Slog-O-Rama

I got out a little later than I'd have liked this morning, but I rode the whole way again. I've been slacking so bad this month, but I really needed some decompression after two months of 600+ miles back to back. I was starting to feel forced to ride as much as possible. Not this month. With that, I departed into the morning darkness for my 7th trip by bike for the month. I'm counting each direction as one trip, since I've done quite a few one-way trips and only one full round trip this month.

I actually got a "biker wave" from every single oncoming motorcycle this morning, too. I'm not sure if the darkness of morning and my new, brighter bulb makes me easier to see or what. It was interesting, though.

Traffic was building pretty heavy on Southwest by the time I got close to downtown, so I opted for Broadway. It's got a wide outer lane once you get downtown, and between Southwest and 15th, can be friendlier to ride in the early morning. Broadway is a freaking death slog, though. I was pretty much spent by the time I conquered it.

The ride seems to have loosened up my back and legs, which were still aching this morning from my endo on Monday. Not surprisingly, my ribs still hurt a bit from the whole landing on my chest ordeal, but that will pass.

It doesn't sound like CommuterDude is going to have a night ride this month. The Tejas 500 starts in a week. September is kind of the month of the last hoorah of normal humans' cycling season. Those that are left, such as messengers, bike commuters, cyclocross racers, and distance fanatics have degrees of insanity that vary from one person to the next. Some just ride until it's too cold, then hang the bike up. Some only ride in fair weather. Some set limits and won't ride in snow, or won't ride below a certain temperature, and some just never stop riding. That said, I do expect an October night ride.

Without a September ride, I'm pondering signing up for Bike 4 The Brain instead. It's a charity and awareness ride for mental illnesses. On top of being for a good cause, it's an excuse to hammer out a metric century, but there are shorter distance options for those who want them. I still need to make sure it's okay with my wife, but I like to get one long ride in every month and I'm close to missing one for September.

Random Tunage:
Nine Inch Nails - Closer Precursor
Orbital - Lush 3-2