We’ve had a lot of rain the past couple of days, and today was the first day I rode to work this week. I worked from home on Monday due to a migraine, and then yesterday the forecast said strong storms with possible hail and I decided it’d be better to drive. Then it rained on and off throughout the day but not at all during my morning or evening commutes. It was frustrating because I definitely could have ridden — but sometimes it’s better to be on the safe side, I guess. I really don’t enjoy riding in the rain for the most part, or at least I haven’t learned to enjoy it yet. It can be OK if it’s warm enough that the rain won’t make me cold.

This morning it was raining, but I rode anyway. We’ve also been having a heat wave, and temperatures in the 40s and 50s since Saturday. 44 degrees this morning felt quite warm. I wore my cycling-specific rain jacket, which I had forgotten I had. It helped keep the water off my upper body, but my legs still got pretty wet. I do have some better pants somewhere but I couldn’t find them so they must be dirty. Still, I haven’t found optimal pants to wear when it’s raining. My ride really wasn’t as bad as I expected. One of my coworkers saw me riding in and gave me a look of disbelief, which often happens when there’s snow. But I’ll take snow and ice over rain like this any day. Of course I may get to ride home in some of that this evening, if the forecast is correct.

Still, I’m convinced I can find a way to be more comfortable in the rain. I need better pants and a hat with a visor that’ll fit under my helmet to keep the rain off my glasses and out of my eyes. The rain jacket works pretty well and even has detachable sleeves, but in practice if it’s raining I find I need the sleeves. However that jacket does not breathe much so if it’s warm it gets too hot — and the fabric sticks to my arms unless I wear a long-sleeved layer under it.

It was around 40 degrees on Saturday, and Sarah and I took advantage of the warmer weather to go hiking at Morgan-Monroe State Forest. We hiked the 2.7-mile Mason Ridge Trail, which was cool despite the fact that it crosses the road a few times. The downside was that part of the trail was closed for logging. The more I learn about (and see first-hand) the logging that goes on in our state forests, the more it upsets me. They claim it’s sustainable, but I’m not sure I’m convinced. We had a good hike though, despite that and despite the fact that we had trouble following the signs and maps we had.

It’s incredibly warm here now — it was around 60 degrees yesterday, with a high of 69 predicted for today. For January, this is insane. I took advantage of the warm weather to go for a bike ride yesterday. I chose the Ride Around Lake Monroe route, which  I’ve ridden once before. This ride also goes to the same area as Dr. T’s Funky Fifty.

Despite the warm weather, it was a pretty dreary day. It wasn’t raining while I was riding, but it had been earlier, so the roads were covered in water and grime. And it was overcast to the point where I wasn’t sure how well my camera would work. Fortunately, it did work. Anyway, I set out on Smith Road and took Moore’s Pike over to 446, which took me away from town. Traffic was light but winds were harsh, gusting to some 30 mph, and I rode into the wind for the first 12 miles of my ride or so.

Riding across Lake Monroe is always a highlight of any ride that takes 446 across the causeway. The lake had a weird blue-green hue, not the kind of green that makes you think of algae, but something a little brighter. Contrasted with the grey clouds and dark hills in the distance, the color of the lake seemed emphasized, and it looked almost surreal.

Lake Monroe had a weird blue-green hue

After Lake Monroe is a big climb that took a little more out of me than it should have. The lack of riding as of late is taking its toll.

Hill after crossing Lake Monroe

Limestone lines the road on another part of the climb

After that hill, 446 is pretty easy for a while, a little curvy but not very hilly. I took 446 to Chapel Hill Road, which is a fun road to ride on. At some point I realized that this route is roughly the same as the Hoosier Hills 60K route and for a while followed Dan Henrys. Chapel Hill has some rolling hills and a patchwork surface from workers patching potholes many times. For some reason I love riding on this kind of road more than roads with a perfectly smooth surface. It has a lot more character, each patch reflecting some part of the road’s history. It also makes things more challenging, choosing a good line, rather than ambling down the road without giving it much thought  — which is also great, just different.

I passed Krazy Joe’s Trading Post, which I’ve written about here before. I didn’t stop this time and I took some photos, but don’t feel the need to post more. For more about Krazy Joe’s, see my blog post Food, fiddlin’, and fun … plus caskets.

I rode further and the map didn’t match what I was seeing. To make matters worse, a number of roads didn’t have street signs. So, I got lost. Well not lost exactly, but I wasn’t sure what road I was on, or how to get to the road the map said to get on. I passed a church with a cemetery and a tattered flag, like so many flags around here have been since the winds hit a few weeks ago.

Point of view riding shot

Chapel Hill Pentecostal Assembly

Tattered flag

I took what I later determined to be a wrong turn and started noticing a weird squeaking sound as I pedaled. I thought it was my bottom bracket at first, but then I realized my tire was flat. I wasn’t sure, really, if it had just gone flat or if it had been slowly losing air, or what. I stopped and pumped some air into it to see if I could hear where the hole was. I couldn’t hear anything so I inflated the tire the best I could and continued riding back toward where I thought I had made the wrong turn. My tire continued losing air. I got onto what I thought was the right road and stopped by a forest across from an abandoned house to fix my tire.

Abandoned house

Normally, I would patch my inner tube and try to keep using it. Since I couldn’t find the leak, I had no choice but to install a fresh tube. A dog at a neighboring house took an interest in me and I almost moved elsewhere to get away from the dog, but he stayed on his property and watched intently without disturbing me. I felt the inside of my tire and the rip strip to see if I could find anything that might have poked the inner tube, but couldn’t find anything. I installed a fresh tube and it seemed to be holding air. After pumping for what seemed like forever, I was on the road again. I couldn’t help but feel a little jinxed because 2/3 of my rides in this area have been plagued with mechanical problems, first my cracked rim on Dr. T’s Funky Fifty, and now this. And every time I’ve ridden out here, I’ve gotten lost.

A pretty place to change my tube

Pine trees

I soon determined that I was on the wrong road again, but I was on Coveyville Road, which was the next road I was supposed to turn on. So I kept going, knowing that this would get me to where I needed to be. This turned out to be a more fun way to go, I think, and it had me ride down a big hill and then climb up to the intersection of Hardin Ridge (I think) and Coveyville, which looks out over some farmland and a pond, with hills in the distance.
Coveyville Panorama

After descending into a valley, the road becomes straight and flat for probably 3/4 mile, quite a dramatic change from the twisty, hilly roads I’d been on.

Flat, straight road

After this brief and easy flat section, the road turns and begins a climb labeled “The Alps.”  While I’ve never seen the real Alps, I suppose this name is apt. There’s a really long climb and once at the top you can, at this time of year, see through the trees to see valleys and hills after them, and the lake appears to be suspended on a hill; presumably I must have been seeing the dam. It was beautiful, but I knew my camera would focus on the forest and miss the scenery beyond.

I eventually got lost again. I was supposed to find Ramp Creek Road, but I saw nothing with that name. I need to look at some real maps of this area and see if I can’t figure out how things connect. I always get lost here and the Bloomington Bicycle Club maps do not at all seem to match the roads as I see them. I’m a decent map-reader, so I really do think it’s the map.

Lake Monroe

From here I decided to try to find Ramp Creek Road, which turned out to be a bad move as I passed where I feel I should have turned and ended up taking a really stupid route through town. Something similar happened on a past ride, but this was worse. I’ve never gotten lost so many times on one ride before … especially in my own town! I also ended up riding on some much busier roads than I would’ve liked. Drivers were courteous, but this was not a good way to go. I’m not sure what I did, but I need to familiarize myself with these roads. Perhaps a drive out in that area is in order.

Despite my flat tire and getting lost, I very much enjoyed this ride. I’m glad I took advantage of the rare January warm weather and rode longer than I have for a while. My ride ended up being just shy of 45 miles.

Silo silhouetted against the sky

This morning’s commute was very misty. It wasn’t really raining, but there were some rather large drops of water seemingly suspended in the air. Riding through it, the air felt thick and heavy. My glasses became coated with mist and fortunately the terry wiping strips on my gloves worked well to restore my vision. Visibility was poor, with thicker fog than on my ride on Sunday. Fortunately it was warm, in the upper 40s. Campus is getting pretty vacant now as students finish their finals and go home for winter break.

The fire alarms went off at work today and we all went outside for a while. Several fire trucks showed up and firemen entered the building. Either they didn’t find anything at all, or they only found something small. Nobody has said, and I haven’t asked.

That was some kind of excitement.

It seemed like it was going to be a terrible weekend for riding. I was busy on Saturday and the forecast said it was going to rain all day on Sunday. So I decided to sleep late on Sunday. I got up to find a dreary, rainy day, although it wasn’t actually raining. By the time I ate lunch and ran some errands and went home, I realized it still wasn’t raining. I looked at the radar and it looked clear. It was time for a ride! It feels weird now to say that a dreary 40-degree day is perfect weather for a ride, but it’s a lot better than the weather we’ve been having.

I headed out to do the Shilo Road route that I do from time to time. As soon as I got out of town I saw that the landscape was shrouded in fog. The roads were wet and sandy from last week’s snow (they tend to use more sand than salt in this area) — but my traction was good. Still, I took my time. I didn’t want to risk slipping, and I was really enjoying the scenery.

Tunnel Road

Shilo is a very twisty road with a very rough surface and switchbacks through part of it. I was a little nervous about this aspect of the ride, since the roads were wet and sandy from last week’s snow. But once again I took my time — more than I needed to, I’m sure — and my tires didn’t let me down. This was actually the first time I’d ridden on Shilo since I got my new tires and I felt a lot more stable with the wider (28mm) tires.

Switchback on Shilo Road

I had a lot of fun on Shilo — it’s mostly downhill in this direction and the twist and turns are fun, as are the numerous ups and downs. It’s a real roller coaster ride and while you could go faster if the road surface was smoother, I like the added challenge of all the bumps, potholes, poorly-patched holes and other irregularities. My camera, on the other hand, didn’t like this at all as my camera case, which goes around my stem and closes with a piece of velcro, fell off on one bump and my camera went tumbling to the ground. I didn’t even realize it until a few minutes later, so I had to turn around and go back for my camera. It still works fine.

Trees along Shilo Road

I stopped on a bridge to take some more photos. I don’t know what it is about bridges, but I frequently feel compelled to stop on them to get some shots. I guess they do tend to afford a view of … well, whatever is below.

Grimy bike

Creek

My bike by a field

Soon I was finished with Shilo Road and had a great ride back on Anderson, Old 37, Bethel, and 45. The fog thickened throughout the rest of my ride, making it a highly atmospheric, especially pretty ride. Total distance: about 27 miles.

View from Anderson Lane (damn power lines!)

Old Bethel Church

Someone’s driveway

Another driveway

The fog thickens

Little Debbie truck

Red barn

Trees and house

45

Another barn

Action shot

Saturday was a decent day, in the 40s and overcast, but not raining. I considered going for a ride, but I was feeling really lethargic and couldn’t bring myself to do it. It rained Sunday morning but got up in the 50s and the rain let up to a light drizzle by noon or so. I figured this was my chance to go for a ride and set out to do the Water Works ride, which is one of my regular training rides.

I brought my $5 Goodwill point & shoot film camera (which is actually pretty decent) loaded with slide film so I could do some cross-processed shots. I should note that the yellow cast you see here doesn’t appear in the prints, or at least not as strongly. My cheap scanner has trouble with cross-processed negatives and it can be an interesting effect, but I need to figure out how to stop the scans from turning out this way, or scan the prints instead, or something.

What is normally a routine ride turned into quite an adventure. At first everything went smoothly and it was a gorgeous day with a little bit of fog. I didn’t mind the drizzle as my jacket kept me warm and dry and my Rivendell tires have great traction on wet pavement.

Smith Road and Third Street

The traffic in the above shot is the most I saw over the course of the whole ride. You can get a sense for how overcast and dark it was and the wet roads.

Scene alongside Smith Road

Action shot

More Smith Road

Gate to the Tibetan Cultural Center

I was really enjoying the weather. The warmer temperatures were welcome but the sprinkles and the haze cast everything in an almost mystical atmosphere and while it could be described as dreary, that’s a mood that can be surprisingly pleasant. My ride to the Water Works facility was uneventful but contemplative. I passed some cornfields and a bunch of cows along the way. I also noticed that a number of ravines along the way look much more impressive once the leaves have fallen from the trees and you can see into the gorges. I rode down Shady Side Drive to see if I could get some good views of the lake. Along the way the wind blew a fog cloud across the road in my path and I rode through it. I couldn’t stop in time to get a photo, but I did take one of the lake, which was also shrouded in mist. It ended up overexposed but I’ll post it anyway.

Me, riding on Handy Road

Corn. Nobody even bothered to harvest it.

Water Works facility

Lake Monroe, from Shady Side Drive. You can almost make out the lake in the haze.

Run-down building on Handy Road

On my way back, I took Moore’s Creek Road, which goes into a valley and then climbs up the other side, making a stop by the lake along the way. I went a lot slower than usual on the descent because of the wet roads. I only saw one car at the small recreation area by the lake there and didn’t see any other people at all. It was pretty stunning.

Moore’s Creek Road

Lake Monroe

My bicycle by Lake Monroe

On the bridge on Moore’s Creek Road

Barn

Crazy guy hanging off the side of the barn

Right before I started climbing out of the valley, it started raining harder. Not a total downpour but it was coming down pretty hard. I got most of the way up the hill and started messing with the barrel adjuster for my rear derailleur while I was riding. I didn’t really know what I was doing but it seemed to help my shifting problems a little, so I turned it further. My shifting lever went limp and suddenly my bike shifted into the highest gear in the cassette — I had broken the derailleur cable!

I tried adjusting the screws a little, hoping I could get to the middle of the cassette and therefore use the little ring for the rest of this hill and some other hills I knew I’d have to deal with on my way home. No dice. I tied the cable to my rack so it wouldn’t flop around or get stuck in my wheels. I’d have to ride the last 7 miles or so stuck in the highest gear in back, and unable to use my small chainring without cross-chaining. For some of the hills, I did have to drop down to the small ring and just hoped I wasn’t doing too much damage. There weren’t any huge climbs, but I needed a lower gear than the middle ring combined with the highest gear in the back gave me.

On my way home, it rained harder and harder until it was a total downpour. I hadn’t seen any other cyclists the whole ride, but I saw three or four once it started pouring — go figure. I even felt some pellets of sleet hitting my face a few times. My jacket is more or less waterproof, but I still got wet, mostly from rain getting in through the collar. I didn’t have it zipped all the way up or I would’ve been too hot. By the time I got within two miles of home it was hard to see because of the rainwater on both sides of my glasses, and rain started getting in my eyes. This made my eyes burn for some reason — maybe I rubbed my eyes with greasy fingers or my hair gel stuff was getting my eyes, or something. But I made it home with a lot of effort and a lot of pedaling out of the saddle.