In Which a Cold Wind Blows on a Spring Day

Snow in a parking lot--not all is melted yet, but spring is still coming on.

So, this week wasn’t stellar in the biking department. I rode Monday, and then again on Friday—cold rains in the in between days kept me off my bike.

The Friday ride was definitely the colder one. The temperature was around 40, and there was a damp chill in the air following the rainy week. A brisk wind from the northwest was an added feature of the day.

I noticed that the snow hills of the Rockwell-Collins parking lot, while they’ve shrunk to sad, short reminders of their former selves, had not completely melted by Friday. I wonder if they will be gone before next week’s rides, assuming the monsoon season allows for some rides next week?

Still, even if it was a chilly day Friday for a bike ride—especially on the ride home which felt even colder than the morning ride because I was faced into the wind—the day was definitely a spring day. Grass is green, birds are singing in the morning, maples are in bloom and a few buds on other bushes and trees are swelling. I noticed the first daffodils in bloom Friday—not in my yard, but still, in some sunny spots, the pretty yellow flowers of spring are already out. So the Friday chill, and the remaining snow hills, does not bother me all that much.

Grey Skies And A Windy Ride

What the sky looked like after I crossed the Cedar River on my way back home.  Heading north was much faster than heading south on this windy day, and it never did rain, at least not this afternoon.

 

I set out on an afternoon ride this Sunday, despite not really having time for it.

It was too windy and I was too stressed, but still.  Nothing like a brisk ride.

I headed south, into the teeth of a fierce wind.  I need some wind practice for RAGBRAI and today was perfect for that.

The sky was undecided. It would be blue, then grey.  I think they were having storms east of us that were sliding north, and we just stayed on the edge of the storm area.

I had planned to go south past Mt. Trashmore, but made slow progress, and shortly after I crossed the Cedar River, I decided the sky was getting too interesting.

So I caved and went home and got some work done after all.  Not as much as I should have, but somehow it didn’t feel wrong on a Sunday to spend some time enjoying the outdoors.  Just for the practice, I climbed Bowman Woods hill for no reason at the end of the ride—I’ll start doing that several times a week.

RAGBRAI hill training, you know.