I am finally back riding today. The last ride was Monday. After that ride I dropped the Stradalli off at the local bike shop, Bike Werks, to fix a clicking bottom bracket. Tuesday my wife and I went to Galveston for a day trip and relaxation. It rained most of the time we were there but it was enjoyable. On the way back I started sneezing and not feeling good and by the time we got home my sinus and head were in bad shape. This kinda worked out okay because the bike was still in the shop. Wednesday the bike shop called to give me the run down on what was wrong: bottom bracket bearing on the drive side needed to be replaced, head set was loose, rear brake loose, rear axle loose and the shifting needed adjustment. The bearings would take a day to get and since I was sick the timing was good. Thursday I was still sick. The bike shop called in the evening to tel the work was done but I didn’t feel good enough to drive there and said I would pick it up on Friday. Friday after watching some bike races I drove to the shop and picked the Stradalli. The cost was a very reasonable $64.94. Loaded the bike into the Wrangler and headed home.

Today I was feeling much better with the sinus almost back to normal. I watched bike races and then got ready to ride a shorter route, “Oakhurst – Valley Ranch”. I left home at 12:22 but as I rolled out the driveway and started to pedal I heard the chain rubbing the inside of the front derailleur. Not good. I planned on riding to Atascocita and Walden but I changed that plan to ride to Bike Werks to fix the rubbing. When I got there the store person said the person who worked on my bike wasn’t there today and he wanted me to leave the bike. Since I rode it there I didn’t have a way home and didn’t want to leave it and miss riding. After some talking he agreed to look at it. He took it back into the shop area and worked on it. He thought he had fixed it adjusting the cable tension and maybe the inside limit screw. I looked at and it didn’t appear to be fixed. I told him if it still rubbed I would fix but when I went outside it didn’t rub at all. I was wrong and I should have went back inside to apologize but I was in a hurry.

The bike performed great and I pedaled easily without the clicking or the rub. I could tell the difference with bike handling and ride with the tight headset, rear brake, shifting and rear axle. I don’t know if it was the fixed bike or my days off but I was able to ride smoother and faster.

I only stopped at the Valley Ranch Texaco for some ice and water. The wind was not a problem and I set a strong pace on the south bound I-69/US59 service road to Northpark Drive where I made a u-turn to ride into Kingwood through Woodridge Forest. I finished the ride at 2:20.

It is a good thing I reached my July goal before I got sick. Today’s ride added to my overage. I biked 818 miles versus the 765 mile goal.

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Home weather at the start and finish

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