Bib Shorts, Short Sleeves, Long Rides

Short sleeve jersey- ü
Summer weight socks- ü
Sunscreen-ü
Polar bottles-ü
Sports drink mixed-ü

I think I'm ready for the weekend! While it's not quite time to put the arm warmers, tights and full gloves away for the summer, it sure feels like it today as the mercury pushes 80 degrees and the sweet smells of spring are wafting through my open windows.

While Spray-on Tan Day  is coming a few weeks later than it did last year, I still suggest going with your darkest lenses over the next couple of days to protect seasonally sensitive eyes from the glare that is sure to be reflected off of the many newly bared legs that will be out on the road this weekend. Anybody with a tan line will be suspect. If you do have distinct tan lines, expect to be challenged and it would be prudent to be certain that your papers are in order.

This is always a challenging time of year for me and for many others. While I ride all winter, I'm not "training" as some of my more disciplined friends may do. Of course, I'm not training in the summer, either, but long days mean longer rides and more riders and, as we all know, where 2 or more of us join together, some kind of a race will usually break out. The past winter was, well, winter, unlike last year's fall-straight-to-spring transition, so most of us rode a little less and had more solo miles. The result for me was apparent last weekend when I joined a small group for a longish ride of 55 miles. I paid dearly for every ounce gained and every work-out ignored but, what the hell, all I can do now is try to get over it. I can ride with the many other fat, slow guys who will be struggling to ride as well as they imagined they did last year.
I did realize that I was still in the short-ride winter hydration mode. I seem to get caught out on hydration and ride food a couple of times each spring. Attention to the basic details of ride preparation will help you avoid some suffering.

Busted: I was bemoaning my winter weight gain recently as I scooped Caramel Swirl ice cream on to a piece of chocolate cake and Diane said, "Well, do something about it."
I thought carefully and let her know that I would have been feeling very guilty if I wasn't doing something about it. Since when was whining "nothing".

Go forth and ride.