It's March, so it's time to get on the bike. This morning, having gotten a good night's sleep, I drove my car 13.7 miles to Arlington Bowie High School, which is a safe place to park for a few hours. None of my wimpy friends would ride with me, so I rode alone. Actually, I had a cast of thousands with me, in the form of musicians. I listened to dozens of songs on my Zune music player during the three hours in which I rode. It broke up the monotony and made the suffering tolerable. Yes, suffering. The first few rides of a cycling season are hard, since my leg muscles have atrophied during the winter months. Running keeps me aerobically fit, but it does nothing for my leg strength.
Today's ride was only my third since 31 October. I did the Denton Turkey Roll on 21 November and the Dallas West End ride (40 miles) on Super Bowl Sunday (7 February). I will ride every Saturday from now until the end of October, either in a rally or out in the countryside with friends. The weather today was depressing. It wasn't quite warm (I wore brown cotton gloves the entire way), and the sun disappeared during the first 30 minutes of riding. After that, it was just gray and windy. I love sunshine.
I fought a headwind or a crosswind for 28.4 miles. It wore me out. But I knew that the wind would help me once I reached the southernmost point of the course, and it did. I cruised at 20 miles per hour (give or take five) for 25 glorious miles. I was worried that I would be too tired to take advantage of the tailwind, but I seemed to recover once I turned. I rode across Joe Pool Lake at close to 25 miles per hour, on a flat bridge. If you haven't gone this fast on a bicycle, you're missing one of life's pleasures.
Besides listening to music, I thought about a great many things during the ride. I thought up a handout for my Ethics students to help them understand the differences between act utilitarianism, rule utilitarianism, and ideal-moral-code utilitarianism; I reflected on the past week and planned the next; and I decided to explore Google maps when I got home. I'd like to make a separate map for each training ride I do, including today's. I'm not asking for help yet, because I may be able to figure out how to do it. If I can't, I will yell for help.
Statistically, I averaged 16.74 miles per hour for 53.0 miles. (Elapsed time = 3:09:55.) I'm delighted with my speed. My top speed was 32.3 miles per hour. The average speed does not include stops, of which there were three. I ate a small package of spicy peanuts and a PowerBar on the road and a PowerGel when I got back to my car. I drank a bottle and a half of water, which was probably too little, given the effort. Incredibly, I saw only two or three cyclists during the ride. I saw quite a few motorcyclists, however. They're always gracious to me. They wave to me as they pass and give me a wide berth, which I suppose they can afford, being narrow themselves compared to cars and trucks.
All things considered, I had a great time this morning. I hope you are enjoying your weekend.
Addendum: I heard many good songs today. Three that stood out, and that raised my spirits when I most needed it, are here, here, and here.
Addendum 2: The official high temperature at DFW Airport was 69º Fahrenheit. The average wind speed was 10.7 miles per hour. The maximum wind speed was 21 miles per hour.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 