Riding west on Hamblen Road I looked to my right above the trees at the dark sky. Not again, another rainy Monday. I was on my way to the Spring Creek Greenway for today’s bike ride. A person commented after I rode the greenway the last time that a new section opened to the west. I wanted to bike there and check it out. I left home at 9:54 AM riding my Canyon Endurace bike. I shortened the beginning of the ride anticipating some extra miles if this new section was there.

As I entered the I-69/US59 trailhead the dark clouds to the west looked threatening. I hoped to ride to Jesse Jones Park before it rained. Arriving at Jesse Jones Park the rain held off and the sky to the west looked less threatening. Maybe I missed the rain. Back home it rain as I found out when I finished at 2:02 PM and my home weather station recorded .18″ of rain. Not stopping on the greenway the dark clouds and wind dropped the temperature a few degrees. Around mile marker 4 to marker 5 light rain fell but with all of the trees not much landed on me.

I kept on biking through the Carter Park trailhead, John Pundt Park, and Dennis Johnston Park on the way to I-45 in search of the new trail. The greenway was dry except for a few low spot where puddles formed. Passing mile marker 15 I started looking for signs of the new section. My expectations drooped when I saw the sign saying the trail ended in one mile. Watch the video to see what I found out.

Not many people on the greenway today. A dozen or so bikers and maybe half that number walking or jogging. I passed two bikers on the way west and said hello. Later on the way back I stopped at John Pundt Park for a rest stop. I planned on staying 15 minutes but it lasted longer. As I was getting ready to leave the same two bikers pulled under the cover and got off their bikes. We chatted for a minute or two before I said goodbye and rode away.

After that I didn’t see many bikers. At the I-69/US59 trailhead I stopped and took this picture.

The 6 cars at the trailhead when I entered had diminished to just 2. The last half mile to the trailhead had more puddles than when I started so the rain that missed me fell there.

Normally I bike the greenway once a month but this month I rode it twice. Below is a summary of the rides there this year. The rides less than 48 miles did not go all the way to I-45.

Weather condition summary: start 77 (84% humidity, 72.1 dew point), overcast, wind S 5 mph; finish 84 (77% humidity, 75.6 dew point), mostly cloudy, wind E 9 mph.

With the cooler weather and maybe the threat of rain I set some personal records and other notable results according to Strava. The image below only shows a partial list of the medals. (Click on the image to got my Strava activity)