59* in May....what?

As soon as Neil got on the bus this AM I headed out for a ride. I stayed local..... I'll probably do that for a while. I like the local ride here, it's pretty, there's no cars to worry about for most of it, and there are a lot of options if I want to keep going.

Yesterday it was aprox. 90* out. This AM we woke up - and I was sending Neil to school in long pants, a tee shirt and a sweatshirt over that! It's 59* outside! WTF? It's MAY 26TH! I mean, I am a lover of cool weather - I really am.... but this is just weird!

The weather says it's supposed to storm off and on all day, so, since it wasn't raining when Neil got on the bus I went out. The sky was spitting here and there but nothing constant so I kept going. I could have gone more but it really started to come down heavier and I didn't want to have to ride home in the rain and get my bike wet & stuff so I headed back. I ended with 30 minutes and 4 miles - not too shabby! It's still 464 calories burned.... which is good cause I'm making London Broil tonight. It's been marinating in the fridge since Friday...gotta cook that baby today!

I guess because it's 60* out I didn't sweat as much as I normally would have in 90* typical May weather.....I actually came home with cold hands and a cold nose! The lack of sweat is making me feel like I cheated.... ya know?

On my way into the neighborhood I saw in someone's driveway leftovers from yesterday's yard sale with a sign that said "FREE TOYS TO A GOOD HOME" Among the pile was a little toddler bike with a handle on the back for me to hold onto/push. I passed it at first and then went back and grabbed it after my ride cause I figured, hey, it's free.... he needs to learn to pedal & stuff and it could be fun! So, yep. He'll have a surprise waiting on the porch when he gets home. Of course it'll probably be raining when he gets home but...... maybe tomorrow.

One day coming up I want to take my camera with me and grab some pics of my ride too. I need to get pics of Freedom Park anyway for the Handmade Faire, so, double duty :)

Medford's Bike Pat

I found a whole other side of Medford's bike trail today that I didn't know existed. From my house to the end there is 1.9 miles, so that's 4 miles round trip aprox. I wish it were longer but the good news is there's lots of quiet streets to explore around there. I did the bike path, doubled back, went through the elementary school's parking lot and picked up another part of the path and went around. Then I headed back through Freedom Park, did that loop again and headed home. Once I got to my neighborhood I circled through the Catholic School and up to the firehouse which pushed me up to 6 miles! It took me 42 minutes, though I had a few breathers in there.

It's good though - I don't feel disgusting and sweaty until I stop and am at home..... I guess cause when you're moving you are creating your own breeze so even though it was 89* and I was sweating like crazy, I had a breeze. That goes a long way with me because I hate FEELING disgusting and sweaty. It keeps me from stopping for too long also hehe.

I like this trail though, there's a stream, some woodland.... and a nice paved path. It's not a straight line, there's some twists and turns but, I like it, and it's working for me. When Neil goes to school (he's off today for the holiday) it will be nice because I am still very local and could pedal home in 10 minutes from pretty much any part of it if I hauled butt enough.

There's also a canoe/kayak launch where I pass - I really would love to go canoeing one day! I love water related activities, and I love exploring the pine barrens and I think I could really fall in love with exploring the pine's in a canoe! I think that might be a treat for me when I get to some milestone of weight loss. We'll see. I gotta see how realistic that is, I have no clue how much canoe's cost and what's involved in taking them out!

Today's Stats:

42 Min

Trip: 6 Miles

Odometer: 18 Miles

Average Speed: 8.6 mph

Max Speed: 16 mph

Cadence: 60-75ish...though it did get higher. I have to guage this myself kind of and find an average, so I am estimating low.