It's got that brand new Der. cables feeling. Amazing.
Official commuter thread
- Thread starter LordOpie
- Start date
Wow, it is finally raining here. We don't get very much rain in Bend - I think the average for a year is 11 inches of percipitation. When we do get rain I find myself wondering how people commute day in and day out in it because I'm spoiled. Yes I know there are rain pants and coats and all that jazz, but it seems like it would get old. But for me, splashing through the puddles every once in awhile is fun.
Check it, I won a $20 giftcard to Bend Brewery for bike commuting.
What a lame winter for Stockholm. 3 or 4 days riding in the snow. Mostly just above freezing and rain. Yes I am whining.
The commuter bike will FINALLY be in CO. I found my old 1995 Specialized Rockhopper in the garage in VT when I went home for xmas. So excited to get her back up and running.
had a interesting commute.
as I'm riding in , i Just don't feel like i'm moving very good , just slow and sluggish , like I'm being held back. I also notice my front disk brake is a Lot touchier then usual.I even stop once to check the wheels make sure nothing is dragging, but things just don't feel right. well at the traffic light 100 yards from my office , its red, down hill, so I pulled on the front brake , it made a snapping sound and the lever went all teh way to the bar and did nothing. well my Rear brake a V-brake isn't the strongest , but managed to stop me.
I got into the Office warmed up my toes and looked at the bike , and I some how managed to lose a brake Pad !
well I tighted up the rear brake , Too tight it was rubbing for teh ride home , but the rear wheel is in such bad shape that was the best I was goign to get. and rode home sans 1 front brake.
as I'm riding in , i Just don't feel like i'm moving very good , just slow and sluggish , like I'm being held back. I also notice my front disk brake is a Lot touchier then usual.I even stop once to check the wheels make sure nothing is dragging, but things just don't feel right. well at the traffic light 100 yards from my office , its red, down hill, so I pulled on the front brake , it made a snapping sound and the lever went all teh way to the bar and did nothing. well my Rear brake a V-brake isn't the strongest , but managed to stop me.
I got into the Office warmed up my toes and looked at the bike , and I some how managed to lose a brake Pad !
well I tighted up the rear brake , Too tight it was rubbing for teh ride home , but the rear wheel is in such bad shape that was the best I was goign to get. and rode home sans 1 front brake.
We've been having a ton of rain so the commute has been dangerous. Yesterday I had my wife pick my daughter up, so I towed the empty trailer home. I was on a side street w/no parked cars or traffic and a guy came around me and swerved at me (came inches from hitting me), all while I was toying a kid trailer. WTF is wrong with people? Luckily I didn't have my daughter with me. America: where only you matter.
This week has been interesting. First I rode in about 10" of snow. Granted, it was light, fluffy, dry snow. Next came the heavy wet snow with giant headwinds that caused me to utilize more core just to keep it upright and moving. Then came heavy rain and flooding which made for a real adventure. Water was to the hubs in places! Today we're back to normal..just a little ice to deal with but I made it safely.
-11C this morning......*like*
First commute of the year!!! I love this freaking weather - low 50s this morning with a high of 68 today. So 10 mile to work 20 mile lunch ride then 25-30 miles home. That's taking advantage of a nice day!
I'm in the process of... fixing up an old Huffy 924 I acquired for free. Got it torn down, going to clean it up, paint it, fresh grease on bearings, and maybe a cheap saddle. It was free because it was "rusty and had flat tires". A little wire brushing has gotten rid of all the rust (in like 30 mins). The tires look fresh and hold air. Going to paint it today so I should have some more interesting pics soon. Plans are to commute it for a little bit while it's up for sale and invest that money into an older, more suitable, road bike from the LBS.
First got her home and started disassembly immediately
50/50 of how it looked when picked up and how it looks after a quick run with a wire brush
She's down to bare frame now and ready for paint. I know she's an old Huffy but money is tight and I'm sick of riding my short-geared mtb long distance on the road. Hopefully I can paint it up and sell it to a local hipster at a nice markup and get a more worthy road bike.
First got her home and started disassembly immediately
50/50 of how it looked when picked up and how it looks after a quick run with a wire brush
She's down to bare frame now and ready for paint. I know she's an old Huffy but money is tight and I'm sick of riding my short-geared mtb long distance on the road. Hopefully I can paint it up and sell it to a local hipster at a nice markup and get a more worthy road bike.
I commute a lot. I don't have a car, my job is only 7 miles away, though. I used to work 20 miles away. That was a killer commute in SEP OCT NOV DEC in Seattle. Blech. I was really really strong from that and working ft.
Here's a Hint , Go up to eBay and buy some Colnago Frame decals , apply them after painting , Put is up on CL as a Colnago fake, will go for double! i sold one that Way ,got more replies to it then I have ever gotten on a Bike before.Hopefully I can paint it up and sell it to a local hipster at a nice markup and get a more worthy road bike.
Sweet, I'll definitely look into that. I got her painted up last night and started reassembly today. She rides pretty well though I'd like an even taller gear (may go to 27" wheels/tires). I must say, she doesn't look too shabby for an old Huffy
I started color-matching the spokes but ran out of paint. She still needs bar tape, clean up the brake levers, new cable housing, and I'd like to redo some of the paint (and possible do the Colnago decals ). Oh, don't mind the saddle, it was adjusted after the photo.
The sun was shining yesterday, shining hard. I left work early.
Violated a rule of mine and put in headphones. Planned a route that would keep me exclusively on bike paths with minimal road crossings. Cue up Pearl Jam - Ten. Enjoy the sun hitting my skin directly.
When you don't see the sun for a few months, it becomes a God that you must worship.
Violated a rule of mine and put in headphones. Planned a route that would keep me exclusively on bike paths with minimal road crossings. Cue up Pearl Jam - Ten. Enjoy the sun hitting my skin directly.
When you don't see the sun for a few months, it becomes a God that you must worship.
I was listening to Ten at work yesterday 
Good album. I'm still riding in everyday, hell or high water, with my daughter in tow. I only have a few miles to go, so it's not too bad. We've had an odd mix of weather, it will go from raining cats and dogs (and being warm as a consequence) to being clear and cold the next day. We've been seeing the sun, which is unusual and nice.
Good album. I'm still riding in everyday, hell or high water, with my daughter in tow. I only have a few miles to go, so it's not too bad. We've had an odd mix of weather, it will go from raining cats and dogs (and being warm as a consequence) to being clear and cold the next day. We've been seeing the sun, which is unusual and nice.
Ride in about 3 days out of the week...hopefully more soon as the weather clears (Which in Germany is never...). But in the groove and love the feeling of not being one of the huddled masses in traffic. May start wearing the headphones as 95% of my ride is on forest roads...but kinda dig the silence now.
Hooray for fenders! The slushy snow can't touch me!
with DST making a comeback , it has felt so good to get back on a road bike for the commute , 15 minutes faster too!
Just moved back the to the PNW, and have already ridden in snow twice. Even started collecting on my gloved while going up my final climb home. Good to be back up here...
Where you at?
In Portland. The crazy weather last week, on my way home started snowing. Nothing compared to where you are at though
...
I rode in with my daughter in the trailer in 3" of snow last Wed. Crazy weather we've been having. I'm down in Salem.In Portland. The crazy weather last week, on my way home started snowing. Nothing compared to where you are at though
We've been above freezing for 2 weeks now! But, the freeze is coming back this weekend.
Not my fault though, I still have studs on the bike.
Not my fault though, I still have studs on the bike.
I'm done with the wind. Wind could die for all I care.
Yeah, I saw Salem got quite a bit of snow. Must have been fun.
That wind was pretty strong this week here as well...
I'm new here, I read this whole thread, and loved it all! Due to some crazy circumstances I had been riding a pretty crappy Schwinn High plains that was stuck in one gear on a 10 mile a day round trip to and from work. pretty flat, a few hills which sucked as I was stuck in one gear! Today my dad gives me a call and says meet him at the bike shop, so I go. He surprised me with a brand new Trek Alpha 3 series 3500!!! It's a hardtail with v-brakes, i'm pretty much in love! Now my commute has gotten a little longer and this bike is making it super easy!
Love this thread, hope to see more posts as it seems to have died down
Love this thread, hope to see more posts as it seems to have died down
I took the studs off and went back to slicks last week, winter came back wth a vengance, totally my fault. 20cm of snow Saturday morning. Freezing overnight, needless to say, studs are back on the bike.
I need to move to Greece or something.
I need to move to Greece or something.
On my way home today I decided to hit up a trail that has been calling my name for awhile (I commute with a mtn bike) and it turned out it was only calling me over so it could screw me! I got a little to confident and wound up grabbing a handful of front brake after my front tire washed out. I'm sure you can figure out what happened after that hahaha, I ATE S**T......HARD! Had to bend my front derailluer back in place But, I got back up and rode home, tomorrow I'm going to try the trail again...this time I'm going to make it my b***h
But, I got back up and rode home, tomorrow I'm going to try the trail again...this time I'm going to make it my b***h
Full rain gear for me this morning. I'm on my cross bike so I can rail through puddles and fight the headwind.
Afternoon rain in the forecast. I brought ZERO rain gear with me this morning. You know what that means.
You're going to get wet! Luckily for me, my forecast for the next week or so is nothing but sunshine and above 70 degrees!
This probably makes me a jackass, but I've started using Strava on my commute. It makes the whole city like a cycling video game.
Headwind yesterday was HORRIBLE. Rode the moto in today.
Tangled with a car today . I lost, not bad fortunately , we were both making a right turn , usually plenty of space for me. but He was also Turing and I guess there was a coming straight ( the intersection has a dumb design ) and this guy came all the way over to teh right giving me the squeeze. I locked up the brakes but still banged into his rear Quarter panel , and them down to the pavement. At least he stopped to make sure i was OK . which I was just a little road rash.
. I lost, not bad fortunately , we were both making a right turn , usually plenty of space for me. but He was also Turing and I guess there was a coming straight ( the intersection has a dumb design ) and this guy came all the way over to teh right giving me the squeeze. I locked up the brakes but still banged into his rear Quarter panel , and them down to the pavement. At least he stopped to make sure i was OK . which I was just a little road rash.
OK, I'm one of you jerks again. Rode to work today, (only) 7.5 miles, and it takes about the same amount of time to drive. Bike worked great but I wouldn't mind having fat tires for some level of suspension. Total time was about 50 minutes, including the shower/dressing after arrival. I'm amazed it was so pleasant.
today was an awesome day to ride in. I have been seriously thinking about picking up a Rigid redline 29er for commuting, the guy at Simply Living cycles in Framminahm has them for under $350 new
The road bike was fun, but I think the 29er will be a little better for regular commuting duties. My 23c tires scare me a bit, and I don't need the zero rolling resistance/aero profile my roadie gets as much as the durability of the mountain bike. Eh who cares, riding bikes is fun.