Summary:
I've ridden more miles and faster in 2011 then compared to previous years on a recumbent. The year started with a new bike in April, I had then completed a lot of goals and now the year is ending with almost 3,700 bicycling miles.
Who knows what 2012 will bring? I have been looking at the Elliptigo bikes for something completely different. I hope to try one out next spring to see how it rides.
New bike, the Catbike Musashi.
I have been considering a new bike for a few years. The 15 year old Vision R40 just seemed a bit well....old and outdated. I did have the gears updated in 2007, which helped it last a few more years. I had some cash saved up and I had the go ahead from the wife, so I started testing new bikes as soon as it was warm enough.
Here is my post on choosing the Musashi.
Now that I have a few thousand miles on the Musashi, I definitely feel I made the right choice. Although the Catrike 700 would be a lot of fun, it would not be as fast, and would be a bit more dangerous on these country roads I like to ride on.
Completed goals:
This was the first year that I set goals. Setting goals and documenting my rides on this blog has really helped improved my riding. below are some of my goals completed this year:
60 miles under 3 hours with no stops.
Over 200 miles in a single weekend.
Over 2,500 miles for the year. I rode on to almost 3,700 miles.
New camera, the GoPro Hero HD.
I have long considered getting a camera for the bike, I'm glad I did. Here are some of the videos that I have taken:
My Youtube video channel.
My audience:
This is the first year that I have received feedback on this blog and the first year to have over 1,000
hits, now I'm almost upto 4,000 hits. I even have some followers. All of this has helped keep me motivated to keep riding, thanks for all your visits and your comments. If you wish to be a follower of my blog, click the 'Join This Site' link on the upper right hand side of this page. If you like this blog you can also try visiting the sponsors on this same page.
So thank you and happy holidays to all of you for taking the time to read about my recumbent adventures
Future posts:
In the past I have concentrated on documenting my rides only, I am considering adding more personal posts, including how I lost some weight last year by riding my Vision R40. I started last year at over 230 pounds and ended the year at 173 pounds. My motto was "Eat less and move more".
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Sunday, October 30, 2011
October 23rd and 24th ride
Temperatures were above 60 so I took advantage of the nice enough weather for a couple of rides.
I don't like riding when the temps are below 60. The two rides added up to 55 miles total and were almost uneventful. I had a motorcycle rider pass me on the 24th, he was standing on his seat instead of sitting. I'm not sure whether he's a professional stuntman or a fool, but here's the video:
October 24th ride summary:
October 23rd ride summary:
Sunday, October 16, 2011
October 10th to 16th rides
October 16th:
Very windy day, just like the day before, the average wind speed was 20mph with 30mph gusts. The wind was coming from the West and a little from the South.
I planned this ride with the wind in mind, I pushed against it for the first 18 miles getting an average speed of 14.9mph. The next leg I went South and some West for 16 miles with an average speed of 15mph. Then when I was starting to get tired I headed back home which meant going North East for 18 miles with the winds pushing me all the way. I averaged 21.5mph on that leg. I don't think I have ever averaged over 20mph on that particular leg in that direction, since it is mostly uphill. I then finished the ride by going through Park road and Greensburg.
Very windy
I noticed at my second stop that I couldn't sit my water bottle on the picnic table without it being instantly knocked down by the wind. I then decided to film me sitting my helmet on the same table, as you can see and hear below, the helmet was being blown all over the place. This gives a nice idea of how windy the day was, I still have a hard time believing I averaged 14.9 mph heading into that wind. That shows the true advantage of a recumbent.
Detail link
Summary stats:
October 15th:
This day was also very windy with the same 20mph winds with 30mph gusts. I rode to the town of Westport to see my wife who was working at a nursing booth at the community building.
Details link
Summary stats:
October 10th:
35 mile loop with an 18.6mph average speed, wind from the South.
Details link
October 9th:
41 miles average speed of 18.4mph, wind from the South.
Details link
Very windy day, just like the day before, the average wind speed was 20mph with 30mph gusts. The wind was coming from the West and a little from the South.
I planned this ride with the wind in mind, I pushed against it for the first 18 miles getting an average speed of 14.9mph. The next leg I went South and some West for 16 miles with an average speed of 15mph. Then when I was starting to get tired I headed back home which meant going North East for 18 miles with the winds pushing me all the way. I averaged 21.5mph on that leg. I don't think I have ever averaged over 20mph on that particular leg in that direction, since it is mostly uphill. I then finished the ride by going through Park road and Greensburg.
Very windy
I noticed at my second stop that I couldn't sit my water bottle on the picnic table without it being instantly knocked down by the wind. I then decided to film me sitting my helmet on the same table, as you can see and hear below, the helmet was being blown all over the place. This gives a nice idea of how windy the day was, I still have a hard time believing I averaged 14.9 mph heading into that wind. That shows the true advantage of a recumbent.
Detail link
Summary stats:
October 15th:
This day was also very windy with the same 20mph winds with 30mph gusts. I rode to the town of Westport to see my wife who was working at a nursing booth at the community building.
Details link
Summary stats:
October 10th:
35 mile loop with an 18.6mph average speed, wind from the South.
Details link
October 9th:
41 miles average speed of 18.4mph, wind from the South.
Details link
Sunday, October 9, 2011
October 8th ride
Its been a long time since I've had this kind of weather on a free Saturday. Winds were under 10 mph with a high of 84. I thought about trying a solo century, but I didn't start riding until 11:00 and the sun started sapping my energy, I was very ready to quit once I got home.
I rode South to Highway 50 then headed West to North Vernon. I then took some back roads back to Greensburg. I stopped for a while to visit my mother. This wasn't an uneventful trip, and this time I have videos to show what happened!
Close call with a car:
I was passing through the traffic light in front of the Walmart in North Vernon. There was a white pickup truck going the same direction as I was. This truck blocked the view of a car going the opposite direction wanting to turn left at the light. I saw the car driver look at me, making me think I was safe from him. I then noticed the car turning left even though I was in his path, I thought he'll wait for me, after all he did look at me. I looked at the driver and noticed he wasn't even looking at the road, he had his head completely turned to the left, looking out his side window! That was when I started yelling at him. He quickly turned his head around and slammed on his breaks. Way too close.
Close call with a dog:
I've written about this Doberman before, he's the one that runs back and forth in front of my bike forcing me to slow down or risk hitting the dog. In the past I would simply stop the bike and stand up and he would run off. I really don't like this dog since he always does the same thing.
This time though was a little different, the owners were having some sort of gathering outside and got to see the whole thing and yelled at their dog. Not only that, but there was an oncoming car that came very close to hitting the dog. If it had been one of the drivers that would normally speed 60-80 mph down this road, it would have ended differently. Luckily for the dog the driver was driving slowly and was able to stop seconds before she would have hit the dog. The dog gave a frightened yelp then ran to the ditch. Talk about persistence, he still had to chase after me, although this time he stayed in the ditch, I don't mind dogs chasing me from the ditch.
Link to ride details
Ride summary:
I rode South to Highway 50 then headed West to North Vernon. I then took some back roads back to Greensburg. I stopped for a while to visit my mother. This wasn't an uneventful trip, and this time I have videos to show what happened!
Close call with a car:
I was passing through the traffic light in front of the Walmart in North Vernon. There was a white pickup truck going the same direction as I was. This truck blocked the view of a car going the opposite direction wanting to turn left at the light. I saw the car driver look at me, making me think I was safe from him. I then noticed the car turning left even though I was in his path, I thought he'll wait for me, after all he did look at me. I looked at the driver and noticed he wasn't even looking at the road, he had his head completely turned to the left, looking out his side window! That was when I started yelling at him. He quickly turned his head around and slammed on his breaks. Way too close.
Close call with a dog:
I've written about this Doberman before, he's the one that runs back and forth in front of my bike forcing me to slow down or risk hitting the dog. In the past I would simply stop the bike and stand up and he would run off. I really don't like this dog since he always does the same thing.
This time though was a little different, the owners were having some sort of gathering outside and got to see the whole thing and yelled at their dog. Not only that, but there was an oncoming car that came very close to hitting the dog. If it had been one of the drivers that would normally speed 60-80 mph down this road, it would have ended differently. Luckily for the dog the driver was driving slowly and was able to stop seconds before she would have hit the dog. The dog gave a frightened yelp then ran to the ditch. Talk about persistence, he still had to chase after me, although this time he stayed in the ditch, I don't mind dogs chasing me from the ditch.
Link to ride details
Ride summary:
September 22nd to October 5th catch up post
Still trying to catch up.
September 22nd: Direct link
Distance: 20 miles, average speed: 18.5 mph
September 23rd: Direct link
Distance: 23 miles, average speed: 18.2 mph
September 26th: Direct link
Distance: 23 miles, average speed: 18.0 mph
October 1st: Direct link
Distance: 15 miles, average speed: 18.1 mph
October 3rd: Direct link
Distance: 24 miles, average speed: 18.9 mph
October 5th: Direct link
Distance: 26 miles, average speed: 19.9 mph
On the first five rides I had been experimenting with some seat changes I actually rode with no seat pad at all. Plus it had been chilly and windy. On October 5th I decided to put the seat pad back on, plus it was a warmer day with no wind. It ended up being an excellent ride The average speed was over 20mph until I decided to ride into town traffic.
Distance: 20 miles, average speed: 18.5 mph
September 23rd: Direct link
Distance: 23 miles, average speed: 18.2 mph
September 26th: Direct link
Distance: 23 miles, average speed: 18.0 mph
October 1st: Direct link
Distance: 15 miles, average speed: 18.1 mph
October 3rd: Direct link
Distance: 24 miles, average speed: 18.9 mph
October 5th: Direct link
Distance: 26 miles, average speed: 19.9 mph
On the first five rides I had been experimenting with some seat changes I actually rode with no seat pad at all. Plus it had been chilly and windy. On October 5th I decided to put the seat pad back on, plus it was a warmer day with no wind. It ended up being an excellent ride The average speed was over 20mph until I decided to ride into town traffic.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
September 17th Hope Century (100 Miles of Bull)
This annual ride attracts hundreds of bikers every year. Here is their website: Hope ride.
Ride description:
There are 13, 32, 50, 62 and 100 mile rides all named with cow motifs:
13 Mile Li'l Calf Tour
32 Mile Milk Cow Ramble
50 Mile Happy Heifer
62 Mile Mad Cow Metric Century
100 Miles of Bull
This years ride started early at 7:30. Since there was a recent hurricane that hit the East coast, the weather had chilled down quite a bit in the last couple of weeks, making this a chilly morning. I wore both my jacket and long bike pants. The rest stops always had plenty of snacks, water, Gatorade, etc. They also had some live bands. The main rest stop was at the Hope town square, where they served a hot lunch and a live band. You should never go hungry on a Hope ride.
Bike adjustments:
I made a major mistake the night before the ride, I made some big bike adjustments without testing them at all. I changed the post length and added a 2" foam pad under my seat. I added the foam pad since sometimes my right leg will hit the center bar, causing it to ache a bit. I figure that if my leg was higher it would be less likely to come down onto the center bar.
When I stopped at the main rest stop halfway through the ride my legs were aching plus I had a pain in my left leg, it felt as if the femur was rubbing or twisting against my pelvic bone. These were all new pains and aches that I have never felt before, I blame them all on the changes that I had made the night before. Once I completed this ride the femur pain lasted a couple of days.
My experience:
I usually see a lot of recumbents and trikes on the Hope ride, this year I only saw two trikes and only a few more recumbents, very odd. Perhaps with the chilly weather forecast not as many showed up.
I felt powerful in the first half of the ride, although I was passed by a group of 6 riders. They actually passed me twice, once right before the main rest stop and once after. I must have taken a shorter lunch break then they did.
Pranks:
Someone thought it would be funny to change some of the road markers. Around the 65 mile mark there was a marker pointing straight and one pointing to the right. The one pointing straight had been crossed out. It was easy enough to see that I should go straight since there was a second (confidence)marker pointing straight a few feet down the road. So I ignored the right turn marker.
A few miles down the road there was another pair of markers pointing both straight and to the right. This time the confidence marker was a few feet down the right turn street and there was not one pointing straight. ( I later found out I should have went straight) So I turned right. three miles later there was a marker pointing down a gravel road which I knew was not right. So I ignored it. Luckily I knew the area and also knew the ride was going to the town of Adams. So I ended up making my own route to Adams.
Oh, did I mention that I had left the route map in my truck? I ended up going an extra 6 miles. Which came in handy later in the ride.
Finishing the ride:
This years ride actually hit my own home county of Decatur. It went through the recently rebuilt covered bridge in the town of Moscow. A couple miles before Moscow I hit a road that had been turned to gravel! I couldn't believe it, but this road had at least two inches of gravel laid on top of the Asphalt. Very bad for my very thin tires Another biker came up and showed me the map, it looked like the ride went about 2 miles then came back on itself. I had been noticing the double markers on the road for both directions for the last couple of miles. Since I already went an extra 6 miles and didn't want to ride through this gravel mess, I decided to turn around and follow the return markers.
I didn't feel too strong on the second half of the ride although the last 20 miles I went pretty quick. I later discovered through my Garmin that the last 20 miles were generally all down hill. It also had some good sized hills on the second half and I did good on these hills even passing a couple of bikers going up.
Bike and car collision:
I heard there was an accident on the hill after the Moscow bridge. From what I heard from the biker riding with the one involved, it went like this:
As they were riding together up the steep and curvy hill (not sure if they were side by side) a truck came flying down the road on the wrong side (The truck was power driving to the inside of the curve) His partner was hit headlong and went flying while his own leg was barley missed by the trucks bumper. An Ambulance came and picked up both the rider and the bike. Allowing his partner to finish the ride. I haven't heard anything else about the rider that was hurt.
Musashi vs horses:
On the way back towards Hope I came across a couple of horses and riders (unfortunately my camera battery had died by now) The first horse was very spooked by my bike and reared up on his hind legs. The spooked horse was ridden by a teen. The other older rider directed the teen to ride into the field. I had slowed down to stop, but the other rider told me to not worry and keep going. They both then rode into the field where the horses were calmer.
A few yards later there were around 4 more horse and riders. The lead horse was again spooked by the Musashi. I stopped the bike. They ended up riding into the same field the first two riders were in.
I guess the Musashi is (or perhaps I am) very scary to horses.
Conclusion:
The Hope ride itself was excellent as always, the ride always ends with a free root-beer Ice cream float. There was plenty of rest stops and with the exception of the pranks and Decatur county turning another asphalt road into gravel (see my Tree City Metric Ride) this is one ride that I will look forward to next year.
Going into this ride, I had in the back of my mind the idea to complete my 200K goal by riding to Greensburg after finishing the century. It never happened, since I was very achy and ready to go home after the ride. This ended up being my slowest Century so far this year.
Ride detail link
Ride summary:
Ride description:
There are 13, 32, 50, 62 and 100 mile rides all named with cow motifs:
13 Mile Li'l Calf Tour
32 Mile Milk Cow Ramble
50 Mile Happy Heifer
62 Mile Mad Cow Metric Century
100 Miles of Bull
This years ride started early at 7:30. Since there was a recent hurricane that hit the East coast, the weather had chilled down quite a bit in the last couple of weeks, making this a chilly morning. I wore both my jacket and long bike pants. The rest stops always had plenty of snacks, water, Gatorade, etc. They also had some live bands. The main rest stop was at the Hope town square, where they served a hot lunch and a live band. You should never go hungry on a Hope ride.
Bike adjustments:
I made a major mistake the night before the ride, I made some big bike adjustments without testing them at all. I changed the post length and added a 2" foam pad under my seat. I added the foam pad since sometimes my right leg will hit the center bar, causing it to ache a bit. I figure that if my leg was higher it would be less likely to come down onto the center bar.
When I stopped at the main rest stop halfway through the ride my legs were aching plus I had a pain in my left leg, it felt as if the femur was rubbing or twisting against my pelvic bone. These were all new pains and aches that I have never felt before, I blame them all on the changes that I had made the night before. Once I completed this ride the femur pain lasted a couple of days.
My experience:
I usually see a lot of recumbents and trikes on the Hope ride, this year I only saw two trikes and only a few more recumbents, very odd. Perhaps with the chilly weather forecast not as many showed up.
I felt powerful in the first half of the ride, although I was passed by a group of 6 riders. They actually passed me twice, once right before the main rest stop and once after. I must have taken a shorter lunch break then they did.
Pranks:
Someone thought it would be funny to change some of the road markers. Around the 65 mile mark there was a marker pointing straight and one pointing to the right. The one pointing straight had been crossed out. It was easy enough to see that I should go straight since there was a second (confidence)marker pointing straight a few feet down the road. So I ignored the right turn marker.
A few miles down the road there was another pair of markers pointing both straight and to the right. This time the confidence marker was a few feet down the right turn street and there was not one pointing straight. ( I later found out I should have went straight) So I turned right. three miles later there was a marker pointing down a gravel road which I knew was not right. So I ignored it. Luckily I knew the area and also knew the ride was going to the town of Adams. So I ended up making my own route to Adams.
Oh, did I mention that I had left the route map in my truck? I ended up going an extra 6 miles. Which came in handy later in the ride.
Finishing the ride:
This years ride actually hit my own home county of Decatur. It went through the recently rebuilt covered bridge in the town of Moscow. A couple miles before Moscow I hit a road that had been turned to gravel! I couldn't believe it, but this road had at least two inches of gravel laid on top of the Asphalt. Very bad for my very thin tires Another biker came up and showed me the map, it looked like the ride went about 2 miles then came back on itself. I had been noticing the double markers on the road for both directions for the last couple of miles. Since I already went an extra 6 miles and didn't want to ride through this gravel mess, I decided to turn around and follow the return markers.
I didn't feel too strong on the second half of the ride although the last 20 miles I went pretty quick. I later discovered through my Garmin that the last 20 miles were generally all down hill. It also had some good sized hills on the second half and I did good on these hills even passing a couple of bikers going up.
Bike and car collision:
I heard there was an accident on the hill after the Moscow bridge. From what I heard from the biker riding with the one involved, it went like this:
As they were riding together up the steep and curvy hill (not sure if they were side by side) a truck came flying down the road on the wrong side (The truck was power driving to the inside of the curve) His partner was hit headlong and went flying while his own leg was barley missed by the trucks bumper. An Ambulance came and picked up both the rider and the bike. Allowing his partner to finish the ride. I haven't heard anything else about the rider that was hurt.
Musashi vs horses:
On the way back towards Hope I came across a couple of horses and riders (unfortunately my camera battery had died by now) The first horse was very spooked by my bike and reared up on his hind legs. The spooked horse was ridden by a teen. The other older rider directed the teen to ride into the field. I had slowed down to stop, but the other rider told me to not worry and keep going. They both then rode into the field where the horses were calmer.
A few yards later there were around 4 more horse and riders. The lead horse was again spooked by the Musashi. I stopped the bike. They ended up riding into the same field the first two riders were in.
I guess the Musashi is (or perhaps I am) very scary to horses.
Conclusion:
The Hope ride itself was excellent as always, the ride always ends with a free root-beer Ice cream float. There was plenty of rest stops and with the exception of the pranks and Decatur county turning another asphalt road into gravel (see my Tree City Metric Ride) this is one ride that I will look forward to next year.
Going into this ride, I had in the back of my mind the idea to complete my 200K goal by riding to Greensburg after finishing the century. It never happened, since I was very achy and ready to go home after the ride. This ended up being my slowest Century so far this year.
Ride detail link
Ride summary:
August 28th to September 11th Catch up post
Can't believe I got this far behind in posting my rides!
August 28th: Direct link
Distance: 38 miles, average speed: 19.2mph
August 30th: Direct link
Distance: 26 miles, average speed: 18.1mph
September 1st: Direct link
Distance: 42 miles, average speed: 18.5 mph
September 3rd: Direct link
Distance: 27 miles, average speed: 20.0 mph
September 6th: Direct link
Distance: 18 miles, average speed: 18.0 mph
September 10th: Direct link
Distance: 45 miles, average speed: 19.2 mph
September 11th: Direct link
Distance: 20 miles, average speed: 18.7 mph
August 28th: Direct link
Distance: 38 miles, average speed: 19.2mph
August 30th: Direct link
Distance: 26 miles, average speed: 18.1mph
September 1st: Direct link
Distance: 42 miles, average speed: 18.5 mph
September 3rd: Direct link
Distance: 27 miles, average speed: 20.0 mph
September 6th: Direct link
Distance: 18 miles, average speed: 18.0 mph
September 10th: Direct link
Distance: 45 miles, average speed: 19.2 mph
September 11th: Direct link
Distance: 20 miles, average speed: 18.7 mph
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