Steve's Cycling Blog
My second outdoor bicycle ride of 2020 was a solo jaunt through the City of Waterloo on January 3. The weather was mild (for January in Ontario) and the roads and bike paths were clear so I decided to take out my gravel bike and ride around the city to explore the new protected bike … Continue reading New Protected Bike Lanes in Waterloo – A First Look
There are a lot of articles (and probably books) about exercise and fitness and cycling after the age of 50. Many of them are written by exceptional people who have devoted a huge amount of time to staying fit and active. If you believe what you read on the internet, it was Bill Clinton who … Continue reading Perspective: Cycling after 50
First a bit of "History of Gravel Grinders with the WCC". Back in about 2012, I started riding on Saturday mornings in the fall with some friends. The mountain bike trails were too wet and the paved roads were cold and windy, so we decided to explore rail trails and gravel roads where speeds would … Continue reading Crossing the Conestoga River… what really happened!
So.... here we are. Another year over, and a new one's just begun. And you know what that means? Numbers and maps - two of my favourite things when it comes to cycling and motivation. So here's my Cycling year 2018 in numbers (sources: strava.com, veloviewer.com, http://www.jonathanokeeffe.com/strava/annualSummary.php) Total distance: 5450 kilometres (most km's I've cycled in … Continue reading 2018 Cycling Summary
As daylight hours drop and temperatures get colder, it becomes more difficult for me to get motivated to ride my bike. A lot of my cycling friends have set up their trainers and moved indoors; their bikes won't see the outdoors until the spring. For others, the cycling season never stops; they may have put … Continue reading Late Fall/Early Winter Cycling – Motivation
When I was re-introduced into cycling as an adult in the early 1990s, I bought a mountain bike and began to explore trails. In these early days, there weren't a lot of trails that were built exclusively for mountain bike, so my brothers and I would explore hiking trails around Dundas Valley, Oakville and anywhere … Continue reading KWCX – My first (and last?) cyclocross race
On many of my bike rides in warmer weather, I've observed that I sweat a lot more than the average person. In extreme heat (>30 degrees Celsius plus humidity), I can't keep enough fluids in me to keep up with the sweat. This has prompted me to do a little research into the physiology of exercising … Continue reading Cycling in Summer Heat
It's hard to believe 2018 is half over already. There's still a lot of warm weather ahead, and lots of long rides in the months to come! I thought I'd summarize my year to date with some of the online tools that I've blogged about. In June, I rode farther than I have in any … Continue reading Ride Summary – First Six Months of 2018
Lately, I've been more selective about the cycling events I enter. Until this weekend, the only event I'd entered was Paris to Ancaster. However, when I got a message on social media that I'd won an entry to the 3rd annual Creemore SpringsTuras Mor in Creemore, Ontario, I was excited (Thanks Noelle W. from Pedal … Continue reading 2018 Turas Mor – Gravel Grinding in Creemore
This past weekend, I've been out cycling a few times in temperatures as cold as -17C. That's just the air temperature. When you factor in wind, it feels much colder. On cold days like these, I tend to ride slower and I choose routes that are sheltered from the wind. But sometimes, the wind is … Continue reading What it’s really like to cycle at -17C
