LOL - Exactly. Of course, one of the points here is that a “planned route” is, as often as not, a loop of some sort. I can start out either direction on my usual loop, so the wind’s going to be in my face one direction or the other at some point in the ride. If you go one way you have to come back the other way. Also, a lot of us like to have an idea of how many miles we’re going to put in, and that’s part of planning a route. Changing direction midway results in changing the number of miles.
well to be fair I do most of my riding in city limits where I can take dozens of routes and still get back most of the time.
I also hate headwinds and will treat a bike route like I would treat a flight path. Choose the best route based on wind direction. By that I mean you should take advantage of wind breaks (such as hills).
I was astounded once by a headwind along a river levy. It seemed like I was putting in a tremendous effort to maintain 10 mph. On the return leg I was actually accelerating without pedaling. That’s when I started looking for sheltered routes on windy days. We have a tremendous number of rail-to-trail bike paths in my area so easy to find one that works well on a windy day. I look for one that is perpendicular to the wind that cuts through a lot of hills so there is a wall against the wind.
As an amateur sailboat guy, let me tell you about apparent wind. When you are moving with no wind at all, you will feel wind in your face from your motion. If you ride 15 mph into a 15 mph headwind you’ll feel a 30 mph headwind. If you ride 15mph with a 15mph crosswind you’ll feel the wind at a 45 degree angle. If you ride at 15 mph with a 5 mph tailwind, you’ll still feel a 10 mph headwind. When you add your own speed into the actual wind, you can see why it seems like you are always riding into the wind.
In the concrete canyons of a big city, the wind seems to be dead ahead, dead astern, or dead, just like the wind on many rivers. When you come to a street corner, though, as Aspidistra says, the wind shifts abruptly to the side. It’s scary.
On a more serious note, I offer my sincere condolences to the family of Spezza, who was literally killed by the wind. We all live at the mercy of the weather.