Luctor et Emergo

Mike and I rode Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and Friday afternoon last week. We noticed that the sun sets around 8:00 and that it is pretty well dark by 8:30. The weather was good though, still shirt-sleeve warm. I used my urban bike – a Giant Yukon, hardframe with wide, treaded tires. I put some miles on the new saddle, hoping to retrain my right hip after riding on a canted saddle most of the summer.
On Sunday, Mike Steve and I rode to St. Adolphe, about a 70 k ride. It was a warm day, with the forecast for 30 degrees. We rode into a south wind, and back with the wind at our back. We were able to ride at about 25 into the wind except for some open spots where we got hit hard, and slowed down to 20, 15 on gravel. I used the Giant and was getting a bit tired by the end. I had been leary of switching back to my road bike after last Sunday, and I hadn’t wanted to ride it on gravel. I still managed to wipe out in soft gravel on the inside of curve near the bridge to St. Adolphe (minor rash, right elbow). We had a strong thunderstorm last night – broken branches, power lines down, some old elm trees knocked down. It had cleared by morning, and Mike and I rode to St. Francois Xavier. It was a pretty nice morning, light winds, which started to pick up near noon. We could really notice the variations in the storm’s impact as we rode, from the number and size of the broken branches on the road. The storm seems to have struck hard across parts of River Heights, Wolseley and the West End, with less impact further west, past Omand’s Creek. I rode my road bike today, and I didn’t have any more of that unpleasant tingling in my leg and side. I had raised the seat before the ride and raised it a touch more a few k into the ride, for a smoother feeling on the downstroke. I am pleased to say that I have managed to ride 70 k on each of two consecutive days. Mike was trying out aero bars on his bike. He rides in an upright position and has been pounded by winds. It seemed to let him tuck and ride much more efficiently into the wind.
We have a plan, involving a visit to my sister Joyce, in Portage la Prairie, in a couple of weeks. Portage la Prairie is 90 k from my house, riding straight out of Winnipeg on Portage Avenue to Headingley, and then switching to Highway 26 at the White Horse near St. Francois. We ride, there, have dinner, visit, sleep over, and ride back. We haven’t been sure how centuries on consecutive days will work. I am getting more confident.

So far this year I have made a 100 k + ride 4 times – as have Mike and Steve. St. Francois Xavier and Highway 26 on Canada Day, Niverville on July 31, the Muddy Waters Ride through East Selkirk and Bird’s Hill Park on August 14, and East Selkirk last Sunday August 28. In spite of rain, I have kept up with the distances I rode last year.
There have been some complications. I had an odd feeling in my right hip and a little pain in my right knee most of the year. I tinkered with my seat height and seat alignment on both bikes, and with cleat position before finally noticing that the seat on my heavier urban bike had actually worn out and canted down on the right. I realized that I had not been having those problems when I rode my road bike. I replaced the seat on the urban bike last week. I suspect I had mild bursitis in my right hip, from the uneven position of my hips on the saddle. Having fixed that – but not recoverd or healed yet – I ran into a new problem. I changed the stem on my road bike from a 70 mm extension to 90 mm. The next time I rode that bike – last Sunday, I had intermittent tingling in my right leg, radiating into my right arm. That seems to be a stretching issue, getting loose before getting on the bike, watching my posture, getting accustomed to the changes in my body position. I did a hard sprint up the Arlington Bridge, twisting my neck to look for overtaking traffic, early in the ride. That may have aggravated my sore hip enough to set off the tingling.
Live and learn.