More Than One Meaning Of Traffic

Annie and I rode our loop this morning. It was damp and chilly. I rode around town this morning shuttling between appointments. Both of this facts do not reflect the fact that I've developed the first head cold I've had in two years. I'm stuffed up and not feeling great. And tomorrow I go off to do a gig in Boston. Oh well, I'll manage. My plan, since they are actually calling for nice more spring-like weather tomorrow, is to get up early and ride a few loops before heading out to the train so as to get some of my usual Wednesday riding in. Unless this cold progresses and I decide not to. I do have a five hour train ride to recover.

The video below has been making the round on the web. It was on the Philadelphia Bicycle Blog and others. It's a pretty good instructional video, but my reason for providing here today is to allow me to rant. As the weather has begun to turn the number of bicyclists is sky rocketing around town. That's good, right? Sure, except that those riding the bikes are riding the wrong way on one-way street, riding on the wrong side of the road forcing cars to squeeze through two cyclists (really, no wonder they get annoyed), generally zig zagging any old way and making themselves into hazards...and this is the clincher: TO OTHER CYCLISTS! I don't car if you get yourself killed. I don't even care if you wrangle with a car and the car either sustains damage or injury or whatever. I do care if you directly endanger other cyclists. that's just unforgivable. (of course, indirectly you are also endangering other cyclists because the way you act will predispose drivers in some way towards cyclists, for better or worse. Now, I'm not saying to be angels out there. You all know I believe that bicyclists should not have to wait at red lights and that I believe that for safety reasons among others. But some semblance of order and courtesy, please!I'm beginning to be more worried about cyclists than cars as I navigate the city streets. So check out this video about how to drive in the city. Add a grain of salt, but take its spirit to heart: We're all in this together.

Annual Meeting

As I indicated yesterday, last night I attended the Annual Meeting of the Philadelphia Bicycle Coalition. It was very well done. Much better than last year. They skipped the dinner, (good idea) went right to the program (which was good) and then had a quick dessert and done. There seemed to be many more people (after all, last year it was pouring) there was valet bike parking in Rittenhouse Square, and people where definitely friendlier.

There were two speakers. But before the official speakers, State Representative Babette Josephs presented a check for a grant to investigate Philly bike sharing and said a few words. She is a committed cyclist, doesn't own a car, and was a pleasure to listen to.

Then Rina Cutler, the new Deputy Mayor for Transportation spoke. Very impressive woman. Smart, slightly caustic, very knowledgeable. The commitment of the new Nutter administration to re-create this position and to fill it with a really qualified person is heartening. She, obviously, spoke to some of the critical issues facing the Philadelphia transportation scene. I think she is not so knowledgeable on the role bicycles can play in the mix, but seems to be "getting it" quickly and shouold be a force for good.

She was followed by Congressman Joe Sestak from somewhere in the suburbs, I always get them mixed up. He was also very impressive. He made me think he'd be a good candidate to go beyond the congressional office someday. He didn't have a lot to say about cycling and didn't seem much versed on our issues, but did bring a larger perspective, especially in the question and answer period. Namely, a kind of "get real" -- spending money on bicycle infrastructure is important, but we have children who don't have food and seniors who can't get medicine. It is not so easy for Congress to champion one issue without impacting another. I think it was helpful.

Not great photos but below is Rina Cutler and below that, Babette Josephs speaking at the meeting.

Rode with Annie this morning. Not a bad ride but I'm still waiting for the warmth, and a little sun would be nice even without the warmth. took the bike to a meeting today too, and have a few meetings tomorrow, so should have decent mileage totals despite missing some rides later this week.

April Showers

Didn't ride Friday because of heavy early morning rain. this morning the rain was lighter, I could get out a little later and it was warm; but best of all West river Drive was closed for the first weekend this season and I wasn't going to miss the ride. That's what I bought rain gear for, no? It was a lovely ride, a real Spring flavor. My legs were a little on the dead side, especially in the fairly heavy wind gust that accompanied the rain. But I was glad to have gone out. I will miss some rinding this week as I travel a bit on business. Should get a short ride in Wednesday morning instead of my usual longer ride of the week. I leave Wednesday late morning for Boston and will miss Thursday at a minimum. Depending on what time I get in Thursday night and how exhausted I am, Friday is in some jeopardy too. So I was especially glad not to miss today.

Hope to get to the annual meeting of the Bicycle Coalition tonight. Report to follow.

Double Loop

I did my regular loop this morning. It was a beautiful morning aside from the fact that it was 32 degrees -- still. But I had the bike with me at work and nowhere particular to go, so I had a quick lunch and added a lunchtime loop to bring today's mileage over 26 miles. The weather is changing. It is still cold, getting windy and overcast and rain is in the forecast. It would be nice if I can manage to make the lunch time loop a regular addition to my routine.

Wind Dry Cool:Ah Spring

It was not as wonderfully warm as yesterday, and the wind was so gusty that at stops I actually was a bit afraid of being blown over. I went out around 10 AM and it was 43 degrees. I didn't think I wanted to ride all the way to Valley Forge partly because of the wind and partly so that I might accomplish something other than riding my bike today. But I was enjoying the ride. I thought I might take the trail out past Conshohocken and instead of taking the fork toward Norristown and beyond I'd finally check out the left fork toward Plymouth meeting. That would give me a fairly long ride and something new to look at. I also decided to take the tow path through Manayunk rather than fight the Umbria Street hill in the fierce wind. It was a pleasant enough of a ride until, near the end of the tow path, I came to this:

A tree had fallen during the storms of the last few days and was completely blocking the trail. I debated whether to lift the bike over the tree or sneak the bike and me under. We went under on the right side there where it is a bit higher off the ground. No real problem.

After following the Plymouth Meeting sign I arrived at the ostensible destination: Ikea, pictured below.

The trail, by the way, is called the Cross County Trail and I wanted to see how much further it went so I kept riding.It goes about another mile or two past other interesting stores: Barnes&Noble, BJ's, etc. It then ends rather ingloriously:

You can see where the pavement stops, I think, and in the distance there is some sort of bridge behind red caution fencing. I don't know whether a longer trail is in the making or not, but I didn't get any closer to explore. I turned around and came home with a total of 36.4 miles on the day, very much satisfied.

Warm, Wet, Windy: Ah Spring

And add to that, tired. I returned from work way too late last night and couldn't get up for my morning ride today. That doesn't happen often, and the fact that it was yucky out didn't help. I couldn't tell whether it was raining hard, but there was enough evidence of rain to convince me to get more sleep. I had to take the bike with me to get to a couple of appointments throughout the day and I managed to avoid the few periods of showers in the morning. After a lunch appointment the weather seemed nice enough, warmer than it's bee so far this year, 68 degrees, to head for the Schuylkill trail and do a later than usual loop. It was a lovely ride despite some pretty heavy wind gusts.

March Mileage Totals

I'm really pressed for time today as far as writing goes. But I did a regular loop this morning and ended the month of March with 448.2 miles. Given the paucity of miles in both January and February this goes a long way to putting me back on track to hit 4500 miles in 2008, but I'm still not all the way back on track. More soon (riding and writing.)

Cherry Blossoms!

The Cherry Blossoms are out! What could be bad? Despite predictions of rain this morning it was dry and 45 degrees. Today I can say that there was really the feel of Spring in the air though another 10 degrees warmer would be nice. But the signs of Spring abound! The Cherry blossoms, of course, but the portable potties, too. Yes, as surely as the birds fly south in the winter the potties all along the trail were removed. One lone john remained in a parking lot on the West Side Drive. But this week the potties returned in a flock and today they were "unflocked" and spread along the length of the path. Spring and easy access to relief have arrived. The forecast is for rain throughout the day, but it sure doesn't look it, so I have my bike with me to do hospital visits and will record my mileage later.

The Garbage Train

Here is a picture of the garbage train blocking the Locust Street entrance to the trail this morning. Strangely, the train had been blocking the Race Street entrance earlier so I had no trouble getting on the trail. Then the train apparently moved just enough to open the Race Street entrance but close the Locust Street entrance. Who knows? Anyway, I went up the Chestnut Street ramp and rode on Chestnut to 17th and home. I always enjoy a little street riding in the morning and added a few tenths of a mile to boot.

First Valley Forge Ride of 2008

My bike (and me) resting at VF after windy & therefore slower than anticipated ride. It was a first fine Spring day. Temperature around 60 degrees with more of a wind than I bargained for. Still, really enjoyed the 46.8 mile ride.

Noticed something nerw along the trail: location markers containing a number to give the police if you have a problem and call them so that they know where you are, as well as accurate mileage to various points along the trail Pretty neat.

No News Is Good News

Nothing much to report. A good ride but we are bith tired from a whirlwind weekend of family celebration. Spring seems to be in the air after 9 AM. At 6 AM it ks still winter. The trash train blocked the tracks this morning so we eked out a few extra tenths of a mile.

If This Were January

If this were January, it would have been a magnificent morning. The sun out brightly, the temperature 31 degrees with wind chills in the mid-twenties. A perfect day for a winter's ride. But this is the end of March and Spring is supposed to have arrived. Well, it was a beautiful ride anyway, but I'm getting a little tired of the cold. there were good sized buds on the Cherry trees and I know it is only a matter of weeks until the warm weather arrives. Being this close almost makes it harder to bear waiting.

The Winds Of Spring

Despite the official arrival of Spring, the temperature was 35 degrees, which wouldn't have been so bad, but the wind was really strong and gusting even stronger. My 13.3 mile loop was a lot of work this morning.No time for random musing today: big weekend, lots of family coming in. More next week.

Not much to write about today. The skies have cleared and I rode my 13.3 mile loop. The wind has picked up as predicted but really wasn't bad in the early morning when I went out.

Thanks to those of you taking the quiz in the sidebar; I hope more of you will in the coming days.

Finally, via The Fredcast website I learned about velog It allows you to keep a running log of your rides, comment on them and have others add their comments, graph your progress and join other cyclists in various groups like The Fredcast group and the Bicycle Commuters group, both of which I joined. It is a kind of social networking group just for cyclists. Click here to be directed to an invitation to join my list of friends at velog! Join me!

Suckered Into The Rain

I slept past the heavy morning rains today (I really needed the sleep!) and when I left the house at @11:30 it was 48 degrees, cloudy but not raining. By the time I was on my second time around the loop not only was it not raining but the sky seemed to be threatening to let the sun burn through and I was feeling great. So instead of just going back down the west side of the loop I continued on into Manayunk and stopped at the Starbuck's there to pick up some ground coffee to bring home and debate whether to go further out on the path or turn back. By the time I finished the free cup of coffee that comes with buying a pound the rain was just beginning so I turned toward home. Minutes latter the sky opened up and I rode the 10 miles back in a pretty good downpour. Didn't bother me at all. A nice ride of 26 miles.

Hey! If you're really out there how about taking my poll. Not only am I interested in what people think, I'm interested in knowing whether anyone is out there and this is a pretty easy and anonymous way for you to indicate your presence as opposed to leaving a comment or something.

Ok, so just about every site in the Cycling blogosphere is showing this Awareness Test and I might as well also. If you haven't seen it it really is quite fascinating:

Take The Poll

In an extended discussion of a cycling fatality in a Chicago Alley Cat Race on the Fredcast the issue of bicycles obeying traffic laws played a larger and larger role as the discussion went on. That is, how strict should cyclists be regarding obeying traffic laws? I must say that while my instinct is to obey traffic laws punctiliously, in practice I don't. In fact, I've come to believe that in urban riding notobeying the laws is safer. A cyclist runs less risk of getting killed by right-turning cars if the take off while the light is red. More importantly, if the right lane is blocked ahead, riding through the stop light allows the cyclist to safely ride in the left lane past the blockage without having to compete with left-lane vehicular traffic. On the other hand I believe riding opposite to traffic is insane and should be more strictly enforced. Similarly, I am against riding on the sidewalk, but have to admit that even there on occasion the safest route is to ride on the sidewalk. But all things considered, I'm against it. Keeping in mind that the traffic laws were made to control auto traffic, how do you feel about these laws for cyclists? Take the poll to the right.

Rode the loop and then some today for errands. 18 miles on the day.

More Light, More Signs Of Spring

Annie and I were out for our usual loop this morning and it was incredible how much more light there was by 6:30 AM as compared to last week when the clocks were sprung forward. With enjoying the light for a late ride yesterday and realizing that the morning's are getting lighter despite the clock change, maybe my opinion on moving Daylight Savings time forward is changing.But it was still only 34 degrees with a 10 mph wind (at least) so that it felt like the high 20's. Yet again, the day warmed up and the sun shone and it has been a beautiful day to have my bike with me for doing errands and going to meetings. So I'll record the mileage later.

My evening got unexpectedly busy last night and I barely had time to get home for dinner and watch the new HBO Mini-series John Adams. So I missed Cyclism Sunday and the end of Paris-Nice. But I have it on DVR and will watch it later in the week. It sounds like it was a great race.



It was won by Davide Rebellin, last year's second place winner behind Alberto Contador, who was not permitted to ride in this year's edition. Unfortunately, that's the bigger story around the race than the race itself: The continuing dispute between ASO and UCI. I must say I find myself fully supporting UCI in this matter. I find the ASO decision regarding Astana to be entirely baffling. Thus, the race is tainted for me, as will the Tour be this summer. I sincerely hope that these issues will somehow be settled by then, but I doubt they will. I think the dispute will hurt cycling badly, threaten sponsorship, if nothing else. For what ever reason I believe ASO does not care about the sponsorship issue. I think they would rather see national teams like the old days and somehow de-professionalize the sport. But this is not possible nor, probably, desirable. But what do I know? I only know that the race still sounded exciting, that I wish some of the world's best cyclists had been permitted to race, and that I'll probably end up following the Tour no matter what happens. It will be interesting now to see whether the UCI makes good on its pledge to punish the teams and riders who broke ranks to ride in Paris-Nice. That will only make things more complicated.

Late Sunday Ride

It was raining when we got up so we postponed our ride in hopes of fairer weather later in the day. So, after a Purim carnival (that's the next Jewish holiday coming this Thursday night) and an afternoon spend cleaning refrigerators (that's in preparation for the holiday after, coming next month, but requiring prodigious preparations) Annie and I did a late Sunday evening ride. We went out about 5:30 and rode in sunshine mixed with overcast into a goodly wind. Had little time to write but we did get the ride in.

Almost Spring Ride

Check out this cool news video from Chicago on winter commuting; thanks to Bicycle Diaries.



Great ride this morning as the temperature climbed into the 40's. This afternoon the sun is out and it is supposed to climb to 60. I may try to get a late afternoon ride in.

UPDATE
I did ride this afternoon. Could have taken a longer ride along the path again, but i wanted to check out the new Performance Bikes store that just opened in south Philly. I still had a little credit left on my gift card. So I rode down to Delaware Avenue and checked out the new store. Nice place. I worry about the small retailers that cyclists really depend on all over town and I hope this does not put them out of business. But it is a nice place, plenty of stock. I wouldn't think of buying a bike from them, but they offer much more selection of clothing and other accessories; tools in particular.

The extra miles gave me 20 on the day. I am not expecting to ride again until Monday as the weather report for Sunday morning is dreadful. Rain for sure, probably snow! Just when it feels as though Spring is really coming! It will be a good day to watch the end of Paris-Nice on Versus. I haven't said much about this first big race of the European season, but I'll try to write about it on Sunday.

A View Of Falls Bridge

The Falls Bridge Before Dawn

The picture above was taken this morning on my cell phone and then automatically sent to my blog. I was really just trying this new blogger feature, but meanwhile the picture is interesting, if not great. The newly lit bridge is really a lovely sight in the morning. And you can see how much it is night again when we ride since the clock rolled ahead. It was 30 degrees this morning and I was a bit disappointed that it is still so cold, especially since it warmed up into a pretty nice day later on. But I know it will soon warm up and I can't wait.

The photo and obituary below are from this morning's NY Times. I think that Trek continues to play a huge role in cycling and is currently spearheading the movement to increase bicycle commuting so it is appropriate to mark the passing of the founder.

Richard Burke, Founder of Trek Bicycle Company, Is Dead at 73

By DENNIS HEVESI
Published: March 13, 2008

Richard Burke, a founder of the Trek Bicycle Corporation, which capitalized on the luster of Lance Armstrong’s victories in the Tour de France to reshape the way top-of-the-line bikes are manufactured, died Monday in Milwaukee. He was 73 and lived in Milwaukee. The cause was complications of heart surgery, said his son, John, who is now president of the company.

It was on an $8,500 carbon-fiber Madone model bike built by Trek that Mr. Armstrong won his first Tour de France in 1999, as well as the six straight Tour titles that followed.

“With that, Trek became the first American bike company to win the Tour and the first to build a carbon-fiber bike that won the Tour,” John Bradley, a senior editor and the cycling expert at Outside magazine, said Wednesday. “It was a watershed moment.”

Racing bikes must be as light and stiff as possible. Before they were made of carbon fiber, which has the best stiffness-to-weight ratio, the bikes were made of steel, titanium or aluminum. “Now you can’t find a high-end bike, or even a high-end bike component, that isn’t made out of carbon fiber,” Mr. Bradley said.

With his friend Bevel Hogg, Mr. Burke started the Trek company in 1976, in a barn in Waterloo, Wis. The company, now based in Milwaukee, has 1,600 employees and sells through more than 5,000 dealers in 75 countries. It makes more than 300 models, from a single-speed $140 bike for youngsters to the $8,500 Madone.

Mr. Burke was the owner of an appliance distributorship in Milwaukee before turning to making bicycles. At the time, European models dominated the market, and there were few luxury American brands. But in the mid-’70s, as American biking boomed beyond the tricycle and the single-speed Schwinn, Mr. Burke saw potential profit in the high-end bike.

That first year in the barn, the Trek company produced 805 handmade, finely detailed road bikes and earned $161,000. Last year, the company manufactured 1.5 million bikes and had revenue of $670 million.

Bicycle Deaths: Too Many, Too Much?

No, no close calls for me lately, and today I took a long and fun adventure ride. More about that below. But today's "headline" refers to a profusion of stories in the bicycle blogosphere this last week or two on a tragic series of bicycle rider deaths. Here a policeman plows into a group ride (Arizona) there a policeman plows into a group ride (California), here a motorist passes a rider and swings a baseball bat (also Arizona) there a motorist passes a rider and pushes him over by hand (Utah) and today: more cycling deaths in San Francisco. I suppose it is bound to happen that as the number of cyclists increases the interactions with autos increases and the number of accidents increases until we reach that critical mass that will change the infrastructure to insure safer cycling and a level of education and consciousness that will change driver attitudes. You'd thing that as we draw closer to $4 a gallon gas prices it might begin to happen.

But I have to say, as a rider, the profusion of stories is starting to have an effect on my psyche. As I began to prepare to go out for a longer ride planned mostly on streets today, I started to get more nervous. I really wanted to ride a different route for a change and I thought it would be a good day to try to reach RRC, the Reconstructionist Rabbinical college where I teach once a week, just for fun. I will probably never be able to ride on a day that I teach because my class starts at 8:30 AM and I'd have to leave too early to get there, but even to know that for sure depends on my making the trip and ascertaining its difficulty and how long it takes.

I guess there is no choice but to report all of these tragic events just as the newspapers can't just report good news despite some agitation that they should, but some days I choose not to read the newspaper simply because I don't want to hear it that day. I hope I will not have to skip a day or so of checking my favorite bike blogs for the same reason.

Now to today's ride: I left the house a bit later than I'd hoped and since I needed to be home before 2 PM and had no idea where I was going or how long it would take, I didn't know if I would have to turn back before reaching my destination or not. But it sure is nice to have a destination to be going toward instead of just riding the path all the time. (In light of the opening paragraphs above, I was wearing my new Road ID bracelet that Annie bought for me. She is worried that I would be identified when I go on longer rides without her.) Anyway, it worked out great. I arrived at the College in 1 hour and twenty minutes, total mileage, one way, 14.9. I forgot to take my camera, but there really wasn't anything to photograph; it was a pretty gritty urban ride most of the way. Of course the ride down Kelly Drive on the SRT was pretty as usual, as was the 15 minutes going up the Wissahicken Trail to Wissahicken Avenue. After that it was residential and commercial. The only scary part was riding about a quarter of a mile along the very busy street that either is at that point or is about to become Route 309. I did it, but also figured out a way to avoid it in the future. I avoided it going home. Despite the weather being overcast it was 49 degrees and getting colder as I rode. The wind was a definite factor as were some of the hills I hadn't anticipated.But I'd been wanting to do this for a long time and I'm glad I did.

Ride Of Silence Notice

I think it is not too early to let people who might be in the Philadelphia area about the Ride of Silence coming up in May. Below is the announcement. I couldn't make it last year, but have put in on my calender and I'm hoping to be there. This is a ride that takes place in locations all around the world to bring attention to the cyclists killed or injured on the roads during the previous year. Come on out, if you can.



Good ride this morning. 38 degrees felt wonderful in the fog. The sun has come out and I've managed to add a couple of more miles going to some meetings.

Cold and Dark

The last of winter's presence continues to be felt even as there is a definite sense of spring's approach. It was cold this morning; around 30 degrees. But lacking the punch of yesterday's wind. More noticeably, it was DARK. The dreaded way-too-early time change put me back in the night-riding mode. It wasn't as bad as I had built it up to be in my fevered imagination. Still, it will be nice to see the sun again in a month or so. I rode on my own because of the cold and managed to put in 17 miles, but I still have a couple of miles to cover during the work day so I will update today's mileage tonight.

It's All Up Hill

It's all up hill in the wind. Today I went out grumbling about the changing of the clock, though I won't feel the full brunt of that until tomorrow when I ride at 5:45 as usual. Today I rode at my Sunday time of 6:45 so the extra darkness wasn't much of a factor. The temperature was 31 but the wind was heavy and steady with wind chills in the mid-teens. It really felt like the coldest ride of this entire winter, though it was the lowest temperature by a long shot. Of course pedaling in the wind is like pedaling up hill most of the way so it was a good work out, the sun did rise beautifully and I managed to stretch the ride to 16 miles which felt great.

Please check out the newest addition to my favorite blog list The Bicycle Chef by my friend Denine. And check out another great new video about bicycle commuting. You'll love them both!
Why Commute?

How Green Is Your Ride?

Thanks to Bike Bis for turning me on to this Sierra Club quiz that rates the "green-es" of your bike riding. Take the Quiz! I scored 84 out of 100. Not bad, but not as good as Bike Bis.

Thirty-two degrees but there is a touch of Spring in the air; mysterious, given the temperature. Lovely haze on the river this morning. A good ride.

The clock springs ahead Saturday night! Ridiculously early if you ask me, but no one is asking. So Sunday we will be riding in the dark again, for a few weeks, at least.

It's Not Quite Spring

Somewhat tired legs after yesterday's longish ride plus 34 degree temperature this morning made for a brisk but satisfying ride this morning. Then I kept the bike and added a few more commuting miles to the total.

I rode along 11th and 12th street on a hospital visit. Both streets are lined with trolley tracks. I always try to be as careful as possible, crossing the tracks back and forth as traffic demands at the sharpest angle I can manage. For the first time I went into the track and almost went down today. I will avoid those streets in the future as much as I can! After recovering my balance and freeing the bike from the track I suddenly felt my rear brake had pretty much gone out. It must have been coming and the sudden movement of the wheel did the trick, but the cable popped out of the bolt and while the break still worked a little it was clearly too much of a pull to engage them. I was finished with my errands and so went directly to Bicycle Therapy for a quick diagnosis and repair. Good timing!

Happily Out Of The Loop

Much as I love the loop we do every morning and don't mind going around it two, three and sometimes four times to build endurance and just to enjoy the ride, sometimes I need to break out of the loop and see some different scenery and face some different challenges. This is what I generally do on Wednesday's, but the weather and my schedule have not allowed that for some months now. Today, after a night of hard rain and a much needed sleep the weather cleared just in time to accommodate my leisurely schedule. And despite the fact that I have a bunch of stuff to get done today, I couldn't resist riding out of the loop. I thought I might go as far as Conshohocken, but couldn't stop there either. Then I thought I might go all the way to Valley Forge for the first time this season. I certainly felt well enough on the bike to do so. But when I arrived just past the East Norriton sewer plant, about a mile or two before Norristown transit station, the construction on by the side of the trail would have entailed a long wait and the mud churned up by the rain plus the construction didn't look appetizing to ride through. So a took a little break right there at something over 17 miles out. Ate my Cliff Bar, finished the first bottle of water and switched the empty for the full one in my spare cage, and turned around. It was really wonderful to get in a relatively long ride. It was a good challenge, on a very windy day with very strong gusts now and then, to go through Manayunk and up Umbria hill. Still home in time to stop and the bank, and then go for a haircut and now do some work at home. 36.6 miles: Good show.

It Feels Like Spring

At 62 degrees in the morning it sure does feel like Spring. I know we shouldn't get used to it. March and April can still bring plenty of cold weather. But we are definitely moving in the right direction. We rode a nice, quick 13 miles this morning. It was great to be back on our own bikes, that's for sure!

Riding In Seattle

We arrived in Seattle on Thursday around 3 PM and by five had rented our bikes for the weekend from Bob's Bike and Ski. The weather was amazingly good. It rained some on Saturday, but that didn't affect us. We rode Friday and Sunday. Both times along the famed Burke-Gilman Trail, which goes from the University of Washington out into the country past some wineries that we didn't quite reach because of our limited time. But we rode about 15 miles each of our rides. Nice and Flat.



I was riding this Giant and Annie was on something a bit more clunky. But we were both happy with our bikes and with the riding.




What's not to be happy with views like these along the way:






But then there were the hills. While the path is flat, getting to and from the path meant negotiating hills like this one. Going down was fine for me, though Annie was too spooked to ride all the way down. But going up had us both walking, I hate to admit. But after exiting the trail there isn't sufficient time to get any momentum before you are really climbing. That, plus being on a strange bike and not hitting the gears fast enough defeated me.



Then there is alwaqys another view to make it seem worth while.



Still woefully under goal for mileage this year, but moving in the right direction as the season gets ready to change.

Yehuda Moon and the Kickstand Cyclery

You will find a new addition to the blog today. Over on the right side bar is Yehuda Moon and the Kickstand Cyclery, a relatively new comic strip featuring a cyclist. Yehuda works in a bike shop, commutes to work, and faces all the vicissitudes of a commuter cyclist from snow to being passed by Fred's (like today's strip.) The above image is just to give you an idea of what it looks like. Click on the feed to see it more clearly. Check it out daily (I think.)Thanks, as usual, to Cyclicious for the referral.

It was great having Annie back on the road this morning. We went out later than usual because today is Wednesday, my day off. You might ask why is Annie home on a Wednesday? She is usually at the daughter's/granddaughter's. However she had to re-arrange her schedule and go up yesterday. Unfortunately, we are both pretty busy today so though it might have been a great day to ride a bit of a distance together, we just took our regular route. We met our friend and Chiropractor George on the way home and rode together for awhile. The temperature was around 38 but the wind was stronger and it felt colder. Tomorrow we're off West so probably no blogging, but possibly some riding on rented bikes.

SUMMER RIDE SCHEDULE

It is that time of year: even on a cold day like today there is an inexplicable hint of Spring in the air. Time to start thinking about this summer's organized rides. We cannot do the Hazon ride this year (all you donors will be happy to hear) because of a schedule conflict. I am speaking at the North American Levinas Society conference over Labor Day weekend. So I started looking around for some rides for us to schedule. So far we are registered for the Hudson Valley Ride sponsored by the New York Bike Club in July. We have reservations at a motel near the start in Millerton NY and are signed up for the 30 mike ride on Sunday. We will register for the Lancaster Covered Bridges Metric Century again when registration opens. That ride is mid-August. I will probably sign-up for the Montauk Century (and choose the 60 mile option) for mid-May. That will be on my own as Annie is busy that Sunday. I had hoped to ride the 5 boro bike tour, but the date conflicts with a wedding I have to officiate at. Of course we will sign up for Bike Philly and this year do at least the 30 mile option, if not more. It is nice to know we have some events to look forward to and perhaps we'll add another one or two before we're done.

U.S. Bicycle Route System

I attended a meeting sponsored by the Bicycle club of Philadelphia last night featuring the Executive Jim Sayer of The Adventure Bicycle Association about the envisioned U.S. Bicycle Route System. It was an excellent presentation and a visionary project. And it was fun to be out with all these cycling advocates. I cycled there and back and a bit around town so added a bit more than 5 miles to yesterday's totals.

This morning I beat the rain, got out a bit earlier than usual and rode harder allowing me to do 17 miles this morning, a loop and a half, sort of. Felt great. Weather permitting I will ride again tomorrow and then we're off for a long weekend in Seattle. I've made inquiries about renting bikes there and it should be very easy to do, but I have to see what my schedule there will be and check out the weather.

Meanwhile, just to finish the story, I sold the second Citizen folding bike on Sunday. The end of that experiment.

Let Levi Ride!

Levi Leipheimer yesterday won his second consecutive Amgen Tour of California. Levi rode hard when he had to: winning the Solvang Time Trial, and distancing himself from the competition on Wednesday's climbing stage. And then Levi and Astana rode smart, controlling the Peloton masterfully most of the way. And even if they couldn't quite catch up with yesterday's break a way and let George Hincapie win the stage, they kept David Millar in check and that was what counted. The weather was miserable throughout and a stomach virus swept through the Peloton, but it still was a great race and clinches its place as America's premier cycling event. There is little doubt that Astana showed itself to be the most exciting team in Pro racing and close to being unchallenged as the best. It would be great to actually see whether that it true throughout the season by watching how this team does at all the major races. But unless ASO changes its mind and lets Levi and Astana ride, we'll never know. So don't forget to click on Levi's website and add your voice to the groundswell of support for a fair and competitive Tour De France, etc.

Beautiful morning for a ride. The weather said it was 32 degrees, but it felt warmer and I took my alternate route home stretching the ride to 13.6 miles

Riding In A Winter Wonderland

That's how it looked this morning as I took my ride in 24 degree weather. the road itself was mostly clear. A few patches of black-ice where snow had melted and re-froze presented no problem (unless I would have had to brake at just that spot.) There were a few spots where whoever plows the path had inexplicably just skipped a section. One such section, just coming off the Falls Bridges, was so bad I had to dismount for twenty or thirty feet or so. Otherwise it was a lovely ride. My new cyclometer clocked the distance at 13.3 miles, a shade more accurate than my old computer? Or just different? As always I'll go with the present device, but I've clearly been within a reasonable margin of error. Having the cadence meter was very interesting. It was a little hard to get an accurate sense of my usual cadence what with the cold and the need to use caution around the ice, but my cadence is certainly lower than I would have expected and when the weather is better it will give me some new goals to work toward.


Stage 6 winner Pagliarini



Yesterday's 6th stage of the ATOC ended with a great sprint finish won by Mark Cavendish; however that's not him above on the podium. Cavendish was involved in a crash and then was relegated by the judges who said he used the team car to draft him back into the race. Thus Luciano Pagliarini wond the stage. Levi continues to wear the Golden jersey going into today's final stage.


Below: Slipstream's David Millar


In its coverage of yesterday's stage the NY Times focused on David Millar and the great race that team Slipstream Chipotle is having. The big news is that a team committed to the strictest doping controls is at the top of the peloton.

Snow!

That's Domonique Rollin, the Canadian Road Champion from team Toyoto-United winning a super-soggy stage 4 of the Amgen Tour of California. Leipheimer retained the Golden jersey, but only seconds separate the first bunch of racers and today's time trial will be very important in determining the true leader.

Meanwhile, after a glorious day for riding yesterday, during which I did indeed get my cycle computer up and running and rode around town a bit partly for the sheer enjoyment of a lovely, albeit chilly, day, today there will be no riding. At least two inches of snow is on the ground and it continues. We have to travel today so it should be interesting, to say the least. The forecast is good for Sunday.

That said, though I really miss riding today and the prospect of messy streets could pose a problem even after the weather clears, I must say that there is something comforting about having an actual snow storm in winter. This is the first for this year, and I really don't remember having even this much last year, though I suppose there was a day or two when I couldn't ride, but I remember that being more sleet and slosh than snow. I'd prefer living somewhere I could ride everyday, but the associated down-sides of such places for me would preclude it. So here I live in the mid-Atlantic region and sometimes it snows. All's right with the world.

Thought I'd share this great idea for a bike rack taken from an Amsterdam Bike Blog by way of Cyclicious. Enjoy.

Under A Winter Morning Moon

I couldn't resist stopping and taking this photo of the moon shining as I came around the curve on Kelly Drive this morning, despite the fact that it was around 21 degrees and I loathed taking off my gloves. It was a cold ride, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. And the sun continues to shine today so I have my bike. One thing I hope to do if I have a spare hour is to take it over to the bike shop. I attached my new cycle computer and I can't get it to work! Maybe its me, maybe its not, but I hope they'll take a look and let me know.




And, as expected, the third stage of the ATOC saw the race hit the hills and therefore saw Levi Leipheimer take the Golden jersey while coming in second for the stage. I'm pretty confident that it will be difficult to get the jersey away from Levi now. I also hope that this somehow puts more pressure on ASO to change its mind about inviting Levi, Contador and all of Astana to the Tour de France and other big races this year. The UCI is threatening to go to court about it, but I'm not sure whether there is really any legal issue at play here.

Crisp and Clear

29 degrees as I set out alone this morning in the daylight of a day off with Annie at the granddaughter's. The thought of a longer ride, still tentative given all I wanted to do today, soon vanished into the 16 degree wind chill. I enjoyed my ride but returned home after a single circuit. Snow showers predicted this afternoon but it should be cleared out for an even colder ride tomorrow which I dare not miss since Friday is really supposed to be a winter mess.

I sold one of the Citizen Folding bikes last night. I actually had two or three e-mails and a gentleman who test rode it in the afternoon but didn't buy. Then I spoke to a woman at 9 PM who didn't want to take the chance of my selling it today before she could see it this evening and asked if I would show it to her last night late as it was. I was at work anyway, where a I still had one bike and told her to come over. She came, she saw and she bought. Not bad for the first day. No nibbles today, but I'm sure it will eventually sell.

This afternoon I did some bike shopping. first I drove out to Paoli to Performance Bikes. I've had a $100 gift card for some months and though I've looked on line several times, never felt comfortable buying what I was looking for without actually seeing it. Namely, a new cycle computer. So I drove a quick 30 minutes to their store (they are opening one here in Center City soon.) And I bought a really nice VDO wireless unit that does everything I wanted including cadence. Then I drove back into the city and visited Bicycle Revolutions on 4th Street to test ride the Fuji track bike they have. I loved the bike. It actually now comes with breaks and a freewheel so its a single gear not a fixie, but the wheel can be turned around if I want to try it as a fixie. It rode really well, though I'd also have to switch the bars to a more comfortable, less deep drop or flat bar if I bought it. Truth is, at that point what would be the point. So I'm probably not going to buy it but enjoyed the ride (and I'm still thinking about it... the price was right.)



Yesterday's ATOC 2nd stage was wet and wild with the win going to Tom Boonen (I'm glad) and the Golden Jersey to Tyler Farrar (That will be short-lived.)I am anxious to watch today's action as it is the first big climbing day and I anticipate Levi moving up in the GC big time.

Let There Be (More) Light...and More Winter

Annie and I rode out into the 36 degree morning and despite the weather channel's assurance of almost no wind, by the river there was plenty. It slowed us some and definitely made it a colder ride. After yesterday morning's ride in the 60's it was a bit of a shock. But at least the sun was shining (well, we go out before the sun is up but right now it is shining, and it was beginning to shine as we made it home this morning which is one of the topics of this post.)Suddenly, we noticed just after the half-way point in our ride that we really didn't need our lights anymore. Just like that, as if a switch had been pulled from yesterday to today, we noticed how much more light it had become in the morning. That is very nice, except that I know that we are only a month and a half away from turning the clock forward again and then it will be pitch black for awhile. At least then we will trade light for warmth...I hope.

The second miracle of the morning was that my speedometer decided to come back to work. I had taken it off the bars yesterday to try to get the battery out and change it. Could not open the d--nd thing for the life of me, so put it back on the bars so that I would at least have the clock with me this morning, which has continued to work. Well, the jostling obviously got the whole thing working. The good news is that I guess I don't need a new battery, and if I ever really do, I'll probably be better off buying a new one not only because it is so hard to get to the battery, but because there is obviously something else ajar in the mechanism which probably can't be fixed. For now, however, I'm able to count my miles a lot easier. That is good since I am hoping to take a longer ride tomorrow (no promises.)

So with the sun shining and a fairly flexible day ahead of me, I've got the bike with me and I'm planning to take another ride at lunch time in addition to using it to do some errands. So I'll update the mileage later.

Next to report, (gee this is a busier than lately post) I've listed the Citizen Folding Bikes on Craig's list for sale. I've received a few nibbles already. As usual I'm giving a really good price just to unload. But we haven't ridden them in a year and I see no serious use for them at this point. They are taking up space. So I rode one back from my office where they've been stored to home and will ride the other one back later. Wow, what was I thinking. Those twenty inch fat wheels really are not what I want to be riding on anymore. I hope they will find a good home.



Finally, yesterday's first stage of the Amgen Tour of California was won by J.J Haedo of CSC. He is a great rider, especially sprinter. You may remember that he won the Philly International here last June. This is his record 6th ATOC stage win. Cancellara kept the yellow jersey and Levi is not far behind. Tomorrow begins the mountain stages and everything will change. I tracked the race via computer all day as well as receiving text-message updates from the Fredcast throughout the race. If you did the same then you know about Jackson Stewart of BMC led out on a solo ride for most of the race until being reeled-in in Santa Rosa. It was fun.

Weird But Wonderful

I watched the Versus coverage of the opening of the Tour Of California last night. Very nice to have Phil and Paul and Bobke back and though there was a lot more talking than racing, that felt good for the first show of the season. Good introductions to the new teams and some of the pressing problems of the sport.

It was pretty clear to me that yesterday's course would pretty much exclude the possibility of Levi's winning. I'm pretty impressed that he did as well as fourth place given the competition of sprinters and time trial specialists. Wiggins' ride was beautiful but Cancellara pretty much has a lock on these events. There is a long way to go until the end, and Levi is well placed.

I just signed up for the Let Levi
Ride web site. Excluding him, Contador and the entire Astana team is ludicrous.

Finally, in the spirit of California, Annie and I rode in 61 degree weather this morning! Weird but Wonderful in February.

A Good Ride Preliminary To The TOC

I rode a nice 14 miles. My regular loop plus a slightly altered route home in order to vary things. It is getting just a bit boring riding the same route all the time. When the weather is better I will have more varied rides to break up the everyday ride. Anyway. It was a good ride and then I drove to NJ to spend the afternoon with my granddaughter and now I'm home in time to sit down and watch the first stage of racing from the Tour Of California on Versus. Hope you are watching if you can.

Double Loop Into The Wind

Actually, the first time around the wind wasn't too bad, The second time around between the wind and this being the first time in a long time I've pushed beyond the usual one loop a day and made it to almost 25 miles for the ride, the wind became a real factor. But it felt great. A took a bit of a break after the two loops and thought about trying a third before I needed to get to an appointment. In fact I started out to do either another loop or a half a loop, but by then the wind was really whipping on Kelly Drive and I turned around and headed into town.

Looking forward to the beginning of the tour of California on Sunday. I know this blog is getting pretty boring. I haven't been doing a good job of finding interesting cycling tidbits on the web to share with you and I haven't been taking many pictures. But spring is coming, and aside from riding more, I may start to have a bit more time in my schedule to pay more attention.

I'm Back!

I returned from Washington DC on a 1:30 train and was out on the Schuylkill by 2:30 with Annie. We had to walk to pick up the bikes as she had used my absence to wisely bring both of them in for tune-ups. Turned out my bike needed a new chain and rear cog. I guess my over 5000 miles really wore out the bike! What a difference. I felt like I was flying on the path. It was so much easier to pedal. We had a really nice ride in beautiful sunshine, a bit windy and 38 degrees. I won't be able to ride tomorrow because my car has to go in for service now. So it felt doubly good to get out there.

While I was away I did catch up on most of the magazines that had piled up and some, but not all, of the podcasts.

Gorgeous Sunday

A wonderful 39 degrees and the sun just coming up stunningly over the river as Annie and I rode this morning. I'm really happy I was able to get a ride in before leaving for the week. And, at least according to the forecast, I might not have been riding much even if I were going to be home. I'll be taking a pile of cycling magazines that I need to catch up on, and at least 6 podcasts that I'm behind, and I'm hoping to find some time for them. I know there will be some more information about what is going on with the Giro excluding Astana and other Tour teams. Bad business, again.

A Quick Check-In

Just time today for a quick check-in. We rode, Annie and I together, for the first time in awhile. Did a very nice loop despite one dismount for construction on the path, and one for a train passing over the Locust Street exit. Then I took the bike for a day of errands, meetings, appointments, hospital visits, etc. I am awarding myself6 miles for all of that, though I can't be 100% sure since my odometer is not working. It may only be the battery. I'll check it when I get home next week. The temperature this morning was 38 de4grees and the day warmed nicely into a lovely day for riding. The forecast is for bitter cold this weekend, so we'll see whether I get another ride in before I leave.

Back Into The Routine

The temperatures are still cooperating, though beginning to fall. Not 60's but high 40's this morning. I'll take it. Hopefully I'll get another ride in tomorrow and Sunday (though it is supposed to be pretty cold Sunday.)After that I will be out of town for the rest of the week and don't expect to be able to take the bike with me. I'll take the pile of latest cycling magazines that have been piling up the last week or so instead. Perhaps I'll have some interesting things to share, though I won't be riding. I'm not even sure of my internet access during this trip, so Sunday morning may begin a hiatus.

Too bad I have to leave, I feel like I'm finally getting back into the routine.

Catching Up

Today was an exceptional day for a ride, but I only had time for a late morning single loop. Still, it was good to be out on the bike after really not getting out much the last few weeks. The hectic schedule I've been keeping and the cold, dark mornings have really discouraged me this year. But, I rode today and I will continue to try to ride whenever it is reasonable. finally took the time to close out my January stats and start the February count. At 230+ miles January didn't set any records and I'm not sanguine about February. I'll just have to make up for it come spring and summer.

Still Riding

But not really writing much. Just wanted to reassure those of you out there that despite the frigid weather I'm still riding almost daily. Rode Sunday and today. Over 20 degrees is no problem. I probably could have managed yesterday's single digits as well, but didn't push myself. I haven't felt much like writing, though. I'll keep in touch.

No Excuses

No excuses for not riding today. I just didn't feel up to it.

Meanwhile check out the publicity growing around the idea of a city-wide bike sharing program in Philadelphia: in today's Inquirer

Another Pleasant Ride

After a lovely ride in the brisk but gloriously sunny weather (34 degrees,) we took off for our granddaughter's 2nd birthday party. She is now the proud possessor of a glider that we hope will enable her to learn to ride a bike without having to go through the training wheel stage. Of course, she will need better weather, but the wait for spring will only make it more likely that she will be old enough to handle the bike and catch on to gliding, and then riding, quickly.

Video Of The Loop

Well, if you've ever wondered what it is like to ride the Schuylkill Trail along Kelly Drive to the Falls Bridge as we do everyday, here is a video from the Bicycle Coalition of Philadelphia. Definitely very boring, but you wondered, so here it is. Actually, it covers from the Bridge back to the beginning of the Drive so normally I would be riding the other way, but you'll get the idea, if you have absolutely nothing else to do. Check it out!

Otherwise today was a wash out.

Kudus To Portland...As Usual

As usual, Portland Oregon, the friendliest cycling city in America, as acted even more aggressively in protection of cyclists rights, and lives. Check out the article in today's NY Times:

Portland Acts to Protect Cyclists

A brisk ride this morning, comfortable 44 degrees but heading back toward winter.

Summer Temperature; Winter Wind

A rainy morning combined with a long day and late night last night kept me from an early ride. I didn't get out until after 2 PM on my day off, but managed to ride 23 miles on another beautiful lull in winter. The temperature was around 62 degrees and it felt great riding without a jacket,etc. The wind, however, was winter strong so the work-out was better than might have been expected. Temperatures are beginning to fall, but still promise to be relatively moderate for morning rides the rest of the week.

A Perfect Day

January in the mid-sixties, who can complain. Of course, at 5:45 AM it was only 48 or 51 depending on which radio station you believe, but it was still a wonderful ride. Then I was able to take the bike with me for the first time in awhile. It only added a few miles, but was great fun getting around the city on this gorgeous day. I love darting around traffic!

Well, That Was Winter

At least for the moment winter has disappeared again. Not that I'm complaining. It is near 60 degrees this afternoon and the forecast for the week is continued warm weather. Of course at 6 A.M. it wasn't that warm and probably won't be in the coming days. In fact, it was 38 degrees and drizzling when Annie and I did our loop, but it felt good anyway. It was warming even as we rode and after Fridays arctic ride my toes were plenty appreciative.

Now This Is Winter

Went out for my morning loop with the temperature at 17 degrees. Now this is winter. Annie doesn't ride under 30 degrees or so, but actually this was an easier ride than Wednesday because there was very little wind. Wednesday's wind with today's temperature would have been too much. As it was, the temperature (or the layers) definitely slow me down. In this cold I feel like my pedaling is much more sluggish. I almost think it is the bike, not me. I don't know if anyone out there knows the physics/chemistry of it (I sure don't,) but it feels like the pedals actually are more sluggish. Anyway, it was beautifully clear and a wonderfully bright last-quarter moon gave way to a sunset just peeking over the horizon as I came home. Nice. Forecast is warmer for Sunday.

Finally, A Longish Ride

Well, it has taken me awhile to clear my schedule, but despite a few early snow flurries the weather cooperated with me today and I rode 36.6 miles. May not sound like that much, but after the past month or so, it was a lot. Especially in the killer wind that was howling down Kelly Drive. I felt like I was going up the Alps! But then I would come back along West River Drive and feel revived. So I kept going until I had reached my goal...you see 36.6 miles translates into just about 59 kilometers. So this was a birthday ride. My birthday isn't until Saturday. But I won't be riding on Saturday or tomorrow and even if I get out Friday morning it will only be for a regular loop. So one kilometer for each of the 59 years that I will celebrate on Saturday. Plus the extra exercise will allow me to be less guilty when, after my talk in NY tomorrow, I head to the newly re-opened 2nd Avenue Deli for a birthday lunch.

For the past few months we've been detouring around some very exacting construction going on along Kelly Drive just before reaching the Falls Bridge. I finally stopped to get a few shots of it. Looks like they are doing something that will forestall flooding at that spot, which has been a problem in the past.

The Sun Shone (briefly) on 2008

The rain ended early and Annie and I started the year with our first ride, a simple loop of 13.4 miles. The sun was actually out and the temperature was 50 degrees. Not bad for January 1st. The sun had just about disappeared by the time we came home and the rest of the day was pretty dreary. Tomorrow's forecast is not promising, but it is my day off and I would like to get at least a slightly longer ride in for a change. We'll see. I also have a lot of work to get done before a speaking engagement in NY on Thursday.

Meanwhile, I thought I'd share this Cycling Code of Conduct posted on the Fredcast website. It comes from Australia and is part of a growing recognition that we cyclists are going to have to take ourselves more seriously as road users as more of us use the roads. Enjoy

Last Ride Of The Year & Year Totals

A bit colder this morning and a stronger wind, but another gloriously sunny morning as Annie and I rode our last loop of the year. It has certainly been a very enjoyable and productive year cycling-wise. All of our various group rides as well as our regular morning rides; our learning more about bike maintenance; our various new bikes and growing collection of cycling paraphernalia; all and all a very special first full year riding together. Our schedule didn't allow a longer ride this morning, though once again I would have liked that, but we settled for the usual 13 plus miles and brought the total for the year for me to 5082.3 miles! That is 1082.3 miles above the very ambitious goal of 4000 miles I had set for myself. Well, I will err on the side of caution, mindful of my ever increasing responsibilities and more and more hectic work schedule and set the goal for 2008 at 4500 miles. That increases last year's goal but doesn't presume that I will necessarily be able to duplicate this year's riding.

So, tomorrow we begin the count again. Unfortunately a previously clear forecast has been changed to rain (again!)I hope we will be able to start out the year riding, but we'll have to wait and see. And you, dear reader whoever you are, will hear all about it hear at Bicycle-Musings - (I'm A Ludwig) as usual. Happy New Year!

Happy Blogaversary

Yes, one year ago today I set out to blog about my new found pastime, bicycling. I can't say that I haven't missed a day, but I can say that I've been very consistent and while not pretending to be either an expert or a blog/journalist, I have tried to also find and share other items of interest that I pick up from my browsing of the web and other sources. I hope those of you who have read Bicycle-Musings (I'm A Ludwig) regularly have enjoyed it.

Today was another lovely late December day. The temperature was 48 degrees when Annie and I went out and rode a loop. I wish we had more time today as the ride felt really good and I could have kept going, something I haven't felt in awhile.

Anniiversary Ride

No, not the anniversary of the blog, that's coming up in 3 days. Today is Annie and my 38th wedding anniversary. The weather is gorgeous and we rode a lovely loop this morning. Would have liked to keep riding, but our kids are coming and we are having our Thanksgiving dinner (postponed.)

Gorgeous Sun and Wearing Wind

Another great looking day, but much more windy than yesterday. I rode by myself as Annie had an early appointment and it was a hard but invigorating ride. So much so that I couldn't resist staying on the bike to do some food shopping after my ride. Came home and put the panier on the bike and grabbed my messenger bag and went off to Trader Joe's to shop. big dinner tomorrow for our 38th Anniversary; a kind of Thanksgiving for the Thanksgiving we missed due to my mother's passing. The granddaughter will be joining us...and her parents and a few friends. Hope to get another ride in first. The warm December is wonderful, though at 38 degrees it was hardly as warm as yesterday.

The Big 5000

Misty and threatening to rain but 50 degree temperature lured Annie and I out for a Sunday morning ride. The thirteen plus miles around our loop put me over the 5000 mile mark for the year! Given the small number of miles I will cover in December, it is both a great milestone and a bit anti-climactic. I would have rather burst through the 5000 mile barrier with a good 50 mile ride, but beggars can't be choosers, or something like that. So now with only a few days left in the year, if the weather cooperates, I should be able to add at least a bit to the yearly total, but I will have to give some thought before setting a new goal. Conventional wisdom would say that if I reached 5000 this year I ought to shoot for more next year; at worst I ought to at least try to match this year's total. But it took an awful lot of riding and a schedule that miraculously cooperated with some of our weekend rides to accomplish this years total and there is no guarantee that my schedule in the coming year will cooperate equally. So I may just be cautious and shoot for 4000 again and see what happens.

Ah The Winds of Late Autumn

It is relatively warm and the sun has just come out through a dense morning fog. Couldn't ride this morning...too tired. But Annie and I did our loop this afternoon. Even more windy on Kelly Drive than on Wednesday, but we need to ride when we can these days.It was actually lovely.

Thought I would share this great idea for a bike rack that comes via Allen Snell's Bike Stories Thanks Allen.

Evening Sunset

A pleasantly warm December day lured me back out on the road, but not until late afternoon. Temperatures were already beginning to drop and the wind on the east leg of the river loop added to a much needed workout. So often I've watched the sunrise as I am finishing my morning ride. It was quite nice to watch a particularly beautiful sunset on today's ride. I did the loop twice and given the forecast have no clue when I'll be out again. It sound like tomorrow will be a washout but there may be another window Friday morning. The weekend looks like snow. I shaved 24 more miles off my new goal of 5000 miles for 2007. With a little weather luck I should make it.

Despite a very late night last night I was determined to ride this morning. The spinning machine was an ok work-out yesterday, but it is not a lot of fun. While I may still have to use it when the weather is really bad, 36 degrees and clear is not a good enough reason to stay in bed even if I didn't get to sleep until midnight! So Annie and I rode and it felt great (I have to admit the spinner makes riding the actual bike seem much easier, though the significant reduction in wind from the previous few rides helped, too.) The sun rose magnificently over the river as we rode.



Before riding I glanced over Today's NY Times and found this great picture and article on cycle cross that I recommend.

Spinning

Talk about riding with all the comforts! the New York Times ran this picture of a guy with a 500 watt stereo on his bike and this accompanying story:
check it out.

As for me, I must admit, the cold and dark mornings are getting to me, especially in light of my heavy schedule. So I decided that today would be the day when I experiment with the trainer indoors. We'll see how it feels.

Pretty + Windy = Pretty Windy

It was a very pretty morning and I thought I might get a long ride in. But the wind was very strong and coming directly at me along Kelly Drive and I almost gave up after completing one loop around the river. I convinced myself that I really needed to push to get to at least two loops, my fitness is off a bit after last week's lay-off, but thaqt was all I could do. Of course, the fact that it was about 36 degrees didn't help and in the windier sections of the ride my hands and toes were pretty cold. It was a good ride and a good workout, but that beautiful sun can be decieving.

A Cold Crisp Return

My week of formal mourning came to an end and Annie and I went out for a quick ride in the cold (32 degrees0 crisp morning. It was really beautiful out and I enjoyed the ride. Felt strong and very happy to be back on my bike. It has been a long week, sad but mixed with much appreciation for all the support I received from the community. Not much more to say.

If you haven't seen the following incredible video, take a look. Imagine cruising through Manhattan traffic on a Unicycle!

In Mourning

Blogging and cycling will be on hiatus following the death of my mother this morning.

A Quick Hello

Given my schedule I have been riding less and blogging not at all. Perhaps things will slow down in a few weeks. Meanwhile I didn't manage to get up and out yesterday morning and only added a few around town miles. today Annie and I managed one loop despite both being home on my "day off" (meaning only two meetings!) I also rode around town a bit and added 16.4 to the total. The 5000 mile goal is beginning to fade, but much will depend on December's weather.

Perfect Autumn Sunday

Annie and I waited to ride after I returned from work this morning. We went out around 11 AM and the weather was perfect: sunny and brisk. We wrestled our way through the crowds on Kelly Drive gathered for some regatta or other on the river and then were clear, riding up to Ridge Avenue and then up the Wissahickon trail to the Rittenhouse House and back along West River Drive. Only about 18 miles, but very pleasant and a good re-entry for Annie who hadn't been on her bike all week.

In other items of interest, check out the upcoming Tour of Pennsylvania scheduled for the last week in June. It is a UCI event for under 25 year olds with a huge purse of $25000. The tour starts in Philadelphia and ends in Pittsburgh. Should be fun.

Frost

This morning's ride was brisk and wonderful; first frost sighted along the grass on the West River Drive. But it felt so good to ride and I rode a bit more on errands today, but not nearly enough. I wanted to keep going in a way that I haven't felt for a few weeks (getting two good night's sleep in a row helps,) but time did not allow.

I did come across this fun internet tv series, The Bicyclist which I had time to watch a few episodes. Just fun. I recommend watching a few episodes, though I'll eventually view them all.

No ride to Lancaster Sunday; life is too hectic right now, but we'll ride somewhere.

A beautiful fall day: sunny and crisp. Exhausted as I've been I woke up a bit late and then rode 30 miles around the loop. It was not easy and at points not even fun. I'm too tired and the wind was strong. But in the end I was happy I did it and loved the ride. I thought about getting off the loop and heading out but I didn't feel like dealing with cars and I wasn't sure how far I'd be able to go anyway.

I returned home just in time to spend some time with my visiting grandaughter in the park. a great way to end the ride!

Looking Ahead To Sunday

Not much to write about today. The rain this morning combined with growing exhaustion kept me off the bike until late afternoon when I used it to go out to vote and run an errand or two. A paltry 2 miles. But tomorrow is a much needed day off and if I have the energy a longer ride. Meanwhile, if things are stable we may join Hazon in an unsupported ride back in Lancaster county. for those who might be interested here's the ride info and route map.


Lancaster Farm Fresh
Bike Ride
Nov 11, 11:00 am
(raindate: Nov 18)


Savor the sights, sounds and smells of Lancaster County Amish and Mennonite small family farms. 30 mile route on rural roads over rolling hills and four covered bridges, few moderate climbs.

11 AM start at Ephrata Middle School This is not a supported ride.

Link to route map | Directions

RSVP to csa@kolami.info. Ride leader and contact Mark Kaplan cell phone (215) 906-6200

Tough Weekend/Great Cycling News Story

We had a tough weekend. Our cat began having seizures on Friday and we spent hours at the University of Pennsylvania Vet Hospital on Friday, Saturday night and Sunday morning, wiping out all plans to ride. The cat is holding his own, but it remains precarious. I finally got back on the bike this morning and did a regular run. It was particularly enjoyable since after the clock change it was light again for most of the ride and that's really nice.

If you haven't seen today's NY Times you should check it out. A great story about the bike economy growing in Portland Oregon, including a great video if you can check it out on the web page. Bike Economy

Busy Isn't The Word

Busy isn't the word for the past few days. Both yesterday and today I was out and about on my bike working, from meeting to hospital to meeting. After yesterday's regular morning ride I added enough miles so that the paltry 7.3 miles I rode around town today still left me with an average two day total. I was unable to get up this morning to ride for really only the first or second time since I began to ride every day. Yesterday was just too long. But while I didn't ride in the morning I rode all around town to and from three hospitals. The ride s between sharing in people's angst helps clear my hear, too.

I stopped by Bicycle Therapy on the way home and picked up a set of brake pads for my rear brakes. I put them on and toed the front brakes which are still squeaking somewhat. I'll bring the bike in next week when i have a chance. The shop was too busy to look at it right away as they usually do and I didn't want to leave the bike. I hope we'll have a decent ride Sunday morning, though I still have too busy a day planned to do any distance. We hope to ride over to the Schuylkill Banks Park in mid afternoon for the community meeting about the plans to construct a bridge over the rail track to access the trail.