Windy Ride (Again)

Some fresh gravel action out there yesterday

Wind. It happens in Iowa a lot during Spring, but the ferocity of the wind this April has been strong and unyielding. Good thing I got used to it at the Renegade Gent's Race! However; it is apparent that I am not really very fast into the wind, so my big plans for a high mileage day were cut short due to how much time it was taking to make headway against the ongoing gale.

I always get a kick out of what the weather program on my phone says about wind and temperature. That morning it indicated the wind speeds at 18mph. Right......

If that was 18mph, then I have a bridge in the desert to sell you. I was crawling, and at one point nearly stopped dead in my tracks by a gust. That is not happening with 18 mph winds and occasional, higher speed gusts. Nope. This was a full on gale strength wind like we've had going on for almost every day this month so far. Hey April! Quit being "all-March-like" and let's get on with a nice Spring, shall we?

The plan was to go for an extended ride, but with that wind, and some other pressing things, I decided to cut the ride short and head into town again. Going 18mph with the wind was super easy. Another reason to believe the wind speeds were much higher than being reported. Oh well..... It's making me a stronger rider. I'd just like a "normal" wind day thrown in for good measure. That's all.

The farmers are out working the fields up all over now.

It wasn't like the ride sucked, by the way. It was an interesting ride despite the wind. I saw a beautiful fox, right in town less than a mile from my home. I surprised it when I came down off an embankment to the bicycle trail. It barked at me then sprinted off into the woods. Then, not 50 yards further down the trail, I spied two blue birds busily catching insects. Go blue birds! Those birds are voracious insect eaters and help keep pests at bay. Glad to see that we are attracting more of them nowadays. There was a time when seeing one of these in the wild was akin to seeing a unicorn. Later on I think I saw some falcons and maybe a cedar waxwing. It was pretty cool.

The farmers are all out churning up the land in preparation for planting. I suspect that with this forecasted dry, warm weather we have coming up in the next 5 to 7 days, the fields will be buzzing with tractors and equipment non-stop. Word is that this Summer is to be very dry, so the farmers are itching to get everything planted as soon as possible. It all may be done by Trans Iowa time in just over a week from now. We will see.