Riding in the rain feels like water torture.

If there\’s only a slight drizzle, it\’s not too bad, especially in hot weather; but in cold weather, it\’s a different story. Even a light sprinkle is chilling; and if it starts to rain hard, things get miserable in a hurry.

If I get caught in a heavy rain, I often need to take off my glasses so I can see; and if a strong headwind is blowing rain right into my face, I\’m pretty much riding blind. Perhaps worse than that is a gusty sidewind; because on top of being cold and wet, I have to struggle to control the bike! Come to think of it, that\’s something I\’ll need to be prepared for if I do any bicycle touring!

There\’s also water torture in keeping hydrated during lengthy rides. I can\’t do a Sunday long ride on only two regular bottles of water; and so I have a Camel-Bak.

Camel-Bak

But when I fill up the reservoir with three liters of water; and then add a cable lock; tube of Chamois Butt\’r; and roll of bathroom tissue to the Camel-Bak\’s pockets; I have quite a load on my back! That can seem quite tortuous; but I\’ve got to stay hydrated!

In addition to the Camel-Bak, I take a spare bottle of water; and during a long, hot ride, I usually empty the bottle into the Camel-Bak at least once (I can refill it when I make my pit stops).

Wild Weather Ahead

All day I endured the “water torture” of wondering when it would start raining; and how heavily it would rain. By noon, the wind was up to 24 mph; and gusts were as strong as 32 mph. It was blowing from the Southeast; and I hoped it wouldn’t switch to the North or West. Wind from those directions mean a headwind once I’m on the bike path when I\’m heading home from work.

I was surprised when the sun made a brief appearance late in the morning; but it didn’t last long; and the wind made it too chilly for me to eat lunch al fresco.

When I left work it was sprinkling; and a sprinkle can turn into a downpour in no time. I turned tail; went back indoors (to be out of the wind); and got into my poncho. Sure enough, it began to rain harder as I rode. Or did my forward motion just make it seem like it was raining harder?

It seems like water torture when we\’ve barely dried out after a rainy spell; and along comes more rain! It looks like our groundhog won\’t see his shadow tomorrow. There\’s a 70% chance of rain; and by tomorrow night we might have T-storms.

The rain might not end before Friday; but at least we\’re not in line for the storm that\’s moving over much of the USA. That\’s some really wild weather!