16-Feb-24      FRI      Velo Vets Ride plus Ferndale Loop

I was thinking this morning, do I want to ride with friends on a nice ride or do i want to feel like I'm at the north pole tomorrow with no one I know? No brainer on that question!
 
BIKE: Neuvation   /START TIME: 8:38   /END TIME: 12:17   /AVG SPEED: 13.9   /MAX SPEED: 34.2   /CLIMBING: 1014   /MILES: 40.81   /MTD MILES: 421.16   /YTD MILES: 1024.64    
SKY: High Clouds   /WIND: SSW 9   /START TEMP: 60   /END TEMP: 72

18-Feb-24      SUN      Rode My Age in Miles +

Rode my age in miles, but the only problem is, I overshot. The good news is, I know exactly what to do when I turn 79!
 
BIKE: DFXL   /START TIME: 10:50   /END TIME: 15:14   /AVG SPEED: 20.2   /MAX SPEED: 39.1   /CLIMBING: 2149   /MILES: 79.59   /MTD MILES: 500.75   /YTD MILES: 1104.23    
SKY: SUNNY   /WIND: W 3   /START TEMP: 40   /END TEMP: 53

Saturday 2/24/24 WRL ride:
 
Participants: Lynn M, Butch Y, Don C, and me.
 
We got a late start, because Don was delayed by accidents on I-75 on his trip down to the lake from Allen. I led our small group out of Sunset Bay clockwise on the lake trail a 10:10 AM. We rode to the north end of the SoPac Trail, did a 180, rode to the Ridgewood Trail exit, then did a round trip to Glencoe Park. Back on the SoPac, we rode to the north end again, did a 180, then rode back to the lake and on to the Trinity Forest Spine Trail. We rode both branches of the Spine Trail, then rode counterclockwise back to Sunset Bay. After a break, we did a clockwise lake lap. Back at Sunset, Lynn loaded her trike in her SUV and left for home. Butch, Don, and I rode counterclockwise to the Green Spot for lunch and conversation. Following lunch, we completed a counterclockwise lake lap. I loaded up my trike and left for home. Don and Butch continued riding. Don wanted to get in 70+ miles. I got in 53.5 miles at a 17.3 mph average.
 
We did some fast riding and would have had a higher average if not for the heavy pedestrian, cycle, and motor vehicle traffic on the trails and roads. The first really nice weather for the year brought a lot of people to the lake.
 
The trails are finally free of standing water, so I rode my Greenspeed Aero trike for the first time since I replaced a failed power connector. I've been experiencing pain in my left knee since installing 150 mm unicyle straight crank arms and moving the booms in on my Catrike Speed and Aero trikes. Replaced the 150 mm arms on the Aero with curved 152 mm arms. No knee pain today. Yea!
 
Conducted a max speed test on the smooth asphalt of West Lawther today. Got the Aero up to 33.8 mph before spinning out in a 60T/9T gear combo (The Aero has a 28T/9T cassette installed on a Shimano Capreo-style rear hub to compensate for the small 406 mm rear wheel). I'm currently having a 451 mm rear wheel with a Capreo hub built up by John's Trikes and Bikes in Lancaster, TX. I'm going to install it on my Speed trike to improve its top speed.
 

24-Feb-24      SAT      South Loop Velomobile Solo

Was planning on doing the Toler Ride today but Michael and C decided to opt for a 10:30 start, Lyle planned on 8:30, and there was one other person who replied to Pam's email. With a potentially very small turnout and Lyle too fast for me, I decided I would just do a solo run on the velomobile. I enjoy that much more than a road bike ride when i prefer to get extra miles. I also decided there was no reason to start at 8:30 if I was going to do my own thing, so I opted for a slightly later start. My ride went well. While I was shooting for 50 miles it somehow turned into 60 - a mystery. Then I remembered that the round trip from my house is an extra 10 miles.
 
BIKE DFXL:   /START TIME: 9:24  /END TIME: 12:38   /AVG SPEED: 20.2   /MAX SPEED: 37.2  /CLIMBING: 1601   /MILES: 60.82   /MTD MILES: 641.96   /YTD MILES: 1245.44    
SKY: Sunny   /WIND:  WNW 5  /START TEMP: 55   /END TEMP: 72

Tuesday 2/27/24 WRL Clown Ride:
 
Participants: Daniel S, Larry K, Bob M, Lynn M, Butch Y, Don C, and me.
 
Daniel and Larry rolled out of Sunset Bay early and rode two lake laps and SoPac Trail up-and-backs together. Bob, Lynn, Butch, and I arrived early, but we didn't roll out until 10:10 AM because Don was running a little late (He drives down 75 from Allen). Bob led us on an initial lake lap and SoPac Trail up-and-back. After a break at Sunset Bay, Bob led us out on a second lake lap and SoPac up-and-back, minus Don who rode solo in an attempt to locate a lost ICE flag. Back at Sunset Bay, after we had gotten in 41 miles, Bob and Lynn loaded up their trikes and left the parking lot. Don located his lost flag near the dam and rolled into the parking lot in time to join Butch and me on our counterclockwise ride to the Green Spot for lunch and conversation. Following lunch, we completed a very fast counterclockwise lake lap with me in the lead. My max speed, heading south into the wind on the West Lawther flats was 29.1 mph. Back at Sunset Bay, Don and Butch rolled out on a final lake lap, while I loaded up my Aero trike and headed for home. I got in 51.8 miles at a 16.3 mph average. My max speed for the day was 34.1 mph, playing catch up, heading north with the wind on the smooth asphalt of West Lawther.
 
Perfect riding weather today. I was wearing my summer riding clothes. The trails were not as populated as one would expect on a warm day like today.
 
Good ride. No incidents or mechanicals.
 

27-Feb-24      TUE      CLOWN RIDE

This was the last of a string of nice days for a while. It is still February after all and still winter. So, while I was tired from yesterday, seemed a shame to waste a nice day by not riding. However, with my back having gone out Sunday, I was concerned about lifting the trike into the back of the van. As it turned out, nothing to worry about. Had no problem doing that. My back is actually much better which is a good thing. Rode with Larry and thought the wind would be much stronger than lately but while tough, it wasn't nearly as tough as Sunday's wind! Overall, got a good ride today. Glad I made the effort to head over to the lake again, this week.
 
BIKE:   /START TIME: 9:35   /END TIME 12:37   /AVG SPEED: 15.2   /MAX SPEED: 24.5   /CLIMBING: 1024  /MILES: 41.00   /MTD MILES: 769.87  /YTD MILES: 1373.35  
SKY: Cloudy, then Hazy Sun   /WIND: S 12-14  /START TEMP: 69   /END TEMP: 75

Saturday 3/2/24 WRL Ride:
 
Participants: Lynn M, Butch Y, Don C, and me.
 
We were shooting for a 10:00 AM rollout, but that didn't happen because the chain on Don's Sprint trike came off and wedged itself between the drive housing and the chainring. We rolled out of Sunset Bay with me in the lead at 10:20. The trail was heavily populated with pedestrians and cyclists. We made our way through them and once on the SoPac Trail put the pedal to the metal. We did a 180 at the north end of the SoPac and rode to the entrance to the Ridgewood Trail, which we took, and did a round trip to Glencoe Park. Back on the SoPac, we rode to the north end again, then back to the lake and on to the Trinity Forest Spine Trail. We rode both branches of the trail, then rode counterclockwise back to Sunset Bay. After a break, we rode a lake lap. Back at Sunset Bay, Lynn called it quits, loaded up her 700 trike, and left for home. Butch, Don, and I rode counterclockwise to the Green Spot for lunch and conversation. Following lunch, we put the pedal to the metal, intending to complete a fast counterclockwise lake lap with me in the lead. Somewhere between the Mockingbird underpass and the entrance to the Buckner underpass disaster struck. The chain on my Aero trike popped and the chain started rubbing on the frame. Inspection of the drivetrain showed that the power idler was missing. We turned around and rode clockwise in attempt to locate the idler and its axle bolt. No luck locating them. I was doing 24 mph when they came off, so they are probably somewhere off East Lawther in a grassy ditch. Good buddies Butch and Don followed me as I limped back to Sunset Bay with the Aero's chain chewing away at the trike's aluminum seat framing. Back at Sunset, I loaded up the Aero and drove home. Butch and Don rolled out, intending to do a fast lake lap. If not for the idler disaster, I was probably going to wind up with an average near 18 mph for 52 miles. Instead, my average was 16.7 mph for 49.3 miles.
 
Back home, I located a spare idler, some washers, and a spacer. All I need to install the replacement idler is an 8mm bolt and locknut from ACE Hardware.  

2-Mar-24      SAT      South Loop Velomobile Solo

Almost didn't do this ride. It was nearly noon when I decided to go through the motions of getting the velomobile ready. I still wasn't committed to riding. I checked the front tires and decided they needed to be topped off. I removed the left front wheel and got to looking closely at the tire tread. There was no tread but there were numerous places where the cord was showing. I decided i needed to replace the tire. Usually replacing a front tire is a huge ordeal and I figured it would completely derail my plan to ride. I decided to start the process anyway as I had a new tire in the garage. Amazingly, it was not an ordeal this time. Removing the old tire and putting the new one on and pumping it up took about 10 minutes! I guess I was still in business for a ride. I checked the right-hand tire, topped it off, and I was ready. The rear tire was fine. Looked like I would get my ride after all. It was a little past noon when I got underway. I was regretting starting out as late as i was because the air felt hot! There was a pretty stout south wind and once I started heading into it, it didn't feel as hot. That was good.  The wind felt great. At the same time, I was glad I wasn't on my road bike. As usual I took no rest stops. Time stopped of 7½ minutes was mainly from traffic lights and waiting on cross traffic at stop signs. I'm glad I got out for a ride as it felt good (once I got used to the heat).
 
BIKE: DFXL  /START TIME: 12:19  /END TIME: 15:05  /AVG SPEED: 21.2  /MAX SPEED: 40.5  /CLIMBING: 1519  /MILES: 56.06  /MTD MILES:  96.43 /YTD MILES:   1469.78
SKY:  Sunny /WIND: S 12-20  /START TEMP: 73  /END TEMP: 81