Consecutive bicycle work commute number 2031:

First commute of the new year. As per our annual tradition, I took my wife to see her family in Ohio over the holidays. We got back yesterday, so this was the first day I rode. I was off the bike for 10 days and pretty much had a feeding frenzy while we were traveling, so I felt like I was huffing and puffing more than usual. I'm afraid to step on the scale and face reality. It's weird how I can display almost supernatural tenacity in things like riding my bicycle no matter the conditions, yet have absolutely no willpower when it comes to controlling my food intake.

The temp this morning wasn't as cold as they had predicted. Originally it was supposed to drop below zero this morning, then before I went to bed they had updated it to the low single digits. When I got up this morning I was pleased to see it was 10°F air temp. The wind was light, so it was a pleasant ride. I thought maybe I would have lost my winter skin while we were in Ohio and the temp was about 30 degrees warmer there than it was here in Sioux Falls. I figured I would get back on the bike this morning and feel like I was going to freeze to death, but I was actually quite comfortable as I rode.

We are way behind on snow this season. It has snowed at least a half-dozen times, but the most we have ever gotten is about 1/2". The pavement is currently 99% free of snow and ice, so I decided to take the road bike today. It's not very often that I'm able to ride the road bike in January. My clipless shoes aren't very warm, so my toes were pretty cold by the time I made it the 8 miles to the office. However, cold feet were worth it in exchange for the easier pedaling of the road bike.

Over the last few years I've been fighting to keep a hemorrhoid at bay. I thought maybe the 10 days off the bike might help it heal up a bit, but it felt angrier than ever this morning. I'm worried that if anything will ever break my consecutive riding streak, it's this thing.