The Spring Equinox came yesterday. It certainly felt that way when I set out on Zebbie, my 1984 King of Mercia, for Point Lookout. I chose to ride her, in part, because she has full fenders and yesterday’s rain turned some residual road salt and sand into nasty muck.
Anyway, my ride started under clear skies with a temperature of about 15C (60F) with a breeze blowing toward me. If not perfect, conditions were nice and certainly felt like the first day of Spring.
But I think I entered some sort of time machine as I pedaled down the Broad Channel bike lane and across the Veterans’ Memorial Bridge to the Rockaways. Clouds gathered and blanketed the sky, though they brought no threat of rain. The breeze stiffened into a real, full-on March wind. And the temperature dropped, or so it seemed, to a level that would have been right a few weeks ago.
The boardwalks of the Rockaways, Atlantic Beach and Long Beach hosted more cyclists and strollers, including families, than I’ve seen in a while. They, no doubt, wanted to take in the light and air, but were bundled in parkas and scarves.
The reason for the seeming reversal of the seasons is the ocean: At this time of year, the water temperature is still only about 4 or 5C (38-40F). And the wind blew from those waters to the boardwalks, streets and land.
On the ride back, I felt the air grow warmer, gradually, as I pedaled away from the ocean..This morning, though, it seems that a touch of winter has returned—if only for a little while,
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