Commuting - Every have one of those days?

I started late, by laying in bed a bit too long. I dawdled around the house with setting up my laptop with a new OS, that didn't like the laptop environment, so I had to get the old OS back. Then it was time to go. I knew it would snow tonight so I planned to change the Nokians onto my rims. I head to the storage area and mounted the Nokians, of course I put them on backwards so I had to take them off and remount them. Doing so also meant I pinched the tube, and had to replace the tube. Well, you guessed it, the tube I replaced it with was one out of the seat bag, that hadn't been patched. So I had to go back to the apartment get a new tube and do this again. By the time I actually was on the bike riding it was 1/2 hour late, but I figured crossing town and cutting miles I'd be okay. That was before the wind entered the equation, gusts of 25-30, with a base wind at like 15mph. In-friggin'-credible. I was averaging 12 mph, and there was no way I'd make it to work with a wind like that. I thought of calling and saying I wasn't going to make it, but called a co-worker instead and got a ride.
Of course the ride includes conversing, which for some reason I wasn't able to do, my tongue was tied, and I was making up words, like the "finders" on my bike. It was like talking in deslexia. I have no clue, and it didn't get that much better at work cause I got there hungry, my hour ride into the wind had beaten me.
I watched the clouds move on and thought well, the weather men were wrong, it's not going to snow. Wrong. An hour before the end of my shift, it started snowing, and blowing and icing over.
All the work for nothing, cause the snow came after a good rain, which covered everything in a glaze of ice under the snow, and when another co-worker offered a ride home I took it. After running late and chasing my tail all morning, a ride home in a warm truck cab just sounded right, me and the biking gods weren't on the same wave length today. Just one of those days.
And another thing. With this bus strike there are hundreds of bikers out there, and the media are making out like this is a new thing. My co-workers have been commenting about seeing some story about a guy that rides 13 miles to work, or 8, and they all say that I've got them beat. Where's the news? I do this sort of riding, with an occassional exception everyday. This isn't news.
Unplug your TVs. GEESH.
sound track for the day: Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon

.............
And another thing. With this bus strike there are hundreds of bikers out there, and the media are making out like this is a new thing. My co-workers have been commenting about seeing some story about a guy that rides 13 miles to work, or 8, and they all say that I've got them beat. Where's the news? I do this sort of riding, with an occassional exception everyday. This isn't news.
Unplug your TVs. GEESH.
.........

Well besides your bad day it sounds like the bus strike is a great thing (just sucks you cant even enjoy the commute sans busses - they make my ride hell some mornings). It might not be news to you becuase of your dedication, but the mass media reporting on the new wave of cyclists is a *good* thing.

Of course as a rule I think we commuters like to be the "unique" ones and if everyone is doing it we cant be so. Just shrug and welcome them to the tribe, its all good and Isn't getting more people on bikes better in a lot of ways in the long run?

ed

And another thing. With this bus strike there are hundreds of bikers out there, and the media are making out like this is a new thing. My co-workers have been commenting about seeing some story about a guy that rides 13 miles to work, or 8, and they all say that I've got them beat. Where's the news? I do this sort of riding, with an occassional exception everyday. This isn't news.
Unplug your TVs. GEESH.
sound track for the day: Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon

I can't believe that bus strike is still going on! Wow..

Folks. Why don't they just raise the fare by a quarter and give the pay raises. I'm sure most people would complain but after a few weeks, everyone will adjust to paying the higher fare. It's insane to deny people access to public transportation when this is an essential service.

People riding 13 miles to work by bicycle in that weather is sad. I won't ride 1.2 miles unless the temperature goes above 39F!!

Here's a good question: Why don't you move?

There are plenty of cities with good public transport and you don't have to deal with this. This is probably the only reason why I won't move to a warmer state because I'm a life long public transportation user. I can get a bus or train with a 10 or 15 minute headway between each.

I can assure you if this was a strike of unionized gasoline attendants, the governor would have the national guard out there pumping gas for the motorist.

Actually the MTC heads say it would take a 42 cent raise in fares to meet the unions demands. And I do enjoy the ride without the buses. I've wanted to tell them that on the picket lines, but figure they don't like me now, why make them hate me more? It's hard to ride with a sign shoved down your throat.
They are dedicated though. They were out tonight in this 1F degree cold with me as I rode by, they were huddled around the fire in the 55 gal drum.

People riding 13 miles to work by bicycle in that weather is sad. I won't ride 1.2 miles unless the temperature goes above 39F!!

Here's a good question: Why don't you move?


Two points, Steve: First, you're missing all the best commute days around here! To my mind, the city's more beautiful on a cold, misty morning with all the lights on than it is any other time ;)

Second, remember we recently came AWFULLY close to a subway strike here, and it was later pretty well proven that the money the MTA demanded was "needed" only because of crooked accounting and fraudulent reporting of their finances to the public. The end result was and is bad for the commuter, and especially to the low-income commuter who can't pull together the cash to buy discounted monthly passes, and instead winds up actually paying full fare. Of course, it was good for me personally - I became a bike commuter the day the fare increase went through, and I'll never go back! ;) I know that the MTA is better in some areas than in others, but on the routes I'd have to ride, I won't pay their current rates for their current service (since I can usually get where I'm going on the bike in the amount of time I used to wait for my train to arrive). And it pisses me off that for the first time in the history of the city, mass-transit users are now subsidising automobile users - the current budget takes a transit money surplus and applies it to road and bridge maintenance, and I'd like to see exactly the opposite - tolls for bridges and city driving could pay for the transit system to be cheap or even free. Perhaps I should move, too? ;)

-chris