Son, you got a panty on your head

Sheesh, almost missed the 2007 Ice Races. This Saturday at 10am on Rogers Lake, near my neck of the woods. I'm thinking I'll get up early and hit the Hiawatha ride (two weeks in a row, that's some kinda record!) and then peel off and head for the lake. Or, if I'm tired and/or cold I can head for home to get the car. We'll see how late I stay out on Friday.

Date: January 23
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Raleigh
January mileage: 229
Year to date mileage: 229

Date: January 24
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Raleigh
January mileage: 249
Year to date mileage: 249

Hello, I Love You

The trails were in dismal shape tonight, almost as bad as the bike lanes. I feel so betrayed. Minneapolis Parks, how can you let me down like this? Even the Greenway, normally the Gold Star Standard of bike trail maintainance, was covered with icy sheets. While I was slowly heading down a hill on the River Road bike trail a woman on a bike called out "Coming by on your left!" and totally blew past me. I shouldn't even admit that I had studded tires on.

Date: January 22
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Raleigh
January mileage: 209
Year to date mileage: 209

Camera phone not acceptable substitute for real camera

I had this sweet picture of my Schwinn with the snow buildup from this morning's ride. I was going to say that it makes me more aero and faster. But for some reason the photo from my phone won't enlarge more than this. So I'll have to go with this lame photo of Ray instead.




Date: January 20
Mileage: 23
Ride type/Bike: Hiawatha/Schwinn
January mileage: 189
Year to date mileage: 189

Titles often Elude Me

So we finally got some snow here in Mpls/St Paul. I decided to be adventureous and ride the trike today instead of toddling along on the studded tires. I haven't ridden the trike in quite a while, and when my thighs were screaming Uncle! after about 10 miles I kind of remembered why. Damn, that thing's heavy. And slow. Probably almost as slow as the Raleigh with it's studs on.

But, it's a whole lot of fun. I was chugging along up some of the Eagan hills, cursing the heaviness and lack of plowing on the shoulders. When I hit the Highway 55 bridge I was pleasantly surprised to find it was plowed. But for some reason the plow left little piles of snow every 100 yards or so. When I hit the first one the trike slid sideways. There's nothing quite like sliding at about a 30 degree angle to the bridge pavement. But that's when it hit me. If I was on an upright, I would have been down. Sliding sideways on a bicycle is a unique feeling. I did it several more times on the way to and from work. There's a feeling of impending doom coupled with an endorphin rush, but no real danger. When I was flying down a hill on the river road that wasn't plowed well and started to shimmy, twist and vibrate, I actually giggled.

So it's heavy. That just means stronger leg muscles eventually, right?

Date: January 17
Mileage: 28
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Trike
January mileage: 166
Year to date mileage: 166

Stuff I Ate

We went to Chicago this weekend. Spent some time visiting with family and friends, and also some time being total tourists. And we spent a lot of time eating.

We ate lunch at the airport on Saturday, because our morning flight was cancelled and we were rebooked. I was super hungry and ate my entire cuban sandwich from Axel's before I could photograph it.


When we met our friends, they took us to the local mexican eatery, El Cid. I had the fish tacos. Best fish tacos I've ever had.


I also had an avacado tostada on the side.


Sunday morning we had a pretty darn good brunch that I forgot to photograph. Between our kids and the relations there was way too much going on. But Sunday evening we had a killer thai meal. I can't even remember what everything was, but everything I tried was good.


Since we were in Chicago, pizza seemed appropriate. But we couldn't get Chicago style delivered. We settled for this.


We made a pretty good dent, considering the girls were asleep and didn't help.


English didn't seem to be the pizza guy's first language, and when we placed the order we weren't sure they would be able to find us or get the correct order. They succeded on both counts, even though this seems to be all that was written down.


I ate other stuff too, but most of it was too unremarkable to photograph.

Frigid Bits

I felt pretty good all the way home tonight, despite the single digit temps. But with about two miles to go, I realized that I need to improve my layering technique for "my boys." They was cold, they was.

Next stop Chi'town, Lido put the money down

Big snowstorm heading for Chicago this weekend. Coincidentally, I am also headed to Chicago this weekend. Fortunately my two flight days, Saturday and Tuesday, are the clear ones. Enjoy the leaderless Hiawatha ride, and have an extra baked good on my behalf.

Date: January 12
Mileage: 22
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
January mileage: 138
Year to date mileage: 138

Here a flat, there a flat, everywhere a flat flat

Last Thursday I woke up to a flat front tire on the Schwinn. I was already bundled up and fortunately I have other bikes I can ride. I once read that you're a true bike commuter if you have a back-up commuting bike, just in case something happens to your primary commuter. So I fired up the Raleigh and went to work. That evening I fixed the flat and I rode the Schwinn the next day. I rode it again Monday and today.

Tonight as I left work I got flat number two on the Schwinn. It was the rear wheel this time. I knew I didn't have a spare tube, and I didn't really feel like messing with a patch because they never seem to hold when applied in cold weather. So, I rang up my lifeline. Can you come get me honey? But, I had forgotten that the piano tuner was coming. So my honey was home with the kids and a semi-tuned piano. Think fast, rabbit. I hopped onto the train. I knew I'd never make it before Hiawatha closed, so I got off at the Lake Street stop. I walked the bike the couple blocks to The Hub and bought three tubes. I fixed the flat outside the store on the sidewalk and rode home.

Before last week, I couldn't even tell you the last time I had a flat. But now, two separate tires within a week's time? Bad karma, that. I wonder what minor deity I've offended. Or, maybe I was just due.

Date: January 9
Mileage: 14
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
January mileage: 116
Year to date mileage: 116

Let's do the time warp again

Where the heck did the weekend go? One minute I was watching Meerkat Manor with the kids and the next I was at work on Monday morning.

Thursday morning I woke up to a flat tire on the Schwinn, so I rode the Raleigh and listened to the crunch of the studded tires. I wasn't thrilled. So Thursday night I changed out the flat and rode the Schwinn on Friday. I rode it again today, though it's making me a little nervous. I don't have a spare tube for the Schwinn right now, so I'm kind of without a net. I'm sure it will be fine. I was going to grab a tube after the Saturday morning ride, but I didn't actually make the ride.

I did manage to get something done over the weekend. Saturday night I helped a friend of mine get his website up and semi-running. And Sunday I cleaned out the garage while half paying attention to the football games. I'd started a shelving project several months ago and the garage was full of various shelving crap. After yesterday, I can finally park both cars in there again. Don't worry, there's always been room for the important stuff. The bikes.

Date: January 4
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Raleigh
January mileage: 46
Year to date mileage: 46

Date: January 5
Mileage: 28
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
January mileage: 74
Year to date mileage: 74

Date: January 8
Mileage: 28
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
January mileage: 102
Year to date mileage: 102

A tale of two commutes

This morning I decided to take the Schwinn without the studded tires. I figured it wouldn't be too bad. It wasn't. But the ride over the Hwy 55 bridge sucked ass. I finally lifted the bike over the barrier and rode on the shoulder. When I got into Minneapolis I decided to take Minnehaha Blvd. The bike lane on Minnehaha wasn't in great shape and I spent a lot of time out in the main lane. Fortunately traffic was light. But everywhere there was snow it seemed really slippy. I was probably just paranoid, this being the first real snow of the year. No crappie flops, but I was nervous the whole way in.

On the way home I did the smart thing. I took Portland to the Greenway. The bike lane on Portland was in decent shape, which is good because traffic wasn't light. The Greenway was beautiful. The only way I could have fallen there was by wiping out in a pile of salt. When I got to the West River Parkway trail that was pretty good as well. But, it was 40 degrees out. Even when there was snow, it was really just snow-shaped slush. There was one clown coming northbound on the trail. No lights and riding on the wrong side of the trail. He was heading straight toward me, even though my 10w headlight was shining right at him. I waited until I couldn't wait any longer and then yelled at him. "Head's up!" And he followed instructions to a T. His head snapped up, he realized that he was going to have a head on collision and he nearly overcorrected right off the path. Other than that it was a great ride home. Even the bridge was rideable. All in all, I'm glad I didn't take the studded bike.

Date: January 3
Mileage: 26
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
January mileage: 26
Year to date mileage: 26

My only friend, the end

Ever since I was a kid, the one thing I truly had a talent for has been sleeping. I've read that an increase in sleeping is a sign of depression. If that's true, I'll probably sleep about 20 hours a day if I get truly depressed. My personal best is 17 hours straight, back in high school. I don't even remember why I would have been tired. But the family was out of the house for the day and I didn't wake up until 6:30 in the evening. And the only reason I got up is because my friends were downstairs knocking on the door. You see, we were supposed to see a play that evening at 7. It was that late spring-early summer time of year when 6pm looks a whole lot like 6am. I was so disoriented that I staggered downstairs, answered the door and said "What the hell are you guys doing here at 6 in the morning?!"

The fact that I voluntarily set my alarm for 6:30 on a Saturday morning would shock most people I know. But I did it on this last Saturday of 2006 to get another Hiawatha ride in. I can't think of a better way to end the year. We headed North on the parkway and made our way to Birchwood because I'd never been there before. If nothing else, the Saturday ride is a good way to learn about the Minneapolis coffee houses within a 10 mile radius of the Shop. After coffee and various goodies we headed West on the Greenway, then cut South on Bryant. Emboldened by the experimental bikeway markings we took up as much of the road as 5 riders could. Ray brought the Clown Bike and honked at anybody who got in our way. It made me feel safe, anyhow.

After a quick detour to CRC we zipped back to the shop. Jim forgot to leave the secret security code, so no sales could take place. So much for his plan to take over the world "tens of dollars at a time." I was hankering for one of those snazzy Planet Bike taillights. Next time.

I'd like to thank everybody who stops by and reads this blog, both on a regular and irregular basis. It's been a lot of fun in 2006 and I'm looking forward to 2007. My resolutions are to eat more, work out less and sleep later (Saturday mornings excepted). When you set the bar low, you'll make your goals. Have a safe New Year all y'all.

Date: December 30
Mileage: 28
Ride type/Bike: Hiawatha Ride/Schwinn
December mileage: 183
Year to date mileage: 3174

Just under the wire, snow

Minneapolis/St Paul finally got some snow that has a chance of staying through Christmas. If we're lucky. I can still see patchy grass in the backyard as I sit here in the living room and type. A good sunny afternoon could wipe away this slightly-white with no effort at all. It's one where I'm not even sure it's worth putting shovel to pavement. Of course, my sloth could also backfire if temps drop. I'd be stuck with a driveway full of ice until March. Still, at this point I'm willing to take my chances. Maybe the afternoon will see me in a different mindset.

The photo above was taken on the new section of the Minneapolis Greenway on last night's commute home. There was maybe an inch of snow, and that's being generous. The bike lanes were in horrendous shape, at least for someone who hasn't ridden in snow in 9 months. But the bike lane on 10th St had those irregular patches of slippery hardpack, and Portland was a slushy mess. After only a couple blocks I opted to leave Portland and side-street it over to Franklin. Franklin doesn't have a bike lane, but traffic was moving so slowly that I felt infinitely safer. Even on the good days Portland puts a little fear into me. That's the street where people are trying to go as fast as vehicularly possible to get to the next red light. Franklin, at least between 11th and Minnehaha Ave always has more of a laid back vibe, which I appreciated.

Once I made it to the Greenway it was smooth, if slow, sailing. This is the first time I've had the Raleigh out this year with the studded tires. I was amazed in the morning how much slower they feel than the 100psi cross tires that I've moved from the Raleigh to the Schwinn. And on the way home that feeling of slowness was compounded into downright sluggishness going through the snow. But I was glad to have the surefootedness. I only had one potential crappie flop, going down the hill on West River Road near Lake Street. I'm not sure what happened, but I nearly biffed it. But I recovered nicely and rode the rest of the way home without incident.

The commute felt good, but it left me overtired and cranky for the rest of the evening. The stinky Vikings didn't help matters any. But, I'm off work until January 3 so a lazy day is in order. Woo.

Date: December 21
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Raleigh
December mileage: 155
Year to date mileage: 3146

What did I do?

OK, let's recap. Yesterday I forgot the battery for my light and was looking at a 14 mile commute in the dark, with traffic and no front lighting of any sort. I did have a tailight, but that's not really even half the battle. I received many helpful, and some not so helpful, suggestions. Let's start with the not so helpful.

I think option F - stay overnight at work.

Staying overnight at work is just wrong. I do everything I can to ensure I only work somewhere between 35-40 hours per week on a regular basis, and I certainly don't want to change that. Thanks Snake, but I'm sending you to the remedial class.

Dude - you forget option G: buy another battery!

I'm currently rockin' the Planet Bike Alias light for my commute. It looks a little something like this:


I can't imagine anywhere downtown that would have one. Plus, I don't really want to shell out in the neighborhood of $70 for another battery. Nice idea, but loses something in the execution.

Doug wins the prize for what I should have done. He's absolutely right, I can always use another light. All my bikes should have blinkies front and rear, permanently mounted instead of shuttled back and forth. This scenario is the perfect proof as to why. But, since either of the bike shops I wanted to go to required miles of riding in traffic, I decided not to go with this one.

Oddly enough, the first comment hit the nail on the head. Minus Car (aka mytzpyk) guessed choice b right away. And that's what I went with. I took the train from downtown to Fort Snelling and rode the remaining 4 miles home. From Fort Snelling, it's pretty light traffic and nice wide shoulders. No worries.

Thanks for playing!

Date: December 20
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
December mileage: 135
Year to date mileage: 3126

Tagged!

Crap. Not only have I been tagged, but double tagged. I guess that means I gotta do it. So, five things that readers would not know about me. I'll leave it to the readers to decide if they are interesting things or not.

1. I've had more jobs than pretty much anyone I know. Going from memory in chronological order: Busboy at Perkins, working on a pick your own strawberry farm, Busboy at Esteban's, perfume salesman, grocery store stocker, Blue Bell ice cream man (I drove the truck and everything), various light industrial temping one summer (mostly warehouse work), recycling truck driver, car wash 'dude who wipes your car down after it's been washed' (I had that job twice), pizza delivery guy, pizza cook (after I lost my drivers' license), stereo/appliance salesman, telephone transaction agent, Service Recovery agent, Process Consultant, Service Manager, Project Manager and Senior Business Analyst. And I know I'm missing one or two in there somewhere.

2. I still have scars on my hands from stair sledding. Way before youtube was even invented.

3. I lived in Huron, South Dakota, for nearly three years. I'm still not sure why.

4. I played the Alto Saxaphone in high school band. Yes, that's right, I was a band geek. I also played the triangle on our band trip to Florida, because we were short a percussionist and the piece we were playing needed a triangle.

5. Once we found one of those old vibrating belt exercise machines. The kind from the 50s where you wrap the belt around your waist and it jiggled you to weight loss. It still worked so we would have contests to see who could stay in it the longest. I still hold the record, because the next person who tried it totally broke the belt.

And for the hell of it, I'll tag some folks. I tag Karl and Baggie. I think everybody else has been gotten.

Date: December 19
Mileage: 10
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
December mileage: 115
Year to date mileage: 3106

Decisions, decisions

It's now quittin' time and I've realized that I forgot the battery to my 10w headlight at home. And the bike I rode in doesn't even have a blinkie on the front. So, do I:

a) Ride home with no light?
b) Take the train most of the way and ride the remaining portion with no light?
c) Ride to The Hub and buy a light?
d) Ride to Hiawatha and buy a light?
e) Call the wife for a ride home?

Tune in to see what I decide!

Why shouldn't mythological creatures love one another?

The reports of people falling down this morning make me glad that I drove today. I've been doing that a lot lately. Pretty much ever since somebody decided that a presentation was called for, with only a week to prepare. Then said somebody delegated the creation of the presentation to some low level lackey (i.e. me). And it's been hell on wheels ever since.

In most cases biking to work is a stress reliver. It's nice to deal with various things all day and then be able to pound out any frustrations on the 14 mile ride home. But when stress hits a certain level for me then bike commuting becomes and added stressor. The stuff I take for granted, like having warm clothes packed and getting all my gear lined up on a day in/day out basis starts adding to the problem instead of taking away from it. I've learned to just go with it and drive when things get to that point. I've already reached my mileage goal of 3,000 for the year so it's not a huge loss. Next year I think I'm going to try Kevin's "ride 100 miles for every year of your age" goal. So that means my goal would be 3,800. That's only 316.66666 miles per month. In theory, very possible.

This has absolutely nothing to do with biking, but it made me laugh out loud for the first time in days. Make sure you have the volume on. Enjoy.


Date: December 7
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
December mileage: 85
Year to date mileage: 3076


Date: December 8
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
December mileage: 105
Year to date mileage: 3096

Dang!

Check out this video, it's only a minute and a half long. You've got time before your next meeting. This guy has some mad bike skilz!


Here's the youtube link in case the embed doesn't work in your browser. Found via goclipless.com

Date: December 5
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
December mileage: 65
Year to date mileage: 3056

Fenders

We had a dusting of snow this morning when I woke up. When I was riding through Ft. Snelling one of the groundskeepers was using a leaf blower to clear off the sidewalk. And yet it was enough to stick to my tires and make a mini-snowdrift from the brakes. I really need to figure out my fender options if I'm going to keep riding the Schwinn any longer this year.

Date: December 4
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
December mileage: 45
Year to date mileage: 3036

Mmmm, forbidden doughnut

Another fun ride with the boys from Hiawatha. It was a balmy 16 degrees when I headed out from the house at 7:15am, and it didn't get much warmer. We managed to accidentally ride through the Lifetime Reindeer Run at Lake Harriet this morning. People say I'm nuts for riding my bike in the winter, yet nobody seems to have any issues with these idiot joggers running through 3 feet of snow. What gives?

I don't have any clear idea of where we were most of the morning, so I guesstimated a route that's probably more conservative than what we took, what with the indecision at the beginning of the ride. We ended up at Melo-Glaze bakery which doesn't seem to have a web presence, hence they get no linky goodness from me. When we walked in, the only people in the place was another group of cyclists. Who would have thought that on a 16 degree December morning two different groups of cyclists would have a random meeting at a doughnut shop? That's Minneapolis for you. Melo-Glaze's coffee was less than stellar, but the glazed doughnuts were good. I can still feel them sitting in my gut at quarter to five, and that's the sign of a good doughnut.

Date: December 2
Mileage: 25
Ride type/Bike: Hiawatha Ride/Schwinn
December mileage: 25
Year to date mileage: 3016

Vision Correction to Vision Protection

Karl asked a good question the other day in the comments. He said, "So now will you be riding with some kind of non-corrective eyewear to keep the bugs, dust, and beer cans away from your new investments?" Now, I know Karl and know that he rides here in Minneapolis. I'm not sure what part of Minneapolis, but obviously a different part than me. Getting a flying beer can in the eye has never been high on my list of things to worry about.

I have, however, been thinking about what to wear on the old eyeballs. Both in the first month following the surgery where the mere act of turning my head fast causes my eyes to get dry and me to run for some eye drops. But also for the long term. I've never ridden any distance without the specs on, at least since I was a kid. They were no safety glasses, but they did offer a modicum of protection from the wind and elements. And flying beer cans.

Today was my first day back on the bike after the surgery. I decided to give the old ski goggles a try. I have a pair of ski goggles that I picked up at a thrift store last year and have never worn. After one day, I'm hooked. The goggles were great. My eyes weren't tearing up like they have in previous cold weather riding. And the top half of my face, previously my Achillies heel in winter armor, was snug and comfortable. I did have issues seeing clearly on the way home in the dark, however. I hadn't cleaned the lenses very well after buying them, and there was residue from the thrift store price tag in front of one eye and residue from something I'm sure I'm glad I don't know what it is in front of the other eye. But a few minutes with a rag and some windex tonight and things are all "cleared" up. That's a joke, son.

The goggles did have one drawback. They seem to ride low on my nose. Or perhaps it's because my nose is larger than average. But either way it felt as though I was wearing the opposite of a Breathe-Right strip. Call it a Breathe-Wrong strip. The goggles pushed down and instead of magically opening my nasal passages they made it harder to breathe through my nose. I'm hoping that some adjustments to the elastic strap will help with these issues. Either that, or perhaps a pair of goggles that costs me more than $8.

Date: November 29
Mileage: 20
Ride type/Bike: Commute/Schwinn
November mileage: 80
Year to date mileage: 2991