Moe Zhoost

I thought I was in Amsterdam today going home. Bikes coming at me from every direction.

mcours2006

Haven't seen another commuter in months. Don't expect to either. Not many people commute by bike here in the suburbs. But I imagine it's a different story downtown.

JReade

We had a "fluke" day about three weeks ago.. 75 degrees, sunny.. I normally ride the rail trail to a group ride, but that was out the window. I couldn't make progress. Granted, I travel the wrong way when I ride to work, but I'm sure it's packed downtown.

52telecaster

Still seem pretty alone in my town. Certainly the only one wearing cargo shorts!

kickstart

Been down with the flu for 5 days, and we had some nice, if somewhat cool weather, go figure.

Kindaslow

The crowds have not come out yet up here, but they will soon. And, they will be out until some time in October. I like the cold and rain, I get the "place" to myself!

Darth Lefty 

More power to 'em. I see more in the evenings than the mornings.

Brace yourselves, Bike Month is coming!

BobbyG

+1

aadhils

I guess I'm lucky to work in Berkeley CA. Cant throw a stone without hitting a cyclist. Even saw a couple of cyclists during a rainstorm yesterday!

bmthom.gis

I've been noticing more and more as well...good! Everyone should take advantage of wonderful weather.

noglider 

I'm glad and I'm sad, too. The changing seasons bring many things. Right before spring started, we had weather which I felt was quite hospitable but most people don't. It brought out the "Cat 6 commuters," more than usual. I actually enjoyed that, and I might fit into that category now. I don't race anyone. I keep my pace, which is a lot faster than some people but certainly not impressive compared with some people. But Cat 6 commuters know how to handle their bikes and how to pay attention. As things get more crowded, there will be more people on bikes and on foot who irritate me because they don't know how fast I'm going before they just jump in front of me. Or they don't look. Or they look and don't care.

no motor?

I see a handful of other commuters during the year, the more the better as far as I'm concerned.

PatrickGSR94

I've been commuting 4 years now... I've seen maybe ONE other person commuting (not sure if they were actually commuting or just out riding)? And only a handful of other people riding, ever, in 4 whole years.

noglider 

We're in a cold snap, and it's likely the last of the year. I skipped it yesterday but I braved it today. The wind was still, but it felt like I had a headwind. I stopped a few times to see if it was an illusion, and it was. It was just so cold on my face.

Do cold temperatures make the effort harder? I felt like I was pedaling hard, but my readouts told me otherwise.

I took the hard route with a tiny bit more distance but a ton more climbing. I see one of my grades is 12.9%, though not for long. Man, the Bronx is a hilly place. I did manage to keep moving and not stop on any of the climbs, so that's something. Steep climbs are at least as much a balancing challenge as they are a power challenge.

My tracks and pictures this morning

The bike commuters I saw were wearing clothes that showed they put a lot of thought into them, as I had with mine.

Jim from Boston

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcours2006

Haven't seen another commuter in months [Toronto]. Don't expect to either. Not many people commute by bike here in the suburbs. But I imagine it's a different story downtown.

Quote:

Originally Posted by no motor?

I see a handful of other commuters duringthe year [Chicago], the more the better as far as I'm concerned.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PatrickGSR94

I've been commuting 4 years now... I've seen maybe ONE other person commuting (not sure if they were actually commuting or just out riding)? [Memphis] And only a handful of other people riding, ever, in 4 whole years.

Boston is a relative hotbed of cycle commuting (for North America at least), even in winter.I leave downtown at about 6 AM and pass by the busy Harvard Medical Area and through the hip inner suburbs of Brookline and Jamaica Plain, served by the Jamaica Plain and Pierre Lallement Bike Paths. The latter one is named for the nominal inventor of the pedal bicycle, who died in obscurity in Boston in 1891 according to Wikipedia.

After about 4 miles going outbound the cycling traffic thins out for my next 10 miles, but even in the winter early morning I might see a couple of cyclists in either direction. In the nice weather I extend my commute into some premier cycling suburbs where I see many individual, and a few pacelines of fully-kitted cyclists out for early morning apparent training rides, less likely commutes.

PatrickGSR94

Yeah Memphis proper has cyclists and commuters. Though I'm never there in the morning or afternoons weekdays so I don't know how many commuters.

I live outside of Memphis, and work even farther away from Memphis, and I see almost no one, ever, at any time of year.

noglider 

You ain't kiddin'.

I lived there many years ago, and it was true then and clearly still is now, even more so. The Strava heatmap shows the Boston metro area is a lot hotter than the NYC metro area. Funny, because we both have crappy streets. But you don't have giant bodies of water to cross. Ours funnels the traffic onto limited access highways, so some areas here are entirely hostile to cycling.

no motor?

I saw another person riding a bicycle Sunday night as I was riding home. He was coming the other way on the bike path, and he noticed me way before I noticed him as he had one small light on the front. I pulled over, covered my handlebar mounted light and looked away so the helmet light wouldn't bother him. He was the first person I'd seen riding my way in years, and one of the very few I've seen period on that path in a long time.
I was wondering if the dire predictions made by some here about my lights causing massive irreparable damage to him too, but he seemed fine as he passed. Whew!

CrankyOne

On the 2 mile bikeway between our house and shops/cafés it is extremely rare to not see at least one other person. Only when it's below about 0f or 10f will it be somewhat reliably empty. Fortunately most or all (walkers and bikers) are fairly considerate and pay attention, keep right or move right when needed, etc.

There was a new housing development put in recently so we're having to train some of them both about using the path and paying attention when driving and giving path users appropriate right-of-way.

I'm always very happy to see other people riding, especially if riding instead of driving. It was also heartening to hear that the city council are discussing some improvements like adding a separate walkway to a couple of heavily used sections and making path ROW official in city code and requiring that neither residential nor commercial driveways may interrupt the bikeways (EG, the bikeways will now always be continuous in grade, material and color).

InTheRain

A warm spring day... I wonder what that is like? I guess I'll find out in June.

wilfried

Man, that hill in Inwood Park up to the Henry Hudson Bridge is deadly. I don't think that 12% grade is real however. You're still on the bridge, while that shows the slope of the land under the bridge coming out of the river.

noglider 

Oh right, when I cross the Hudson, ridewithgps thinks I'm on the surface of the water. D'uh!

But are you familiar with that hill? In my mind, it doesn't matter how slowly I climb it. The fact that I can do it at all without stopping is pretty nifty.

wilfried

Yup, I've done that hill a few times, so I know whereof you speak. Also, finding the entrance to the bridge the first time is a bit of a trick.

noglider 

Yeah but the view is spectacular.

wilfried

It is indeed, and I can make it there without stopping. However, I do find the people who enjoy hills rather perverse.