Great to hear [MENTION=190611]joeyduck[/MENTION]!!

I forgot to get on here and post this morning. It rained all night last night but stopped at 6am. I leave home at 7am and was fine riding in. Although it is majorly overcast and more is on the way, I should be good getting home. Tomorrow morning may be another issue though. Heavy rain is forecasted from early morning until after lunch.

Plus, I'm fighting a minor cold - runny nose, sore throat, etc.

Constant drizzle this morning, with intermittent rain to make things interesting, couldn't see the road surface very well in the dark, and hit a pothole. I see that pothole every day, and I usually steer clear of it, but I forgot about it today. Pinch flat. Walked a short way to change the tube under the I-95 overpass, but the new tube failed at the valve. Walked a half mile to a street light bright enough to patch the old tube, but even with the better light my first patch missed both holes. Not a total loss, though: the first patch gave me an excellent reference point and I was able to get the next two patches right where they belonged. Vulcanizing cement works in the rain! But it's really hard to wait long enough for it to dry. Pumped up and rode off, got to the station only about an hour late. Cold, wet, with dirty hands, but it felt like a victory that I'd resisted the temptation to go home and go back to bed.

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Edit: Okay, I admit, I was pretty surprised when I got back to the bike at 4 PM and found the back tire was still fully inflated. But it was! Patched the failed tube after I got home: the hole was in the factory glue, where they stick the valve assembly to the rest of the tube. I probably should have just tossed it, but maybe the patch will hold.

Another rainy night, but there seemed to be a break around 6am. I left early hoping to get to the office before the next splotch of green on the map got there. I didn't, but the green splotch wasn't producing much actual rain either. The whole ride was more of a misting experience. I was damp, but the 15mph wind (the one I create) kept me dry enough. I did start to sweat a little as I dressed for 48 degrees but it warmed to about 52 during the ride. High is for 68!

The duck rides again! Today could win as crappiest ride of the year - 34F, constant rain, winds gusting to 30+ mph. Good news is it was mostly a tailwind - there were times I could literally feel it pushing me. Bad news it's supposed to pick up and rain turn to snow with winter storm warning. I'm taking the bus home

23 degrees this morning. No wind or rain, but 90% humidity which made the cold seem a lot more extreme than it was.

Did three things I haven't done much of since November: rode my hybrid instead of the winter bike, used my clipless shoes instead of my winter boots and used my regular glasses instead of my ski goggles.

The hybrid did fine without studded tires even though there were occasional patches of ice. I would just stop pedaling and make sure I wasn't turning at all when I went over them. It's supposed to get up to 35 degrees today so I'm guessing I won't have these ice patches on the way home.

Clipless shoes weren't a problem. I was worried maybe my feet would be cold as my shoes are vented, but they did surprisingly well. I was wearing a single layer of socks under them, but they were Merino wool so that probably helped. And I didn't even forget that I had to unclip at stop signs over the winter, so that was a bonus.

The regular glasses, however, probably should have stayed at home. I wore them because my hybrid doesn't have a handlebar mounted mirror and I wanted a mirror for the commute. My regular glasses have a Take-A-Look mirror mounted on them which don't work on my ski goggles. However, once I was rolling I quickly figured out how much warmer those ski goggles are. I rode about 1/2 the 8 mile commute with an "ice cream" headache until my face went numb, after which it was more tolerable. While the mirror was handy, I should have warn the goggles and just turned my head more often.

I've been listening to the wind for the past half hour. Weather data says 27mph from the SW. Luckily I go NE, but I anticipate some cross winds on some parts. I'll find out in about 25 minutes.

Nice morning for a change! Moon just past full, so pretty high in the sky when I left, an lots of stars and planets. Not that I was looking up, but it helps somehow. A bit of a headwind, though. Soooo much better than yesterday. :thumb:

Yesterday's ride was faster than average due to the winds that were part tail and part cross. I averaged 17.8 miles per hour, about 2 miles an hour faster than normal.

Although the winds weren't as bad this morning, they were still blowing in the same general direction which meant part headwind and part crosswind for my ride to work. I averaged 15mph. Last night's news showed several trees blown over either onto streets or homes.

I encountered this on my way in. It was a little bigger than I am able to bunny hop over, so I had to dismount.

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=506331

I'm not surprised by the tree down along your commute route, m-guy. We had tremendous storms in Raleigh yesterday, with several tornadoes spotted, high winds in general, heavy rain and large hail. Fortunately, I heeded the forecasts and drove because there was no way I would have ridden home through that storm. My commute route this morning was littered with branches, pine cones and other debris, but no trees.

My ride this morning was brutal, with strong headwinds and gusts most of the way. Temps were relatively mild in the low 40s, but it felt much colder due to the wind. Unfortunately, the wind is supposed to shift northward during the day, so I am likely to be fighting a headwind all the way home as well. When I got downtown, a few gusts felt like they would knock me over while I was sitting at a red light.

Rode home last night in a 34 degree drizzle. As I expected, last night's rain froze to the ground when the temps dropped overnight.

This morning was pretty windy. Combine that with me being back on the studded tire winter bike and I was like rolling molasses. But I made it.

I had almost the same size tree fall across the Mt. Vernon trail I use to ride from VA into DC. In the dark it really crept up on me.

Pea soup fog, sopping wet when I got in, lot of fog colored cars w/ no lights.

First and only commute this week. I took the MTB and had fun. Once again eerily lonely for a clear, temperate, sunny morning.

Your day sounds a bit like Tuesday last week for me. Went to GWB south sidewalk but it was closed. Went to Weehawken ferry (my usual alternate route) and got a flat on the way there. Felt a hop in the back tire and thought it was tire casing but now think it was the tube. Got into Manhattan from the ferry and got another flat going uptown. Changed that, went to work. On way home from work went to GWB but sidewalk was still closed. Saw a guy with a recumbant and fairing that called the bridge authority and they claimed that they would open the sidewalk. Waited with him for about an hour but they never came. So I took the bus in uptown port authority across the bridge (good in a pinch and only $1.8X for 1 zone). Got off the bus and finished the rest of my commute with a pinch flat at a traintrack at the end. Yeeay. At least I made it to the friggin car. :rolleyes:

Todays commute was just peachy. 52F and no rain. Awsome. Just saw a little more tree debris on Riverside Drive in Manhattan. Was nothing compared to others north and west of here according to the radio. One of the guys at work here stayed home since he lost power at his house in CT. Am sure he's glad he has a generator today...

Chilly, uneventful commute this morning, around 33-37 degrees. Sunny, finally. First time riding my regular road commuter bike since Wednesday of last week.

Crossed bike mechanic off the list last night of potential trades I could pursue if I ever wanted a change of pace.

Two nights ago noticed my BB7 disc brakes were feeling a bit mushy, so tightened in the pads. Was incredibly happy with my work, especially on the rear brake where the brakes seemed incredibly responsive on my ride to/from work yesterday.

Got home last night and backed my bike into the garage only to hear squeaking; my sensitive ear quickly pinpointed the rear disc brake. Picked up the rear end of the bike, pedaled with me hand, and the wheel stopped after ~2 rotations. Apparently I'd tightened the brakes so much that the inside pad was pressed right up against the rotor; so much that there wasn't the telltale 1 rub per revolution sound that would indicate it was just a LITTLE too close. It was so close it was rubbing the whole rotation.

Funny thing is that it didn't really affect my time. Wonder if the brakes basically just canceled out the purported ~20W of reduced rolling resistance for my new Conti GP 4 seasons compared to the old Schwalbe Marathons I switched out of last week?

Awesome!

Had planned to commute today, until the wife asked if I could work from home and wait for the electrician (to fix the lights in the bathroom). Soooo... hopefully tomorrow.

40 degrees and dark, but the moon was still up and nearly full and they have stars out in the country where I live. They had recently graded the gravel road I ride on which sucked, especially since I had a bit more air than usual in my tires looking forward to a long ride home. I'll let some out before I go back on the last 10 miles or so of gravel roads.

My commute was fine this am. After hearing the weather people mention gusting winds at 20mph I was questioning my decision to ride. I told my dh that and he told me stop listening to the weather people. Which I did and rode. The temp was 32f degrees, and clear skies.

Today's commute was.....messy. Note to self, wrap saucey lunches in plastic.

These are some entertaining quotes - thanks for giving me a chuckle this morning.


Cold morning today compared to the rest of the week at 36F. A rec rider caught up to me this morning and chatted for a few minutes. I rarely see other cyclists out in the morning, especially in the winter. I told him about my commute and being a one car family. He thought it was great. Friendly enough guy.

Cutting through one neighborhood I had two squirrels dart across the street in front of me at separate spots. They were busy!

Double wrap, even then...

Nice commute this morning with sunny skies, temps in the low 30s and very light wind. My legs were tired, however, from battling the fierce winds yesterday. The cold temps seem to be bothering more since the days are getting longer and warmer, so I dressed more warmly than usual. I'm appreciating the new brake pads that my shop put on my main commuter bike. Being able to stop quickly is always nice.

Not too bad this morning. Temps hovering around 32F but calm and bright. The tip of my nose is lightly frosty ;-)

30F and clear after two days of wicked winds, cold, and snow. I'm officially sick of the cold - sort of embarrassing considering how mild a winter it's been but there you have it

Friday being casual day at the office, and with benign 35° clear weather, I decided to bike in street clothes saving myself a little time and trouble. No bag to carry, no rain, already light out, I grabbed the road bike on a whim. That would have been fine on the road, but when I got to the Greenway trailhead I succumbed to whim again. I hadn't been on that trail all week because it's been flooded since Monday with a rainy week. I knew that the water levels were lower than expected though with flotsam from the flooding, and consequently there would be no other bikes there - I couldn't resist a ride in solitude after a week in traffic. And that's a low-effort no sweat route.

What I'd failed to consider sufficiently was that I'd stripped everything off the road bike, including fenders. Even gliding slowly through mud-covered sections and keeping a low speed for another hundred feet or so (to fling the water and mud off) I still had more mud splatter than I expected. So I spent more time cleaning up than if I'd simply changed. I really knew better, but it's hard to resist the whims sometimes.

I don't remember what it was like this morning, so it must have been okay, right? It's Friday, and February is almost over... things are looking up, guys!

Around -2C/28F for the ride in but this afternoon going up to +7C in February whaaaaa???? This is April weather.

Really struggling on the hills due to lack of riding over the past 3 months. This early spring maybe means I can get my summer legs back a bit earlier. Or maybe winter will finally hit us in March, which is entirely feasible in this area. We could use some more snow.