operator

Logically true

To celebrate this i'm going to bike to school

jet sanchEz

Yes! It is great out right now and I rode without gloves for the first time in ages. I can see a lot better too as I am not wrapped in 5 layers of scarves, hats and mufflers, goggles and ear-flaps. Love it.

jeremywhitehorn

to celebrate i'm putting away the hard-core winter clothes (balaclava, tights, booties, etc).

2wheelsgood

that was not meant to be a tirade. i was using a common literary device known as sarcasm because i was indeed referring to the race. i'm sorry that there are now known emoticons to indicate such a device.

if i felt like going on a greenpeace related tirade i would have mentioned something about the "environmentally friendly car" (oxymoron) tax break that the federal gov't just introduced yesterday. what an effing joke! if they really cared i'd be able to write my bike off as my main source of transportation.

/tirade

Offhoff

Fair enough

_K.

Be sure to prod Minister Flaherty with this whenever you get the chance. First the tax credit for the metropass, now the tax break on hybrid cars. Although he means well, he's got a bad case of tunnel vision on this concept. He's just not thinking outside the cage.

Offhoff

RANT POWER ON!

Conservatives are, right now, engineering this government to fall. Probably over a clean air bill that the NDP, Liberals and Bloc are going to attach Kyoto amendments too.

The budget is simply there election document and it shows a real change in strategy. Instead of attempting to become a viable party in the urban centers they are going to try and win in the suburban ridings and ignore the true urban ridings. This is the same strategy that worked so well for Mike Harris and so badly for Ontario when the PC's came into power. Suburban voters are more likely to appreciate a child tax credit and a clean air car credit as opposed to allowing a larger tax break for those who don't drive (and therefore should owe less due to them not contributing as much to road destruction).

Until the Canadian system has some form of representation by population this strategy will be the most efficient for the conservatives. For instance PEI has 135,851 residents, and 4 seats in the house of commons. My riding has, with a conservative estimate, 150,000 residents and 1 seat in the house of commons. Until cities get the representation in parliament that their populations deserve we'll never see truly innovate urban tax breaks, planning or anything else that will really change a city.

So basically Flaherty could care less about people who ride to work on their bikes. They live downtown, are probably socialists anyways and are largely not worth the time of the "new" government of Canada.

This election is going to be real tipping point for Canadians, the Green party will be included in the televised debate for the first time. The Bloc will have serious problems creating their usually amazing machine because much of their resources are already being used to support the PQ in the provincial race and the NDP is fighting for its survival.

Should be good fun.

END RANT MODE

Oh yeah I can't wait to lose horrible tonight at the race!

jet sanchEz

Hrm, interesting Offhoff, I don't really follow Canadian politics so much of that was new to me. I know all the details of the mess going on in the US right now though, I guess I just find Canadian politics to be less "jazzy", y'know?

Offhoff

I enjoy American politics more but my knowledge of Canadian politics brings home the bread. The US system is much more interesting because of the greater effects of truly local issues on nationally important races. That and the party can't kick you out for not voting in line.

Shiznaz

Canada still has a government that reflects a primarily rural population and agricultual economy. This is not the canada we have today, where the majority of the population is concentrated in 5 main cities. Immigration is really only occuring in 3 major cities, so the urban:rural ratio is still going up. The feds and provinces have been downloading responsiblities to the municipalities to a ridiculous extent. The only services we really receive that aren't paid for by the municipality are schooling and healthcare, and we know how poorly run those are. Cities always get the short end of the stick, and much of the taxes we pay are subsidizing areas that really don't need it, even though WE need it.

Nobody has the balls, 4 years isn't enough time to make serious changes and suburbanites vote with their ass and their wallet. Its a bad situation.

cavernmech

I am thinkin of coming out of alleycat retirement for this. If so I hereby challenge you for the DFL. Altho I will be riding in the track category if I race.

Offhoff

I'm pondering ditching my lever so I can race against on a level fixed-gear playing field. But the fact I want to tape it and that requires having a camera in my bag makes me want to rethink that.

somnambulant

blue cheese brie. great with some spicy salami. not so great an hour later when you keep burping up air that smells like feet.

2wheelsgood

you can't lose if i lose first!

try sliced brie/roma tomatoe/avocado/fresh basil/drizzle of olive oil/kosher salt/freshly cracked black pepper on baguette. that is the goodness. and you don't smell like an italian breathmint after. pre-ground pepper is for suckas! oh ****, i'm going to the grocery store.

somnambulant

You can pry my peugeot pepper mill from my cold dead hands.

zippered

i never ride without gloves, just different amounts of insulation. had my spring/fall/rain skiing gloves on today. still needed a hat and fleece kerchief, but i hear you on loving the non-bundledness.


oh yesss. pleeeassse do. my turn to do some objectifying around here!

and i don't feel like such a wuss now that some of you boys are worrying about racing. i'd like to think that i ride fairly fast/well, but i'm pretty sure y'all could kick my ass no problem. stupid biological determinism.

somnambulant

/me wiggles it (just a little bit).

Offhoff

Lets here it for male objectification!

For the biological determinism, maybe at pro/world/olympic level. But I'm pretty sure you'd show up more then a few of the guys if you race.

Shiznaz

I always always get beaten by girls at tennis. even if I try real hard. its sad. Either they can't play at all or they just serve me my own ass.

Rob and I got dropped by this female person on the donut ride once. There was a brutal brutal headwind and we were going up hill and it was all that I could do to just hold onto her wheel. There was no chance I could have taken the lead without forcing her to slow down. Eventually we couldn't keep up at all and she just kept spinning into the distance. I needed to stop and eat a few granola bars after that. We decided to cut our losses and just turn around at that point. But damn, full respect to whomever we were wheelsucking.

edit: oh yeah, alleycats would level the playing field a bit due to all the possible variables. Women can use their inuition that I keep hearing about to predict if there will be cross traffic at red lights so they can bomb them at a speed 'strong enough for a woman' (strong!)

somnambulant

It's like I can actually feel gender equality slipping away..

32flavours

Yes, if by "look like an evil clown" you mean, "look like your old avatar where you had less makeup but still maintained some level of Krustyesqueness".

I have no idea how he knows you. But he says he's been mistaken for a guy who rides a Langster with red bar tape named Craig before. Does the evil clown go by Craig?

Shiznaz

https://toronto.craigslist.org/bik/297840761.html

This would make a really nice project! a bit steep though...

zippered

haha, gee thanks... but you were saying that you were going to lose; so between you and me, i honestly doubt i'd win.

well, the gender revolutionary in me thinks one thing, but the 5.5-120-pound-with-limited-muscle-mass part makes me feel differently.

and shinaz. female "person"? "woman's" intuition?

jit5

Dropped on the Donut.

'Nuff said.

2wheelsgood

weird