Smaug1, if you feel OK telling us, where do you work? Those dress rules would probably annoy me. I had a job at AT&T where we were supposed to dress up. I had already had other jobs before that where there was no dress code. I didn't see the point since we were tech support people working a phone hotline. "Good morning, this is AT&T. My name is Tom, and I'm wearing a tie." We had dress-down Fridays which made the Mon-Thurs code feel all the more stupid. Then our boss's boss sent email saying that since we looked so scrappy, dress down Friday was canceled. Then he re-instituted it after a while and said no shirts without collars. OK whatever makes you feel powerful, dude.

Today I took the Canfield pink bike dot com. Likely will tomorrow too. School dictated girlie go home today and not come back tomorrow, so it will be an early lap. I discovered I somehow no longer have a chain tool, my Fix It Sticks version disappeared. Need to stop by Mike's Bikes tomorrow for a few quick links and a new multi tool with a breaker. Have suddenly become much more paranoid about counterfeits from Bezos.

Dawn patrol on the pink bike dot com. Behind me is a small pile of construction rubble that may be “historic” but is used for bike whoops and king of the hill.

You look unlike your avatar.

The forecast called for rain while on my way home, and I can deal with that, so I headed out on bike. After getting under way, the rain began (hours early) so I stopped and put on my jacket. It made me warm, and the rain stopped quickly, but I didn't take my jacket off. Other than that, I guess it was uneventful. I got to work on time which, in the words of one of my professors, means I was late. At least I remembered to move my time card. I'm not used to having a time card!

It was 2C/36F when I started, so I put on leg warmers, a windbreaker, and a bandana to cover my scalp and ears. My wife looked me up and down and said, "you look like a little German girl, with your kerchief and stockings." The sun was out, and it warmed up a few degrees during the ride. It was one of those mornings where I had no jam and the ride felt like a slog.

A lot of folks here in Edmonton are mourning the death of a beloved local medical doctor who was an avid cyclist who rode to work every day, year-round. Sometimes he would multi-modal commute by putting his bike in a canoe, paddling down the river, then riding the rest of the way. He died in an apparent mountain biking accident on the outskirts of the mountains a ways southwest of the city. Years ago, I got hit by a car riding to work, and the doctor attending to me in the ER told me I was in good hands, because he too was a bike commuter. Was it the same guy? I don't know. It was the same hospital, but it was a long time ago, I was on a lot of pain meds, and I don't remember his name or his face. Anyway, it's a significant loss to both the medical and cycling communities here.

On that downer note, I'll wish everyone a Thrilling Thursday!

Just for fun, the o-rings show how much travel I’m using if I ride the few little rough areas on my commute. Recalling that the ride height is about 25% to begin with. Not too impressive!

Little peloton of 4 set off for the city at 0600 this morning. Nice to share the work because it was a decent headwind. Met a guy along the way who by coincidence I recognised from an evening a couple of weeks ago and had given me and another mate a tow for about 3 miles at decent old pace so he was a welcome 5th and we got chatting. Good fun.

Tailwind home solo. Awesome. 130km total, bit longer than usual but a nice day for it.

Today's ride home was almost uneventful. Before I left, I called the union hotline to get clarity on the various options offered for healthcare. The robot said I'm number 80 in the queue and that my wait is going to be about 54 minutes. So I suited up, kept one earbud in my ear, and continued the call on my way home. I hoped they wouldn't answer while I'm in a precarious spot. And that's exactly what happened. I was in the middle of the bridge with nowhere to pull over. With a little difficulty, we were able to hear each other. Then I learned that the union handles the supplemental insurance but not the main health insurance. I have to call the department of education (DOE) for details. Ugh. I continued the ride home. I got home, and the DOE robot said I would need to wait on hold for 2 hours. Oy vey. Another day!

I think I did five laps this week

Missed a lot of commutes in the last couple of weeks.

Last week I went out of town for an extended weekend family thing with no time for biking, although my brother got one of his bikes ready for me. Got one commute in this week, then got sick and missed a couple days of work. Not as sick as when I had Covid a few years back, but sick enough that I was weak, achy feverish and bed-ridden. Unless there is a relapse in my recovery, I should be riding on Monday.

It's really humbling to feel so physically powerless when I'm used to having more than enough energy to do anything I want, be it biking, stairs, work...anything.

This showed up on Facebook Marketplace for $25, so I jumped on it. It needs a bit of work, but nothing major I think. New tires, wheels trued, maybe new brake pads. I tuned up what’s there and took it for a 7 mile ride today; between the springy fork, mattress saddle and relaxed geometry steel frame, it’s really comfy.

Built in Chicago when I was still in diapers. (October’77)

i can’t wait to get some miles on this. I’ll start looking for a correct rack for it.


In the evening sun



On the bike path



The obligatory pick-up pic



Note the enormous 70s reflectors

I was given a single-speed version of that bike in that color in Chicago in junior high in '73.

first real fall rain; instead of usual-for-fall bringing short and long sleeve shirt to decide which to wear home, also have full and fingerless gloves, coat, spare socks. No tights tho, still shorts! Anyway rode in with coat and full gloves, both soaked all the way through.

Anyway, coat hanging, shoes dismantled and stuffed full of paper towels, and I do have my glove-drying gargoyle deployed so hopefully stuff won't be so clammy when it's quitting time

Got the C-3PO bike running again with a quick link replacing the broken one.

Reminded that there is something still wrong with how the rear tire is seated and taped. Suspect there's just too much crud along the bead for it to ever seal up right. I saw sealant fizz out by the stem which really shouldn't be possible. Because the rim isn't pressurized, right? That would be nuts.

I'm going to try an 8 speed quick link on the Baconator in a few days before I replace the entire chain. Not sure if that's going to work but it's worth a shot. It's all 3/32, or should be. It's been in the back of the garage for months while I work on other problems

Those old Schwinns are seriously good bikes for their time. Just get the ball bearings cleaned up and see if you need new cables/tires/brake pads. This one is premium with the triple and the real fork. Any change you could think to make isn't really needful, except maybe alloy rims

Now that I have an easy bike commute, I'm thinking that the range of bikes that would be suitable is wider, including things like Smaug1' new bike. The Brooklyn Bridge is a bit of a hill but barely. And the whole trip is just under four miles. I'm thinking of trying an IGH once again. Or single speed freewheel. Also, upright handlebars are fine for me for such small distances.

Today it made more sense to take the subway because I need to do some shopping on the way home. But I didn't. I rode my bike because I hadn't ridden since Thursday, and I'm so much healthier and happier and energetic'er (to coin a word) when I ride.

As often happens at this time of year, we are having day after day of idyllic weather. I notice it and express gratitude because it's our best weather month. The rest of our climate is often miserable.

No road kill sighted today nor any live rats. Yesterday when I arrived home in the evening and stepped into the apartment, I was greeted by a roach almost the size of a mouse. Nice. It ran under the couch and I didn't pursue it. The exterminator will come next month.

First commute on the '77 Schwinn. This is just the type of ride this bike was made for. I'm just using my messenger bag for now. I need to talk to the guys in the vintage bikes sub to figure out ebay search terms for the rack. (or maybe someone here knows?) It's a mile mostly downhill and then a mile mostly flat.

In their time, they were expensive, and at the end of their era, quite heavy. But other than that? No weaknesses. I tried to bend the front fender stays a bit to line it up; almost impossible! They're a V-shaped cross section, quite thick. Quality hardware attaching them, that can be adjusted with everyday tools: A 3/8" (? don't remember) box wrench on the back and a 10 mm socket on the front.

I have an old bike maintenance manual from the early or mid-70s; time to bust it out and see how to do stuff. This bike just may spend the winter on the stand while I slowly figure things out.

I've got a free tire in the mail (Amazon Vine) that has a bit of a sketchy reputation for quality. Might just spend big ($36) for a pair of Kendas, hehehe.

Adjusting the saddle and stem, I noticed it has a curious (and mildly annoying) mix of imperial and metric hardware.

Tom my man, what you need is one of those new ZiZZO Libertés and the carry bag from Amazon. Just add fenders and maybe a rack, then it would be so much easier to haul up the stairs at school Treat yourself in celebration of the new job that you've been working so hard toward for the past several years! (or even a used one in good shape; maybe they're available in NYC from someone who went electric...) This bike is 40 lbs; not ideal for one that has to be lifted often at all.

It rained last night and the roads and trails were still partly wet. Climate here is quite variable. Some winters are 3x bigger than others. But still we hardly ever get rain from mid spring to mid autumn. This year we have had five or six rain storms come through. Will it be a big winter? Thinking about fenders.

I quite like MTB hugger style fenders on my old orange MTB but they won't mount on my other bikes - too big for the roadies and don't quite work on the big pink 29er. Maybe I will use the orange bike for one more winter. Eldest kiddo needs it, he's at circus bear proportions on his 24in, but doesn't seem to want it. He hates change and isn't an avid rider

FWIW, NOAA is calling for an average autumn

Smaug1, it has occurred to me that I'm ready for a folding bike. I have plenty of trains to take it on. But no bike is light when I'm climbing up to the 5th floor. In that case, the closest thing is a titanium Brompton. Right? But I don't even want to think about what that would cost.

Another alternative is a beater bike which I feel OK about locking up outside my workplace. There is a rack where I think the theft risk is low. My fixie qualifies as a beater bike, but without fenders, I don't want to ride it in the rain. I could put fenders on it, and I guess they won't add too much weight.

Riding my bike to work today didn't make sense because of my various complicated travel plans. I brought my helmet on the subway in case I can ride Citi Bike in the evening.

After Monday's downpours both ways, yesterday I washed and re-DWRd by raincoat & gloves w/ nikwax. Don't think I have done that before. This morning it wasn't raining, just the usual moisture from all directions. Anyway, definitely didn't soak through on the way in.

Yesterday's winds did drop a tree on the MUP so I got to carry the bike through that, nbd.

OK it rained the same coming home as it did going in on Monday and, new DWR or no, coat and gloves both soaked through pretty quickly, dangit.

For backpacking I definitely have given up on the dwr concept I just wear a 100% waterproof coat with enormous pitzips (cuff to waist basically)

Consecutive bicycle work commute number 2010:

Commuting hasn't been overly remarkable lately. We've had an unusually warm September for South Dakota, with highs most days in the 80s and 90s. The next three days should break 90°F, which for October may be close to record-breaking. Thankfully the humidity has been extremely low, so even on the hotter days it feels surprisingly pleasant.

Mornings have mostly been in the 50s and 60s. This morning Google said 62°F, and my kitchen thermometer said 65°F. I was feeling unusually cold while getting dressed, so I put my long sleeve shirt, gloves and headband on. Usually those are reserved for temps in the 50s.

Yep, that was a tactical error. Within two miles I was starting to feel warm. At the three mile mark I pulled over and stowed my headband in my backpack. I thought about removing my gloves and shirt as well. I decided I didn't want to completely strip in public (nor did anyone else want that) so I just sucked it up and left those on. By the time I finished the eight mile ride to the office I was very sweaty.

I took the road bike. There was a moderate headwind. Hopefully the wind won't shift and I can use that headwind to give me an easy ride to the client over lunch.

I've been enjoying perfect weather here in SE WI on Lake Michigan commuting on the old Schwinn. This is a perfect bike for my commute. I'm going to keep my eyes peeled for the correct rack for it. It'll be a shame to put it away for the winter, but I want to limit how many of my bikes get salted up for the winter.

It has been lower-mid 60s in the mornings and going up to mid-70s in the afternoons, with no rain. October will bring rain, probably. Further inland in other towns, temps have been reaching the mid-80s.

I'll most likely take tonight and maybe tomorrow off of riding, as I'll be heading out to ride the Elroy-Sparta Trail on Saturday. That will be ~65 miles on gravel, the USA's 1st rail trail. 88°, sunny and a 15 mph wind will make it a zesty affair.

Jinxed it. It's raining.

Just for fun here is a comparison of Sacramento to Sioux Falls weather

Compare the Climate and Weather in Folsom and Sioux Falls - Weather Spark