Lots of this on my ride yesterday - The Old Plank TrailAfter a long day at the track on Saturday I decided to get the heck out of the city and headed to the South burbs to visit family for Father's Day. Not only did I get to see my dad, I visited with both of my brothers - also dads. The added bonus of it was that I also managed to get in a near 70mi ride on the day, traveling from my parents' place in Thornton out to my brother's in Manahttan(tucky) - it's very rural out there!
Most of the journey was completed on the Old Plank Trail, which I believe is a former railroad through-way that's been converted into a paved multi-purpose trail. This trail is NOTHING like the lakefront path. There were times on my ride that I didn't see another person for 10-15min at a time. Just a steady, straight, shady, smooth ride. Nice as it is, it was also a little boring - I much prefer to ride with (specific) company, so I took along my ipod for eardrum massage purposes.
It turned out to be a very nice day - warm sun, not a lot of wind and no rain, though it was intensely humid. That necessitated a few stops for fluid which enabled me to see some interesting things. It strikes me that no one in suburbia trains their dog to walk on a leash. I can't tell you how many poor owners I witnessed being dragged along having their arm yanked out by a hyper, choking dog. Oh, and the tandem and recumbent bikes - they're everywhere. The one thing that took the cake - a tandem recumbent. Yes, really. I'd love to see them maneuver through Friday evening lakefront path traffic on that sled. Indeed....
After my visit I was kicked in the head upon re-entry to urban life as I crept along on the moving parking lot known as the Dan Ryan/Kennedy combination. I hate driving and I hate traffic even more. Someday things will change but I'm not ready to leave this rat race of urban life just yet - so I'll keep my complaining to a minimum and make my own happiness until that day arrives.
Most of the journey was completed on the Old Plank Trail, which I believe is a former railroad through-way that's been converted into a paved multi-purpose trail. This trail is NOTHING like the lakefront path. There were times on my ride that I didn't see another person for 10-15min at a time. Just a steady, straight, shady, smooth ride. Nice as it is, it was also a little boring - I much prefer to ride with (specific) company, so I took along my ipod for eardrum massage purposes.
It turned out to be a very nice day - warm sun, not a lot of wind and no rain, though it was intensely humid. That necessitated a few stops for fluid which enabled me to see some interesting things. It strikes me that no one in suburbia trains their dog to walk on a leash. I can't tell you how many poor owners I witnessed being dragged along having their arm yanked out by a hyper, choking dog. Oh, and the tandem and recumbent bikes - they're everywhere. The one thing that took the cake - a tandem recumbent. Yes, really. I'd love to see them maneuver through Friday evening lakefront path traffic on that sled. Indeed....
After my visit I was kicked in the head upon re-entry to urban life as I crept along on the moving parking lot known as the Dan Ryan/Kennedy combination. I hate driving and I hate traffic even more. Someday things will change but I'm not ready to leave this rat race of urban life just yet - so I'll keep my complaining to a minimum and make my own happiness until that day arrives.
