Great ride in this morning. Fine weather, slight tailwind which appears to have turned round so could be a tailwind home.

I also brought my camera with me so i could record my commute and I'll post the shots when I get the film developed.

Chilly this a.m. again, dang it. Had to don the full winter garb. Still, while the roads were wet, it was clear as a bell and I witnessed a gorgeous sunrise. I went a slightly different way today and earlier than usual. Got some hills in early to warm up and the path I took, which last summer looked like a Republic Guard holdout due to construction work, was smooth as silk today. I think I'll shift to this path from here on out when I go the 20 miles straight from home.

I'm sorry for my earlier post on my commute about the f_ _ t . I didn't intend to hex some others' commutes.

I haven't cycled to work the last couple of days. But I did cycle to the Citizens' Cycling Committee meeting last night. Really nice ride home in the dark (I had my light on) after a heavy rain that happened during the meeting and had a cycling partner.

Now I'm officially hardcore! I started out in the rain this morning, and suddenly encountered snow. That's right, snow, in April, in the Northwest. That doesn't happen very often. Did you Midwest/New England folks send it here? Anyway, it didn't really factor at all because of the relative warmth (it just melted at impact), but I can technically and truthfully say I've ridden in the snow. That should impress acquaintances and friends alike, eh?

you do realize that "eh" is pattented by Canadians right? Good, send your royalties to me CO: PO Box 1234, Regina SK, S.....

Wow, had a cool commute. First I got in behind another bikecommuter (haven't seen one of those in some time!)! But to add to the wierdness I see a person riding a bike the other way with a full touring package on their bike. I haven't seen anyone with full touring Panniers since the early 80's when I was a kid in Flagstaff (near Grand Canyon = Lots of tourists including bicyclists). Thought that was cool, then I saw another one a few miles farther on! They must have been riding together or in a group or something. Anyway, it was really cool. I have often thought about getting some big rear panniers and putting my little ones on the front of my Mtn. Bike (with slicks of course!) and just going somewhere. Anyway,. I had nice thoughts and daydreams the rest of the commute.

Hello Commuters!

Thought I'd introduce myself to this thread. I'm a noob to this forum. I registered a couple of days ago as 'foo', but I like this handle better.

I live in San Bruno, CA and commute 6 miles each way. Had a nice one this morning. The forecast always threatens rain but it never actually does. Not that it would stop me anyways, I've become rather fond of riding in the rain.

Lookin' forward to some ol' bike chat. I'm glad to have found this board, seems friendly.

I've gathered all of my near useless Canadian coins and will promptly send them to the above address

Yesterday I drove in so I could pick up my bike from the repair shop. THere I sat, stuck in traffic, while cyclists whizzed past. Once I got to the shop, I found that the bike was not ready, because my size tires were not in stock.

So, today, I enjoyed beautiful spring weather on my backup bike. The cherry blossoms are near their peak at the Tidal Basin.

Paul

Welcome, Cranky. Great site, and this is one of the best threads. Although sometimes I feel like a wimp reading about our brethren commuting in all sorts of harsh weather.

Clear and cool (49F) in between weather systems this morning. Mighty fine....

This morning was the first grey morning all week, but I heard the first Killdeer of the season. My legs are coming back after slow spinning all winter. Sleet scheduled for tomorrow, oh well.

By a curious coincidence, that is actually the coldest temperature ever recorded on the Gold Coast, in July '98 I believe. Although I've ridden in temps slightly cooler than that away from the coast in the past.

Chilly ride home in San Jose. 20 miles plus the hilly route. Bonked midway and stopped to buy a PowerBar. I've got to eat more at lunch on ride days.

Bunch of people were pulling into the bike lane to pass on the right on my way home. Feh. I hate that and thought I'd chase them down to inform them how stupid, illegal, and dangerous that maneuver is.

But I'd hammered on the way into work this morning and had nothing in the tank. So I thought bad thoughts at them.

Hi folks,

How about this.....

Set off in good spirits this morning when, about two miles into the journey PSSSSSHHHT!. I wrestled the bike to a stop and inspected the rear tyre to find a 3/4" cut in the sidewall.

I retraced my last few yards to find the cause (and save other cyclists the hassle) to find the culprit glinting in the sunlight. Yes folks, a fresh clean single sided RAZOR BLADE Don't know if it got there by accident or was left on purpose but that is a scary thing to find lying around. Taking care, I removed it, blunted the edge and dropped it into the nearest drain out of harm's way.

Then I was faced with the walk home again (via the bike shop for tyre and tube) and set out on the other bike. 1 1/2 hours to get to work today :irritated:

Have a good weekend,

Ed

It was simply the most perfect day for riding today. It took great self-control to actually go to work when I could have ridden forever. A headwind tried to mess with me on the way home. I hope it enjoys the acids of my stomach after I ate it up completely.

It was simply the worst day for commuting today. 30+ cm on snow in the past 24 hours.

How would you guys take this: I was riding on a very icy street and my very well worn studs just couldn't grip enough and I went down. I got up quickly (no point bruising the ego more!) and was just about back in the saddle when I hear honking. I see that it's coming from a new full size Chevy SUV, the driver gives me the "hang loose" hand gesture. Do you think he was being an ass, or was giving props for biking on a day like today?

Kris, he was probably just showing his appreciation for your speedy spill recovery techniques!

You deserve a medal for venturing out on the bike in that crappy weather!! Speaking of crappy weather, we're getting more than our share of it in Southern Ontario. The last 24 hours have been sleet and freezing rain driven by 30 mph east winds. Took me an hour to drive 10 miles last night from work to where I usually start my bike ride from. I left the bike at work yesterday, but even with the slicks on, it would have been faster than driving!
This morning's driving was so bad, the bus didn't even show up! I waited 45 minutes, (supposed to be every 25 minutes),no sign of the bus, ended up driving. I did see a couple of bike commuters (looked like the desparation type) struggling through the 6" of sleety granular snow that has the consistency of sugar. They didn't look like they were having fun.

I saw some snow (very unusual for Portland, OR - especially in April) yesterday morning, then dealt with a strong headwind and hail on the way home. Plus, I flatted! Then, just a mild morning with some light rain made for a pleasant ride. . . until I flatted again! Ugggh! And I just put new Mr. Tuffy liners in last night. The gods are testing my resolve - but I will continue riding darn it!

Man been working way too much to even read the Forums, much less post. But managed to ride in most days this week. Tuesday was miserably cold and by the time I was able to leave work, I really froze on the way home. Actually saw another commuter on the trail though-- which has been rare after dark.

Today though was possibly the best day so far of the season. Partially cloudy and pretty chilly, but for the 1st time no headwind! So nice, I just hauled ass in for the shear joy of it. This week has been about 5 degrees colder on average the last two, so I think I'm going to get some leg warmers or something this weekend.

I have to say I'm ready for daylight savings time to kick in, so that I can do some extra miles on the ride home. I'm always running late in the mornings, and so far riding in the dark hasn't inspired too many side trips. Bring on the Sun!

Well, I had to take the ol' winter bike off the hook this morning (I thought I might be done with it for the season... HA). Not allot of snow but there was ice and it looks like the high today is going to be 28F (-2C). Still, I had a nice commute in this morning and should be pretty decent on the way home tonight. The wind is a little testy but nothing I can't handle. Think spring, or for you folks in warmer Clim's send it our way.

OK, this is it, I declare this winter over. I'm done with snow, sleet, ice, dark, cold, icy eyelashes, frozen zippers, cold hands. After all, it is April! It's not fair, the poor salamanders are just trying to get across the road to do a little spooning, instead they are freezing their little tootsies. In case you can't tell from the preceding, sleet both going and coming. No real problems, just miserable. Daylight Savings Time can't get here soon enough for me.

Winter was over 2 weeks ago, Jean, but the weather hasn't changed! I rode home this afternoon during a lull in the freezing rain and sleet, conditions were less than ideal, but overall it was a good ride. Auspicious beginings, with Burlington streets poorly salted, had a few "stability issues" when gusty (35 mph) cross wind coincided with icey patches of road. Had a few stretches of coasting with left leg extended, ready to bail out if required, but no capsizes or collisions. I walked the bike across the lift bridge (first time I didn't ride over) on an icey unplowed sidewalk - walking seemed more dangerous than riding. It was a wet, salty, slushy ride, but I felt much better for attempting it. I'll make sure I have a winter bike ready for next year with studded tires for days like this!

Hi Folks
We are still getting the odd throwback to winter. It was frosty here this morning, but cold sunshine beats rain any day of the week!

Cheers,

Ed

I "commuted" yesterday to my daughter's b-ball game. Took the roadie rocketship, took a hilly route, and battled a very stiff headwind. Since I'm the designated scoresheet keeper, I had to be there a little early, but the winds were killing my times. Made for a tiring 25 mile ride. I was in the drops for most of the way.