The Fat Guy In The Back
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Sioux Falls, SD
Posts: 2,532
Bikes: '81 Panasonic Sport, '02 Giant Boulder SE, '08 Felt S32, '10 Diamondback Insight RS, '10 Windsor Clockwork, '15 Kestrel Evoke 3.0, '19 Salsa Mukluk
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Consecutive bicycle work commute number 1566:
I set a goal every year to commute a minimum of 3,000 miles. Most years I hit that without too much trouble. This year I cut it close, as I finally crossed the 3K mark on the way home last night with only two commuting days to go.
This morning the temp was -19°F with a windchill of -51°F. Serious flesh-freezing temps, so I bundled up. The only thing exposed was my nose. Due to the extreme temps the mayor made an executive order to eliminate bus fares for the remainder of this week. That worked out for me, as to keep my wife happy I do a split-commute when the temps get this cold.
Rode 1.25 miles to the bus stop. We got about 1.5" of fresh snow last night. The stout wind was causing some drifting. I was on the regular winter bike (because the fat bike tires don't fit in the bus rack) and even with this little amount of snow it was noticeably more difficult to pedal compared to the fat bike. So the fat bike does serve a purpose even though it can be a pain.
Made it to the bus stop and only had to wait about 3 minutes. Sometimes I get there too early and then I'm really starting to get cold. I noticed the heat on the bus wasn't working real well, but it was warmer than being out in that frigid wind.
The bus driver seemed a little surly. When I got on the bus I said, "Hi" but he pretty much ignored me. Then he drove past a guy's stop even though the "stop requested" light was lit. So that guy had to get off at the next stop and walk back 1/4 mile.
Then later on in the route the driver blew past a stop where a guy was obviously running through the snow drifts to catch the bus. He was only about 10 yards from the sign and yelling for the bus, so it was obvious. The driver didn't even slow down. I felt bad for the guy who missed the bus. He going to be waiting a while, because due to staffing problems our buses are currently only running once per hour. In these temps people aren't going anywhere unless it's completely necessary, so the guy obviously needed to be somewhere. I'm hoping the guy doesn't lose a job due to the bus driver.
Once downtown, I then finished the remaining .5 mile ride to the client office. Even with that short trip, and with two pairs of gloves inside of bar mitts, my fingertips were numb.