Rara Avis
 

In the 10+ years I've been bike commuting it's been pretty rare for me to come in contact with other riders. I've seen others out riding before, but they were usually going in different directions and in the course of a week I'll see a handful of others riders. It's usually me and the cars/geese/old people shuffling down the bike path etc.... But last night as I was waiting at this light (and I usually do end up waiting there) another bicyclist rode up and stopped next to me. I can't remember the last time that happened, and to make it even rarer the other rider was even an attractive woman. It may be another 10+ years until that happens again!

Same here. I rarely see other cyclists on my route, let alone attractive ones, let alone women.:D

Write it down, man. Memories ... :-)

After 10 years of commuting 2-3 days per week I think I average less than twice a year where I line up at the light with another cyclist, almost always a roadie guy. Probably have only lined up with a commuter 1-2 times through all that.

No kidding, and to top it off she spoke to me!

With the college students in town, certain commuting segments are practically a mob scene around Boston/Cambridge. Independent of time of day, I would say that the M/F ratio for people who look like work commuters is about 4/1. For the younger people who are bopping about in town, the ratio is more like 3/2. One thing I have noticed is that there are more women commuters dialing-in their setups for the colder season: Fitted shells/softshells, good lighting and panniers, full fenders etc. It's a better look than my geeky unmatched attire.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Archwhorides (Post 20592777)

With the college students in town, certain commuting segments are practically a mob scene around Boston/Cambridge. Independent of time of day..

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Hi [MENTION=389176]Archwhorides[/MENTION],

Thanks for that embellishment about the active Boston cycle-commuting scene, since my experience is limited to an early outbound commute. In the nicer weather when I extend my early AM commute into such well-regarded cycling towns, as Needham and Dover, I frequently encounter individual roadies, and pacelines out training.

I previously posted in 2011 about the in-town improvements that benefitted cycle commuting: During the last couple years of his term as longest-serving mayor (1993-2014), I used to hope to encounter him as I rode though his neighborhood in Hyde Park.

Just last night we had long term friends visiting us from a Midwestern City which shall remain anonymous, They are vehemently anti-cyclist with the strong opinion that bike do not belong on the road, only on MUPS, and even disliked bike lanes. It was a friendly conversation nonetheless.

The only argument that they would grudgingly accept from me is that as a destination-oriented cycle-commuter, for the most part, MUPS don’t go anywhere useful. :innocent:

One of these days, I'll figure out how to take videos on my bike and edit them. My commute seems unusual compared with those of many here. I might see hundreds of bike commuters every day. Bike commuting is really growing fast in some cities.