Summer Rain Taps on My Frameset

Father's Day Giro heads out along Lakeshore Drive

At home nothing but back-to-back Giro Rides last weekend was actually pretty relaxing despite the rapidly escalating summer heat. Along with that summer heat, though, come the unpredictable summer thunderstorms that can turn a nice sunny afternoon into a terrifying episode of blowing rain, lightning, thunder and flooding. It's just one of those things you come to expect once the weather pattern settles down for the summer.

I spent some time last weekend re-organizing the club race equipment. It was badly needed after the Tour, which was the third race (5th if you count the thee TDL stages separately, which I do) we've organized so far this year. It was also time to start thinking a bit about my own somewhat neglected bike, especially once I got the reminder from my Garmin app that my chain had reached its 2,500 mile limit. I always set up a reminder so that I'm not tempted to let the chain go over 3,000 miles, which practically guarantees the need for a new cassette. It also give me a little time to hunt around for a Campi Record chain on sale. I know I don't really need to be using the expensive Campi chains, but it's one of the few indulgences I allow for the Bianchi, and the easiest to provide. Besides the routine chain replacement, I'm also kicking around what to do about the rather badly worn chainrings that are now about as rare as hen's teeth because Campi changed the bolt design after only a year or two, and then a couple of years later moved to 12-speed. From what I can see, it might be cheaper to buy a whole new 11-speed crankset on sale (since the last 11-speed generation has been superseded by the 12-speed stuff) than to get new chainrings. I'm also trying to track down replacement handlebars. I really like the aluminum 3T Ergosum bars that I have been using, so of course 3T stopped making them. I can either try another brand, pay roughly four times as much for the carbon ones, or get the Ergonova that has a super-short reach and might necessitate a longer stem. Meanwhile, I need to sell those 40.5 Bont Vaypor S shoes now that I've pretty much decided to stick with the 41s. Those shoes were around $340, so it would be nice to recover some of that rather than hang onto them as backup shoes that I'd probably never need.

The ride back along the levee was pretty intense. At one point I thought the crosswind was going to blow me off the road.

Anyway, after an easy Monday ride I headed out on Tuesday morning after a quick check of weather radar that looked just fine. Perhaps the check was a bit too quick. I knew that rain was in the forecast, but was still surprised to find only one other person up on the levee at 6 am. I'd made it across the train tracks just before a train came through, so we waited for the train to pass, thinking there must be some people stuck on the other side. There weren't any, however. Perhaps they knew something I didn't? The other rider turned back six or seven miles later as he usually does, so I continued on alone, planning to turn around at the Big Dip. Things were going fine until I was almost there and started to feel some light rain. Looking up ahead I could see an ominous dark cloud, but since I was only a mile from the turnaround I kept going. A couple of miles after I turned around the light rain turned in to moderate rain, and then the moderate rain turned in a torrential, horizontal-rain, downpour that never really let up all the way back. For a few miles the rain was pelting my legs so hard that it hurt, and I could hear it tapping loudly on the carbon frame. I got back home soaked to the skin and had to pour the water out of my shoes after removing them. I really need to remember to drill a hole in the bottom of each shoe. I had the same problem with my older Bont shoes.

Seriously. How hard is it to stay between the white lines?

By the time I was ready for work the rain was gone and I ended up taking the bike to work as usual. Typical summer rainstorm. Along the way I stopped on the Broad Street Overpass to take a few photos of the damage that motorists had already done to the bollards that are "protecting" the new bike lane. There are at least four of them that have already been completely broken off from their attachments, and probably another thirty or forty that have obviously been hit and/or run over. All I can conclude is that these drivers are just not looking where they are going, which as a cyclist is rather frightening. I mean, it's not like these great big white things are hard to see, and I'm pretty sure they aren't jumping out in front of the cars.

This afternoon I'll be heading out to the lakefront to officiate the first of the four Wednesday evening races. It will be a rush to get out there in time, and keeping track of riders in the combined-category races will be a challenge as usual. I was at the dentist this morning getting the "healing cap" screwed onto the post that was implanted a few months ago, making it the third time the dentist has taken a scalpel to that spot. At the moment it still hurts, despite the Aleve I took a couple of hours ago. I'm hoping it doesn't make me too miserable this evening.