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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.
 
#8,401 ·
My 2012 by the numbers:

Commute days: 180
Commute miles: 6,480
Commute Ascent: ~351,000 feet (66.4 miles)
Commute Time: 425 hours, 52 minutes (almost 18 days commuting on the bike!)
Average Low Temp: 45F
Average High Temp: 58F
Coldest Day: 25F (January 17)
Hottest Day: 87F (August 17)
Rides in the rain: 91 (not days, if it's raining both ways that counts as two rain rides)
Rides in the snow: 4
Total Miles for the year including rec. rides: 7,544

I thought I would end with more total miles this year, but I ended up dialing back my recreational riding because I found that after commuting for a full week (180 miles, almost 10,000 feet of climbing) many weekends I just did not feel like climbing back onto my bike.

I've enjoyed all your "How was your commute today?" photos and stories this year. Hope that you all have a safe New Year and tailwinds in 2013.
10K climbing per week just blows my mind! The miles are impressive too, but the elevation... Yowza!
I sure wish my computers tracked total ride time like the mileage. The one on my "main" ride does track elevation gain- should have checked that just for fun before I did my year end battery change and reprograming. Rain rides? My records show 9 point 1 rain rides over my cycling career, so I`m only a decimal away from you there :lol:
I don`t blame you for going less on the commutes to make way for more fun. Even though my commuting isn`t to the degree that it interferes with my fun miles, I`m not going to be so anal about it in the future either- I got one perfect year under my belt, and that was what I wanted.

RyR year end:
234 of 234 commutes (due to more furlough days each year, total commutes is actually way down from 2010`s high of 249 bike commutes)
4389 total miles
roughly 2400 commute miles, depending on exactly what I count as commuting

EDIT:
I started tracking my mileage in 2010 and have increased each year. For a while there, this year`s mileage was so far ahead of 2011`s that I was concerned I would go WAY over it and then be looking at a decline from 2012 to 2013. Eventually, it`s going to have to start back down again, but I prefer that year to be far off in the future! Fortunately, I got plenty lazy for Nov and Dec :D
 
#8,402 ·
I was talking it up a little bit last week, but can now report that I`m an official randonneur since I finished my first sanctioned event Monday night. For those who have no idea what I`m jabbering aboput, randonneuring is yet another type of silly cycling sport. The main type of events they do (brevets) are sort of like rally rides or poker runs: start at "A", follow a specified route and check in or prove your arrival time at various points along the way, get to the finish line within X time. Traditionally, they run in a series of 200KM, 300KM, 400KM, and 600 KM, a few weeks apart, with a time limit corresponding to 15 KPH total time from each check point to the next. For the truly wild bunch, there are also extra long brevets ranging from 1000K to 1400K. Any rate, the ride I just did was the shortest (200K) and was sort of a one-off ride, rather than part of a series. I plan to do at least one more 200 this year and try the 300, but that`s probbly as far as I`ll go for 2013. Following the grand tradition of cycling sports, there is more than one sanctioning body overseeing all things rando. A brain fart on my part had me super excited, thinking I would be eliglible for my giant trophy (well, okay- its really just a little pin) after my ride was registered, but this ride was sponsored by the US version, not the pin awarding French guys, so no pin for me yet (pout, pout). The ride itself wasn`t particularly interresting, but it WAS my first, so I wrote it up and you can read all the fun details if you want on BFnet:
First brevet- ride report and questions
I didn`t take a whole lot of pictures, but here are a few highlights.
1. Check in (exciting, yes?)
2. Rolling with the gang (before they dropped me like a rock)
3. Johnny Cash`s home for wayward boys, Folsom CA
4. Looking back at the American River
 

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#8,404 ·
...Awesome mileage, Bedwards! I was surprised a few pages back when you mentioned you`d only been racking it up like that for a few years, so even awesomer.
I use to ride a lot, like 1000 miles/year? I'm not sure because I never really kept track. Then I took about a 10 year break and now here's the ramp up.
Year, Commuted, Gas Money, Mileage Rate, Total Miles, Fatbike Miles
"2009, 900, $119.00, $495.00, 1200, 0
"2010, 2257, $322.94, $1,141.00, 3179, 0
"2011, 3735, $691.52, $2,012.98, 4539, 0
"2012, 5218, $1,039.00 $2,896.00, 5853, 0
2013 ???, ???, ???, ???, ???:D
Total 12135 $2,176.90 $6,558.86 14,789

I don't think I can keep adding 1500 miles/year but I can try to break 6000 next year.:D That may be the plateau for me. I really can't imagine logging many more miles than I did this year. I'm not woodway or hunter:thumbsup:. (I'd rep you guys for your high miles and 100%ers but I still have to spread it around)
 
#8,408 · (Edited)
I finally got to a place where I enjoy the uphills as much or more than the downhills. That place is -7F.

Great pix, Fux!
Whopper mileage Bedwards!
Congrats on the rando, Rodar!
Woodway, that's ridiculous! :eek: :) :thumbsup:

Oh yeah, I passed a speeding car today!
I saw blue lights behind me, and a car and then a cop car passed me. When they pulled over, I sped by. ;)
 
#8,411 ·
RyR year end:
234 of 234 commutes (due to more furlough days each year, total commutes is actually way down from 2010`s high of 249 bike commutes)
4389 total miles
roughly 2400 commute miles, depending on exactly what I count as commuting
Whoo-hooo, congrats Rodar on the perfect year. Virtual high-five!

BTW - I like your ratio of commute-to-recreation miles better than mine...
 
#8,413 ·
Congrats on the 200K Rodar. I know several Rando guys here in the Seattle area...they are my kind of guys!

Fux, you take some of the best pics - thanks for sharing.

bedwards, I never set out to put in this many miles...it just sort of happened. Be careful, it might happen to you too... :thumbsup:
 
#8,414 ·
Cold. 7F at 10PM, so it`s going to be like the real winter guys` temps for the ride home tomorrow morning.

Too late for 2013, but where do I order my 2014 Fux calendar?

I don't think I can keep adding 1500 miles/year but I can try to break 6000 next year.:D That may be the plateau for me. I really can't imagine logging many more miles than I did this year.
Looks to me like your biggest goal should be eliminating that pesky zero in the last column.
 
#8,416 ·
Great pics FUX! Those icy roads actually look inviting.

Schott, how much do you love riding your bike? Did you notice it is -15 but only feels like -4. Now don't be a baby and go ride your bike :)

Woodway, there's a good chance you could be right. Next thing you know I'll be buying a titanium bike and bashing it with a hammer.

Me, I have a meeting after work so had to drive as opposed to riding in at -5. Oh well. I don't like that at this point I've only commuted 50% this year.
 
#8,417 · (Edited)
-13F and my upper body was a bit too warm, owing to 1 extra layer compared to yesterday, plus switching to the insulated helmet. I still dislike goggles, but I must admit they worked great today with a gator neoprene mask - zero fogging. I tried them first with the bike helmet but they were interfering with each other, and they worked much better with the insulated helmet with a goggle keeper on the back. My feet got cold, even with boots claiming -35F rating.

A pic of Dix Reservoir and Camel's Hump (it's on the VT Quarter). Thankfully there was no wind, unlike last night.
 

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#8,420 ·
Right at freezing point melting on pavement warmed by sun. Roads had random bands of compressed snow in low traffic areas. Wind much lower than forecast. Was a bit over dressed. Nice, but a bit sweaty on arrival. Better than really frozen. One sided SPD pedals worked way better with my boots than expected. The iBike test run was decent. No need for studded tires.

BrianMc
 
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