Summer is here. For at least one day.
After a busy day at the races on Saturday, starting with the Castelli Series in Prospect Park and finishing two hours drive south at the Philadelphia Navy Yard Criterium, Sunday brought blue skies and eighty-two degree temperatures to New York City.
Our legs were definitely tired and our energy levels may have been low thanks to the combination of a 4AM alarm with an 8PM return from Philly. But with that sort of weather it would be insane not to get in a team ride. So by late morning (we had to sneak in as much sleep as possible) the team gathered at it's usual meeting spot not far from the start line of the CRCA Grant's Tomb Criterium.
Stories from Saturday's racing were told and in some cases retold before we cut our way North through the city, picking up additional teammates and friends along the way until our numbers swelled to ten riders.
Our original plan called for eightish miles to the Orchard of Conklin but between fatigue from Saturday's races and the unseasonably warm weather we quickly found ourselves negotiating to cut distance from the ride. Those negotiations were briefly interrupted by Daghan's never-ending need to mix sprint work into team rides but ultimately we settled on a quick spin through college hills before an oh-so-pleasant and well deserved lunch stop.
That rest stop of course featured more storytelling and sadly a few unintentional Amstel Gold spoilers. But once our stomachs were satiated all that was left was the spin back to New York City. Which of course once again featured a fair bit of hammering thanks to a still very energetic Daghan.
At the end of the day our jerseys were indicative of hard efforts in summer-like temperatures and legs that had started the day tired were... even more tired. But as we approach winter's last gasp we definitely look forward to more weather like this. Though maybe next time we'll hydrate a bit better.
A New York City based cyclist and sometimes photographer. Part adventure rider, part crit racer, and fully obsessed with an English bulldog named Winifred.
Instagram: @photorhetoric
E-mail: matthew@tobedetermined.cc
