winter words

by Robbie

As you well know, the Boulder Bike Rides blog has been quite inactive lately--my apologies. With the weather getting colder and schoolwork piling up, I’ve neglected the organization of group rides. To tell the truth I haven’t been on a “bike ride” in over a month (but I do ride my bike every single day to and fro whilst commuting Boulder). Even though organized riding has been off the radar, it’s a great time of year for snow assaults and fixed-gear flats.

We began the cold season with weekly fixed-gear rides—everyone riding with the same gear ratio so as to “level the playing field.” I suppose Mike and Kevin are still keeping those rides up, I’ve been somewhat out of the loop. The idea is to slowly increase the gear ratio through the winter season and finishing strong in the spring. It’s a good way to get a feel for truly high cadence, and eventually adapting to it.

Riding in the snow has turned out to be quite an adventure. When it’s 15 degrees at 8am and I’m just trying to get to school, I usually want minimal obstacles, but riding in deep snow is a hell-of-a fun way to start the day, and it really jumpstarts your heart and lungs. Bad road conditions are a good way to slow the pace and distance while still putting out the same effort, which can be nice when you have to worry about the possibility of frostbite.

Stay warm.
Have fun.
The blog will be up and rolling soon after the New Year.
Season's greetings.