First proper rain commute in a while. Last night was wet and girzly but this morning was steady rain; bike got a nice clean. Wet roads, light or no rain = dirty bike. Heavy rain = clean bike.

Splish splosh splash.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010. I left this morning with about an inch of new snow on the road. 161 was good. The side streets I take were quiet and serene with the light snow on the road. I just slice right thru it. With all of the snow on the ground it feels like riding inside a refrigerator. 32f. With a slight 10 mph wind from the west. It’s mornings like this where you get the full winter cycling experience. Being able to handle the cold comfortably and having a nice morning ride in before work. Mine starts at 3:40am.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010. I left this morning with about an inch of new snow on the road. 161 was good. The side streets I take were quiet and serene with the light snow on the road. I just slice right thru it. With all of the snow on the ground it feels like riding inside a refrigerator. 32f. With a slight 10 mph wind from the west. It’s mornings like this where you get the full winter cycling experience. Being able to handle the cold comfortably and having a nice morning ride in before work. Mine starts at 3:40am.

Rain, rain, rain, rain and I desperately need new rain gear- mine is so old it has lost it's luster for anything more than a light shower. Ended up soaked through like a drowned rat. Fortunately, I have several changes of clothing at work and was able to put a completely different outfit on once I got there but I was soaked.

Had to re-suit up into some pretty wet gear for the ride to my evening job tonight. Got there dry enough and I keep a set of shoes there anyway so at least my feet weren't soaked- even my shoe covers were soaked through.

More rain tomorrow.

It was not bad coming in at 25 F ( -3 C ). The predicted snow came a little bit, but nothing is sticking to the road. It could still happen, but with this year 2 to 4 more inches would only constitute a dusting. Yesterday, going home, I picked up some glass where I know to look for it. I changed the tube. I got a couple miles and it went flat, so I pumped it up and rode a couple more miles. After getting within a couple
miles of home, I just walked it. The sidewalks are still covered, probably until May, so I had to walk my bike in the street. When I got home, I ran the inside of the tire and rim many times, but could not find anything. I patched an older tube and put it in there and it too got a pin hole in it. I will have to work on it this weekend. I rode my mountain bike in, just in case we get some snow anyway. On the up side, I heard a bird calling out around 5:20 am, and I saw at least two runners, spring can't be too far off.

Rain and relatively light wind, which looks to grow into something truly nasty by late afternoon: 25mph? 30? 35? I'm nervous about crossing the bridge on my route that'll expose me to those crosswinds. (And bridge repairs force cyclists and motorists to do an uncomfortably intimate pas de deux.)
It seems that there's no simple way to predict how wet the rain will leave you. On the return commute yesterday I was soaked to the bone. Roughly the same level of rainfall this morning, but barely moistened. I suppose dampness is a function of rainfall intensity and wind, but the formula eludes me.

Set another record this morning at 1:08. Probably once springtime kicks in and Im wearing shorts I'll get that to under an hour. There was a slight tailwind so that didn't hurt. Of course, the winds are supposed to pick up during the day so I'll have a "nice" headwind for the ride home.

:Sunny and cold today. Only had a dusting of snow at the house, but there was about 4" at the office. The mile or so on the bike path was very challenging, Most snow I've ridden in. Road were very sloppy, but most potholes were iced over. Probably not the greatest day in the world for sandels

work+family obligations->caged

Snow! The ride in was quite pretty, with fluffy snow falling and watery slush on the road - no real challenge to negotiate. The ride home was much the same, although work let us out early. Here's some camphone goodness:


Even Newark is pretty when giant snowflakes are falling lazily from the sky.


New Providence train station, a mile from my work.

Quite windy this morning, and it's only getting worse. At least it will be a tailwind this evening. Of course, it's not supposed to change directons overnight, so I'm looking at a 30 mph headwind coming in tomorrow w/ gusts as high as 55 mph!!! And I hear it may be even worse in New England. Crazy storm.

If any of my ride were on really busy streets, I'd definitely consider NOT bike commuting. As it is, I think I'll probably go for it, if for no other reason than to enjoy a 55 mph tailwind at times on the way home! And, oh, the bragging rights... We'll see, though. No decision made yet.

I've been riding the last couple mornings w/ a set of Avenir clip and strap pedals that I salvaged from an abandoned bike in the basement of my building. I'm still getting used to the sensation of being able to pull as well as push the pedals, but in low wind situations when I could easily compare them to my old standard platforms, it felt good and I was noticably faster. Clipless in my future?

Oh, and today I was back on my standard commute route and was able to navigate it the whole way w/o having to dismount for snow or ice. Very nice. May snow tomorrow a little, but nothing to serious to cause havoc like the storms a couple weeks ago.

No cycling for me this week. Pick any or all of the following reasons:
rain all week
figured I'd take a break
high level management visiting our office, need to get to work early and un-sweated.

Yesterday was one of the nicest days this winter; sun shining bright, not a breath of wind, just cold enough to keep the trail firm but warm enough to roll without heavy clothing. Five miles to class, then 25 miles home via the Coastal Trail. Caught that break between storms where the air is so clear, it feels like you can see forever. Denali, Mt. Forakker, and Mt. Iliamna were all out, and the Talkeetna's looked so close that I felt like I could just bike right on over there. Then I was almost blinded by the alpenglow on the Chugach as the sun set on the way home.

And today I wake up to a surprise snow storm, with an easy five inches on the ground and still coming down thick. Time to cede the trail to the fatbikers for a couple of days and cultivate my ever growing appreciation for public transport. Oh well, skiing is gonna be bomb tonight.

Yeah, I love my city. When the skiing sucks, the biking's good. When the biking sucks, the skiing rocks. And when they're both good, I'm very tired.

"Nice"

Actually it worked out about right.... My typical ride time is about 1:20 +/-. It was 1:08 this morning, and closer to 1:30 this afternoon. So still about 1:20 +/-.

Today was a strange day. On my ride to school (4 miles), I was riding 20mph in a school zone. The car in front of me was going 20mph as well (nobody likes getting a $350 fine), so I decided to get in the right tire track to catch a little draft. A car comes up from behind me and stared to obnoxiously rev his engine and yell at me to get out of the way (despite the 4-ton SUV right in front of me). I just ignore it and at the 4-way stop, the car in front of me turned left and I continued straight. Right after getting through, pissed off driver floors in to pass me, but turns left only a block away. He had to wait for oncoming traffic, so I ended up passing him on the right. This started a cursing tirade, but I was going 20mph again so I didn't care much. I wish bikes had some loud revving noises for when the cars in front of me are going slower than I can ride.

After my first class, I went to the mall to get my work schedule, then over to the Red Wing store to get some mink oil. They're a small business and couldn't take debit and I forgot to get cash, so I ride over to the ATM. While in line, the car behind me is trying to inch forward in front of me. I asked what she was trying to do. "I'm in a car. Cars get first priority at drive-thru ATMs." She was dead serious. Looking like she is above logic, I turn around and wait for the car in front of me to leave. Just after I get my card in the slot, she blares the horn. Pro-tip: don't honk at people to hurry up at the ATM. Just because of her impatience, I withdrew $140 in $20 increments. 7 transactions is what you get, lady. I went and paid for the mink oil, then back to class. ride home was uneventful.

To summarize, today = wtf?

wow. mondaycurse on a Thursday- huh? ^^^^^^^^


My day was loaded with lots of 2 atoms of Hydrogen and 1 of Oxygen all over the place. When those little doodads get together it makes for some sloppy riding. Desperately needing new rain gear. Might as well be shielding myself with a yellow paper napkin- the rain soaks right through in about the same amount of time.

I even did the stupid thing of wearing my Gore Tex mitten covers with the cuffs of the glove on the outside of my rain jacket sleeve, which meant the mittens slowly filled with water as it drained down off the sleeve. I had about a cup of water in each mitten by the time I got to work. Always layer in the rain like you are shingling a roof.

Other than all that it was a very pleasant day to ride.

Yea they are magical moments. I can go from sprawl suburb to farm land all by crossing the freeway. As I mentioned the dogs make the trip horrible. You get close to a house and you start pedaling harder just waiting fro the dogs to come out.

Good one. I would have just laughed in her face.

Tougher ride this morning than I expected. I gave my touring bike the day off and rode my Merckx Corsa, expecting to make great time. Not. It was cold and very windy, and it never felt like I had a tailwind. Got to work in about the same amount of time it usually takes on my touring bike.

This whole week has been tough for commuting, with rain or snow on 3 days. I slept late yesterday, planning to ride to work in daylight for a change. Then a snow squall blew through the area righwhen I had to leave for work. It was snowing so hard I didn't feel safe riding, so I ended up driving. If I had gotten up and left at my normal time, I would have missed the snow and cycling would have been fine as the weather cleared up later in the morning. Sometimes the timing for bad weather just doesn't jibe with work schedules.

Sartre put it well: "Hell is other people."

Rough commute today: 25mph headwind, panniers loaded with twice the typical weight. Looking forward to the return trip: headwind becomes tailwind, and I'm stopping at my beloved LBS to install brand spanking new high-profile cantis.

Cold this morning, but sunny, heavy traffic. Bike path plowed, but they mostly missed it and plowed the dirt along side. Not looking forward to ride home in mud.

Yesterday's sludge froze over then we got loads of snow over that during the night, foot or more deep at times. I had to carry my bike from the house to the street then was unable to ride up the Williamsburg Bridge, couldn't get any traction even on studded tires. Other than that it was rideable on studded tires, but tiring and sloooooow... But it was %$#! fun!!!

Strangely, drivers were nice, no honking, no crap, gave me way, some funny comments, I was actually nicely surprised.







Adam

Too funny. Good job. Serves the bee-otch right.

Fun ride in this morning. I expected it to be hellish with the winds that are out there, but it wasn't too bad. I just accepted it was gonna be a windy, windy ride with a lot of strong headwinds and spun away. Normally 30-ish minute commute was around 40 today, so not bad. Also had the exciting experience of "sailing" across the 14th St Bridge over the Potomac. With sustained 30+ mph winds coming from my 7 or 8 o'clock (as in aviation speak) and gusting to 45 or so, I got buffetted around a bit, but I was also able to use my body and panniers as sort of a sail. I went the last 3/4 of the way across the bridge without pedaling, easily going 15 mph or so at the end (no computer to be absolutely sure), and having to tap the brakes a couple times. Crazy and fun!

I sometimes joke about "if I had a sail for my bike" on windy days, but today I didn't even need the sail! ;-)

45F and raining

awesome pics... Today's commute was weak. My commuter had a flat and I was too lazy... and the weather too cold to fix it. Rode the tank - KHS Urban Express. Forgot how decent of a ride it was. But man its been over a year since I've been on it. Not as good of a workout. But I was still burning on the hybrid with fat tires.

I think that some motorists actually respect you more when you ride while it's crap out.