Cold & Wet

There are some things I like to be cold and wet. Diet Dew, for an example. Bike rides, thank you but no.

I managed to ride all last season without really riding in honest to goodness rain. It sprinkled, it misted, but it never really rained on a ride.



Tonight's Trek ride was the end of that lucky streak. When we were about as far from the store as the ride was going to get, it started to rain in earnest. And hail a little, though I only got nailed by a few hail stones, and they must have been small.



It was 58ºF when we departed and that temperature had easily dropped by ten degrees when the rain had started. 48ºF isn't bad for riding, really, it's virtually sweatless workout because your body stays cool enough to not need much perspiration to happen.



But rain evaporating off your bare arms as you ride at ten to twenty miles per hour, that's a frosty experience.

That last left-hand signal, as I lifted my arm I realized it was mostly numb, it felt like it would if I'd had it in a full sleeve ice pack.



Plus, I couldn't really see because my glasses were fogged and soggy with droplets. Plus, I didn't trust the traction of my tires.



Roger respoked my rear wheel, and he did a kick-ass job of it, too. And being the perfectionist he is, he Armor Alled the rubber when he put it back together. Which looks killer, but when it started to rain, I realized that newly wet pavement is the slickest kind. And while I'm sure I'd worn the shiny stuff off the main tread of the tire, I wasn't keen to do any leaning in turns.



The storm was fairly ferocious, winds had to have been over 30 mph out of the north, winds that took 10 mph off my downhill speed coming down Switzer from Edgewood, when I really wanted to go fast because there wasn't any turning to do and I wanted to get the hell back to my car.



I'm sure the rain didn't do any good to my new bike decals (I've added some more, and there's more to come, I'm sure). The label stock I use isn't so flimsy it just melts if you get it wet, but it's not weatherproof.



If anyone wants to joint me and Roger tomorrow for the Brewery Ride, I think we're planning to depart at 5:30, a full hour ahead of the official group. See if we can at least get to Somerset before the Animals overtake us.