YULitle

Dear headwind,

You're a *****.

Sincerely,
Mike

ISaacG

+1 !
Welcome to the community
Candy at the liquor store? What an, um, unusual place to sell it. I guess they wanna encourage parents to bring their kids there?


I'm thinking of riding in my MTB on Wed...

Jokerman0420

Very pleasant!

Temperature in south Louisiana was unexpectedly mild this am at 72 degrees. The trip back will be a little hotter -- 88 -- but not too bad. Winds under 9 mph so not much of a factor.

AmberRae

hmph. everyone on here is tellin me a liquor store is an unusual place to buy candy. ya know before 7-11 was considered a "convenience" store, it was a "liquor" store as well.



haha. and for your guys' information, it was a "Liquor and Deli" and they sold candy, little toys, milk, eggs, trading cards, everything a corner store would have... and NOW it's a 7-11 haha.

77midget

Well, we decided to take the longer route home, which adds a bit over 1 mile, and I still managed to average a full 1mph faster than I normally do. I think I am finally get past a small wall in my endurance, I am feeling much better about climbing hills now, and can definitely feel more power from my legs, etc.

It was hot and humid though, and I actually hit the water bottle a couple times, when I normally can make it home without needing it.

workin925

I have been a member here ever since I bought my trusty Redline 925 a couple of years ago and came to this forum to read up on riding fixed gear. I lived in Somerville, MA at the time and commuted 6 miles round trip to work every day, even in gnarly snow, sleet, and ice. Never really posted much here, but always appreciated this thread, so thought now was the time to contribute because...

Last year I moved cross-country to Oakland CA, and wasn't riding my bike much because I started working from home and concentrating on running. The trails out here are too good to pass up and I'm not a huge mountain biker. The only places I commuted to on bike were the Post Office every now and then or down to Smitty's Bar on Grand to quench my always-parched palate.

Now, however, some twists of fate have brought me to work at the mighty Oracle corporation. As some in the area may know, a bike commute from Oakland to Oracle HQ in Redwood Shores is somewhat impractical. But I have found a way to make it work.

First leg: the AC Transit bus goes right by my apartment, so now in the morning my trusty 925 and I await on the corner. When the bus pulls up, I put the bike on the front rack and we are off across the Bay Bridge. When we get off, it's leg 2: a quick pedal over to Caltrain (little over a mile; a nice warmup), bike on board, ride on down south and leg 3: select from a myriad of stations from which to bike. So far I've detrained Hillsdale, Belmont, San Carlos, and Redwood City. I just get on whatever train happens to be leaving and disembark at the closest stop. i like this; it adds a certain degree of variety to the commute.

I do the same thing coming home--whatever train/bus happens to work out. I'm flexible.

The bottom line is that I HATE driving, so any alternative option is worth it and so far this works for me. driving take about an hour; this commute takes anywhere from 1:15 to 1:30. It's well worth the extra time. Because I am a geek, I did the math for this and the transit passes (AC Transit + Caltrain) cost me $177.00 a month. The estimated gas cost? $285.00.

The commute has been enjoyable and even better now that I have picked up my monthly passes for July and just yesterday threw on some clipless pedals. I am ready to ride!

capolover

Today was beautiful.
85 degrees and a light breeze.

I was killing it on the flat stretches.

Also got my chrome hipbone today.

woot.

vtjim

It builds character.

And guads.

I left work about 30 minutes later than normal this afternoon, and the MUP was swarming with cyclists. I passed quite a few. Saw several going the other way. I think somebody was trying to catch me but never got close. My chain is starting to skip under load. Time for a drivetrain overhaul I fear.

Oh and I noticed my bike hit 4,000 miles on the ride home. Sweet.

striegel 

This morning it was light rain most of the way to the office, with just a short reprieve at around the midpoint. Since it was warmish (59 F) and I had my wool sweater on, it didn't bother me a bit. My clothes all dried out during the day at work. I always change from riding clothes to business casual for work.

The rain kept falling throughout the day and I was expecting more rain on the ride home, since there were lots of dark clouds (I even put on my bright orange windbreaker), but it seemed to have held off all the way home. No complaints.

madhouse

I took the LONG way home tonight! I needed 57 miles to reach 500 for the month of June… So I did! At my fastest sustained pace to date on that bike.

I took some Ibuprofen and am enjoying a relaxing recovery drink… Cold Spring Moonlight Ale!

It will be a slooowww ride in tomorrow!

Oh… and I turned 40 yesterday!

knatchwa

the day went well, the sun held long enough for a good ride and then upon returning home the wind came up and fog took over and has been there ever since. I must admit though sometimes the fog adds another aspect to the ride, making it almost mysterious. That is the beauty of it and I interpret it as a blank slate to do with what I will. Nice way to deal with it.

So far as headwind goes it is a part of the process and like it has been mentioned it works the quads and gets your breathing up to par at least for me. So overall a good ride today and looking forward to tomorrow.

trombone

Nice story, workin925. Just goes to show there is always a way to make a bike commute work, and it generally works out a negligible difference in time and saves money. As well as being fun!

I had a great ride home. I put some air in the tyres this morning, as they were going very soft. Man, the bike just flew along.

Big Ron

A nice reprieve from the heat and humdity this AM. 62F (16.7C) with a dewpoint in the mid 50's. Felt great!! Had a nice sunrise to watch as a bonus, and should have a nice tailwind on the way home.

MIKEnDC

Lovely! 64F/18C, calm and clearing. A light rain overnight left the air feeling cool and clean (pretty rare for DC this time of year!). 'Course it doesn't hurt to be rolling on a brand-spankin' new set of Dura Ace hubs, either--smooth and stealthy.

And my warmest welcome to those new and/or new/old to BF, to cycling, to commuting, and to just a flat-out better way to be.

theWolf

Wow dude nice mileage and happy birthday.

Ride in today was great here in Houston. Nice cool morning, no rain in or lightin in sight. My only complaint is my month old blinky is sucking batteries dry. I need a better one anyway.

vtjim

Quick this morning. Fueled by my wife's banana bread. Had a light tailwind. Overcast and mid 60sF.

tarwheel 

Absolutely gorgeous day in NC. It was cool and dry this morning, and the high is only supposed to reach the low 80sF this afternoon. This is what summers are supposed to be like, but it has been much hotter than that since early June. I haven't driven my truck to work in 3 weeks, but will probably drive Thursday as the laundry is starting to pile up in my office and I need to restock supplies.

Speaking of mileage, I set a goal of 600 miles per month and usually don't have any trouble reaching that. However, I was lagging in June due to extremely hot weather and bad air pollution early in the month. Didn't think I would make it, but rode 215 miles in the last week and managed to eke out 615 miles for the month. I admit it, I'm a mileage junkie, but it helps motivate me.

girljen

I never get to use the computer at night anymore! So you hear about my night commute now. It was unremarkable, except for the part where the great big dog in a passing car barked so loud that it nearly knocked me down. Maybe I shouldn't have had that fourth cup of coffee.

The ride in this morning was nice. The weather was perfect, the sunrise was beautiful, I had a tailwind (w00t!), and everything just seemed to go right. Lots of cute little birds, too. I wish I could identify them.

77midget

still a bit humid around here this morning, but not a bad ride in. Continued to attack the hills more, and was rewarded with a nice overall time and pace, and still feel great. After the miserable weather off and on for past 2 weeks, the sun is a welcome change for riding.

ctoddrun

Thinking about this on the way home last night. Why, exactly, do we expect a squirrel to behave more logically on the MUP than the peds do?

ctoddrun

Commute this morning was excellent - unseasonably cool again (70F when I left) with very little wind. I love my morning rides...

jpdesjar

enjoyed the ride in, the sun was shining and i had good energy too, i am prepared with a plastic bag for the saddle just in case the sky decides to dump rain but i am hoping it will hold off

neilfein

First day back at work after a 4-day weekend. My wife and I slept through the alarm - we're both jet-lagged.

Uneventful ride in. I'm meeting someone for a ride in Princeton this afternoon, so I strapped the trunk rack with bike clothes on my folder for the first time. I thought it would interfere with the fold, but it doesn't. Maybe I can ditch the backpack? Will see.

NWAcommuter

Beautiful morning here in the Ozarks. 60 degrees starting out and clear. Blackberries ripening along the road and light traffic.

Ka_Jun

Cool morning, upper 50s, had the bike outside when I noticed that a bolt fastening the rack to the seat stays was gone, was running behind, but took the time to fix it properly (good thing I had extra bolts) and took my time getting in this morning. Only one other rig parked next to mine, I googled it, and the rider/commuter has a velospace. Luckily, his rig is much nicer than mine. Other two guys who lock up near me weren't there, today.