the woman in the cube beside me is an hr contractor. all day long i get to hear her say 'what are your long-term goals; where do you see yourself two years down the road?' into her phone. i can answer that one in my sleep now. 'getting up and out of the house by 7 am, so i can be at work before 9'. good thing she's not asking me, i suppose.

nothing much to report either way. fell down in the last 300 yards of the morning ride; my own silly fault, not harmful, and i was just glad nobody was around to see me do it. then fell down in the shower; don't ask. managed to get home without falling down, but instead i had something strange come to pass with my chain so i had to get off and muck around with it for a while. still, i rode all the way there and all the way back, and i think i can do tomorrow as well.

oh. and i put air in my tyres on the way home. haven't been checking them for softness this week, because imagine how disappointed i would have been if i hadn't had that explanation for how tired my legs have been getting this week. but they were, actually. i should do something about that inverted protestant self-obstruction ethic sometime. it's probably a sign that i'm bored with my job.

songs: me and julio down by the schoolyard, paul simon, and soldier's joy, michelle shocked.

Broke a rib nearly two weeks ago......can't cycle......major bummer. This thread makes it worse !

Lorcán.

Cool morning, mid to upper fifties, cold rain, wind 12 mph from the north. Lost a couple of hours of sleep to my little one who was feeling unwell, so I was a bit tired and running late. Saw another rider in full kit a couple of blocks ahead of me drafting a garbage truck, was jealous. Of the draft, not the kit, that is. Upon arriving to work, I was surprised to find out I'd made excellent time despite the lack of sleep and motivation. In summary, coffee good, fire bad.

I get a deja vue ride fairly regularly in the mornings. I hit a STEEP short hill almost right away, gets things pumping. Then a long downhill. At the right time of morning, like earlier this week, there's a slight fog towards the bottom. I can feel myself hit the chill, a taste of the lake to my right. Then I hit the woods, with the trees joining overhead, and a sharp relatively high-G turn to the left, the low point. That particular stretch always feels calm and graceful, dropping into the air off the lake. But when that little bit of mist is there it is really magical.

My ex-wife smashed up her new blue SAAB on that corner years ago, driving badly as usual. I think that was about the last straw - one of those passive aggressive things. She did in lots of cars and did other bizarre things. So the turn at the bottom is my friend.

There's the 1/4 mile of gentle riding by the dairy farm. Often birds of prey zoom over. Far away, across the fields and woods, generally with a bit of Tennessee mist in low spots, the Smoky Mountains rise against the morning glow in the east, just the outlines, with fence posts and cedar trees flashing by in front of them, the old and broken road chattering under the Paramount's tires. This can be a really dreamlike experience. I never get tired of that little section, and Lulu at the end of it. She's old and a bassett so I have to slow down to give her a chance at me. I often laugh making the next left, whipping through the countryside with a hound baying at my heels.

Now this week I had a call come in late, and I was already late to be leaving work. So I left at dusk, turned on my flashy taillight and was glad for the reflective panels on my messenger bag. But there was plenty of light really. I climbed quickly up to the stretch by the dairy farm. To my right were the cattle, and fields, and woods, purple tinged and dim, the perspective mainly provided by my movement. And in the distance, purple mountains with the tops crowned in hot pink. And to my left, crimson and pink clouds in the distance, probably over the plateau. When I think of moving somewhere more sensible, memories of scenes like this let me know I'm already home. No point in looking elsewhere.

Mist on the river
Golden eyes peer from tall grass
mtb tires hum

If the rain comes
they run and hide their heads
They might as well be dead
If the rain comes
If the rain comes

When the sun shines
they slip into the shade
and sip their lemonade
When the sun shines
When the sun shines

Rain, I dont mind
Shine, the weathers fine

I can show you
that when it starts to rain
everythings the same
I can show you
I can show you

Rain, I dont mind
Shine, the weathers fine

Can you hear me
that when it rains and shines
its just a state of mind
Can you hear me
Can you hear me

Cagers stare helpless
Freedom blowing through my hair
I am One Less Car

What's with the haiku?
How was your commute today?
Let's get back on track!

This morning it was so foggy that I had to take my glasses off half way to work. When I got to work there was water dripping from my beard.
This afternoon it was a beautiful fall day. Not too hot not too cool. I seem to make better time when it is cooler.

Back on track?! The haiku describes my commute. The river trail was wreathed in foggy mist. The yellow eyes were either feral cats or raccoons in the woodline, shining in the glare of my helmet light. It was like being in a Scooby Doo cartoon - all you saw was the eyes in the grass. My roadbike died yesterday, so I was back on the mtb, hence the humming tires...

Personally, I enjoyed the poetic break and since it started off a new page of posts, I was hoping everyone would follow suit with haiku, odes, sonnets, etc. Oh well, maybe a separate poetry thread would be more suitable.

:D sneaky.

new rule for this thread
three lines per person today
it's haiku friday

must have been feeling bulletproof yesterday on the way home. sang 'the barnyards of delgaty' most of the way.

oh i can drink an no get drunken
i can fecht an no get slain
i can lie wi' another man's lass
an i'll be welcome to my ain

guy at the intersection just after the bridge gave me a funny kind of look. some bikers have no sense of humour at all.

Tires crunching through the snow.
Snow flakes gently falling down.
Fog is slowly moving in.

All haikus have three
lines, five, then seven, then five
syllables in them

It's not haiku friday today.

October trial commute.....

Well I made it through week 2....

I'm consistently averaging 15+ now on my 11 mile commute, and with some persistent knee stretching, I think my knee can take this.

Started laying out my homemade lighting system today. Once the time change hits, it will add a layer of difficulty to the commute.

Also ordered new wheel hubs for my other 126mm bike, so I can have a backup bike. Wish me luck on wheelbuilding next weekend.

SharpT

Who left the refrigerator door open?? This mornings temps are mid-40s (7C).
When is April gonna get here. :o

I hope I don't freeze my *** off today.

Let's see. Arm warmers, knee warmers, vest, wool socks, full finger gloves, base layer, portable propane heater. ;)

I will chime in ...(1)

After 18 weeks of warm weather here in SE PA, I got faster on my heavish hybrid on my 12 mile commute on this traffic laden rolling hills.

So far drivers are most corteous and give me the most room possible when passing. Close brushes with death are due to their miscalculation regarding my speed, perhaps they are not used to see a bicycle going over 20mph sometimes. Few drivers are ill intentioned/irritated by my prescence on the road, and very sparse yelling is present on my commute.

Commuting it has proven to be a real bliss over driving, and I thank god and all the angels in the sky that for the health I have that allows me to fly over the beautiful country/suburban roads in my area.

Now lets get down to business.

We need MORE commuters on bikes. We have to spread the word that the bike is the next big thing. The US needs to have the bicycle culture asociated with patriotism (or something really catchy for the simple mind) so people get out of their butts/carseats and bike commute as much as possible. Most of us know how difficult it is to live in the sububurbs with poor pedestrian/bike planning(2). The status thing can be carried over two the bikes. For the people with limited budgets: there is a bike for you. For the people with wealth and willing and able to buy the nicest things: there are armies of handmade, custom fitted, titanium(3) beauties to be had. For the middle of the ground people: there is a sea of decently priced machines to pick from. What could be coolest than having a stable of different bikes to match your outfits?.
I know that the current infrastructure of most urban areas is not fit for massive bike transit, but there are roads to be ridden, packs of bikers to be gathered and commute in groups. There are kinship relationships to be formed on the brotherhood of the pedal.

We must spread the word. Use any slogan you can.


Now back to the usual sillyness.

(1) Dont have many friends that commute on bike so to share my nonesense
(2) I have two cars, wife cannot commute on bike due distance and lack of showers at workplace.
(3) I was thinking of an expensive material.

Back on the bike today, wo0t! Got the busted spoke repaired, cleaned the bike and drivetrain and I'm back in action on the mercifully dry roads (I've learned my lesson -- flood warnings ==> don't ride, foo'!). Very windy today... chilly too, but comfortably so.

Sorry Ron, that was probably me. First really cold (40's) commute of the year. I felt pretty comfortable once I got to work, but I might be writing to Rivendell for some wool arm warmers. I'm still holding off on the tights for a couple of weeks...

First ride in two weeks due to weather and holidays. Missed it alot. Last weeks weather, later sunrise, and the coolness has thinned out the runners on the greenway, less hazards.

Does it count if I rode to work, realized I forgot my chain, rode back home and decided to just work from home instead? If so, feel free to read on. If not, feel free to read on anyway. Ride in was nice. I passed a couple messengers leisurely making their way to work and passed another commuter. Realized I didn't have a chain when I tried to lock up at work, thought of the Dumbest things you've done commuting thread, then jumped back on my bike and rode home.

Great ride in. I waited until the sun was coming up before I left. When the sunrise hits Pikes Peak, the mountains are washed in a lavender glow. This is what inspired Katherine Lee Bates in America the Beautiful for the line "Purple Mountain's Majesty.
I get somewhat inspired by that as well.

Weather man said 54F degrees, but it was really only 45 when I hit the road. Still was fine for shorts and a hoodie.

There is one spot where there are always tons of bunnies running around... now I know why. Somebody has been feeding them. There were a dozen or so apples and some carrots scattered around. Every morning the scatter when I ride by. They are pretty funny in that they run really fast... then freeze like they think they have just become invisible.... silly rabbits.

Don

Enjoying the unseasonably warm weather in Minnesota. It was almost 60 degrees (Fahrenheit) when I left for work this morning. Rode to work in shorts, short-sleeved wool jersey and arm warmers. That's weird for 6:30am in mid-October in Minnesota! Usually this time of year I have to wear long-sleeves/pants/jacket on my ride to work in the morning and carry a second set of "warm weather" cloths (along with my work cloths) for the ride home. Not today!

My first ride in clipless pedals today. Knees sore from century ride. Still, could not resist trying out the new toys (early b-day present to self ;) )

hey! they said it was gonna be nice out today.
yet the god-damned wind was still out there, hassling me all the way in to work.

My first commute in clipless too! It was awesome. I love clipless.

Incidentally: Never wash all your cycling gloves the night before you have to ride to work. They were all still wet! I wound up using my winter gloves because I didn't want wet frozen fingers.

After a week of riding in South Lake Tahoe [altitude!], I just flew up the hill on the way in today. I would have been faster on the flats, but the chest cold I contracted down there has me coughing up lung butter on a regular basis.

Low 40s here, but a beautiful morning with clear skies and a full moon. I did have to wear my full gloves for the first time time this year. After my first mile my fingers were freezing - luckily I had packed the gloves in my pannier pocket. Now the sun is out and it's supposed to get into the mid-60s, should be a nice ride home.

I fell in behind a couple of other cyclists on the parkway this morning (kinda rare to see others this time of year) with itty-bitty front lights and one rear blinkie each. I had a hard time seeing them, so I can imagine how much trouble the cagers were having. They weren't exactly the friendly type, decided to put the hammer down when the realized I was only a few yards behind them. Road bikes, no bags other than a saddle wedge. When I am loaded down riding in the dark on a cold morning, racing isn't exactly one of my priorities. Then they ran a stop sign and turned off a bit farther up the road. I remember thinking 'Gosh, I hope they don't hit any deer', as fast as they were going with them itty bitty lights. Of all the things I worry about riding on dark mornings this time of year, I'd say deer are right at the top of the list.

Well, I didn't freeze my *** off after all. ;) I was comfortable all the way to work.

About 3 miles from work I was on a side street and had been followed for about 2 blocks by a slow moving Subaru station wagon. I thought, "Hmm, what's this guy gonna do?"
He finally pulled up beside me and rolled down the passenger side window and said, "You're very visible."
I thanked him for the positive comment and told him I try to be as visible as possible for safety sake.
Visible?? Me?? I was just wearing my neon yellow/green jersey, neon yellow/green vest, bright yellow arm warmers, and riding my black bike that's covered with yellow reflective tape.

Rode directly in this morning and the ride was absolutely unmemorable. But I've packed my shorts and jersey for a long ride home tonight. I'm really looking forward to it.