After two days off I wanted to go for a longer ride. Choosing the route always presents a challenge so today I rode one I don’t do very often. It fit with the construction on the causeway over Lake Houston on FM1960 since I rode the east bound shoulder where the construction was supposed to be finished. Well it isn’t finished at least in a short section near the east side of the causeway. The shoulder was blocked for a couple hundred yards but fortunately traffic did not cause a problem while I rode in the main lanes. Once I passed that section the next construction popped up in Crosby on FM2100. I know the back streets well enough to get around the work zone from earlier rides so no problem. After getting through Crosby the roads were construction free all the way home.

The weather was hot (98 degrees when I got home) with mostly cloudy skies and variable breeze at 5 mph. Humidity is rather low for us at 40% so sweat was not quite as troublesome as other rides. I still was able to wring out my gloves when I stopped at the Shell station in Summerwood. This was around the 35 mile point so I took advantage of the McDonald’s $1 soft drinks to get a very large Diet Coke and ice refill for my CamelBak. This would carry me to the finish. When I left the station on W. Lake Houston Parkway heading north the tailwind or lack of headwind allowed me to kick up my speed to the 18 to 20 mph range. I think I finished the ride at a quicker pace from that point on. The route totaled 48.97 miles at a 15.4 mph average speed, 24.7 mph max speed, and 77.2 RPM average cadence. Riding time was 3:10:39 plus 44:37 time stopped. August miles now stand at 296.73 and YTD miles are 4231.69. Link to RideWithGPS.com data and map.

The last time I rode a route almost like this was May 14, 2012. The route was about the same distance but my average speed was 16.1 mph. The temperature was 86 degrees then which may account for some of the higher speed. The roads are okay bit there are stretches with rough surfaces and sometimes the shoulders are covered with dirt, gravel and sand. The sand can be tricky with 700 x 25 tires if it is very thick but I was able to get around those sections.

8-13-2012 Bike Ride Data and Map

8-13-2012 Cadence-Distance

8-13-2012 Elevation-Distance

8-13-2012 Home Weather Station End

8-13-2012 IAH Weather End

8-13-2012 Speed-Distance

8-13-2012 Splits-Time

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