The Weather Outside

Monday morning TS Beta - basically the same as Sunday morning

It was a miserable weekend. Tropical Storm Beta has been hanging around way over to the southwest with apparently little motivation to move on, and the result here has been three solid days of rain and high winds. I am almost to the point of getting on an indoor trainer. Almost. 

The Tulane coffee ride last Friday morning was the last time I rode on dry pavement. In fact, it was probably the last time the pavement was dry. By the time we were riding back toward campus I could already see the clouds building up. I had a COVID test scheduled for 10:15 or so, and I felt lucky to have gotten there and back before the rain started. (I got the negative result about five hours later.) I think that's COVID test #4 for me, so far. The COVID situation around here is not looking too bad, currently, but we all know that probably won't last. Tulane's surveillance numbers have been consistently low with a 7-day average positive rate of 0.8% for the asymptomatic testing program. The city's rate is also low, around 1.2%, compared to the statewide rate of about 3.4%, which is practically the lowest it's been. I'm just hoping it wall all stay under control until after the Tour de La road race October 10th.

Saturday in the rain and wind

Saturday's Giro Ride was a washout, but later in the day I aired up the tires on the rain bike and got in 26 miles on the levee, only half of which was in the rain, but all of which was with a 17 mph ENE wind. It was slightly better than miserable. Slightly. I got home, dried and lubed the chain, pulled the insoles out of my shoes and put everything in front of the fan to hopefully dry out. Sunday was basically a repeat of Saturday, but with a little less actual rain while I was riding, which I wasn't able to do until around 1 pm. I'd intended to go at least out to the parish line like I had the day before, but then a bee got into my helmet and stung me on the forehead. It was still in the helmet when I stopped and pulled it off. It did not die a merciful death. At that point I kind of pulled the plug and turned around into the headwind to plod back home, thoroughly demoralized. Kind of like Primož Roglic must have felt halfway through Saturday's Tour de France time trial when he realized his GC lead was rapidly slipping away.

Anyway, to sum up the weekend, it sucked. To sum up Monday so far, it sucks too. I woke up to rain and just couldn't bring myself to go out once again into what the Weather Channel showed was 100% humidity, rain, and a 20 mph east wind. Besides, the way my forehead is currently swollen from the bee sting, just putting on a helmet is not going to be very comfortable.