Evening Ride... rainy version

Today is Thursday October 1 2026 and last night i rode my bicycle outside.

It was pretty amazing.

The forecast showed rain so i skipped the Johnny's ride and instead took my mountain bike down to the Crown Center water fountain and back. It's funny how things change, just the other day i was thinking my biking routes are getting stale but then last night i was thinking it was the best route ever.

The truth is somewhere in the middle but i did have a mini epiphany... there's something to be said for knowing every inch of your route. It allows you to go faster in a safer way. 

i was pedaling by around 6:20 and it hadn't started raining yet, which is key. Riding in the rain is much easier if you start before the rain. 10 minutes in the hat went on and 30 minutes in the jacket went on. Then the jacket came off, then it went back on, then it came off again and stayed off.

i think i was flying last night. 

Too bad i was riding solo because my head is getting pretty big and i'm sure a harsh reality check is in store for me at Little Sugar... but there is no doubt that my fitness exists. Last night i could almost do whatever i wanted, several times i looked down and was surprised at the size of the gear i was turning.

And let me just say, you haven't lived until you've hauled a*s down Main St. while blasting Brothertiger from your Bluetooth speaker.

After the ride i weighed 148.1 which i think is pretty light for 46 year old me. 

Little Sugar is 11 days from today but if i somehow manage to botch that race i'll still have the memories from last nights amazing ride to tide me over.

Pre Work Bike Ride... steroid version

Today is Tuesday September 29 2026 and this morning before work i rode my bike outside.

It was awesome.

Did i mention that last Sunday i got stung by a bee and had an allergic reaction and got prescribed steroid pills and some sort of cream? The allergic reaction wasn't life threatening but i broke out in itchy red blotches all over my body. It sucked. The bee stung my right ankle, which is still very swollen and fairly painful. i was curious how riding would feel and this morning i felt great (must be the steroids) so that's nice.

Hopefully the rain holds off tomorrow and i can do the Johnny's ride. 

Either way i'll have the lovely memories of this mornings ride to tide me over. Temp was 63 at departure, dew point was low, sky was clear, moon was mostly full, Bluetooth speaker was crushing, mountain bike felt great.

i didn't do the Tilford Gravel race last Saturday and its looking like i also cant make the Lawrence mountain bike race this Saturday but i feel pretty good in terms of preparedness for the Little Sugar race. i haven't ridden singletrack in a coon's age and i haven't done much climbing (two things featured prominently in the Little Sugar race) so i cant expect to set the world on fire but i also haven't been this fit in 5-10 years so im psyched to get on the start line.

And i think (hope) my swollen ankle will be a thing of the past by then.

Weekend Bike Rides...

Today is Monday September 28 2026 and i rode my bicycle outdoors twice this weekend.

Saturday i did the Rocky Route on the Mountain Bike (trails were too wet to ride).

Sunday i did the Crown Center Water Fountain route on the Mountain Bike (trails were too wet to ride).

i felt pretty good both days.

On Saturday i was pedaling by 6:15 on a very nice morning. This was the morning of the Steve Tilford Foundation Gravel race in Lawrence, KS which i decided to skip because of a rainy forecast. The race started at 8am and about 8:20 on my ride i thought to myself "wow this weather is just about perfect for bike riding", i did get rained on significantly starting around 9:15 but i had a rain jacket and was home around 9:45 so it was fine. Hopefully the racers had decent conditions.

i started this ride in the dark with a full moon present... which was bad a*s.

Later that day we enjoyed a nice evening outside while messing with Halloween decorations.

Sunday i had planned to ride during the chiefs game but i woke up early so decided for a short ride starting at 8:15. i went hard when i felt good and went slow when i didn't and by the end of the ride it felt like i was flying. 

Later that day i watched Brandon Mcnulty of the USA win the elite men's world championship road race!

Hot diggity!

Little Sugar is in 14 days so its time to start thinking about pulling back on the throttle. Having said that i plan to ride tomorrow am and then do the Johnnys group ride on Wednesday evening. After that i'll reduce things significantly before we leave for Bentonville on October 8th.

Bicycles!

Saturday...

Sunday...

Johnny's Ride... finished in the front group

Today is Thursday September 24 2026 and last night i did the Johnny's group ride.

It was great.

Every once in a while everything clicks and last night was one of those nights.

The weather was perfect. The entire day leading up to the ride was perfect. The food and drink prep was perfect. The legs were (ultimately) perfect. i finished in the front group.

10 riders started and i did some pulling early and then got dropped early but chased back on. My chase was epic and probably the most exciting 5 - 10 minutes of bike riding i've had this year, i rode smart, i rode aggressive, i rode aero, i cornered like a boss, i got lucky with the lights, i caught back on.

What a workout.

i think i got dropped again at some point but that time i caught back on quickly.

My 45 mile ride the day before probably played a factor in my early struggles but the longer the ride went the better i felt. There was power in there i just had to access it. For the last 20 minutes i was in the zone. i wasn't strong enough to entertain the idea of pulling thru but i was having no trouble following the wheels.

5 of us finished in the front group and we finished in the dark, which was exciting, nothing like hauling ass down Mission Road with blinking bike lights all around and cars coming and going to get your blood pumping.

Upon arriving home i took a sweet pic of my bike by our Halloween decorations... much more to come in that department.

This Saturday is the Steve Tilford Foundation gravel race but rain is in the forecast so i'm a maybe. 

After that it's time to cram in some quality time on my mountain bike because counting today the Little Sugar race is 18 days away.

Ohh baby.

Day off Bike Ride... do a wheelie for us

Today is Wednesday September 23 2026 and yesterday i took the day off work and rode my bicycle.

i'm not sure if i rode fast or slow or if i felt good or bad but i make the rules around here and i'm declaring that it was a great ride.

i did do 45 miles with very little stopping and that's not nothing.

At one point, while preparing to walk across the under construction 83rd street, i asked a construction worker for permission to cross and he said "sure come on thru, do a wheelie for us".

i said "i would if i could'.

Towards the end of the ride i realized that if i kept going as fast as possible i could make the 2:30 showing of Resident Evil at the Town Center AMC. So i put 'March of the Swivel Heads' on the Bluetooth speaker and hustled home where i took the worlds quickest shower, grabbed 3 small sticks of beef jerky and two granola bars, plus one coconut water, one protein drink, and two sparkling waters and headed out.

i missed the first 1-2 minutes of the movie but it didn't matter, the movie was totally bad a*s and gets two big thumbs up from me.

Tonight i'm planning to do the Johnny's group ride. Last week i had to skip it and the week before that i felt great but then got a flat, so i'm excited to see how i feel tonight.

Weekend Bike Rides... cx bike version

Today is Monday September 21 2026 and last weekend i rode my bike outdoors, twice.

It's all king of a blur... but it was good.

Saturday i did 61 miles on my cx bike and Sunday i did 23 miles on my cx bike.

This upcoming Saturday i'm hoping to do the 55 miles distance at the Steve Tilford Foundation Epic gravel race in Lawrence, KS so i figured i'd better spend some quality time on the cx bike first.

Saturday i was up early and i had to be very quiet because the not so little man had a few friends sleeping over and they were in the back living room right off the kitchen with no door between them and the rest of the house. i prepped the night before so i could quickly and quietly get out the door, it worked and i was pedaling by 6am.

Temperature at departure was 77 and it felt glorious. i did the Rocky route (i think i pushed hard, its a blur) and then happened upon the Bike MS ride going thru midtown so i hooked up with them for a bit. i ended up crossing the Bike MS route again and this time joined them for maybe 45 minutes complete with an aid station and official photos!

Ultimately i ended up close to Avila University before turning around for home. On the way home Andre from One Star Bicycle passed me so i turned around and rode with him and his wife for a few minutes before turning around again and truly going home.

With the exception of red lights and stop signs i didn't stop on this ride. No water stops, no bathroom stops, no coffee stops. Okay, technically i briefly stopped at the Bike MS aid station but once that official photographer took my picture i was out of there!

Riding unobstructed rural roads would i'm sure have served me better as prep for a 55 mile gravel race... but at least i didn't stop.

(i took no pictures of the ms ride or of Andre, but i swear they really happened.)

Later that day i saw a cool butterfly while walking the dog.

Sunday i was out the door around 8:30 am for a quick ride to Crown Center and back.

A cold front blew thru overnight and i started the ride with a wind jacket but that quickly came off because the dew point was still pretty high. Later in the ride it started misting and just like that it felt like fall. We had a very hot and very extended end of summer here in KC so hopefully that's done for the year. 

My legs were tired on this ride but there was still power to be had, it felt like the floor of my fitness had been raised and i could push one or two gears harder than normal.

Later that day i cooked some steaks on the grill and watched the Chiefs win in OT.

The Little Sugar mountain bike race is close, my fitness is good, i'm getting nervous!

Saturday...

Sunday...