Half and Half's

Somewhere along the line I thought, well I'm a "cyclist", I should get some real cycling pedals. These Shimano M324 half platform, half clipless pedals seemed like a good place to start. You don't need to change into dedicated cycling shoes, you can wear your regular everyday shoes or sneakers, too.

But they can be annoying.  I'll be stopped at an intersection, with my left foot ready to go. Start across the street, and the wrong side of the right pedal will be facing up.  Gotten used to riding through intersections with the right foot not quite solidly on the pedal.

BikeStylin'

My wife cringes a little bit sometimes when she sees me ready to leave for work. I don't know why - brown socks with blue shoes and banded leg. Looking at the picture, the band reminds me of those leg bands that wildlife biologists attach to bird legs to track their movements.

These Skechers are actually good for riding in the winter as they're thicker than canvas sneakers and have kept my toes warm on the chilly days. It snowed a little Tuesday, so I took the studded tire bike on Wednesday. It has platform pedals on it, which meant I had to wear regular sneakers which meant I put on the first pair I saw which were these - my backyard shoes.  They're in worse condition than they look here.

And once I lose that reflective leg band, I'm never buying any more. Going back to rubber bands.  I had some narrow yellow bands for awhile, but managed to lose those over time, and then bought these wide black ones at $4 each. The first time I wore one of the black ones, I didn't get halfway to work before I felt my pant legs flapping and found it had fallen off somewhere. Then one of the lost yellow ones appeared out of nowhere a few months back and I started using it. But the velcro was going bad and finally lost that one somewhere in downtown Spokane last week.

I'm looking forward to warmer weather and hope to start leaving early enough so I have time to change out of shorts or knickers into work pants. My wife will like that.

Forgot it was winter

Last few weeks just been riding back and forth to work. Hadn't even felt like going out on the weekends. But last weekend my knobby-tired bikes were calling out to me and wouldn't be denied. Most of the snow in town was gone, and I forgot it was winter so I headed out to Albi/Merkel Sports Center/Complex (whatever it's called) again and found other bikers had the same idea:

The view from the bridge at Riverside Park:

Maybe it's a little too early in the year to be riding this trail. I forgot we actually had a couple good snowfalls this winter:

Saw about 4 or 5 deer crossing the path. You can barely see one in the middle of this picture. I really oughta carry a better camera.

I made it up to the Centennial trail and found another new-to-me trail to take back down. Saw other bike tracks. Mentally noted other trails for exploring in the future. It was a good ride.

As I write this, there's a little fresh snow on the ground. Thinking of heading out again next weekend.

A close call

I'd left for work early one day last week and it was a little dark and and cloudy outside. While going down Alberta near Driscoll, I got a whiff of skunk. Whew!

The next day as I rode by the same spot I saw something straight ahead in my path. Got closer and realized it was a dead skunk. Must've been the one I smelled the day before, and had only missed running over by inches! Sorry, no pictures. It was there for a few days, but I never managed to stop and get one.

I've had a few close encounters with squirrels, and even ran over one poor little guy's tail, but am glad I missed this critter. Don't think I could've brought my bike into work like I usually do, and folks probably wouldn't appreciate me parking it in the rack out front of Madeleine's.

You don't need a weatherman...

I was reminded of the old Dylan song "Subterranean Homesick Blues" last week when the forecast was for a windy day.

Usually, the weather comes on the news and I might start  to pay attention. What's it going to be like tomorrow? But then I zone out...they're going on an on about there's rain coming, it's gonna snow, whoa it's gonna be in the 80's. They gotta hype the weather, it's their job. My wife will ask what the weather is gonna be like, and I'll go hmmm, I forget I wasn't paying attention! That's because I'm going to ride my bike anyway, no matter what Bill Kelly says.

I wasn't always ready to ride in most any weather, though. On my way to an appointment at the Eye Clinic off of Fourth Ave a few summers ago, I got caught in a torrential downpour. It was nice and sunny when I left for work, and there was a hint of rain in the forecast but I didn't pay attention. As I was leaving from work for the appt, someone asked me if I was riding my bike in that. Huh? I looked outside and it was pouring. Holy crap! It was too late to take the STA Medical Shuttle, and I didn't have any rain gear with me. All I had was my light commuter jacket, and by the time I got to Second Ave, I was soaked.

Now I always carry a stowable rain jacket and some rain pants tightly rolled up in the bottom of my bag.  I think I rode with them in my bag all last summer even, when it rained maybe once. Someday that big rainstorm is going to come out of nowhere, and I'll be ready for it this time.

Bike Commuting Tip #28a: Shoes

That's a view of underneath my desk at work in cubicle-land. A rare day with some sun shining through the window shedding a little light on my workplace hoarding tendencies. Our dress code is business casual which means no sneakers, even on jeans days.

Work shoes on platform pedals are a little slippery, so depending on the bike and my mood, I might ride into work in sneakers or clipped-in shoes. When I started using a rear pannier,  I'd stash my work shoes in that.  Then I started riding a cross bike to work that I couldn't stand the thought of putting a back rack on (I'm over that now), and started using a backpack again. I have the Novara bright yellow commuter bag, which holds a lot, but shoes take up a lot of room.  I found it easier to just keep 2 pairs of shoes at work, instead of hauling them back and forth. Saves room and a little time. Being a little neurotic, I have to have a brown and a black pair to match my pants.  I'm not one of those guys who can wear brown shoes with blue or black pants. But I have done it once or twice. Just doesn't feel right.

It's not too late to turn around and take the bus

The above picture is yesterday Thursday around 4:30pm downtown Spokane. I had made it to work fairly easily as most of he main streets I rode on in the morning - Driscoll to Alberta to Belt to Broadway to Monroe - had miraculously been plowed. The side streets were another story. As I found out riding home Wednesday, the Schwalbe Marathon Winter 700 X 35 tires I have on the Scratch and Dent bike are great on hard packed snow and ice and also deep powder, but not so great in the loose packed snow and tire ruts. A lot of slipping and sliding and being pulled this way and that.

I didn't count on it snowing all day Thursday, so it was with a little apprehension as I set out for home. Sure, I could take the bus, but that stubborn streak from my Scottish-German heritage took over. I was going to ride my bike no matter what, and save the buck-fifty bus fare!

Usually a 25 minute ride at the most, it took over an hour of riding through Riverfront park, on the streets, on the sidewalks, walking and pushing/pulling the bike through the snow to get home.  But I made it.

Today my wife had an appointment downtown, so I gladly accepted a lift from her. It was a little disappointing when I filled out my commute calendar, though, to have one day filled out as carpool and the rest in January as biked to work. I did see a few bikes downtown today.

I'm thinking maybe I should've gone with the Schwalbe 40 or 42 wide Winter tires, but I'm not sure they would've worked any better.  Probably need the fat tire solution for these conditions. I've also been eyeing the tires on my mountain bike - I think I'll take it out for a test spin. I might also replace the front studded tire with a 29er tire and give that a try this weekend.