Lovely fall ride

As fall marches on the nice riding days are getting fewer and fewer. Of course I have team mates who ride all year long, regardless of the weather. Good for them., but it ain't for me. Once the weather turns cold and rainy/snowy the bike hibernates in the garage and I look to indoor sports for fun. But today was a beautiful fall day for riding. Temperatures were in the low 60's, it was mostly sunny, and the wind was only about 20 miles per hour. The wind definitely had an impact on my route choice. It was blowing hard from the southwest, so I headed straight into it down the White Pine Trail toward the ball park. It wasn't too bad until I got to some open stretches south of the ballpark. I was working real hard but then I crossed the Grand River and continued south through Riverside Park. Once I got to Ann Street in Grand Rapids I turned around and headed north with a 20 mph wind at my back. Now that was fun. I was barely pedaling and clipping along at 21 mph. In fact at one point I was matching the wind speed so closely that there was absolutely no wind noise. Usually when you ride there a buffeting noise in your ears from the wind. Even on a perfectly still day you'll hear wind noise as your ears cut through the air. But for a couple miles today it was quiet. I could see the trees moving around quite a bit but there was no noise. It was eerie and fun.

The Death Valley Ride to Cure Diabetes takes place next weekend. Good luck to all the riders, especially our team mates from West Michigan that will be out there.