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

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

Old 05-20-19, 07:12 AM
  #951  
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Sounds like a crazy fast storm in Indy last Friday. A decade or so ago I had a tree fall in my yard and crush a swing set. Because it hit something, homeowner's insurance paid for the removal of the tree. If it hadn't, I would have been investing in a chainsaw I suppose.
@Skipjacks - glad you're mostly alright. I know that road rash can be annoying for several days after though.

Overcast and warm here today. One bigger diesel pick-up truck let me know how loud his horn was this morning. He was going the opposite direction but decided to see if he could scare the bicyclist. It was an impressive, train style horn. I tensed up, but didn't react too much I don't think.
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Old 05-20-19, 09:53 AM
  #952  
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Sitting in the jury waiting room as I type this. Courthouse is 1.5 blocks from my regular workplace, so the commute was pretty-much the same. Only difference is, I left my Leatherman tool in my helmet in my bike locker, so I wouldn't have to check it at the courthouse security screening. Wish I'd brought a book to read.....

The court pays something like $0.50 / mile travel, so in addition to the $20 / day they'll pay me (which I'll have to turn around and give to my employer), I'll probably get a whopping $1.50 travel expense. Maybe I'll inquire about saving the taxpayers the expense of admisistering all that trivia and just not cutting a check at all.

Beats the commute last time I was called up, six years ago. It was first week of January and -20F.
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Old 05-20-19, 10:57 AM
  #953  
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Depends... probably yes if the case is a hit and run
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Old 05-20-19, 12:20 PM
  #954  
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Getting outside this weekend in 90 degree temperatures meant low 70s felt cool by comparison this morning. The yardstick is, Hot is ten degrees warmer than what you're used to, right?
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Old 05-20-19, 12:55 PM
  #955  
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Originally Posted by mtb_addict
Is not owning a car a valid excuse for jury duty?
I wish. Last time, when it was so effing cold, some people in the outlying areas of the county got excused because their vehicles wouldn't start. The Court actually gets off cheap with bike commuters like me; they pay car drivers to park in the nearby ramp ('course, that's just one county coffer to another). But I'm not one to shimmy out of jury duty. It is someone's day in court, a right that any of us may have to exercise one day or another.

Well a bunch of cases were settled/dismissed, so they cut the rest of us loose at noon. Back to the office grind.
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Old 05-21-19, 06:56 AM
  #956  
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Mornings are still frosty. Clear sunrise and pretty calm. Had to drop my truck off so it was a short ride from the shop to work. Today is the last day this week I'll be able to ride.
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Old 05-21-19, 07:07 AM
  #957  
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Less humid and a cooler out this morning - quite nice. And more people than usual on the two miles of MUP near my office. Walkers, dog walkers, and a couple of runners. Good to see people out.

I've heard a couple of people at my office say they are too scared to walk on the MUP, like at lunch or whatever. I can't understand that, but I guess a female by herself feels more vulnerable. The trail is through the woods between neighborhoods, so somewhat secluded. No bad areas around really.
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Old 05-21-19, 08:25 AM
  #958  
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Chilly and grey the last couple mornings with temps in the mid 40's. Weird experience yesterday - came up to a busy downtown street crossing and a cop stopped for me. Not only did he stop he put on his lights and then got out of his car to be sure traffic stopped the other direction. I couldn't decide if I should thank him or give him a lesson that I have the stop sign and traffic doesn't have to stop for me. I said thank you!
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Old 05-21-19, 09:08 AM
  #959  
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The city milled out the first quarter mile of my in-bound commute yesterday, so I had to deal with that this morning. Only got one of four or five lanes done, so it had to be mine. I didn't see any crew or equipment out today, but I hope they're going to complete this project in one fell swoop instead of seeing how long they can drag it out. Once past that, I could enjoy the cool morning weather all the way to work!
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Old 05-21-19, 12:33 PM
  #960  
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Had a good ride this morning around high 50s to a cool 62 vs the 68 yesterday until i ran over something and it felt weird. sure enough it flatted my tire. 14 miles into my 11 mile commute. I had to call my wife because to save weight I took out the tube and pump that was a dumb move on my part.

she came and got me took me home and then I drove back to work.

last week I rode 132 miles in 4 days. i was off Friday bike to work day. I then rode the Tour de Madison in VA with a friend (66 miles and 4072 of elevation gain.) Legs felt it but not too bad really.
highest mileage for a week for the year 198



ridges and farmland
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Old 05-21-19, 03:01 PM
  #961  
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Commute was hell tonight! 50km/h winds (30mph) pretty much the whole way. I discovered muscles I didn't think I had!
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Old 05-22-19, 07:19 AM
  #962  
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Rain, wet, bleh
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Old 05-22-19, 07:39 AM
  #963  
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A pleasant ride with comfortable temps and overcast skies this morning. Managed 15 miles for my 13 mile commute.
One red Mercedes SUV did an unnecessarily close pass. They had plenty of room to go around more safely. I shook my head as they went away. That'll keep them from doing that again.
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Old 05-22-19, 07:51 AM
  #964  
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Warming up, but breezy so it was pleasant (until I stopped).

Originally Posted by mgw4jc
One red Mercedes SUV did an unnecessarily close pass. They had plenty of room to go around more safely. I shook my head as they went away. That'll keep them from doing that again.
I wish! I was stopped this morning on the traffic sensor, middle of the right hand lane, and a green pickup pulled up right beside me on the right. I timed the light just right, so he pulled in behind me and laid on the horn. I guess he thought he'd pass me on the right and cut me off (into traffic in the left lane). Jerk.
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Old 05-22-19, 10:48 AM
  #965  
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Mood-swingy spring weather this week, kind of late for it around here. Not much to say about the rides except I feel the improvement from my Feb heart surgery and it keeps improving.
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Old 05-22-19, 01:34 PM
  #966  
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Here we go with the week 4 edition of the Tundra_Man heart surgery newsletter. This week's events brought the first little setback since I had my aortic valve replaced 28 days ago.

I've been attending cardiac rehab classes three times per week. They have me over in the corner where I can't annoy the other patients in my class. I briskly walk on a treadmill for 20 minutes and then run on an elliptical machine for another 20 minutes. I figured that as long as I'm attending the classes I might as well try and get some benefit from them, so I tend to push myself pretty hard during these sessions and finish the class drenched in sweat. The nurses usually have to tell me to pull the intensity back a little bit, but overall they're pretty happy that I'm taking the rehab seriously and am challenging myself. Apparently they don't see that very often.

So after last Friday's rehab session I finished the cool-down exercises and then went and got in line to get my final blood pressure reading and have my heart monitor removed. When it was my turn, the nurse was unable to get a blood pressure reading or a pulse, and then noticed on the monitor that my heart had gone into atrial fibrillation. About the time she asked if I was feeling OK, I more or less passed out. Thankfully I was able to stumble into a chair before I hit the floor. The next thing I knew they had wheeled me down to my cardiologist's office and had me hooked up to an EKG machine. After roughly an hour my heart had returned to normal rhythm and my blood pressure had returned to a reading that was low, but within acceptable limits. They sent me home with instructions to take it easy for a couple of days and to call them if it happened again.

By Monday I had no recurrence, so I returned to cardiac rehab classes. Once again I pushed myself a bit, but being a little gun shy from the previous experience I didn't work as aggressively as normal. Everything was fine during the workout, but again after I was completely done my blood pressure crashed and I got light headed again. Luckily this time my heart rhythm stayed consistent and I didn't pass out. And like last time, after a few minutes of rest my blood pressure returned to the low side of normal and everything was good again. At least this time the nurses were able to handle things in the rehab area and I didn't wind up in the cardiologist's exam room again.

To make a long story short(er), the doctor thinks they may have gotten a little too heavy with the dosage of my blood pressure medication. They want to keep my blood pressure as low as they can without it causing me any issues, but obviously it's causing me some issues after intense exercise. They cut the dosage of one of the meds in half. I'm supposed to give it a week, and if I'm still crashing after my rehab sessions then they're going to cut the dosage of the other medicine in half as well. The good news is they feel they have a good explanation for what might be happening.

Along with the blood pressure roller coaster, I've also had a slight increase in pain. This appears to be unrelated to the other incidents, and the doctor suspects that I did something last week to aggravate the muscles that had been stitched back together. I've been pretty careful to follow doctor's orders about lifting too much, so it's quite possible that I did it while I was sleeping while trying to reposition myself in my chair to get comfortable. The doctor didn't seem concerned that I'd done any real damage, he just thinks I'll be a little sore for a while. The pain isn't bad enough that I've needed to take anything stronger than Tylenol, which I've pretty much stopped taking anyway. The pain went from feeling like a mild sunburn on my chest to feeling like a medium sunburn, so it's annoying but tolerable. Oh, and for those keeping score at home the sneeze count is up to 12.

Speaking of pain medication (and I was,) now that I'll be on blood thinners the rest of my life I've been given three options for pain management: Tylenol, Tylenol or Tylenol. Other over the counter pain medications like Ibuprofen or Advil conflict with my anti-coagulation medicine so they are off limits for me. Unfortunately, Tylenol never has been an effective medication for me. So now if I get a headache or other minor pains I'm going to have to take the "grin and bear it" approach.

Some good news is I had my follow-up appointment with the surgeon and it went great. They removed my only remaining stitches where my chest tube had been placed while I was in the hospital. He said that my incisions looked like they were healing very well and show no signs of infection. He pressed on my sternum and said that there was no flex (which is a really good thing.) He was happy with the progress I have made, and said that the only restrictions I currently have are to still not lift more than 10 pounds (five pounds per arm) and don't do anything that obviously hurts. He said that I am healing well enough that when I hit six weeks from my surgery date he feels comfortable with me going "hog wild" (his words, not mine) and doing anything I feel like doing. Unless I encounter unexpected complications, or run into him at Menards, that was probably the last time I will ever see the surgeon.

My self directed therapy sessions have slowed slightly partially due to the blood pressure issues, and partially due to the terrible weather we've been having the last few days. I've gotten out and walked some, but not as much as in previous weeks. I did managed to walk eight miles last Wednesday, so that was a new post-surgery record for me. Since my discharge from the hospital I've walked a total of 83 miles.

Another piece of good news is I had two blood thickness checks in a row that were within the desired range, so I've been moved to weekly coagulation appointments. If I can get two weekly appointments in a row within range then I'll get to go every two weeks. However, if I have two consecutive appointments out of range then I go back to twice weekly. In a way it feels like a children's board game that also involves getting poked with a needle. The hope is to eventually get to monthly appointments and avoid getting stuck in the molasses swamp.

So that's all the news this week from Lake Wobegon. Actually, it's the news from Lake Tundra that forms in the low spot behind my garage every time we get a heavy rain. Thanks for reading and hopefully I've now cured your insomnia.
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Old 05-22-19, 01:48 PM
  #967  
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Thanks again for your story, @Tundra_Man.

People here talk about carrying a spare headlight, and I think it's kind of unnecessary. But I started carrying one anyway once I found one that is cheap and small and works well. It's always in my bag. I've had to use it twice now. A month ago, I had forgotten to bring a headlight, and I have to move it from bike to bike since I have so many bikes. But I had my spare with me, so that made me feel good going home. Then last night, I couldn't find my main headlight, so I used my spare. It turns out I had left my main one connected to the charger. See, this is why I like dynamo lights better. I just can't afford to have them on all bikes, and I also like to keep some bikes down to minimal weight.
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Old 05-23-19, 12:28 AM
  #968  
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Excellent! Living seaside is great this time of year. Also, a great place to raise a child with the seaside at her doorstep!
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Old 05-23-19, 06:58 AM
  #969  
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I managed to wait out the worst of the morning thunderstorms but not all the rain. And of course there was a headwind too! I just kept thinking how great the ride home will be in 80 degree temps and a nice tailwind!
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Old 05-23-19, 07:55 AM
  #970  
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Damp roads from overnight rains. And quite humid and sticky, despite being under 70F.
I'm on track for a good commuting mileage week - 140+. Third week in a row of hitting that. But next week will be a zero as I'm off work all week. Not going anywhere, but some family is in town for part of it.
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Old 05-23-19, 08:46 AM
  #971  
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This morning, I was heading east and a father and son were heading west on local Rail trail. While crossing an old steel truss railroad bridge, a poor little squirrel was caught in the middle of the bridge. He had no where to go! It was like a scene from a movie but at the last second, it sprinted and leaped for safety just I was exiting the bridge. I was braking and wasn't really going to hit it, but the poor little thing didn't know it.
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Old 05-23-19, 08:54 AM
  #972  
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Felt a lot like summer, 75 degrees and 70% humidity so it was a cool summer day. I'm still getting used to the temperature, though, so shade trees make a nice break. Too bad most of them have been cut back to keep the utility lines clear.
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Old 05-24-19, 08:01 AM
  #973  
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Warm, humid morning, but still not quite as bad as it will be this summer. We are supposed to break 90F this afternoon for the first time this year. Ugh. At least the neighborhood pool is open already.

Happy Friday and have a good Memorial Day weekend!
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Old 05-24-19, 11:00 AM
  #974  
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Thermometer said 71F this morning but i saw mid 60sF on the way in. It was very humid though. Supposed to be super warm already 90F feels like 95F
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Old 05-24-19, 11:39 AM
  #975  
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The first other bike I encountered this morning was a Street Strider. I'd been feeling weird and conspicuous about being on the tadpole, but I feel better now.

After that I encountered a lot, maybe a hundred riders on all kinds of bikes in the span of about a mile. At first I thought I'd gone to work on Saturday by accident. Ages seemed to be mostly retirees - ok - and tweens - shouldn't they be in school? Memorial day isn't til Monday. I guess it must have been some kind of school or bike month event.

This thread cracked me up for five or ten minutes today
https://forums.mtbr.com/general-disc...e-1103566.html
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