Consecutive bicycle work commute number 2076:
Last night on my way home the temp was 69°F. It was glorious, and the first time this year I've ridden without a jacket. This morning the temp was 25°F with a chilly north wind. It's amazing how quickly the winter skin fades. Three weeks ago 25°F would have felt like picnic weather.
Today's high temp is supposed to be in the 40s, and no precipitation was in the forecast so I took the road bike. My backpack was jammed full with refills of supplies that I keep at work. It should be a lot lighter on the way home.
A section of the MUP is closed this week while they're doing some utility work in the area. So I took a different way to work through residential streets for the first three miles, then rejoined the MUP after I had passed the portion of the trail that was closed. The residential route was about the same distance as the MUP, but was a lot hillier.
With daylight savings time, the mornings are dark again. About 1/4 mile into my ride my headlight button glowed red, indicating it was due for a charge. Uh oh. I still had a long way to go to get to work. A few miles down the road it switched into low power mode, and got rather dim. Then about two miles from the office it shut off altogether. By this time I was on the MUP and it was suddenly pitch black. Thankfully I keep a backup light strapped to my helmet, so I reached up and turned that on and used it for the remainder of the ride.
In the dim light before my headlight went completely dark I managed to hit two large items on the pavement that I didn't see. Both of them made a terrible sound when I hit them. In both cases I was sure I would have a flat tire within 1/4 mile. In both cases I was wrong, as the tires stayed inflated. I don't mind being wrong in this situation.
I got to work and proceeded to lock my bike on the rack. For about 15 years I've kept a cable lock attached to the rack in front of our office. I just leave it there to save me the hassle of hauling it back and forth. I've noticed it's been getting rattier and rattier over the years with the plastic sheathing cracking and completely falling off in places. This morning as I stretched it out to run it through my bike frame it snapped in two. I guess fifteen years of exposure to the elements finally rusted it in half. I just kind of looped it through the bike so it would appear to be locked to anyone who glances at it.
The lock at our office is mostly a formality. I'm not too worried about theft as our building is at the very end of a cul-de-sac that butts up against an interstate interchange. Anyone who makes it all the way to our parking lot probably did so intentionally, and pedestrian traffic in the area is pretty much non-existent. It'll be fine and I'll purchase a new lock to leave attached to the rack for the next 15 years (or more than likely less as I hope I'm retired long before then.)