July 23, 2009

I'll explain today's pictures first. Both of these buildings are on Fairview. I really like the house. It's the only house I've ever stopped at and thought that I'd like to live there someday. I drive by it anytime I go to the airport or Mall of America. The other building is the, "Mall of St. Paul." I've always kind of thought that was funny. I noticed it my first week in Minnesota. I had just dropped my mom off at the airport and was driving back home. For some reason I've always liked it. It's an antique store. There are a bunch of them on that corner actually. It looks like a place my mom, both grandmothers, and older sister would like.

Now to the ride. It was pretty uneventful today. I did ten miles in 39 minutes. I was still tired from yesterday and my butt was a little sore. Thank goodness for padded spandex shorts. Even though I was tired and sore I still enjoyed the ride. It was another beautiful day for it. Unfortunately, Fairview may be the worst street in St. Paul to ride on. It's busy with traffic and full of gigantic potholes. I was swerving left and right to avoid these really deep holes the entire ride. As I was going under the 94 underpass I hit a huge hole. My whole bike shuddered, and it sent a shock wave up my back. That hurt a little. Luckily I didn't fall over, and I was close to home. It was a pretty big shock. I've got a good bike that can take a lot of punishment, and I'm getting better at riding it. I haven't fallen since I first got the clipless pedals. The first time I rode with those I fell three times at stop lights. A funny sight, I'm sure. I'm more confident on the bike and with the pedals now. Riding in traffic, and making sudden stops doesn't make me nervous anymore. I can unclip myself from both pedals fairly quickly and easily now. Kudos for me. The only problem is now I'm sitting at home with an extremely sore back. I could sure go for a back rub.

Here are my stats for today. 10 Miles in 39 minutes. Average speed: 15 mph. Max Speed: 32 mph. Tomorrow I'll be riding 12 miles.