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-   -   How was the commute today? (https://www.bikeforums.net/commuting/7855-how-commute-today.html)

caloso 04-04-06 10:59 AM

A little damp, but not too bad. I wore my supersexy high tech booties (Safeway bags over my feet strapped down with a couple turns of electrical tape) and cars were so impressed that no actually tried to run me over.

Vatn 04-04-06 01:30 PM

Fairly nice: Windy, but a bit of sun.

I'm riding my old bike, because I had a new rear wheel built last week, and I'm bringing it in for a final tightening of the spokes tomorrow. That'd be kind of pointless if the bike hadn't been ridden. I got a nice, new floor pump, and filled the tires to maximum pressure. That old bike has never been as fast as today :D I hit 54 km/h easily on a short downhill stretch where I normally struggle to reach 45. (I can hardly wait to get skinnier 28 mm tires for my main bike.)

jyossarian 04-04-06 03:49 PM

It was get in my way day on the way home. First cars speeding ahead only to slow down to make a right at which point I passed them again. Then it was the peds turn to stop me dead in my track on the FDR MUP. Lastly, another cyclist out for a spring tune-up ride passing me on my right from a red light. He gave no indication he was there, but I saw him and let him pass ahead although I did think about scraping him off a car. The weather's so nice people are losing their minds.

marqueemoon 04-04-06 04:12 PM


Originally Posted by jyossarian
It was get in my way day on the way home. First cars speeding ahead only to slow down to make a right at which point I passed them again. Then it was the peds turn to stop me dead in my track on the FDR MUP. Lastly, another cyclist out for a spring tune-up ride passing me on my right from a red light. He gave no indication he was there, but I saw him and let him pass ahead although I did think about scraping him off a car. The weather's so nice people are losing their minds.

I hear ya. The idiots are out in force, like the idiot who nearly rode over me skidding through the red light yesterday.

I've been commuting on my freshly re-geared (lower, more spinny) Soma Rush fixed gear and loving it. I'm working on two days of commuting without putting a foot down (much easier with a 68 inch gear), and it is amazing out today.

I finally have Kool Stop salmon pads front and back on the usual commuter beast though, so bring on the rain!

rando 04-04-06 06:59 PM

the ride in was great. the ride back, not so much... a strong headwind today and uphill climb took it out of me. bleah! not one but four crazy wrongway bikers coming at me IN the bike lane, when they should have been on the other side of the street in the bike lane. WTF?? bizarro!

vrkelley 04-04-06 07:54 PM

39F and Foggy. I took the less hilly route and arrived at work freezing. I needed a wind-proof jacket. Nice ride home

spidercyclist 04-04-06 08:02 PM

No commuting to work this week for me. Thank goodness I'm finally on vacation. Just running errands and things this week, hope the week stays somewhat warm. Have a good week.

buzzman 04-04-06 08:07 PM

windy, rainy on the way in. full rainsuit with shoe covers. bike path empty of commuters and only a few runners. the ride home was windy, too. my pace was slow but at least I rode so I felt like I accomplished something.

ctoddrun 04-04-06 08:56 PM


Originally Posted by rando
nice ride today. cloudy. it's heating up here... temps now up in the 80s. it won't be long before we have 100 degree days (may, june, july, August, Sept) that will be the true test of my commuting resolve, if I continue in the heat.

Right there with ya on that one - there's a reason I started in January. If I waited till summer I would never have done it; I'm from the northwest, have acclimated some over the last 8 years in the Dallas heat, but I'm still not ready to embrace it. Cold and wet is a different story...

tokolosh 04-04-06 10:56 PM

sigh. had a big long lurid description of my first-commute-in-a-while all typed up, and a database error stole it. short version: had a slight crash on the way in to work running over a pig's trotter in the middle of the road (pig not attached). rear wheel a bit warped, otherwise all is lovely.

scottmorrison99 04-04-06 11:08 PM

Swung by the LBS to price a road bike to have as a fair weather commuter. It would be nice to go a little faster than the MTB sometimes. I'm rewarding myself for getting rid of my truck and the associated gas, insurance, and registration costs. We only need 1 car.

LilSprocket 04-05-06 05:45 AM

Got a flat on the chronic glass en route home the Friday.
I looked up from changin’ the tube and it was like Crack of Dawn of the Dead... :eek:
A woman (I think) was hobbling toward me (and my messenger bag) she was definitely not, um...
not right... :(
I quickly grabbed my bag and pushed my bike along... pulled the pepper spray outta my bag just
in case... finally got the co2 going and Whoosh --- >>> all the way home
Glad it's stayin' light later these days :)

vtjim 04-05-06 06:05 AM

High 20Fs this morning. Some damp spots from yesterdays rain storm. The sunrise was lighting up the eastern slopes of the Adirondack Mountains. Saw some Canadian geese and some cormorants in the lake. A good ride, but I felt a little de-energized for some reason. Bit of a headwind, I guess.

FormerBMX'er 04-05-06 07:04 AM

Rain/Snow mix started to fall as I headed out the door so I took it fairly easy. Followed/Watched another commuter on his XMAS gift bike take all sorts of risk crossing the train tracks/intersection at Comm.Ave. He looked winded, but I think he was trying to stay ahead of me :rolleyes:.

ctoddrun 04-05-06 07:42 AM

Great ride this morning in spite of a couple of idiots. Weather was perfect - 62, just a bit of a wind from the south, across my path for the first half, and at my back for the last. I'm absolutely loving my sandals and pedals. I don't remember whose post I was reading where they said they where the Shimano sandals year round. I had never heard of such a thing (newly back to cycling, been away a while...) but immediately started eyeing a pair. Fantastic idea! Greatest shoes ever! Trying to figure out how to get the dress code changed around here ;)

jyossarian 04-05-06 11:14 AM


Originally Posted by tokolosh
sigh. had a big long lurid description of my first-commute-in-a-while all typed up, and a database error stole it. short version: had a slight crash on the way in to work running over a pig's trotter in the middle of the road (pig not attached). rear wheel a bit warped, otherwise all is lovely.

People throwing away perfectly good food up there?

Drove to NJ today cuz I had to pick up my repaired laptop. Forecast for today was showers and snow, both of which I experienced driving in. I'd still rather ride to work, even in that mess.

noisebeam 04-05-06 11:16 AM

Strong headwinds today. During the time of my commute the local weather station recorded 40mph max speed and 26mph average. All coming from the direction I was headed. It took me ~3min longer to get to work over my 8.5mi ride.

(ctoddrun - I am one person who wears Shimano sandals year round)

Al

TPafford 04-05-06 11:29 AM

We had a good ride in today. (I pull my son behind me, in a Burley trailer, and drop him off at daycare, then peddle over to work at the medical center.) The temperature was perfect! Maybe 50 or 55 degrees, and sunny. However, the light spring breeze turned out to be a deceptively strong force, mostly coming at us. Add to that, the effect of Liam in the Burley, rocking back and forth to some tune he was singing, and sometimes it was a challenge to hold my line. But the traffic was forgiving and respectful, and it was a good time to spin lower gears at higher rpms. It's easier on my knees that way.

I estimate that we have a two-mile commute, one way. One reason my wife and I bought the house we did was to be nearer to things.

I (we) couldn't ride the bike on either Monday or Tuesday (due to other family needs), so we were really happy to pedaling once again.

pinkrobe 04-05-06 12:01 PM

Spring is definitely here. For the first time since November, we had rain. It's spitting right now. It was misty riding in, but not wet. I'm glad I put fenders on - they keep me pretty dry. I even remembered to oil my chain last night. It's a lot easier to pedal than it was before, so perhaps I shouldn't have been a dumbass and let it dry out so far.

Last night I swapped out my wife's 9-spd Ultegra brifters for the short-reach versions. It's a very significant change in the reach to the levers. I even re-taped the bar without screwing it up. Yay for me!

tomg 04-05-06 02:11 PM

snow, sun, sleet, wind,...glad i was in company car working, instead of riding today. what am i saying!? i still would rather be riding than working! past couple of weeks have been usual commutes, i have gone the long way home as the weather got better, but those triple flats took spirit away for 2.5 days of commute this year. wind has been a challange during this weeks rides. i'm off work til monday (use vac x, or loose it). spin safe!

buzzman 04-05-06 08:55 PM

Rode in with huge snow flakes that fell like big white feathers from the sky. The ground and pavement was wet with deep puddles, went through one and hit a nice deep pothole that gave me a good shake but no bike damage. Plenty of wind on the ride home. Winter hasn't quite let go yet in New England.

scottmorrison99 04-05-06 10:41 PM

Ride in was a nice steady rain. Had 2 city buses pull out of the transportation yard and straddle the lane divider instead of just getting in the left lane to pass me. They gave me plenty of room, but it just struck me as stupid. I passed them 2 lights later and waved. They had to make a left turn, so why wouldn't they get in the left straight ahead lane two lights back? Idiots. Had a strong (15MPH) headwind coming home. Had a kid try to race me on his bmx, bbye kid. Tomorrow's supposed to be dry both ways. We shall see.:)

ctoddrun 04-06-06 05:39 AM

My ride home last night was the slowest ever, but fun anyway. 20+ mph winds from the south blew directly in my face for the first 4 miles and the last 3 miles, and kicked me from the side the rest of the way. At one point, cruising along at 28 MPH down a hill, found myself turning into a gust, bike leaning like I was going through a corner, just to keep from slamming the curb. Slowed down after that. Wind is worse today, which would be pretty fun on the way in, but no commute this morning as the wife and I have early dinner commitments this evening and workload won't allow me to bail early today. Better to drive than make us late... Good day, all!

jeff-o 04-06-06 06:00 AM

Well, I waited a week until it stopped raining, snowing and just generally being Cold. This morning it was around 0C, with an expected high of 11C in the afternoon. It was tough this morning, as I'm still out of shape. I arrived slightly light-headed with all the blood pressure pounding in my ears.

Hopefully more days of good weather will speed my recovery from Winter Atrophy.

vtjim 04-06-06 06:02 AM

30F and overcast. A woman was walking a big boxer-type dog that, from its body language, thought I was the most incredible and amazing thing it had ever seen. :)

Also along my route is a bicycle tire and tube, both cut through, for some reason, lying on the ground. Strange.

Theakston 04-06-06 06:47 AM


Originally Posted by vtjim
30F and overcast. A woman was walking a big boxer-type dog that, from its body language, thought I was the most incredible and amazing thing it had ever seen. :)

Also along my route is a bicycle tire and tube, both cut through, for some reason, lying on the ground. Strange.

That's all that remains of the last incredible and amazing thing the dog saw.:D

DonD 04-06-06 06:55 AM

This morning was my first bike commute of the season. 36 degrees, 10-12 mph winds. I had picked up some cold weather gear over the winter and been out a couple of times with it (arm/leg warmers, long sleeved jersey, full length jacket) in 40 degree weather with stronger winds, so I figured I should be ok. And for the most part, I was. The only time I really felt cold was when I was going downhill and gained a lot of speed. And even then, it was only my fingers and toes.

My co-workers haven't seen me biking in since the fall, and some of them have never seen me in my spandex, so the look on their faces this morning was just priceless.

I'm still trying to warm up my toes though.

Itsjustb 04-06-06 07:18 AM


Originally Posted by Theakston
That's all that remains of the last incredible and amazing thing the dog saw.:D

Theakston, thank you. That's the best laugh I've had in a while.

Ride today was good, despite the fact that I can't turn my head to the right (strained a muscle or something in my upper back/neck last night). My incredulous wife (she should know better by now) said, "You can't turn your head to the right and you're gonna bike anyway?"

"Honey, cyclists have to look to the left." :D

I'm such a smart a$$. It's a wonder she puts up with me.

vtjim 04-06-06 07:28 AM


Originally Posted by Theakston
That's all that remains of the last incredible and amazing thing the dog saw.:D

:D :beer:

brunop 04-06-06 07:32 AM


Originally Posted by DonD
The only time I really felt cold was when I was going downhill and gained a lot of speed. And even then, it was only my fingers and toes.



I'm still trying to warm up my toes though.

hey don,
about the same conditions here in boston this morning. around 35 at 6.30 am but sunny. i always get cold toes so today i put my feet in plastic bags over my socks and dude! it was a freakin' revelation! no more cold feet over an 11 mile ride. try it.:) :beer:


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