atombob

I woke up this morning and flipped on the tv to catch the morning news and weather report. It's been just a little cloudy in the mornings and always burns off by 10:00am.... except for today.

Weather report said it'd burn off and I didn't think anything of it as I rode to work in my usual dress pants and dress shirt. As I got closer to the office the streets started to become more and more wet. I'm looking out now and it looks like it's November. Not raining but a constant thick drizzle soaking everything.

Looks like a cold, wet ride home in a think cotton dress shirt. Crap.

Anyone else get caught today?

Thomas Brock

That certainly stinks, atombob...

It hasn't started raining here in Eastern NC, but the weather box says there's a thunderstorm warning.

77midget

nah, but I don't wear my work clothes when riding, and have a rain shell in my bag always. It is nice and compact since I vac-sealed it with one of those kitchen food vac machines.

markhr

That sucks (try a bin bag with head and armholes cut into it as an emergency rain shirt) but...

...you actually believe in people who consider .400 good forecasting

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/corporat...tion/city.html

swwhite

I never believe those weather guys.

BroadSTPhilly

I work in energy and one of the things we try to do is forecast power usage. Variations in the actual weather versus the weather forecast is the biggest variable which causes inaccuracy. This is all to say the weather is affected by many random variables that are very difficult to anticipate. So be prepared for anything.

itsthewoo

Eh, I wouldn't commute in street clothes unless it was a really short ride.

You don't even really need rain gear; jerseys, bike shorts, and sandals are fine as long as it isn't cold and you don't use clipless.

DataJunkie

God I would love rain.
It has been so dang dry here.
The two chances I have had to ride in rain I have been in between storm cells.
Then I found a lightning \ rain storm while descending a 20% grade mountain on a recreational ride. Go figure.

cyclezealot

My commute was way to long, so it was bike shorts, jersey and bike shoes. I always had enough clothes at work, so I did not have to carry much gear. / Yep. Can't trust the weatherman. Sometimes, I read the the Weather Channel report on the Net before I leave. I look out the window, and what the report says is not what I see. Go figure. If its a warm rain, what is the problem as long as you can change at work.

ThreLittleBirds

I always bring my rain gear with me. I live in Florida though, so its a 99% chance of rain everyday in the summer time.

Also it helps to check several weather sites, I always check accuweather.com, wunderground.com, and weather.com, usually they have slightly different forcasts and i go with the worst one.

bkrownd

Why are you riding in cotton? Polyester wicking clothing is so cheap. I had some nice refreshing showers on the way in today.

ews

This is not a problem if you always have the right gear. I don't even bother checking the forecast anymore. I just ride.

BA Commuter

I keep a rain jacket in my bag as well. On the ride home, a rain shower would feel refreshing compared to this hot/humid schtuff!

I do check www.wunderground.com in the morning and before I head out. If I see a large band of storms on the way, I usually get going a little early...

charly17201

Weathermen are like used car salesmen and recruiters (I was a recruiter)...... Don't know what it really is - lie through yer teeth.

timmhaan

doesn't this kinda thing happen all the time in oregon?

nopinkbikes

Weather people are not liars. They are just people that can be at times completely wrong, get paid well for it, and viewers/public still go right back to them the very next day to see what they have to say again. It must be one of the best jobs out there to have

Ash

yea .. i saw the "chance o thunderstorms" forcast but it was sunny when i came it ... but since i got to work its change to rain .. luckly sec let me bring in my bike to keep it from getting water logged any further. We'll see what its like went i'm riding home at 11pm tonight.

atombob

I have a couple of Polyester shirts but there's a style factor involved.

atombob

Actually once we get past July 4th we usually don't see rain until October. I think the near perfect summers are our little secret out here. The winters on the other hand....

slugman

I'm in the not commuting in work clothes camp, plus I keep running gear at work for those times I don't feel like waiting out the evening thunderstorm or soaking the bike. If it's raining in the morning I'll run in against the protests of my not-awake ankle.

Erick L

People say weather forecasts are wrong because they only keep the part that suits them. I've been working in weather stations for 10 years and while they do mistakes, most times they are spot on.

Perceptions are a funny thing. A few years ago, people were complaining about a rainy month of may. Yet, hours of sunshine were well above average. I took the records out and noticed it only rained during week-ends when most people are off work.

rnorris

I'm in the Seattle area and we get the same low level marine cloudiness that frequents western Oregon. I usually rely on the weather radar to see what's coming for the next hour or so for my commute, but this marine crud is so low it can drop some fairly thick drizzle below radar coverage- as I've found out to my dismay.

usmarinecorps55

Weather yesterday said there was a 30% chance of rain... wouldn't you know it, I got rained on during the evening commute ..... That's the second time... atleast it wasn't lightning though

atombob

Wow! When I got home our local weatherman actually said that this came out of nowhere. Like rnorris was saying, it was a low level marine layer that was too low for radar to pick up. Lesson learned. I'll just keep a rain jacket in the pannier from now on.

Thanks for letting me whine. lol!

charles vail

Help me I'm melting, meeellllting!


Wear wool, it doesn't stink after you sweat in it plus it dries fast and regulates temperature the best of any fabric.