Arctic dipping south

[Crankin]

It's 17 F right now. Breaking all low temperature records for this date.
Snow coming Tuesday night; thankfully, mostly a coastal storm, but we still will get at least 3 inches.

[Helene2013]

Just about same here. It was -21 to -26c with windchill. At least no wind and sunny. We should be able to avoid the snow storm more East. We'll get around 1cm...which is enough to dirty roads and need windshield fluids! But rain (and lots) is in the forecast towards end of week.

It's no longer fun! And they say 2013 was warmest overall worlwide. Certainly not in Canada and USA for winter 2013-2014!!!!

[Catrin]

I flipped the weatherman off today. The one on television. Who can't see me flipping him off. It's not been a pretty winter

[skhill]

Ditto, Catrin. A dusting of snow this time of year is not that unusual, but this is more than a dusting. And we're headed down to 15F tonight. GRRRRR. The good news is that the pollen count is down today, I was out with my dog for 45 minutes without sneezing or itchy eyes.

[ny biker]

I was cursing the weather *out loud* this morning while attempting to clear the snow from my car, giving my neighbors further evidence that I am insane. But come on, I cleared the back window, then the roof, then the windshield, and by then the roof and back window were covered again, and I had snow down my neck.

So I did what any reasonable person would do, I spent my lunch hour planning a bike ride. I mapped out a nice 41-mile route, with well-spaced rest stops and an option for a shorter 32-mile version, then posted it for Sunday afternoon on the club's website.

BTW I read earlier today that the cherry blossom trees around the Tidal Basin were past their peak on this date two year ago. This year they haven't even started to bloom yet.

[ny biker]

So, today the Capital Weather Gang (a very good weather blog owned by the Washington Post) has declared that the winter of 2013-2014 is over.

However when you read the fine print, they define "the end of winter" as "no identifiable threat of accumulating snow in long-range forecasts that could remain on the ground for 12 hours or more and no identifiable threat of cold weather lasting more than 48 hours when we define cold weather as highs in the 40s (or colder) and lows below freezing in Washington, DC (as measured at Reagan National Airport)."

So the bar is set pretty low. Still, I guess it's progress...

[Crankin]

Pretty much here, too. The snow is almost gone from the sides of the roads, but still in the woods (icy and crusty). The storm on Wednesday did not come this far north, but about 60 miles from here, they got hammered. Today was 37 when I left for work at 7:30 and 53 when I rode home at noon. It got up to 56. It's raining now, but is supposed to be ok tomorrow, high 40s/50. Then we have flood watch from Sat. night until Monday at 8 AM. So, while it will be 55-60, it's going to be pouring. All we need now is a flood.

[ny biker]

Pretty much here, too. The snow is almost gone from the sides of the roads, but still in the woods (icy and crusty). The storm on Wednesday did not come this far north, but about 60 miles from here, they got hammered. Today was 37 when I left for work at 7:30 and 53 when I rode home at noon. It got up to 56. It's raining now, but is supposed to be ok tomorrow, high 40s/50. Then we have flood watch from Sat. night until Monday at 8 AM. So, while it will be 55-60, it's going to be pouring. All we need now is a flood.

And then we'll probably get locusts.

The same blog cautions that this Sunday afternoon "could be quite raw." We're getting the heavy rain tomorrow and I think it will end Sunday morning, but then we'll get "very gusty" winds from the NW.

I had posted a club ride for Sunday afternoon, but have already sent an email out to say that I might have to cancel it. Gusty winds can be anywhere from annoying to dangerous; even if they don't reach dangerous levels on Sunday, the expected high temps are in the low 50s, and that is just not fun for cycling. At least not for me.

I will say that back in December and January I was kind of happy to ride my bike on the indoor trainer, in the sense that I was getting a good workout and staying prepared for outdoor rides if the we got a break in the weather. Now I'm just sick of it.