Rain, rain, go away!

I went over to NJ to go riding with some friends earlier this week.  I thought little of the rain that we had this last weekend.  As such, I was completely unprepared when we rounded the corner on a well-used county road and ran into a lake.

Well I ran into the lake, anyway.

I wish there had been a sign. Also wish I'd had my camera so I wouldn't have to use this image instead

I was leading, and not paying nearly as much attention as Jason who was right behind me and to my left.  He managed to stop himself and the two guys behind him.  I ended up about 10 feet into a lake that must have been a foot deep and 30 feet across.  And speaking of feet, mine were soaked.

It was a miserable ride back for me--I left them at a convenient point and rode back to the PATH, shoes making the characteristic 'clicking' of a road shoe combined with the 'squish-squash' of rubber boots with water inside them.

The ride on the PATH was rather fun, as midday there always seems to be someone who wants to talk to you (not as many when you wear a cycling kit, but there are always those few--you know the ones I mean), and I was able to regale them with tales of my exploits on flooded country roads.

Some people are impressed by the distances involved in cycling.  To them, 40 miles is a respectable distance (and it is).  Others, however, will try to downplay the distance involved by talking about the time when they were a teenager and they did 100 miles on a bike that didn't fit quite right, and the only reason they turned back was because they got a flat tire and only had a piece of gum and a screwdriver to fix it.  It's not that I don't believe them--in fact, I do believe them--the impressive part about the distances we do, however, is not the distance, but the time it takes.

I can, for example, make the commute between my work and home faster than any car.  I obey the law (I feel very strongly about it), keep the speed limit and fly.  There are lots of people who make the same commute on bikes that take significantly longer to get home.

I'm not bragging.  I'm just pointing out the difference between someone who works out every day on a bike that fits and some kid who goes out with his friends to see how far they can get before they blow a tire.

Today they're predicting rain again.  More than predicting, apparently.  The Governor of NJ just declared a state of emergency in anticipation of the storm.

I think I'll stay on my side of the river for a few weeks.  Give things a chance to dry out a little.