emptying out. I told everyone else in the group to go ahead, I would play catch up. They at first were going to wait, but I was almost ready myself.

By the time I rolled out to mount my bike, the place was empty. No bikes left to see anywhere. I was the last survivor, so to speak. At this point, I was worked up, heart rate climbing, and way past time for drinking enough water before the ride started. Since I had cancelled myself, then no reason to prep for the ride. Now I was lagging way behind and already needed water.

Being the last person to leave out, did get my picture taken. Now if it is posted up online, I will be famous. Since this is only a charity bike ride, there is no real reason to come out of the gate hammering down on the pedal. There is a pace you need to set, so the distance can be met without any problems. You know like muscle cramps.

Even being late starting out, with so many casual riders going for the distance, I was in heavy traffic in only a few minutes. Within the next 30 minutes I passed well over 200 other riders. But this is not a race against each other. It is a race with myself. Or more of a test to find out how far I can push myself to make the distance in a reasonable amount of time.

As I play catch up, which really didnt amout to much, the first thing I noticed is my handle bars were not lined up with the front tire. I do remember the last time I rode this course, there was major rut I hit hard on the service road.

It was noticed immediately since the handle bars were twisted over a bit too much for my likes. Oh well, I tried to ignore it an did finish the ride. It was close enough to the end not to be a serious detriment to my riding.

But I did re align the bars and even made some helpful adjustments to better suit me. I lifted both the seat and goose neck for the bars. This made a big difference on comfort. So I was pleased with the changes. Since then, there has not been a problem with the bars moving.

Farther into the ride I notice the bars are more out of alignment. There has been a few hard hits that might have caused this. At the next pit stop, I made a comment about the bars and tried to twist them back. They twisted back just fine and even over the other way. Time for the right tool and tighten the gooseneck. One problem solved for the ride to continue safely.

From the beginning of todays ride I was already feeling too hot and drinking a lot more water than usual. This is the first time from all previous ones there was plenty of sunshine blasting overhead for most of the morning. All prior events have been overcast for majority of the ride.

I was pushing myself too hard and too fast for the distance. It was showing at the first pit stop. At the second one, I was very hot and loosing stamina. A lot of ice cold water was poured down the back of my neck. But even this time around did not revive me like that should have.

I continued on realizing this ride is going to beat me down a lot more than should be happening. Over the next ten mile stretch I encountered a lot of ups and downs. A very hilly section that took its toll on a lot of riders.

One other thing I had not realized at all. There is over a 1200 feet variation during this ride. That is a lot of ups and downs throughout the course. Most of it was in one part of the ride. Then some more right before the finish.

I later on figured out what thinking the elevation number really means. It is all of the highs and lows added up together. Not riding with that much difference in the altitude. That would be a major hill climb on a bike.

This is something I sure dont remember being such a difference the last time participating in this event. The extra distance along with a much hotter day could be what made it work me over so bad this time around.

During the second stretch a muscle started giving me fits in my upper left calf. I am used to these hitting. Then carefully work this one out without stopping. Just have to be careful how much strain I put on the leg. One thing is making sure I dont change my routine to alter the load my legs are pedaling.

If I back way off, it makes things worse. The cramp gets severe. I cant increase the load or my leg shuts down. So pacing myself until the spasm is relieved. One thing that does help is letting my leg dangle freely until the pain subsides. But then makes it very hard to pedal one legged. The pickle juice I choked down 10 minutes earlier did not seem to help out this time.

Now pickle juice is known for its benefits on muscle cramps. Yet there is no scientific evidence to back this up or even if it does anything. So I dont know what to think about all of these professional athletes relying heavily on juicing. Guess there could be big money pushing the benefits of pickle juice on the ignorant public.

So back to the pre race jitters. No sooner did that inner tube explode, I decided to call it a day. No reason to make something happen at that point. I just lucked out that a tube showed up and could work.

There was nothing to loose and everything to gain. Except I had already stopped the pre event preparations to get me well hydrated and with proper nutrients to help the old body last the duration.



So this is the extent of the damage. In pressing times of urgency, I could easily repair this and keep going. The vulcanizing gave way over time, pressure or just got tired of holding out for retirement. If the brass stem had a flared end, may not of blown apart.

If I were to flare the stem, then reinsert into the tube, a tie-wrap or piece of safety wire twisted tightly around could hold it in place. For an emergency repair, you do what you can do or do without. Usually I prefer to do with.

Towards the end of this ride, my muscles were aching like they have never done before. I had quads and hamstrings just refusing to work anymore. It was about the last three miles, there was a big hill to climb.

I decided to walk this one up. It was not that far, and hoping my legs would get loosened up enough after I reached the top of that hill. It was a bridge that went over the highway. Tho my legs were not aching as much not pedaling, they did not like being put back into service.

I took off and hoping the downhill ride would get me going again. It did just long enough to see the next climb. I could see the tower in sight where the event finish was. It did not get any closer at the speed I was now traveling.

Ever so slowly I cranked the pedals and kept down shifting hoping to take some load off my tired muscles. Nothing helped at all. By this time I was way too close to quit. So I didnt.

There I was, a bunch people already finished and a whole lot still a long ways to go. I was doing fair on time. It would have been a lot better if I didnt almost give out. But there was still three hours before the event officially was over. At least for the police directing traffic. Then the riders would be on their own to make it back.

I did not have an exciting finish. I was just glad to make it across the finish line. Even the group of cheerleaders didnt seem all that motivating at the moment. I was beat. By the next charity ride, I will be more prepared. At least better than this time.

I ended up laying down on the sidewalk shortly after crossing the finish line. I had no reason to go any farther at that moment. I was sore, tired and my head was pounding like mad. I realized then too much exertion in the heat knocked me down way too soon.

It took about 5 minutes before I was willing to move. I just needed some time to play catch up. I also was not sweating any like should have. I was not out of breath or even heart rate off the scale. Just completely out of steam. In Death Valley, by the time realizing you are in such bad shape well, would have ended up a one way ticket to the life thereafter. Glad I was not on some bike excursion in that part of the world.

 

September 2025 ride prep and highly technical information pertaining to the bike.

Times a flyin when you are having fun and usually not when nothing is going your way. Either enjoy yourself or suck it up. Less than three weeks away is my next charity ride. This is a big one that travels thru a decent size town. Or maybe it could be considered a city.

At our last meet and ride I lost a tube when the bike was still sitting in the bed of my truck. Just a loud crisp pop and I knew immediately what had happened. Well I knew the sound resulted in a flat. I did not yet know the valve stem shot out at 70 psi.

I got a loaner tube that fits a 700c wheel, not the 27x1.25 I was rolling on. It had a three inch long presta valve stem for carbon fiber wheels. No worry, and no time to worry if I was going to make that ride. I gave up the idea of riding until the loaner tube was offered.

So instead of watering up and filling with necessary carbo's, I did nothing to prepare for the ride. But ten minutes before the start I was hustling to get that tube changed out. It was successful and I was no more than a minute behind leaving the starting grid. That is a minute after everyone else had already left. Some 600 riders had passed by as I was still suiting up. It was an empty place looking much like a funeral parking lot full of cars. Well mostly trucks. This is truck country after all.

After the bike sitting for the last three months, I was surprised to find out that new tube had lost most of its air. While the original Japanese tube was low but still holding up just fine. Today, I spent some money on the bike. The postman never rings twice. Not even once when dropping off a package. If it does not fit in the mailbox, then tossed on the loading dock.

Forget the instructions on a Post-it to leave said package in the truck. No, just toss it out in the open for any needy person stalking by. The original gum wall tires are starting to delaminate. The gum layer is pulling away from rubber. The bead is dried out and chunks are breaking off and embedding in the tube. But still no leaks or damage.

As of 4:00 pm today, I have a new set of off brand black wall tires, tubes and liners. For some extra coin, there were more options. I could have gone with red, green, blue, yellow, and even orange. But why stick out in a crowd?. There could be that one crazy sniper looking for a target. I dont plan to be that target.

Watching the daily news is not so exciting, but checking the headlines online, there are a lot of crazies out there and they have gone loony batchit off the deep end. It really is the devils playground out in the world these days.

Since my last ride in early June, the bike has been just sitting. Today is September 2 and I am working towards getting back into riding condition. Last week on Wednesday, the tires were aired up and I took a casual ride right at 5.5 miles. Nothing to write home about. Just to work and stretch the muscles that stay dormant if not riding all the time.

There is a contact point on the seat your body feels the most pain when getting back in the saddle. Now your butt cheeks get bruised from bouncing around, not the place of concern. The in between is where I had an early check out. There was no reason to beat myself up. It got sore, so I stopped for the evening.

The short distance did not even phase me. No tingling in the arms, no pumped muscles, not even a sore back, and no increase in cardio output. But that soreness at the contact point of seat was annoying. I stopped and did not feel pain so long I was not sitting on the seat and pedaling.

What I did notice is feeling better after working all of those muscles. The seat pain was lifted soon as I stopped riding. The downside is not being able to sleep all night. This happens a lot when I first get back on the bike. Over some time my sleep habits will revert to normal.

The next night I was not feeling any different and ready for my second ride. Nearly identical results. No major soreness except for the seat thing. I did ride an extra half mile until the soreness was enough to call it quits. If I stand up on the bike, that pain goes away. But each time I sit back down it returns sooner.

Now with the new tires mounted, tonight will be the third warm up preparing for this next charity bike ride. There is one thing I have changed up this time around. Dropping down a gear for a lighter pedal is what I am going to work with. Prior to this ride coming up, I had kept a heavy pedal for a faster pace. Unfortunately, with the lighter pedal, my average miles per hour will drop.

I am talking about when riding on mostly flat ground. The gear changes are made when needed on grades and down hills. But the flats, I can keep a good fast pace, but using more energy to pedal.

Even with the horrible finishes I had when running out of steam, my overall average was pushing close to 17 mph. But this time it will be lower with a better finish. I will still take full advantage of the downhills and maximize the speed and ground covered. But for most of the flats, will hold to a slower average time.

Checking over the bike, I noticed the wheel bearings were getting tight and crunchy. The old grease had dried out. I should put the effort forth to completely disassemble them and wash out thoroughly. But usually a single drop of synthetic gear oil will break down that dried muck and smooth out all rolling resistance.

What I use for this has been any synthetic 75W/90 gear oil. It is clear and not really much thicker than motor oil. I keep it around to fill the impellor pumps on Seadoos. This is something normally considered as yearly maintenance when I ride on the water. But the last few years have been a bust.

I gave up a long time ago the idea of packing the wheel bearings with grease. It is a waste of time. There is not so much load on these small bearings. They dont generate any excessive heat. But that grease causes a lot of drag. A single drop of oil on each side and then good for any length of ride. Afterwards, I wipe off what has been forced out along with the dirt buildup and good until the next time.

If the seat pain does not hit me early, I should get the full 10 miles in tonight. That is the plan. A slightly slower pace without so much load on my legs. This works out good in practice. But during the start of every ride, you are pumped and is so easy to pass a few hundred riders before settling in at a decent pace. This is not a race against other riders or time, so why do I get so gung-ho on the starts?

Maybe it is the adrenaline rush or just trying to get a good jump not ending up finishing so late. I dont like being in large groups at all, so take that time to jump ahead and away from too many riders bunched together. It is hard to keep a decent pace when coming up behind a large group going a lot slower.

Preparing for the last few charity rides I figured out early on not to attempt riding every night. That is if I am pushing myself. I could get a good overall average for the 10 mile practice, then take a few days off before repeating again. This time around I am going at things differently.

That slower pace without so much load on my legs. Then pacing myself and working up for the longer distance. I will increase the laps with hopes of doubling the distance. My plan is to work up to 20 miles without running out of steam. A slower pace without wearing down before the practice is over.

So most of this is a bunch of unfounded hypothetical talk. I dont know if any of it is right or not. Just working it over in my head. Then trying out to see if the results are better than previous rides. My practice course does not have enough elevation changes to mimic the actual ride. That is one reason for running in a higher gear. More load on my legs to simulate the actual ride conditions.

If the humidity is not so high tonight, I should be in good shape for going the 10 miles and not find myself so sore like in the past. For now I have the time to work up and make changes if needed before the actual ride. My goal is to finish at a decent pace at the end, instead of limping in on fumes.



Here you see the old gum wall tire with the emergency replacement Presta valve tube. This length of stem is for carbon fiber wheels. Unfortunately one wheel costs more than I paid for this bike new.



Finally I have a pic of my bike posted. The very one I have been riding at every charity ride since 2022. It is now going on the fourth year of this event. You can see the bike has been meticulously detailed. I have done everything possible to remove as much weight possible to make this a better ride. All that means is I removed kick stand. Everything else is all original except for the new front tire and replacement rear tube. Oh yea the original seat had to go.



OK you cant see much in that shadow bike pic above. But this is an amazing bike for less than $200 back in the day. And yet it looks like every other road bike made back then. My proud toy is now 43 years old. With the new tires installed, all I need to do is wipe off the layer of accumulation from the last ride and shop dust, this bike would almost look new. Just not so modern or streamlined or efficient or light weight. Oh well.

The front tire just got changed and bearings oiled as stated above. I took a break to post this. The rear tire will be changed out so I can ride tonight. I want to find out what fresh rubber feels like on pavement. The original tires are not all dry rotted out yet. But I bet if checking with a durometer there will be a difference. Just out of curiosity I am going to check the hardness of these tires. Be right back.



Laugh all you want. I found this in some old obsolete equipment that was destined to become one with nature. It was hard to toss this away, so I didnt. Now all these years later I get to use the thing. This is what is commonly referred to as a durometer. It will test how hard my tires are.



But first lets take a look at the original tires. The tread was almost new when I semi-retired this bike in 1984. Why does that year ring a bell? So all of the use has been from practicing and riding in every one of the charity events since 2022. As you can see, there is no visible tread showing.



Now this is the new tire, which has the identical tread as the old ones. Except minus the wear of course. I did get my moneys worth out of the old tires. These new chinese replacements are the same as what was sold over 40 years ago. So much for all that R&D work for improved performance over the decades. Oh wait these are just clones of someone elses work.



Checking the hardness of this old original gum wall tire, you see on the scale it reads a solid 60. That is a hard tire. Even tho you can still dig a finger nail in, this is on the hard side for a tire.



Checking the new front tire, you see a reading of 50. When a tire checks below 40, it is on the softer side. Just like a reading of over 50 is getting way too hard. There is more than enough difference that can be felt when riding. I am hoping for the better of course.



Just out of curosity and fo the fun of it, I checked the hardness of another tire. This one is an original 1972 Schwinn Varsity. If you notice the reading is just over 90. I attempted to ride on these tires once, and no joke they about beat me up.

So this is where things stand today. For the very few readers that have been following this thread, thank you. I hope some of the information may be useful. Or at least interesting. You never know when the world may change and to survive you may have to change with it.

 

September ride prep 2025

Just over an hour ago, I went out for my third practice session. Yes, before you ask the obvious, I did get that rear tire changed out. Now I am rolling on new rubber. Just like in all real racing, new tires make a huge difference. At small local events, maybe not so much. At a regional level, then you gotta ask if the cost is worth the difference between first and third finish position. At a national level, you are going backwards if not rolling on new tires when pushing up to the starting grid.

OK what the heck is all that bloviated tire talk got to do with some relaxing charity bike ride? Well it dont. I was just adding filler. No seriously, it made a huge difference over the original tires. Tonight I started out at 10:35 pm, as in after your bed time. But let me cover the beginning of the ride.

For starters, I dont do any warm up, stretching, or prescription smoothie drinks designed especially for workouts or even riding a bike. Just jump on and ride away. The older I get, the more thought I should put into this stretching thing. It might be something that helps a lot. It sure cant hurt.

It was just after I finished walking my super cool dog Abby. You know a blue heeler that is usually my shadow everywhere I go. She does not take kindly to being left out of anything I do or where I go. She did understand that I was riding the bike tonight. She didnt get too upset. Usually she knows when she gets to go. So this time she didnt pout or put up a fight. She relented to staying right at the shop door, while I made laps.

Sure would be cool if I could leave the door open or even better, have her sit in the bed of my truck, then watch as I pass by every 135 seconds. Guess I better get started. So let me tell you about that first lap after covering the other practices.

The two previous times, I only ran just over half the usual distance of 10 miles. The area that makes contact with seat or what is called the perineum got sore quick. Or I think it is referred to as the taint. Cause it taint what is in front and taint what is behind.

So that muscular area got sore way too quick. I called it quits because there was no reason to push myself just yet. First day I made 5.5 miles, and the next was only 6 miles. Except for the seat soreness I was totally fine otherwise.

I have a new set of tires. They are softer and have way less contact surface on the road. If I didnt mention the obvious, these new tires made a huge difference in the ride quality. Now how I was feeling was a different matter.

The reason for bringing up the dog walk is simple. I did my two mile warm up walk right before hopping on the bike and riding the ten mile practice laps. So in a way, I am stretching some muscles right before the session.

Today the sky is overcast, humidity is extremely high above 85%. But air temp is very decent. Unseasonably cool for this time of year. In fact this part of the world averages more than 20 above 100 degree days a year. In 2023, that rose to 55 days, with 26 of them reaching 105 and higher. This year was a total bust with only 4 days even reaching 100. That is official at local airport(big city major hub) where there is all the tarmac that holds major heat.

So what happened to that global warming I see every year when temps are below average? Crickets. With what ever direction this weather front blew in brought things in the air that dont like me. I have been hitting the generic Zyrtec daily. I hate taking these, but not much choice if I want to breathe.

Tonight, I was not into the ride at the start. The first lap I was already feeling like it was past the half way point. The second lap was even worse. By the third lap, things flatlined. Just not better like I would prefer. Lap four was the same. Lap five is when I was loosening up or relaxing more. From lap five thru lap 20 everything remained exactly the same. My overall times per lap were almost identical. It took the first three to get focused, then smooth sailing till the finish.

The pain in the taint was not an issue this practice session. I figured it would work out. Just like the sore butt. It takes about three rides and all the soreness goes away. It is just I have not dealt with the pain in the taint so much in the past.

The one thing caught my attention was a muscle on my upper left calf. This one muscle has taken a toll on me previously in certain sections of the course. If I catch it soon enough can usually work my way thru the issue. I felt the muscle, right from the beginning, but it did not cause any problems. My concern for this one muscle is the hilly section right before the half way point. It works over both several calf muscles bad. If I make a wrong move or stretch, that one muscle can shut me down. So need to work on tuning them up, so I am not left on side of the road all cramped up.

This session started at 10:35 and finished at 11:20. Doing simple fourth grade math, that works out to be an average speed of 13.33 mph. This is better than practice for the last event. I kept up the same pace from start to finish instead of slightly slowing down towards the end. So my new strategy may work out. I still have to pace myself at start of the charity event. Otherwise I will be in the same condition as each previous ride. That is limping my way over the finish line. But I can accept that as a win too.

Tonights ride did not leave me winded or sore. I hopped off the bike and not any stiffness or major pains. Start slow, maintain speed and finish without wearing out. Now if I can just do that during the event in a few weeks.

 

Final weeks leading up to charity ride September 2025

Argh!

Tonight would have been awesome except for a minor technicality. Right now the temp is a balmy 76 degrees. I mean balmy because humidity is 88% and still rising. I figured is was still in the low 80's being just after summer. It feels hotter than what is. But humidity has a way of doing that.

The new tires got broken in a few days ago. I sat out and "healed" waiting for tonight being the next scheduled practice. Everything going extremely good. Right up until the last half lap left. It was obvious what happened. Dont know why yet, but does not matter. It took me out of this practice. Even if it was at the very end.

I am guessing a small puncture is the cause. Will find out soon enough. I am adding a carry bag to the bike along with a new tube and either a CO2 cartridge or pump. It is way too easy swapping out a tube and keep going than call it quits and wait for a pick-up vehicle to carry you back in. That is of course during one of these charity rides.

I noticed the tire making a odd noise and felt the difference a hundred yards past the half way point on last lap. It was shorter to turn around and walk back to shop, but decided to finish the full distance on foot. It was less than 10 minutes to make the journey back around to the shop walking. I sure wish there was a way to figure out exactly how much time my feet spent walking. My overall time for this practice was looking good up until the flat tire.

I pushed off exactly when the phone clock turned 9:13. I felt good throughout the whole practice. My lap times even went down after the first few had passed. The last 25% was even getting better. Overall I thought my average mph would have been way above the last practice. But I will never know for sure. I walked back to shop at exactly 10 pm.

Factoring that walk time in with the practice session my average was still decent enough at 12.76 mph. I had to walk back more than 1/4 mile. So that extra time on foot dropped down my time from last practice at 13.33 to 12.76 mph. If I was not in the right frame of mind to push myself tonight, I could live with this slightly lower average. But still like to know what it would have been without the flat tire.

Right off the bike I was not sore anywhere. I am not usually breathing hard after any practice or ride. Just too sore to do anything for the next half hour. I know some of you think averaging a measly 12-13 miles an hour is nothing. But this is all uphill or at least a slight grade. No fast downhills or coasting at all.

All of my practice and training is simulation to a bike grab then heading for the hills. As in getting the heck out of dodge. There is never an ideal situation when you just have no choice but to up and leave. Everything I am doing is real world scenario situation. You dont have time to grab more than what dirty clothes you were wearing that day. Then dressing on the run, hopping on the bike and taking the quickest route possible but leaving no bread crumbs behind so someone could follow your trail.

Just to add some flavor during these practices, I am going to start grabbing my carry. I should already know how best to place it so not to fall off or rub me raw somewhere. A comfortable spot on me or the carry bag I have coming in a few days. I prefer to keep it on me, but might not work out so well when riding. Too easy for it to slip off somewhere when I am pedaling at a decent pace. Or running to get away from something.

The shop is not in what I would consider a safe part of town during the daytime. So just imagine this at night when I am riding. Even tho the cop station is barely over one mile away. It does no good regardless where the station is, since a confrontation could easily end in death without a moments notice. I have to be observant and aware who and what is around me.

Something else I have to consider when at least practicing close to the shop is to bring my phone or not. If I still had a nice small flip style then no problem. With the newer ones, they have gotten a bit on the large side. It is easier to keep my concealed on me than have that big phone flopping all around.

In this old industrial area at night there are vehicles driving around slowly all the time. Some of them just stop and park for no reason. Tonight was no different. I was walking with a flat, around the large curve and then a truck just slowed down, pulled over killing the lights right in front of me. This is not a one time thing. So that I dont let it bother me as much. Just keeping my eyes open.

What bothers me more is when a car drives on by at normal speed, slows down not 200 feet after passing me, then just stops. The car sits there and waits until I am almost up to them. Then they just drive off. This is way too common. Enough that I adjust my walking or riding distance way early, so they have to move towards me if I am their target. This gives me time to act and get out of a situation before it becomes one.

So enough drivel. These are things that keep my eyes and mind sharp on what is happening all around me. The very few times I take a call on the phone when walking the dog, I consider dangerous. All the time while talking or listening, everything around me is just a blur. Someone could come up on me so fast I would not have any way to avoid it. This is something I try not to make a habit of unless somewhere I am in complete control.

Maybe I am playing war games while out doing my thing. It keeps me alert and so far able to see far enough ahead to counter any offensive if I was a target. But I also play the grey man when out riding or on foot. Try to fit in to the surroundings so I dont stick out like some undeserving rich punk.