Beat the rain this morning but I bet I'll be wet going home. I can't ever remember an April this wet. It must the the work of El Nino.

Good signs that I'm seeing more folks on bikes seemingly heading to work.

Raining fairly heavily when I went to bed last night so it was a nice surprise to wake up to mainly blue sky Rode my full suspension MTB again, good fun apart from the occassional spray of muddy water to the face This weekend I'll be working to get my normal commuter back into service.

In contrast to previous weeks I saw 7 other cyclists out this morning so a big hello to anyone else commuting in the Kirkland/Bellevue area

If the conditions are right
However right now I doubt you could hear it over my front fender...got to find out what's gotten loose.

I commute every day, not matter what the weather. I refuse to give any more money than absolutely necessary to Bush and his oil buddies. Anyhow I hit the road at 0530, ride a mile or so on empty streets then hit the Rails To Trails path. It takes me right to the door of my work. On nice days I will ride 10 miles before work, on days with heavy rain it is only 2 miles. Comming home is even better. Rails To Trails then all right turns at the lights. Very nice.

Today, I had that rarity of rarities, a bi-directional TAILwind!

Beautiful and sunny, and getting greener. It was a bit chilly on the way in. There was a lot of grass-fire smell in the air the entire way, an embarassing reminder of my own little fire fiasco yesterday, when my burning papers blew away and set fire to the dead grass and the neighbor's woodpile. I recently got a Giro E2 off Ebay at a quarter of the original price, and wore it today. The improved airflow was so good my hair was dry when I got to work (less sweat) and I had to soak my head at the sink to avoid helmet hair.

Still, wonderful ride, and the headwind I expected on the way home had reversed direction, giving me an extra boost. I went by a longer route today. Beautiful day, perfect weather! I met some new dogs, and got my first whiff of liquid manure for the year, and hauled a fresh, dead woodchuck off the middle of the road in the last mile.

A lot of the above may sound negative, but it was a great ride, both ways.

Hi folks,

It was threatening to pour with rain this morning, but I escaped a soaking. If this holds of untill tonight I'll be lucky... The headwind that awaits the homeward journey does not look too inviting.
Still, I'll be taking it easy - yesterday I was not going to ride, because it was too windy, but I ended setting out for a short spin... which turned into 52 miles, finishing off into some evil headwinds. Tiring, but great.

Cheers,

Ed

For once, the window of blue sky opened this morning during commute time. It poured all night and it's pouring now but the ride in was bone dry. A good sign for the rest of the week.

This morning is just gorgeous, best of the year so far in the Seattle area I'd say Unfortunately I've got some irritating cough that kept me up until 4am, I decided I needed to get the extra hour of sleep that taking the car to work gets me . Just hoping we get more days like this soon...

On the upside taking the car will let me go and check out my new commuter bike after work... Looking at Marin Mill Valley, '02 Specialized Sirrus Elite or a Cannondale Badboy, all worlds apart from my current ride

ok commute today - asthma kicked in aftre a while and rather than stop and take my inhaler i just slowed my overall pace a little and tried to control my breathing - temps supposed to hit 80 this afternoon

because I commute so often and metro on days I don't commute I rarely drive these days so it was a considerable shock to the system to drive to NYC and back this weekend - absolutely horrendous - it had been a few years since we did it and I-95 seems to have turned into a vast parking lot - 8 hours for a 4 hour journey - I think I experienced all emotions, rage, frustration, resignation....unbelievable

Back on the bike after a two week hiatus. If I was not already addicted to riding and commuting, this would have been my last ride. It was a horrible ride.

It started off with me preparing for the ride in the rain. I was loading up the bike and noticed there was some rust on the outside of my chain. How can this happen?! Its my new bike, and I have been religious about cleaning and lubing the chain. At any rate, I added some more lube and off I went.

The ride started out fine. Light drizzle. I was running a bit late so I was trying to hustle. When I was about three miles from the end of my ride, I got a flat. I pulled over to fix it, and then it started pouring rain. As it was raining, I replaced my tube, and couldn't re-seat the tire back on the rim. I was trying everything. It just wouldn't go on. After about 20 minutes of trying, it FINALLY got seated. Hooked things up and got back on the bike.

Wouldn't you know it, the sun came out once I got on the bike. I finished my ride, dirty and wet. The warm shower at worked eased my frustrations. (Thank god they finally got the hot water working properly).

Hopefully the ride home will be better. I need to make sure I remember to fix my tube before I head home. I don't want to be working with a patch kit in the rain.

To top things off, my NiteRider Battery is dead. I guess two weeks time idle is bad. They did give me an RMA, so I will get a new one.. but frustration city here!

I "went for it" last week: committed (to myself) to commute the whole week regardless of weather, etc. I guess I was inspired by an Earth Day celebration the preceeding weekend. In addition to being proud of my success, I may have become addicted to experiencing the feeling of well-being that comes from mroning exercise before work.

I've commuted by bike a few times in the past, both in Texas and here in the SF Bay Area, but only out of curiosity, as in "I wonder if I could..."

Well, I can. The physical part was never in doubt. I am a weekend warrior sort of XC racer and ride as often and as long as my family and work obligations allow. Working out the details of what to carry vs. keep at the locker in the gym wasn't the hard part, either. I have never been a morning person, so the combination of getting up a little bit earlier and facing rain were the challenge. It rained on me on four of 10 one-ways, luckily the first wet trip was followed by a beautifully clean ride home.

I'm starting to believe that "there's no such thing as bad weather, only poor clothing" as the supposed hard core cyclist saying goes. That kind of means that I get to spend more money at the bike shop...



Cheers,
Ben
6 days and counting!

I just started commuting "one-way". On M and W, I drive to work with my bike and ride home. On T and Th, I ride to work and drive home. My commute is 18 miles one-way. This is an experiment to see if I want to spend the money on a touring bike and gear (rack, panniers, etc.) for the commute. Right now I'm using my mountain bike (stumpjumper) and a backpack.

Anyhow, on to the commute. This mornings ride was about 60 F and sunny (really nice ride). My commute is rolling; however, it is definately downhill from home to work. Luckily, the entire distance is in a bike lane on roads that are in very good shape for the most part. There is a short stretch of bike path by the "river". It's a good mix of 2-land and 4-lane roads with a bit of 6-lane thrown in for good measure.

I really enjoy the ride into work...it's the ride home that I don't like as much. I average about 18-19 mph on the way in and about 14-15 on the way home. Yesterday was about 88 F on the way home and I'm dreading when it starts to creep up over 100 F.

Thanks for all the help on the forums...this is a GREAT site. I'll probably be asking for help in making a commuting bike decision in the next month or so.

Didn't today, because of high winds forecast but also primarily because I've got a meeting after work and needed to wear a neat suit.

yesterday got caught in the rain both ways. On way in no wind so OK, on way back freezing wind and rain while crossing the bridge. NOT pleasant. And my Flying Scot was soaked. Still, other bike on the road soon, leaving the Scot for dry days only.

Still cool (49F) and breezy this morning but no rain. Big fluffy clouds as this system breaks up over the Pacific. (I've noticed that as I become more committed to riding my bike everyday, I become more and more in tune with the weather. Another benefit to cycling!) Might be some sprinkles later this morning, but nothing but dry pavement on the way in. Another great day to ride.

Temp was 11C and a strong following wind. No clouds. I have only ridden to work 4 times this month. First time 1 hr 40min, then 1hr 25 min, 1hr 20 min and today 1hr 10min. I might be getting fitter, but I think most of the improvement was due to the wind and due to the fact that I could ride without overpants.

I'm back from my vacation in South Carolina, I logged 534 miles while i was there. The ride in this morning was just about perfect, 50 degrees, no wind and smooth rolling conti top touring 2000 tires. My 18.5 miles took me 58 minutes, what a difference from pushing the winter studs.

Windy this morning, really windy. Otherwise this week has been warm, which is new for the year. Yesterday morning was probably the best day so far in Aught 3 - mostly sunny and warm with cheerful big clouds blowing about. But almost no wind at ground level. Stunning day, took the slightly longer rider in. Of course I paid for it that night with very strong headwind.

I have been on vacation for the past ten days, so today was my first bike ride since the 17th. All my travel had been by car and airplane during that time, and it was a delight to feel the breeze in my hair again.

When I was in San Francisco, I was really amazed at all the cyclists. The DC area has a lot, but nothing like that. They are also a politically significant constituancy.

It is amazing how green things have become here after a weeks and a half. It seems like early summer already.

Paul

Back after about a week traveling on business. It's been rainy and blah for a while now, and a bit chilly still for these parts. I narrowly missed a rain cell but the roads were soaked so there wasn't much difference. Felt good to do the 20 miles home.

Didn't have my blinking lights today (I had my bike serviced and lights were home). I felt a little unsafe as a result. I went a little slower and was more cautious than normal.

Nice day, 38 degrees F, no wind, light traffic. I took the scenic route down by the river and saw no wildlife. I guess I got up before them.

It was warm enough for shorts yesterday. I pedalled into a moderate headwind under overcast skies. The wind didn't die or change, for once, so I had a nice push home. An unkown dog charged me (in the spirit of "What the heck is THAT THING?!") but a few stern words stopped him at a respectful distance.

There was an unusual amount of traffic. Most annoyingly, they seemed to congregate at the intersections just as I arrived. At one stop sign, a car and I arrived at the same time. I kept braking slower and slower, waiting for the car to GO, dammit. They seemed to be waiting to see what I'd do. Not being much of a trackstander, I felt the bike tipping over to the left. Now, I'm right-footed, contrary to the claims of those who may have accused me of having two lefties. Trying to get a foot--ANY foot--out of the clips, I sorta jumped straight up in the air (taking the bike with me, I think!) and managed to get the right foot out, and managed to pull the bike to that side, avoiding an embarrassing fallover.

"I kept braking slower and slower, waiting for the car to GO, dammit."

Inkwolf
You wave to the car to GO. Their response is usually to wave you through, which you then do without stopping - smiling and saying "Thanks".

It was a 4-way stop, though, and they had the right of way. (Besides, I didn't think of waving. If they could have seen it in the dark....)

Anyway, didn't want to do my usual rolling stop right in front of a witness.

Nice weather this a.m. No rain for once. Went from daughter's high school to work for 13 miles. I also ran early this a.m., partly for my poor dog who has been couped up in our house while I've been gone. I haven't mixed a run and a ride in a single day in a very long time. We'll see how I hold up today !!