Kodama

Pleasant ride in today -- sun, big fluffy clouds, temp about 55F/13C little wind. An accident closed one direction of a major road right at the end of my commute, forcing drivers to use the side road that I take to the back entrance of the office. Had to wait a bit for all the cars.

Zin

Well, I kept the bike up on the way home. Temps were mid 50sF. 20MPH head wind the whole way. Expecting thunderstorms tomorrow afternoon. That should be interesting riding.

ollo_ollo

I managed a 12 mile ride early Saturday morning. Then late Sunday afternoon, while freeing a stuck tractor I either pulled something in my chest or cracked a rib. This means a slower commute for a while but I should be able to ride through it. It was raining at 6AM this morning, 47F & quite windy at times. Typically at this time of year we get wind & storms from the SouthWest but for some reason this wind was blowing South to North. Since I ride West to East then back again, I always had gusts from the side. Keeps you on the alert whenever the wind kicks up. It was a great weekend & I saw quite a bit of wildlife: a Deer, an Eagle, several hawks, our local flock of Canada Geese, several varieties of Duck, Sandpipers, Cormorants, a Heron & a Possum.

seely

Overcast and about 75 on my commute to school this morning. Cruised in the lane down 8th St. in a 25mph zone, doing 26-28mph. Xterra passed me in the turn lane, barely cut in before the stop sign. POS Century tried to pass me in the same manner after I sped up to 27mph, looked like a moron when he couldn't get back in before the stop sign. Usual idiot students on foot and bike to contend with. Thankfully I can trackstand fairly well, came in handy a few times today when I would stop and wait for a more shaky cyclist to make their move around me.

Caught the Xterra in the subsequent 20mph 2 lane zone, and proceeded to pass at 36mph (slight downhill+big ring) with a friendly wave. Started to rain a bit this afternoon, just hope it clears up and I can have a dry ride into work tomorrow morning.

Still sore from the 50mi on Sunday, 25mi on Intermediate to Expert level singletrack with several 1,000 feet of climbing through the day. 15 on the road in 20mph headwind at times, and 10 in the morning when I rode out to watch our cycling team run a Crit.

Ed Holland

Nice ride today, though I was feeling a bit tired after playing football with the guys from work yesterday.

Last night, I almost got in a tangle with a police car. the driver of which seemed unsure how to negotiate a cyclist

Cheers,

Ed

mjw16

Well it's finally shorts weather in DC, temps in the upper 60's this morning, but still a little early to put the rain gear away. Had a good sweat going this morning and averaged about 20 mph. Had a hot, dusty, headwind the entire way home last night-very irritating also, almost hit a small dog on last night's commute home, it's owners had neither of their two dogs on their leash and one darted in front of me at the last second. I locked up my brakes and just missed it, then I yelled at them to put both dogs on their leashes. What makes people think that it's a good idea to walk their dog along a crowded trail, in the city, with nearby traffic? That always p*sses me off. It endangers: my safety, the dog's safety, as well as a driver who may swerve to avoid it and get into an otherwise avoidable accident-not to mention the fact that it's illegal to walk an un-leashed dog. The thing is I see it all the time and when I say something the owner (s) inevitably ignores me. Sorry for the rant. I'm really looking for to today's ride home.

Kodama

Rode against a pretty stiff wind today, otherwise it was partially sunny with big (and some obviously swollen with rain) clouds. The chorus of the birds as one rides along is just fantastic this time of year. Speaking of birds I saw a great blue heron sweep over the river and land on a tall warehouse accords the river. Those are big birds! Also of note yesterday they finally put up the support sections for the new bridge they've been building for the last 6 months. Been a long time coming and has closed the trail on several occasions, but has been interesting to watch the progress.

Zin

No ride for me today. Woke up very in quite a bit of pain from yesterday's incident. Not just the hip, but also the left shoulder and my neck. I guess I wrenched more than I had initially thought. I'll be back on the bike in the morning.

froody

After 2 weeks of barely any riding (except for a ride to, but not back from, work last Tuesday), I'm all pumped for riding again. (Wasn't riding because first I was on vacation, then I was sick/not sleeping enough.) Had a fine ride yesterday (especially home) and am very much looking forward to my ride home today as well. The weather's been great for cycling, though a little chilly in the morning.

Tim

ollo_ollo

42F at 6AM today, cloudy with gusty wind & rain, lots of rain & wind at lunchtime then we had sunshine on the way home. Don

Chris L

Coolest commute of 2004 so far -- just 18.5 deg C when I left home this morning (although I fancy it had cleared 20 by the time I arrived at work). Still a little warmer than would be optional, but I'm certainly not complaining. Still negotiating the holiday traffic around here, which is always fun. I wonder how much quicker than the cagers I'll get home tonight.

seely

EXCELLENT commute today! 7mi each way going to work... overcast and pleasantly warm, 70's, when I rolled out this morning, was able to keep the speed in the 20mph range for the most part on the way in. Traffic was light and polite, and I felt great.

We received rain through the day but coming back it was almost sunny and quite dry, probably low 80's and a bit sticky. 20mph headwind/crosswind in several sections too, but still able to keep it real at about 15mph. Overall a beautiful day for a commute and no particularly rude drivers.

Zin

Nice ride in this morning. Roads were wet as it rained most of the night. Big puddles everywhere. The salvaged fenders worked great! Temps were near freezing. Found some ice here-n-there.

Ed Holland

A damp start here today, but luckily it has cleared up for the journey home. However, there is quite a stiff headwind awaiting for the first part of the ride. That's life!

Cheers,

Ed

trekkie820

Nice start, nice weather, low wind. Wind picked up and rain came about 2:30 on my way back from the store, and a slight uphill with a 30mph headwind made that fun. Speaking of in the store, on the way out, I was almost backed into by a Volkswagon Golf, so then I pulled out onto the road and was cruising along, she then blows past me, cuts me off, then hits the brakes. I pour on the Kool Stops, skid to a halt inches from the bumper(wet asphalt really made that fun!). She got the middle finger treatment, for sure. After that, we'll see!

Kodama

Almost fully overcast today with a few blue patches that were shortly overcome by the horde of rain clouds. Wind wasn't too bad though, not too strong and mostly from the side with a bit of headwind action at the end. All in all not a bad ride. I'd do it again.

trekkie820

Just an update to my commuting for the day: On my way to a test on Microsoft Excel(I HATE EXCEL), I got caught in the worst rain of my life. There were two to three inch deep puddles every 20 or so feet, rain and hail, driving winds, and in the middle of it, me, zipping along at 20 mph! From the time I left my building to the time I unlocked my bike, less than one minute, I was already absolutely soaked, thats how bad it was. I couldn't see well, my eyes were being nailed by water, and I loved it!

ollo_ollo

Light rain & windy at 6AM this morning, overcast & windy at lunchtime but by 3:30 PM there were big fluffy white clouds in a sunny blue sky with a light breeze. Great commuting conditions! Don

Scooby Snax

Fortunately just as I left for work and just as I was leaving work it started to rain.
But I was dressed for it this morning, and this afternoon, who cares I had a nice hot shower.

Zin

Nice ride home again today. Temp in the mid 50s. Partly cloudy. Storms over the Little Belt Mountains, an inspiring sight. The wind out of the NW for a change which puts it at my back for the ride home. Ahhh, life is good.

SchreiberBike

I've been looking forward to posting here. I did my first commute in two years today. For the last two years my left knee hasn't been working right and I've gotten out of shape and gained a ton (50 pounds/23 kilos/three and a half stone) of weight. I've been doing more and more short rides and today the weather was good and I had time, so I did my 20 mile round trip commute.

I'm riding with one shoe clicked in and the other resting on a peg bolted behind the bottom bracket. The bike is fixed @ 39x15 so I don't have make all the effort to pull my the crank back around.

I'm pretty pleased with myself and optimistic that commuting and some additional riding will help me get back into some kind of shape even though I can't walk more than a few blocks or do any other exercise except swim.

Anybody with experience or knowledge of one legged cycling? Let me know.

Chris L

Slightly warmer on the ride in this morning, which sucks, but that's life. Traffic was surprisingly heavy for that time of day, too. I actually thought the holiday traffic had gone home after a quite ride home last night -- perhaps I was wrong. Off to Hinze Dam for a few extra cirricular km after work tonight. Ra!

mjw16

Beautiful ride in this morning-nearly perfect. 67 degrees, little humidity, spectacular sunrise over the Potomac silhouetting rowers and sailboats. I, however, have been suffering from allergies and was quite lethargic, barely maintaining 14-15 mph, that should improve this afternoon as I take my Clariton at work. I guess we're expecting severe thunderstorms this afternoon. Guess I'll have to put the hammer down since I left my rain gear at home today.

Zin

Cool, crisp, and brilliant sun. Got a late start. (that darn snooze bar was just to tempting this morning) Hammered my way in and still got to the office with 10 minutes to spare.

mtessmer

Hmmmmm... you realize that that's why it's probably going to rain this afternoon, don't you?