Standing at the Trailhead of Winter

I tried out a new route today. Rather than heading west then north to the lake, I rode southwest, out to a small farming community. The new route offered rolling hills and very lightly traveled rural roads. Having no traffic to worry about (well, for the majority of trip anyway) made for a truly relaxing ride. I started out early, not long after sun-up. I think Sunday's early morning run infected me with a desire to now get up and get out before the day really starts humming along. Today, the temps were in the low 70's when I clipped in and rolled down the street. By the time I got back 2 and a half hours later, the sun was beating down in the high 80's. A cool southwest breeze kept the ride from becoming unbearable. My rest stop to fuel up Going out to the small town, I knew I was on course as I could see quite a ways in the distance the large grain bins marking where the trains pass through during harvest, loading the cars with corn and soy beans. On the return rid...