A very nice commute this morning (damp and foggy coming home, but still nice)
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A very nice commute this morning (damp and foggy coming home, but still nice)
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My commute is obnoxious - they're repairing railroad crossings on my route, so I have to take busier roads home. Phooey.
This is the start of the good time of year. Finally, warm but not blistering, breezy but not windy, dark but not cold. That colorful pre-dawn glow as black gives way to purple which gives way to orange promising that another day is just moments away. Clouds dance like feathers in the wind, headlights twinkle like stars and storefronts glow like neon rainbows. I have a few minutes to just look at the color, feel the cool air, listen to the trees rustle. I want to keep going but I pull into the parking lot, and stare out at dull tan buildings. 8 hours in a dull tan room loom. At least I got a few minutes of color on the way there.
In the limbo between summer and winter there is now. My favorite time to ride.
tzvia, nice poetry. The trees are turning and one of them, yellow and red and green, looked like a rainbow. I added some color to my office a couple weeks ago. I have a tiny little window that looks out into a white hallway. No one ever comes down here so there's nothing to look at. I made curtains.
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I finally got back on the bike after 2 weeks off. That's the most time I've taken off since 2009. I felt like I needed to replenish my energy, so I didn't go into the guilt zone that not riding always puts me in. Yay me. But it was enough time off! I lost a bit of fitness already, but the ride was great anyway.
Getting back on the bike after a break feels SO good. It's worth taking the break just to have that feeling.Quote:
Originally Posted by redrhodie
I had a little adventure today. I went out to help set up the aid stations for the Trail Half Marathon. Some of them are only accessible by boat. (Or by running many miles, of course, but that's hard to do with chairs, tables, water jugs, cones.) The boat stalled and we were stranded in the middle of the lake for 20 minutes. It was cold and windy. Eventually we got it restarted and we took care not to let it stall again by driving it very slowly. So it took about 4 hours. Toward the end it was misting, a cold wet windy mist. I was underdressed for the conditions and I got SO cold. Hours later, I was huddled in my office with a hat, sweater, and a lab coat, and still shivering! What finally warmed me up was my commute home.
Managed to sneak in one more commute today.
It was an absolutely beautiful ride in the morning - full moon, clear sky, stars shining - temperature not bad at around -2C.
Ride home was tougher. Seemed colder & with a nasty headwind, too. Soooo glad to finally get home!
Is that Forbidden Drive? Looks so pretty.Quote:
Originally Posted by carlotta
had a gorgeous commute today. The morning ride was just before sunrise, and the sky was streaked with red and gold clouds. 34 degrees which really isn't bad at all with wind pants and a jacket. Coming home it was warm and sunny with no wind.
Only down side was a little section of road work I had to get through. There were a few orange cones set out in the shoulder area, but nothing that looked like a barrier. I thought it was just to mark off the section of shoulder where they'd parked some heavy equipment. Then I hit the wet cement that had been poured to fill a 4' x 4' hole. I couldn't have dodged tp the left even if I'd seen it in time because there was quite a bit of traffic just then. I felt bad about the deep rut I left, but also glad I had enough momentum to carry me through it. I still wonder if I should have gone back and tried to fix it - but with what? Bare hands? I guess they'll sort it out tomorrow, after cussing all cyclists.
I almost came up with a haiku on yesterday's ride home but I couldn't get the syllables right. It was going to be something like this:
Puckered smoky pumpkin faces
Empty candy wrappers
(also I couldn't come up with a 3rd line... "Halloween is over" seemed too obvious. Also not the right syllables.)
Haha! Today was my first commute to work in at least a couple of years. It was AWESOME! I was planning on starting today anyway, but then mother nature blessed me with a brilliantly beautiful morning and I couldn't be more pleased. :) I did not time it, and I'll need to in the future, but effort-wise, it was just perfect. I chose a route that was slightly longer than 'as the crow flies' so that I could get all right turns. On the way home tonight, I'll be going a different route for the same reason so there will definitely be variety in my day. I can't wait!
Keep your fingers crossed for me that my bike is still there when I leave. I forgot a lock! We are on private property and the rack is right near the busiest door of the building (and on camera), so I am hopeful it'll stay there. My bike is also pretty ugly from an aesthetic perspective (smaller front wheel, stickers on it, loaded up with fenders/pumps, etc), so it should be ok.
Yayyyy GLC - that is just great! I suppose there isn't any way you can store your bike in your office? I stopped commuting when it got so blasted hot this summer, and my schedule since then has prevented my returning to it. Next spring I will try it again! I did enjoy it when the weather and schedule allowed.
Catrin - no, unfortunately. My office/cube is filled with boxes of t-shirts and other giveaways because we have no where else to store them!
My boss did agree to let me store my bike in her office for today. Yay!
It's the Wissahickon just below Forbidden Drive, probably my favorite part of the commute. Just got back from vacation and now it's in full winter mode, no leaves, etc. Happy to see not much trail debris from Sandy, it took forever for some of the mud/downed trees to be cleared after Irene and the storm the week after.Quote:
Originally Posted by WindingRoad
Definitely the first cold-weather commute this morning, had to dig out the tights, heavier socks and buff. I'm always amazed how the commuting ranks are decimated once it gets chilly-- I saw a total of four cyclists this morning in a stretch where I usually see 15-20, more once I got into the city but very light traffic on the trail.
First commute in months. Last spring I started piano lessons and morning is the best time for me to practice. Of course, every day I get carried away at piano and sort of forget to pay attention to the time and that I really need to get going. Today was a catch up day at work, so I rode in like a person of leisure after my long piano time, and felt completely lucky. I'm thankful for days like this.
It was windy, strong enough for little surprises (Whoa! That garbage can just tipped over!) but I never felt blown around; it was like a playmate, like nice waves in the ocean.
We're having beautiful riding weather this week, so after missing quite a few days in early November I'm back in the swing of bike commuting. Temps in the high 20s in the morning, low 50s coming home. I only worked a half day, took my panniers along and did my Thanksgiving grocery shopping on the way home. I only need to make a couple things to take to dinner at a friend's house tomorrow, so it's not like I pedaled home with a turkey and all the fixings. But I was still pleased that I didn't really even consider driving because of the shopping I needed to do. In past years, I probably would have opted for the car.
I'm getting better at figuring out layers and such, and barring snowstorms, I plan to keep riding til Christmas. After that, it'll depend on what kind of winter we have. January can be really cold, like -10 F in the morning, Last year that never happened and a couple of my co-workers rode all winter, inspiring me to try to do the same this year.
I made the decision that I wasn't commuting in the dark this year, so I'm missing it. It's been a month already. I still have plenty of time to ride, but I miss the gas savings, and the way I feel after riding to work. Luckily, it's only one more month until the days start getting longer, so it won't be that long until I come back to this thread.
21 degrees this morning but the layers worked fine. Yesterday at 32 I realized dropping off the car at Enterprise that I'd forgotten gloves... but yes, my tolerance has gotten to where after three miles fo alternating tucking hands under clothes, I didn't need to. I really liked the dry briskness this a.m. (and not havign to drive a car thing, much less watch a bike crash into a car as happened yesterday...)Quote:
Originally Posted by redrhodie
Wet! I had an appointment downtown. It was raining but I injured myself running and can't walk without pain for the moment. My choices were to drive, park in the parking deck, and walk 10 minutes to my appointment, or ride my bike and park in front. I opted for riding. Rain won't melt me.
So biking was the least obnoxious... here's hoping walking and running get less painful for you soon!!Quote:
Originally Posted by tulip
The bike ride was not bad, even with the rain. The walking will get better. I suspect the running will not matter, as my desire to run has diminished considerably after this incident. I just don't see the point; it's too easy to get injured running, it's a slow way to travel, and runners rarely smile. I'm sticking with my bike!Quote:
Originally Posted by Geonz
Got a late start this morning so I didn't need my headlight. Unfortunately I didn't think ahead to the ride home when I decided to leave the light behind. My afternoon meeting ran long so I ended up sprinting (well, my version of sprinting, which isn't all that fast) home in the last 20 minutes or so of light. Not quite the relaxing ride I had in mind but fun in its own way. Still having mild, dry weather - I keep thinking it can't last much longer, and then it does.
Finally back commuting after having to stay off the bike, nursing bruised ribs for about 4 weeks. Still a bit sore on the left side, can't sleep on the left side, but due to nerve issues from old car accident sleeping on that side was never anything I could do for long anyway. Now that it's really dark in the morning, and my ride home is dusk, I am glad I went nuts 'over lighting-up' myself. Bought yet another tail light, something new from Serfas, the 'Thunderbolt'. USB rechargable, high/low, and high/low blink, with a rubberized outer surface and rubber straps so it's on and off in seconds. Quite bright, and the rubber straps are replaceable, unlike their more basic one where it's toast once the straps break. Gonna get another this weekend, it's perfect for the road bike and weighs next to nothing.
Perfect weather today. Not too cold in the morning, my thick shell jacket and short sleeve shirt, regular full finger gloves and jeans were just fine. Must have been close to 60f.
As my workplace shuts down the whole X-Mas week through New Years Day I don't worry about commuting when I envision the number of drunks on the road is highest, but I still feel concern about the week before, as X-Mas eve is on a Monday. I guess office parties will be the previous week so I may not commute that week. Anybody else feeling concern with 'Christmas cheer'?.
Congrats at getting to be back on the bike.
Crazy weather! I'm a little relieved that it's cooler again. Having a 70F day in December around here just doesn't seem right.
I believe that statistically the holiday drunks are as much a threat to you in the your car as on your bike, unless I'm remembering that wrong, I don't have a study or statistics handy though. My attitude is, if it's safe enough to drive, it's safe enough to bike. That has been the case with snow & ice, rain & wind. I think we tend to be stupid about the conditions we are willing to drive in, when a better risk-benefit assessment would keep us at home entirely in those conditions instead of choosing to drive over biking as the "safer" option.
Man, I think the holiday cheer has started already. Not 2 miles into the commute home today, I almost get doored by an idiot who opened the driver door without bothering to even look. Luckily I have a rear view mirror that I had just glanced in, and I knew the right lane was empty so I was able to zig out of the way, yelling "DOOR ME!". Yea, I know, not too inventive, but it just popped out of my mouth without thinking. My next word was "idiot" muttered under my breath. I had a Stella 150 blinking away on my helmet and a Mininewt 600 on the bar- she should have seen me IF she looked before opening the door...
One mile further, I am riding in the farthest right lane of a busy 2 lane each way, with a third, far right lane that is usually filled with parked cars but sometimes is open to traffic in spots, no cars parked and I am in the middle of the lane. Approaching the light, a car zips past me on the left, cuts across in front of me and makes a right and I jammed the brakes, she was close- I could see into the passenger side and she was looking at me- What the hey! Why is shaving 30 seconds from your drive so much more important than my life? I am not riding in the gutter, filled with glass and crap as drivers would only be encouraged to drive too close and share a lane that really does not have enough room for both. I was in front, she should have queued up behind me and made the right from the right lane and not from the middle lane which is illegal.
Normally my rides are quite quiet, but not today.
Mine was wet! Luckily, pavement wasn't more than a mile out of the way. It was tough pedaling down that road and keeping the balance but I made it. The weather was wet and foggy, but no rain... and pretty nippy! Had no problems with drivers or pedestrians, but I arrived in town and at home soaking wet. I took this picture on the way out as I was walking out of the driveway.
http://i49.tinypic.com/28l6yhk.jpg
(If you're wondering about what's duct-taped to my handlebars, it's a water-proofed zippered pencil case that I use to carry my phone, chapstick and keys.)
Today was lonely...... I saw exactly one other bike (pulling a trailer with a dog standing in it :)).
I know that's probably the status quo for some of you, but I think it's the first time it's ever happened to me here-- eleven miles of commute, 7 or so on a heavily-commuted MUP, and the last mile around a university. And it wasn't even raining (wet from overnight rain, and foggy, but no active precip and 47 degrees-- I'll take that in mid-Dec).
I am so happy it snowed. My commute is infinitely better now. I have nice new tires on my commuter, retrofitted fenders to fit said tires, and all my cold weather gear. Yesterday morning it was 0F and today was 7F. I might not be as chipper if my commute was more than a couple miles but for the time being it's great. My s.o. is out of town with our only car so I have to ride my bike to get to work on time and I'm actually kind of glad I can't just decide I don't feel like riding today.
It was lovely to have a warmer ride today but-- I can't seem to get the clothing right. Two days ago I forgot my long johns & wool socks and I about froze. Today I remembered everything and I sweated!
The nice thing about the sun & warmer temp today was that the frozen slush melted a little. It was actually a little harder to go through than after it had frozen solid, but there was more dry pavement. I'm a little sad to see the nasty roads turn nice because it means I'll be cranking around with these pointless (ha ha) studded tires, but the re-frozen slush was so difficult to bike over, even with the studded tires, that I'm not very sad.
I had to come back this evening to finish an experiment and I drove. I was not interested in tackling the re-re-frozen slush albeit somewhat less of it in the dark, with or without studded tires.
Yesterday was one of the few days that I said "I wish I'd driven".
A couple weeks ago I shoveled snow and although I tried to be careful not to lift much at one time, nevertheless the next few days I had some soreness. (Maybe also because my daughter has been teaching me butterfly and I was doing worm drills for 30 min right after that.) It wasn't too bad and it was getting better until last week I had a couple long days in the lab of standing for hours with no breaks. The lower back injury blossomed and it hurt to move. Stairs and standing in the pedals were challenging. So was getting my leg over the top tube of my bike. It was worse on the right so I switched legs.
Have you ever tried to mount your bike from the opposite side you are used to? Or to start and stop with the other foot than you usually do? It was awkward but I didn't wreck.
But.
The shifter on my bike had been acting up and it broke completely. My bike was effectively a single speed locked into a high gear. My mechanic who makes house calls tried to lock it into a lower gear but could only get it down a couple notches.
For a few days my back got worse every day instead of better. I used my daughter's bike (she sure isn't riding it in the winter) which has a slightly lower top tube and--more importantly--gears. Over the weekend it wasn't necessary to bike which was good because my back was still getting worse.
To make it all just a little worse, I bit my tongue badly. So hard that it bled. OW. That was the second time that day pain had brought tears to my eyes--the first time, I was walking downstairs (going DOWN was fine) and slipped. I didn't fall but I screamed because it hurt my back so much.
Yesterday's morning bike ride was excruciating and that was when I said "I wish I had driven". I was feeling better, but I still couldn't get my leg over the top tube without using my arms, and it was tricky to balance the bike. I didn't look at the temp before I left and realized halfway here that it was very cold. Turns out it was about 5F!
However yesterday was the first day it was better than the day before. By afternoon I was able to roll over. I could bend down and pick something up off the floor. (I never noticed how often I drop stuff until I couldn't pick it up. Especially while cooking!) My mechanic had gone to St. Louis this weekend and bought new brake pads and a new shifter. He picked up my bike last night, fixed it, and dropped it off this morning.
My bike is better. My back is better. Life is looking good! SO glad all these trials were only for a few days-- nothing like what people with chronic pain have to put up with. I told my dad "If this is what it feels like to be old, I feel so sorry for you." :P
Because it was the weekend I didn't try to get in to see anyone, but first thing Monday I got on the OMM (the osteopathic manipulation clinic) call list. To my surprise there was a cancellation and I can get in tomorrow. Since my back is so much better I have mixed feelings about going. But maybe it'll do some good, either for this or for unknown issues going on in my back, and it won't do any harm, I guess.
I'm off my bike completely for a few days. I feel very grateful for the car.
Part I: I strained my lower back shoveling snow (how cliche) + butterfly drills 3 weeks ago. It wasn't very bad and it got better over the week. Biking was not a problem so I kept riding.
Park II: I had a couple long days in the lab standing for hours without any breaks. My back was awful after that and continued to get worse for a few days. I let one of the med students work on me (this is an osteopathic medical school) but it continued to worsen. Biking was a little uncomfortable but the only really painful difficult part was getting on & off the bike.
Part III: It started getting better again. I had gotten an appointment in the OMM clinic (another osteopathic treatment only this time an experienced board-certified DO instead of a first year med student!) and I kept the appointment although I was so much better. I thought walking laps in the pool would be good for it...no weight bearing, right? Well, I strained it again. Or maybe it was the OMM treatment?? And again it continued to get worse for a few days. When I woke up yesterday morning I could not stand up straight or walk! I had to crawl to the bathroom. :( Eventually during the day I was able to walk-- my husband thinks I walk like a zombie :D. So I made myself take frequent, short, slow walks throughout the day. By the end of the day I was walking almost normally.
Today it is much better, zombie-walking perhaps a little faster and longer before I have to rest. However if someone were taking bets on whether I'd manage to re-strain it yet again, I wouldn't risk my money based on my record so far! No biking, no swimming or pool walking, on running. Walking and standing ok for short duration only. I put that plan together with the help of Dr. Google. :D
I swear when this is over I'm going to go to town on core strength and have the strongest core in the world so that this never happens again! (Someone else told me he's made that same oath, does the exercises, then leans over to pick up a toothbrush and there goes his back.)
Maybe you should have the DO do an evaluation of your back?
I wouldn't base my medical care on Dr. Google. It seems like while rest might help abate the symptoms, there may be something going on that's chronic that could be addressed by something else? Obviously, I'm no doctor, but, I would get it checked.
Nothing like taking the studs off to make you feel fast (even with a 20-30mph wind)!
This year has really made me consider a second wheelset for the studs next winter, it seems like there was just enough freezing precip every 5-7 days that I kept looking at the forecast and deciding to leave them on for another week and ended up riding them on dry pavement more than I'd like-- they're not that horrible to ride, and the extra workout was a bonus, but the noise is annoying after awhile (clears joggers nicely though :)). There were several days with just enough leftover snow/ice/freezing rain that I was glad to have them
Me too! I'm actually thinking about a winter bike, not just winter wheels. Even though there's a big storm coming our way, I went ahead and took off the studs this weekend. There were quite a few days where I was happy to have them, but there were far more days when I was wishing for a separate wheelset or a winter bike. Plus having separate wheels puts less wear & tear on the special tires-- only use them when they are needed instead of all winter.
Even if we get a lot of snow, I don't think it'll last very many days, and I'll just walk until the streets are clear.
Boy howdy I was fast and quiet with my regular tires. Then even faster when I came home and had that wind at my tail!
Edit: By the way my back is fine now. I took 2 weeks off the bike and no exercise. Slowly ramping back up the exercise now, carefully carefully. Biking to work is no problem.
I haven't graduated to studded tires. While it MIGHT get me cycling more often during the winter with ice and snow on ground, the faster wear down of the studs and going slower (when already I'm slow enough in the winter), I kind of wonder.Quote:
Originally Posted by Melalvai
My partner has been riding on his studded tires for last 2 winters and they are wearing down fast. The winters in our region can be quite cold (this morning was -15 degrees C) down to -20 degrees C or even -25 degrees C is not unusual at all. We get enough snow which then melts, dries off (because prairie air is drier) and then snow again, and on and on the cycle of weather happens at least 10 times during 1 winter. So I fit in cycling whenever the paths and roads allow me to cycle safely and allow me to BRAKE safely soon enough without sliding.
Or be able to cycle and if I should fall, it is not in an area in the path of a car or hitting a bunch of joggers/other cyclists. Sometimes it's best not to brake when cycling over thin ice/snow ...so that's why bike paths are more desirable.
I think we're about to get the storm you had earlier this week....I got snowed on a little toward the end of the commute tonight (the fluffy, floaty, snow that's fun to ride in), but anything we get here this late in the year should melt fast like you said and there's always other ways to work (train here) for a day or two.
Today was actually a great commute day-- the last two were windy/crappy/cold, and today was just cold with the bit of snow :)
I still have very, very little wear on the studded tires (schwalbe marathon plus), the rubber is hardly showing any wear, and the studs aren't as shiny as they were when they were new but they're carbide steel so they're tough and still plenty studdy to grip ice. I've lost maybe 4 studs between the two tires over three winters now so I've been pretty happy with them. A snow-bike would be handy, but there are already 4 bikes living in our 1-bedroom apartment (fiancee's bike, plus my fixie, commuter, road bike) and I'm not sure a 5th would be welcome (plus a newer-than-20-year-old road bike is probably next in line). I think the wheels on my commuter might be getting close to replacement, so I may just get new wheels a little earlier than necessary and keep the old ones with the studs....they wouldn't get more than 3-400 miles/winter unless we get dumped on so they should be fine.
I had a great commute today. I actually had taken quite a long break from commuting after too many accidents, but was pleasantly surprised when I tried a dry run on the weekend to see how much improved our roads are, and that the previously loose dogs were restrained. I tried once during the construction, and that was awful, but now the surfaces are much improved so it was worth it. There is still one mile that is a bit risky with the cars, but I just really focus during that mile and I am OK. It is so effecient. I get in earlier than when I had to first drive to the gym. I am so glad I came back to it.
I'm sorry you've had some accidents. Hope you are healing well and glad you are back on the bike. It is hard and scary to start back up again. Company helps, if that is an option.
I've been commuting through the snow. It's fun!
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Disclaimer: that photo was staged. After I got the picture I walked down that street, and the next. Then I reached a minor arterial that had been plowed. When I got to my destination--I walked the last half block and the parking lot, that hadn't been plowed yet. When I came home, everything had been plowed.
Then it snowed again.
The studded tires didn't help much in this stuff. It's been warm enough that once the streets are plowed, they are clear down to the pavement, no packed ice to deal with. That's where the tires really help.
Had a great commute this morning! Weather was nice and my music was catchy. The way home is all uphill but with the lack of wind and rain today I know it will be nice. On my last hill there were some barky little dogs that were driving me nuts because they kept chasing me. Now the road is under construction and the dogs owner does not let them out (yay)! The only downside is that they were replaced with bunches of men working on the road. After a few days of riding through the lewd stares and nasty comments I long for my barky dogs :)
Total miles for my commute is fourteen, seven downhill and seven uphill. Takes me thirty minutes to get to work and fifty minutes to get home.
I haven't used the new bike lanes in a couple months, at first because they weren't plowed and then when the snow melted they were full of gravel and trash. I was going to take a picture of it and then when it was dry I was going to call the city and let them know the bike lanes needed swept. But before I got around to it, the city got them swept! I was completely surprised and impressed!