tarwheel 

Back in the saddle today after a week of vacation. Didn't get to ride much over the past week, but had a great time hiking and camping in Northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula. I did manage to cycle around Mackinac Island about 7 times while we were staying there for a few days. What a great place for riding, with no cars allowed on the island, relatively flat roads and great scenery. The weather was perfect, with sunny skies and mild temperatures almost the entire week. I foresee a week-long bike tour in N. Michigan sometime in the future.

mgw4jc

Yes, gloves for less than 50 is a good idea.

It was a nice 68F here this morning. A nice tailwind sped me up which was nice. I had to stop at the store close to the office for some snack and lunch supplies.

arsprod 

First day of Fall was predicted to be in the upper 40's but just missed it, 50F. Kind of weird having my legs covered

esmith2039

A bit chilly.. my phone said 62 but the bank said 58. If I would of know that would of wore a long sleeve shirt at least. Still not quite cold enough for pants. Picked up some more winter gear at the goodwill outlet this weekend so should be good to go for winter.

Wolfhaven

Fall weather is here. Was a nice 53 this morning with a full sky of stars. Riding before sunrise has helped with traffic. Fewer cars and they see me easier in the dark. One dead coyote in the center of the road and then I watched an owl swoop close overhead.

Looking like I'll be able to commute 3 days this week.

HardyWeinberg

It's the long sleeves into work and short sleeves back to home season. A month ago 50F would have been short sleeves weather but not now. Humidity/clamminess is way up I guess.

KCBikeCommuter

Nice to be back on the bike after an 8-day business trip. 60-degrees and light winds this morning!

noglider 

I had a great ride this morning. Headwinds were stiff, but I was in a good mood, so they didn't get me down. The air pressure must be high, because I felt euphoric. I hope the wind keeps up for my ride home. It rarely does, though; morning winds are usually harder than evening winds.

I haven't measured it, but I think I'm continuing to improve at increasing my cadence. Spin, spin, spin.

joeyduck

Sounds like some nice commutes are being had. I miss riding this time of year.

I've been taking my boy to school while wearing his little sister. I'm able to get there and back pretty much with crutches on only one side and they are mostly for extra balance and I really don't use them. I have been walking about the house without anything either. I am certainly improving, but I still only have stamina for about ten minutes of continuous upright moving, so I use the wheelchair for longer outings.

I have been really thinking about riding a lot and its tough since I can not even talk to my life about it without stressing her out. We drove by as an accident happened in the lane next to use and she started freaking out.

I may start a thread in general cycling looking for a new bike, I am curious what people will say. There was a bike from a somewhat obscure brand that interests me but I can not for the life of me recall what it is. I am hoping someone will post it.

I hope everyone has great rides.

Darth Lefty 

This Cannondale cross build is started out about as stiff as it could possibly be. It has big chunky MTB-style stays and a "Pepperoni" MTB-style aluminum fork, a 36h aero wheelset with straight spokes, a 31.8 compact handlebar with the flattened tops, and tough-ish and inexpensive commuter tires. I'm ready to start walking it back. As a first step the Romin Evo went away in favor of a softer saddle which fortunately still has red trim, albeit less obvious. Still on the list of changes to try are softer tires, a quill stem and rando handlebar, maybe a carbon fork. My hand has been hurting lately and I'm not sure whether to blame the bike or the home improvement, but the bike sure doesn't help it. I've had a hard time pressing the shift button on the left from the hoods.

Glad to hear from you and looking forward to it.

Outnumbered

Windy 25knots gusts to 30 right in my face the whole 12 miles. Nice workout though and good crisp clear air.

Phil_gretz

Finally! We got some rain yesterday afternoon. It was different riding home in a light drizzle. Pleasant, really. I saw a groundhog make a break for a nearby drainage tunnel. "Run!" I shouted.

Quite, damp and cool this morning, the ride seemed a bit hushed to me.

essiemyra

It was 51 this am, but I took the gloves anyway, I figured the temp was only 1 degree above.

The commute was nice this morning not as cold as yesterday. The road has its second coat of asphalt and it is so smooth, I went flying down the hill this morning, with no worries about bumps and not seeing them.

mgw4jc

Low 60s and minor drizzle this morning. I leave at 7a.m. and it is now just to where I feel like I need the headlight to start out, especially when it is overcast like today. I did turn it off about 30 minutes later though.

baron von trail 

Mixed bag this morning. Temp was OK, a little under 50 so I decided to forego the jacket. Definitely borderline on the "too cold for that" front. At least I defined a line for when I need a jacket this year: 48°F and below, which is about 5 degrees lower than last year. Still need to define a line for leggings, shoe covers and ear protection. I'm guessing anything below 40 needs all three right now.

As for the ride. It was awesome until I got close to work. Then it all went to ****.

One car turns left in front of me in the school zone. Another stupid, over-protective mother dropping off her emasculated little kid, who simply cannot be trusted to walk to school, for some reason. Anyway, she probably had more important things on her mind than to watch for cyclists.

Less than 5 minutes later, another car does something unexpected. This one backs out of his driveway onto the road without looking. The idiot almost backed right into me. Oh--he said he was sorry. ****ing jerk.

arsprod 

Fairdale? Great to have you back even off the bike.

49F this morning so NOW it's officially Fall with the "4." I seem to be in one of those flat cycles - went to leave yesterday and back tire was flat (it's always the rear). Swapped tubes, finished putting my gear on, ready to go, flat. Start over, got home. Walked out this morning, almost flat. Because I'm an optimist and inherently lazy I pumped it up and took off. Made it to work but now have a pile of tubes in my office. And before you give me advice about checking the tire and rim this is all because I patch tubes and these were all patched, apparently poorly. I think I'm done patching

esmith2039

Perfect temp around 65. Was trying to get a podcast going so left a few minutes later but still made here at the same time. Picked up some pepper spray Sunday and so far no dogs period... lol funny how that happens. Fall starts tomorrow but so far in the 50's only a couple days.

txcrash

Life has been getting in the way of long bike commutes lately, but I'm doing what I can to keep up with the short commutes.

Last night I left the office significantly later than usual and ran into another guy that rides almost exactly the same route as me, just an hour later. I guess he's been doing it for about 4 years. He commented that I was really booking it on my fully loaded bike (panniers, trunk, my fat ass) - he was trailing behind in the flats, I was trailing behind on the hills (I'm not sure what his effort level was, flats were about 22 mph).

Had to drive in today, and it really reminded me of WHY I bike commute. I hate the drive.

tarwheel 

Fall is my favorite season for bike commuting and we're getting our first taste of cooler weather. I love it because I can finally ride without getting drenched in sweat. Plus, it's not cold enough yet to require extra clothes.

joeyduck

Bam. And that's it.

Thanks, though I have been lurking regularly.

arsprod 

reason know is because I bought one - about 2500 miles on it and still love it. Serious competition to LHT

wphamilton

Our perfect weather continues, a little precipitation but not so much that you'd notice. In a way I feel guilty for riding because if I fall with this slow-healing collarbone and the hardware installed the ramifications would be severe. I find myself starting earlier to avoid trail users, waiting out rain instead of riding through it, moving out a foot further from the curb, and other small cautions that I wouldn't normally be so concerned about because even the smallest risks are compounded over time. It feels too good to even consider stopping though.

I'm even considering finding some studded tires for our week or two of icy riding. Maybe with a dedicated winter bike attached.

noglider 

Agreed! At least for September. Yesterday, I wore a polo shirt and cotton dress trousers. I rolled the trousers up to just below the knees. Not much sweating and I didn't get cold, either.

My ride back home last night was good. I had the tail wind I had hoped for, but it wasn't as strong as the headwind was in the morning. It seems to go that way: winds are strong in the morning and milder in the evening. I didn't turn on my battery powered blinky tail light or my spoke light, as the sun set right around the time I got home. This left me running only the dynamo powered headlight and tail light, both steady.

groovestew

Another 0C/32F commute this morning. Cloudy and calm. I probably should have turned my lights on. There was a bit of frost on a wooden bridge over a creek, which made it more slippery than snot on a brass doorknob, but I made it across okay

I'm still riding my lightweight road bikes these days, and hope to continue for a few more weeks because I really dislike riding my LHT. As long as the streets stay dry, I'll stick with the lightweights.

no motor?

Same here. It's still warm enough for shorts and short sleeved shirts, but cool enough to allow for a quick cool down once I arrive.