Mostly hitting the gym and spinning class this time of year, and the short days make getting out, even when the weather permits, difficult. But today I just couldn't take it any longer and got out for an easy 15miles to the coffee stand and back. There's no easy route to town from where I live, every road involves a deep drop down to a stream-bed, then up the other side. 1000' of verticle for such a short little jaunt, with a 16% switchback on one turn.
I'm not geared for such a thing this early in the season on my road bike, so took the fat-bike, giant 4" knobby tires and all. What fun it was! On the fat bike there is no voice inside my head saying go faster, faster! Instead its just cruise along and enjoy being out riding in the middle of winter. The fat bike, of course, has a mountain drivetrain capable of climbing a tree I think, so the very steep climb on the way home was do-able but I worked up a serious sweat and peg'd the heart rate. Ugh.
I have to admit, the $800 spent on the fat bike was the best anti-aging investment I've made. Every time I ride that bike I feel like I'm 10 years old again.
Ride on my brothers, ride on!
"To attack the pedals may be strenuous over the short
run, but is an expression of trust in one's own powers,
for with the bicycle everything depends on the self."
--Wolfgang Sachs