A very pleasant commute in this morning.

Setting up for a ride today. Air is clear, because the wind is from the SW.

South Lake Tahoe area is right now getting torched. The last satellite pass at 4am shows the fire having moved halfway from the Echo area to the state line overnight. It looks like the crews are trying to hold it on Pioneer Road and it's going to be hard to manage that. Everyone is evacuated. I don't really see what stops it from burning up the east side of the lake. The east slope of the Sierras is barren so it won't go any further there.

Good news mostly for now on the fire in the Tahoe basin. The Sierra-At-Tahoe ski resort is mostly intact thanks to some serious preparation. The fire burned down Echo Summit and leapt over the Christmas Valley neighborhood but the crews managed to protect most of the cabins. After that they were able to use the airport as a fire break and the wind took the fire into the hills south of town, where it is now chewing up some popular hiking and MTB trails (like Toad's). The southern lobe is burning north of the Kirkwood ski resort but is in a rocky area without as much forest and in a few miles will get to some very high barren hills so we can spare some hope it will slow down.

My routine doesn't work very well when the 7yo gets busted out of school in the middle.

The commute was pleasant but the temperatures are getting a little cooler in the am. This morning the temp was 56f degrees. A light jacket was needed.

Brr! But in six months that'll become, "This morning the temp was 56f degrees. No jacket was needed."

My four mile ride to the station goes through a low lying area that was flooded with several feet of water yesterday. This morning those roads are still closed, but i rode between the barriers and took my chances. This was between 4:30 and 5:00 AM, so complete darkness except for the stars, a thin crescent moon, and my headlight. Since the road is closed there was no traffic, and the floodwater was perfectly still until I got there. I figured as long as i could see the double yellow line through the cloudy water, i was safe-- and as long as i stayed ahead of my wake, i could see it pretty well. So... no problem. It turned out to be about a mile of intermittently flooded roads, never more than a foot deep. I should have taken off my shoes and socks, though!

Lots of excuses this week to keep me off the bike, but today I rode.

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...ff12f0c6f.jpeg

My Jake the Snake is back in business, with a broken spoke replaced, along with some new brake pads and chain. I'm just about to head into the fog in the river valley in the background. Beautiful morning, albeit a little chilly at 4C/40F. I wore those stretchy pant leg thingies you put between your shorts and socks, and a windbreaker, and both were slightly too warm.

Today's wildlife sighting was a raven and a bunch of magpies all pecking at...some dead thing? on the path, too big to be a squirrel, too small to be a rabbit, probably a gopher. Hard to tell anymore.

Another beautiful, cool morning for the commute in, with low winds, and the sun barely hiding behind a thin cloud cover. Just a busy (and very much alive) squirrel to report for wildlife sightings.

I didn't think I would get to ride today but a gap opened in my schedule where I could have pedaled my WFH butt into the office the long way and actually get some exercise. I packed up and dressed out and stepped out into... the smoke. Went back in and got the truck key.

We are a year and a half into covid, two months into a surge, and a month into smoke and fire season. What's the N95 mask availability like now, and is that the right one to get? If I allow myself the vanity of ordering some better-than-surgical masks, just so I can go for a bike ride, is that ok or am I still supposed to leave them for the professionals? And then if I do will I actually be able to buy any?

Fires: The Caldor fire east of here is nearly contained and two new fires that sprouted this weekend were thankfully quickly squashed. Today's plume seems to have come down the valley from the Monument fire up north in the coastal range. But "fire season" isn't over by a long shot, not til temperatures really drop and then not for sure until winter. And it seems like people locked out of the national forests are just starting fires in the state parks

Turned out just as well. Had to go get a sick kid, wife was off the air at the time and didn't get the call. :|

The good weather in the UK came to an end but I just about got away with it. The forecast was for thunder and lightning on the way home but thankfully it never happened. Fitted a new cheap front light (front and rear for £5 off eBay and both USB chargeable) and whilst the light output is superb it doesn't fit on my handlebar very well as I like to place my hands close to the stem on some of the climbs. I need to look at accessory brackets.

My timing must have been a bit different today because hoo boy, was traffic ever thick around the 2.5 school zones I rode through this morning. It's not normally like that.

It was an absolutely beautiful week weather-wise, and unfortunately, I only rode 2 of 4 days (Monday was a holiday). I'll try to do better next week, which looks almost as nice. Have a great weekend, everyone.

https://i.imgur.com/NnjWNiy.jpg

Riding home yesterday, I decided to take this trail rather than the paved one I usually ride. (This photo was taken about two weeks ago, shows the location, but not what I found there yesterday.)

At a sharp bend in the singletrack trail, I came upon two young deer feeding on shrubbery. I came to a gentle stop about fifteen feet from them. Dang it, no camera!

They both looked up at me, as if to say "Man, you should try some of these leaves. Juicy!" Then they went back to munching.

I never knew a deer's tongue was so long. Reminded me of giraffes I've seen at the zoo. I wonder if they're related? :foo:

We stayed like that for about 5 minutes, and then they just turned and sauntered off, not alarmed by my presence in the least. I was mesmerized. Pretty sure I'm not going to hunt them anymore after this.
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I was thinking that I was skunked for the whole week, but today I managed a short lap. A sharp thunderstorm passed through last night and it was humid; for just one day it's a welcome change from the late summer blast furnace here. It's a mixed blessing for the fires, it's rain but also lightning. I am not seeing anything new from Cal Fire though, that's good. The Caldor fire is mopping up around settled areas, but still has big energy in some more remote locations.

Old Zoroastrian Proverb: " two dervishes very happy under a blanket, two kings won't fit in a vast kingdom". ... : - )

Just finished this weekend, commuted on it this morning. My 1993 Wheeler Comp-Line 6600:

https://i.imgur.com/8YkUVht.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/oogzjSH.jpg

Long, low, and fast. This bike is a bit of a challenge because of the riding position. But very exhilarating on a cool morning like today. 54°F in a T-shirt and shorts. That's Minnesota for you.
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Due to an early morning teleconference that I took from home, I got off to a later start, post rush-hour, so streets were pretty calm. Raced through two intersections on some very mature amber lights - okay, they were red by the time I was halfway through. Okay, the second one was red before my rear tire entered the intersection.

There's a section of my route that's an old road through a ravine. The road has been closed to motorized traffic for about 20 years, and was already a crappy road back then. It has steadily deteriorated quite badly ever since. A couple months ago, I was pleased to see some signs posted at either end announcing a trail upgrade, and today, construction crews were onsite. I don't know if they will be paving today already, but I think by the end of the week, it should be smooth as glass.

Lots of people out on bikes this morning. This is normal and seasonal.

Not normal - I passed someone on a contraption that resembled an Elliptigo but built into a nasty Amazon-quality e-scooter chassis, as though the treadles replaced the motor. Looked miserable!

I have missed a few days of riding but finally I was back again today. The commute was pleasant but I am now riding the direct route to work due to darkness in the am.

It seems I underestimated the construction timelines in the ravine on my route. I figured the project would be done by the end of the week, but based on what I saw today, I think it'll take a month. I think municipal construction crews have a philosophy similar to the Ents: nothing is worth doing unless it takes a long time to do.

So, when I approached the construction zone, all indications were that I would have no problem getting through. Not a single sign saying the trail was closed. In fact, there was a sign telling cyclists to dismount, which I ignored, but I kept my speed in check on the descent. After rounding a bend halfway down the hill, I saw a mini backhoe ahead, completely spanning the road, clearing out some small trees along the side. A flagman waved me down and told me the trail was "probably" closed at the other end. That would have been nice to know a kilometre ago. I didn't want to chance it, so I turned around and took a different route.

This required a fairly significant backtrack, where I picked up an overall longer route. Good thing I left home a bit early. After another descent on a long gravel trail, I had a choice: a fully paved street route, or a partial gravel and slightly longer trail route. I don't ride that trail route very often, and since I was already running late, I thought, what the heck, what's a few more minutes. It's a really nice trail, but the gravel was a bit wet, and loose in spots, and I don't think it will become my main route anytime soon, not on 28mm tires anyway.

Stopped on a bridge along the way to take a picture. It's a beautiful morning, sunny, chilly, and calm.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...430d0cda0.jpeg

Had a foggy ride to work, cool, but not quite cold enough to warrant long sleeves.

Did get a surprise when I spotted a motorcycle tossed into the bushes off to the side of the local bike path, about a half mile from the nearest road crossing. Almost definitely stolen, so called it in like a good samaritan when I got to work.

Full lap today.

I've mislaid about 15-20 minutes in my morning routine and haven't found them yet

About 2 months ago I started a new job after being between jobs for far too long. The new commute is to just past the halfway point for my previous job. I think I had a "glitch in the matrix" moment on this morning's commute. I was riding my bike down the trail through the parks and came up behind a guy walking down the middle of the path. I rang my bell and called out several times, but I could hear the music blasting out of his earbuds and knew he couldn't hear me, so I squeezed by him and continued on. A half mile later I went around a corner and there was a guy walking towards me on the trail who looked just like the other guy. Dressed the same and I could hear the same music blasting out of his earbuds.

Traffic is so much busier now with more people back in work and the children are back in schools also. My commute is largely traffic free but, on my way in, I have three roundabouts where we mix and I think I need to find another route as I'm hitting them in quick succession at about 8am and one roundabout is very busy with fast traffic.