I walked out the door a little after 10 am planning on starting today’s bike ride but it started to rain. Waiting a few minutes thinking it would pass I went back inside but it kept raining so I decided to finish watching today’s stage of the TdF to give the rain time to stop and the streets to dry off. Checking the radar the rain was located just in Kingwood around me. After the stage ended I got ready again and left at 11:24 am.

Thanks to the rain (.04″ was all) it was nice and humid but the temperature dropped to 88 so that partially offset the stickiness.

The plan was to ride the “Kingwood – Hare Cook Road – Kingwood” route for 40+ miles but looking at the sky to the south and east I had my doubts that I would ride that direction and not get wet. But as I rode the route the dark clouds dissipated and I stayed to the plan biking 43.4 miles. Although the wind was mostly calm near the end of the ride during the stretch from Fairlake Drive to Hare-Cook Road I felt the wind resistance and the watts on the Elemnt computer stayed above 200 for most of that time. On Ramsey Road another cyclists approached from the south and we exchanged waves. I suspect his car was the one with a bike rack at the church on Fairlake Drive.

Earlier on Fairlake Drive a dog chase happened with a white and brown pit bull looking dog running beside me but not being too aggressive. My main problem with the dog was his trying to get in front of me and my running into him. I sped up and he stayed to my left for about 150 yards when he tired of the chase and peeled off to the left and into the grass.

Once I turned onto Nelson-Wilson Road the wind was blocked most of the time by the trees to my left and allowing me to pedal easier but keep the same speed. At Hare-Cook road I turned right and from there the wind became a tailwind to the finish of the ride.

Stopping at the Valero station north of Hare-Cook Road on FM 2100 I refilled my water bottle and headed to the Huffman Chevron for a longer rest stop. I arrived there about 1:40 at 30.8 miles into the ride. Sitting in the shade I cooled down, drank plenty of ice water and ate the Clif bar I brought. When I went inside the store for ice and water it felt very cold and I hurried back outside. About 25 minutes after arriving I got back on the Stradalli Red Pro 14 and began the last 11+ miles to finish the ride. The wind continued to be from behind and I made good speed to finish at 2:58 pm.

Supposedly the rain chance decreases tomorrow (Wednesday) and I plan on riding though it will be shorter ride.

Link to RideWithGPS.com