How Was Your Commute Today?

[colorisnt]

It's nice to be able to get out without having to layer up so ridiculously. It's still cold but fewer layers required.

Because of my trip, I have been biking a lot, but because I work from home and most things I need are in walking distance, I haven't been commuting by bicycle. I've been walking. Last year I sort of biked in a tornado. A funnel was sighted over the school which was about 5 blocks from where I was biking when the 80 mph straight-line wind came through and swept me off course and knocked down trees on the street I was trying to get down.

Yesterday I was in the gym when the tornado sirens went off. They put us all in the bathrooms which double as tornado shelters. Then we got the all-clear so I gathered up my stuff and headed home. It was raining a little. Then it hailed! I was near shelter so I ducked under the eaves until the hail quit. There was the most beautiful rainbow.

And then the tornado sirens went off again. I was about halfway home-- do I head for the nearest building and take shelter or just go home? I decided to just go home. The sun was shining, the clouds were far off, the wind had died down. There were plenty of houses, all neighbors, that I could take refuge in if something started to happen.

Soon my dad & I will be biking all over Missouri right through tornado season. The bathrooms in all the state parks double as tornado shelters.

We got those sirens, too. We'd just been out walking the neighborhood with our dog and the dog we were dogsitting. We brought them both into the common apartment shelter. Nothing much happened here but stuff was happening south of us. Glad you were safe. You are safer in a bathroom as you say than in a car driving on the interstate anyhow.

Glad to see you are trying to bike Missouri! If you get to come through here, give me a shout! My BF would love to Bike the Katy. Maybe when I graduate next May we can do that before we move.

I have been commuting quite a bit lately and it's almost halved my gas consumption! Yay. Dang weather makes it hard, though. Today I opted to drive because I had to be on campus all day and it was supposed to POUR. I almost hit a commuter today, though. Some balsy guy, a real PITA, who didn't want to wait for a left turn and just breezed through, full well knowing I had the right of way. I slammed on my brakes and thankfully neither killed him or got rear-ended. Another commuter, a lady who was coming up after his stupid feat looked at me like, "WTF?!" watching him almost kill himself, so it wasn't just me. It's guys like him that make the townies hate us. I can't stand people like that!

[Eihposi]

I have been commuting quite a bit lately and it's almost halved my gas consumption! Yay. Dang weather makes it hard, though. Today I opted to drive because I had to be on campus all day and it was supposed to POUR. I almost hit a commuter today, though. Some balsy guy, a real PITA, who didn't want to wait for a left turn and just breezed through, full well knowing I had the right of way. I slammed on my brakes and thankfully neither killed him or got rear-ended. Another commuter, a lady who was coming up after his stupid feat looked at me like, "WTF?!" watching him almost kill himself, so it wasn't just me. It's guys like him that make the townies hate us. I can't stand people like that!

We're saving a bunch on gas and public transportation costs too, it's one of the upsides of commuting that I sometimes forget about until I see how much I have left of my pay check at the end of the month

Yesterday I found myself hunting down a suicide cyclist to tell him to follow the rules of traffic before he endangers us all. He was speeding down a very steep hill and didn't bother to stop for the red light at the end - just rushed through one of the busiest intersections in town. Last year a cyclist was killed by a bus after similar reckless driving in that same intersection. I hate cyclists that ride against the red light, apart from the obvious danger, it makes us all look bad!

[Crankin]

I had my first commuting "incidents" this morning. Nothing I am not prepared for, but, I never had any of this when I was leaving at 5:45 AM and coming home at 2:30. I wanted to be there by 8, so I left at 7:30, which gave me extra time. Usually, the earlier, the better. So first, I got in the lane, approaching a 4 way stop that is very busy at commuting time. It was just slightly backed up, so I was patiently waiting my turn to go, when a young girl, not a teen, maybe 20 or so, decided, I didn't have the right to be there. She proceeded to go around me, into the oncoming cars, to get ahead. I *wanted* to ride right up to the bumper of the car ahead of me, but since she was in the car, I didn't . But, she didn't really have room to do that, so she was like going sideways across the road. And what for? She had to wait her turn for maybe 2 seconds less. She clearly didn't think I had the right to be there, and judging from her car and where she was headed, I'd say she was from the state north of here. Then, when I was waiting to cross the highway, right by my office, the light turned green and I was a few vehicles back. It turned yellow when I was in the middle of the intersection, so I started sprinting, but then there were 3 cars waiting to make lefts in front of me. Two went, I slowed a little, and then the third one clearly didn't see me, I grabbed the brakes, and when he saw me, I think he probably peed in his pants. I didn't have to stop, but by now I was in the middle of the intersection, and the light was red. Not only are cars turning everywhere here, but once I get through the intersection, there's a street on the right with no light, where cars are trying to turn left onto the road that crosses the highway, as well as cars turning left, like I do, into the hospital. I wasn't scared, because I am hyper vigilant and saw all of it coming, but I definitely will be leaving earlier on Fridays. I always have stuff to do... probably no commuting next week, as it's going to rain on Tuesday and on Friday I have a client until 12 and then a hair appointment about 6 miles away, up a 3 part hill. By the time I change and get lunch, it will be very close, so I probably will do a "dark" ride early in the AM.

[colorisnt]

Eihposi,
That's crazy. I see guys (mainly fancy roadies) do that here and I just think, "I how could that POSSIBLY be worth it?" My boyfriend has no bad habits because he never really rode on the road, just trails as an adult and he obeys all traffic laws. He got really angry at another cyclist who blew through a light here yesterday. I was like, "Yep, see that daily here". It's scary. I'm glad for both of us I am the one "teaching" him manners and not one of those crazies.

Crankin,
Man, I am GLAD you are OKAY. That's a crazy set of scary circumstances. I know what you mean by "not scared" but just blown away by all of that nonsense. My BF and I found a better way to get to my work this weekend while bumming around post-trail ride. He said "I think this could save you some traffic" and boy was he right! Much safer commute this morning altogether. I am now looking at minimizing my time spent dealing with high-traffic and am trying desperately to understand what time I need to leave. I think I have that down. If I leave before 8, I'm good. If I leave even 10 minutes later, I have issues. It's good to know that, as you say.

Today I commuted in with my new pannier and rain gear but I didn't need it. I'm wearing Zoic capris and no one knows they are bike pants. I liked them so much I bought another pair which is on its way. They will be good for my riding in Ottawa, I think.

[Catrin]

Crankin, I just saw this! So glad you are ok, a crazy set of circumstances indeed. Hopefully you will be able to go earlier in the day on most of your commutes - that was always scary to me when I was able to ride to work. The earlier the better, for sure. Whewww, very glad you are ok!

Colorinst - glad you like the capris! I've considered them more than once but never did pill the trigger.

[colorisnt]

They're on sale - two pairs for less than $60.00 on here! I also got a cycleskirt because I'd been wanting something for summer commutes when I could be casual or potential bike jaunts through Ottawa and/or other cities where I don't want to wear shorts while out shopping and sightseeing.

[Crankin]

Earlier, or later. I decided to bag boot camp today and ride to work. I had nothing until 10:00, but I wanted to get there by 9:15 or so. I left at 8:50, a perfect ride. When I left tonight at about 6:10, I felt like I was flying. I felt pretty aggressive and had my left arm out and finger pointing, with my "teacher gesture," as my friend calls it, as I rode through Concord Center, and I have to turn left and merge in 3 places. It's very cloudy, getting ready to rain, so I had both front and my 2 rear lights going. no mistaking me. When I got to my neighborhood, my average was the highest of all my rides this year, which is amazing, given I have my pannier, though it wasn't stuffed with much, just my clothes.
DH says this stuff happens to him on almost every commute, and he rides 17 miles! I won't stop; this is the quickest and most direct route. I can leave earlier or later, depending on the day, but I am not stopping. Perhaps, if I was a new rider, I'd be afraid, but this is just the way it is. As it gets warmer, I may experiment in riding in clothes that look less like roadie clothes, which usually gets you treated better, in my experience.
Going to boot camp tomorrow, despite my dislike of the instructor on Tuesdays.

[rebeccaC]

While having a cup of tea and a chocolate almond brioche on my way to work this morning photographer and filmmaker Lauren Greenfield sat down next to me. What a great conversation for 30 minutes on her early photography in L.A. and how we both use photography to see culture. She was riding to a meeting close to my office so we rode together for 3 miles. I was a little late but that story explained it well enough so it didn’t matter. A 6 mile ride this morning.

After work I took the beach bike path north to it’s end at Will Rogers Beach and then back towards home. Watched the sunset while sitting on the beach. 24 miles total for the day......so far I've done everyday of my 30 day pledge