A Snowy, Blustery Ride

What a ride!  I've been trying to keep my winter miles up a bit so I'm all set for the Minnesota Ironman ride in May.  It's an early season century ride with sketchy weather at best.  An easy way for me to get miles is to do a mixed-mode commute by driving to my parents' house and riding to work from there.  It ends up being about 22 miles round trip, so fairly simple.  I'm blessed that my office has a full locker room and a shower.

It's crucial to get "hardman" miles in before the Ironman ride - the tougher the weather, the stronger it makes you.  So yesterday seemed like a good day to ride.  I had some new winter riding pants that I wanted to try out, love them....I love all of my Pearl Izumi stuff.  A couple of quick observations:

Mirrors.  A mirror on the bike makes me feel like the definition of dork, but it's a great addition for commuting.  I never fear what's coming behind me, and headlights make cars easy to spot.

Cool?  No.  Practical?  Absolutely.

Overheating.  People at work think you are going to die because of the cold.  In my limited but growing experience of winter riding, I find the exact opposite to be true.  I typically regret the amount of clothing that I wear once I get where I'm going because my base layers end up saturated.  Oddly enough, I've found I do better wearing less than I think I should.  After about one mile down the road, my body heat starts kicking in and I usually find myself sweating a bit.  The only time I felt cold yesterday was when I stopped to take a picture and had to remove a glove - my hand would freeze.  I was actually quite shocked at how cold it was when I took off a glove.
  

A warm day the beach.


Hometown Adventures.  Yesterday was just plain fun.  People at work thought I was crazy, but I felt like such a kid.  I miss playing in the snow and walking around all bundled up - I think that's why I enjoy snowshoeing.  Was it cold yesterday?  Yes.  Did I need to be careful?  Yes.  But was it a bad idea to ride yesterday?  I don't think so. 

I see so much more when I ride.  Things I don't even pay attention to in a car are so interesting on a bike.  In a car I count minutes exactly and feel jipped if takes me much longer than the average.  But on the bike, I couldn't tell you how long it actually (stoppage time for photos) took me to get home because I was having too much fun. 

Potawatomi Park

Winter Riding Gear. 

• Ski goggles are crazy nice - I highly recommend them in cold weather riding
• I rode with mittens for the first time yesterday - my fingers were toasty warm and I will definitely use mittens again when it's really cold.
• Shoe covers - I have some generic neoprene shoe covers.  I'd like an upgrade to something a little warmer.
• Fenders - don't have them.  Need them.

That's all for now...