July 5th ride

I was ready to start riding at around 6:30PM it had rained pretty hard earlier at around 5:00PM and it looked as if it could rain again. I decided to take a chance that it wouldn't rain again. Rain isn't that much of a hindrance on the bike anyway, headwinds are what you have to watch out for.
I decided to head North towards Waldron, the ride was going excellent when it started sprinkling a bit after 2 miles. I remember thinking this is nice, it will keep me cooled down, so I can go faster. It then started pouring. Two miles later it was still pouring, so I decided to only do the 8 mile loop instead of going to Waldron. Around 2 miles later it stopped raining I pulled over to wipe my glasses off with the towel I keep under my seat (reminder to self: put the next towel into a plastic bag). Glasses cleaned, pushing off with right foot when I noticed my front tire was flat, drats! I pull out my spare tube and tools out of the bike bag. I don't repair the busted tube since it's the wrong size anyway (long story) and I am soaked. I'm ready to roll now that the The tube is replaced and the tire aired up with my trusty pump. The rest of the ride is uneventful.

8 mile loop map
Ride length 9.44 miles
Average speed: 16.24 MPH


Eye protection:
This trip reminds me of how important it is to wear eye protection while riding. It would have been difficult to ride at 20 MPH in the rain. The rain was pelting my arms pretty hard.

I remember riding in a sponsored group ride years ago when I noticed a butterfly ahead of me. It was fluttering about a couple feet above the road. I'm watching it wondering if the spokes on my front wheel might hit it, that might be an interesting show. It continued fluttering about as if with no direction. I'm still watching anticipating the upcoming shredded butterfly show. When suddenly as if possessed, the directionless butterfly became a guided missile that headed directly at me and rammed its payload directly into my left eye. I then became the show instead of the audience for the other riders as I slammed on the breaks and jumped off my bike trying to clean the smashed remains from my now stinging eye.
"Are you Ok?" asked an unseen rider.
"Yes" I replied, "bug in the eye."
They then yelled "you should wear sunglasses when you ride!"
I have always worn sunglasses every since.

Again years ago on my first ever night trip, I had the bike ready with a headlight and I had twenty miles before I would be home (I rode the bike to work earlier). I only had sunglasses, which didn't work well at night so I rode without glasses. The ride was fine until around the 5 mile mark when I ran into a bug swarm, luckily none hit my eyes, I then hit more bug swarms and wasn't so lucky. I decided I would have to wear my sunglasses even in the dark (like the song). I can barely see that my headlight is on let alone the road! But I figure it was important to protect my eyes. After that ride I always made sure to bring clear goggles on my night trips. I also learned an important lesson about keeping my mouth closed. (bugs aren't tasty)