It seems that every year I am uttering the phrase, “I’ve never ridden this far into (insert month)”, but it’s getting to the point that I’m not sure what month that will be this year. I certainly would not consider myself a cold weather cyclist, having painful paperboy memories of finger-numbing, early winter mornings on the bike with windburned cheeks and watering eyes that produced frozen tears on my face. I also find that once the first snow falls the roadsides are pretty much wrecked with cinders that, if I’m not getting pelted with from passing cars, cause punctures or dangerous wheel slip when making turns.
Each year as the warmer temps start to disappear, I begin to lament how I am in such good form and that all my training will soon be going to waste. Until I invested in a good windtrainer on which to keep in reasonable shape over the winter I used to just pack away the bike and suffer the consequences of starting from scratch each spring. About a decade ago, October used to signal the end of my cycling season with maybe an occasional mountain bike ride, but now I’m wondering if I’ll be on the roads this year humming Christmas tunes. That might drive me crazy - I hate it when I get a song in my head when riding!
I realize that this extended spell of mild autumn weather may have been brought about by the Greenhouse Effect, and as a conscientious Earthling I am concerned about some of the potentially catastrophic changes to our planet that it causes, but I’ll admit that I’m guilty of enjoying the extended cycling season. I used to be a strictly cold weather person, mainly because I don’t like the brutally humid summers we have in Pennsylvania, but also because I so much enjoy the holidays and winter sports, particularly when I can find a frozen pond on which to play hockey with my boys. I also have chronic sinus issues that just respond better to the cold, dry winter air that has the added benefit of lacking pollen!
I’ve found November to be a fantastic time to ride, although it takes the leg muscles a bit longer to warm up and feel like they are functioning properly. It is an understatement to say that I don’t miss the sweatbox-like conditions of the summer that leave you completely dehydrated. In fact, except for the moments when my throat is a bit dry, I have to constantly remind myself to drink when out for a spin. I often laugh to find my bottle half-full when I return from a ride, with a refreshingly cool drink inside – definitely not the result in the summer!
There are also some wonderful aesthetic elements to an autumn ride, if you can avoid the intermittent clumps of dangerous wet leaves or the cough-inducing cloud produced when folks are burning them. I have to admit that I do enjoy the (light) smell of a wood-burning fireplace that hangs in the air when it gets chilly. I also love shadows of the leafless trees and the incredible orange color of the low sunlight in the late afternoons - although that may be caused by pollution, but I’ll choose to ignore that nasty fact.
A benefit of riding among the bare trees is that I can see much more of my surroundings, such as the creeks and rocky hillsides so common to my regular routes. I can also view the beautiful farms and other architecturally interesting houses that are normally obscured by foliage. Seeing chipmunks, squirrels and even the occasional deer running through the woods is also pleasant, as long as they aren’t crossing the road in front of me!
I’ve also seen plenty of people out working on their property, not just raking but taking care of all types of maintenance projects. Perhaps they’ve procrastinated, but with the unbearably hot, then incredibly damp weather we had this summer, maybe the autumn was the best option for getting the work done. They often yell out a hello and a “How ‘bout this weather?”, knowing that a two-wheeled visitor is pretty rare this late in the year. Some hunters even popped out of the woods yesterday to provide some directions when a detour forced me off course, and a VERY steep hill prevented me from wanting to backtrack!
By this time of the year I have usually turned to strictly mountain bike riding, taking advantage of the slower speed and tree cover that slows the biting wintery winds, but I think I’ve waited too long. Leaves on some of the area’s mountain bike trails render them useless, mainly because of the loss of traction, but also because their routes become completely camouflaged. Guess this means I have to stick to my ‘cross bike on some of the better-marked rail trails or, dare to dream, stay out on the road.
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