Exhibitionist Wear and Pig Buds: Formula For A Great Day!

Forecast for a PERFECT Sunday ride!

Yesterday was one of those absolutely perfect days that makes South Florida the place to be in January!  I was scheduled to do a 3.5 hour ride with an old buddy.  He is a bike mechanic and BMX pro that dabbles in road and mountain bike riding.  He has a fantastic sense of humor and is really strong on a bike.

TJ.  Wind is not kind to him.

We headed east into a stiff headwind and he took the first pull.  At the first stop light, I realized that it made much more sense for me to pull since he was a big guy on a road bike and Seabiscuit and I are fairly aero.  He had clearly been working hard and I was barely warm.  I took over the lead and maintained it for the rest of the ride.  Unfortunately for him, Seabiscuit and I ARE fairly aero and don't really provide much of a draft benefit.  Still, to his credit, he let me have the lead and he soldiered on without complaint.

Manly tires... LOVE it!

Of course, TJ is one of those super secure guys that can't pass up a good deal on tires.. or headphones. 

Even manlier earbuds!

We got to our turnaround point at the inlet, topped off water bottles, and I snapped a  couple of pictures.  I was sporting one of my strappy Castelli tops that is marketed as exhibitionist wear.  I love that I get the sun on my back while still enjoying BIG, proper cycling pockets.  And to think I thought I'd never wear them.  Paired with my favorite tri shorts, I looked more like I belonged at the beach than on a bicycle.  HOW awesome it THAT in January!!?!?!?

Not really going any further down this road, am I?

Every so often you see something that stands apart.  I had snapped a picture of this catamaran sailing through the inlet when suddenly from the ocean, here comes this incredible work of art.  It came gliding through... fast... and immediately shamed every other boat on the water.  It reminded me of a dragon the way it owned the inlet and slid menacingly through the water.  No matter how I try, I WILL fail to describe it well.  I am not completely sure what type of boat this is but the way it sliced the water, I can only imagine it is some type of racing vessel.  Either way, it really took my breath away.

I thought "Oh, pretty sailboat!"

Then I saw THIS!!

Words will never do this beautiful work of art justice.

After a short break and some photo ops, we headed back the way we came.  We enjoyed the tailwind we had earned on the ride east for about ten minutes, then the wind died completely and we had still air the rest of the way home.  Figures.

Seabiscuit: hanging in GOOD neighborhood

How often does the water under a pier look like this?

This is winter at its finest!

I got home with that awesome sense of peace and satisfaction that you get from a really great ride.    Thank you Palm Beach for being my winter home!!

The road back.  What a wonderful place to ride.