It was surprisingly warm this morning on my commute in, despite the fact I started earlier than I usually do (7:45 am). I was worried it might be cold out, so I had a thin toque on underneath my bike helmet. For no particular reason, other than to do it, I decided to ride in today as if my bike was a single speed (i.e. I didn't allow myself to change gears). I pedalled all the way in at 50x20 without any real difficulty. This was in stark contrast to when I first started bike commuting to work last fall on my first bike (Jamis Citizen 1), where I had to drop use the 28Tx28T to get up some hills. It's amazing what a year (less the winter months) of cycling, a much lighter bike with narrower tires, and clipless pedals will do. It was a pleasant, if mostly uneventful ride in to work. As I rode through the Minnesota Fairgrounds a woman in a Subaru angrily hammered the horn as she went around me. While I wasn't hugging the edge of the pavement, there was no other traffic in sight, and that particular stretch of pavement is easily wide enough for four lanes of traffic, so I don't know what her issue was- other than the fact I was enjoying my commute to work, and she was probably miserable. Despite the fact I was up early, I took a shorter more direct route in to work this morning at 5.5 miles in about 18 minutes, which seemed pretty good to me considering having to stop at lights.

My commute home will be a bit longer- since the weather is so beautiful here right now in Saint Paul, Minnesota, I think I'm going to take a small 30 or so mile detour on my way home. I'm looking forward to it. I'll try not to think about the coming snow and winter too much while I pedal along the Mississippi, and just enjoy the fall colours.

Cheers,
Brad