28F and sunny. 1st ride after a week of illness and semi recovery. Still hacking stuff up actually but I figured what the heck it's just one day left in the week. See what the fallout is before deciding on Monday's commute...

One thing, either it was a lot colder than 28F or my week off has cost me the ability to circulate blood to my fingers, 'cause my hands were immobile when I got in, despite my usual <30F double-gloving which was working fine right through the winter.

It was a nice ride this morning, 30 F (-1 C). I was able to wear lighter clothing, which always makes
me feel like I want to go faster. It's also nice when my glasses don't ice over.

I had a very nice ride today. Last week, I rode in on Thursday and said that I hope to ride in every Tuesday and Thursday. That didn't happen. Tuesday it was damned cold and icy from a recent snow storm. Yesterday, I just didn't have my poop together. So I rode in today (Friday). It was about 45F (7C) and not too windy. I brought warm clothes but didn't wear much at all. I wore a long sleeve merino wool polo shirt, light weight wool dress trousers and dress shoes. My toe clips are plastic, so they don't scratch my shoes. My ride is 10 miles (16 km) and uphill nearly the whole way. I figured I'd get warm from all the uphill, so I didn't wear the jacket I brought. Sure enough, I became comfortably warm in a few minutes.

I made record time today! 48 minutes in the saddle. I don't even know how I did it. The first time I did this ride a couple of months ago, it took me 62 minutes! I guess I'm getting strong. I used only two gears the whole way, and the lower one isn't very low, and I didn't use it for long. I'm building strength by climbing in a moderately high gear.

It was a good ride this morning, other than the fact it was colder than I thought it would be, which means that I didn't wear sufficient footwear. Needless to say after about 30 minutes my feet were freezing. Live and learn I suppose.

Today I am returned to bike commuting after a couple of weeks off because of some minor family prolems. Yes, it was sunny and a bit cold but a ride into Florence (Italy) really heal me. A minor problem of Florence is rocky streets....very hard for a 20"folding bike without any spring system...and my tires are ever at maximum pression to avoid any puncture....but that's it.

Florence! I want to go to Italy one day.

How long was your ride?

16 degrees and sunny. It was a GORGEOUS RIDE to work and back. I can't wait for more of this weather!!!!

It was my first commute in way too long. I had a great time.

The high schoolers were out for a jog on the way home tonight. That's not bad in itself, but they jog on both sides of the road and sidewalks. A large station wagon paying more attention to the youths than the me decided to pinch me into the curb. I was grateful the driver wasn't speeding and I was able to pull in front and take the lane all the way to the approaching stop sign. I was really anticipating a confrontation, yet none was offered.

Great ride in today... can't wait to ride home after work. I crossed paths with a group of perhaps 20 riders going in the opposite direction to me... they looked like hard core road racer types. Some waved... which I thought was nice. I was surprised that I didn't feel much commoradory with them, but I have never done the road race thing. My area is rural, maybe 100k people in the county, and there are very few commuters... probably less than 10. I really feel a rush when I see any of them.

I start from my home, 2 km to reach the train station. Then I take the train with my folding bike, 45 minutes of train trip for 20 km :-( but I use the timeto work with the notebook or reading.
Then I have 4-5 Km through Florence city.
Back trip the evening.
I am trying to do it every day, depending from the weather and job problems.
Bye (yes you must come)

Left home today about 12:30. Today's ride was chock full of interesting events! After checking my PO box, I bought my favorite sub sandwich from Save Mart -- whole wheat, pepperjack cheese, and all the vegies. Rode out to Barnes & Nobles, and bought an Oregon map. Sat outside eating part of my sub sandwich. Then I went to the new sporting goods store, Sports Authority. Looked all around ... lots of cool stuff! Will have to wait until I get my tax return. I did buy three pairs of shorts on sale for only $7 each.

Sat outside Star Bucks (next to Barnes & Nobles), and ate some chocolate and fig bars. Then rode back to town. My thermometer read 80F. I rode some of the steep hills before hitting the Dry Creek Trail. Saw a tree with delicious grapefruit and asked the guy if I could some. He gave me enough to fill my backpack! As I was riding towards the trail, I noticed a huge oak tree, must be about 500-600 years old, and the biggest/oldest tree I've seen around town yet!

Lots of squirrels were out, collecting the acorns falling from the trees. There were so many squirrels running across the paths, I had to be careful not to hit them! Ran into someone who remembered me from Nirvana. He was riding around with his son and daughter. After chatting a bit, I continued riding towards the end of the trail (4.5 miles each way).

My feet were hurting, so I had to find a place to sit down. The only place I could find was a fallen log. I checked for ants really good! Two people on a tandem rode past. I tried to catch up to them, but couldn't.

When I got to the end of the trail, there was a guy riding up the hill at the trail's end. He said he usually rides the hill 10 times. I rode the hill three or four times, then headed back. Lots of adults and kids riding the trails. Lots of kids playing on the jungle gym. People playing frisbee golf, walking their dogs, jogging.

Riding back, I noticed two ducks flying right over my head! I noticed more blossoms on the trees than the last time I rode the trail. I didn't see very many birds out today. The sun had already set before I made it back to the start of the trail. Temperature had dropped, probably in the 40s. My hands were freezing.

Made it back home around 5:30. Average speed 10mph, 2 hours and 40 minutes. Burned 858 calories.

It was suddenly well above freezing this weekend, so I hauled my boys up to the playground in the trailer both days.

Doing stuff outdoors sure beats the hell out of sitting at home, enduring squabbles and waiting for Monday to come.

Not a commute to work but I scooted around downtown on my Schwinn Hinge folding bike. The weather was warm and partialy sunny. Rode up and down Katy trail to warm up then rode down through downtown. Several bars and grills were open today. The folder is the perfect bike for a business district as it allows you to zip along streets and sideways easily. I got to the farmers market to find that I left my pannier bags at home. I'm not used to using them yet so I forgot them. I rode around, putting in 12 miles today and had fun anyways.
Ernest

Lots o' rain on the way home. I don't know what it is but I seem to go faster in the rain.

As I rode by the church this morning, its ticker comically displayed, "4:26 ... 46`"--it was, of course, about 5:20 and the temp was about 50-52F/10-11C. Winds were intermittent out of the north and were no bother to me at all.

The salt-stained roads looked like a well-used sweat jersey and reminded me of the snow we had just a week ago, and that my fingers had been pretty cold wearing full mitts and wool liners. My knickers and fingerless gloves were just cool and quite pleasant today, though. And the huge, nearly-full moon was right in my line--about 10` above the tops of the trees and beckoning me onward. It was all I could do to carve the turn onto the campus here at work. Oh well.

But if ever one needed a reason to ride, this morning was it...

My legs were tired this morning after two long rides over the weekend, but I'm not complaining. The temperature was about 60 F at 6:30 am with a light breeze, and the high is supposed to hit 80 F this afternoon. The big change, however, was the start of daylight savings over the weekend and the return of dark morning commutes. I guess it will be mid-April or so before my morning commute is in the light again.

37*F, winds 20-30 MPH gusting to 40...it was a cross or head wind except for the last mile. Took me 8 minutes longer then usual and speed dropped by 2 MPH Avg.

50F and balmy with only the slightest headwind, wore shorts/short sleeved shirt/finger-less gloves and was perfectly comfortable with good energy-a great ride in. Got my rr. hub fixed yesterday and ended my 3 day Metro streak (the longest amount of time off the bike in recent history) just in time to enjoy this weather. Apparently the non-drive side cone was warped or somehow distorted and kept allowing the whole assembly to come loose. It gave the mechanic fits until he discovered this which made me feel better as I attempted the adjustment on Friday night and was completely baffled; either it was too tight/too loose or, would simply come out of ajdustment after only a couple of revolutions of the wheel. Looking forward to the ride home.

Back in the saddle! First commute since January. Warm weather and some rain finally cleared the MUP off enough that it wasn't a slog. I did some recon on Saturday, and declared it fit for commuting.

Temps this morning were in the mid 20sF. Snowing steadily but we're not supposed to get any big accumulation. Should be all melted away again tomorrow. Hopefully spring comes early this year.

Someone rode all the way in to Burlington from my neighborhood (~6 miles), but this person was on skinny tires and having a lot of trouble, it seemed. The tracks were wobbly and unsure. Clearly the front tire let go a few times on some ice. I saw evidence of at least 2 falls, or near-falls. And the rider dismounted and walked in several areas. I admire the person's enthusiasm, but studs were required!

Beautiful ride in this morning. Temps were 60s in eastern NC.

Wish I had taken a long ride this weekend, but I think I'll find a day this week to make it up.

DST! The sun no longer comes up mid commute thank goodness.
Nice ride in. The weather this week is crapping out so I am taking it easy. That and my legs agree due to excessive workouts the last fee weeks. A recovery week it is.

I left the house in a rush, but once I got going it was great! The sky looked like it was going to start dumping but it's supposed to clear up this afternoon. I got to about the half way point and my back tire went flat. Upon initial inspection, it looks like a chunk of beer bottle was the culprit. I walked in the rest of the way since it's not that far. I'm going to take the train home and fix it at home.

I did some maintenance on Saturday, and foolishly took the studded tires off. It rained all weekend, and was 31*F this morning, and the forecast was for low 20's later this week in the morning. I put a studded tire back on the front.

Temps in the 60s = t-shirt & shorts. If it's not raining at the end of the day I may take a nice detour on the way home. (If the thunderstorms come I actually have SAG support- one of the people in my office has his car with bike rack on the back.)