The Quest for 20.7 Bike Ride went on the “Oakhurst – Valley Ranch” route because I needed 20.7 miles to reach my goal for November. This route usually is 26 to 28 miles long giving me the necessary miles. Today I biked 26.66 miles putting my November total at 366 miles, 6 miles over the goal. Year to date I am at 7777.3 miles. I hit 20.7 miles as I rode by the Oakhurst entrance on the frontage road north of Northpark Drive.

It wasn’t easy riding the 26.66 miles. The wind was from the NW at 15 mph as a front arrives in the Houston area. The temperature at the 12:29 pm start was 73 but it felt cooler with the wind chill. By the time I finished at 2:30 pm the temperature still was 73 but the humidity dropped from 65% to 36%.

Early in the ride I stopped on the Kingwood greenbelt trail and took this photo. Fall is evident with all of the leaves on the trail and ground.

With the strong wind even more leaves will be on the ground.

Fighting the wind required extra pedaling effort but the legs weren’t fully recovered from yesterday’s ride so the speed was low. I did manage get my overall average speed up to 13.0 mph and hold it there until I exited Valley Ranch onto the south bound frontage road. With the tailwind I picked up the speed and improved my average to 13.7 mph.

Wardrobe choice today was different. Acknowledging the high wind I wore shorts, short sleeve jersey, and windbreaker jacket. The jacket was important because the wind was chilly and cut through to my skin where the jersey didn’t cover at times.

Monday’s forecast: High 57 F, 0% Precip. / 0.00 in, Partly Cloudy. High 57F. Winds NNW at 10 to 15 mph. With the high below my cold threshold I will work on the Canyon Endurace CF SLX indoors. I plan on replacing the chain, rear derailleur (scratched badly when I crashed 11/7/18), and handlebar tape. The hardest one will be the tape, I think. My wrapping skill is about on the same level as my accuracy of patching a flat when I sometimes miss the hole. I will take before pictures of the factory wrap to guide me. I received a notice today that my replacement helmet cleared customs this morning and will arrive on schedule.

SportTracks Bike Ride Summary