Rain in the forecast for later today, but it was nice this morning, so I packed the rain gear and rode in.  You gotta ride when you can in February.  Murphy’s Law says that if I don’t ride in, the rain will hold off until after I get home.  So if it’s not raining, I’d rather ride in and deal with the weather later.  If worse comes to worse, I can always call for a ride home.

Today I detoured onto US 1 to avoid the arduous River Rd hike into the park.  This makes for a roughly 6½ mile ride in, which is about the shortest possible ride I can take.  With the park impassable, it really limits the routes I can take to get to work.  If I want a longer ride, my only alternative is to ride out to River Rd, then through Catonsville.  Before I try that route, I want to drive it to make sure the road conditions are OK.  In the meantime, short rides are better than no rides at all (or the trainer).

Today is my second ride with “Power Grips” toe straps.  I bought these to use in snowy or icy conditions where there’s a chance I’ll have to walk a lot.  I started out with toe clips, but the clips were too small for my hiking boots, and the fixed gear wasn’t kind to them either..  I broke one of the clips on my 3rd or 4th ride.  I’m still getting used to the Power Grips, but I think they’re going to work out fine.  More on the Power Grips after another ride or 2.