Daunell​ felt I should do a good bike ride today. I planned a 50 miler, but was concerned about how long it would take. I didn't get going until about 12:30, and Ride With GPS said it would take me 3:59:39 of moving time. I guessed that there would be at least an hour to an hour and a half of stopped time when you add in all stop signs, stop lights, breaks, etc. I was thinking I might be able to complete it by 5:30 PM and it gets dark around 5:00. I made sure to keep my headlight off until it got dark then used it in flash mode when there was enough ambient light to see by. I have determined that when this headlight is on full power steady, it lights up barely enough to be safe, but it is lacking especially when oncoming traffic has headlights on.
I started out feeling like I was dragging and wondered if it was the reduced riding I have been doing, my sleep situation, poor recovery from Thursday's ride, or just that beginning resistance that melts away after I ride a bit. Luckily, it was the beginning resistance that melted away!
I had an enjoyable ride and was making good time, I think, when I started feeling like I should be having a better time of it as I was slightly trending downhill. After a bit, I thought to check the tires. My right rear tire was flat! Perfect timing, as I was rushing extra hard to make the next trail head (i.e., restroom) and I was in a bad way. I just pumped up the tire without any attempt to repair and hoped it would get me to the gas station I saw just ahead. It barely made it.
I decided that since it would take some time to repair the tire, I might as well order a sandwich from the Jimmy Johns that was part of the gas station. My guess is it took at least 45 minutes to repair the tire as I ate my sandwich. That was not going to be good as far as getting home with minimal riding in the dark.
The rest of the trip went smoothly without any mechanical issues.
I really enjoy having Ride with GPS direct me where to turn to stay on my planned route. I had my phone in my pocket so only hear the audio cues. It made it difficult a couple of times, especially when it was dark, but there was once I went on the wrong road because it said the second exit from the traffic circle and it was actually the third. It did say the street name, but I couldn't hear it well and it was dark and I couldn't see the name anyway. As soon as I started down the wrong road it chimed at me the chime for WRONG WAY!
It got dark when I was still about 20 miles from completing the ride and I don't have the most confidence on how long my head light will last. I made sure to keep it on Flash mode whenever I could.
I really enjoyed getting out on this ride today!

By the way, my actual moving time of this route was one minute - ONE MINUTE - less than what RidewithGPS estimated it would be. How accurate is that for a 50 miler!?