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2018! The ?How was your commute?? thread!

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2018! The “How was your commute?” thread!

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Old 07-27-18 | 07:13 AM
  #1426  
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Wow, 60F this morning, barely getting to 80 this afternoon. I think we got a backwards summer - hot first, cooler later. I wish I had a video camera rolling this morning. A guy passed me carrying a little dog in a harness across his chest - I laughed out loud
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Old 07-27-18 | 08:13 AM
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A pleasant enough ride in this morning. Glad to see Friday.
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Old 07-27-18 | 08:39 AM
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In the middle of the night, I woke up with horrible leg cramps two or three times. Too much cycling and not enough stretching or walking. It's another day for a break from the bike. I had to get up eventually and walk around to uncramp my legs. It was very painful.
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Old 07-27-18 | 02:22 PM
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quick update. i dropped off a curb to avoid road construction. apparently the weight broke my hub. I took it to shop to fix, install bar tape, and chain rings. 4days later i get it back and I only made it 4 miles today and the hub flange is broken which is why the wheel is out of round. I am not sure if I should fix the hub and respoke it or just buy a new wheel. I have missed a ton of riding lately but while it was in the shop; we had so many severe thunderstorms it would not have been wise to ride at all.
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Old 07-27-18 | 02:22 PM
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[MENTION=152773]noglider[/MENTION] try drinking some pickle juice it really helps with the cramps
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Old 07-27-18 | 02:24 PM
  #1431  
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Thanks, [MENTION=134924]RidingMatthew[/MENTION]. I will. But I'm also in bad need of stretching. Must do better.
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Old 07-30-18 | 04:46 AM
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A pleasant uneventful ride to work this am with the sun coming up just a tad later.
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Old 07-30-18 | 05:53 AM
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Cool 60 degrees this morning! Had a strong NE wind though. First commute on the new bike.. so far it's positive! No numbness in the hands. The Trek store sizing machine said I needed a 15 but no way on that. Had 2 17's before and felt ok just the numbness. The guy at Dick's only had 19 but he's like why don't we look at it. Seems to be a perfect fit but it might be too soon make a judgement.. although my hands were numb after every ride so maybe not. Looks like I'll have to change out the Specialized also. The new aluminum frame seems to be a bit easier to get rolling vs the old chrome moly but that might be a placebo.
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Old 07-30-18 | 06:41 AM
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I'm pretty sure I saw the forecast say showers starting at 11am this morning. But while I was getting ready at 6:35am, I heard rain outside. Twenty minutes later I was almost ready to leave and it started raining harder. So I sat on the front porch and watched as it poured pretty good. After about 15 minutes it started letting up and I hopped on the bike. About 1 mile into it, the rain stopped and I had a dry ride the rest of the way. I did have to take a shorter route due to leaving later, but it worked out well.
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Old 07-30-18 | 07:44 AM
  #1435  
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It's so cool today, as it has been for about three days. I decided to use my backpack instead of my front panniers. I had a heavy headwind except there was some kind of eddy in the portion where the path goes under the elevated highway, and it was a tailwind there. The bike felt so light, and it took me a minute to realize it's because of the lack of panniers. That's fun.
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Old 07-30-18 | 09:31 AM
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Originally Posted by mgw4jc
I'm pretty sure I saw the forecast say showers starting at 11am this morning. But while I was getting ready at 6:35am, I heard rain outside. Twenty minutes later I was almost ready to leave and it started raining harder.
Call me a cynic, but I've gotten to where I want to ask for every prediction, "Is that my time zone, or Newfoundland Daylight?"

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Old 07-30-18 | 09:46 AM
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66F, hazy. Fire season is upon us.
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Old 07-30-18 | 01:39 PM
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Nice morning, 70s, less humid than last week. It looks like it may rain for the ride home though.
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Old 07-31-18 | 04:52 AM
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A pleasant uneventful commute in this am.
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Old 07-31-18 | 05:54 AM
  #1440  
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Nice commute this morning. The calendar has flipped, and I'm now into my 4th year as a bike commuter.

I had an unfortunate crash back on June 6th, having got caught by a tree branch that clunked my head and sent me into a telephone pole. This snapped back my head and caused my C6 nerve to light up. Anyway, concussion and vertigo, therapy and slow recovery and I'm back to normal. On the bright side, the telephone pole prevented me from falling into oncoming traffic, so that was good. Keep pedaling...
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Old 07-31-18 | 06:07 AM
  #1441  
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Lower 60's again.. did we time travel to fall? Rode 19 miles with commuting and taking the boys for a spin with the new bike and only had a little soreness in my legs this morning. On the other bikes I'd feel like I was hit by a truck! I might actually be able to commute everyday again.
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Old 07-31-18 | 07:37 AM
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Fairly nice weather, although it was slightly warmer and felt a lot more sticky-humid this morning. Shy person in a car didn't want to pass (me on the shoulder), so when she did there was a long line of traffic that kept me from making a left turn onto the "bike" path. Up and over the hill, instead, which wasn't so bad since it was cool. And then the payoff: a quarter mile of downhill. Whee!
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Old 07-31-18 | 07:38 AM
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It was pleasantly cool when I stepped out today, but it must be quite humid, too, because I sweated a lot. And it's not even hazy. OK, I don't really mind. As long as I get to wear shorts, I'm happy.

I stopped to meet [MENTION=193767]johnlink[/MENTION] on the path, as we had an appointment. I met him to hand off some pedals I'm loaning him. As I waited, I counted the bikes. As I've said, my route, the Hudson River Greenway, is the most heavily used bike commuting route in the US. It was about 8:30am, and I counted 28 southbound cyclists and 13 northbound cyclists in two minutes. That gives you an idea of how busy it is. When folks here on BF ask what we do when we see a fellow bike commuter, I smirk, because it happens often for us here in NYC.
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Old 07-31-18 | 09:23 AM
  #1444  
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60F, overcast, might not get to the 90s today.
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Old 07-31-18 | 01:23 PM
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Rode across town to another location over lunch. I was riding through the oldest remaining section of the MUP that hasn't been updated, which means it's still at the original 7 foot width (versus 12 feet.) As I was riding along this section I saw a person walking coming towards me. Behind her was another guy on a bike also coming in my direction. I could tell that the three of us were going to converge at the same time. With the narrow width of the MUP there wasn't enough room to pass three wide (which I don't like to do even on a 12 foot section).

Because the rider coming towards me would have to move to his left into my "lane" to pass the pedestrian, the onus was on him to yield until it was safe to pass. I don't always assume that other riders are going to do this, but I saw him stop pedaling a ways behind the pedestrian and it looked like he was slowing so I held my pace.

Suddenly the guy slammed his feet to the ground attempting to stop Flintstone-style. At that point I realized that either he didn't know how to use his brakes, or they were completely non-functional. I couldn't move off the trail to my right because there was a steep drop off into the river with no railing. I was also too late to stop in time, so I slowed and moved to the right as much as I could.

The guy somehow managed to squeeze between the two of us, dragging his feet the whole time with a panicked look on his face as he was attempting to stop.

Idiot.
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Old 08-01-18 | 06:23 AM
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Originally Posted by noglider
As I waited, I counted the bikes. As I've said, my route, the Hudson River Greenway, is the most heavily used bike commuting route in the US. It was about 8:30am, and I counted 28 southbound cyclists and 13 northbound cyclists in two minutes. That gives you an idea of how busy it is. When folks here on BF ask what we do when we see a fellow bike commuter, I smirk, because it happens often for us here in NYC.
Very cool that there are that many commuters. And, no, it wouldn't make sense to acknowledge that many. Charlotte (closest city to me) on the other hand, is just trying to make things bike friendly. I don't ride there, so it doesn't really affect me, but glad to see some progress.

I didn't ride yesterday due to rain threats and my wife really not wanting to rescue me if it did rain. I'm bummed because I would have been fine. We only had a little rain in mid afternoon. Last night though we got quite a bit.

Left early this morning for a stop at the gym to lift some weights. August 1st already!
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Old 08-01-18 | 07:17 AM
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Pouring rain. I got soaked. The forecast said no rain today, so I packed for the road bike. When I got up and saw the rain I re-packed and changed clothes for my hybrid with fenders.

Being a full-time bicycle commuter means I have one thing in common with Superman: we both frequently duck into concealed areas to make a quick clothing change.
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Old 08-01-18 | 07:58 AM
  #1448  
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Haha, [MENTION=366933]mgw4jc[/MENTION], funny that you should use the term bike friendly. The path I take is pretty bike friendly, but the rest of the city is bike dense, and we could dispute whether the term bike friendly applies. I feel comfortable on a bike in most places here, but I have well developed nerves from riding here for a long time. There are still plenty of people who sweat just thinking about the thought of riding in this horrific and brutal traffic. But yeah, a lot of others do it, and there are many kinds. We are seeing lots of people who are not bike lovers like you or me. There are poor people, old people, fat people, fancy wealthy people, and so on. It has become an ordinary thing to bike commute here. It's not like Amsterdam, but it's heading in that direction. It has become common to see someone walking on the sidewalk wearing a bike helmet, probably because that person has just gotten off a bike or is about to get on one. It doesn't generate stares any more.

The forecast calls for lots of rain today. I decided to take the subway knowing full well that I might regret doing so. Every time I let weather sway my decision lately, I regret it. And I can tell you that the rain did subside for the period in which I traveled to work. We will see about this evening. Also, I may need to carry big stuff home, so maybe it's for the best.
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Old 08-01-18 | 09:13 AM
  #1449  
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Lower 60's again.. might have to start wearing long sleeves but it's supposed to start warming up again. Rode for the third day in row trying for five with the new bike. Only my legs are bit sore.
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Old 08-01-18 | 09:13 AM
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60F, overcast, the lightest mist.
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