(Almost) Every Day in May - LAST DAY

This is it! Today I made it to the end of May with a good ride. I went 19 miles -- from my house to Ashburn and back. This is what the bike rack looked like in Ashburn.

I took my bike into the store and asked them to have someone move the carts.  They did it very promptly.  Of course, the butt can is still an affront, but I figured I'd shot my "good" karma.

Not so bad going out but pretty hot coming back.  I'm still cooling down.

So, my total mileage for May is ...

135.84 miles

To compare:  DC to Richmond: 108 miles

Whew.

Time for a nap.

(Almost) Every Day in May - Day 30

I'm not riding today.  After yesterday's 30 and knowing I'll be doing about 25 tomorrow, today is a down day to let my ... body ... recuperate.

But I'm THINKING about bike things, so that counts for something.

Did you know that 85% of our trips we take by our personal cars are within 5 miles of our homes?  I realize some of those trips are very difficult to do by bike, especially those involving children and sports equipment.  What if only HALF -- 42% -- were done by some other form of transportation -- bike, walking, or public transit. Think of the most congested roadway around your house. Is it within 5 miles?  Now imagine the traffic there cut in HALF.  Yeah.

One of the biggest challenges to people using public transportation is what is called the "last mile" dilemma.  If the transit station is more than a mile (even half a mile) from people's homes, they won't choose public transport if the only alternative to getting there is walking.

But one can bike, easily, 1 mile. Heck, you don't even break a sweat going 1 mile!  Then lock up the bike and get on your way to your job, or wherever you need to go by bike or train.  OR, in our county, you can put your bike on the front of the bus, and during off-peak hours, you can take your bike on the train.

Planners have worked hard to give us lots of options for turning our "sitting" time into "active" time. It's our own fault if we're not taking advantage of those options!

Just my .02

(Almost) Every Day in May -- Day 29

Getting close!

We headed out this morning at 10 and went about 15 miles before we decided it was too blazin' hot to go all the way out to Purcellville.  The problem wasn't when and where we stopped -- it was knowing the last 10 miles would be on an area of the trail that has very little vegetation cover.

We had lunch in Leesburg.  Here's the crew:

Back Row: Nancy, Bunny

Front Row: Betty, Dina, Barbara

The last five miles were hard.  The weather guys said it was 86, but my car reading of the ambiant temperature said it was 93.  I believe the latter.  By the time we got to the last two miles, I was starting to get the shakes -- and had gone through two bottles of water.  I'm really glad we turned around when we did!

When we got to the parking lot, something exciting happened to Betty's back tire! She had placed it on her rack on the back of her pick-up truck and we all heard a sound like a shot!

Her tire blew out!  We had just come off the very hot trail, had been traveling at some speed, and I think when she started her truck and the exhaust started blowing out, it was close enough to the tire to superheat it and ka-blam!

Glad that wasn't on the trail!

So, 30 miles total for the day.  Whew!

(Almost) Every Day in May -- Day 28

Didn't ride today since I'll be doing over 40 tomorrow with some friends.

Fortunately, I drove to go to my tutoring job this afternoon instead of taking my bike.  The family wasn't home, and I would not have been as easy going about riding up there and back on the bike for no purpose.

The Monday holiday messes them up every time.  Sigh.

Photos tomorrow!

(Almost) Every Day in May -- Day 27

Today is my sweet girl's 19th birthday.  I celebrated by letting her sleep until noon while I went to get my hair cut.  When I returned I brought balloons that scared our parakeet!

We took a bike ride to the grocery store to get the stuff to bake a cake and while I took her to the fabric store, her dad baked it.

We tried to go out for Thai food to celebrate but our favorite restaurant was closed for Memorial Day.  We found someplace else to eat and celebrated with cake at home!

And, while we were riding to the store, we saw a fox disappear around a bend in the path ahead of us.  Big fluffy red tail with a white tip.

WIN!

(Almost) Every Day in May -- Day 26

Busy day today!  Church this morning and then took some meals people had brought to a friend recovering from surgery.

When I got back it was time to take the daughter to work. We have a system now -- I take her, with my bike on the car. From her workplace (only 2 miles away), I take off on a bike ride.  Then she has the car to come home at 10 and I get a bike ride.  We originally contemplated her riding her bike this summer to work, but I don't want her on a bike at 10 at night so this works well.

Still had a pretty stiff breeze today, but nothing like yesterday.  It took my muscles about 2 miles to get over their whining and complaining.  About 8 miles into the ride I realized my tires were low. Between that and the head wind I got a good workout!

Here is today's photo.  Can you see the deer?  Just pretend.  Come on, indulge me.  That darn thing stood there on the left next to the big tree for about five minutes just staring at me.  As soon as the shutter opened on the iPhone, he leaped off into the bushes, just before it clicked.  I hate that slow shutter response!  Argh!

(Almost) Every Day in May -- Day 25

Rode in high winds today -- but the big treat was son rode with me.  Well, sort of with me.  Mostly he rode ahead.  At one point on the trail we were being pushed sideways!

We did errands together -- office supply store for printer ink, cashed in a coupon for a free "naked cone" at a frozen yogurt place (I gave it to him for being a good sport and riding with me). Next we rode to the nearby town and dropped off a couple of things.

On the way back home, the son took off, so I called him and told him I'd just meet him at home. I went to the grocery store instead!

On our ride to the office supply store, we found this on one of the paths.  Sigh. If they'd just give us a target date of when it will be open, I'd be SO much happier!  This is inconvenient for cyclists, but it's life changing for people in wheelchairs.