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How was your commute today?

3M views 28K replies 753 participants last post by  cyclingdutchman 
#1 ·
Well how was it?

Mine was good... hadn't been able to ride at all for the 10 days leading up to today, so it was a bit harder to get into the groove.

Forgot my battery pack for my big light, so I had to ride the last 5 miles on pothole ridden bikelanes with a little flasher.

Got honked at when I was as far right as I could be without getting doored.

All in all, it was a good commute... I ride alongside two different freeways (on a bike path) and get to see the traffic backed up for miles... People feverishly trying to type out their morning emails on their blackberry or looking ragged from sitting in traffic. Then I break away from the bike path and the traffic, and it all looks like a rat race in my rearview mirror.
 
#3,401 ·
It`s kind of cold this morning (all the windshields in the parking lot were iced over- good thing I don`t have to scrape one), but clear and sunny with no wind :thumbsup:. Looks like more wishy-washy "chance of ..." from this afternoon through the weekend, then sunny icons for the rest of the long tem forcast. Sure hope that pans out as predicted.
 
#3,403 ·
Rode the xtracycle today since I plan on hitting the farmers market on the way home. About a mile in this morning I hit a clump of clay mud and it wedged up between the rear fender and tire, stopping the bike completely. I looked down under the xtracycle deck to see a crinkled fender and smelled the burnt rubber. Doh! I pulled the fender straight to I could keep going, but it ripped the stays right out of the fender. Looks like I'll be buying a rivet gun today. At least I was planning on taking most of the bike apart this weekend anyways to change gear cables. Happy Friday!
 
#3,404 ·
So the streak of great weather is finally at an end - rainy today and 5C? I was actually pretty chilly on the ride home.

Also had my chain break at the quicklink. One half of it stayed with the chain, but I couldn't find the other one so I don't know what happened to it. Did it actually break, or did it just come unlocked somehow? Weird.
 
#3,405 ·
I came home a little early so's I could ride before getting my daughter from day care. Remembered my buddy wanted to mtb tomorrow and I needed a new chain, so I hit the LBS for a chain and some tubes for my commuter. Get home, replace the chain, take a spin .... chainring is all worn and makes a horrible clacking noise when under load.

No mtb tomorrow. Going to rain all day so my originally planned road ride was also cancelled. Baby sitter called off. Gonna sit around the house with the baby and watch the sky open up I guess. Mid-day beers and video games during nap time :cool:
 
#3,406 ·
Good commute. Still seaching for the right tire pressure in the 38 mm tires. This run 45 front 50 rear. Had to bump through a 2" pavement cut awaiting repaving. Not snakebit, and I can see a bit of sidewall bow out at the foot print, so I think this is good with partial load.

No crash and burn after the ride so the adrenal/thyroid issue is under control, maybe not optimal, but good. In fact I didn't realize how bad it was until it wasn't. Now to push the mileage back up. Beautiful day, high 70's, it was good to be riding again. It is good to be doing anything again.:D
 
#3,408 ·
Cool! Ruthie looks great. I've have been MTB'g about as long as her, only a lot slower. :rolleyes:

Dang those donuts look good too.

Bri, good to see you back in the saddle, hope things continue to roll.

Bacho, I can relate, nice here and was hoping to do a quick mow & ride before rain tomorrow, but my old John Deere wouldn't start last night so I'll be working on that today.
 
#3,409 ·
Doughnut day? I missed it! They sure look tasty, though.

Cool and overcast today. I was hoping to spend this morning on a road loop to the north that runs roughly 60 miles, but don`t want to get caught in the rain (I hate getting wet). Think I`ll wait and see how it looks at 7:00- hopefully those clouds` intentions will be a little more obvious.
 
#3,410 ·
My Commute today was quite intence was cruzin my normal path up this hill near a golf course and my chain fell off and i broke a spoke. But i was all good after this got the chain back on hit some pretty decent trail along the way not muddy but much sticker than when it is dry was able to fly threw them trails got to go over a few water crossing passed by the river all with excellent views was pretty darn good.
 
#3,412 ·
Rode to the city library in the nice and warm weather. Probably a bit over 10 mile round trip. Got a flat in the rear Bontrager Hank a bit before reaching home. The puncture looked like it was probably from the remains of winter's rock shrapnell... Lower pressures might help.

Planning to do an evening ride on some of the nearby trails.
 
#3,413 ·
For some reason a couple cars honked today. Both were going in the opposite direction over a bridge. I couldn't figure out why.

It's going to be another hot week. Our Spring was fairly cool and rainy. Now we're dry and experiencing late summer weather. Today won't be too bad (92F), but we'll be climbing into the upper 90's for Tuesday and Wednesday.
 
#3,414 ·
Another nice day, a lot less traffic now that school is out. Looking forward to making the most of the weather and going on the LBS family group ride tonight. I'll meet my wife and kids at the shop, bolt on the IBert and strap in my 20mo old. We'll do a 4-5 mile loop, then go back to the shop for free gelato! Then I'll ride home solo whle my wife and kids take the car. Should be a good 20 mile day for me and my xtracycle.
 
#3,415 ·
We're doing the commuter challenge at work this week: http://www.commuterchallenge.ca. Not particularly interesting, but if you track your miles of alternative transport then you're entered to win some prizes (top prize is a bus pass. What would I do with that? :p)

Great weather this morning, and probably all week. And this week I get to look forward to bike-powered smoothies on the way home on wednesday, and a bike breakfast on friday morning.
 
#3,416 ·
Holy Monday, batman.

Heading out from the house I start getting some chain skip on only one cog. I just put on a new chain; is it possible that ONLY one cog on the cassette would wear? Not the chain rings or any other cog. Or could I have a bent hanger or something? I had to use the next cog down. Bonus: got here faster.

Entering the bike trail I hear a loud "ping!" and feel something weird from the back wheel. I stop, check for a broken spoke. Nothing. Start riding again and I notice I'm going 0.0 mph. Ah, the noise I heard was the magnet for my speed sensor pulling the eject handle.

Then I get to work, take my panniers off and notice that they sure do feel light today. I later determined they were approximately 5 lbs, or the weight of one Dell laptop, lighter.

That's three things so I think my fun is over for the day. I hope.
 
#3,417 ·
It was a real torrent this weekend, by desert standards. If any of you from places that get real rain happen to see exactly how much fell here (I didn`t hear how many inches or what fraction of an inch), please don`t laugh :D. I did manage a five hour ride Sat morning without any drops landing on me. Pissed off a hopped up hick driving a hopped up pickup at one point- he laid on his horn and yelled something, I smiled and waved (with all fingers), then he jammed on the brakes and stopped in the right lane of the highway while looking back at me over his shoulder. Thought he was going to come back and kick my butt for me, but he put it back in gear and drove off instead.
 
#3,418 ·
Nacho, not the laptop again!
Don`t see how a bent hanger would affect one sprocket and not all of them, but I suppose it could be possible. Have you taken a good look at te cassette to make sure there isn`t a pebble or something stuck between two gears? Sure your derailler is swinging freely and actually holding the chain where it`s supposed to be?
 
#3,419 ·
Nacho, not the laptop again!
I know :madman: At least last time I hadn't actually forgotten it, I just forgot I brought it. Brain fart I swear; I'm not actually insane. My wife brought me the laptop and even delivered it with a Starbuck's coffee. What did I learn? Leave the laptop home and you get coffee and a smiling wife :cool: SCORE.

Don`t see how a bent hanger would affect one sprocket and not all of them, but I suppose it could be possible. Have you taken a good look at te cassette to make sure there isn`t a pebble or something stuck between two gears? Sure your derailler is swinging freely and actually holding the chain where it`s supposed to be?
I went down and checked out the cassette. I remembered this frame doesn't have a replaceable hanger; it's a Reynold's 520 frame and it's all one piece. It's pretty stout so I guess if I ever actually do bend the hanger I probably have bigger issues to worry about. Nothing is in the cassette, the chain isn't binding or anything. I called my friend who is an ultra bad ass bike mechanic (he's the head honcho at the LBS) and he said it sounds like wear.

Luckily I have two fresh 8 speed cassettes at home. I need to check the gearing but I think I'm going to plunder my wife's mountain bike for the fancy, light weight SRAM cassette I installed a couple years ago that has been ridden once :D
 
#3,420 ·
That one gear that is skipping probably means the cassette was worn to mesh perfectly with your old chain. New chain so the cassette doesn't like it. I always change my chain and cassette together now cause I used to get this problem by doing only the chain.
 
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