[MENTION=152773]noglider[/MENTION] , I've heard that the "shoulder seasons" in places like the Midwest or east are often better than their summer and winter counterparts. October in Kansas City is a time with incredibly crisp air and nice temperatures. I have long thought that Seattle's location, surrounded by large bodies of water, is a mitigating factor in temperature extremes, and perhaps temperatures in general. Apart from one "immensely inconvenienced driver" on Monday (constant horn from his dark green late model crew cab Toyota Tacoma as he passed all five of us), the drivers and the space in the areas outside of Seattle were gracious. I am always quick and happy to wave in thanks and appreciation of their consideration.
When we went to Bike Works from the ferry docks on Tuesday (a five mile trip one way) there were a couple harmless clueless (annoying) drivers, but by and large it's just busy city riding with all the needed aggression to be aware, make confident moves, and do all this usually going uphill. We were well over 30 miles at this point, and I was lead, which is always stressful as I was responsible for the direction and general well-being of three other riders who aren't familiar with the ferry-to-Bike-Works route. The hills sucked, even if I had plenty of energy because we were now in an area that required razor sharp observation, reaction, and action (and I had finally recovered from a big lunch, and traffic had sufficiently annoyed me). Why do I have low gearing and high gearing on the same race bike with killer brakes and responsive handling, aided by light components and tires? Because of city commuting. The Paramount is very much set up for this. Perfectly fine at all speeds in the countryside, but turn up the heat and she's ready to tackle the cut-and-thrust of urban chaos. 28-32T low and a 53-11T high, vice-like Kool-Stop-equipped dual pivot brakes, good wheels and tires. Only ceding ground to my faster bikes as they are several pounds lighter with tighter geometry.
Glad that cycling in NYC is a lot better now than before. Calmer areas often breed calmer drivers, save for the ego-tripping ones that want to "really show a cyclist who's boss."
On Tuesday we stopped off at the Slippery Pig Brewery in Poulsbo. Fantastic IPA and Reuben sandwich! Many of their beers are not lightweight ABV affairs (think 7%+ on average or more), but I was up for it. I need to go there again!