Tuesday, March 9, 2010

First Commute is in the Books

Today was the day I had picked out going back to last week - I was going to commute today as long as the forecast held - and it did.

The first commute is always a pain because I have to go back to last year and think about everything I brought with me, where it was, and how am I going to transport it downtown and back home.

Bike Lock - last used on Christmas Trip to Florida. Left in garage with keys on BBQ. Grabbed it last night and it was basically rusted (salted) shut. Shot some power lube into the lock and the key inserted but it did not turn. Crap - time to run to LBS for a new lock!

Lights - All set because of all of the riding I have been doing this winter. Picked a backup last night at LBS just in case.

Backpack - Well since I am going a tour this summer I have panniers so I decided to give these a shot. I loaded them up with everything I always carried in my backpack and the bike was heavier but my back was lighter :)

Bike - I generally take my Raleigh One Way for my commute. I put my cross tires on it recently for road riding just in case I hit some slush or snow. I put a little extra air in my tires because of the weight of the load it was carrying and headed off.

Well I made it about 1.5 miles from home and hit a bump and my rear wheel started making a noise. The tire did not seat properly so I lowered the pressure to re-seat it and headed back home. Made it about .75 miles and the tire went totally flat on me. Time for a hike/bike.

This gave my mind time to convince me I should just go for a run, clean up, and head off to work in the car. Figured I could hit the Y on the way home and do a workout there and all would be good. About 1/2 way home on the walking portion - for those following .75 ride/.75 walk so .375 or so into my walk - I got mad and decided I was going to fix the flat because I always leave earlier than necessary because of traffic and getting ready and cooling down.

The dilemma was which bike to ride???? Fix the flat on my One Way Single Speed or fix the flat that my touring Masi Randonneur got on the rollers somehow (explanation if you have one because I have no clue on that!).

Gears/Single Speed??

Downhill to work Single Speed is nice - Uphill home Gears are nice.

First commute of the year - take it easy

So I fixed the flat on the Masi, headed off to work, and got here in my standard 1 hour 5-10 minute. Ride home is always 1 hour 15-30 minutes depending on nutrition during the day. The last hill is a killer :)

It was nice not having a backpack also! Glad I went with the panniers!

3 comments:

Big Daddy Diesel said...

NICE!!!

MrDaveyGie said...

Nice blog and I love that header "who needs spin class when it's this nice outside" my feeling exactly.
Dave

MrDaveyGie said...

Hi Ya Bill, no I haven't done TI, perhaps next year. Traditionaly I have been a paved road rider and 6 days a week indoor spinner for the winters. It was two winters ago that I first started riding all winter and dirt as much as possible, and love it. So my knowledge of this style of riding is now getting developed to take on such a task.