In my continuing quest for route variety I reversed one of my usual routes and rode it backwards, not the bike but the route. This gives me the opportunity to keep focused on the streets to turn onto rather than just mindlessly riding a route and not noticing what passes in front of my eyes. When I reversed today’s route I wasn’t able to go the same exact route because of the one way service roads I ride in the other direction but it was close. I ended up with 28.34 miles at a 15.1 mph average speed. I rode through Oakhurst and then Valley Ranch coming out on the southbound US 59 service road. I am chipping away on my March goal of 581 miles reaching 361.13 miles after today’s ride. Year to date increased to 1042.71 miles. Links to RideWithGPS.com and Garmin Connect maps and stats.

When I reached Porter I stopped at the Star Stop Exxon to get a Diet Pepsi ($.99 for large fountain drink). I was drinking while leaning against one of the pumps when a small foreign gray pickup pulled up not too far from me. Tom, the driver, called out telling me to ride for him. He said his back and limbs don’t allow him to ride now but he had rode the MS150 17 times and hoped to try one more if he could. He also told me he and his sons used to build up bicycles from low to high end ones and that even won a bicycle once from KPRC channel 2 in Houston. When he went to the studio to pick it up he told the people he wanted the ladies in the front and the men in the back.

Before and after Tom stopped I was having a flashback to the 1950’s when I used to sit on Grandmother’s front porch in a glider overlooking US40 west of Zanesville, Oh, and watch the cars and trucks drive by. Sometimes my cousins and I would make some game about what we saw. Today the traffic on US59 buzzing by brought back the same memories.

Then when I was just about finished at Star Stop I got a phone call from a customer I’ve been working with for months telling me they were going to email a purchase order to me by the end of the business day. So it was an interesting stop in Porter.

The weather was beautiful today with partly cloudy skies, a light 5.8 mph west wind and 89.8 degrees on my home weather station when I finished. I again wore a long sleeve jersey for sun protection but I think the leg warmers might be done until the fall. Tomorrow might hit 81 degrees and still no rain. There is a 40% chance on Friday though.

I delayed my ride because I watched stage 1 of Volta Ciclista a Catalunya ESP where it was much warmer than yesterday’s Milan-San Remo race in Italy. EuroSport coverage continues tomorrow.

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