Awesome ride this morning !

I almost got clobbered by an suv that ran a red light !

I started off just as the light on their side turned red... as I went through the intersection, this guy was doing at least 70 mph in a 35/40 ... and he just looked at me, I looked at him and I realized he was NOT going to slow down... so I backed off a bit, and he flew right past me, ran the red ... I pushed as hard as I could and I caught up to him at the next red light !!

Lucky for me, by the time I got there, the cars that were behind me caught up to him and this lady was yelling at him " you almost killed that guy on the bicycle because you ran the red light ! "...

so, I didnt make a point of it by banging on his mercedez benz suv or to scare his big wife.. lol

=)

So thats that... still alive, still there.



So far, 100% car free in 2006.

30F at sunrise, some frost but no black ice. Different story on the boardwalks closer to work, though. I had to walk one of them. There was evidence of previous commuters crashing (blinkie parts, skid marks).

Another day of heavier than normal traffic, plus I have to ride home at lunch and switch to the motorcycle in order to meet my wife across town this afternoon.

Took a different route, slightly longer route to work today cuz I was running late and knew traffic was gonna suck on my usual route. Although the distance increased about 10%, I ended up getting to work faster than usual, beating my average time by about 30 seconds. I've been debating making this route my usual route so I may try it out for the rest of the week.

Yeah, there were some nice little frost pellets/icy patches on the wooden bridges along the Mount Vernon Trail this morning. Very slippery! Otherwise, it wasn't a bad ride in...

Had a typical ride in; temps in the high 40s, no wind, clear overcast day, light traffic and no close encounters of the SUV kind.

Oh wow, such an easy ride in today. I switched back to the skinny-tire bike and was just flying. I totally notice the shorter cranks. If I ever put new ones on that bike I'm going to 175 or 180mm. Great sunrise too.

The wind was up again this morning, maybe slightly less than yesterday, 25-30 mph. I used the sidewalk for a couple long blocks to avoid being blown into traffic. It took about 11 minutes to get into the office.

Took a different route to work today, a more hilly one. Took me longer to get to work and I was very tired when I arrived. I don't know if it was the route though, I had an indoor soccer game last night at 10pm and I had to play almost the whole game due to lack of subs. So I didn't get much sleep and was tired before I even got on the bike. Definitely taking the easy way home after work.

No commute today. Got home too late last night to care to prep for commuting, and preferred to sleep in this morning than to prep. Oh well, maybe tomorrow. Or maybe it will just be a week away from commuting since after tomorrow, I'll start prepping my other bike for Saturday's ride (including stealing the light setup from my commuter) and resting my legs.

Horrible.

9 miles in (nice tailwind too) I got a flat. No big deal. I pull out my trusty 15mm wrench and take the back wheel off, and get the tube out. I pull out my spare tube and put it in the wheel only to discover that with my new wheels, the valve stem isn't long enough. OK, I'll use just patch the old tube and be on my way. The wind noise makes it very difficult to find the puncture. I finally find it and patch it. My fingers are getting numb since it's about freezing. I put some air in the tube. Nothing. There is another puncture. I patch it. Rinse and repeat. Same thing. There is another puncture. I patch the third puncture. I lose the glue. I revert to my backup patch kit. (today I was carrying 2 patch kits) Feeling better, I put the tube into the tire and seat it back on the rim. I'm having a hard time getting the last bit of tire bead over the rim, so I use a lever. You guessed it. SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.... Another puncture. At this point, I give up and walk 2 miles to work.

Recursive,

Sorry about such a rough commute. Have you been able to get your tire patched up for the ride home? I hope tomorrow is much brighter for you.

Chris

Nice and mellow. I feel like my legs are still recovering from a couple of races over the weekend so I just spun along easily. And the fact that my computer died last week helps me to keep it nice and easy.

I found an 80s-vintage steel Trek frame on Sunday and I've got the idea that I'll go single-speed or fixed, so I rode all the way in the 42-15 combination. Sacramento is super-flat so it's really all I'd need.

Thanks.

Yeah, I patched it easily, on the first try even after I got to work. Being inside seems to help quite a bit with manual dexterity. As a bonus, I also have a floor pump at work. I'm definitely picking up some tubes on my way home though.

Mine sucked today. It all started last night when I realized BOTH of sets of brake pads were down to the metal (a huge flatbed truck nearly cutting me off convinced me it was time to change em').

Stupid me. I forgot to change them last night, and I was already running late. It took me HALF AN HOUR to do it, and I only did the fronts. :mad: I am never buying a bike with threaded-style canti brakes again. Thankfully my boss (being a cyclist himself) was pretty cool about it when I called.

Then, as I reach down to grab my bag I see there's cat puke all over it. By the time I de-cat-puked my bag, de-greased my hands, and finally slogged to work I was almost an hour late.

Oh, it was wonderful and amazing and delightful and happy and...

I commuted for the first time today, and I actually started laughing out loud while riding. I felt like I was getting away with something naughty! Just got my new bike on Saturday; my other one got stolen over the holidays. This is such a wonderful thing that you all do. Thank you for the inspiration!

I just love it. Plus, I'm training for the San Fran to L.A. AIDS Lifecycle ride in June, and by commuting I get 20 miles of training in each day, saving the long training rides for weekends. Plus, I need to lose a little weight and control the cholesterol, and I hate going to smelly gyms.

Ride on!

Your donations gratefully appreciated:
http://www.aidslifecycle.org/6373

Great day to commute. 35 F. Rode in the dawn and went extra distance to use up my buffer time.

Warm, but way windy. I thought I was going to have to pedal going down hill.

Haven't seen those pesky dogs in a while.

Wheeeeeee!!!!! http://www.one2ride.org/Animation/biking.gif

My commute was not too shabby.

18miles in 1:20

I ran a red light, there was no oncomming traffic, and a police officer told me over the megaphone not do it again. I waved good bye and proceeded to run the rest of the light. There was no traffic at all. Why sit and wait? Dumb idea? maybe? illegal? I dunno.

Saw another person get pulled over for speeding in a school zone ouch!$$$$$

Cant wait for tomorow

eventless (ie: cars, peds, temp, winds, etc) both ways. enjoyed the rides!

Ride home included a stop at the post office to pick up my new Freddy Fenders. Of course, they came in a box 10x bigger than it needed to be, but luckily I bought a rack a few weeks ago and had some strappy thing to tie it down. Got home, did a bunch of other things and then started installing the Fenders. Installed the front fender first, then removed it cuz it was on the wrong wheel, installed the right fender on the rear wheel and vice versa. The front fender required some zip ties and extra washers and bolts to get it in tight enough. I hope the fender stays don't stick out so much they hit my feet when I pedal. I'll find out tomorrow.

long day today. in early in the bright sunshine and cold. The first part of the MDC bike path from Wtown Sq to Brighton was poorly plowed and was like a good MTB trail ride. I'm glad for the MTB experience for days like these- I just buckle down and ride the way I would if I were off-roading so it doesn't feel like I'm wasting time. Was in a sweat by half way in from working so hard and suddenly the path was much clearer. Still a lot of ice, especially on the bridges but much better. Got downtown with a few minutes to spare. Eventually had to move locations for work and rode to the next location 'til 7p and then rode home on Comm Ave and then through back streets in Brighton til I got to Newton. gotta love it.

Cold & windy .

Haven't posted much lately, but that doesn't mean I haven't been riding.

The commute to work is the same, only the weather changes. Took the Townie instead of the road bike to work last Friday. That was a fun ride. I need to take the Townie more often. :)

Haven't been seeing much wildlife on the wildlife refuge, except for the armadillos. I think it's a combination of the time of year and people in the woods, including me. The last quota hunt, primitive weapons, until the spring gobbler quota hunt, was this past weekend. Everything's found a nice secluded spot to hole up for a while, of course, while commuting, I won't see them when they're not near the roads.

I've been playing around with this web-site. Pretty interesting and accurate. One of our fellow forum members turned me on to it.
http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/
I've found exactly where the 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, and 3/4 of the way, points are on my work commute. Something I never remember to check on when relying soley on my bike computer. The third leg of my commute is the worst for traffic, but not nearly as much of the ride as it seemed.

I need to start taking notes on what I wear for progressively lower temperatures. I still have a tendancy to over-dress.