Let me start by saying that I am not a morning person. The thought of getting up at 5:30 to ride before work is not just daunting but impossible. I can hardly hold a coffee cup before 6:30. So, for me, riding in the evening is the correct path. From April to August, this is a good plan. I can be on the road at 5:30 or 6pm and get in a good 1 1/2 to 2 hours and still have daylight at the end. This works well for me and is another reason I really love Summer.
Then there was today. After a long day, I wrapped up work at about 5:45 and headed out on the bike at 6. The weather was fine (close to 80 degrees) and a few clouds in the sky. Traffic was reasonable and I headed out on one of my usual routes: a 25 mile circuit through several neighboring towns. While I had not ridden for 5 days, I had been out running a couple of times so the legs and lungs felt ok too. I was aware that the sunset was at 7pm today but I thought that the difused evening light would be enough to keep me safe. I was not, however, thinking that the trees lining the shaded streets would not let the dusk light come through. Duh!
I was about 4 miles from home when it was getting really quite dark. I was actually more concerned about not being able to see the road surface and all its pot holes and other imperfections than I was about the cars being able to see me thanks to my yellow, white and red jersey. The headlights from the oncoming cars were pretty blinding and there were a couple of times when I held my breath as I road over rough surface I could not see. The last mile was totally dark as I road up High Street with no street lights or traffic of any kind.
What did I learn from this experience? Fall is nice and I like weekend daytime rides but I no longer can head out later than 5pm or I am going to have a very dark and, potentially, dangerous trip. Evening rides will most likely be inside from now on.
But there is good news: Spring is only six months away!
