38th ride of 2016 - Tuesday, March 22, 2016

After not having ridden since Friday, I was indescribably glad to be able to get out today. As I began my ride Saturday, a problem developed with the right front tire, as the tube worked its way out of the tire. I couldn't get a fixed that day, as Michelle was gone with the car, and Sunday the shops were closed. Yesterday I was able to get to Jack's Bicycle in Dearborn, but by the time I got home it was late and my back hurt, so I let it go.

Today I rode three consecutive round trips to Marsh Park, completing the 26.0 miles in just under 2 hours and 42 minutes. When I began, at 10:00 a.m., it was 42 degrees, but by the time I had finished, it had warmed up nicely, to 55.

I am always highly motivated by numbers, so today as I rode, I hatched a goal. I got my trike last May 2, and I thought it would be fun to see if I could make 1000 miles for the year by this May 2. I can't figure it out precisely, since my mileage records are on my laptop, which is in the shop being repaired. But I believe that today's ride puts me over 440 for the year so far, which means I need to average about 14 miles per day until then. At this time of year that should be quite doable (though it would have been a challenge in January or February.

Yesterday when I was at Jack's, one of the mechanics who is familiar with my frequent trips there, strolled by me, grinned a goofy grin, and (knowing I was there a tire issue), said, "HERE'S what you need!" And he pointed to a nearby model with big, fat tires. indicating a small box on it, he said, "Motorized, too!" I quickly typed out, " 'Motorized' wouldn't help me with my goal of weight loss." He screwed up his face as though he never would have considered this, and finally concluded, "You make a good point!"  😄