Super Bowl Sunday ride

Today's ride went great, we finally got some sunshine!

I started out this morning feeling a bit sluggish but pounded two huge mug fulls of the legendary Brazillian Bold at 7-eleven, this brought me back to sanity as I basked in the sun for a minute.

Yes I know it's Super Bowl Sunday. But I ride bikes. Watching the Super Bowl means drinking beer , eating chips and junk and getting fat. While I've had lots of fun at Super Bowl Parties, I needed desperately to ride today, and then just bask in the reflection of that afterwards.

It also means commiting to the endless bombardments of advertisers. When I was a kid, my father was a very talented golfer, so it was required that we watch Jack Nicklaus. Nowadays, I will watch a tournament, but find the twenty minutes commercials from the Pfizer corporation a bit depressing. Back then it was Miller Beer, definitely more upbeat, at least.

The wind was the factor today, steady, about 15 mph. I ended up overdressing a bit, and had to take the pile vest off and strap it to my fanny pack. Now I looked more hobo-ish.

I thought my hands needed glove liners, but it turned out just a regular pair of ski gloves was fine.

My garb is not high-tech, but lately I have been leaning toward an "Entrente" windbreaker that I've had since I was 18. I bought it for a winter trek across the New Jersey Pine Barrens.

It's a Japanese knock-off of Gore-Tex, and I notice that while it's not waterproof, it definitely stops the wind chill better than a single layer pullover, and it does "breathe' better. It's more of a hiker's windbreaker and not aero at all, but I don't care, because, to me, in winter it's more about comfort anyway. I just don't feel like spending 500 bucks on cold weather bike gear, I'd rather buy a nice pair of Gore-Tex waders for fly-fishing.

Here's the full list in case you find this utterly fascinating:

-heavy wool socks, (two pairs, one dry pair)
-bike shoes
-neoprene "booties" (dorky as hell, but definitely help a lot)
-cycling shorts
-pair of Nike "wind pants" these are really great, they're black nylon and "crinkly", probably from the 80's, you can find them all the time at thrift shops. Again not bike-ish or aero, but stop the wind incredibly well, very warm and durable. Four bucks.
-cotton undershirt (yes I know what you're gonna say, but I don't care, it was fine)
-heavy fleece pullover, Old Navy.
-mid weight fleece vest over the pullover (taken off, not needed)
-windbreaker,
-Thinsulate ski gloves
-polypropylene "beanie" under helmet, bandanna under that.
-A "toque" or neck warmer, these are great to leave around your neck but then cover your face as needed on descents. And sometimes you suddenly need this coverage.

Made from a remnant of spandex pant leg. Heavier ones made from a polypro pant leg

I don't like balaclavas or face masks, they get "clammy" and your breath will fog your sunglasses . You can cover just your nose and cheeks, leaving your mouth fully exposed, when you do this, it will warm your whole face.

I also liberally coat my face, ears, fingers, and toes with "Bag Balm" which is lanolin. I have absolutely no windburn whatsoever as I write this. My face feels fine! Find it at CVS.

I rode with three other riders from the 'hood. Pete, Malinda, and Sue. We stopped at Lasalette park to enjoy the sun for a bit. Pete and Malinda decided to engage in a wrestling match while Sue tooled around with her new camera.

I decided to stretch and "ventilate", taking off almost all my layers except for a T-shirt and the wind pants. I was able to sit in the doorway of the old abandoned Andrew Wyeth style farmhouse, and get a sun tan! I should sleep very well tonight, my body's clock has been re-set.

If you sit in the sun for a half hour, you get a whole weeks' worth RDA of vitamin D. Amazing.

It was almost 60 degrees in this entrance way, I've done this before, many times, even when it was colder. The configuration of the building and the angle toward the sun are just too perfect. The inside of the foyer is painted white, and that helps. It's a beautiful old stone building, they're trying to restore it into something. It's interesting, watching the surrounding property slowly revert back to secondary growth. A bunch of crows were hassling a hawk.

There were chickadees flying around. They are my favorite bird. They are always out in the harshest weather, singing and frolicking, while other birds are holed up.

After trudging up a few hills and getting slowed by a headwind coming out of a large office park,
(but your face was right into the sun so it was ok)

...We finally got a break. Because Talcott mountain now shielded us, we pretty much had a tailwind most of the way home. Hammer down!

This was a gradual descent back into Bloomfield on route 187. We flew, using our big rings. We had "paid out dues" somewhat, now we were rewarded. The wind stopped as we entered a sort of hollow in the terrain coming down 185. We went even faster.

No cars on the road, everybody was getting ready for kickoff....

The best sensation of the whole day was remembering I had a fresh slice of lemon and a slice of lime in the last remnants of my water bottle. That last slug as I came around the corner near my house was just too awesome.

I am inhaling a giant macaroni mexican casserole with ground turkey. It's the sort of meal you would make in a campground, very simple, but restores all your capillaries...

Taking a hot shower was the ultimate. I am in a very good mood right now. Maybe a hot bath, some stretching, and I will be comatose for a full ten hours...

Peace out










-helmet...