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2019! The “How was your commute?” thread!

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2019! The “How was your commute?” thread!

Old 09-13-19, 06:28 AM
  #1476  
mgw4jc
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Still plenty warm and humid this morning. I left a little early and got in 15 miles. The MUP near my office had quite a bit of debris after some storms last night. With fall taking over, there were a lot more leaves down too, which made seeing the branches and such more challenging. Took it a bit slower and survived.

Happy Friday the 13th!
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Old 09-13-19, 08:49 AM
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Good morning for a bike ride, if a little humid. There's another commuter I ride with every few months; I was running a little late, and he was running way late (for him), so we ended up riding in together. Nice to chat with someone on the way!
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Old 09-16-19, 04:54 AM
  #1478  
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Well here we are back at Monday and the good thing about that is I was able to commute by bike to work today. It was a very pleasant ride with the temp at 62 F degrees and partly cloudy, so no good view of the moon.
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Old 09-16-19, 07:03 AM
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I could see the moon when I left at 7am still looking almost full. We could not see it on Friday the 13th due to clouds.

A bit cooler this morning. Weather forecast shows 2 more days of hot (90s) and then a high of 78 on Wednesday. I will look forward to that. Just in time for fall.
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Old 09-16-19, 08:05 AM
  #1480  
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Lucked out this morning. There were a few clouds on my ride to work. Nothing that looked like rain. At the Circle K getting coffee there was a rainbow on one of the clouds. It was actually clear above me.

After parking my bike in the back at work I have to walk around to the front. A few drops started falling as I rounded the corner to the front. Just after getting the paper and entering it started coming down harder. One minute later and I would have been wet.

The sky is still more than half blue. The sun is shining. Arizona weather!
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Old 09-16-19, 09:33 AM
  #1481  
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There's a few trees that think it's fall already; in a few weeks the river valley will be resplendent with colour. Or, we'll be hit with a polar vortex, and the leaves will just turn brown and fall off. Anyway, today was a nice ride in, chilly on the bare arms and hands at 10C/50F, but I should have known better.

In past years, it would be inconceivable for me to go a whole week without my butt touching a saddle (at least, between April and October), but these days, I guess it's not so rare.

Quite the weather you've been having, @Tundra_Man. Hope you get some relief.
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Old 09-16-19, 09:52 AM
  #1482  
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Today, rain was forecast at 9. That's after my commute. It's welcome, rain here before winter is rare enough. Sac doesn't have a monsoon season like Phx. But I got rained on during my ride. I got wet because I waited to find a tree to stand under while changing, by the time I was in it the rain had slackened, and I was thereby 5 min late and wet for my morning meeting. Ha!
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Old 09-17-19, 04:56 AM
  #1483  
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A second day of pleasant commuting. The temp was 47 f degrees with clear skies and I could see the almost full moon clearly. I pass a field on my ride and when the moon is over that field it is an awesome view. Also I was able to ride the last hill with no holding the brakes this am(new smooth road) so nice!
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Old 09-17-19, 07:21 AM
  #1484  
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A good 15 miles this morning. Nice out at 66F.

This week is 3 years since I bought my current bike (Cannondale Synapse). I have ridden 16,500 miles on it since then. It is holding up well so far and I hope to get several more years out of it.
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Old 09-17-19, 09:00 AM
  #1485  
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Nice ride this morning. Got an early start and made it to work before the temperature hit 70F, so it was cool, and clear, and calm. I was listening to the crows so intently I missed my turn and was headed into a dead-end parking lot. OK, time to pay attention before I get back into traffic!

@mgw4jc, sounds like your bike is just about broken in. Keep it up! How far do you think you can ride it?
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Old 09-17-19, 10:40 AM
  #1486  
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Since my heart surgery my ability has seemingly ebbed and flowed, and if there's any rhyme or reason to it, I can't discover. I've spent the last three weeks miserable, but yesterday I felt great, and went home the long way, about 10 miles, 1/3 of which by distance and maybe half by time was single track. Once I was home, though, I warmed up leftovers for the dinner, we played with the kids for an hour, put them to bed, and I crashed. I'm usually good for an hour of chores after the kids are asleep, but last night I just crawled into bed... and this morning overslept.
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Old 09-18-19, 04:51 AM
  #1487  
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A very pleasant yet uneventful commute this am. The temp was 52 f degrees and partly cloudy.
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Old 09-18-19, 06:51 AM
  #1488  
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I rode to work Monday 17+ miles or so. I rode home but front derailleur would not shift to the big chain ring. I have been thinking that the cable is going bad but Monday confirmed it. 4719 miles on one cable is not bad.
I rode 22 miles or so home in 1x mode. My 30T chainring meant my top speed was really limited. Definitely need a 2x for my commute. I did find that the faster cadence and lower gearing felt pretty good on the gravel portion around the lake part of my commute.

I have to drive on Wednesdays most weeks and Thursday this week so I took the bike to shop yesterday. time for a tune up and prep for commuting through the winter and my big gravel ride in October.
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Old 09-18-19, 10:52 AM
  #1489  
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Yesterday, I felt tired of riding my bike to classes, so I took Citi Bike. It was a bad idea. The bike is so slow and heavy, and the saddle is uncomfortable for me. Worse, the pedals, of course, don't allow cleats, so my feet end up in the wrong position, and that causes me pain. My wife texted me while I was in class on 68th St and asked me to run an errand for her to pick up something on 27 St. So I rode Citi Bike down there. Next, I had a rehearsal at 87 St, and I said the hell with it and took the subway. I did take Citi Bike home along the river, and I rode with a fellow singer, so that was nice.

The weather is cool and breezy, and I love that.

I'm going to start as a trial on a new job next week. I'll be pedaling an e-trike, hauling compost around Manhattan. The pay is terrible, but I expect I'll like the work.
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Old 09-18-19, 05:39 PM
  #1490  
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I'm glad you found something, Tom. Even if it's a s--- job. Ha... ha?
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Old 09-19-19, 05:06 AM
  #1491  
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Originally Posted by noglider
I'm going to start as a trial on a new job next week. I'll be pedaling an e-trike, hauling compost around Manhattan. The pay is terrible, but I expect I'll like the work.
I think I love the idea of your new job, getting paid to ride. What is not to like?

Another pleasant commute this am with the temp at 42 f degrees and clear skies. I was able to ride 4 days this week which has not happened for some time for me. So it was a great week. And today is my Friday! Even better!
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Old 09-19-19, 07:26 AM
  #1492  
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Had the day off yesterday, but back for Thursday and Friday.

A lovely 55F this morning. Almost too cool for short sleeves, but I prefer it that way. No sweat coming in. I did see a couple of other cyclists with long sleeves and tights on. Too soon for me. High will be upper 70s.
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Old 09-19-19, 07:44 AM
  #1493  
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Today's ride was lovely. The temperature's still hovering around 71-73F, but the dewpoint dropped 5 degrees (so the relative humidity dropped 20%), and there's a SE wind -- first one I can remember outside thunderstorms for 2-3 weeks. The difference is -- COOL! The heat from the high pressure seems to have broken, although it seems weird that cooler weather is coming from the southeast -- that's usually where hot and humid air comes from. I noticed a patch of brown on a ridge, not sure if some pine trees are dying or if a patch of one kind of tree all turned brown before they could change colors -- it happens.

Boy, it's a nice morning for a bike ride. Oh, yes, I need to remember to drink in this weather, without sweat dropping onto my glasses to remind me.
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Old 09-19-19, 09:58 AM
  #1494  
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Originally Posted by essiemyra
I think I love the idea of your new job, getting paid to ride. What is not to like?
Well, there is the pay. I'm used to a pretty high salary, and this is closer to working for free. But something is better than nothing. And maybe it will be too physical for me, but I'm not as worried about that.
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Old 09-19-19, 01:44 PM
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Consecutive bicycle work commute number 805:

Rode across town to a client location over lunch and made the mistake of stopping by the LBS. They're trying to make me an offer I can't refuse on a fat bike for the winter. Test rode a 2019 Salsa Mukluck Deore. It was pretty nice.

Not sure if I want to spend that much money just to destroy it during our winters here.
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Old 09-19-19, 05:43 PM
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Fun one today! Temperature 65F at the start, so I only smelled a little bit bad.

I was chatting with a guy at a light who turned out to be going the same way, similar pace, so we did a little commuter train thing. It's the first time I've ever asked a stranger if they wanted to get a draft going...hopefully it wasn't creepy. On the way home, I had my cheering squad again (there's a steep little roller, and sometimes people sitting out on their porches cheer me on.)
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Old 09-19-19, 07:20 PM
  #1497  
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@Tundra_Man, speaking of ruining bikes in winter, you reminded me of Pete Hickey's winter cycling tips.
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Old 09-20-19, 06:26 AM
  #1498  
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Down to low 50s this morning - cool enough to wear long sleeves and light gloves. And now at the office for some reason I have a chill.

My average was just under 16mph even after a wait at a stoplight. I tried riding the last 2 miles on the MUP fast enough to bring it up to 16, but didn't make it. There is one tight, kind of blind corner due to overgrowth. And hidden around that corner was a lady in the middle of the path tying a shoe or bent over for some other reason. I braked hard enough to lock my back wheel for half a second, but didn't loose control. She stood up quickly and scooted out of the way and we were both fine, but both a bit surprised to see each other. I usually take that corner much slower and try to look through the branches for anyone coming. And that is why.
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Old 09-20-19, 07:31 AM
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Mixed bag today. First two intrusions? on the newest bike lane. A kid with a dumbness-inducing phone (how can you use smart to describe something that makes people act stupid?) started to cross the street, head down. His companion (astride a bike) called out there was traffic, so he stopped right in the middle of the bike lane. I had to wait until trailing traffic cleared to take the main traffic lane to go around him -- he never looked up. And then there was a "lady" in a Caddy who had to take the bike lane to look down the street for cross traffic -- out and around her, too.

But it was lovely, clear and cool enough that there's ice left in my water bottle. I can't remember the last time that happened when I got to work, though I know it has happened before. Must have been early last spring!
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Old 09-20-19, 07:42 AM
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Cool this morning! 69°F. First commute under 70 since April or so.
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