Okay. So I got Soaked..... Again

Another Winding Track to Work and Back

I had it all planned in advance, Very Unusual for me....Since I had a doctor's appointment this morning, and the doc's office is maybe 1/4 mile off my normal beaten bike-route, I'd park the carrito as normal, ride the recumbent down my normal bike route to Singer, then take Singer eastbound to the Dr's... After which I'd ride the last 3-something miles to work.  The skies, however, were not promising.  It was gloomy and dark, and what light DID shine through the couds had a distinct red hue.  As I drove into Albuquerque out of Tijeras Canyon I talked myself in and out of riding the bike several times.  In spite of the wise old saying "Red Sky at Morning, Biker  Take Warning", or something to that effect, I decided to ride the bike.  In spite of the gloom of the dark clouds overhead, it was actually quite balmy and I rode without benefit of skull cap or warm mittens with a nice degree of comfort.  I'm always a big hit when I arrive at the doctor office on the bike in full regalia.... Rolled up pants, bike helmet, flashing blinkies on the bike, big pack on the front and pannier on the rear, water bottles front and rear, baby-puke day-glo yellow-green outerwear.... Walking in amongst all my fellow diabetics with their oxygen tanks, wheelchairs, and such, whom I will no doubt look just alike in a few short years.... I'm surrounded by people looking at me like I just landed in a space-ship instead of  a bicycle.
Can't imagine what's wrong with all these people.  At least I'm not wearing spandex and lycra looking like Barbarella with every pimple on my butt showing through my skin-tight tighties.  On the other hand, if I dressed like that, perhaps folks wouldn't look at me so strange.  If I was less ugly it would probably help too...
I actually received a glowing report from my lovely doctor this morning in spite of my A1C being 7.4 as is almost always the case.  The ideal is for it to be BELOW 7.0, instead of halfway to 8.0 - but for me that has only happened once in the last several years at 6.8.  I am truly addicted to my carbs... which is one of the many reasons I love riding the bike so I can burn more of that stuff off.
Then, as I went outside to saddle up for the rest of the ride to work, it began to sprinkle.   As I rode further it began to RAIN.  I finally stopped and put on my wind-breaker which has the nice ability to make raindrops bead up and roll off instead of just soaking through.  That helped a lot, and actually helped the rain to STOP right before I arrived at work.  My legs got a little damp and my thorax got a bit soggy from sweating (perspiring, for my lovely cultured cousins in AZ and UT) but all in all I was just fine and dandy.
As I type this epistle late in the day it is again a bit threatening outside:  Nay, it is POURING outside.  I'm hoping for it to stop long enough for me to get back to the car again unscathed......
Pre-Ride BG: 178    Fasting BG when arrived at Doc's Office:  190  Post-Ride BG:  93
Beginning Battery Voltage: 12.8       Ending Voltage: 12.7   (Gel Cell battery pack, fresh charge last night)
Beginning Temperature:  51 F        Ending Temperature:  66 F
Morning Stats from the GPS:        Total Miles:    8.80
Overall average speed         Moving Avg       Max Speed
8.5. Mph                            10.4 mph            21.9 mph
Total Trip time                 Moving Time          Stopped Time
61 mins 00 secs               50 mins  33 secs     11 mins 23 secs

Thankfully the rain stopped just before I left work and the ride back to the car was almost totally dry and non-frigid.  It was so uneventful that I detoured off the bike path at Montgomery to stop in at REI, where the Pedouins.org family, the Harrisons, were holding forth and selling their self published books as fund raisers.
It was good to see them again.  The girls seemed much more mature and well behaved this time around.  Of course, it's been almost 2 years since I saw them last when they came through NM during the coldest winter we'd had in years.  The book detailing their lifestyle of close to 2 years riding across America on a 5-seat quint bicycle is quite interesting, I recommend it for some unusual reading.  Visit  http://www.pedouins.org/ and order a copy.
BG before ride home:  89   BG after getting home, before dinner:  91
Beginning Battery Voltage: 12.7       Ending Voltage: 12.6   
Beginning Temperature:  66 F        Ending Temperature:  73 F
 Evening stats from the GPS:    Total Distance Miles:  6.65
Overall average speed     Moving Avg      Max Speed
11.4  Mph                             11.6 mph            23.6 mph
Total Trip time                Moving Time     Stopped Time
  34:58 mins                       34:20 mins          38:00 mins