Bicycling in Bloomington

I registered for the Coach Hep Cancer Challenge for next Saturday. I plan to do the 40K ride and 5K run. So, it was time to get on my road bike. The last time I rode the road bike was in the Hilly Hundred, 6 months ago. I got the bike off the trainer and did some minimum maintenance last Saturday evening.

Sunday, I rode the “airport” ride. It’s a dependable 2 hour ride. I live southeast of Bloomington and the ride goes through Bloomington to the northwest end of town. Then across 37, south on a variety of roads, east and north at the south end of town.

I’ve done the ride very often in the 20+ years I’ve been in Bloomington. Today, I had to wait for a long train on Kirby Rd near the airport. The airport ride crosses a number of railroad tracks and this is first time ever that I’ve had to wait for a train.

I did the ride in about 1.75 hours (27.5 miles) which isn’t bad for a ride that has many traffic lights and stop signs. After the ride, I ran a long 3 miles. I did a little more than I will need to do on Saturday. For those who don’t know - a “brick” is a ride and a run. I have no idea how the term originated.

Overall, I didn’t feel too bad for the first focused road ride of the year. I think that 1.75 hours is about as fast as I ever do it. Traffic was fairly light. The temp was 41 when I left and 47 when I got home. I dressed for a warmer day and when in the sun, I was comfortable. A nice ride.