Headwind stories?

Ron Wallenfang said:

What are your headwind stories? Do headwinds build character? (i.e
are you building character struggling along cussing at the wind?)

One year at the Easter Hill Country Tour (early to mid 80s) in
Kerrville, TX we were on a seventy mile ride I think when a dust
storm blew in from west Texas. There were wind gusts of seventy
five mph, though mostly it was just really windy and dusty. I found
fine dust in all of my internal components when we got home. One of
my biking buddies was a skinny guy and he literally got blown off
the road and into the ditch. What I really remember though is that
there was a rest stop at Camp Verde that was about thirteen miles
from the state park where we were staying. Many people took the sag
wagon from there because it was a headwind all the way back. The
woman I was riding with and I decided to take turns pulling and
she started for maybe fifty yards and turned to me saying that she
could not pull any more. OK, so I took the front and within a mile
I had attracted a field of about twenty riders, none of whom would
take a pull at the front. No biggie, I just pulled those suckers
for the whole thirteen miles. Needless to say, I had no trouble
sleeping that night. Pace lines are great but this one was a killer.
And, no, I don't think it builds character, but it makes for
memorable events.

Ron Wallenfang said:

What are your headwind stories?

After three days steady in the face touring I gave big gee god an
ultimatum: cut the [censored] or you're a phoney.

The wind stilled just long enough to know I'd been heard.

Quoted message said:

Do headwinds build character? (i.e
are you building character struggling along cussing at the wind?)

I think of it as my date with Maria. The strongest, cruellest,
sweetest, most vicious, fickle and promiscuous [censored] you've ever
danced with. She's got some moves that will make you cry. I've found
it' far better just to zip up, tuck in, talk to her sweetly and sail.

Always acknowledge your tail winds.
--
zk

In article
<[email hidden]>,

Ron Wallenfang said:

Since I encountered strong headwinds on my commute in both directions
today, via a most untimely change in wind direction, my mind is very
much on that topic.

I've encountered worse. One November day some years ago, the winds
were gusting into the low 50s when I biked home into a crosswind that
pushed me toward the curb. I didn't hit it but it was tricky. You'd
just get adapted to what you had and along would come a gust (or a
comparative lull), and you'd have to re-adapt quickly.

Another memorable happening was on a windy spring day, also some years
ago, when I came over the crest of a short steep hill that had
protected me from the wind, and a huge gust completely stopped me in
my tracks - the only time that's happened.

My long trips have produced a number of all day vigorous headwinds in
the 20-30 mph range, and those days are remembered as the worst of the
trips in question (though not the worst of any trip - that title's
reserved for cold hours long rains), especially in open country - I
especially recall two different days in KS, one in MT, one in MT into
ND, and one along the shores of Lake Erie SW of Buffalo.

What are your headwind stories? Do headwinds build character? (i.e
are you building character struggling along cussing at the wind?)

Every head has a tail.

here, on the edge of Chicago's western suburban frontier, i go on one or
two day rides every year, specially selected to go into the teeth of
the worst winds of the season.

Lots of grit from the fields blown in the face, heavy buffeting,
basically lots of suck. i spit mud. If i'm pulling more than 5mph after
the first hour, i know it's too easy. I grind into the wind for a six to
eight hours and then ride the tailwind home for what seems like 30
minutes.

i spend a lot of money on gatorade as i grind from country store to
country store.

In that context, it's all about earning my tailwind. I reset my
computer. On the ride back i feel like Lance. It's suddenly dead quiet
except for the energized singing whirr of my wheels and drive train,
which is fully loaded, as i spin hard and fast to hold my 28~34 speed
back the way i came, finally using that Big Chainring - little gear
combination to meaningful effect. Now I'm chasing Speede(ave).

I shoot for 40 mph, but i know i can't get there except for the "hill".

Suddenly i can hear the birds. The debris that had, minutes before
flashed menacingly across my face now floats along side, suspended. ( I
mean that, it just floats by as if suspended on a wire). I hear that
goddmaned harley coming back down the road two miles away. There's a
goat farm over to the left. i like goats.

My skin purges the wind-embedded prairie loam as sweat wells up in great
sheets on my body. Skin temperature rises from 55/60 to 99+. Now i'm
really excreting fluids, but it won't last long. It's me, it's hott.
my vision is impaired i cannot see...

With creeping McMansionism (particularly bad out here) my roads have
slowly been turned into teh svck. Don't know what i'll find this year
but those days might be over.

--
This signature can be appended to your outgoing mesages. Many people include in
their signatures contact information, and perhaps a joke or quotation.

Not exactly a "headwind" story, but one that is strong in my mind.

About 35 years ago, Mike J. (yes -- that Mike J.) and I were cycling across
the Golden Gate Bridge (in San Francisco). With the usual strong
cross-wind.

Being (at the time) young whippersnappers, we liked to "jump" the expansion
plates on the bridge.

I (at least) stopped doing this when we were blown quite a few feet sideways
(in this case toward traffic) during the "jump".

I also remember going around the bridge towers (the bike/pedestrian track is
three 90-degree turns around the tower, which takes you into the wind,
across the wind, and following the wind). The kick-in-the-pants
acceleration was fun at the (high-school) time but my more mature (and
responsible for children) self shudders at the lax attitude we had to risk
at the time.

- Skip

Ron Wallenfang said:

Since I encountered strong headwinds on my commute in both directions
today, via a most untimely change in wind direction, my mind is very
much on that topic.

I've encountered worse. One November day some years ago, the winds
were gusting into the low 50s when I biked home into a crosswind that
pushed me toward the curb. I didn't hit it but it was tricky. You'd
just get adapted to what you had and along would come a gust (or a
comparative lull), and you'd have to re-adapt quickly.

Another memorable happening was on a windy spring day, also some years
ago, when I came over the crest of a short steep hill that had
protected me from the wind, and a huge gust completely stopped me in
my tracks - the only time that's happened.

My long trips have produced a number of all day vigorous headwinds in
the 20-30 mph range, and those days are remembered as the worst of the
trips in question (though not the worst of any trip - that title's
reserved for cold hours long rains), especially in open country - I
especially recall two different days in KS, one in MT, one in MT into
ND, and one along the shores of Lake Erie SW of Buffalo.

What are your headwind stories? Do headwinds build character? (i.e
are you building character struggling along cussing at the wind?)

Yesterday should have been perfect. A strong NW wind in the morning,
switching to a strong SE wind in the afternoon. That never happens in
NYC, so I was looking forward to it since it would blow me to work and
then home.

Somehow the wind never got the word to switch. I really hate biking
into a wind like that. Nothing like what many folks on this list do,
but I'm gettin older and I just hate biking into the wind. I'm not a
big fan of biking up the good old 59th Street Bridge into the wind
either but I seem to do that most days.

I've never noticed that it builds character. I have shouted a few
nasty things though. I think a strong headwind injures vocal cords.

Jeez I hate them days where you gotta fight it both ways, it seems
like they happen way more often than the day when you get a tailwind
both ways.

One day in Iowa the headwind was so strong that when I tried to coast
down a steep hill I found my self doing a track stand.

The story with the wind is that we're all hoping for some tail but
we'll settle for some head.

Ron Wallenfang said:

Since I encountered strong headwinds on my commute in both directions
today, via a most untimely change in wind direction, my mind is very
much on that topic.

---clip---

Quoted message said:

What are your headwind stories? Do headwinds build character? (i.e
are you building character struggling along cussing at the wind?)

Headwind, what's that?

My best headwind story was on my regular commute several years ago. We
usually would have about 8-12 riders in the change room at the same time
every morning. One other rider and I rode in from the West while most
of the other riders rode from the East.

One morning Jacques and I (the two Western riders) were raving about
what a beautiful ride in we'd had until we noticed a somewhat stony
silence from the Easteners. It turned out that there was a ferocious
headwind for the Easteners. Jacques and I had not even noticed the wind.

I had a great commute in those days; a tailwind most mornings as I did a
bit of a slow climb from home to office. Downhill on the way home.
--
John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

Ron Wallenfang said:

Since I encountered strong headwinds on my commute in both directions
today, via a most untimely change in wind direction, my mind is very
much on that topic.

I've encountered worse. One November day some years ago, the winds were
gusting into the low 50s when I biked home into a crosswind that pushed
me toward the curb. I didn't hit it but it was tricky. You'd just get
adapted to what you had and along would come a gust (or a comparative
lull), and you'd have to re-adapt quickly.

Another memorable happening was on a windy spring day, also some years
ago, when I came over the crest of a short steep hill that had protected
me from the wind, and a huge gust completely stopped me in my tracks -
the only time that's happened.

My long trips have produced a number of all day vigorous headwinds in
the 20-30 mph range, and those days are remembered as the worst of the
trips in question (though not the worst of any trip - that title's
reserved for cold hours long rains), especially in open country - I
especially recall two different days in KS, one in MT, one in MT into
ND, and one along the shores of Lake Erie SW of Buffalo.

What are your headwind stories? Do headwinds build character? (i.e
are you building character struggling along cussing at the wind?)

Suffering may indeed build character, but I ride for fun. Stories of
suffering may be fun later, but having actual fun to begin with is still
better.

A year or two ago 3 of us did a 70 mile out and back on one of our area's
flatter roads, not wanting to punish ourselves with monster hills so early
in the season. We cruised the last few miles to our midpoint destination
at around 28 MPH. This could only mean one thing! The ride back took us
over 3 hours, with a miserable hour spent at only 9 MPH. Give me hills
any day!

I've been in Myrtle Beach all week. The wind here can be pretty
demoralizing too, as if the miserable traffic and beer bottle throwing
rednecks aren't enough. The solution is to forget riding, and go sailing!

Matt O.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Ron Wallenfang said:

What are your headwind stories?

I may recount some later. Right now all I can think of
are /strong/ (not necessarily "head"😉 wind stories.
Like being paced on my left side by an F-0.5 tornado/
icroburst-like thing along Hwy 97A on the way to Savona, BC.
And the way gale force winds shoot sea spray & spume up and
over Siwash Rock and onto the Stanley Park Seawall. And the
time I got caught in a November gale a couple of years ago,
and these strong downdrafts were snapping-off everygreen
fronds and slapping them down on the pavement right in front
of me (that one was scary, 'cuz Vancouver has this huge web
of overhead power lines.) I've experienced a couple of
waterspout sightings -- those things are downright
fascinating.

In Vancouver BC, the strong headwinds come from the west
(the Pacific Ocean) or the south. The frigid headwinds
come from the north. I'd rather put up with a 50 km/h
Westerly than a 20 km/h winter north wind.

Quoted message said:

Do headwinds build character? (i.e
are you building character struggling along cussing at the wind?)

I don't even try to fight headwinds any more.
You can't win. One might as well bash one's
head against a marble coffee table in order
to accomplish ... I dunno ... sumpthin' or other.

Headwinds don't build character -- that's up to
us, ourselves. Headwinds just challenge our
ability to do that.

Headwinds haven't killed me yet. And I'm not
about to kill myself by fightin' 'em.

I don't try to command the tide to turn back either.

The funny thing is, when you reconcile yourself
to headwinds and relax about them, you still get
there, pretty much as quickly as you would if you
tried to plow & hammer through them.

Maybe headwinds (and other detriments, detractions
and detentes) are a sort of natural koan.

I figure the trick with headwinds is to rise above or
beyond 'em, one way or another. Maybe it helps to
realize the Forces of Nature aren't here for our
convenience, nor are they obligated to be compliant
to our desires. But then I don't neet to always
ride fast -- I just wanna ride, period. I don't
mind adapting to conditions.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

A couple of years ago I was finishing a ride from Red Feather Lakes to
Fort Collins. In the final 20 miles between Livermore and Fort Collins
the drop is about 1,000 feet. I expected to coast in between 25 and 30
mph. With the headwind from the south, though, I was cranking to stay
at 15 mph. As a bonus I also arrived at my destination with a
respectable coat of Larimer County grit.

cycledork.blogspot.com

cycledork said:

A couple of years ago I was finishing a ride from Red Feather Lakes to
Fort Collins. In the final 20 miles between Livermore and Fort Collins
the drop is about 1,000 feet. I expected to coast in between 25 and 30
mph. With the headwind from the south, though, I was cranking to stay at
15 mph. As a bonus I also arrived at my destination with a respectable
coat of Larimer County grit.

cycledork.blogspot.com

I live (and ride) in Grand County, just over the continental divide. I'd
like to know why, if the air is so thin, it is so hard to ride into a
headwind 🙂

Eric said:

cycledork said:

A couple of years ago I was finishing a ride from Red Feather Lakes to
Fort Collins. In the final 20 miles between Livermore and Fort Collins
the drop is about 1,000 feet. I expected to coast in between 25 and 30
mph. With the headwind from the south, though, I was cranking to stay at
15 mph. As a bonus I also arrived at my destination with a respectable
coat of Larimer County grit.

Quoted message said:

cycledork.blogspot.com

I live (and ride) in Grand County, just over the continental divide. I'd
like to know why, if the air is so thin, it is so hard to ride into a
headwind 🙂

I don't know what the guess of a comparative flatlander from Milwaukee
is worth, but I would say that the good news is that there's less wind
resistance. The bad news is that you're getting less oxygen and can't
work as hard. I've crossed the western mountains 3 times on my cross
country trips and would have to say that my experience was that the
two factors about cancelled each other out. I suspect there's quite a
bit of individual variation though.

dot max said:

[...]
With creeping McMansionism (particularly bad out here) my roads have
slowly been turned into teh svck. Don't know what i'll find this year
but those days might be over.

I think you would have to move west of Route 47 to avoid all the people
driving their SUVs to their large stick-frame boxes.

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
The weather is here, wish you were beautiful

Tom Keats said:

[...]
I figure the trick with headwinds is to rise above or
beyond 'em, one way or another.[...]

While it is not possible to get above the headwind on a bicycle, one can
get below MOST of the wind if one is low enough. 🙂

--
Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
The weather is here, wish you were beautiful

Tom Sherman said:

dot max said:

[...]
With creeping McMansionism (particularly bad out here) my roads have
slowly been turned into teh svck. Don't know what i'll find this year
but those days might be over.

I think you would have to move west of Route 47 to avoid all the people
driving their SUVs to their large stick-frame boxes.

Even that won't help, in certain areas. West of 47, north of McDonald is
still pretty nice riding, though. Melikes it out there, riding through
little spots in the road like New Lebanon.

--

Kristian Zoerhoff
[email hidden]