Thursday was a holiday & the weather was cool & dry, I had just picked up my new Torelli Wed afternoon & I rode all over the place. Really a nice riding bike, better acceleration & braking than my older rides & has great handling. It was 36F with light fog at 6AM today & since the roads weren't very wet, I rode the new bike in to show her off to my fellow bicycle commuters. It was nice, 56F this afternoon but supposed to begin showers tonight & throughout the weekend so I hung the new bike in the boiler room where it can stay warm & dry until the next good weather. Don

Headed out to the local coffee shop this morning before going to work. It was 15 minutes to the shop, 11 minutes back to the house. Either it is downhill coming back, or the caffeine had a miraculous effect.

After that, the ride to work was most pleasant. A little misty but not too chilly. Ride back from work at 11:30 p.m. was accompanied by fewer cars than usual, always a good thing.

Don, did you get the Brianza, or Gran Sasso Torelli? Nice looking bikes.

Caloso..In southern California, the fog machine usually only lasts until mid morning, during the winter..
From what I heard you say about your commute, you are on bike paths often , so not out there dodging traffic..Good for you...
I have to overcome a fear, blinkies/reflective tape are not enough..How can lights, etc. be seen when the visibility is only 20 feet..
I have overcome my dislike for fog's obstacles and discomfort; but so far it has not stopped me...Think you are bright enough for 20 ft. viz's...?My commute is like 7 am, so the burn off is marginal.

Last night was an interesting commute home, with our first significant snowfall starting. I was a little worried because I was still riding my hybrid with slick tires & had forgotten my cell phone. It was exactly freezing temp when I left, but the roads seemed fine with no black ice. Since the snow was predicted until later, there was no salt or sand. This was the first time in 4 winters that I have had a significant problem with ice forming on my pedals and cogs. By the time I was halfway home I was tired of stopping and knocking the accumulated crud off the cog set and just stayed on a middle cog and chain ring. When I got home that was the only cog that was visible, everything else was encased in white. Fortunately I can bring my bike into the basement to thaw. The 3 to 4 inches of snow this morning mark the earliest we have had that amount of snow in the 29 years we've lived here. I guess I will be moving onto the snow bike early this year.

I had to work late, so I started for home in twilight. My wife offered to come and get me, but I turned her down. It quickly turned dark and my headlight battery didn’t hold out! I had to call for a ride. :mad:

Great experience three days ago despite the brisk temperature 24 degrees F (-5 degrees C).

There is one street that narrows for a few blocks to two lanes with just enough room for a bike. I could see cars on both sides of the street stopped at the narrowest part of the road. As I got closer I could see a large brown object twirling or spinning in the road. Closer still one impatient person started to honk. It wasn't until I got close that a smile broke out across the front of my face.

In the middle of the road were 4 wild turkeys, two toms and two hens. The toms' tail feathers were fully splayed while they danced around in circles trying to impress the girls. Each blocked a lane of traffic. Being the only bike on the road I squeezed by the cars, gawked for a few moments, then went on my way. A mile down the road I could still hear horns honking. Needless to say, no more cars came up behind me before I finally turned onto a side street.

Alphie:
I got the Gran Sasso, I'm not getting any younger & we have lots of hills in Washington. They had 3 discounted to $1250 & one of them had the Daytona/Centaur upgrade. Unfortunately it was a 44cm. Had to wait a while but the shop swapped all the components & wheels over to a 54cm. They also threw in a stainless steel bottle holder and gave me 1/2 off on a Torelli jersey. That made it easy to spring for a second SS bottle holder. I also picked up a green Brooks B17 Champion Special saddle on e-Bay, although on the 2 days I rode with the stock saddle, it was pretty comfortable. I'll probably use the original saddle off the Torelli on a Cyclocross bike I'm building up. I put pictures up in the "what road bike do you have" thread.

I am lucky! I get to cross Sydney Harbour ( the most beutiful harbour in the world ) 6 times a day. Anzac bridge - Old Pyrmont bridge - Sydney Harbour Bridge (and back again). Takes 30 mins (25 with a following wind) and is mostly off the road. I try to ride every day, even rain, because our public transport system is a joke and car takes too long and expensive.
Anyone else do the trip?
cheers,

Beautiful bike, Don. Sounds like a good value too. I can relate to the "not getting any younger" aspect. That's why I had to have a triple CR when I bought my bike last June. Your new ride is so...ugh.. *clean*. (Gotta wash my bike). The green Brooks saddle is a nice touch. I would need to have one if I did not like my standard B-17 so much.

I did not bike today, after working 'til 12 last night I wanted to sleep as much as possible before working today. Got the next 2 days off though, so I plan to put in some good miles unemcumbered by hauling the handlebar bag/lights/battery.

We had flukey weather today, I got in a ride from 7:30 to about 9AM & it was a 49F with blue sky horizon to horizon, no wind. I rode with shorts & a long sleeved jersey under my ragwool sweater. I was about 7 miles into my commute when I realized I had left my helmet on my workbench! Just riding along with nothing on my noggin but a yellow cap. There was almost no traffic except a few other cyclists & joggers so I took it easy for the rest of the ride & made it back home ok. Shortly after my return, clouds rolled in & it was overcast the rest of the day but still no rain. Don

That is one of the mistakes I make as I transition to winter gear. If I feel anything on my head I assume it is my helmet. I've taken to slapping my head before I leave to check!

Last night I had to climb a mountain on my bike...literally. 1150 ft elevation gain up desolate mountain road where cars zoom around and its pitch black dark. Hard ride up, deadly ride down, what was scary is that I didnt realize that dew had built up on my bike while I was inside which isnt a big deal except for the dew that built up on my rims rendering my brakes useless. Thankfully before heading too far I tested by brakes to find they were failing me. After a nice wipedown, I had a good half hour of dangerous downhill speed of doom!!!

It was great.

Sunny and cold (31°F). I need to keep dialing my layers in--it is too easy to put on too much on at the start and then get sweaty on the ride in. The family and I did a 24 mile roundtrip on the Silver Comet Trail yesterday, so I just loafed in today.

Happy trails!

low 30s, some clouds moving in, frosty and dry. mellow-reeny, mcvouty!

I don't commute very often. I usually ride for a couple hours before work and then have to drive the dreaded car to work. I rode today and it was pretty uneventful. 3.06 miles in 12 minutes 41 seconds. Heck my shower took longer than that. :D

Oh well, at least i am a "commuter" today. It is also cool to have my bike in my office with me. I parked it right in front of the chair across from my desk so nobody can come in and talk to me. Now it is how we (my bike and I) like it. Nobody can come in and bother us, we are alone again!!! :p

Another great day on the bike. Motorists seem to all be my friends today. I put on a rear view mirror last night, a new louder bell and reflective wrist straps. It was an awesome morning....-3C with a slight headwind no clouds. Cool and crisp; just the way I like it.

I wish I could bring my bike in my office. It would be a good way to initiate conversations about my favorite topic. I guess it would be hard on the bike though in the winter.

Have a safe ride.

48F winds SSW at 25MPH gusting to 35MPH. Nice to be back on my normal schedule.

It was a cool, but not quite frosty morning for today's ride to work. The benefit was nice bright sunny weather, similar to my sunday ride.

The experiment with a new chain oil is also interesting - castor oil. I know what you're thinking.... Actually it works extremely well, the chain runs very smoothly, shifts well plus its fairly clean (and inexpensive). I'll keep the expt. going for a couple of hundred miles and report back. I believe it will compare favourably to Finishline's "cross country", but am awaiting a rain trial.......

Cheers,

Ed

nice mild ride this morning. a wild rabbit darted out onto a quiet residential street and stayed about 30-40 in front of my at the same speed for around a block or a block and a half before darting off back into someone's yard. it felt like the environment was showing their approval by providing me an escort in the form of a hare. then i got to work and realized it was probably just a curious little rabbit.

52F and raining today, had a quiet ride in until the very end. As I approach our parking lot entrance there is an uphill stretch. Today, as I labored up this stretch, a new officer on my team blew by me on his Jamis road bike. Unfortunatley for me, there were witnesses! I was peeling off my gear inside & one of the young ladies said "Did he just dust you Mr H?" I trotted out my excuses:
1. I didn't know he was back there 2. My touring bike is heavier & the front wheel was rubbing on the fender 3. I overdressed & felt like I was riding in a sauna inside my full rainsuit
I didn't use the primary reason: I'm 64, he's 34. Back to plotting my revenge, I'm bound to catch him sleeping one of these days. Don

While stopped at a traffic signal, a MBTA bus pulled up beside me. The door opened and the driver said, "We can see you, don't worry about that, we can sholly see you."
Mission accomplished.

Good ride to work & home . But my front light is dead .
So no light on the way home . But did have flashing light on messenger bag . So tonite I will be trying to put new batteries in tonite .So hopefully I can take the long way home tomorrow . Have a good nite .

Good ride in this am. You just can't beat a November day that hits 16C (yesterday) and 6C overnight. It could just as easily be -25C with 2 feet of snow. I will take every day as it comes. I am sure someday soon I will put those Nokians to good use.

saskcyclist, that's the weather that came thru calgary the day before. the temperature actually rose 3 degrees overnight, go figure. it was 0 this morning. i hate when it's zero, it's like there is no temperature. it should jump right from -1 to 1, none of this zero crap.

some guy: "hey, what's the temperature?"
me: "nothing, we don't have a temperature this morning"
some guy: "no temperature?"
me: "nope sorry, there's no weather either, we're screwed."