"Finally - 2 weeks of lurking, and I can finally post to this thread! First time in on the bike today. Drove halfway, parked the truck, and road the last 7+ miles"

Congratulations! That's how I began way back when. Drove 1/2 way in my Suburban, parked & rode the other 1/2. I got a lot of ribbing from the other bike commuters at work but really, I was saving lots of gas & it was a good way to get in condition for the full commute. Don

Streets have been dry in Minneapolis for a better part of January and the temps are warm. The commute across town on the new Greenway is desolate since commuting hasn't taken off here. The Cedar Lake trail is always beautiful running for awhile through an urban forested strip. This too is wide open. My take on this is enjoy it before the biking thing gets popular. My winter bike is a 1 speed freewheel 26" Rollo with fenders,brakes and lights. Low maintenance and just enough gear for a ten mile commute. Most riding in this city is on alternative routes through neighborhoods with a very light mix of traffic. Minneapolis really has yet to be discovered by people who want to put a little adventure into their day with a bicycle commute.

past 2 or 3 commute days have been eventless, love my commutor road bike and the responses i get from my input (crank energy + effort = speed). i am really exited about new lights "Planet Bike Sport Spot 4 Headlite" and felt lit-up on return home tonight. with headlite, sportlite, and 4 blinkies, I am spinning and visible!

Back to commuting after taking most of January off. New Job is about 1mile closer and 1 less hill! 41F and misty on inbound route. Steady rain on the return trip. It's good to be back in the the saddle.


Good show! Working up to the full commute a little at a time is the way to go.

This is my first post in this thread today. Have looked a few times.

My last 4 days have been sunny and about 4C(40F) on way to work and about -4C(24F) on way home. First couple of days felt quite cold but have got the hang of it now. Also did a couple of training rides in the day, seem to ride better in the cooler weather.

Keep up the commute and pass on the word. I've almost converted 2 people at work to commute.

Sweet. ;) Is that the coldest report of the season so far?

Great ride today! Dodged most of the traffic lights and no car doors to speak of. Roll off temp was about 22°F and because most of the lights went my way, I was able to ride faster without overheating. One glance at my covered riding shoes sparked the "It's really cold outside" comment from one women to another on the elevator. I was completely unzipped, trying to cool down :rolleyes:.

Low 20's and a colorful sunrise greeted me on my ride in today. Little wind. Not a sole out on the bikepath. Serene and inspiring come to mind. I love it when my lungs get a good workout in the cold. Feels great most of the day.

Had a nice, cold ride in this morning (low 20's). I think this might have been the coldest morning of the month so far. It has been unseasonably warm here, something like 7-8 degrees above normal for the month so far. Yesterday I had to drive in since I was going to a job offsite. The UPS guy came in to deliver a package and asked where my bike was. He thought I might have not ridden because of the cold. Told him I had to drive for work and he told me he biked to work for 11 years around here before getting married and having kids. He said he doesn't ride too much due to his wife and children anymore though, but said he really enjoyed it when he could :)

Normal ride in (39°F) except for the guy in the Lexus who first honked at me to move over, then racing his engine, passed me on the right and then immediately had to stop because of the red light. He rolls his window down and yells "you're not a car!". :rolleyes:

I told "you're right, I'm on a bike, but I have to legally act like a vehicle. Have a nice day, be good, we all love you, bah bah bah.."

I am working on not losing it when some joker can't drive their car intelligently. :p

Welcome to the HHCMF club. Now that you are 10x sexier and more intelligent than the average cager, please remember to treat them with kindness when they become your underlings.

I'm jealous!!! I was running late this morning so took the car :rolleyes:
I'll make it worth it and take a trip to the grocery en route home for heavy things and not touch the car all weekend.

I chuckled when I got my auto registration in the mail yesterday...

Ya'll have a great w/e! TGIF!!! :D

Almost rear ended a cab today that was right hooking some other cars, then paused midway through his right hook right in front of me. I had to bunny hop a pot hole, then hit the brakes hard to stop and my rear wheel came up just a little bit. Other than that, no other drama on the way in although I did notice some of the traffic lights were flaking out which'll cause traffic tie ups later.

Thanks! Yesterday was very doable - no commute today, as I'm working from home this morning and off this afternoon. Will be back in the saddle Monday... Will probably do the 1/2 trip thing one more day, and if I feel good, I'll pull the drive back a bit and do 10 mi. or so each day...

Thanks for the welcome! I will absolutely treat those folks with kindness. It's taken me 10 years to become "enlightened." Would be a bit hypocritical of me to be down on the others, methinks...

I was really cold today at 18F/-9C but feel like a wuss after reading this. I don't know what the NWS has a reading for Baltimore but my house therm was reading a damn chilly 18. Wore the winter sporthill pants today for the first time since mid Dec. Even threw on an extra pair of gloves under the Amfibs and 2 jerseys under the jacket.
I was pretty toasty once the body kicked into overdrive. Should be in the 50'sF tomorrow. Screwing weather.

I'm going to sound like a broken record, but kick-ass sunrise again today. It's going to suck when daylight savings time kicks in around March.

I had caught up to a high school kid riding a cruiser with his helmet hanging from the handlebars. So I engaged him in a little Socratic dialogue:

Me: 'Scuse me. Do you mind if I ask you a question? What's with the helmet on the handlebars?

Teen: I dunno.

Me: Well, you made the decision to put it on your handlebars rather than your head, right?

Teen: I guess.

Me: You know that it's to protect your head, right? Are you more worried about protecting your handlebars than your head?

Teen: I dunno.

Me: Let me ask you, are you planning on going to college?

Teen: Umm, I guess. Probably.

Me: Don't you think you'll need your head for college?

Teen: I guess.

(The light changes.) Me: Just some things to think about. Have a good morning and be safe!

Now, in the kid's defense, he was riding VC and--I cannot stress this enough--he had gorgeous hair, thick and perfectly cut and gelled.

I see that alot. Mommy makes him wear his helmet, and when he's around the block, off it comes!

I see a market for inflatable and/or foldable compact helmets. ;)

Al

I had a nice shot of adrenaline riding home for lunch. I pass by a house with two fenced-in dogs often on my commute, and today they had gotten loose and were going through some trashcans down the block. I love dogs, and I didn't want to see them run over, or chase down any kids or other cyclists, so I hopped off my bike and got their attention.

The dogs (Shar-pei and a Boxer) went crazy when I entered their yard, and came after me full-speed: barking, snarling, drooling, etc. The boxer kept trying to sneak behind me and bite my ass, but I kept my bike between us the whole time I tried to corrall them back in the fence.

Anyway, long story, I got them back in after some struggle, and as I prepared to pedal on home - a neighbor across the street came out and said those dogs had escaped and threatened him before. He had called animal control in the past and had taken some photos of me 'fighting' with the dogs. He was also a cyclist (actually had tights and cleats on) and said he would email the photos to me later. Cool. I can't wait, I hope I look studly.

You WILL post them here, right?

kind of chilly this morning... and it seemed like I was slightly slower coming in than usual

it was much warmer on the way back... hit a small pothole about a minute into the ride back and wobbled a little bit but was able to regain stability and avoid wiping out

about halfway through the ride home I took a quick detour up and down the Paint Branch trail as a breather before heading home... the path isn't heavily used this time of year so it was a fun detour

Oh man, it's like I died and went to heaven, it's in the mid 40's (F). It's a tropical heat wave for this part of the country. I had a great ride in this morning, I took the long way. I went out at lunch for a ride and it was tough to come back. I'm taking the long way home. This is great!

Good ride in this morning. I probably set a winter-time personal record. And tonight is Critical Mass, so a good chance to catch up with some friends.

But even better was my mini-commute during lunch time. I got a craving for a peanut-butter-bananna-bacon sandwich, so I jumped on the bike and took off for T.W. Collin's Grocery. Unfortunately they were closed and I had to settle for pizza, but it was worth it to get an extra 3.5 miles in during the day.