They call me "The Kid"

Or at least they should anyway, when I'm riding with Kevin (two years older than me) and Larry (older than dirt) as I was yesterday.  Kevin was looking for a 45-50 mile route and Larry obliged, with a Tennessee Waltz of a ride around Pecan Grove, Fulshear and Simonton.

We started from Larry's place, at the bottom of a cul-de-sac bordering a golf course.  He took us on a very circuitous route out to route 359, trying to keep off busy roads.  It was actually a pretty run through pecan groves along quiet roads.

Once onto 359 we were in familiar territory, and with a good tail wind we were cooking along very comfortably all the way past Fulshear and onto Pool Hill road.  Larry threw in a wrinkle to get the mileage up and that found us making some south legs, where I needed to drop a whole chain ring just to keep up.

The run back to Fulshear was due south into the wind but we formed a pace line and I was able to hang on.  But I was glad to take a break at the gas station, where we met a friend of Larry's who teaches a spin class at the Houstonian and raises more money for the MS150 than I do - and she doesn't get a match!  We also chatted with a very friendly lady who looked very familiar.  It was only when we were about a mile down the route that I realised it was Jennifer from work, who I know is a very keen rider.

Action shot by Kevin - do try to keep up Larry!

Once we were on Bois D'Arc, a relatively quiet section, Kevin pulled out his iPhone and tried to take
a few actions shots of me for the blog.  I question your approach to safety, my friend, but some of them look good.

Kevin really bailed us out over the next 10 miles.  We were mostly running against the wind and he took the lead all the way, driving us along at 20mph for one section.

There were plenty of cyclists out and sadly some of them ignored etiquette.  Several times we saw groups approaching us riding two and three abreast with cars waiting patiently behind them.  We called out "car back!", and I waved my arms at them, but they kept their formation.  We always make room for cars, at least in part for self-preservation.  Riders that block traffic just make drivers angry and ultimately we see truck vs bike conflicts that always end badly for the guys in lycra.

At last we turned off 359 and into the subdivisions Larry showed us on the way out.  With more trees along narrower streets we were protected from the wind somewhat and we cruised in pretty comfortably.  Back at the start, Larry offered us a choice of beverages - water, soda, beer or recovery drink.  We opted for the latter and it tasted truly awful, but supposedly my muscles were less sore today because of the drink, so that's good I guess.