After a rainy weekend, we finally had some sunshine yesterday! My dad was in town, so I took off work (hurray for 4 day weekends). He wanted to go for a bike ride...which would be the first time on a bike for him since my boy scout days. Ended up on a sub 20 mile round trip (I think it was somewhere around 18 miles) to go to a cafe for an early lunch (figuring if he was just not feeling it he could call mom for a ride home) and back. He did really well! He didn't really want to run any gearing except for the highest, and his pedal hit the curb once causing him to fall off. Maybe when he (finally) moves down, he will want to get into it!

Decided to keep up with the riding of bikes today. I had a pleasant commute. I was finally able to get my kickstand off of my commuter (it was cut too short and never supported the bike when it had any weight in the panniers). The bolt hole had completely stripped, and I kind of just grumbled about it for the past year. Ended up drilling it out, and I had a VO double kickstand to put on in its place. I ended up not liking it for the setup - I would have had to really shim out my crankarms to not interfere with the drive side leg, and the chain was rubbing on it when in the small chainring. I'll find the right bike for it eventually. I don't really need a kickstand except for at the house, so I went to the shop to see what I could find in the way of a stand. I'm going to go ahead and call this one awesome. Topeak Lineup - the contact point is just under the fender, and while loading up this morning the bike was very stable. It also folds down and it portable!
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So that's been the last couple of days for me re cycling.

Another uneventful morning commute, about 45 degrees with very light winds.

Today's morning commute was cold and misty (at least for me, my SO is still riding with shorts and a t-shirt), so I got to try one of the thermal cycling jersey I had ordered last year, kinda liked it, it help me keep warm without feeling like I was boiling from the inside and it was only one layer of clothing (instead of the 2-3 I was using last year). When we get to winter I'll probably have to add a merino wool baselayer underneath.

On the way to work we came upon a bus crash. Seems like no one was hurt but there was quite a crowd (firefighters, cops, etc).

Commute back home will be eventful, I anticipate. There's a big soccer match tonight and everyone will be anxiously trying to get home in time for it, which means crankier drivers, oh joy.

Yesterday I didn't ride, and it was extremely windy, my normal enemy. The gusts were reported to hit 50 mph (80 kph)! Today the weather said more high winds and it said they came from the north, so I said no again. I go north in the morning. I took Citi Bike to the post office (which I do once a week) and from there to my subway. The tall buildings channel the wind, so the wind always seems to go in the direction of one street or another. When I hit an intersection, the wind seems to shift 90º. It seemed to be coming from the west and the south, not the north at all. I wish I could figure out this wind direction thing. Maybe I need to do some research.

Getting into and out of the post office with a 50 pound (23 kg) bike is difficult, because the self-closing door is narrow, and then there are steps. Going out this morning, a guy on foot walked through the door and didn't hold it for me. I shouted "Thanks anyway," and he didn't seem to hear me. It's just as well he didn't.

30F, sunny

A pleasant 30 degrees with clear skies. Moon was amazing with the blue sky as daylight was beginning. First ride in 3 months so I was feeling it. Didn't push it, just cruised steady. Should be low 40s for the ride home.

43 degrees this morning so I got up early and went for a run, which was the 1st time in a couple years (decided I wanted to get back into it.)

Then I rode to a client's office. Then I rode across town to our company office, fighting a brutal head wind the whole way.

By the time I ride back home tonight I'm probably going to be quite sore.

36F with no wind thank goodness. The wind last night brought cooler temps today high of 65For so

Very windy today. Perfect day to choose an e-bike :-) So I did.

A very nice uneventful commute this morning with the temp at 28f degrees and the wind at only 5 mph.

High 50's with the wind out of the SE. Wearing shorts once a week it seems. Wind wasn't bad despite riding into it. Was going to ride every other day but said screw it, lets go for it! Have been riding the Trek with the 700's pumped up to the 80's. Quite a bit of difference from the Specialized. Not falling over dead yet.

Mild -2C/28F, very little breeze, nice sunrise, what could be better. I wore my DeFeet wool gloves which I thought might not have been enough but within about 10 minutes, I never thought about my hands again.

The forecast is for torrential rain this afternoon with rain continuing to tomorrow morning. I have a ride home tonight but I won't be able to avoid any rain tomorrow morning.

Another chilly but clear morning with lows in the upper 30s. Didn't want to overdress, however, because the high is supposed to reach about 70 this afternoon. Pollen is still the big story here and everything is coated in yellow dust. It can't be good to breathe all that stuff.

Went early today, in the dark, chilly but otherwise very pleasant commute. :-)

This morning's commute was completely uneventful.

However, last night's commute home was epic. At 5 PM when I was scheduled to leave, we were in the midst of a huge storm. Pouring rain, lightning, wind, etc. A co-worker who rides decided to try to make it home but turned around and retreated back to the office after a 1/2 mile.

I looked at the radar and it appeared that most of it would pass by 5:30. I decided to hang out at work until it all blew over. My son had jazz band practice so I needed to be home by 6:15 to get him there on time. I figured if I left by 5:30 I'd have 45 minutes to make the 8 mile ride home.

Sure enough, at 5:30 the brunt of the storm had passed. The rain and lightning was over, but unfortunately the wind had increased ferocity on the tail of the storm, and even more unfortunately had shifted so that I would be riding straight into it. I'd have to push hard to be home in 45 minutes, but it was still do-able.

Then as I was getting ready to walk out the door my boss returned to the office and grabbed me for a few minutes to discuss an idea he had. So now I was down to about 37 minutes to make it home.

As soon as I broke away from that conversation my wife called in a panic. It seems that during the school day my son's instrument had accidentally gotten loaded into a trailer by well-intentioned individuals in preparation for a concert series they were performing today. They didn't realize he had planned to take it home yesterday evening so he would have it for use for his jazz band practice, then bring it to today's performances himself. Unfortunately by the time it was discovered where his instrument was, the trailer was packed full and was now at some unknown (to us) location. The nature of the evening's jazz band is an invite-only ensemble group, and attendance at all practices is mandatory which meant just skipping practice wasn't an option. So I talked through the logistics of where we could secure a temporary instrument for him to play that evening.

By the time I got off the phone I now had 30 minutes to make it 8 miles home straight into a 30 mph wind. There was nothing I could do but crank for all I was worth. I was on my hybrid, but I bent over as far as I could in an attempt to cheat the wind. I pedaled and pedaled as fast and as hard as I could, trying to block the pain from my thoughts. When I came to hills instead of gearing down and slowly spinning up them like I normally do, I stood up and cranked even harder.

I rolled into our driveway exactly 30 minutes after I left, completely exhausted and nearly unable to speak because I was breathing so hard. Not sure what my heart rate was but I'm sure it was higher than that which my cardiologist would recommend. I was completely drenched in sweat. But I made it and was able to get my son to practice on time.

Today my legs are paying the price for that trip home. I have a feeling though that once the discomfort passes I'll probably look back on that trip home with some fond memories.

A chilly 41F. Decided to take my #2 route and part of that MUP was under construction and about 30' or so was blocked. The construction guys were incredibly nice - walked me up to the road, made sure I understood that oncoming traffic was blocked in the lane I was using, and kept apologizing for my inconvenience. I checked and they work for a private company not the city

Been doing a little over 30 miles per day this week. I'm in a training class in a building at the southern tip on Manhattan (across from Staten Island Ferry). So have been using a lot of the Hudson Greenway lately from Lenonia, NJ to training and back. Today was 38F and not windy. Yesterday was ok except for the trip home (uptown). Got a good beating from the wind so was glad I held back a little. Was still pretty tired after finishing that ride. Today should be easier going home.

Uneventful commute home yesterday, although wind was definitely NOT in my favor like it was last week. Last Tuesday's afternoon commute with 25+ MPH tail winds took 1:00 hour exactly (moving time). Yesterday it took 1:13 and change (moving time), a 22% difference.

First time this year on a road bike. I was all set to go with my fixed gear, but when I saw the wind forecast for this afternoon, I thought something with lower gears might be a better idea.

Spring road cleaning has started, sort of: all the grit that was kicked up into the grassy boulevards has now been swept into the bike lanes. Spring sure seems early this year.

35F and sunny!

[MENTION=175954]Tundra_Man[/MENTION] that was an epic story of your commute, I'm glad this morning was better.

Rode my first commute of the year this morning. All in all, it went well. Weather was prefect: no wind, 40 Degrees. The trip home will be even better--70 Degrees, wind at my back.

It was cooler this morning low 30's. I just figured I would take the weight penalty to be comfortable this morning since it will be 70 this evening. I will carry most of what wore this morning home in my panniers.

Yeah, kinda cold this morning! I thought I could do without my thermal hat under the helmet, and my ears complained. Beautiful sky, though.

This weekend I got Dad's Paramount out from behind the tandem and yesterday I rode it in to work. I'm pleased to be reminded what a great bike it is, and after a couple of years on other drop bar bikes, the fit feels more natural. Still, it also reminds me why I don't ride it too much... although the quality of it is amazing, it isn't what I like best. It always wants to go fast (high gearing, handlebars that prefer the drops), and it's kind of primitive (friction shifting, single pivot brakes).

On the elevator this morning a woman got on, noticed my backpack and cycling clothes, and said "Oh, looks like you survived!"


I guess some people think it's a death-defying act to ride a bike to work.

[MENTION=175954]Tundra_Man[/MENTION], bravo! I hope one of your family members appreciated your effort. And you have to learn to brush your boss off respectfully and say gotta go.

I thought my ride today would have to be better than yesterday's (50mph gusts of wind). Well, we didn't have gusts, just a 20mph headwind that I got to ride into the entire way home. Whew!

Rant: I'm getting kind of tired of folks telling me I can't be on the road. I can't very well cycle on the sidewalk! Shout-out to the homeboy who blared his horn, wagged his finger, and made sustained eye-contact with me all while not allowing me to merge with traffic as I was coming off a bridge. And yet, I'm the one that's a danger to traffic.

Not going to complain too hard! Because tomorrow will be warmer, I have good food, and clean socks. No need to allow some (obviously very angry and miserable) person ruin my day.

The wind let up, and it was warmer. No critters seen. Nice morning, all in all.

Wind certainly was not at my back last night. Tough two hour ride home. I hate the first ride of the year. lol...my butt is even sore. My butt is never sore.