Monday, June 5. Nervous in the rain
Well,about 5 minutes ago, at 8:30 p.m. I do believe that I saw something that resembled clear sky and perhaps the sun? Doesn't matter because it has since disappered and the grey clouds and drizzle has returned.
It didn't clear at all today although Diane and I managed to get a nice walk in just after lunch. I had done some sewing earlier in the morning as well as some office work. Bob arrived home shortly after 4 and we set out for a ride, heading towards Darlings Island. I had to stop by my friend, Judy's house to pick up some "donations" that she had collected for me from some of Holy Trinity's ACW and John's Girls. Thank you to Karen, Phyllis and Vi. On the way, the rain began shortly after we began the ascend up the Arterial. At first I was yanging because I had the rain jacket on and I felt that I was going to be too warm....not so, within 2 minutes the rain began and the jacket was just right. Driving on the roads close to suppertime isn't the greatest idea as there is more traffic and with the rain visibility isn not great. What is it with the driver's this year? They seem to have no respect for cyclists....they do lay on the horn, but unfortunately they DO NOT LAY on their brakes!! They zip by you and in most cases end up forcing the oncoming car over. Do they not realize that they should SLOW DOWN and wait for a clear opportunity to get by the cyclist?? As a cyclist I do respect the car and its' driver. I try to stay over to the edge as far as I possibly can. But, on a cyclist's behalf, our road bike tires are only 1 inch wide. They do not roll over potholes, bumps,sand, dirt or manhole covers easily. I am fortunate that my mountain bike experience has allowed me to hit the dirt when necessary and in most cases I can recover and stay upright. Tonight I was forced to the side by 3 cars and I hit fresh sand that had rolled down to the road from several driveways due to the recent rains. I slipped and slid through it figuring I was going to teeter over but managed to recover but not without a bit of a fright and hollering at a lady in a red van, calling her an asshole. It seems that women are the worst offenders!!! I am going to have to curb my outbreaks for when I am on the BFB tour!!
We stopped at Darling's Island Bike store and picked up two new water bottle cages and an adapter to put behind my seat. This should enable me to carry 4 water bottles at a time during our trip. Hopefully it will suffice?? They are suggesting that we carry a hydration packs (Camalback's) but I prefer not to. I used to wear one when I mountain biked and I found it just too cumbersome and hot. I can also carry two extra (store bought) bottles in my front saddle bag. Anyhow, when we left the store to head home the heaven's opened and the rain came. We had warmed up somewhat when we were in the store, so quickly got chilled. I stopped at the bottom of the hill to put on my arm warmers and it made a big difference. I warmed up almost immediately. I will admit that I did ride nervously in the rain, especially going down the hills. I am hoping that this fear will pass!! Perhaps it is delayed reaction to my fall 3 weeks ago??
Tomorrow is another day......perhaps the sun will shine??
It didn't clear at all today although Diane and I managed to get a nice walk in just after lunch. I had done some sewing earlier in the morning as well as some office work. Bob arrived home shortly after 4 and we set out for a ride, heading towards Darlings Island. I had to stop by my friend, Judy's house to pick up some "donations" that she had collected for me from some of Holy Trinity's ACW and John's Girls. Thank you to Karen, Phyllis and Vi. On the way, the rain began shortly after we began the ascend up the Arterial. At first I was yanging because I had the rain jacket on and I felt that I was going to be too warm....not so, within 2 minutes the rain began and the jacket was just right. Driving on the roads close to suppertime isn't the greatest idea as there is more traffic and with the rain visibility isn not great. What is it with the driver's this year? They seem to have no respect for cyclists....they do lay on the horn, but unfortunately they DO NOT LAY on their brakes!! They zip by you and in most cases end up forcing the oncoming car over. Do they not realize that they should SLOW DOWN and wait for a clear opportunity to get by the cyclist?? As a cyclist I do respect the car and its' driver. I try to stay over to the edge as far as I possibly can. But, on a cyclist's behalf, our road bike tires are only 1 inch wide. They do not roll over potholes, bumps,sand, dirt or manhole covers easily. I am fortunate that my mountain bike experience has allowed me to hit the dirt when necessary and in most cases I can recover and stay upright. Tonight I was forced to the side by 3 cars and I hit fresh sand that had rolled down to the road from several driveways due to the recent rains. I slipped and slid through it figuring I was going to teeter over but managed to recover but not without a bit of a fright and hollering at a lady in a red van, calling her an asshole. It seems that women are the worst offenders!!! I am going to have to curb my outbreaks for when I am on the BFB tour!!
We stopped at Darling's Island Bike store and picked up two new water bottle cages and an adapter to put behind my seat. This should enable me to carry 4 water bottles at a time during our trip. Hopefully it will suffice?? They are suggesting that we carry a hydration packs (Camalback's) but I prefer not to. I used to wear one when I mountain biked and I found it just too cumbersome and hot. I can also carry two extra (store bought) bottles in my front saddle bag. Anyhow, when we left the store to head home the heaven's opened and the rain came. We had warmed up somewhat when we were in the store, so quickly got chilled. I stopped at the bottom of the hill to put on my arm warmers and it made a big difference. I warmed up almost immediately. I will admit that I did ride nervously in the rain, especially going down the hills. I am hoping that this fear will pass!! Perhaps it is delayed reaction to my fall 3 weeks ago??
Tomorrow is another day......perhaps the sun will shine??
posted by Unknown at 8:44 PM
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