A View of Hay Bales At The Top
I waffled back and forth on today’s route. I didn’t make up my mind until the last opportunity to turn onto Fairlake Drive. I opted to ride “FM1960 to FM686 – Back” for the miles and straight road. It was hot but the clouds were moving around to cover the road in places. Whenever the sun moved behind the clouds I could feel the heat drop down a few degrees. The wind wasn’t much of an issue today barely moving the tree leaves. I was thinking of riding the “Fairlake Drive – May Park Community Center – Huffman” route but I didn’t think it would have as many miles as the “FM1960 to FM686 – Back”. Checking the ride summary on June 29th (after I got back home) it actually was further at 42.37 miles versus today’s 39.37 miles. I didn’t think to check the Garmin Connect app on my phone while I was riding for the distance.
After turning around at FM686 I refilled my water bottle at the Dayton Feed and Fuel store. On the way there I saw a field of freshly cut hay bales and thought I should take a picture on the way back to Huffman. At the top of the railroad overpass on FM1960 I took these pictures. (Click to enlarge them) The railroad overpass was nothing compared to the mountains in stage 11 of the Tour. For me, the flatland biker, the overpass is a tough one. I get out of the saddle about 1/3 of the way to the top to keep moving at a decent speed to the flat section above the tracks and enjoy the ride down the other side. I would guess the elevation gain is 30 to 40 feet to the top in about 2/10’s of a mile.
On the way to FM686 there was another field south of FM1960 with a tractor moving hay getting ready to roll it into those large round bales.
At 27.7 miles I was back in Huffman stopping at the Chevron station for a much needed snack and Powerade. I was sweating heavily and it took awhile sitting in the shade to cool down enough for it to dry up. The weather when I stopped.
After about 30 minutes at the Chevron I was back on the bike for the 11 miles to home. No other bikers on the route today. I was the only one crazy enough to ride in the heat.
Update: I tightened the rear derailleur barrel adjustment and the gear changes are back to the crisp 1 gear at a time. I am not sure how this loosened.
No biking tomorrow (Thursday). I am taking my wife to the Texas Medical Center.
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