My Most Recent Ride 2012 (Part V in a series)

Best way to improve performance: Ride it! Don't concern yourself with what could be. Pay attention to what it is and go from there. Short of an unsafe condition, never let circumstances dictate when you ride. Instead, you dictate the circumstances. You are the Master/Mistress. The bike is an underling. It must do what you command, upon penalty of For Sale.

 

It's not do'n I'm talking about.....it's the forever not so smart in the heat
of summer everblasted stupid overdo'n

 

I passed the first thousand mile mark with a trailer full of groceries.

 

Now that is smart

 

Overdo'n will put ya down n off-wheels in a hurry, maybe even off in a ditch. Gotta know limits n recognize signs of What the H am I Doin' Out Here; Momma Taught Me Better.

 

Let's ride. Exploring another section of Greene county now---with the group.
Ottway this is a huge county.

 

Performance

Yeah, I know and it does the best it can with what I want it to do. My problem, is the poor thing doesn't have a low gear low enough to get me up these TN hills very well and on top of that I spin out once I get in top gearI love the size of the bike...I just need to get more out of it but the Bike E just doesn't have it in it...
I'm thinking of changing the shifters & the cassette out as well as getting some new rims and high pressure tires put on it. Maybe some Maybe that will increase its performance.

 

Trailer

Hey that is great...what kind of trailer do you have? I may have missed it when you mentioned it before.

 

Rode 14.9 miles today. I am not going to talk about the brutally hot weather this time! Everyone makes fun of me!

 

I don't think you have to talk about how brutally hot it is...I think most people can feel it when they step outside or out of the shade. Temp hi today is to be 96° w/heat index of 100°. I think most people aren't making fun (except Buddy) but rather speaking out in disbelief that you would willingly go out in the heat and then complain about it. Why don't you ride before work when it is cooler? After work would suck unless done much later. Knoxville becomes a concrete heat island during the day, with the SUN beating down on the blacktop and concrete all day, they become excellent thermal retentioners which only intensifies the heat.

 

Keila, you missed one. Get a real job so you will have a boss that will
keep you working and off that stupid looking bicycle.

Oh, BTW, I took your friends on a tour of the west area of Greene county.
It was wonderful. Started at Stuckey's located exit 30 (I-81).

Took Lonesome Trail to Horton Highway. A few miles and left on Mountain
Gap Road. It was a beautiful fun ride and a lot in the shade. Your friends
liked it a lot and want to put it on the schedule. Well anyway, we took
that road on in to Baileyton and I knew of a nice little hidden restaurant
with a real nice cold air conditioner. I rode right up to the door over the
gravel with my big 1.5 Marathons and your friends had to get off and push
their skinny tired Madones and Light Speed. Couldn't live like that.

Nice brunch. Your friends don't get embarrassed by all my shenanigans.
They say if you can't take a joke...."the **** with it".

This ride would make a good one for you to come up and bring all your
recumbent friends. I could turn this into a 30-40 mile fun ride...in cool
weather.

 

Morristown Ride

I'll hold you to that...after all the Morristown ride I've got on my summer ride program schedule will have to be led by you and/or Dave, since I don't know the area that well and it is a good time for others to get up your way to ride with you guys and Mickey.

 

Burley plastic tub with seatbelts and 16" wheels. I wanted a plastic tub instead of fabric for my cargo, but I did not consider doorway widths when I bought it. After I empty it I carry it vertically.

 

53 miles

Aaron, Ray and I rode 53 miles this morning, mostly flat and fast. I was on the Corsa and the other guys were on roadbikes. We got a 6 AM start to beat the heat and made it back by 10. We averaged 17mph for the trip which was pretty good for us.
BTW Jon, I am getting faster, and had them out-gunned on the Corsa. I had to slow down occasionaly for the roadbikes, had we been in the hills it would have probably been a more even contest!

 

Aah...sounds like you gave them a good run for the money eh? hahaha, nice mileage and good report...