Still under the exercise high, so I figured I'd post yet another message in this topic. :)

For the 3rd day in a row I had to carry stuff in my trailer, with the wind in my face. It makes for such an intense commute to work. When I get here I'm so happy that I did it, and I feel that much more independent from cars..

I saw someone in his pickup truck this morning, stopped by the cops for a ticket. I couldn't help but smile and wave @ him.

Another cool crisp ride (4C or about 40F for the rest of the world)...but today I was "dropped" by a guy wearing jeans and riding a bike older than me. I am new to this but I think "dropped" is the right word for getting passed when you don't expect it. It's all good though. I got to work and a coworker commented on it being a little cool for biking. He will also likely be cold all day whereas I am energized.

Have a great day...

I spent all yesterday afternoon mentally preparing myself for an epic after-work ride to the Units' house 40 miles north of Sac'to. I was going to be racing the sun so it was going to be like a 40 mile TT. I'd ridden up there once before but the roads are lonely and spotilly paved so I brought myself an extra tube and patch kit. But I forgot my pump. D'oh!

So, I called my wife and said I wouldn't make it, I'll take a shorter ride around town, and I'll see you back at the house in time for the kids' dinner.

Still, I managed to get in a nice ride down past Freeport, 10 miles into a headwind so I could turn around and breeze back into town turning an easy 24mph with the wind at my back. I love that.

I had a great commute in this morning (a little chipper, 41F), except for the fact that my temporary headlight kept vibrating to the point it only illuminated my front wheel... hmmmm. Straightening that every five minutes got to be anoying (I had it as tight as it would go) I've got to get my main lighting system fixed and back on there tonight. It's a much brighter system. Beautiful sunrise though, so I only needed it halfway. The ride home should be warmer although it's 1:30pm and it's only 62F... it's good though. :)

The commute was terrific today--a little foggy. Low 60s; slight tail wind. In four years of pretty regular commuting, for the first time today I forgot to bring an article of clothing. But it's not too bad--I'm running around the office with dress shoes and no socks (I started with my bike socks, but that just drew attention to the problem)!

HR (laughingly) says I'm out of compliance with dress code. I say it's the Miami Vice look. At least I have my pants!

54F & mostly clear @ 6AM: Full moon hanging in the western sky, patches of low lying fog in the fields as I rode in to work this morning. Perfect commuting weather & traffic was very sparse. The morning was so nice, I turned in a leave slip & took the afternoon off: time for a nice ride to nowhere in particular. Enjoy the day! Don

The weather was PERFECT!!! No wind, no rain, no clouds and 66F!!! :D

I donated a pint of blood at noon, followed up by a sensible lunch of 4 tacos at Taco John’s and 30oz of diet coke, and 4 hours later headed for home.

It felt like my speed was down a little… and then I saw the house with a semi in the drive gaining on me!!!!. :eek: As he passed me at 55mph I realized that it was a semi pulling a modular home! ;) That made me feel a little better

My speed was down 1mph and I noticed on the last turn that I felt a little wobbly. When I stopped I felt a LOT wobbly. Probably not the best combination of events today. :o

Don’t bother chastising me… My wife beat you to the punch! Besides, did you read the first sentence! :D

Madhouse, have you considered platelet donation? You get all the karma points of a whole blood donation and you get to keep your RBCs so there's no aerobic dropoff. I'm scheduled to give a unit of platelets on Thursday before work so I can finish the movie I started last time.

Just took a short walk outside and the weather is absolutely perfect for a bike ride. I can't wait to head home on my trusty carbon fiber steed.

My first post here on this list. I rode home tonight in pouring rain. Strange thing happened about halfway home, I looked down at my front derailer and noticed I had foam on my knees, I was wearing shorts. What the hell! Either my shorts still had soap in them or it was sewage from the creek. The bike path here in D.C. goes along Rock Creek Park and there's signs posted saying that during heavy downpour sewage may be released into creek, so don't go in the water. There was a lot of water splashing up from flooded areas, but hell, I wasn't in the creek. I hope it was just soap.

Another strange thing. About a mile from home I noticed my sterring got stiff. It seemed that the steering stiffened up from the water, strange. I just bought this bike and this is the first time in the rain, I have disc brakes, so maybe something peculiar to them.

Love riding in the rain though.

I work as a phlebotomist at a donor center, and I also give blood and then ride home, so I see it from both sides. You have to be careful when you ride in too hard and then donate. Your body produces liver enzymes when you exercise hard, and that can throw off the tests for hepatitis and liver function. You definitely want to take it nice and easy on your way in. Biking home afterward is fine, as long as you hydrate well BEFORE as well as after donating. Most people who come in to donate don't drink nearly enough before hand. It helps so much with post donation recovery, that I try to make all of my donors drink while they give.

On another note, the commute today was great! I actually met up with two other commuters this morning for the first time! I have only passed one person, and have been passed by two others since starting this almost a month ago, so it was nice to be able to chat with someone else doing the same thing in my neighborhood! They were both so friendly, although one thought my peddling in Tevas was pretty funny. I definitely felt like a rookie, until I found out he had only been doing it a week or so longer than me.

Great weather too. The warm temps and no rain seems to be holding out for an exceptionally long time, and the trees are getting prettier by the day!

Kat

Nice ride in and home .Rode my ss Today. It was about 75 here. Took the longer way to work . Thanks

Ride in was warm, and the wind picked up on the way, thank the Lord it was at my back!

Traffic on the ride home yesterday was pretty heavy. Must have been a wreck on the interstate. Windy too, must be getting some after effects of the latest hurricane.

Ride in this morning was windy again and cool around 55F. Supposed to be a nice day.

yesterday was a hard day of riding for me. In the morning I had the strong wind in my face, and it shifted during the day and became even stronger. Plus I was going to my mom's so the ride back was LONG and windy. I was so glad to ge there. Then on the way back from her place, I was cruising along pleasantly, with no wind, when a flat happened.

This is when I notice that my bike repair shop had removed my quick release on the back wheel when he changed it, and tightened the nuts to no end. That alone took me 10 minutes. I was clothed to bike, so stopping in the wind being all sweaty was cold. Heh. Days like this when I get home, I know that when the ride is hard and the sh*t goes down, I can still face it!

The temp was surprisingly chillily this morning at 62 degrees but it was a great ride to work. I left the house early and took a leisurely pace on my commute. It was just one of those mornings you have big stupid grin on your face. :D

i've seen foam on my knees while backpacking in the rain. i'm certain it's soap.

i work with combined sewer overflow issues and i can assure you, it was not raw sewage. you would have smelled something.

and welcome to the forum, btw.

and today's ride was pleasant (no foam, no smells). finally getting some proper september coolness in the air. still waiting for a little rain, though.

i put a rack and panniers on the bike, instead of wearing a backpack, and while i appreciate having a less sweaty back, i have noticed it takes more effort, in the form of engine braking, to slow my fixed gear on the downhills and to stop at traffic lights. i'm probably using the front brake more than i was before.

It's funny how non-cyclists feel that one shouldn't cycle if there is rain, if one gives blood, if there is traffic, if it's too remote, etc. The key point after giving blood is not too cycle too hard.

I would actually say something similar: Don't drive after you have given blood, because your reflexes might be a bit low.

Didn't enjoy this morning. No real reason but somehow this morning I didn't slip into the usual bike zen brain. Left home ratty, got to work ratty, still ratty. Hoping the ride home is better.

Another beautiful day here in Chicagoland. I rode in again this morning. It was cool and crisp so I threw on a long sleeve polypro shirt with a tshirt. Started with a jacket but shed it quickly once I hit about 3 miles. With the price of gas likely to go up I figure I should give my self a price per mile bonus of about 3 cents up to about 40 cents saved per mile. that will help me pay off my bike earlier via car savings and I might be able to buy a road bike next. I was thinking of getting a specialized sequoia. Any thought from anyone?

Good Day All. The ride in was pretty good. A little wind in the face and 5C. It seemed odd though to see the moon in the western sky this morning. In the early part of my commute I drive by a PetroCanada gas station. Police were directing traffic. Supposedly Brett Butt was there from Corner Gas (local celeb) and they were giving away free gas. Traffic was backed up for blocks with people trying to get in and out of this gas station to get their free gas. I am sure you could here my laugh for miles. And so to all those people who think cyclists are nuts.....Cheers.

richardw: You can practice and make this "zen" come more easily, even when troubled/ratty.

Try focussing on physical sensations (muscles flexing, fast breath), and what is going on around you (the cars, the road, the bumps on the road). When you find yourself thinking about something else, come back to it. Keeps you there in the now, and makes you much more aware of what is going on @ the moment.

welcome to the board screech - yeah, the ride home yesterday in DC was a doozie - I actually decided not to take Rock Creek in case there was flooding

yesterday morning I witnessed a strange, but pleasing phenomenon - the bike trail through Rock Creek Park in DC crosses exits from the parkway in several places - in years of commuting I have learned to approach these with some caution, as despite there being clearly marked pedestrian striped lines, our friends cooped up in their metal boxes almost never stop - imagine my surprise then when in four different places yesterday morning cars stopped to let me cross - I was flabbergasted!

ride in this morning was a beaut - sunny and 60s

I noticed on my way home last night at the gas station that I always pass that the price had gone up 10cents a gallon. Maybe it is a good thing my car died!

I've rode in all week (granted, it's only Wedsnesday). The weather has been perfect everyday, a bit windy yesterday. This morning's ride was particularly enjoyable.

Temp about 13C when I left home. Slight headwind. There was fog on the St Lawrence river, so I couldnt see if the bridge was raised for a ship at the St Lambert locks. If I see it raised I divert to the Jacques Cartier bridge - which is the same ride distance but involves a 130' climb. Fortunately there was no shipping going through the locks. When I got to St Hubert airport the fog was so thick I had to stop and put on my blinkies. My glasses also fogged.

52F & overcast at 6 AM, had a quiet ride in on my Specialized touring bike, only 3 cars passed while I was toodling along on South Bay Road alone with my thoughts & the cheerful whir of the bottom bracket generator as it lit the road for me. Still overcast & 58F at lunchtime so I hope the forecast clearing occurs this afternoon. Don

If you can see a thought as it arises
This awareness will at once destroy it.
Whatever state of mind should come,
Sweep it away, put it down.

Both good and evil states
Can be transformed by mind.
Sacred and profane appear
In accordance with thoughts.

- Han Shan Te Ch’ing (1546-1623)

Hang in there Man.
- WonkerJaw (1973-20??)

I've missed a few weeks posting my commute, mainly due to a bad case of cranky; I've been avoiding human contact as much as possible. But the last few rides were great; only one incident that nearly killed me. This one involved a twelve-year-old with a soccer ball.

I was on the Lake path near Recreation Dr. when I heard the kick; snapped my eyes over just in time to catch the horrified expression on the kid's face, then braced myself. The ball came down out of the branches like it had been thrown by God himself and came so close to my head I heard the whistle as it cut through the air. It hit less than a foot in front of my wheel, then bounced off to be somebody else's problem. For about a second of red-eye rage I considered wheeling around and chewing the kid's face off, but he'd been literally white with terror when he realized what he'd done, so I just cussed quietly to myself for about a quarter of a mile while my blood pressure went back to normal levels. If that thing had hit me in the head, it would have knocked me out, helmet notwithstanding.

Yesterday afternoon was not the most pleasant commute ever -- the wind was gusting from the north up to 30 mph and I could barely make headway against it. Had to detour into the streets for most of the ride home -- though I did manage to hit the part of the Lake path that swamped me and soaked my pants to the waistline. =)

It was kind of cool, going through the streets. I'm going to have to find a better "too windy to be at the shore" route home, though -- the one I took yesterday was way out of my way and had far too many seriously annoying drivers on it. One guy in a seafoam Honda kept blocking the bike lane ahead of me every chance he got, and dear lord, those cars are slow...

This morning was absolutely beautiful, bright sun, cool enough that many of the joggers had hidden indoors. Niiiiice.