Today’s ride was different since I was not riding by electric light but was wearing sunglasses. As a result I was able to see many sights that I could in the dark. I could see the red bud trees, Bradford pear trees and azaleas were blooming signaling that spring is just a few days away. In addition I determined that I am not in condition to ride heading into a stiff wind. While the wind was generally 10 mph the south the 23 mph gusts were another story. You can see on the speed chart that when I was riding south or southeast my speed dropped dramatically, sometimes in the single digits when a particularly strong gust came at me. Considering that it has been a couple of weeks since I rode this distance on the road bike I can see that the 13 – 15 mile MTB rides are not real conditioning events. With DST beginning in the wee hours tomorrow I can start putting more road miles on.

Temperature (IAH station): 77 degrees, wind 10 mph south, mostly cloudy skies. My weather station: 80 degrees, wind 4 mph east, mostly cloudy skies.

During today’s ride I saw two groups of other riders on FM2090 around the 21 mile mark. The first group of three were recreational riders and the second group of 6 plus one dropped rider were much more serious and faster.

I stopped two times to adjust my saddle. Last Saturday I adjusted the pitch of the saddle but I did not tighten the screws enough so when I started out today the saddle moved and I readjusted it. I did not get it right so I stopped two times to attempt to dial it in. My last attempt in Splendora was correct. The Motobecane Le Champion is a great ride and the carbon frame is smooth over the many bumps. I hope to ride 25 miles or so tomorrow.

I was thinking of going to the Raven’s Revenge ride in Huntsville but I calculated the fuel cost plus entry fee and changed my mind. With the run up in gasoline prices I suspect other people may be making the same decision.

March mileage update:

• March miles 108.15
• YTD miles 633.33
• 984 miles on Motobecane Le Champion since I purchased it

3-12-2011 Bike Ride Data and Map

Additional charts, weather and map.

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