It's Falling Around Here

This morning I headed out for a couple and a half hours of road riding and fall gazing.  The trees put on quite a display in their preparation for dormancy.

Changing colors.

It took me several attempts to dress.  The thermometer on the window reported 58 but Weather.com was reporting 41.  Hmmm, strange.  I ended up with knee warmers, a wool jersey, and skull cap after spending a few minutes on the back patio.

Long fingered gloves and toe covers too!

The wind was coming out of the west at 12 to 15mph so I headed into it on the way out.  I rode the Old Lincoln Highway for a good while, out past Reedsburg, before turning north then south.  I crossed the Funk bottoms before sneaking past Shreve.

Stopped by the grandparents gravesite

on the way into Reedsburg.

 

The leaves were changing color all around.  There was still some green to be seen and not too many fallen leaves yet.  The cool air made it seem later in the year than it is.  I was glad for each piece of gear I was wearing.

Lots of raking.

This was the first road ride since they finished paving SR3.  The final part of every ride from home is a short run on the state route.  Fortunately vehicles have always been polite despite the minimal berm for a cyclist to ride on.  It seems there is more space to stay right now.  Or at least the freshly paved road is rideable further right than it was before.  Hopefully this makes the conclusion to a road right that much more enjoyable.

It depends on where the white line lands.

Mid-week at the Knob

Ryan and I made plans to meet up for a Wednesday night right at the Knob.  We were eager to sample the repaired and new trail we worked this past weekend.  Unfortunately it rained in the past couple days and the trails were not prime but still very rideable without undue wear and tear.

The trail work done leading up to the Cradle was very nice, no more ruts to skirt.  The switchbacks were much more rideable, though I continue to botch the first left hander.  The Over Under and Junk Hill were also much more rideable.  I was excited to cleanly ride both in succession on our second lap.

Go left and duck.

The new slalom line on Cheater's Hill will be a fun addition to the course, once it's ridden in and established.  We dropped into it on both laps but the wet conditions and unpacked trail increased the pucker factor.

Go right and drop it.

The days are surely getting shorter as it was getting difficult to see at the tail end of our second lap.  A couple of those woodsy sections felt creepy in the lack of light.  In the final 500 yards of trail a rabbit made it interesting as it darted across the trail right in front of me, contact barely avoided, only to pull a u-turn and dart back in front of me, I think I grazed it.  Back to back panic brakes always kills momentum on the run in to the finish!

A nice gut pile two feet of the trail.  A sure

sign it's fall in deer country.