A free weekend!

October 2010 had 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays! That's a whole extra weekend for biking. This is the first time this has happened since 2006. Not wanting to waste it our youngest and I rode to church, he on his Felt and me on the Austro-Daimler, we had the best parking spot there. That gave me 4.94 miles for the day. And that closes the books on October with 609.02 miles.

Late day errands.

I took the Felt to Bike Pedalers for a new light set, then rode to Menards for a few things for the house and grabbed a gallon of milk before I got back home. I saved a few dollars in gas, got to enjoy some time outdoors and had a lot more fun than if I'd have drove. Tonight's spin added another 18.0 miles to the odometer.

The Haunted Hustle.

Last night was the Haunted Hustle put on by Kat with help from SHECLISMO It was a well orchestrated race, and by far the biggest hustle ever held in Lincoln, it seemed like nearly everyone was there. We met up at Robbers Cave then began by racing to Camp Wilderness where we had to hunt for candy on a haunted bridge in the woods. Racers were then sent to the tunnel at 3rd and F st where we had to search through a kiddie pool filled with ramen noodles to find an eyeball before being allowed to continue to the old State Fair grounds where the No Coast Derby Girls were zombies quizzing us on state capitals. We then hurried into a headwind to the 27th & Capital Parkway tunnel to toss a severed head across the river of blood. Once we'd mastered that we went to the YWCA to be blindfolded and verbally told how to find our way through a maze by youth leadership girls. The last stop was Buzzard Billy's in the Haymarket. I came in 6th out of 50 and won a set of bike lights! This was a fund-raiser for SHECLISMO and they had raffle prizes including a new Globe bike that was won by Maggie! You'll see Amber is thumbs up after coming in first among the girls and Ian won the boys race. Yesterday's work commute and the Hustle totaled up to 41.78 miles for my Friday.

The Austro-Diamler's first commute, new Chrome bag & pot lovers.

The Austro-Diamler worked great on today's commute and felt right at home on the trails going across town. MWC called to say that the Chrome Mini-Metro bag I ordered had come in, so I stopped on the way home to pick it up. It was worth the wait. It is so comfortable, with plenty of room for my stuff. It's awesome! I was surprised to see some pot supporters set up with pamphlets and info encouraging voters to legalize recreational use.

Guess what I'm riding tomorrow?!?!

I've really loved the Austro-Daimler since I found it on the Lincoln Bicycle Swap Meet. Except, I couldn't stand the break levers. The hoods were small and the angle that you had to pull the levers was hard and awkward. I didn't feel safe enough on it to commute on, and that's what I was hoping to use it for.

So late last night I took it into Bike Pedalers to have it tuned up, new cables, bar tape and break levers. They said they'd work on it Friday and try to have it done by the end of the day Friday. They called early this afternoon to say it was ready to be picked up. Wow, that was quick! I rode it around a little and can't believe how smooth it shifts and how predictable the breaks feel now. It's awesome!

I had to work in Leigh today, so I couldn't ride. But I can't wait to take the Austro-Daimler to work tomorrow!

Nonstop.

Riding into work this morning I battled a headwind to downtown, then turned East and sailed to the office. I hit all the lights just right and literally never put a foot down on the ground from my driveway to the office door. When I did have to stop it was just for a moment and was able to balance for a second before taking off again.

By afternoon the wind had become ferocious, and I needed to get my pick-up home anyway since I have to work on the road tomorrow, so I drove without feeling too guilty. Today's miles = 10.1

The 6,000 mile Nacho Ride!

When I first started biking 3 years ago I read an article about a guy who rode 6,000 miles a year. At the time I thought that was amazing. Now I realize it's not, and that many of my readers and cycling friends get 6,000 miles every year.

But for some reason that number has always stuck in my head. 6,000 miles was my goal for 2010, and tonight at the shack 1/2 way to Eagle I rolled over the 6K mark for the year with a bang (Patches!). We stopped to celebrate then continued into Eagle where we ran into a few other biking friends. The guys decided to commemorate the occasion by dressing to the nines. They are always so fun and great to ride with. Tonight's accomplishment felt great, and gave us a chance to remember all the great times we've had riding this year.

There was a killer West wind all day that made riding a challenge. After riding to work and the Nacho Ride I ended up with 48.8 miles for the day.

Almost there.

The ride to work rocked with a nice tailwind. This afternoon I wanted to keep my mileage down and rode through neighborhoods straight home. Today's miles = 18.4

2010 Flatwater Cyclocross Race.

Races started at 10:00 this morning at Van Dorn Park. There were 6 different heats with things wrapping up at 3:30. They gave out over $2,000 in prizes and it was a blast to watch! Find out more at www.flatwatercycling.com I rode there and back for 11 miles today.

Fat Jack's coming to the Superior St. Trail soon.

Earl's closed over the summer and Fat Jack's is moving from Cornhusker to 56th & Superior. It'll be tough to ride by as they pump that BBQ smoke across the trail.

I needed to get my pick-up to the office, so today I drove over there, then pushed into a headwind getting home on the bike. Today's miles = 10.0