Spring in January

For weeks I was mentally preparing myself for January. December had a few challenging winter rides, and  I even crashed on the ice a couple times during my commute to and from work.  Having commuted through last January, I knew the worst was still to come.  Or so I thought…

Water Break – Spring in January

January started off a little chilly, but then it got warm. Really warm. We’ve been in the 50’s during the day for a while now, and the extended forecast is for more of the same! There were shorts and knickers on today’s lunch ride. I finally stopped and rolled up my pants, because they became unbearably hot on the climb! Kristy and I even stopped for a few water breaks, drinking deeply from the bottle.

Continental Spike Claw 240

Back when it was winter a couple weeks ago, I ordered these Continental Spike Claws with 240 studs per tire. They arrived at the Bicycle Authority about the same day I bought some new Sorel snow boots, which also seems to be the day it started warming up! So maybe this false January spring is all my fault. I’m still holding out for a horrendous blizzard so I can try out the Spike Claws. Otherwise they will sit unused on the shelf until next year.

V&T Bike Path – January 2005

I’ve been taking pictures and writing of the lunch rides since 2001. It’s always fun to go back and see what we were doing in a particular month of any given year. As you can see from the picture above, January can go either way! Winter of 2005 was a pretty tough month, and I wasn’t even bicycle commuting back then. We were just trying to get a few miles in for exercise, but there was very little to ride.

One good thing about this weather, is that Jeff P has decided to plan an Iron Mountain ride for this Saturday! Expect to hear more details from him soon.