Hot, Dry and Windy Bike Ride
This picture says it all about Texas biking in July: hot, windy and dry. Our appetite for ice must be high for the Stripes station to need a portable ice house. The Gatorade helped to hydrate and cool me before I took off to finish the ride.
“New Caney – Roman Forest Loop – Valley Ranch” route was my choice today. I checked my last ride on this route and it was 39.63 miles so I figured today I could add a little to it to reach 40+ miles. I added just enough to ride 40.14 miles bumping July’s miles to 421 towards my goal of 765 miles. I rode through Tavola using the loop I discovered and then into Roman Forest. By the time I got back to I-69/US59 I was 22 miles into the ride. It was hot and I needed to stop at the New Caney Mobil at FM1485 for ice and water. From there I rode to Stripes for a longer rest where I took the picture above.
The shade, Gatorade and food at Stripes helped me to recover for the 11+ miles to home. The Elemnt screen information when I arrived at Stripes.
The wind helped me to get to Roman Forest Blvd. but it was a strong hindrance on the return trip south to Kingwood. The 15.3 mph average speed I built up riding north slowly eroded on the south facing ride. During the ride I enjoyed the short rides in the shade. Roman Forest Blvd heading east put me in the shade for almost a mile.
I was slow to leave this morning (11:26) due to watching stage 11 of TdF but I got home sooner than I expected (2:49). So far I biked 127 miles this week, averaging 42.3 miles on each ride.
Hot weather and dry continues tomorrow so I will be biking. While I stop during a ride I have at least one person ask if it is too hot to ride. I tell them it is not too bad as long as I am moving.
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