Shade was at a premium on today’s ride on the “New Caney – Gene Campbell Road” route. It was hot today with 98 degrees and scattered clouds. I was in the sun most of the ride. The wind was from the SW which means hot and dry (for Houston that is). It sure felt good to take a break at the Cumberland Shell station sitting under the pump island roof. Occasionally a nice breeze would blow through and cool me.

My timing was off today. Of the 12 to 15 traffic lights on the route I stopped at most of them. There was a stretch on Loop 494 and FM1485 where I had to stop for four lights in a row. This breaks up the momentum and rhythm of biking. On FM1314 after leaving the Shell station on the way to Porter I stopped three out of four and the fourth one was red but I did a right turn on red.

Not too long after I started riding (I left home at 12:06) an alert popped up on the Wahoo Elemnt for an incoming text message. This is the first text I received on the Elemnt. This is quite a contrast to the Edge 520 which is supposed to have the same feature but I could not get it to work since I changed from a Nexus 6 to a Nexus 6P phone and several Edge firmware updates. I am impressed with the Elemnt. It performed perfectly today. The cadence sensor kicked right in as I rolled out the driveway and pushed the start button. There are many features I need to learn more about.

On Gene Campbell Road a Stephens Transportation 18 wheeler almost forced me off the road as we rounded a bend. He should have waited for the oncoming traffic to pass but he was in a hurry to get to the Walmart distribution center. I rode on the very edge of the asphalt and I could reach out with my left hand and touch the trailer as it went by. Normally the trucks give a wide berth when they pass.

The rest stop at the Cumberland Shell came at the 23.6 mile point of the 38.1 mile ride. I needed to refill my water bottle, drink some Gatorade and eat a couple of snack bars. The Wahoo Elemnt screen and weather while I was there.

It was 1:48 when I stopped at the station. It was hotter at my home weather station than the screen shot above.

With school out I didn’t need to time my departure from the station to miss the traffic. I think I was at the Shell station for about 36 minutes. Making my way through Briar Tree, Oakhurst and Kings Manor was not a problem except for the wind was mostly a headwind. My legs were slowing down but once I was in Kingwood I changed to a larger rear gear to ease my effort. My speed dropped and this pulled my average speed down but I needed the relief. I stopped at the mailbox at home and stopped the ride at 3:32. I think I drank close to a gallon of fluid during the ride but my mouth was dry as I made my way to the garage. There was enough fluid in me to cover my arms in sweat. I did wear wrist bands today and they were soaked when I stopped at the Shell station and at the end of the ride.

Tomorrow will be another hot day. I will probably ride a shorter route.

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