Tried out a new pair of tights today: Performance "Triflex". They are, without question, da bomb! I was very comfortably warm in them (temp around 40, windchill bringing it down to nearly freezing). Nice ride in.

Hi, this is my first BF post... On my way in to work tuesday I broke another spoke, having just broke my first last thursday. Fortunately, there is a shop right next to the university campus where I work and they were able to rebuild the wheel with a new rim/spokes before the end of the day. They were even nice enough to throw in a new tube since my old one had been patched quite a bit. Otherwise, the commute was great.

I made my first commute to work today, I'm looking forward to the ride home. It went very well, the only negatives were my face got really cold (any solutions to that?) and I forgot my lunch... but there is plenty of choices near where I work.

To paraphrase the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, "...if you know where your towel is, you must be one happening, together dude who'll also have spare underwear, lip balm, etc. and people will buy you drinks for having your towel..." or something like that.


Duanekeys, it would seem a balaclava would be the solution to a frozen face. And baklava would be a nice choice for lunch.

My commute in was fine. It was 42F when I left so I wore a jacket and a helmet on my commute for the first time this season and arrived at work sweatier than if I hadn't worn the helmet. Still debating on whether I should wear the helmet all the time or just in rainy/wintry weather. Or maybe a combination of the lighter, ventier helmet on nice days and the less venty helmet on really cold, rainy, wintry days. Yelled at a jaywalking ped who couldn't decide which way to go eventhough I already made up my mind to pass behind him. He yelled something like, "You EEDJIT!", to which I responded, "You tawkin' ta me STUPID?!?", while staring at him like you would stare at a particularly ugly child.

Another chilly ride to work this morning. Not as windy as yesterday, but cold enough (40). I layered up and was very warm by the time I arrived at work. Should be a nice ride home this afternoon.

32 this morning. Another ride into the sunrise. The old Bell Weather mittens felt real good.

Monday night on the ride home I was in the middle of what turns into a right turn lane. A pickup behind me followed me for about half a block. As we came up to the light, I was on the right side of the lane, I expected a few words to be exchanged. Instead he rolled down his window and said "nice bike!" :)

HEY!

I was going to post about the first ride in my new Triflex tights today. Way to steal the thunder :) .
But alas, they are the bomb. Beat the heck out of the nylon sweats I was wearing. It was fairly warm [39F] this morning so they may have been a bit overkill, but shiny new bike stuff must be used as soon as possible. Wore the new Performance balaclava today too...kept my face toasty warm on the 30mph downhill. But had to peel that baby off before the uphill grind.

Passed the most antisocial biker again this am. I cross paths with her almost every day since she goes the other direction. I always say "morning", wave, or tip my helmet, depending where we cross. She always makes a point to stare directly ahead, not even flinching. Some day, I swear, I will get her to wave... or at least generate a tiny nod.

Don

Super warm ride in today. It was 10C at the house and even warmer on the road. Fairly overcast this morning, but there was still a flush of colour on the horizon. It was a little slow today - cars, trucks, buses and peds all seemed to be in front of me every step of the way. Still, there's something to be said for slowing down.

Heh, sorry 'bout that. :) Actually, someone did a write-up on those tights already, maybe somewhere over in "Winter Cycling" (whatever it's called) so I'm merely adding a thumbs up myself.

I buy long-sleeved jerseys with hoods and have a balaclava for the seriously hardcore cold. Hood + helmet liner / cycling cap works pretty well otherwise. The hood is also easy to slip off if it gets too warm.

The "antisocial" biker might think your a CreepyGuy(TM) ("Don" means guy to me, correct me if I'm wrong!). Wipe that drool off your face and you'll get a better response. ;)

No commute today. It's the first rain of the season and that always brings up seeping oil at the intersections and California drivers absolutely lose their minds during the first rain. Plus I forgot to install my fenders last night.

Discretion being the better part of valor, I hitched a ride with my wife.

Ahhh, great ride in this morning, I took the long way. It's still dark all the way in, that will change next week (remember to change your clocks this weekend). It was 34F/1C this morning but it might get up near 50F/10C this afternoon. I'll have to explore a little on my lunch ride and take the long way home after work. Man, what a great fall we are having.

Today's ride was great. First really cold morning of the season -- 38F (3C). It seemed kinda strange to see my breath when I stopped at a stop sign or trafic light.

I'm hoping the afternoon temperature will get as warm as the weather guessers are saying -- 63 and sunny. :D A ride home in bibs and s/s jersey will be nice.

36 F on the ride to work this morning and it helped me realize that my old tights need to be replaced. They are getting so thin in some spots that I am close to looking like a member of The Village People. Looks like I might have to visit Performance this weekend. Those Triflex tights I see some people talking about in this thread sound nice.

It was nice, 33 and cloudy. Ran the headlight almost the whole way in. Time change will help. Not a soul on the "bike freeway" Cedar Lake Trail except for some runners until I got closer to downtown. Thought it was nice to NOT have to have the foot covers on yet.

I just got new tights and I can highly recommend the REI Powerstretch tights for cold weather riding. They're warmer than most tights and really comfortable. And no I don't work for REI! :D

Gloves. Too. Tight.

it was peaches and cream this morning until i came tire to tire with an impossible female SUV driver!... i'm very close to my building when this SUV catches up with me and stays close behind me. she doesn't pass me although there's nobody else on the road. because i work at a hospital, i decide to give her room to pass me in case she's in a hurry. so i mercilessly shove myself close to the gutter and the mud and the dirt, still wet from the rain that's just stopped. she finally makes up her mind, catches up with me and passes me ever so slowly, taking her sweet time. and because half her SUV is in the opposite lane, all the mud and dirt from the middle of the lane is splattered all over me along the way... aaahhh

I took a lunchtime ride from midtown to the Wall St. area to buy Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition (yeah, I know, it came out a while ago, but I been busy trying to get 100% on GTA San Andreas) and it's cagerrific! Also a good ride down along the FDR MUP to South St. Seaport and back although some parts were muddy as my pants can testify.

Ride home was jam packed. Traffic was wall-to-wall and I actually came to a standstill a few times and had to squeeze through a few places to get around the cars, trucks, buses, cabs, etc. I even followed another cyclist across 6 lanes of traffic just to get around it.

Cold this morning but not unbearable. Nice this afternoon.

it was raining again and the coldest morning yet (35 I think) when I left the house, but when I got to the park-n-ride there was no more rain. Not a drop the whole 15 miles on the bike, wind wasn't near as bad as yesterday and the cold wasn't an issue after the first mile. Had some deer run alongside me about 20 yards off the parkway for a bit. I watch em close for two reasons, because their pretty and in case they decide to cut in front of me to cross the road. Nothing worth commenting on for the ride back to the truck...just a nice ride.

I caught up with a friend who commutes to work as well for the ride home. Had a pleasant conversation and a pleasant ride home to close my first day of bike commuting.

Ok, the last few days have been rainy days which, of course, did not deter me from bike-commuting. However, I haven't bothered to lube the chain because what the hell, I figured, the lube would just be washed right off it the next morning. Except: it didn't rain today. So what do I hear as I start pedalling this morning? The most god-awfully loud squeak I've ever heard from a bike chain!

Unfortunately, I slept in today, so had no time to go back and apply lube... In fact, I slept in so much I didn't even have time for any breakfast! These two factors combined (with some headwind thrown in for a good measure) accounted for my slowest commute since the start of the school year: an abysmal 20 kmph (~12.5 mph) average. :(

Luckily, there is some WD-40 in my office - not a very good chain lubricant but did do the trick for the return trip (which therefore was much more pleasant for both me and the bike).

Still cold & wet , But it was still a good ride to work and home . I hope it clears up . Have a good nite .

yay, at least one hoopy frood who got it. now i just need me some red dwarf people, and i'll be almost reconciled to the end of baseball for 2005. oh, the nights will get long and dark now until spring comes around.

amazing terrific morning ride in, in spite of 14 innings robbing me of some sleep last night. cold cold - eh, not really, but cold enough to have that wonderful inside-of-a-freezer smell that is one of my favourite smells in the world. i forgot to check the digital signboard but it felt like about 3 degrees. got passed (on the left) by someone else quite early; i heard his gears clashing so had lots of warning. he said hi as he went by and i said 'nice shirt!' to his back - which it was. neon green is the next colour i want; i could see him in front of me all the way no matter how far ahead he got. actually, he never got very far, just far enough to push all the slow light buttons for me at intersections. i followed in his tracks for the approach to the bridge and was emboldened to do what he did and see if it works better than what i do (it does). seemed like the nice kind of commuter, so i didn't think he would mind me picking his brains like that.

the only other feature of the morning was that i made my first try at the second-last remaining logistical trick: crossing the exit lane off the bridge and taking the next lane over, which is the first one that goes straight through at the light. as opposed to just continuing from the mup to the sidewalk until i get to the light and then turning pedestrian to get across and waiting for another light cycle until it's clear to merge back off the sidewalk into the road. i think the only one left now is merging over into the left-turn lane a mile or so further on. i'm giving myself lots of time for that one.

coming home was different. stayed to watch game 4 (break my heart) at 6 pm and didn't leave until 9:15. tired and hungry by then and been working on automation tools all day in the area that's super-air conditioned for some stupid reason, so i type with one hand with the other one shoved underneath me. not really in bike mode too much by the time i left. but it was nice in spite of being harder than i'd wanted it to be, and so traffic-free that i had patches where i could just watch the sky in between watching the road. i like that a lot. think my tires need air.

my brain thinks it's thursday. feels like another cold day tomorrow, but ahhhhhh. i bought myself thermal socks.

Was it a figment of my imagination or was I dreaming? Maybe someone is lurking in the boards. Up at the top end of the sewage treatment plant, it was lit up like Times Square (ok not quite). The whole circle up there was able to be navigated easily. Was this a one day thing? Is work being done?

Chilly this morning, but bearable. Have to start covering my feet better. I found myself hunching my shoulders to keep my gaitor properly placed.

Was that a turd on the Manhattan side of the Manhattan Bridge?