How Was Your Commute Today?

[azfiddle]

Got in my once a week commute a day early- maybe I'll get two this week. A bit humid for Tucson but relatively cool (high 70's) on the way in. The way back I was trying to beat the rain clouds (really, I was more worried about the potential for outflow winds) and didn't bring my work laptop with me. Great tailwinds for a change, and the last 5 miles I probably averaged 21 mph!! Big raindrops but not too many for the last mile, so it was just pleasantly cool for a desert summer afternoon.

[WindingRoad]

Wow today's commute was absolutely horrifying. As I was coming home this evening I had a whole line of cars buzzing me. One got so close it actually grazed my hand on my handlebar. The light in front of me changed and I caught up to one of the cars that buzzed me way too close. I knocked on their window and I asked the guy driving: "Sir, would please give me a little more room the next time you pass me?" He pops off "would I get on the trail". I say back "where". Because there is no access to it from that road! He is about to get all defensive so I just look at him and say "Please sir, all I'm trying to do is get to work." Looks like his wife and kids were in the car, so I didn't fly off like I really wanted to. I'm glad I didn't lose my cool but dang!

After that guy and the one who grazed my hand went around me so close and fast I jumped out smack in the middle of the lane. I NEVER do that but honestly I felt safer pissing off all the cars behind me and dealing with them that way. When I was off on the edge they were trying to squeeze by me doing 45-50 MPH which was WAY over the speed limit there. I don't know what got in to drivers today but I feel lucky to be alive after today. :mad:

The crappiest part is that there is NO way to avoid this road. I am only on it for at most a quarter of a mile, you'd think I was on there for 10 miles holding up traffic with the way these jerks were acting! :mad::mad::mad:

When I got home I felt like curling up in the fetal position. It didn't help I had another flat today. :(

[redrhodie]

Take the lane. It's safer. What's more important, a few seconds of their time, or your life? And if they honk, then at least you know they see you.

[Melalvai]

Yes, take the lane. That's been my experience any time I try to "hide out" on the edge because I'm scared of the road. The road suddenly feels much safer when I take the lane. It is hard to do, it is so counter-intuitive. But once you do, it makes so much difference.

I don't really feel like a lot of people get mad at me either. Oh, maybe someone will honk or yell, but they do that no matter what you do.

I rode in the rain this morning, in all my rain gear. I love riding in the rain--when it's not too hot for the rain gear, but not too cold either!

[redrhodie]

I was ready for rain today, but it never came. I wore a cycling cap under my helmet, just in case, and I rode my Soma DC. It was pretty cool out, in the 60s when I started this morning. It felt good. Still not cool enough for the arm warmers I brought, but their time will come soon enough. I love this time of year.

[AnnB]

I've been trying to own the road on my commute as well. I do feel lots safer, although drivers really are cranky when they have to follow a bike. Especially if it's after work

[gbunker]

My whole family commuted by bike together for the first time today! We dropped our older son (age 7) off at camp first, and he rode his own bike and parked it at the rack. He was really proud of himself. I towed son #2 (age 2) in the Burley, and my partner and I dropped him off at daycare next. We both rode off to work from there.

The whole process took about a half hour longer than it usually takes me to get to work, but I think we'll get the process streamlined and it will go faster next time.

I have been commuting by bike 2-3 days per week since May, and this was my partner's very first day bike commuting. I think we all did pretty well! :)
Gillian

[librarygirlMSP]

lurking a while but I had to register just to vent about this: running late for work, big stupid detour around a park I usually ride through on the edge of downtown. The detour finally gets you back on the trail for about 100yards and then off to the street again. There is a stop sign. 3-way stop. I slow down and look for any traffic, see none and yes, run the stop sign.
What did I get in return? a $100 ticket and a lecture about how "most car/bicycle accidents are the cyclists fault" and "sometimes all that's left of the cyclist is a splat on the road" etc, etc.:(
Could they at least save this for when they see someone doing something actually dangerous!?
ps. I got to watch about a half dozen other cyclists do exactly the same thing while I stood there waiting for the ticket. No cars passed. and I was the only one pulled over. what a morning!

[Sky King]

ouch, In Idaho we are fortunate to have the "idaho stop" on a bike we are allowed to do exactly that, slow down, make sure the path is clear and proceed. This becomes a challenge when we are touring in other states as we don't know the rules of the road so when not in Idaho we come to a complete stop. That policeman must have been in a good hiding spot. So sorry for the fine!

[librarygirlMSP]

Yeah, he was actually parked on the grass in the park behind some trees! He didn't pull out, just hit the lights and siren. I have a feeling he plans to sit there all day, hmm, maybe a different route home is in order. :mad: grr.

[rubysoho]

I finally rode my commute yesterday, but it was the afternoon and the intent was just to familiarize myself with my route. It wasn't too bad. Rather bumpy for my road bike, or maybe I am too cautious with it? I did fall for the first time, it was hilarious. Just one of those instances where you don't clip out fast enough. Lightly scraped my elbow and the left end of my handlebar. But I was laughing too hard to really notice. I almost did it again when I got home because I clipped out with my right leg instead of the left like usual. Oh well. I am excited to have completed the 24 mile route and even more excited that it is totally doable even with some good hills. Now if my work schedule would only stay consistent I could plan my cycling commute days!

[malkin]

Wow, library, that bites!
Where were you? The cop will probably move too, so don't count on a different route keeping you ticketless.

I FINALLY rode my new commute this week. I haven't quite got the bugs worked out yet. It's twice as long now, and that combined with not riding for a couple months has rendered me tired. It will be a good sleep tonight.

[azfiddle]

Today's commute was "sub-optimal". This morning I left the house 5 minutes earlier than usual to get to work in time for a meeting, but the head wind was enough to erase my head start and I ended up 2 minutes late anyway.

Temps in the afternoon were higher than I expected. We've had record-breaking heat all week in Arizona, but I thought it was going to be a little cooler today. The high was 107, so I stayed late grading papers. It was still over 100 when I headed home- right into another head wind! It's downhill on the way home, but it didn't seem like it for most of the way.

[MojoGrrl]

My first commute (on the tandem, with my boyfriend who is also my coworker) was last Friday. We did it again this Weds and then today. We ride to the train, then take the train to another city and then ride from that city over a mountain (seriously, 1700 feet) to work...30 miles each way. Today we actually rode the WHOLE way home (about 54 miles, 3600 feet of climbing) and I am exhausted. All the riding, though it's hard, isn't that bad. It's the as*hole drivers who make me want to start carrying a pistol in my jersey pocket.

Seriously, what the F is wrong with people? All of the stories I read on here, and now experiencing it myself - why do people feel the need to go out of the way to harass cyclists? I've never encountered so many rude drivers in the last 6 months of cycling as I have on my six commute rides. My boyfriend suggested we get a "huge rubber **** and put it on a stick and hold it out" to keep people from driving too close. I don't think it will help with the drivers who make a point to flip us off, or drive up next to us and roll down the window to scream at us for making them need to pay attention and not drive 70 mph on country roads with a posted 45 mph speed limit. Mind you, we are not doing anything rude or unsafe ourselves, and are trying to keep as far to the right as we can on the narrow and shoulderless roads. I've also noticed that the entitled as*hole drivers who seem to feel the most inconvenienced by having to slow down for a minute and then pass us are driving either a) Mercedes Benz, b) SUV, or c) some monstrous, gas-guzzling American made truck. Seriously, the encounters I've had commuting just the past week have made me hate people. :mad:

[7rider]

Not completely related to my commute, but a rant.
So yesterday, I did my shopping at lunch. Picked up a box of Gas-X (DH and I go thru a lot of that :rolleyes:). $5 for a box of 18. Ouch. So I ride home - all my groceries tucked in my panniers (there's the link...see?), and I unload said groceries in my kitchen. Pick up the box of Gas-X. Flap is open. 18, huh? $5? Ouch.
Wait just a cotton-pickin' minute. :eek:
Instead of TWO sleeves of 9-pills each, there is only ONE sleeve.
Someone opened the box in the grocery store and helped him/herself to one of the sleeves and left the half-empty box on the shelf!!
Dirty no-good thief!
So I paid $5 for 9 stupid pills :eek::mad::mad::mad::mad:
Never occurred to me to check the box. Boy, will I next time.

[Sky King]

Yesterday's air quality was "yellow" which means no outside burning and that you should avoid strenuous exercise. They also suggest to limit your driving. Boise is not known for it's public transportation and I had an appointment about 8 miles away, so of course, I rode my bike. I did ride slower than normal so I wasn't doing any heavy breathing but couldn't help but wonder how cool it would be if on a yellow alert air day NO one was allowed to drive, of course that isn't going to happen in the near future but how great would it be if everyone had to walk, ride or take the bus.

[Melalvai]

That is such a good point. Instead of saying "air quality is poor, don't bike" making everyone drive and worsening the air quality, say "air quality is poor, you can't drive today".

Ah, we can dream...

A ton of people have been telling me "Oh, I saw you the other day". Guess I've been out and about a lot!

[tzvia]

Last week.
So frustrated about last Thursday's ride home. The parking lot exit at work is paved right through the middle of an empty weed lot and I exit that way. Well, I picked up a huge thorn from some of the weeds that were cut a few weeks ago and did not notice for a block, and then I sure did. FLAT. Crap.

So I get out the pump and patch kit and found a little shade as it's 103f and patch it. Then the hell began. Yes I had found the 1/2" thorn and removed it, checked the tire and the other wheel too. Put it all together, confident that I would just pump it up and go. Nope. Pump-pump-pump. Nothing. I took off the pump and the head of the presta came off and was in the pump head. Ok, get the spare, change again. Pump-pump-pump. Nothing. Shoot. Take off the pump- again the presta nut is broken off. I've never had an issue with the pump before (Blackburn Carbon Frame pump) but I took it apart and I don't see any problem with it. Called the sag wagon and waited in the heat.

I know there is a reason why I look for tubes with removable presta valves for my road bike and mtb, but I had not found any that fit 28~32c tires. Re-thinking this at home, I remembered I had bought some 25c Continental Gatorskins and I switched out. They feel so much better than the Kenda Kwests. But leaving work again this week, I stopped at the exit and sure enough there were 3 thorns in the back, and one in the front. But they had not punctured the tubes yet. So I will leave work out the side exit that does not go through the undeveloped part of the campus.

I've been commuting almost two years now, and that was my first DNF. Gonna get me some tubes with removable valve cores this weekend.

[rubysoho]

It took all summer but I have officially commuted to work (during work hours)! I assume traffic was lighter than normal because of the holiday weekend - I'm not complaining. :) I packed all my stuff in a small bookbag which I have never done before. Lunch + breakfast (left without eating) + clothes + shoes + keys + blah blah blah = a bit heavier than I was expecting! :eek: Definitely made my start-ups much harder but it was manageable. Took me a perfect hour. Someone in a van chatted with me at a light. He was very pleasant. The majority of my ride is on trails but the times I was on the road I feel I was lucky to have many polite drivers who gave me space, etc... I am very greatful for that.

Looking forward to doing this throughout the fall and maybe the winter!

[redrhodie]

I had my car tuned up yesterday, so I rode from the service station to a few miles past Worden's Pond, a scenic road, then I just turned around and rode to work. I ended up with close to 20 miles for the day, and my car is running great, and there were no surprises, so I'm happy. Traffic was heavy. The students are returning to URI, but now the beach section of my commute will lighten. Give and take.

[Sky King]

How bout some slime tubes for this time of year? I hate goat heads too!

Last week.
So frustrated about last Thursday's ride home. The parking lot exit at work is paved right through the middle of an empty weed lot and I exit that way. Well, I picked up a huge thorn from some of the weeds that were cut a few weeks ago and did not notice for a block, and then I sure did. FLAT. Crap.

So I get out the pump and patch kit and found a little shade as it's 103f and patch it. Then the hell began. Yes I had found the 1/2" thorn and removed it, checked the tire and the other wheel too. Put it all together, confident that I would just pump it up and go. Nope. Pump-pump-pump. Nothing. I took off the pump and the head of the presta came off and was in the pump head. Ok, get the spare, change again. Pump-pump-pump. Nothing. Shoot. Take off the pump- again the presta nut is broken off. I've never had an issue with the pump before (Blackburn Carbon Frame pump) but I took it apart and I don't see any problem with it. Called the sag wagon and waited in the heat.

I know there is a reason why I look for tubes with removable presta valves for my road bike and mtb, but I had not found any that fit 28~32c tires. Re-thinking this at home, I remembered I had bought some 25c Continental Gatorskins and I switched out. They feel so much better than the Kenda Kwests. But leaving work again this week, I stopped at the exit and sure enough there were 3 thorns in the back, and one in the front. But they had not punctured the tubes yet. So I will leave work out the side exit that does not go through the undeveloped part of the campus.

I've been commuting almost two years now, and that was my first DNF. Gonna get me some tubes with removable valve cores this weekend.

[laura*]

So frustrated about last Thursday's ride home. The parking lot exit at work is paved right through the middle of an empty weed lot and I exit that way. Well, I picked up a huge thorn from some of the weeds that were cut a few weeks ago and did not notice for a block, and then I sure did. FLAT. Crap.

This morning: Push bike to top of driveway. Get on bike and start down the road. "Hey, there's a lot of tire tread noise from the back wheel today!" Stop. Press back of bike down. "Hmmm, that tire's compressing a whole lot." Uh, oh. Notice and remove thorn from side of tire. Take bike back inside. Plan B - walk.

This afternoon: Remove wheel. Remove inner tube. Check inside of tire for sharp items. Find three more thorns! Check tube for punctures. Find one and patch. Pump. "Hey that's not holding pressure!" Again check tube for punctures. Find another and patch. Assemble bike. Check front wheel. Find yet three more thorn stubs (but no flat tire).

Retrospective: The bike was fine yesterday. I didn't do any offroading. There's no known thorns in my yard. Hmmm. Oh! I rode to the local park. Some group was having a Labor Day picnic. They had a band that had set up on the MUP. To avoid going through the band to get to a drinking fountain, I went across the grass and weeds...

[Vanilla]

I had a lovely ride this morning despite the traffic being heavier now that the school holidays are over and all the nice quiet side roads are being used as rat-runs. I never understand why, when London has such good public transport and kids get free travel, that parents insist on driving their little darlings the short distance to school. Anyway, I managed to shave two minutes off my journey and only nearly ran in to one idiot man who crossed into my path when he was skipping a red light and looking the other way. Hopefully my loud swearing made an impact and it's certainly better than me making a physical one with him :D

[Fredwina]

I walked to work and back yesterday. took me about 40 minutes each way. May have to bring in some baby wipes and change of tops for summer months

[azfiddle]

My commute yesterday was nice. Pretty calm for the first 5 miles on the way in. Of course I got the usual east wind when I turned for the 2nd half. On the way home I had overcast skies so it wasn't too hot and great winds from the south and southeast so I averaged over 18 mph for the ride home. Sweet!

[Geonz]

Saw 11 other bike riders before I even crossed the Champaign-Urbana line ;) the driver of that Circle of Friends Adult Day Care van didn't like that I wouldn't cut over to the parking lane (where another 200 yards up there was a car)... so they'll get an email.

[Melalvai]

After riding my friend's road bike in yesterday's triathlon, getting my heavy commuter bike going took a lot of power. chug chug chug along. Reminded myself that riding Crush (the commuter bike) all year long is why the initial steep climb at the triathlon wasn't a challenge at all! That little light road bike just LAUNCHED herself up the hill. And kept right on going.

Fully loaded for my day, the commuter bike weighs in around 40 pounds. The road bike was well under 20. I could stand to shed another 15 off of myself, and then I'd really fly! :D

[redrhodie]

It's been a while since I commuted, but I'm baaaack! I can't tell you how much more I like riding my bike than driving my car. What a difference it makes. Car=Stress. Bike=Happy. I wish more people rode bikes. The world would be better. I really believe that.

Really fast ride tonight. I found my inner Merckx. Heh. The tailwind didn't hurt.

[ZenBiker]

Been thinking about how to extend my self propelled commuting season as the days get shorter and mornings get colder. We have a brand new (as of last spring) bus service in town, with a stop 1 block from the office and 2 miles from home, and a bike rack on the bus. Gave it a trial run today, riding into work and catching the bus to shorten my return trip. It's not fast, with all the intermediate stops the bus makes, but I can take work to do or a book to read. This might just work!

[Fredwina]

Still in Rensselaer:
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-9ycrJcwdyJQ/Tm_mwG6wrzI/AAAAAAAAQjU/9kkOI3VXzbQ/s640/090911071044.jpg
across the bridge- Empire State Plaza:
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-HiWQrYBtTHg/Tm_mroUvc7I/AAAAAAAAQjQ/5_QOatxBljs/s640/090911073411.jpg
Downtown Albany:
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7n9-SqVOpi4/Tm_miLInZnI/AAAAAAAAQjM/nk8Bi4o288s/s640/090911073435.jpg
Still debating what to do about the bicyclst some of them are not exactly curteous - I thought we were supposed to share the sidewalk

[tzvia]

Sky King-
Good idea, the slime tubes. I'm a nerd and resistant to heavy tubes. But I found a slime light tube at the LBS so bought it for the back wheel. Gonna put it on the next time I flat. It weigh double what a good road tube weighs, but what am I weenie-ing about- 50 grams.:o

Got tubes with removable cores- and put an extra core in my patch box. I do this already for the road bike and MTB, I don't know why I didn't do this for the commuter.

My ride today was great. Not too hot, maybe upper 80s with a slight breeze. However, there were lots of sirens right behind me as I rode- several times I looked back, they seemed to stop a block or so behind me on Desoto... Got home and found out that there was a fatal accident. It must have happened right after I passed... Gives me the chills.

[7rider]

Brrrr...
45 degrees out this a.m. (7 C).
Had to pull out the jacket for my ride in this a.m. First time since....May?? maybe?

[divingbiker]

Yesterday while I was driving to the office, I was stopped on a downhill road in a line of traffic but had the green light at the bottom of the hill. A young guy on a bike was screaming down the hill (it's a wide road) to the right of the cars. An SUV was coming toward us and took the opportunity to turn left at the light through the stopped cars.

You know what's coming...the bike slammed into the SUV. I heard the impact, and saw the cyclist lying on the hood of the SUV for a few minutes. Once he started moving, I relaxed.

Miraculously, he was unhurt. He had one scratch. But there were a lot pedestrians and a crossing guard at the corner, and they insisted he go to the hospital. I stopped and asked if he wanted me to take his bike to my office and lock it up. He called me later and I dropped it off at his house on my way home.

He was so appreciative and said he was fine, except for some soreness. The windshield of the SUV was shattered. They didn't file a police report, but both the cyclist and I felt that he had the right of way since he had the green light and was going straight. Not sure what the police would have said.

He was one lucky young man.

[kmehrzad]

Amazing. That would have really shaken me up for the day.



Yesterday while I was driving to the office, I was stopped on a downhill road in a line of traffic but had the green light at the bottom of the hill. A young guy on a bike was screaming down the hill (it's a wide road) to the right of the cars. An SUV was coming toward us and took the opportunity to turn left at the light through the stopped cars.

You know what's coming...the bike slammed into the SUV. I heard the impact, and saw the cyclist lying on the hood of the SUV for a few minutes. Once he started moving, I relaxed.

Miraculously, he was unhurt. He had one scratch. But there were a lot pedestrians and a crossing guard at the corner, and they insisted he go to the hospital. I stopped and asked if he wanted me to take his bike to my office and lock it up. He called me later and I dropped it off at his house on my way home.

He was so appreciative and said he was fine, except for some soreness. The windshield of the SUV was shattered. They didn't file a police report, but both the cyclist and I felt that he had the right of way since he had the green light and was going straight. Not sure what the police would have said.

He was one lucky young man.

[tzvia]

Ok, I put on the slime tube in back, and tested my frame pump, which did not break off the head of my presta valve this time. Maybe being hot in the sun and in a hurry somehow caused me to break two presta valves. I donno.

Got a new front light that I really like already. It's the Nightrider mininewt 600. If you are looking for a simple all-in-one commuter front light and don't need 4+ hours at a shot, it will give you 600 lumens for 1.4 hrs or so. There are two lower lumen settings that extend the time. It charges via USB so I just charge it at work. It has a quick disconnect bar mount, is really light weight, and there are no wires and battery packs. Been using it this week and I think it will be perfect for this winter.

Yep, time to make sure I am ready for daylight savings time change. It's gona be really dark in the morning in a few weeks.

Today was overcast and almost foggy and a little misty. Got to work damp. It was 92f when I left though.

divingbiker- that gives me the willies. Having a car cut me off is my biggest fear when I commute in the dark. Ranks up there with being doored. I guess that is why my bike is a x-mas tree of lights and reflectors. Fear. Good the guy is ok (but I am sure he was sore the next day.)

[Duck on Wheels]

... but my route doesn't take me past this point anyway. The lucky bike commuters who rode in from outside the toll booth ring today were rewarded, not only with the sight of all the cars paying their tolls, but by friendly municipal workers in reflector vests who stopped the cyclists and paid them (!) the equivalent of the auto toll (about $4) to thank them for NOT driving :) One cyclist who was interviewed said "I think I'll go buy myself a coffee." That's the gist of this story in Norwegian: http://www.adressa.no/nyheter/trondheim/article1698894.ece
Oh, and note in the photo - the cyclists are all wearing helmets. :cool:

[Velocivixen]

@Duck on Wheels, thanks for posting that video! I didn't understand a word of it but I really liked that they were rewarding the cyclists. I also like seeing that there were so many cyclists AND that they were wearing helmets! When I first saw your name I thought you might be from Oregon (University of Oregon mascot is a duck!). Is commuter cycling popular in Norway?

[Bethany1]

I went 5-6 miles down the highway today. I've been taking it easy the past couple of weeks just doing 1-2 miles a day.

I figured the worst I could do is the usual and run out of energy like I have been. I downed a bowl of cereal, some water, and an energy bar. I filled up my water bottle and another with some Zipfizz that I found at Wal-mart. Wasn't sure how well it would work and I'm generally skeptical of "engery" drinks anyway.

I got a couple of miles up the road and took some of the Zipfizz. I about choked on it and realized this stuff is nasty. Are all these "energy" electrolyte stuff this bad? I'll keep to Gatorade. About a mile later I started feeling sick from the Zipfizz.

I headed back home even though I wanted to go farther (and shouldn't) and kept feeling even more sick, but I wasn't "bonking". Made it home and promptly vomited. That stuff is going into the trash. So far, I feel great and that's a first. Hopefully I won't spend the next three days sleeping it off.

Ick. My stomach still hurts from a quick sip.

[lph]

Duck, that video was great! (And the guy from kommunen was really cute ;) Pretty sure he's a cyclist) I hadn't seen it before. Brilliant idea.

Bethany, hope your stomach is feeling better. Some of the energy stuff is harsh.

[tzvia]

... I got a couple of miles up the road and took some of the Zipfizz. .... Made it home and promptly vomited. That stuff is going into the trash. So far, I feel great and that's a first. Hopefully I won't spend the next three days sleeping it off.

Ick. My stomach still hurts from a quick sip.

Oh my. Nothing I have ingested, from energy drinks, gels, roks, bloks, moons, corned beef sandwich, what have you, has ever made me sick enough to actually expel it.

Many swear by NUN tablets, but I haven't tried them. I usually stick with GU powdered drink mix and find it easy on the stomach. I used to use LUNA mix but can't seem to find it at the LBS any more and don't see it on the Clif website so I guess it's gone. But GU works well and has never made me sick. It also does a great job of quenching that deep down thirst that water sometimes just does not stop. Along with some Clif Bloks or Hammergel, and a Clif Builder bar and banana for my lunch stop I can go on a 40ish mile road ride and feel good at the end and not bonk. I also keep a Stinger in my back pocket or Camelbak in case the ride is harder than I expected and I need some quick sugary carbs.

For my short commute, I just keep Clif Bloks in my backpack, and sometimes I have one Blok when I get to work, and drink some tea if I feel I need a little lift.

[laura*]

Dear driver of the gold colored full size van:

You nearly side swiped me 'cause you were driving partially in the bike lane! :mad: I noticed you got caught by the red light up ahead. You apparently were going to go straight, while I intended to make a right turn there. ;) I hope you were surprised by the sound of the knuckle knock on the side of your van as I zipped around the corner. It sounded very hollow and echoey. :D

[redrhodie]

It sounded very hollow and echoey. :D

Where you knocking on his head? :D

[Bethany1]

I did much better today. 2 miles on gravel and 3 on regular roads. Stopped off to get my Allegra-D at the store and headed home. You get quite the workout on gravel roads..LOL.

I am glad I didn't go down the road that has train tracks. Something just said turn right and go get your meds. 30 seconds later, I heard the train coming across the road which would have been about the time I would have gone over them or would have had to try to stop to avoid the gates going down. The tracks are about halfway down the hill making stopping hard. Glad I listened. Train tracks aren't great on your tires anyway. It was just a faster way to get to the main road back into town.

I took the long way to the pharmacy which includes several hard hills but worth the effort. Hills are getting easier though.

I've just learned to listen to the "gut" feelings as they are usually right.

[ZenBiker]

I recently put new, slick city tires on my commuter bike, switched out the campus pedals for some old Candies that I took off a previous road bike, and adjusted the seat height. I rode it to work today for the first time since making these changes (I alternate between my road and commuter bikes depending on what errands I have to run). Wahoo! The commuter bike is now much more fun to ride! Good thing since as the season changes I'll want those fat tires more often.

Temps in the 40s going to work, near 80 coming home. Makes dressing a bit of a challenge but gotta love these calm sunny days!

[Sky King]

Spending 4 days in Portland and riding a borrowed extended cycle everywhere was amazing. I loved, loved the clearly marked bike routes. I traveled from NW to NE numerous times for Oregon Manifest events with zero problems. We were riding through the heart of the city on Saturday night at 10 pm and felt totally confident. It doesn't seem like it would be that difficult for other cities to work with the cycling community to designate more bike routes and then to paint those awesome large bikes on the roadway so drivers would be aware that the street was a bike route. I am now throughly spoiled.

[redrhodie]

I've seen all kinds of things on the bike path to work, goats, fisher cats, turtles, but today a first; a really, really tiny horse, smaller than my friend's husky. He had a bunch of little kids around him, so I didn't stop to pet him, but he made my commute.

[tzvia]

I had a total dork sighting today.

Going home, on a wide 4 lane ave, one of the most busy West Valley N/S streets. Actually has a bike lane in some spots, and a bike 'route' (unmarked) for the rest. I'm minding my own business heading south, when I hear someone behind me shouting something- before I can react, he buzzes by just inches from me. A cyclist (real bottom of the gene pool BTW) blew by me so fast I did a double take. I was doing maybe 18mph. Turns out, he was hitching a ride to a pickup truck with one of those plumber type rear ends that has built in tool compartments and a metal frame for putting ladders/pipes above. Just holding on to one of the rear frame tubes, going 40mph.

He almost hit me, that's why he was yelling. I could not make out what he was saying (probably 'move over' or similar). I only had a moment to react, glad I did not veer left. Yep, bottom of the gene pool.

Other than that, it was a great, but hot 100f ride. Made good time. Glad to be on my bike decompressing as it was broken Blackberry day. I hate fixing those things, their server software sucks. Makes Exchange look good. Having a Director breathing down your neck for updates on it just adds to the fun. By the time I reach the house, all that tension is gone. Wonderful.

[Melalvai]

I was interviewed for a Missouri Livable Streets promotional video today. They met us in the park that is on my way home, it's also on my daughter's way home from school. A girl who was waiting for her mom to pick her up was watching us. I think she was bored. She talked to us in between shoots. During the last interview, the girl found a tiny gray fuzzy kitten, but she was afraid to touch it because it hissed at her. (She was about 13, and had never had a kitten before, so she didn't realize it can't really hurt her.) The sound man used to work in an animal shelter and he "rescued" it for her. She said her mom has been talking about getting a cat. After we were done filming I dashed home and got some cat food for her. Just in case mom doesn't want to go to the store tonight, they can soak the food in water or milk for the kitten. It was just a little thing, the sound man & I thought maybe 6 weeks old.

[HillSlugger]

I commuted today for just the 5th time this year, first since mid July. Now that my tri's are done for the year I hope to get in more commutes before the weather turns ugly.

[blackhillsbiker]

I've been doing yoga every chance I can get to work on straightening and strengthening my spine, so I haven't been on my bike much. It's a real pain to get to the yoga studio by bike and I have to go straight to/from work. I got back on my bike yesterday and today. Boy have I missed riding! I didn't realize how much. I'm starting to figure out a schedule that will allow for both.

Deb

Now I just have to remember where I put my headlight/charger. Last night was almost dark by the time I got home. Where did the summer go??!

[Melalvai]

I'm trying to do a No Car October thing. In the past, I've proudly gotten groceries by bike using my trailer. But for the last year and a half, my husband has been doing the house-husband thing and decided that groceries is his purview. I'm not quite ready to relinquish control entirely, so I've been accompanying him on the Saturday morning grocery trips which he does by car. The grocery store is only 1/2 mile away and it seems ridiculous to drive!

Today I told him we'd have to come up with something different. I was willing to fetch the groceries by myself, or let him fetch them, or meet him there (if he drove). He said he was thinking about letting me bring the groceries home in my bike trailer, but walking to the store to meet me. (He doesn't like to bike.) But, he said, he wasn't looking forward to that long of a walk. (I know, it's not a long walk at all! But it is to him!)

I suggested our daughter walk with him, to keep him company, plus there are a couple items she had put on the list and this way she could pick those out herself.

So off they went. After I got the plastic tub strapped to the trailer, the trailer hitched to the bike, the trailer tires aired up, and my bike tires topped off while I had the pump out-- they had already gotten to the grocery store. Of course I had the list, so they just had to wait for me. But, it's only a half mile, so they didn't have to wait long!

We got the groceries and I biked home and they walked home, and I had barely gotten the trailer unloaded and put away when they came in.

After lunch we planned to go bowling. We haven't been to the bowling alley since we moved up here. I knew it was close, but not sure exactly where. We checked it on google maps, it was 0.7 miles. We decided to walk--carrying our Harley Davidson bowling balls and our shoes we'd gotten from a couple leagues we did shortly before we moved up here, but we've never had a chance to use them. Turns out, google was confused about where the bowling alley was. It had us turn right when we should have turned left. The bowling alley is actually 0.4 miles from us, but we walked 2 miles total, carrying the bowling balls the whole way!

My best game today was 135, which for me is really really good. :D

The last time I did a No Car month, in 2007, my husband ended up driving more because he took care of getting our daughter to swim practice, clarinet lessons, etc. Where we've moved is so small that she can and does bike to all those things now, so I didn't think my No Car month would affect him much. I am really surprised, and happy, that he is choosing to walk more because of it!

[redrhodie]

Great job, Mel! I hope your dh learns to love walking. It's the perfect form of exercise.

My grocery store is about the same distance as yours, and I usually walk there. I HATE driving there, and do so only on really rare occasions, maybe a few times per year. I ride once in a while, when I have to buy a lot. I usually shop every day or so, so walking is just easier if the bags are light.

[HillSlugger]

Two weeks in a row! Woo hoo!

[7rider]

A milled road surface awaiting fresh pavement claimed the life of my rear taillight tonight. :(. The light was permanently mounted to the rear rack and the mount busted. I hope my LBS has something in it's spare parts bin so I can jury-rig a fix for it.

[redrhodie]

Last night the wind was so intense, I actually thought for a brief second that I'd have to stop and walk. I didn't, but it crossed my mind. It wasn't even close to the worst wind I'd ridden in, but it was just so steady and unwavering; flags whipping like they were on a fast moving ship, without a break to be had. In a few months, I'll be used to it again. Summer spoiled me. Hello fall.

The morning ride had a tailwind, and that was most fun.

[Tri Girl]

I FINALLY commuted this morning. Of the last 7 weeks of school, I've only commuted a handful of times (too busy training for IM to "waste" 45 minutes commuting).
Ummm... I forgot EVERYTHING! :eek: I took most of my commuting stuff home a month ago to clean it/refresh the supply since I wasn't commuting. I forgot to pack it all back in my pannier. I'm definitely out of routine!
"Brushed" my hair with a fork (forgot the comb and brush at home).
"Brushed" my teeth with my finger and toothpaste.
Applied "make-up" using some old lipstick as blush and an old eyeliner pencil I found in a drawer.
Wearing my cycling knickers (with large chamois) as tights since those are sitting on my dresser.

Silly me. :p I already sent myself an e-mail at home to remind me to PACK EVERYTHING BACK UP and bring it back to work. ;)


And Red- the wind is wicked here today, too. Sustained at 25, gusting to 40. :eek:
I just hope it stays out of the south so I can have a tailwind heading home.

[Melalvai]

"Brushed" my hair with a fork (forgot the comb and brush at home).
Didn't the Little Mermaid do that?

We've had an unbelievably long spell of unbelievably beautiful weather. The trees are turning amazing colors, and flowers are still blooming everywhere. Northeast Missouri is not known for mild weather. Summers are hot and humid, winters are bitterly cold, winds are strong and frequent, storms are inconsiderate, floods make basements impractical and tornadoes make them indispensable. The only possible complaint anyone could have about the current weather is that it's been a bit dry.

This lovely weather means that no one has had much of a challenge yet for their Two Mile Challenge. But no one has complained about that! :) I would love for you all to read & cheer on our Two Milers (http://www.ka-motion.org/forums/viewforum.php?f=4). Some of you talked about buddying up with them, so feel free to do that, I can put you in touch with specific ones if you pm me. Almost half our registered Two Milers have posted at this point.

[HillSlugger]

I FINALLY commuted this morning. Of the last 7 weeks of school, I've only commuted a handful of times (too busy training for IM to "waste" 45 minutes commuting).
Ummm... I forgot EVERYTHING! :eek: I took most of my commuting stuff home a month ago to clean it/refresh the supply since I wasn't commuting. I forgot to pack it all back in my pannier. I'm definitely out of routine!
"Brushed" my hair with a fork (forgot the comb and brush at home).
"Brushed" my teeth with my finger and toothpaste.
Applied "make-up" using some old lipstick as blush and an old eyeliner pencil I found in a drawer.
Wearing my cycling knickers (with large chamois) as tights since those are sitting on my dresser.

Silly me. :p I already sent myself an e-mail at home to remind me to PACK EVERYTHING BACK UP and bring it back to work. ;)


And Red- the wind is wicked here today, too. Sustained at 25, gusting to 40. :eek:
I just hope it stays out of the south so I can have a tailwind heading home.
Very resourceful!

I also gave up most of my commuting to focus on triathlon.

[7rider]

So...I'm riding up the hill about 1.75 miles from my house, approaching a traffic light at the top. Unfortunately, I left late and traffic was busy on this road (one lane each direction, residential, 10' shoulder, recently repaved). A line of traffic is slowly passing me, including a minivan which crossed what should be the white line (dashed line - not yet repainted since the new pavement went down), and passed about 12" from my left shoulder. I yell and give him the back of my hand. Totally uncalled for by the van with such a wide open road.

Well, Mister Pale Blue LTD behind the van apparently didn't like the fact that I was gesturing impolitely to his fellow motorist who was putting my safety at risk by illegally passing me too closely (MD has a 3' rule), so he roars his engine and cuts in front of me, stopping for the light that we are all approaching by completely blocking the shoulder. (Oooooo...he's showing me!!) Thus, he made an illegal move (crossing a solid line (what willbe a solid line when repainted) and driving in the shoulder, specifically to prevent me from doing something completely legal - riding up the shoulder on the right side past a row of cars to a light (yes, that's legal). And bicyclists are the scofflaws?

Unfortunately for him, I'm slow as molasses on that hill on my fully loaded commuter and can practically track stand on the hill, so his little anger stunt had no effect on my forward progress as the light turned green and he crawled away with the line of traffic before I even reached his back bumper.

What an idiot.

[Tri Girl]

He showed YOU. You'll never ride your bike again, now... :rolleyes: What are people thinking when they do that? Ugh...
Glad he wasn't more aggressive with you than that. Sometimes you just never know who you'll meet on the road (like the redneck in the pickup with the rebel flag, don't tread on me, and I hate the govt. stickers on his bumper that I encountered recently). Nice...

My commute the last two days has been so nice. I love the dark, cool mornings when nobody is about. I'm sad when we have to change the clocks back because then the mornings are light- and I prefer to commute in the dark in the morning. Sigh... it will be totally dark both ways before too long.

[MojoGrrl]

Last commute of the year and I was about to toss in the towel...so sick of areshole drivers. Some punk-arse little sh*t stuck his fat, pasty-white, hairy arse out the window at us. I'm going to become a gun-toting, postal cyclist...

[Melalvai]

I got new tires & chain yesterday, my mechanic found the cause of the sticky rear brake cable (a kink), and new rear brake pads. Sadly, my front rim is worn badly and I need to build a wheel (I have a generator hub so it's not as simple as buying a new wheel). But with the tires, my bike has a new spring in her step and twinkle in her eye. She just wants to fly! I took the heavy basket off for the trip to the bike shop (which is 90 miles away), and since I am traveling with her again tomorrow to BikeMO, I didn't bother putting the basket back on, but carried what I needed in a bag. I guess after this weekend I'll find out how much of her energy is new tires and how much is losing that weight.

My daughter is in the marching band and there's a game tonight. On game nights she walks to school, because if she bikes she has to wait an eternity for traffic to clear out. She asked me to walk with her so that she could tell me about her day. As we were walking down the sidewalk, we heard a funny "honk honk" and we both turned around to see a cyclist barreling toward us. I stood where I was and she headed to grass on the right. The cyclist also swerved to the right to pass us and ended up riding straight into her!!

She's ok. I was not going to tell him that he was in the wrong...until he started griping that she shouldn't have moved toward the right. Of course I immediately tore into him all the mistakes he made.
1. Riding on the sidewalk.
2. Riding on the sidewalk at anything above a walking pace.
3. Passing on the right.

The only thing he did correctly was sound a warning. But it did no good because we didn't know what the warning was about and we didn't have time to react.

Other than that it's fairly irritating, there are actually so many things funny about this. A year ago she was on her bicycle and got hit by a truck. (She's fine now.) Then today she's walking and gets hit by a cyclist. Does that mean next year she'll be driving and get taken out by a hoard of marchers, like rock-paper-scissors?

Just before the incident she was telling me how she'd pricked her finger with a pin during Drama-- "Like Sleeping Beauty," she said. Then she took her left shoe off and walked without it, because it gave her a blister. The blister had burst and bled in her shoe. "Like Cinderella's stepsister," I said. Hopefully getting run over by a bicyclist is the end of her minor adventures today! (What fairy tale could this last incident be?)

Poor kid! I will have to do something extra nice for her tonight after the game.

[laura*]

This tale starts last week. My once a week multi-modal commute starts with a ride from town A, through town B, and to town C where I catch a bus at the start of its run. I was almost through town B when I spotted an orphaned woman's running shoe by the side of the road. It's not worth worrying about onesie shoes so I kept going. Fifty feet later, I spotted the other shoe: It was cowering between two traffic lanes like a scared bunny. I stopped, waited for a break in the traffic, retrieved the shoe, and walked back to get the other one. I then noticed I was 100 feet beyond the parking lot exit for a health/fitness club/gym. Aha! Someone must have placed her shoes on the roof of her car, forgotten them, and driven off. So - I biked back to the gym, asked if they had a lost&found, and left the shoes on their front counter.

Problem 1:
As I left the gym, my bike was acting funny - the chain didn't want to freewheel backwards smoothly. I limped the bike downhill to town C where luckily I'm a keyholding volunteer mechanic at a bike co-op. I was able to let myself into the shop, put the bike up in a work stand, and pull out oodles of weeds that had wrapped themselves around the derailleur pulleys. :rolleyes:

Problem 2:
Yesterday, my front brakes started grinding as I passed the gym. Limp to the co-op, and spend an hour picking metal shards out of the brake pads. :mad: This was supposed to be quick ride to the grocery store and back home.

Problem 3:
Today, as I'm approaching the gym, my back tire goes flat. I roll the bike into the gym's parking lot, and discover there's a huge honking nail in the tire! :eek: The nail was through the tire, into the tube, and was poking zillions of holes in the rim side of the tube. 15 minutes, a medium patch on the tread side of the tube, and a monster patch on the other side, and I'm back on the road. I got to the transit center in time to catch the bus I wanted! (Last week I also did.)

So what's next? Why did returning the shoes earn me so much bad karma? :confused:

[redrhodie]

Why did returning the shoes earn me so much bad karma? :confused:

It's not bad karma. Sometimes the things that slow you down save you from a worse fate.

[Melalvai]

laura*, if it had been a car it would have cost you even more time and LOTS more money!

[laura*]

It's not bad karma. Sometimes the things that slow you down save you from a worse fate.

Hmmm. So perhaps the flat tire saved me from a tree that leaned over low across a road. The tree must have just tipped - there were no signs of any cars having hit it - no broken twigs, no leaves on the ground. I had to lean down over the handlebars to zoom under it, having noticed it too late to swerve. Except for low slung sports cars, any vehicles would contact at least the leafy twigs.

[uk elephant]

Had a lovely ride to work at dawn, catching a glimpse of the spectacular sunrise behind me. Bike spent the day at the LBS for some well earned tlc and I got to ride home with a clean bike with new chain and cables, and new inner tube in place of the one with a slow leak. We're ready for our big day out in the big city on Saturday.

[wackyjacky1]

Windy! I have just a two-mile commute, but on the way home this afternoon I was headed straight into a 20 mph headwind, with higher gusts. Felt like I was standing still, though I was pedaling like crazy! :eek: :D

[7rider]

My taillight (http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1030749_-1___)hates me. It wants to leave me all the time. :(
The other week, it tried to commit suicide by jumping from my rack when I went over the lip of pavement onto a milled section. Alas, I caught it before it was smooshed by a car, and my LBS set me up with some brackets to re-attach it. This particular light, I attach to the back of the rear rack (http://bontrager.com/model/08244). Note the bracket on the back, for attaching lights.
Anyway, today the light again tried to commit suicide when the bracket failed, sending the light skittering across the road. Once again, I was able to rescue it. And fortunately, I was able to get home in the evening before dark. I think the bracket was aluminum, rather than steel, and thus softer and weaker. I need to hit up a hardware store for a good angle iron or something.
I love my light. So bright and flashy. I don't know why it hates me so. :confused:

[Melalvai]

My taillight (http://www.performancebike.com/bikes/Product_10052_10551_1030749_-1___)hates me. It wants to leave me all the time. :(

My friend is having the same problem with her taillight. Hers is just a little cheap blinky but it also won't stay attached to the rack and it has left her 3 times.

[Sky King]

I just have to share the irony of a conversation I had this week. A new health and wellness center opened right across the street! They had an open house and I was visiting with one of the yoga and other mind/body class instructors. Bike riding came up and he commented that he only lived two miles away. I commented about how nice that is for his commute and he says "well after my training ride" I don't feel like riding my bike to work. That just threw me for a loop, here was someone who promotes healthy lifestyles but can't ride his bike two miles to his office. To each their own I guess, hope he doesn't run me off the road in his rush to drive to work after his training ride.

[redrhodie]

I just have to share the irony of a conversation I had this week. A new health and wellness center opened right across the street! They had an open house and I was visiting with one of the yoga and other mind/body class instructors. Bike riding came up and he commented that he only lived two miles away. I commented about how nice that is for his commute and he says "well after my training ride" I don't feel like riding my bike to work. That just threw me for a loop, here was someone who promotes healthy lifestyles but can't ride his bike two miles to his office. To each their own I guess, hope he doesn't run me off the road in his rush to drive to work after his training ride.

The only way I wouldn't ride if my commute was only 2 miles, would be if I walked instead.

[7rider]

So I get all the way down to the first floor by security, and realize I left my ID up at my desk. Grrrrr. So I ride back up to the 13th floor (yes, some buildings have a 13th floor! No superstition with these builders!). I'm wearing my jacket which had my screaming yellow reflective vest over it. Sort of like this:

Co-worker looks at me and asks "off to help school kids cross the street?".
Ha. I agree, grab my ID and leave. It's only while riding the elevator back down again that I realized I should have replied "off to my second job working road construction!"

Oh well. Got home before sundown anyway. That will change next week. :(

[malkin]

Oops.
Glanced at the weather... 0%chance of rain. 47 degrees...so I get dressed and ready to roll.

Double check the weather: 47 is the high. Current temp is 28.

Maybe another layer is in order.

[Melalvai]

I asked my daughter how she was going to school today. If she bikes or walks, and I don't have an early meeting, I go with her and then go to work. It was cold & rainy and she couldn't decide: bike, walk, or drive? Finally she said "You pick." So we walked.

Not even a block later she said she was glad we walked. The wind in the red & green tree against the dark gray clouds was SO dramatic. The rain was a light sprinkle. We were well dressed for the weather, our faces slightly chilled but the rest of us warm as we worked up some heat.

A few yards after that, a neighbor offered us a ride. Before I could say anything she had said, "No thanks, we're enjoying our walk."

She got to school and I turned around to walk home. The wind had been at our backs and was now driving tiny stinging drops of rain into my eyes. I enjoyed the excitement but she would not have liked that part.

I decided to bike to work, instead of walk. I have the right clothes for biking in cold rain, and it'll save time coming home this evening.

[Tri Girl]

When will I learn to NOT listen to the weatherman? Ugh. I didn't commute today because they said severe storms would be moving into the metro around noon. Tornado/hail type severe storms. I'll ride in rain, but lightning/hail/tornadoes will definitely keep me of my bike, and I knew my DH was working late so he wouldn't be able to come get me if they did move in. It was sunny and beautiful when I left work at 3:45.
Well, they were right. There *were* tornadoes in the southwestern part of the state today, but they didn't even happen until about 3- and they are just now getting to my place at 8 pm. Sigh. I just need to ignore them and ride.... will I ever learn? :rolleyes:

[redrhodie]

When will I learn to NOT listen to the weatherman? Sigh. I just need to ignore them and ride.... will I ever learn? :rolleyes:

No, you did the right thing. Better safe than sorry when it comes to severe storms. You don't want to end up telling your story on "I Survived" (if you're lucky :eek:).

I'm going in an hour early so I can leave work while it's still light. No reason to ride in the dark if I don't have to. I'm lucky to have a flexible job.

[malkin]

I dawdled and ended up in the nearly dark yesterday afternoon.

I left work in time, but remembered to stop by my old condo to leave a garage door opener out for the BUYER!!! It is pretty exciting to have an offer on the place. And the little piece of darkness will prompt me to find my lights and reflectors and stuff.

[HillSlugger]

It's not so enjoyable now after the time change :( I enjoy starting in the dark and riding into the sunrise, but I don't like riding as much after dark.

[Tri Girl]

It's not so enjoyable now after the time change :( I enjoy starting in the dark and riding into the sunrise, but I don't like riding as much after dark.

I feel EXACTLY the same way. I don't mind morning darkness when drivers are awake and just starting the day. In the evening when they've had a stressful workday and are tired, night riding makes me FAR more nervous.

Plus, I feel like I'm running late in the morning when it's bright as daylight. I've found myself riding faster because I feel like I'm late. No worries- in a month it will be dark both ways. :rolleyes:

[7rider]

I feel EXACTLY the same way. I don't mind morning darkness when drivers are awake and just starting the day. In the evening when they've had a stressful workday and are tired, night riding makes me FAR more nervous.


Funny. I think this is common. I was just having this discussion with a co-worker as we approached the return to standard time -- that I'd much rather ride in the morning when it's dark than in the evening when it's dark. The one bright spot is (this week anyway), I've been able to wake up and get out the door earlier than normal. Couple with NOT lifting at the gym when I get to work in the a.m., and I'm clocked in early so I can leave early in the afternoon and get home before full dark. But, next week, that likely won't be the case.

Stopped at CVS after lunch today to pick up some AA batteries for my balky rear light. WOW! :eek: Guess my light wasn't working properly because it needed new batteries. :o That certainly made me feel a bit better about the ride home (and my day-glow road worker's/crossing guards' vest - I get no end to the ribbing from my co-workers over that :rolleyes:).

[malkin]

I'm kind of the opposite.
I want to be home when it is dark. Stay home until it is light and hurry home when it is dark.

[carlotta]

I'm definitely in the group that would rather ride to work in the dark.... I had almost a month where it was fully dark when I was leaving before the time change, now it's still pretty dark until I'm almost at work and that will change to dark, dark, dark soon.

There are many fewer drivers out in the mornings, and just fewer people/loiterers in the pre-dawn than in the evenings (a short stretch is through some not-so-nice bits of town) which is also better. Also fewer ninja runners/cyclists out at 6am than at 6pm......

Plus, getting home after dark (and leaving in the am before it gets light), is just a bummer......I have flexible hours and can work from home in the evenings, I'm just not very good at leaving work by ~4pm....

[carlotta]

Today reminded me why I like leaving at 6am (even if I hate getting up at 5....).

First couple miles of my commute are on decently busy, fairly narrow streets. At 6am, it's me, a few buses and a few cars. Not so at 8am. I don't mind riding in traffic, but it completely messes up my timing in hitting green lights.....I've got it down so I don't have to unclip unless something really random happens for the first 1.5 miles, but not today. Stop. go. stop. go.

Then I've got ~6 miles of MUP, not too bad at 8 vs 6 (more general public, but fewer obnoxious crew teams who will run 4 across and NOT yield). Had to deal with a headwind, but hopefully it won't shift during the day and I'll have a nice tailwind tonight.

Lastly, it's back into the streets for a mile or so. That stretch is fairly busy regardless of commute time, but bikes on the street go from me plus one or two (early), to me plus 15 obnoxious students (late). Running lights (when the oncoming lane has a green left turn arrow), passing me on the right when I'm stopped at a red light, and (my favorite) passing me when I'm at a light, only to ride REALLY slowly in front of me, so we play leapfrog for a couple lights....

I have to be at work early tomorrow, so no choice on commute times, but I will definitely be leaving at 6 on Wednesday......ugh. Sorry...needed to vent. But it's still (and always) better than the train :)

[7rider]

A pet peeve of mine of other bike commuters.
I'm waiting at a light (or stop sign, but most often a light), just standing there, minding my own business, waiting from my turn to go.
A cyclist comes up behind me - usually unannounced, usually male - and proceeds to go around me and park himself in front of me. Often, it's to run the light/sign, or to "jump" the light (cross light turned red, but our light is a mere second away from turning green).
What makes one think it's okay to come up to someone waiting and cut ahead? Would you do that in a car? Or if I were waiting for a teller at a bank? Would you cut in front of me at the checkout line of a grocery store? Why can't you wait behind me and wait your turn like I am doing? Pass me when we're through when it is safe to do so, as I expect every other vehicle on the road to do.
Grrrrr....:mad:

[redrhodie]

That's a justifiable pet peeve. I haven't had that done to me, but I bet I wouldn't like it, either.

[carlotta]

I hate getting cut off-- especially by people aiming to run the light, and by guys (agree, almost all male) who think they're super fast and I can't possibly be faster than they are...then I pass them, then they cut me off at the next light, etc, etc. I've mostly decided that I'll take it easy for the couple miles between the end of the MUP to work and avoid any of it.

I will stop alongside/slightly ahead of another rider--with the intention of passing them when the light changes, especially when:

a) they're too far right/not far enough forward to block people trying to take an illegal right-on-red at a particular intersection. The green for straight travel (including a nice big wide bike lane) occurs when the right turn lane has a red arrow, so I'll park myself in front of the right turn lane if their arrow has already turned red-- I commute through there in both directions everyday and know the light cycles.

b) I'm also guilty of doing this when the stopped bike has a half-flat back tire, rusty chain, or any of the other common indicators of a student bike....I won't cut them off, but use the bike lane as if it has two lanes and I'm in the left lane waiting to start out. 99.9% of the time I start/travel faster than they do, and I feel like it's safer to pass them when they're not weaving all over the bike lane as they tend to do...

On that note, it's time to ride home :)

[Tri Girl]

I'm off work this week, and I'm really going to miss commuting. I've already planned an epic ride for later in the week to make up for missed saddle time. ;) Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

[Melalvai]

Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and today I did something unusual for transportation. I didn't bike. For the most part, I didn't walk either. Yes, I drove a car.

If I'd had a great experience with it I wouldn't write about it on this thread. But I'm going to tell about because it was such a NOT great experience. Once in a while, I try to turn to the car, I'm not sure why. It seems like cheating and sometimes I want to indulge in cheating, eating crappy food and using crappy transportation. Why does it feel like indulging when it's really not?

My daughter was in the school play, and performed this weekend. The last week of rehearsals have gone at least 6 hours a night. Several times we picked up her and her bike. Toward the end of the week, after her bike was tampered with late at night while she was at rehearsal, she left the bike home and either walked to school or we drove her.

This morning, the play is over, no more rehearsals, but she was exhausted. Her backpack is ridiculously heavy so she doesn't like to walk. (It's less than a mile.) So I drove her to school.

Then I was supposed to meet some people at the state park (10 miles) and I hadn't gotten around to arranging for a ride. It's ridiculous that all 6 of us drove separate vehicles out there. But...we did. Usually at least some of us carpool. I thought we were walking through the 0.5 mile section of the future trail, which is not exactly a path but we have at least been through it and tied ribbons on the trees and cleared away the brush so it really doesn't take too long to hike it out and back. But it turned out we were walking the other part, which is 4 miles, and the purpose of today's walk is to get information so we can decide on a route.

It was a LOT of fun, but it took 5 hours. And I wasn't back in time to pick her up from school. I had no cell phone signal most of the time. Eventually I got a little and sent a text to her dad asking him to meet her there and help her carry her books.

We all survived, but driving back I wished that I hadn't encouraged her to ride in the car this morning, and that I had carpooled (which would have involved biking to meet someone), instead of driving. Then the car would be at home and neither of us would have been depending on it.

So it's not a huge big deal but just enough of an inconvenience to push me back to wanting to bike instead of drive.

[7rider]

Saw a bumper sticker on a car in my office's parking garage:
"Hate driving in traffic? You ARE traffic!"
Funny, I think that line would work better on the back of a bike jersey than the back of a car.

[Sky King]

Two humorous incidents on Monday. I dropped our car off for servicing, as I walked in the man behind the counter says "you made it" I have never been to this shop before as the DH usually takes it in, so I said, oh, did you recognize the car? He says "no I saw you get your bike out of the car and knew immediately which appointment you were" then he shared with me the best way to get to the MUP :)
2nd humorous? moment - after leaving the mup, I have a fairly busy street with a major intersection that I ride through. prior to the light a right hand turn lane appears necessitating that I change lanes in order to continue going straight. I look over my left shoulder, see traffic but it is far enough back that I signal and move to the left. I hear a horn honk??? so I just waved and decided to take the high road that they were approving of my signal and my bright green jacket as there weren't any cars close enough for them to be concerned that I was "cutting" them off. :) In fact the light turned green just as I approached so I kept on pedaling and was through the intersection before any of the cars that had been behind me when I changed lanes even caught up to me.

[redrhodie]

Wow, was it warm today! I got sweaty. Weird November.

[malkin]

You rode!
Yay you!!


I got plenty of exercise coughing.

[tzvia]

Boy am I getting beat up. Construction on both sides of the blvd; metal plates, potholes, bad repairs and cut road sections for pipe that are poorly filled. Lots of debris. Dirt and mud. Getting fenders in my alu Fuji road bike would be quite a trick if I use wider tires so it's been fun trying to stay clean going to work (no showers). It really needs some 32c tires or greater, but it won't take more than 28c because of frame and brakes. So I go to the REI to buy some 28c tires for whatever relief I can get. Almost ready to call it quits but I love commuting. My commute is a straight line down that street so avoiding it would take me way out of my way.

REI was strangely not as busy as I thought it would be, so I took time and walked around the bikes. A steel commuter that can take wide tires and fenders would be nice. And I really don't mind going slower on a heavier bike at this point. They had a clearance sale, so I ended up buying the Novara E.T.A. size small, and fitted my lights, saddle, seatpost and pedals on it yesterday. Yea it's heavy, but the gearing range works in it's favor. No fenders yet, but I am looking into which ones to get. Rode it around the house, wow what a difference, almost feels like suspension. Most of the extra poundage feels like the wheels and tires, maybe one day I will get a lighter wheelset (29ers will work on this hybrid frame) if I can find a good sale. The 35c tires feel stable in the sand and lose pebbles from the construction sites. Just need to lower the stem a bit and it will be ready for next week. Yea!

[Sky King]

REI was strangely not as busy as I thought it would be, so I took time and walked around the bikes. A steel commuter that can take wide tires and fenders would be nice. And I really don't mind going slower on a heavier bike at this point. They had a clearance sale, so I ended up buying the Novara E.T.A. size small, and fitted my lights, saddle, seatpost and pedals on it yesterday. Yea it's heavy, but the gearing range works in it's favor. No fenders yet, but I am looking into which ones to get. Rode it around the house, wow what a difference, almost feels like suspension. Most of the extra poundage feels like the wheels and tires, maybe one day I will get a lighter wheelset (29ers will work on this hybrid frame) if I can find a good sale. The 35c tires feel stable in the sand and lose pebbles from the construction sites. Just need to lower the stem a bit and it will be ready for next week. Yea!

I can't wait to hear if you really ride that much slower, you may surprise yourself. The 35C's should make your commute much more enjoyable. I suggest you take a look at the SKS longboards (http://store.biketouringnews.com/sks/) or a simple planet bike fender to complete this great new commuter bike!

[tzvia]

well, it rained last night and most of today- it was pouring this morning, so I took the truck to work :(.

It just started raining again. Supposed to rain more tomorrow. Gonna stop by the LBS tomorrow after work- they have the Planet Bike fenders in the 'Hybrid' size in stock. They should work well. While I don't plan on riding in the rain, I would like to not worry about getting mud thrown up on me after, with all the dirt having been washed into the bike lane.

I am starting to miss the hot summer...

[Melalvai]

I got studded tires (Schwalbe Marathon Winters, carbide studs) on Sunday. I immediately switched from dreading the cold to I can't wait for snow and ice!! And therefore the forecast is rain and upper 30's for the next two weeks.

Since they are carbide studs I can ride on regular pavement, which is good, because I wasn't sure I'd be up for switching the tires out every time the weather changed, and what would I do if it was snowy in the morning and clear in the afternoon? So I'm riding on the studded tires right now.

My bike is not light, quiet, or fast. It's a commuter bike, and I have a rack, an enormous basket, jingle bells-- and when I re-built my front wheel with the new rim, I dropped 2 spoke nipples inside. So they rattle.

It's now noisier, heavier, and slower than ever before, with the studded tires!

[WindingRoad]

Tzvia that sounds like a pretty nice bike! It will be great for gnarly commutes.

Today's commute was warm actually, kinda nice, wish this weather would hold out for a while but I'm sure the nasty stuff is coming. :rolleyes: I had a driver scare the crap out of me though. Apparently she didn't see me until she started to pull out and then she hit her brakes at the last minute. :eek:

[tzvia]

Well, I got in some 4 rides on the Novara. Yea, I'm slower, by about 6 or 7 minutes each way. Expected. I can feel the tires spin up due to the extra weight there. But being 35c and having a steel frame just made it absorb the potholes and metal DOT plates. Sand was no biggie.

That's the good. The bad? Maybe not bad, but I gave that mustache bar 4 rides and I just don't like it. I've got an MTB riser bar in the garage, so I put that on, then went to shorten the cable housings and...

I should have guessed. The brakes felt a bit mushy, but I chocked it up to the extra weight on the bike being harder to slow, and this being my first cable disk brake bike, was not sure how it should feel. When I went to shorten the cables, I discovered that the REI idiot who assembled the bike used derailleur cables :eek::eek: for brake housing. If anyone here likes to self-wrench as I do, please remember- never do this. Brakes use higher cable pressure than shifting, and require the housing that uses the flat metal that wraps like a barber pole around the inner sleeve. That housing can be used for shifting in a pinch, but will increase resistance so may impact shift quality. But using the shift housing -bunch of lengthwise stands- for braking is dangerous. The pressure will make the strands bow out (mush mush) and they can fail - make your brakes fail - when you really need them.

So I replaced the housing, of course. And the mushy brakes became just wonderful. Now the bike feels like a nice cro-mo rigid mtb. So I ordered up a wheelset from PROWHEELBUILDER, nothing fancy but over a LB less than what is on the bike now and will be using a Ultegra 12~27 that I have in my spare parts bin. Heck, I might even throw a 11~34 on the original wheelset and some cx or 1.8 29er tires for trail riding next summer. That should be fun.

Oh- and i took the truck to work the latter part of last week, as I don't trust the pre-holiday drunk drivers.

[7rider]

Sigh.

I can tell when I've "fallen off the wagon" and haven't been commuting regularly.
I tend to forget to pack very critical things in my bag and I'm faced with a moment (or day) of panic as I'm standing there, in the locker room, ready to jump in the shower, and have a freakout, thinking, "OMG, where is my (fill in the blank)?????" :eek::eek::eek::eek:

If practice makes perfect, lack of practice makes you look like an idiot. :rolleyes:

[tzvia]

Strange ride to work. Last week, heck even yesterday, it was cold. That is, cold for L.A. Upper 30s, lower 40s f. This morning, a Santa Ana wind was developing (blowing down from the north/north east). It's a dry warm air mass because the air is friction heated by going up and over the mountains, and from the air molecules rubbing against each other. By the house, it was in the upper 40s, but when I reached a major intersection, the temperature shot up, like I was standing next to an open oven set to 300f. Crossing the street, the temp dipped again. It kept doing this all the way to work. Wild swings in temperature block by block. And the winds got stronger as I crossed across the valley floor.

Must have been 75 degrees on the way home, with a great tailwind.

[shootingstar]

Back to cycling to work for past few days-- it's been -14 C to -10 C with a wind at 30-40 km/hr. So my eyes are watering even with wearing protective glasses.

Then into a building, I'm sweating.... But feels good, even if the ride is short. I load up on groceries ....if there should be another snowy/storm this winter later on. :)

[Melalvai]

Yesterday someone said "It's supposed to be in the 50's next week." I replied "I guess if I can't have snow and ice, 50F in February is a decent compensation." Not an hour later I looked out the window and the snow was coming down hard! I'll take both!

It was pretty warm for the amount of snow. The ground was mostly slushy. My snow tires performed beautifully.

[Atlas]

Today was the first time I've ridden more than a mile since September! I had a major knee injury then and haven't been able to do anything for months. It was 60ºF today (in Iowa? In JANUARY!?) so I went out and now that I'm home it still doesn't hurt! This is so exciting! If all goes well and I don't feel any aches throughout the night I can finally start back to bike commuting in the morning.

[soprano]

It was so nice out today. This morning was 45 degrees, and then 65 with sprinkles in the afternoon. I could get used to this. Can I bottle it up and have some to pull out during the Texas summer?

Congratulations Atlas on getting back on your bike! I spent 6 weeks last winter nursing a badly sprained wrist, and I remember feeling so relieved and happy when I was able to ditch the bus and bike commute again. Isn't it nice?

[rubysoho]

First commute of the year today and I left my work keys at home.... ten or twelve (not exactly sure...) miles away! :p

I think I have hit my salt quota for the week. The roads were still dusty with salt from the storm that never came a few days ago. I road on my new Tricross and those hills are definitely more difficult on the tricross than the ruby but it wasn't terrible either! I'm still using a backpack. I hope to have a rack and fenders by the spring.

Only one person was mad and honked at me today. We were on a very narrow road with no sidewalk or shoulder. I consider it one of the more dangerous areas of my commute (aside from some poor viz street crossings and places where traffic is merging on to a road). But with the tricross I can minimize my time on that narrow stretch because I can cut across a public property to get to work instead of needing to stay on the road.

It was cold. (currently 34 degrees) I wore my ski pants over my long cycling pants. I am IN LOVE with my gortex gloves that have two fingers for shifting/breaking and then bundle up the other three of my fingers for warmth in a single compartment. Best ever!

Ok, time to focus and get to work! :D

[shootingstar]

When it's this cold, I always feel I lost an extra 10 calories just to stay warm for my short commute ride..

It's snowing lightly at windchill -23 degrees C (-9 degrees F). If it weren't for the wind, today's early morning ride to work could have been @ -14 degrees C ( 6 degrees F).

I just hope there won't be ice when I ride home after work.

[rubysoho]

shootingstar, your weather is much colder than mine. :eek: Mad respect for you.

[Melalvai]

Cold is relative. What's seriously cold weather in one area is unthinkable in another. Or to put it another way people in milder climates suffer as much at 36F as someone in a harsher climate suffers at 10F.

At least that's my theory, based in part on the few climates I've experienced, and how cold 34F seems at the beginning of winter and how WARM it seems at the end!

We were walking to the grocery store a few weeks ago and it was so cold and windy that both my husband and daughter complained their faces hurt. I was surprised, because it didn't seem that cold to me.

Then a few days ago I learned that there are physiological changes that happen in the skin of the faces of eskimos and in the feet of barefoot runners--any place where skin is routinely exposed to extreme cold. That explains why my face didn't hurt from the cold wind.

[shootingstar]

Then a few days ago I learned that there are physiological changes that happen in the skin of the faces of eskimos and in the feet of barefoot runners--any place where skin is routinely exposed to extreme cold. That explains why my face didn't hurt from the cold wind.

Wonder how folks in extreme cold do it without risking frostbite initially. Seriously. (And I get warnings from long-time locals here about frostbite.)

Yes, what I feel though still cold on the face, etc., is warmer than what it was a few wks. ago when it was colder than -30 degrees C (-22 degrees F) for several days. :rolleyes:

If you can believe this: twice in my life within the last 14 years, I have been interviewed for jobs in extreme cold climate zones --1 in the Canadian Arctic and the other about 400 km. probably south of the Arctic Circle.

It is not surprising actually various folks in our area have worked in the Arctic for a stint...no wonder after experiencing similar cold ..as a "taster" before going way up North.

[Melalvai]

Wonder how folks in extreme cold do it without risking frostbite initially.
Good question. I know that my face is "hardened" now, but I don't think my fingers are. Fifteen years ago when I was in college, only a couple hundred miles south of here and during years when winters were milder, I biked 5 minutes each way to campus with inadequate gloves all winter and got a touch of frostbite. For years afterwards, my hands would swell up if the water in the bathroom sink was cold! I'm very paranoid now about my hands getting cold.

[shootingstar]

but I don't think my fingers are.

I can appreciate your panic about easily frozen fingers.

I have Reynauld's Sydrome where my fingers get numb at zero degrees/right at freezing temperatures.

So when I lock up my bike in today's quite cold winter temp., I try to be fast...and park near a building, making sure I have my gloves nearby. I have lobster claw winter cycling gloves, so I have to take them off to deal with a lock.

[redrhodie]

Great commute for me yesterday. Parked my car at work and rode to radiation, which is only 5 miles, but at least it's all uphill coming back. I'm really glad I rode. It's a lot of effort to bring my bike and clothes for just 10 miles, but it's so worth it for the way I feel after.

I'm not sure riding has helped much with fatigue, as I've been sleeping a lot, but I'm convinced it's helped me stay otherwise healthy. I haven't caught any of the viruses my coworkers have had this year. I'm the only one who hasn't been out sick.

[rubysoho]

Good question. I know that my face is "hardened" now, but I don't think my fingers are. Fifteen years ago when I was in college, only a couple hundred miles south of here and during years when winters were milder, I biked 5 minutes each way to campus with inadequate gloves all winter and got a touch of frostbite. For years afterwards, my hands would swell up if the water in the bathroom sink was cold! I'm very paranoid now about my hands getting cold.

This is all very interesting. Growing up I was the kid that wore shorts year-round (in NC so winters are relatively mild with some snow). I then went to college in the mountains and some of my favorite memories are when friends and I would go out snowboard in blizzards. We spent a lot of time outside in really really cold weather. Once or twice so cold that water would freeze before it hit the ground. Then I moved to Northern VA and spent a little over a year as a working student for a horse trainer. I was outside from 6:30am to sometimes 8 or 9 at night, 6 days a week. The girl I worked with and I shared a house on the property but we made so little money that we kept most of the house at 40-50 degrees so the pipes wouldn't burst and our individual rooms at around 60 degrees. In the winter I was sleeping in a sleeping bag with my normal bed covers and in sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Ever since that year I've been super sensitive to cold weather. It has been nearly 4 years now and I am finally not shivering when it is lower than 70 degrees! It has been very strange and I am always dressed in more layers than anyone around me including gloves in my work office with the thermostat set at 70 degrees. I've decided I'm just weird. (But my tolerance for cold seems to be returning slowly.)

[shootingstar]

In the winter I was sleeping in a sleeping bag with my normal bed covers and in sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Ever since that year I've been super sensitive to cold weather. It has been nearly 4 years now and I am finally not shivering when it is lower than 70 degrees! It has been very strange and I am always dressed in more layers than anyone around me including gloves in my work office with the thermostat set at 70 degrees. I've decided I'm just weird. (But my tolerance for cold seems to be returning slowly.)


Maybe that's just it and better: your tolerance to cold is slowly returning. (You were tough!)

We have to give ourselves time to acclimatize ...while we're still young and healthy.

But I don't think I will solve my Reynauld's syndrome --I've gone to 2 doctors about this. I just have to be careful.

[rubysoho]

I was either tough or stupid. :p Probably a mixture of both.

I found a great pair of gortex gloves that keep my hands wonderfully warm. My hands and feet are always cold and it gets hard to move my pinky and ring finger. These gortex gloves have made it a non-issue when I ride. Would something like that help?

[7rider]

Someone got dumped last night on Valentine's Day.

Saw a bouquet of flowers dumped on the side of the road this morning on my ride in. Bummer.

[redrhodie]

Or, they could have been left on the roof of the car when he was loading in the giant heart shaped box of chocolates.

Either way, it's sad.

[Melalvai]

I love that we've already made up 2 stories to explain the flowers on the road. That's one of the things I love about biking, even more so with walking, is making up stories to explain things.

Here's a silly one (http://www.kirksvilledailyexpress.com/community/blogs/bicycling_and_walking_around_kirksville/x673677144/Two-bikes-play-ball) I made up about a couple kids' bikes that had been left out in the yard.

[7rider]

I love that we've already made up 2 stories to explain the flowers on the road. That's one of the things I love about biking, even more so with walking, is making up stories to explain things.


Yeah, but I still can't come with a good story to explain the big pile of sweet potatoes I one time saw on a ride! :p

[redrhodie]

Yeah, but I still can't come with a good story to explain the big pile of sweet potatoes I one time saw on a ride! :p

A body was hidden in a sweet potato delivery truck, and the killer had to dig to find it because his unique lapel pin was stuck in the corpse's hand. ;)

Okay, I stole that from Hitchcock.

[Eden]

I saw owl porn and pretty much got dusted by a unicycle on my commute this evening... yes it was a surreal sort of day....

[kweber]

I bought my first road bike a few months ago and use usually on the weekends, but I commuted for the second time today to work. I feel great and am able to get in 1.5 hr of exercise I wouldn't have got normally. No stops or problems today whereas the first commute last week my chain fell off twice.

[Melalvai]

I bought my first road bike a few months ago and use usually on the weekends, but I commuted for the second time today to work. I feel great and am able to get in 1.5 hr of exercise I wouldn't have got normally. No stops or problems today whereas the first commute last week my chain fell off twice.
Fantastic! I hope you have many chain-problem-free commutes.

[tzvia]

Been having the most massive allergic nightmare - Don't know what it was that caused it, but I have been unable to breathe through my nose since last Friday. So I was off the bike all week till today, as I am finally starting to breathe with my mouth closed again. Had to break down and use a nasal spray (hate those things, so addicting) because I could not sleep. It felt so good to be back on the bike, and it wasn't really cold or windy this morning either. It rained a bit earlier this week so the air felt clean and crisp. Can't wait for tomorrows MTB ride.

Been seeing more people commuting by bike than I've been seeing before. Older people on comfort bikes and cruisers, others on old steel MTBs. Two years ago it seemed like I was the only one on a bike who was not a kid. And for the first time, when I got to work and stopped at the guard station to dig out my badge this morning, another employee rolled up on his bike. Never saw another rider at the gate before.

[7rider]

Okay. More bizarro sightings on the ride today, and I am at a loss to come up with a story for this.

Today was Adidas Slide Day. (http://www.essentialapparel.com/adidas-mens-calissage-slides.html?utm_source=GooglePLA&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=CM7omunxsq4CFQff4Aod0QFXRA)

This morning, I ride down the sidewalk and turn left onto the road out of my neighborhood, per usual. On the sidewalk off to my right was a pair of these black and white Adidas slides. They are distinctive for their 3 broad white stripes. Huh. I ponder, as I ride by. I briefly wonder if I should pick them up, wash them and donate them to Good Will (since they were a pair, after all).

Fast forward to the end of the work day. I'm five miles away, in the heart of the city where I work, crossing a street with the light on my ride home. There, in the middle of the intersection is another pair (a pair!) of Adidas slides. What the heck???? :confused:

Alas..got side tracked on my ride when I got close to the spot of the first pair, so I didn't see if they were still there. Oh well.

[Melalvai]

Okay. More bizarro sightings on the ride today, and I am at a loss to come up with a story for this.

Today was Adidas Slide Day. (http://www.essentialapparel.com/adidas-mens-calissage-slides.html?utm_source=GooglePLA&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=CM7omunxsq4CFQff4Aod0QFXRA)

This morning, I ride down the sidewalk and turn left onto the road out of my neighborhood, per usual. On the sidewalk off to my right was a pair of these black and white Adidas slides. They are distinctive for their 3 broad white stripes. Huh. I ponder, as I ride by. I briefly wonder if I should pick them up, wash them and donate them to Good Will (since they were a pair, after all).

Fast forward to the end of the work day. I'm five miles away, in the heart of the city where I work, crossing a street with the light on my ride home. There, in the middle of the intersection is another pair (a pair!) of Adidas slides. What the heck???? :confused:

Alas..got side tracked on my ride when I got close to the spot of the first pair, so I didn't see if they were still there. Oh well.
That's an easy one. There was only one pair. They walked.

[rubysoho]

I finally mapped my ride into work online and discovered it is 13 miles, almost exactly! :D That means I've been putting down 26 miles each time I commute. I'm liking that.

Yesterday I skipped work (told them I wasn't coming in) and decided to explore one of the trails further than what I normally ride when I am commuting and I found some GREAT hills. Normally the trail isn't as hilly as the road because the DOT used different grading but not in this section. I had to work! So now I know where I can go when I am coming home from work to add a couple miles of more difficult hills if I want.

[redrhodie]

Nice S wind yesterday made for a fine afternoon commute. I love tail winds.

[Melalvai]

Yeah, that wind was something else! It was a challenge getting to work, but coming home, I FLEW. 20 mph on Jefferson St! That speed on that street might not be a big deal to some, but it's hard to get much speed out of my heavy commuter bike, especially with its studded tires.

I keep wondering if it's safe to take off the studded tires yet. I'm sure if I remove them we'll get an ice storm!

[redrhodie]

Yeah, that wind was something else! It was a challenge getting to work, but coming home, I FLEW. 20 mph on Jefferson St! That speed on that street might not be a big deal to some, but it's hard to get much speed out of my heavy commuter bike, especially with its studded tires.

I keep wondering if it's safe to take off the studded tires yet. I'm sure if I remove them we'll get an ice storm!
I took mine off last week, and it snowed yesterday, of course. I was probably premature.

[Melalvai]

We had a blizzard today and I went around all day feeling smug that I had not gotten around to taking my studded tires off. But when I went home, the snow had melted. I think I'll get them taken off next week.

[Tri Girl]

HOLY MOLY- on my commute on Wednesday, I saw another bike commuter riding to work. It's been ummm.... gonna say about a YEAR since I saw another bike commuter on my way to work.
We have so few people here that bike for work (which is sad, but not surprising since we are one of the fattest states in the nation).
Anyhow- I was so excited I wanted to wave and yell hello. But I refrained.:p

[7rider]

Anyhow- I was so excited I wanted to wave and yell hello. But I refrained.:p

Why? I often wave or ding my bell or give the "head bob" to other commuters. We're a small fraternity.

Some, I know by sight. I've assigned them names, as most I don't know (but a few, I've chatted with enough at stop lights to actually get a name). There is
"Guy with the really bright lights."
"Old Guy on the Older Schwinn Who Always Dusts Me." (saw him this morning in his bright shiny blue tights - true to form...he dusted me.).
"Mountain Bike Dude"
"Lady on the Cool Electra Bike". (she's the only other woman I've seen).
A few others I haven't seen in a few years. I suspect their job situations have changed.....

[Tri Girl]

Why? I often wave or ding my bell or give the "head bob" to other commuters. We're a small fraternity.


I should have- although I imagine with my excitement I might have wound up looking like a loon (arms flailing, ringing my bell). Plus, he was a half a block away on a street perpendicular to mine. :p I did see another one yesterday as I was leaving my driveway. He rolled right past and we exhanged niceties. Is it bad that I love that gas is going up? Last time it went sky high there were more bikers for transportation than I'd ever seen before.

I love that you name the commuters you see. If I start seeing them with any frequency I might just do the same.

My ride to work today was into a strong southerly headwind- blowing at 30 mph, gusting into the 40 mph range. It was rough, but it was kinda fun because it's trash day so I had the added obstacle of slaloming around trash cans in the road (I actually enjoyed that part). ;) It took me twice as long as usual, but I'm looking forward to the SAWEET tailwind I should have going home. I'm hoping to not have to pedal at all on the way home. :p Wind- you better not change directions. You hear me???

[Deborajen]

TriGirl, do you think maybe he saw you commuting and that inspired him to give it a try? How cool would that be?

I had to look at this thread to get inspired. My commute is a whole 4.5 miles, and I put gas in my car only once in every 3 weeks, but still - why waste the money? (and the gas?)

Hmmm -

[Crankin]

OK, I "commuted" for the first time in 4 years. I rode 5.5 miles to a client's house and prayed that their driveway was clear of the ice they didn't plow from last week's storm, which was covering the driveway on Monday. It was, and the parents didn't think it was weird at all that I arrived for couple's counseling on my bike.
I plan to schedule more sessions with the parents, without the kid, since my regular visit to work with their son is at the end of the day and I am coming from a distance in my car. I have another client that is 9 miles away and as soon as it's a little nicer out, I will start riding there, too.

[Melalvai]

I took my studded tires off tonight. It took a couple hours to get it all switched and I ripped up a tube in the process.

If the entire nation is blanketed in an inch of ice tomorrow morning, it's my fault.

I also changed the battery in my cateye and re-set it. I guessed at the mileage but I think I'm pretty close. It quit letting me cycle through the readings 200 miles ago (3 weeks) so I estimated my mileage based on what I remembered plus calculated from the last time I wrote it down (October). I came up with 8550 +/- 50. Close enough.

[Tri Girl]

s
I came up with 8550 +/- 50. Close enough.

WHOA!:eek: How long did that take you to accumulate that many miles? Impressive!



The start of the week and the end of the week couldn't be any more polar opposite than they were for commuting. Monday I was riding to work in short sleeves and capris and today I was bundled up in my wool winter coat, winter boots and heavy duty mittens. Go figure... ;)

[Melalvai]

How long did that take you to accumulate that many miles?
I got my bike in Oct 2008. So ~3.5 years? A little over 2000 miles a year.

[tzvia]

I got stung/bit on the head by something on the commute Tuesday; I did not notice anything until I hit the shower that evening. It's right where a side vent is above the right ear. Whatever it was, it stung right through my headsweat. Wednesday was so windy I did not ride. No showers at work means no workout before work so a 40mph headwind means take the Tundra to work. At well north of 4 bucks a gallon, driving the 12 mpg Tundra is not what I want to do. The 7am telecon Thursday ruled out my ride (hey, don't managers in East Hartford CT know that Los Angeles is 3 hrs earlier?) as I am not getting up earlier than 4:30 for anything other than an earthquake. At least the weather was perfect for my commute on Friday.

[Melalvai]

I took my studded tires off this week. I expected the next morning the entire midwest would be encased with an inch thick sheet of ice because isn't that the way it works? :D

My bike is so smooth, quiet, and fast.

Ok, it isn't any of those things compared to other bikes, but compared to itself with studded tires it is!

It took me nearly two hours to get them changed. When I got the studded tires in December I intended to pay someone to change them at the end of winter, but the end of winter got here and it wasn't convenient. No bike shop in town and the free lance mechanic who usually helps me out is holding down 1 full time job, 4 part time jobs, and is the primary caretaker for his new baby (his wife is a Dermatology resident). So I did it myself.

I put on work gloves so the studs wouldn't hurt. But the schwalbe marathons (the unstudded) are really freaking tight and I roughed up my hands getting them on. I ripped a hole in the rear tube in the process so I had to take that one off and put it on again with a new tube. Even with the gloves my hands got completely filthy.

I can't wait for the bike shop to open in a couple months! Of course the way businesses go around here it'll be open for less than a year and then fold.

[WindingRoad]

Loving this weather, it's still 65 degrees at 11 pm :) I hope my whole week is this nice. My body actually got warmed up and my time was shorter too.

[redrhodie]

One of those days yesterday. Started by almost getting hit by my upstairs neighbor in our back lot. She slammed on the brakes and wasn't even that close, but it was awkward.

Then on the bike path, I could hear the quickly approaching sound of nails, getting louder. I knew instantly it was a dog, but thought he was in his yard. Not so much. He was in full chase, seeing me as prey, barking and growling loudly. Luckily he came from behind. He chased for long enough for me to think through my options. Outrunning him was first choice, but he just stayed with me. Then I actually had time to grab my water bottle and attempt to spray him, but I could only get little drips, not enough to do much good. I thought of stopping, but then you're stuck with a potentially still aggressive dog. Back to outrunning him, along with yelling at him to go home. I sprinted and finally dropped him. Then I made the mistake of looking back to see where he was, and that slowing down renewed his chase instinct, and I had to go all out again. He finally gave up.

It happened too fast to get a good look at him, but I'm pretty sure he had on a leash. No owner in sight, though. He was a beautiful beast, and I hope he got home, but boy, what a monster!

Now the rest of the day was gorgeous, while I was at work, anyway. It seemed to be getting breezy as I was leaving, but it was still sunny and warm. I stopped in my lbs and as I was leaving, my friend pointed out the black sky to the north, the direction I was heading. As soon as I got back on the bike, a front came through. It was windy with thick fog and threatening rain. It came from nowhere, a lot like that dog. By the time I reached my car (which took a lot of effort to get to), it was sunny again. Crazy.

I love commuting.

[7rider]

Outside my garage at 6:50 a.m. today, getting my Garmin connected and lights on. Was overwhelmed by the numbers, volume, and intensity of the birds singing and calling all around me. It was crazy. Still dark - sun just brightening the eastern sky - and the birds were just going absolutely gonzo.
Ahhh, Spring!

[missjean]

Today was my first official commute of the season! 14.57 each way to the bike shop. I was not sure how I'd do, not having ridden very much, so I gave myself 20 extra minutes. But, no problem, I even had time to stop for a coffee (which I put in my water bottle). It was a chilly morning, 41*, and my toes were numb-cold by the end, but the afternoon warmed up a bit so it was a pleasant ride home.

[missjean]

It was 50* this morning.a little chilly for the short sleeved shirt & wind vest, but it was perfect for 72* on the way home.

[Serendipity]

Yahoo - commuting season is here again. Yesterday was the first commute - felt wonderful to get back on the bike. Had forgotten how wonderful it is to be out early in the morning. Very little traffic, snow is all gone & my new handlebar coffee cup holder works fantastic - life is good! :-)

Starting at least a month earlier than usual. Typically mid-April before its warm enough and most of the crud from the side of the roads has been cleaned up.

[redrhodie]

Finally an awesome commute today. Wind in the right direction, warm, and no one did anything jerky. I even made decent time. Oh, and the street sweepers came! Better than winning the lottery. :)

[rubysoho]

Great commute today even though I found a new way to get lost. :rolleyes:

To work was misty and foggy.

I cross some scary places where the bike trail and entrances/exists to a toll road meet (add poor visibility as well!). A very nice woman gave me right away. Once I was through she continued on and I noticed a bike rack on the back of her car. I really appreciated her empathy and kind gesture.

My other favorite part from today's ride was pedaling through flower pedals. They were on the trail and floating through the air. It was like a movie (ok, in my head). :D

[7rider]

So, I rode in this morning, bound and determined to get at least ONE commute in this week.
Got to the office. 100 folks milling about on the sidewalk in front of my building.
Huh.
Come to find out - electrical fire and smoke in the building. They closed the building to investigate and sent everyone home. So, after a dozen calls and texts to co-workers (I'm acting Division Chief today), I rode home.
Does that still count as a commute?

[Antaresia]

beautiful ;_;

for the short time I've been tracking my rides, I've been trying to break my 20 minutes ride time. I finally did that today:

Ride Time: 19:20
Stopped Time: 4:24
Distance: 4.68 miles
Average: 14.54 mph
Fastest Speed: 28.45 mph
Ahead of Best Ride: 0:55

Except....I did it because I brought a different bike to work. My cheapo single speed. Normally I ride my much more expensive soma. My high-ten 70's SS conversion did it. I don't know how I should feel about this.

[tulip]

Great commute today. I rode to the dentist; took me 17 minutes. It would have taken longer than that by car with parking and all. Then I rode home, stopping by the vet on the way to pick up flea stuff for the dog.

My new Arkel pannier (I just used one today) works great.

[NadiaMac]

I am a recent re-convert to bike commuting- I commuted primarily by bike for about ten years, but since moving to the SF Bay area quite a while ago, I've mostly walked to work, or (last 10 years), commuted by car. But, for various reasons, I've started riding to work again. I've been going 2-3 times a week, riding about 12-19 miles to work (depending on route) and I am loving it!

The route is partly dense city riding, and part quieter roads or bike/pedestrian path, the latter being along the SF Bay. So a mix of grittier and prettier. Going home, I take the company shuttle bus into the city (the ride home has some significant obstacles, either steep gnarly hills or horrific freeway interchanges to navigate), then ride about 1.5 miles home. Short, but ends with steepish climb-- my place is on an 18% grade.

I had an awesome ride in yesterday- I varied the normal route to include a climb of our local mountain (which adds about 8 miles and 1200 feet of climbing to the route). It was a blast. Takes a bit long for it to be an everyday thing, but what a blast. Rode the "normal" route in today, with a new variation that adds another 1.5 miles on bayside bike/ped path. Fun to expore different options for commuting in!

I am hoping to maintain the momentum & keep up the bike commuting!

[Tri Girl]

I am hoping to maintain the momentum & keep up the bike commuting!

Good job, NadiaMac!!! :) Welcome (back) to bike commuting. Sounds like a good route you have there! :)

[missjean]

Commute to/from work today, 29 mlies. It was 40* when I left the house this morning and about 3/4ths of the way in, there were snow flurries.
As I left the shop this evening, my front tire went flat in the parking lot, so back into the shop to change the tire. There was a tiny wire poking through the tire. On one of the back roads I saw a nice flock of turkeys. Those birds are big!

And, my darling husband had Chinese waiting for dinner when I got home!

[azfiddle]

Now that the sun is up earlier, I will be trying to commute once a week again. I wear regular cycling shorts and jersey, rinse my hair in the sink (great being in a science classroom with a big sink & tubular hose!). I try to bring a pair of jeans and school t-shirt ahead of time, since that is the usual Friday dress code.

Friday's commute was great, less breeze than usual and I was ahead of schedule.. but I realized en route I had forgotten one important element- no underwear! Fortunately, the Walgreen's drugstore opens by 7 am and I was able to re-supply with a couple extras for an future forgetful commutes.

On the way in, I am always rushed so I stick to the main roads, even though there is a lot of traffic and the road surface is pretty rough in places. I wouldn't ride it if it didn't have a generous shoulder with a white stripe. On the way home, I have the option to cut out the three worst miles along a new MUP. It is nicely designe, has a great road surface, and very little bike or pedestrian traffic. But it adds 2 miles and I can't convince myself to wake any earlier to ride in to work. I have to leave at 6:30 as it is.

[tzvia]

Oh boy, summer is coming and it's going to be a hot one...

A few weeks ago, it was cold and I wore long sleeves and a jacket. Just a week ago, it rained hard with thunder and lightning. Today I rode home in 92f heat. So hot so quickly and still only April. I went through a large water bottle in 35 minutes. And made a slush from frozen cherries and crushed ice the moment I got home. Aaaaaahhh...

[ZenBiker]

I biked about 60% of the work days in April, and am determined to make it 100% for May since it's National Bike Month. There's road construction on the most direct route to the office, which is no problem at 0645 when I'm going in but a pain and bordering on dangerous coming home. They have traffic shifted way to the right so they can pour curbing on the other side, which puts the cars on the shoulder and me in the dirt (and still very close to the cars). There are other routes, of course, and I'll just have to remember to take the long way instead of getting on the usual route out of habit and then being stuck there.

Other than that, it was a great May Day commute - mild temps and no rain, despite a wet forecast!

[kelleil]

I had a great commute today. Masterfully handled traffic. However head wind. Tremendous headwind.

[Melalvai]

The clouds loomed darkly this morning but the weather page said only 10% chance of rain. So I didn't hurry to get to the office while it was still dry. Then the heavens opened. My expensive rain gear keeps me fairly dry, but I do get damp around the edges in a heavy rain. I looked at the downpour, stripped down to a t-shirt and underwear and put on my rain gear and sandals. I put my work clothes and socks in a plastic bag. I have shoes in my office. When I got to work I changed into my dry clothes. The only thing I forgot was a towel. My tshirt and my rain gear are hanging up to dry.

The lovely part is that it's warm enough to do that. On colder rainy days I end up with wet socks and wet gloves. I bring extra of both but if I have to go out several times it is limiting.

[ZenBiker]

I had a great commute today. Masterfully handled traffic. However head wind. Tremendous headwind.

My sympathies. During April and May where I live, there's almost always a west wind in the afternoon, which is a head wind for my commute. Today it was 15 mph, gusting to 25 = no problem. Some days it's 25 gusting to 40. That makes me say bad words.

[NadiaMac]

So, updating my last post: I've managed to keep up some momentum with the commuting and have managed to ride to work two or three times a week each week. Mostly, I take the more direct route, which is about twelve miles, but i've ridden in over the neighboring mountain twice with a co-worker, which is pretty cool. I've ridden in a few times with a big group commuter ride- over 60 people showed up last Friday! Most of the folks go much further, over forty miles to work!

on the process side: I located the showers at work - pretty nice ones in the building next to mine, and our company provides towels and shampoo, soap etc so we are very spoiled in that regard. The other "improvements"- I picked up a chrome commuter backpack and the thing is great a big improvement for carrying clothes to work (two tiny comments, I may review it later). I also obtained a brighter headlight, though haven't used it much since it's pretty light in the mornings now.

The one thing I haven't worked out is carrying my work laptop in on the bike. The thing is a brick and I do work at home a fair bit especially on the weekends. I have some neck/back issues and am loath to carry it in my backpack, but at the same time, I like riding my road bike to work and am not into putting a rack onto it. I do have a backup bike with a rack, but it's clunky and way less fun to ride. So, at the moment, I ride in only when I don't need the laptop at home the night before. This is the major limiter.

[7rider]

What a cluster this morning.

So, I go to put air in the tires this morning on my commuter, which lives out in the garage. Flat rear tire. :mad: Maybe, I can pump it up, get to work okay, and pump it up again before my ride home.
Pump, pump, pump, hissssssss
Air was coming out nearly as fast as I was putting it in. :mad::mad:
Back inside. "Hon....can I ride the Big Buzz (http://www.rei.com/product/832566/novara-big-buzz-bike-2012)?"
Sure. Good to have an abundance of bikes and to be approximately the same size as DH.
So, I unpack my pannier, re-pack in another pannier, b/c my Arkel doesn't "work" on his rack without major adjustments to the hooks - which I don't want to do. Pump up the tires. Throw the grocery pannier on the other side of the bike (I need to hit the grocery store at lunch - plus I was bringing in pretzels for the office), put on DH's shoes (about 1.5 size too big for me :rolleyes:), and off I go.
Whap. Whap, Whap.
The Big Buzz is a "wicked cool" bike - but it doesn't have very long chain stays and my heels keep kicking the bags - especially the grocery bag - especially with DH's big water-ski shoes.
So it was a delicate, slow cadence, heel-up sort of pedaling style in this morning. Sigh.

[lovelygamer]

Commute yesterday and today was cold. 50 degrees 10mph winds. Not very fun in my opinion. Looking forward to a warmer ride home (it's warmed to 70).

This week is not promising. They are calling for 30mph tomorrow and 50% chance of severe storms Weds/Thurs.

Let's not even get into the lady that tried to mow me down INSIDE the parking lot to work. She couldn't give me 30 seconds leeway.

[Melalvai]

I had a routine, uneventful commute. To be honest I don't remember most of it.

Just figured I'd throw that out since everyone else had trouble today! :)

[radacrider]

Today was finally a beautiful commuting morning here in the pacific nw of Oregon! :)

Since this week is suppose to be nice I got out the road bike (Radac) - forgot how fun my 19lb race frame bike is to ride.

Rode with my son the first 2 miles to his high school, then had a short cat 6 with another commuter until we hit the little bit of rise, he ran out of steam; evaded a car that attempted to blow a stop sign on a side street, then just plain savored the sunny warm morning.

[kelleil]

My sympathies. During April and May where I live, there's almost always a west wind in the afternoon, which is a head wind for my commute. Today it was 15 mph, gusting to 25 = no problem. Some days it's 25 gusting to 40. That makes me say bad words.

I noticed I can handle headwind better on my road bike. On my commuter, a steel single speed, I'm all kinds of cussing.

[kelleil]

So, updating my last post: I've managed to keep up some momentum with the commuting and have managed to ride to work two or three times a week each week. Mostly, I take the more direct route, which is about twelve miles, but i've ridden in over the neighboring mountain twice with a co-worker, which is pretty cool. I've ridden in a few times with a big group commuter ride- over 60 people showed up last Friday! Most of the folks go much further, over forty miles to work!

on the process side: I located the showers at work - pretty nice ones in the building next to mine, and our company provides towels and shampoo, soap etc so we are very spoiled in that regard. The other "improvements"- I picked up a chrome commuter backpack and the thing is great a big improvement for carrying clothes to work (two tiny comments, I may review it later). I also obtained a brighter headlight, though haven't used it much since it's pretty light in the mornings now.

The one thing I haven't worked out is carrying my work laptop in on the bike. The thing is a brick and I do work at home a fair bit especially on the weekends. I have some neck/back issues and am loath to carry it in my backpack, but at the same time, I like riding my road bike to work and am not into putting a rack onto it. I do have a backup bike with a rack, but it's clunky and way less fun to ride. So, at the moment, I ride in only when I don't need the laptop at home the night before. This is the major limiter.

Hey Nadia. Work in Mountainview? Are you talking about the sf2g group?

I put a Linus adjustable rack on my commuter with a Timbukt2 Shift Pannier Messenger. Easily handles laptops and not on your back. I have back and neck issues and I swear by that set up. The rack is elegant, light and unobtrusive; quite unlike most racks. The bag is hella useful. It's sold out on the website but I got it at the San Carlos REI.

Of course you could buy a new bike that splits the difference and you could put the rack on it. ;)

[redrhodie]

I was planning on driving today because I did a hard ride yesterday, and the forecast was rain (good excuses for a rest day), but I happened to get up early (thanks Eddy) and the roads were dry. Next thing I know, I'm wearing knickers. I bet the English girls think that's funny. :D

It was crazy windy, but from the south, so all the headwinds were downhill. I love south winds. I had a sweet tailwind coming home, and it never did rain. Glad I rode. Tomorrow I'll rest.

[Tri Girl]

I'm the worst bike commuter EVER! It's May (bike month) and I have yet to ride to work this month. Last week I drove all week because it was just post-marathon and my legs were fatigued. Really, I guess I was just lazy. This week I've just been admittedly LAZY! :mad: I only have 9 days of work left until summer break and I'm going to bike them all, dangit!

[lovelygamer]

Today was a great commute. I live so close to work (1.75 miles) I have to get really creative to get in miles. I did 6.75 total today. 75f and 13mph winds.

Currently at 20 for the week, ahead of this point last week!

[NadiaMac]

Kelleil- yes, talking about SF2G, but I only go to SSF. I'm generally a bit too slow at the moment for style 3 SF2G but I've been doing the FFFF (first Friday friendly frolic) for the last few months and it's been been highly enjoyable (and as an aside, Gary Fisher was on the ride last week).
Thanks for the heads up on a rack. I'll have to look into it

[kelleil]

Kelleil- yes, talking about SF2G, but I only go to SSF. I'm generally a bit too slow at the moment for style 3 SF2G but I've been doing the FFFF (first Friday friendly frolic) for the last few months and it's been been highly enjoyable (and as an aside, Gary Fisher was on the ride last week).
Thanks for the heads up on a rack. I'll have to look into it

I unfortunately live in RWC and commute to SF. I have never made that ride. Also I'm not taking my road bike up to the city cuz I can't take it inside the building. But you just made my jealousy worse!

[kelleil]

Omg crosswind!

[ZenBiker]

Omg crosswind!

Ahhh, gotta hate those. I end up leaning into it without realizing it - then a big truck goes by and temporarily blocks the wind, and I have to swerve to correct! Or a nice big gust will come up and move me sideways on the road bike. Well, at least it's never boring. :)

[kelleil]

Commute was fine. Meh.

[NadiaMac]

I rode home today with my giant brick-like laptop in my chrome backpack (along with clothes and other miscellany), and while the pack did a great job with the load in terms of feeling balanced and comfortable, my neck was stiff this am I assume from the weight of the strap on my left shoulder/neck. Arhgggg. Need to sort this out!

Otherwise, my ride was delightful. Took a new way home which involved three blocks of > 18% climb, but otherwise much calmer traffic than my usual route. May do this in the future

[Crankin]

Not my commute, but just got a Skype from my son. He did his first commute from his new home and he got a ticket in Cambridge for riding through a walk sign in the cross walk on a red. Serves him right! Well, he said the commute was still good.

[Catrin]

I really enjoyed my first commute, and the two rides were so different from each other, both in route and conditions! It was 45 degrees for my ride in, and over 70 for the ride home :) Drivers were courteous for the most part and while 2 were quite close I didn't feel in danger. Riding around downtown at lunchtime was certainly well outside of my usual cycling frame of reference :eek: :cool:

[azfiddle]

Nice morning commute, and I brought Madei along for the ride. She must have been tired from her travel to Tucson, because she slept in the backpack on the way in, but enjoyed a good view from the mesh side pocket on the way back.

I never seem to overlap with anyone else doing the bike commute, but today just as I thought about stopping to refill my bottle with ice to cool off a little, a guy passed me on a bike. So I didn't turn into the convenience store, but caught up with him. He actually wasn't commuting, just getting in an afternoon ride, but it was nice to have company for a few miles.

[deanywalker21]

Today was my 2nd commute ever. I am regretting having not tried this sooner. I am more focused at work and seem to have more energy (without any caffeine). This morning's ride was cool but pleasant. This evening I experienced the pleasure of having a high visibility jacket with removable sleeves as the temps really warmed up. Only oops was finding two half-finger gloves that were for the same hand and having to wear the full finger ones from this morning home...a tad warm.

[Melalvai]

Dressing right for the day is a challenge when conditions can be quite a bit different riding in than riding home. Glad you are enjoying it!

[lovelygamer]

I was rained on this morning for 2 miles and beautifully shone on by the sun this afternoon for 4 miles. :) It's all about balance right?

[deanywalker21]

I decided to take the "hilly" route this morning. As I am coming up one of the long hills I see red flashing school bus lights.....and more driveways with kids...I thought I was safe, it was like 6:30 and I did not think buses picked anyone up before 7 am...guess times have changed. Anyway the bus driver finished picking up the first group of kids, slowed way down and did not put the lights on again until I was just passed her...she made my day...that hill was something and I really do not think I would have had enought steam left to get the bike going again. After having been doing this for only two weeks my co-workers are expecting me to bike in everyday. I got to buck 14 mph winds in 84 degree temps on my ride home. It made me very glad that my route is full of twists and turns so that I got a break from the wind. I almost forgot my car keys when I left work at the end of the day, put my wallet in my bike bag and left the keys laying on my desk. Lucky for me I got a phone call just before leaving and spotted the keys...makes me think I should seperate my work keys from my car key and keep the car key in the bag. That would have just not made for a good Friday night...tripple the traffic, the miles and that wind.

[lovelygamer]

Yesterday, I biked to work twice because I left my business clothes home. Ugh lol well, it increased my miles by four. It was chilly in the am and breezy in the afternoon.

[azfiddle]

Yesterday I had the pleasure of my DH's company on the commute. He came down to do a presentation for my classes. The morning ride in was good, almost no wind, and although we had a stiff headwind to start our trip home, on the northbound final 5 miles we got a boost from the wind that kept us going over 20-22 mph, sometimes 25! Whee!

[ZenBiker]

I was out of town on a work trip during bike to work week, but I took my bike along and chose my hotel based on access to a multi use path that would get me close to the office I was visiting. Worked great for a couple days, then on the actual Bike To Work Day we had thunderstorms and wind - I gave in and drove. But my bike was on the car and maybe provided some advertising as it sat in the parking lot. :rolleyes:

[Antaresia]

SO FRUSTRATED, here, have this tl;dr

Orange bike had the drops measured to fit, since I had them replace the flat bars. Drops on the orange bike are more comfortable than my custom-to-fit soma drops. I ask the soma builder, he confirms the drops he put on were too big to give me "stability" over comfort. Never mind that I didn't ask for that, but whatever. He'll replace them for free.

I get them replaced, and they knocked the front fender so hard it was beyond my ability to bend back into place.
I take the bike back to get the fender fixed, they fix it, I take it home.

Except they did a **** job fixing it, and today as I'm just finishing the first mile of my commute, the fender fails again, big time. So how was my commute today?

Alternatively pedaling as hard as I could, then coasting for as long as I was able with my right foot pushed up against the front fender so it wouldn't rub the tire raw. My commute was angry.

I. Hate. That "bike shop". So friggin much.

[lovelygamer]

I am sorry to hear that your LBS sucks. :( That is so sad.

I had a tough day. 84 degree heat, super sunny and 20mph winds. I went 12 miles total in three different commutes. Painful.

[deanywalker21]

I have expanded my route to 14 miles from the necessary 9.5. It looks like it will be realistic for me to commute 2-3 days a week. Today was a one way commute with both my bike and I catching a ride back to my car from a co-worker - due to winds in excess of 30 mph and threat of late afternoon thunder storms. At the end of my refreshing ride in this moring I got chased by a dog just after taking my lane for a left turn. I was able to out peddle the dog and it managed not to get plucked off by the garbage truck behind us and the oncoming traffic. I have been getting up at 4:40 so that I can get not only the commute in, but also some extra miles. I have been arriving at work 45 minutes before start time and am amazed at the energy I have. Sleeping like a rock at night too. I work on a Reservation with lots of forest and keep thinking that one of these mornings I am going to see a bear. Last spring one waddled across the road about 100 feet ahead of me.

[Crankin]

Putting this ride under commuting, since for me, it's a utility ride. While I have two clients I can ride to, I've only ridden to one of them, a couple of times.
So, I decided to ride to the gym for my circuit training class, which starts at 5:30 AM. I generally get up very early at this time f the year, but I set the alarm for 4:20, in case.
OK, the gym is really only about 3.5- 4 miles from my house, but the route includes a traffic circle that is the most notorious in the state. While I probably could do it at 4:50 AM, I really don't feel like getting t-boned by some half awake motorist. I am entering and exiting the 2 "local road" streets, which no one pays attention to. So, my route to the gym by bike is 6.8 miles, through Concord center, and across the highway, into West Concord, where the gym is. It's a gorgeous morning, about 64 when I left. It was still a little dark, so I had my lights. When I got to the highway, I realized that my bike would not trigger the signal and there were no cars coming from my direction. So I actually rode across to the median (absolutely no cars, although there is a walk signal) and pressed the walk button on the median, which stopped the steady stream of cars heading into Boston. Wasted a couple of minutes there, but now I know I have to do this. Got to the gym about 5:20, which allowed me to change my shoes, etc. Brought my bike inside, since the rack on my bike made it impossible to fit in the bike rack. I had worn my new Terry Liberty shorts, which are long, tight on the top, baggy on the bottom shorts (kinda like a cross between road and mtb shorts), and my normal gym tank, with a LS jersey over it. The shorts are a little weird on me, possibly too big, but I think they will shrink in the laundry.
The class is getting progressively filled with more and more cardio intervals, so I took it a little easy (not too easy). I brought my bolero to wear over my gym top on the way home, which was perfect. And, I had a little taste of nasty commuting. The train was stopped in West Concord, and there was a long line of cars stopped. I was able to zip up to the front, in the parking lane, but after that the cars were being very aggressive; I got in the lane and they were still squeezing me right, so it kind of made me turn aggressive! I stuck my left arm out and shook it at the car behind me a couple of times, and I decided to turn left and cross the highway at a calmer intersection, since it was late enough for there to be cars to trigger the light. It was a good thing I didn't come this way, though, since there's no walk signal.
Saw my DH riding to work when I was about 2.5 miles from home. I will do this again, since it's a good option for utility cycling. I had a total of 15.5 miles.

[lovelygamer]

I did something different today. Instead of loading my basket and wearing a throw bag on my back, I put everything into an actual backpack with wide straps. It was so much more comfortable for both me and the bike weight. The only negative was the weight of it on my back during the heat. I can't wait to get panniers. I hope they even out the clunkiness of my commuting. I want to get it to where I don't have to overload the basket (affecting the steering) or overload my back (makes me hot).

Edit: 8.20 miles on the way home! Would have made 10 but I ran out of water and it's too hot to press the issue.

[7rider]

Rode in today with a friend and co-worker who wants to get into bike commuting and wants to lose some weight. So, as I often do with newbie cyclists, I was really careful about signalling and calling out turns, obstacles, stopping at stop signs, not sprinting for lights, waiting at the top of hills, stuff like that. Last year she had done a multi-day tour with friends and this morning was telling how they frequently commented about the importance of calling out "slowing" and "stopping" when doing so - as a few times, they didn't, and the cyclist in the rear would run up the rear wheel of the biker in front, and of course, the last cyclist is the one that goes down.

So, we got to about our split point this evening on the ride home, and we're chit-chatting about my route to my house vs. her route to her place, going about 4 mph, when she says "Oh, this is the road I need to turn at." So, I say "Here?" and stop. And - D'oh! - I broke the cardinal rule -- I didn't tell her I was stopping (after two trips of non-stop hand signalling and calling out turns), and BAM! she ran right into my rear wheel and did a slow-speed topple to her right - onto the sidewalk, unable to clip out of her pedals. Bloody knee. I felt so badly! She'll live. She laughed about it, with blood trickling down her shin.

Hopefully, she'll join me again - but I'll be sure to remember to call out "Stopping!" :rolleyes:

[Catrin]

I seem to be more nervous at the thought with riding with others around traffic than solo. This is kind of strange considering my lack of experience in traffic, but there you go. Tomorrow I plan to ride on a "regular" day, depending on how I feel in the morning. My usual commuting day is Friday, and I only work 4 hours on Friday so I've not yet had the full experience of riding home in the evening. I've not ridden to work for almost 2 weeks due to my work schedule so I need to get back out there before I get nervous about it again ;)

My recreational riding is still taking me places where I wouldn't have ridden even a month ago, so good things are coming about from commuting :cool:

[Melalvai]

Catrin, my daughter, who rides her bike regularly everywhere, has never ridden in a group until a few nights ago with the Traffic Skills 101 class that I'm teaching. Something fell off her bike and she stopped suddenly and in the middle of the road-- and another rider bumped into her. I suggested she break that habit right away, because it's one thing for a bicyclist to bump into her and quite another if it was a car! Of course I doubt she'd have stopped like that if there had been any traffic on the street. Still, it's not a good habit.

We used the opportunity to tell everyone, when riding in a group, never stop suddenly but pull over to the side of the road and announce that you are stopping. These are just things we don't have to think about when we are alone.

This weekend I got honked at 4 times. That's more than I've been honked at in the last six months. It's really amazing how much I DON'T get honked at around here.

What was really funny was that they weren't all dumb kids doing the honking. One was a little old lady in a big pickup. Another was a dad with his family in a car! My daughter said it might be the same little old lady who honks at her regularly on her way home from school. When she said that, I didn't think it was funny anymore. It made me really mad that some stupid old woman would honk at a little girl on a bike over and over.

[Rina]

Today I got caught in my first rain storm in Texas. It felt kind of good considering it was 94 degrees. Everything is a better on bike.

I look foward to riding into work everyday. My job is not as stressful since I started riding. I have converted one friend to a commuter. And another to weekend errands on bike.

Happy Biking Days.

[Catrin]

Beautiful ride in this morning! Fastest I've ever been on the bike (it helps to, basically, only have 1 hill on a 10.5 mile route), so my average actually got up to 14 :) With my riding position I don't really expect my average to get much higher but time will tell. I think getting more efficient at shifting will help in this department as well. Trying to remember to get in the big ring on the flats which does help.

Only managed to get stopped by 2 red lights - and the second was within my last mile or so when I was already cooling down. Did have one close brush with an inattentive driver but all is well that ends well. I did, however, forget my sunglasses for the return ride home tonight :eek: that is what I get for leaving home when it is still dark. Oh well, I won't be headed homewards until after 6:30 (probably) so will just have to grin and bear it.

Rides like this morning make me wish I was riding to work more than once a week! I will consider this after my vacation in July.

[Sky King]

What was really funny was that they weren't all dumb kids doing the honking. One was a little old lady in a big pickup. Another was a dad with his family in a car! My daughter said it might be the same little old lady who honks at her regularly on her way home from school. When she said that, I didn't think it was funny anymore. It made me really mad that some stupid old woman would honk at a little girl on a bike over and over.

I don't mind being honked at --- as long as it is a honk from more than 100 feet behind me. Honking right behind or while next to me will cause me to purposely ride erratically as it just makes me angry. If I am driving and out places with bike riders up ahead and I can't move entirely over into the other lane I will tap my horn usually when I am about 200 feet back just to let them know I am back there. When a car or truck honks appropriately when I am riding I will wave a thank you. I would much rather have that then the car to appear suddenly on my left when I haven't heard the approach due to the wind in my ears :)

[Catrin]

The commute home was great, but it came after two workouts at the gym - one was me doing my own thing and then I did a 30 minute Bosu class. Even with all that I did fine with the 13 windy mile ride home :cool:

One interesting note. I've been using a MUT downtown when I can, and then another trail to get from my gym to a point about halfway home. I am learning that I behave better when I am in the street with traffic when I am in areas where the trails intersect with busy streets. I am more confident when I am on the street - I know how I am supposed to act - like a tiny car and I think that it makes it easier for drivers to anticipate what I am going to do. It seems easier to do less wise things when I am on what amounts to be a wide sidewalk. :o

[Melalvai]

I agree. On the trails the rules just aren't well established and no one really knows what they are supposed to do. That's how most bicyclists are on the street, but at least everyone else is predictable.

There is a tiny little 3/4 mile MUP in town and it has signs that direct bicyclists to ride on the RIGHT and peds to walk on the LEFT! How confusing is that! There is a bike lane/ ped lane on another street, which is kind of an odd duck, instead of a sidewalk there's a ped lane striped, then a bike lane, then the regular lane. That thing has an almost identical sign only this time bicyclists are directed to ride to the LEFT of the pedestrians (ie in the bike lane which is in the middle between the ped lane on the far right and then regular traffic lane)-- which makes a lot more sense. Slowest traffic to the right, fastest traffic to the left!

[Catrin]

I agree. On the trails the rules just aren't well established and no one really knows what they are supposed to do. That's how most bicyclists are on the street, but at least everyone else is predictable...

Yes, and we are in the flow of traffic so we aren't trying to interrupt it. Last night on the way home I was stuck at a minor intersection because I was on the "trail" and there was always a line of cars waiting to turn both right and left into the subdivision - I finally had to take a risk to cross on a red light - and it was risky but no one would give me a chance to cross. If I had been in the the traffic flow it would not have been an issue. There is a portion of my route home out of downtown for which I may not have a choice when I leave close to evening rush hour but we will see.

[Melalvai]

Today's commute was all about alternative transportation for me. My bike was out of commission (see the stripped bolt thread in "maintenance"!) so I walked to work. My bike mechanic could take care of the stripped bolt in the evening, so I walked home, loaded the one-wheeled bike on the car, tossed the other wheel inside, and drove out to his house.

The drive was interesting, because I so rarely drive anymore. The walk was more interesting. I rarely walk to work in the summer, and I discovered a neighborhood that has the most beautiful hollyhocks on both sides of the street. Pretty!

[redrhodie]

Pouring rain for yesterday's commute. My sleeves filled up like water balloons, and even my socks were wet, but it was awesome since it wasn't cold or windy. The only part I don't like about riding in the rain is dealing with a dirty wet bike, but once it's wet, it's wet. Might as well enjoy it.

[ZenBiker]

... Everything is a better on bike. ...


This. I had a long, frustrating day at work - nothing especially bad just nothing that worked out, or got done, or felt good. But when I walked out the door and got on my bike, life got better. (It helps that the wind finally backed off to normal June level :))

[Giulianna23]

Finnally decided to start commuting to work . I started Saturday and I feel good about it..was a little scared because of the traffic but for the past 2 weeks I studied the routes to pick the best one. More than 90% of the ride is safe but when I get to a Highway exit intersection that I have to be very careful. But other than that I feel good about doing this. I can feel the workout in my legs and my torso , they feel tight all through the day.

I have a question .....I do eat something before heading out in the morning. Like a bowl of oatmeal made with soy milk but as soon as I get to work I start getting real hungry..and I mean..reallly hungry!.. should I eat something heavier before starting my commute?. I ussually eat a snack at mid morning and feel fine ...but now I feel hungry right after my commute...like before starting my shift at 8:00 a.m. and I really don't want to eat more than I should specially when trying to lose some more weight.

BTW the weather was nice this morning decent wind at times...but refreshing...

[redrhodie]

Good job, Giulianna. I always eat something right when I get to work, so basically I have 2 breakfasts, like a bowl of oatmeal with fruit at home, then whole wheat toast with peanut butter and banana at work. I'd be pretty depleted if I tried to wait until lunch. I really think this has made my metabolism faster.

Yesterday's commute was perfect. I've been taking the longer route to avoid the bike path. There's less road traffic since school is out. Lots of pretty scents, like honeysuckle and rose. I feel lucky to be able to ride in such nice conditions.

[chatnoire]

Mini-commute for me today! I rode the old bike 1 mile to a new yoga studio in the area, and did an hour 1/2 of yin yoga focused on hip openers, then rode back. It was awesome. :) The ride was good too. It's straight down a single street with only 1 turn, and everyone was mindful of my presence on the road. That was nice.

[lovelygamer]

Did a little light commuting today, as I work out seat adjustments and knee pain. It's a lovely mid 70's and breezy day. My only annoyance was a timid cyclist travelling the wrong way (towards me in my lane) in the road this a.m.

[Catrin]

Here is a beautiful little scene I get to see every morning when I ride my 11 miles to work. I don't generally mix up the morning route and this is part of the reason why. It was a great ride this morning, though it started out on the chilly side I did warm up. Mornings like this one make me want to ride to work more than once a week but that isn't feasible right now. In another month that should change.

I only work 4-5 hours on Friday (I work 4 nine hour days) and I've been experimenting with different routes home. I will not consider taking the same route home as I take at 5:30 am as I would like to survive the commute :cool: this was taken at 6:10 am and was almost to work.

Due to my short day on Fridays I have a lot more flexibility in the homeward-bound route. It wouldn't be possible to really experiment closer to rush hour so this works out well. My route home today was a bit over 16 miles, so I rode around 27-28 miles today.

[malkin]

Oooh, so pretty!

[SueMargaret]

And I have to say it was great. My office just moved over the weekend. Previously it was only two miles from my home and since I could take an hour for lunch I would drive and then come home for a nap at lunch. But now my office is 8 miles away==a perfect commute. It was chilly morning and I was cold at first but warmed up quickly. My route follows the Penobscot River which was misty and beautiful. About 35 minutes with my pack fully loaded and lots of good natured ribbing from my (impressed) co-workers. Came home the longer way --12 miles with more hills. It was lovely. What a good way to live!:)

[redrhodie]

It is 93° right now. I may have mastered commuting in the heat. I got to work hardly sweaty. It took an easy pedal stroke, and effortless effort. Today was not a day to even think about riding fast.

[ZenBiker]

"Interesting" is the word I'd choose. After reading all the advice about getting a professional bike fitting done, I went ahead and did that yesterday. The lbs I bought my bike from doesn't have anyone trained to do fittings, so this required taking the day off and driving 3 hours to the Big City. The guy who worked with me said he would have put me on the next bigger frame :( but the fit was close enough that swapping out the stem and making a few other adjustments should give me a good ride position :)

Anyway, this morning's commute felt kind of like getting used to a new bike. Not dramatically different, just unfamiliar. I think this is going to be a big improvement once I get used to the new position and slightly different handling.

Then, after work, I had to pick up two 8' x 4' outdoor banners I just had made for our local farmer's market (which opens in July). So I was riding down main street with these rolled up, but still quite large, banners strapped to the sides of a backpack like a pair of skiis. This is in a town that lives and dies on oil and gas drilling, so bikes get odd looks even when they aren't doing anything weird. I'm guessing there were some interesting comments made about me, but maybe not - maybe they just ignored the odd biker going by.

[SueMargaret]

and I love it! But today was very hot and I took the long way home because I won't ride for the next couple of days. So it was about a 20 mile ride home. Very hot for us here in Maine. About ten miles in I started yawning like crazy. Then close to the 15 mile mark I got chills and goosebumps. I realized that something was not right and stopped to get a cold drink. Felt very wierd and disoriented. Finally I bought some PB crackers to eat with my cranberry lemonade adn felt better enough to limp the last five miles home...has this happened to others?

[Melalvai]

You were smart to realize something was wrong and get some food & water. It just takes a few days (or more) to adjust to heat. I struggle with it every year.

I finished Bike Across Kansas on Saturday, 60-80 miles daily. I tried to go for a short ride Monday evening but it was too hot and I didn't do well. (I nearly threw up.) It was unusually cool for Kansas last week. Then on Tuesday I biked to work, not even 2 miles, and got super nauseous again. Wed-- I was feeling sick before I even got on my bike. (I biked anyway. Slowly.)

Heat and fatigue, I guess. I'm off to NIH in a couple hours (by plane, not bike!) so no more biking this week. Hopefully next week will go better.

[ZenBiker]

Good reminders to take heat seriously - thanks.

It was 50 degrees when I left for work today, and is 97 right now. Unfortunately it's downhill in the morning, and uphill coming back - so I can't cancel out the temps with more/less effort pedaling. But it's helping me justify the nice, lightweight, stuff-able jacket I bought when I started commuting.

It was a red letter day at the office: we exceeded our bike rack capacity! Of course, we have around 100 employees and our bike rack only holds 6 bikes, so.... not much to brag about. But progress nonetheless.

[lovelygamer]

I had trouble in traffic yesterday afternoon. A woman tried to aggressively pass me on the left in a major intersection when there was no room. I would have been hit or knocked over so I put my arm out like I was turning to secure my space and that pi**ed her off. She barreled up on me and revved until the next light where she started yelling at me "Get your bike on the sidewalk where it belongs" and "You shouldn't drive in the road if you can't go as fast as a car." The intersections were a block apart. I was not going majorly slow-just following the flow of traffic. I thought she was going to get out and hit me. With things like this happening, it's frustrating. It sure would be a deterrent to a new rider. What if this happened to a rider on their first or second day out? I can understand why so many people fall into the "interested, but concerned" category as the League of Bicyclists calls it. Our communities need some real education on the rules of the road.

[Giulianna23]

I had a Flat tire this morning :( I am about to kill myself... now I am gonna have to wait at least until Friday to ride again :'(''' ... Sucks!

[Catrin]

I had a Flat tire this morning :( I am about to kill myself... now I am gonna have to wait at least until Friday to ride again :'(''' ... Sucks!

I hear you...between the big broiler in the sky kicking in tomorrow with temps >100F :eek:, my knee would likely appreciate a day or two more off the bike... This means I've not bike commuted in two weeks, though Sunday I DID ride downtown to my gym and back, taking different routes each way.

[Tri Girl]

I still read this thread in the summer, but since I teach I don't commute in the summer. I kinda miss it, but not so much that I want to get a summer job to have someplace to bike to everyday. ;)

Keep it up, ladies. I don't know how you do it when the temps hover above 100 for too long. As it is, I usually melt during August while the temps are still well into the 100's. I only get some relief when September comes and it tapers off into the 90's. Don't know if I could stand commuting for 3 months of 100's.

[Crankin]

Since my only commutes are errand rides and an occasional ride to the one client that lives near me, I did do a commute today. I only have one client on Wednesdays, and I had rescheduled him, to go on a group ride. Unfortunately, it was cancelled, due to threatened thunderstorms in Maine, where the ride was. So, I put my pannier on and went to the natural foods store and a gallery/artist's store to buy a present for a colleague who is moving. It had rained early in the AM and was still nice and cool at 10 when I left. When I turned onto Main ST in Concord center, a vicious wind hit me in the face. I felt like I was standing still! I was exhausted after riding 6.5 miles to west Concord. I ended up buying a little more than I intended at the food store, so when I got to the store to buy the gift, I decided it had to be a scarf, to save weight on my return trip! After it was boxed, the weight of all of my stuff, along with my lock and purse was enough to make feel like I was really working. I did have a tailwind all the way back until my first turn, about 3 miles and I made the light across the highway (very rare). Then, the wind hit me again, as I got near my neighborhood.
I like seeing the reactions of other cyclists and people when I ride my Guru, with the pannier, and I am not dressed in true roadie clothes. I was wearing a skort and a polo type jersey with a zip pocket. It's clear I'm riding a nice road bike, but I do have that rack (though it's titanium) and a huge pannier today. I got waves from all of the women, nods from most of the racer boys, and hellos from a few. There was a "casual cyclist" type in the artist store when I was in there, telling the shop owner all about how she rode there. The shop owner says, oh, my daughter has my bike on Martha's Vineyard this summer, so I can't ride. I piped up and said, yea, well the correct number of bikes is always N+1. The shop owner agreed, but the other woman glared. When I was unlocking my bike and heading back after my purchase, she continued to stare, as in the "people are rude" thread.
I still had fun. And carrying all that weight up my hill was a workout.

[Melalvai]

When it's hot like this, my rule is, if I'm going more than 8 mph I don't pedal. It's slow, but it keeps me from overheating.

I read an interesting article about the physiology of heat acclimation (sorry I long since lost the link). It involves increasing red blood cells because of the extra blood needed as it's all shunted to the periphery for cooling. According to the article, athletes acclimate within days, the rest of us take a couple weeks or more.

[Giulianna23]

I hear you...between the big broiler in the sky kicking in tomorrow with temps >100F :eek:, my knee would likely appreciate a day or two more off the bike... This means I've not bike commuted in two weeks, though Sunday I DID ride downtown to my gym and back, taking different routes each way.

Fortunately I was able to get my bike fixed yesterday Yay!...I was thinking about todays weather and wasn't sure of commuting today but ...what the heck!... here I am!!.... and for some reason the weather wasn't bad at all... or at least I didn't feel it .As a matter of fact the ride was nice....I didn't even feel the necessity of drinking water but I had some anyway just to hydrate my body ....I was feeling very strong this morning ....maybe the protein shake I had earlier?... Lets see later how it goes.
:)

[wackyjacky1]

"Get your bike on the sidewalk where it belongs"
I get this about once a week from one yahoo or another. :rolleyes: Usually I just smile and wave. :p

[Tri Girl]

I get this about once a week from one yahoo or another. :rolleyes: Usually I just smile and wave. :p

but I love when they shout that... and there's no sidewalk to be seen for miles. I get that sometimes, and usually when I'm in a neighborhood without sidewalks. Um.... you mean that invisible sidewalk- OK. ;)

I had a co-worker once tell me that bikes belong on bike paths. I told her that when the city builds me my own personal network of trails from my house to work and to the grocery store and the library, etc... I'll be happy to use it. Until then, I'm going to be on the streets since our city only has bike paths at lakes and parks.

[malkin]

Rode up to work yesterday for the first time in seems-like-forever. I figured I'd end up walking part of the big climb, but I was happy to find myself able to roll all the way up.

Okay, I stopped and walked around the guard arms at the rail tracks, because they were broken (?) and there was no train, and I wandered around to find a way around some construction that involved a trench about 8' deep, but I'm still giving myself full marks for the ride.

There are no kids at school this week, so not too much happening on the work front. Perfect for riding.

Hot. Not extraordinary though. July is always this hot. A little smokey too.

[redrhodie]

It was a perfect ride in yesterday. Stopped at the lbs to bother the guys, and still got to work early. Then right before I was leaving, I could hear thunder. I am not a wimp, I ride in rain, but lightning is another animal. I asked for a ride. Of course, it was sunny the whole way in the car. But still, I don't mess with thunderstorms. Not worth the risk.

[malkin]

...I don't mess with thunderstorms. Not worth the risk.

Amen!

[Melalvai]

Time to start wearing a t shirt and changing into a nice shirt when I get to work. Yesterday morning's slooooow ride to prevent sweat was just too challenging. I can get by not changing my shirt because it's only 10 minutes away by bike. But there comes a point when even 10 min in the morning makes me sweat too much to wear the shirt at work all day.

[silversurfer]

Commuting to work this morning, my back light came off while I was going down a hill. I heard it hit the ground and pulled over so that I could track back to see if there was any chance of salvaging it, though I didn't hold out much hope since it's a reasonably busy road. The driver behind me slowed down just to tell me that my light fell off. She got honked at by the car behind her and showed him two fingers before driving off. Two other cars slowed down as I was walking back up the hill to tell me that my light was on the road further up. Other cars were swerving around this light so that they didn't flatten it, until a taxi clipped it slightly and it shot off onto the pavement where I picked it up, pretty much undamaged. This is London. Greater (outer) London admittedly, but I'm still pretty surprised and still smiling.

[SueMargaret]

So I have now been commuting for three weeks. It's eight miles each way although I often take a longer way home. I'm so happy with my rides and I haven't put gas in my vehicle since I started commuting. So far I have no complaints from co-workers .. I am working very hard to be discreet and trouble no one. My work starts to feel like what I do between bike rides!
I LOVE my Arkel Tailrider Expedition--it takes everything I need or folds down for just my lunch, wallet, glasses and phone. I highly recommend it.

[Giulianna23]

So I have now been commuting for three weeks. It's eight miles each way although I often take a longer way home. I'm so happy with my rides and I haven't put gas in my vehicle since I started commuting. So far I have no complaints from co-workers .. I am working very hard to be discreet and trouble no one. My work starts to feel like what I do between bike rides!
I LOVE my Arkel Tailrider Expedition--it takes everything I need or folds down for just my lunch, wallet, glasses and phone. I highly recommend it.

Congrats....Thats exactly the time I started and distance for my commute ....and I feel you when it comes to not having to worry about putting gas in your car expecially a truck. I do carry a small backpack (sac) where I carry a small lunchbag with my home made meal; it has a front zipper pocket where I put my phone, glasses ,keys and wallet and two side net pockets I like it and its very convenient, but with the heat it makes my back really hot .. I am thinking on getting a tail rack..but dont know if thats going to make the bike a lot more heavy I ride an oldschool schwinn.

[ZenBiker]

My work starts to feel like what I do between bike rides!


great comment, and describes how I feel on a good day as well! My commute is a little too short at just 4 miles each way - I'm experimenting with longer routes that strike a good balance between time/effort needed and reward - to maximize the feeling you're describing.

[redrhodie]

My boss says I only go to work so I can ride there. It definitely makes the day better.

Yesterday was great. I rode the bike path for a few extra miles in the morning, and it was surprisingly quiet. Then I got an unexpected tail wind in the evening. The forecast was for the opposite, so I lucked out. Also, drivers seemed more mellow, even thought it was really busy after work. A little kid yelled out a car window, but based on his expression, I think it was something encouraging. I had left one of my bikes at work the other day when I took a ride due to thunderstorms, so I got to ride a different bike each way, which was nice.

[tzvia]

Oh man 105f today- too hot for me, I took the truck :(. Gonna be the same tomorrow so I'm gonna take the trusty rusty Tundra again. Wish it got better than 11mpg with the air on... It's been paid for since 2005 so maybe I shouldn't complain too much. What i save in car payments I use on bike stuff :).

Maybe by Friday the heat will break and it will be below 100f and I can ride again.

[redrhodie]

Oh man 105f today- too hot for me, I took the truck :(. Gonna be the same tomorrow so I'm gonna take the trusty rusty Tundra again. Wish it got better than 11mpg with the air on... It's been paid for since 2005 so maybe I shouldn't complain too much. What i save in car payments I use on bike stuff :).

Maybe by Friday the heat will break and it will be below 100f and I can ride again.

I would have driven, too. At those temps, it's too easy to get heat stroke.

[malkin]

...but it's a dry heat!

My eyes were so dry that my contacts were doing random sticky things, so I couldn't see. I was feathering my breaks, alternating hands when I thought of trying the same thing with my eyes. Winky left; winky right....Not great, but at least I could see enough to get me down the hill.

[Crankin]

Dry heat, my azz. Stick your head in the oven, temperature at 350 degrees.
I don't miss it.

[malkin]

Dry heat, my azz. Stick your head in the oven, temperature at 350 degrees.
I don't miss it.

Under the broiler is more like it.

Not a fan of the heat under any circumstance, but I do like the joke about the scientist who successfully measured the temperature of the sun and managed to send the result back to mission control before being sucked in by the sun's gravity. His last words were, "But it's a dry heat!"

[mandiam]

today at mile 15 on the commute, i saw a lady coming towards me who looked to be in her 60s, roller blading with an overall jean dress, with poofy white leggings, swiping away the gnats in front of her with a towel-- when we passed, she saw that i use a kitchen towel to cover my nose and mouth when going through the gnat zone-- and she gave me a two thumbs up. :rolleyes::p

[Melalvai]

I got a yakkay helmet (looks like a hat). So stinkin' cute!!! I love it. My commute is even MORE fun because of that thing. :D

[Giulianna23]

Got stung on my shoulder by a killer bee this morning :( ...

About 5 minutes after I left home ... riding down an incline road feeling the cool breeze ad happy because it's Friday!!...then all of the sudden..bang!!!... she got stuck on my shirt by my left shoulder.... I tried to remove her carefully so she won't sting me and without hurting her...but it didn't work. I am ok..I am not allergyc to them but it wasn't a good way to start the morning. I still enjoyed and had a good time riding my baby to work though.

[ak2outside]

I woke up exhilarated to ride to work, a very light mist, warmer weather (high 60's). Half way through the skies opened up and let me have it.

I still have dirt in my hair from all the muck my tires threw at me. With an average rainfall of 10.3" annually, I thought I was safe. I thought wrong!

[Catrin]

I woke up exhilarated to ride to work, a very light mist, warmer weather (high 60's). Half way through the skies opened up and let me have it.

I still have dirt in my hair from all the muck my tires threw at me. With an average rainfall of 10.3" annually, I thought I was safe. I thought wrong!

Thankfully you are getting rain, though I must admit that doesn't sound like much fun!

Reading this thread is making me feel guilty, for one reason or another I've not been able to do my once-a-week bike commute for a few weeks. I just won't ride home in the brutal temps we've been having. My asthma is pretty much just gone, but I am not going to risk it. I might have a chance this Friday, assuming things cool down for one day like they are promising, but I've heard them say what before this summer :rolleyes:

[ZenBiker]

I challenged myself to ride every day in July - commute to work, to the farmer's market , to church by bike. So far so good. Mornings are great, afternoons hot and not so great (though nothing like what you all are dealing with back east).

Had a close call this morning. I was at a stop light waiting my turn, one foot clipped out, standing in the middle of my lane. No other cars in my lane, just me right at the edge of the intersection. A truck coming from my left turned suddenly into the road I was on, tires squealing, and just made the corner without clipping me. I actually leaned my bike over trying to scoot sideways out of the way. Of all the ways I thought I might get hit by a car going to work, sitting at a stop light at this intersection was not one of them. Guess you can never take anything for granted!

[WindingRoad]

I took a break today and drove. I've been battling the heat all week and I think that cumulative heat exposure phenomenon may be happening to me. So tired and my stomach keeps hurting? I dunno maybe it's a bug or something but I gave myself a day off. I hope to ride again tomorrow assuming I feel better.

[Catrin]

I took a break today and drove. I've been battling the heat all week and I think that cumulative heat exposure phenomenon may be happening to me. So tired and my stomach keeps hurting? I dunno maybe it's a bug or something but I gave myself a day off. I hope to ride again tomorrow assuming I feel better.

It is good to take care of ourselves, tomorrow is another day!

[Gypsy]

My commute was better today than the last time I rode my bike. I also got my new lock and proceeded to lock my bike up...


Except, when I came down to check on it, the security in my building were worried because I had not actually locked the bike to anything.

*sigh*

[Melalvai]

My commute was better today than the last time I rode my bike. I also got my new lock and proceeded to lock my bike up...


Except, when I came down to check on it, the security in my building were worried because I had not actually locked the bike to anything.
I've done that! Not very often, but once I came out to my bike and realized it was locked to nothing, and once my husband watched me lock up my bike and then said "I think there's something wrong."