Cycling

Awake at five thirty

This morning I set the alarm for five thirty, and I recharged my bike lights, head unit and more. I decided that if I felt good, and full of energy I would go for the group ride. I slept through the night and woke up feeling fresh, but I skipped the ride. I had a cold, and when I got better from the cold I was double vaccinated against the flu and COVID.

The Skipped Morning Ride

Some people would have skipped this morning’s ride because it was cold. The temperature was forecast to be minus two degrees celsius and with the wind chill factor, and regional differences it could have felt like minus 5°c or cooler. I skipped because the cold that has been annoying me for days is still around. Yesterday I was feeling much better and I had a big appetite,I thought it would be good to have another day of recovery.

Garmin Connect, Explore 2 and Instinct 2 Experimentation

Garmin connect isn’t as smart as I thought. I thought that if I used the Explore 2 with a heart rate belt, that I would get training status and training readiness. For a week I was tracking with the Explore 2 as my primary tracker. Data is missing. It’s a shame that it doesn’t work as expected because if I could wear a normal watch while cycling, rather than the instinct 2, then I would avoid tracking the same workout twice.

Thoughts on Cycling and Walking in the Age of the Car

I often walk between towns and villages and in so doing I notice how overwhelming cars have become. If you walk from a village to a town, you have to contend with busy roads. These busy roads are often like deep rivers. Sometimes you need to wait for several minutes before you can cross. At other times you notice that cars see you at a crossing but they don’t slow down in anticipation of your wanting to cross.

First Frost of the Season

During yesterday’s bike ride, at dawn, I noticed that grass near Grens was coated in a thin layer of frost. I also noticed that when we cycled in some places it felt much cooler than in others. I also felt the paradox of thicker gloves, and colder fingers. It seems that the thin gloves are more effective. I noticed the frost because of a conversation people ahead of me were having.

On Raclette, White Wine, and Group Rides

Sunday bike rides are not as common as Saturday bike rides so when I committed to the Eysins Raclette event I thought it wouldn’t matter. I didn’t count on having a Sunday bike ride. Before a bike ride I like to have a high protein, high carbohydrate meal. I like to have plenty of energy to burn the next morning, in the hope that my endurance will be good enough to last for the ride, with some bars or gels along the way.

A Spontaneous Ride to Mont Tendre Following the Wrong Route

Yesterday I hesitated to wake up to go for the Coffee and Croissant loop. I decided to go anyway. This ride was at a relaxed pace. It’s amusing. When I left home I could see a beautiful sunrise, with nice light, and clear skies. By the time we started the ride mist had come up and we were riding through humid clouds. It was so wet I saw drops of water falling from my glasses as they condensed during the ride.

The Up and Down Flat Ride

Yesterday I went for a bike ride. When I looked at the route I thought “this looks like a nice calm, relaxed ride. It wasn’t. I rode with group 2, which is a fast group, going uphill at 20-40 km/h on certain segments. You might look at a cycling route and think “this looks flat, it doesn’t go to the top of the Jura” but don’t let that mislead you. When you’re riding at the foot of the Jura it’s easy to climb, and then descend, and then climb again, and then descend, and then climb yet again.

A Cold Morning Bike Ride

Yesterday morning I felt a little under the weather so I considered skipping the 07:00 ride. I didn’t because I thought that I would regret not going, if I did not go. In the process I got to ride with the autumn/winter tyres and this time they felt less laggy than before. Two days ago, when I was ready to go for a ride I noticed that the tyre was flat.

A Bike Ride and Noise Pollution

Yesterday afternoon I heard some very loud banging. I thought that it was due to an idiot driving a farming machine into something solid and they were trying to fix the damage. As it continued it made me furious. It’s for this reason that I decided to spend the rest of the afternoon on my bike. When I rode by the absurd people making a huge amount of noise I saw that they were hammering at the bed of their flat bed truck.