The Bike Everywhere challenge is over! Our team captain, Jessie (also a Wooleater) led our team of 10 riders to logging no less than 1550 miles! Between the 10 of us, we took 283 riding trips in one month. Not bad for a bunch of nerds! I personally rocked it. I usually ride about 65 miles a week, but I exceeded that this month somehow. No wonder I've been so tired!
Happy Cinco de Mayo!
I earned all 8 tacos for Bike Everywhere Month in just 3 days! I set me goal next week for 12 tacos! Will I make it? Only taco will tell!
Tacos!
It's "Bike Everywhere Month" once again. Bike Month happens every May, and each time I feel bittersweet about it. This year I have a new goal. Tacos! Can I burn/earn 8 tacos in 1 week? I am new to the taco measurement system, so I am not sure what it takes. Needless to stay, I'm already 1.41 tacos down and it's the first day. Looking good!
Being a Tourist in Your Hometown
When I am looking for a pick-me-up, the easiest thing for me to do is pretend I am a tourist in my own home town. Oftentimes I find I am surrounded by amazing beauty, but the familiar pales behind the unusual. This week offered a rare tease of sunshine and blue sky, so I took the opportunity to take a long route home from work and enjoy some amazing scenery that I don't usually see.
Emerald City Bike Ride 2018
When you start riding at 5:30am in a heavy downpour with 30mph wind gusts...on a Sunday, you know you are going to an organized ride. When you see dozens of other riders on the streets with you, you know it's because they are going to the same ride as you...and that they are only going because they paid for it.
Beautiful start to #EmeraldCityRide! A little light rain isn’t gonna stop us! pic.twitter.com/UDQ0CrvpJq
— Cascade Bicycle Club (@CascadeBicycle) April 8, 2018
We started out wet and chilly. My Showers Pass jacket lost its waterproofing, so I layered another rain jacket underneath...that also lost it's waterproofing. My right arm has streams of water running down my sleeves within moments. I tried to prevent my Reynaud's fingers from acting up by lining my thick winter gloves with hand warmers, even though the 45 degree temp didn't call for that much warmth. It didn't work. Water soaked through to my hands and my precious shifting digits went numb before I even got to the start. Abby didn't have shoe booties and struggled having the same disappointing jacket as me. Bryant had a better jacket, but didn't seem to be any more comfortable. The cluster of a start line didn't know anything about our "souvenir" tickets and lacked the breakfast-y food options I planned for. What were we doing?
The the road started. Riding up the SR-99 viaduct opened up into quintessential Seattle; rain, ferries, the big wheel, The Space Needle (complete with construction), construction cranes as far as the eye could see, sea gulls, Elliott bay. We reveled in the glory of riding on a wide, smooth carless road. What would it be like to commute to downtown, safe from hazards and with views of the Olympic Mountains?
We rode up Aurora Avenue, crossing the Aurora Bridge. This infamous bridge is known for the tragic tour bus collision of 2015 and the bus driver shooting of 1998. Judging by it's outdated design, I can only assume many more died less sensationally over this bridge. On a bike, the bridge felt pleasant and delightful. The road seemed more accommodating on a bike than it does in a car.
Then, it was onto the I-5 express lanes. As we rode of the ramp during Emerald CIty's inaugural ride, I only felt tingling sensations of splendor with increasing magnitude. Today's express lane experience couldn't have felt more opposite. The cold wind howled. Water dumped in regular breaks from the breaks in the bridge above. The dismal view gave nothing to the spirit. And it just kept climbing. The deafening sound from cars on the freeway hurt to listen to.
Then we hopped into the tunnel. Fun again! Hoots and hollers, call and response, bells dinging. I even caught a guy writing graffiti in the soot of the tunnel walls. The day increasingly improved from here. The spirits of each Wooleater lifted. We crossed the finish line, and started the ride all over again. More people seemed to be starting the ride than when we started the first time. The sky got a little brighter, the air got a little warmer, and we started having a lot more fun.
Emerald City Bike Ride Sunday
The Wooleaters and I rode the first-ever Emerald City Bike Ride. It felt so epic being part of a first, that I felt no interest being part of the second. The route enticed me this year, however, and I feel compelled to do it again. We'll be riding over the Aurora bridge, which seems novel, especially since the bf once suggested it as a commute route. More exciting is the route taking us over the viaduct. The viaduct! Can a bike takeover in Seattle get any more epic than that? I don't think so.
Join me in getting pumped for this ride by revisiting posts I made about the first time. And for all of you non-cyclists in Seattle: don't get in a car on Sunday. Period. Especially if you have any interested in getting downtown, or out of town, or anywhere really.
Kids on the bike path!
Youngsters wandering willy-nilly all over the bike path? Adults readily round kids up to the sound of screeching brakes and seem to completely ignore dinging bells or "excuse me!" hollers. At least that's the case in Seattle. I've been running a quiet survey during my recent sunny rides on bike paths. Luckily, I can get a good loud squeal by lightly squeezing my disks just so.
Mind you, I never give the customary "On your left" to pass youngsters unless they clearly show they are path-trained before I approach. I'll happily wait, it often cheers me up to see how much fun one can have on a path. Oddly enough, adults seem to hover most closely around kids learning to ride a bike than on foot. What they don't know is that I can predict where a kid on a bike will go. They only have so many directions they can do, and they don't change pace quickly. I quit riding The Bridge Pedal ride in Portland because too many kids swerved left and right, without any awareness of the people around them, The Bridge Pedal was so saturated with riders that options were limited should you need to swerve on account of a kid swerving. A bike path though, there is room to bank wide around kids on bikes. And any tentative kid, just trying to get the hang of a bike gets an emphatic "Whoo hoo! You got it!" from me as I pass. Kids of foot, though, you can't guess where they are going. I won't pass kids on foot before their adult is alert.
Fair-weather Friends
The rain, the road and I, have been very tight over the winter. We’ve been there for each other through the thick and thin. With each passing day, a little more daylight creeps into my commute, and a few more fair-weather riders take on the road. This springtime, every springtime, I feel a little like a junior high kid losing a popularity contest. We’ve been so close, and now all these other folks are riding all around my road, like it’s nothing. They don’t know what we’ve been through. Pretty soon I’ll be a minority, passed every few seconds by all these fresh faces, legs quick and nimble from a winter without darkness.
Happy Holidays!
The commuter is all ready for the annual Wooleater Jingle Bell Ride. Totally getting into the holiday spirit. Even playing Christmas songs. It should be a great ride!
Drivers! Stop texting!
I approached the intersection at Bell and 5th avenue. One car sat behind a red light. A car parked along the street suddenly jutted it's front end out, so that it was partially in the lane. It didn't use a turn signal, but I guessed that it's goal was to get onto the street when the light turned green. I decided to be a nice citizen and let the car go in front of me, even though I was already next to it in the lane. It didn't matter, my next light will be red no matter how long it takes me to get through the intersection. I was in no rush. I positioned myself behind the car, which was a little weird since it was crooked, but I wanted to make clear I was letting it go first. The light turned green and the first car drove off. The crooked car didn't move. I waited. beat. wait. beat. wait. Well, maybe I totally misinterpreted the car and it was actually trying to park again or something. So, I slowly pedaled up to it's passenger window and peered in. The driver had her head buried into her phone. I guess she wasn't going after all. So, I proceeded forward to pass the car. The SECOND I got in front of the car she bolted and the car lurched forward. I swerved. It stopped. I leaned back and gave the driver the arms out, shoulder lifted, "What gives?" gesture, then went on my way. Granted, I was much closer to the car than I normally would have been, given that the car was half way in the lane and that I pulled up to look inside. I am CERTAIN the driver concluded that I was an asshole cyclist; she had a green light and I pulled in front of her! The nerve! I really hope that the light turned yellow before she got to go. That's my only hope for her to realize that she was the one in error.
Commuting in autumn
I absolutely love commuting this time of year. The rain has just started falling. Tourists are away, locals are back at work and school and have their noses to the grindstone. I have the roads (compared to summer) all to myself. The cyclists are few. The pedestrians are practically nonexistent. The sky smells clean and fresh. The temperatures are perfect to feel comfortable in long sleeves, and excess layers are not needed. I am not cold, nor am I sweaty. The low sunset casts a warm, red-brown glow on everything. Riding home, the whole world looked rosy and delightful, almost like the whole of outside was lit by a candle. Now is the the precious and brief moment when the nearly all the leaves have changed to vibrant hues of orange, red, yellow, and brown and are still on the trees. Winds have been low this month, and while the bike lanes are already colorful and light with fallen leaves, most tress still look full. Rain dapples down, and cools my warm, flushed cheeks. It sprinkles against my arms and bounces off the road. Part of the splendor of this time of year is that everything feels new. Nothing has overstayed it's welcome. Four months into the winter the rain gets tiresome. By the end of summer, the traffic gets tiresome. Now, we are in a delightful transition period. On my bike, I get to greet each day as though it were an old firend, "Hey, you. It's been a year. I missed you!"
Blackout Bike Bingo
Bicycle Benefits Bike Bingo Seattle 2017!
The Wooleaters played Bike Bingo this year and I got blackout! This game brought me to new neighborhoods and into new establishments I wouldn't have ventured into otherwise.
Highlights include:
- I stopped at the Green Bean for drinks and Chaco Canyon for snacks when I biked to the Greenwood Car Show. The whole experience enlivened a love for my local neighborhood. It felt like a community, and I now feel the need to spend more time in the neighborhood itself.
- Bryant and I went on an epic ride through south Seattle on a very hot summer day. Most memorable was the stop at Flying Lion Brewery. The cool drinks couldn’t have come at a better time. We were hot, tired, and thirsty! The drinks didn’t disappoint. I had some of the best ciders I’ve ever tasted!
- The clerk at Free Range Bicycles asked me to share a talent with them before stamping my card. I stammered, caught off guard. What talents? I thought for a moment and then share a photo of a picture I drew. He loved it!
- I followed another Bike Bingo contestant to several stores one day after work. We stopped at Theo Chocolates at the same time and bought chocolate. We also arrived at Greenwood Hardware at the same time. The hardware store is along my route home from work, so I didn’t think much of it. This stamp was essentially a freebie for me. The guy, however, had been biking all day long getting stamps. He was hot and tired. I didn’t expect the feeling of comradery and community from Bike Bingo. I ran into so many cyclists with their signature Bingo cards all month long. We all smiled, waved, and shared stories. We talked about the routes we took to various places, what we bought, and the weather. It’s all small talk, but so fun to connect. When we entered Greenwood Hardware, the associate told us we had to find the spider before we could get our stamp. Needless to say, both he and I looked right at it and didn’t see it. We wondered the whole store. I saw so many stuffed animals, mascots and trinkets hidden all around the store. I delighted in this sort of personality you can’t get in a big box chain. Finally, the associate took pity on me and showed me the inflated spider toy hanging from the ceiling. Right there where she pointed when I walked in! D’oh!
- I rode to Sunset Hill and Tangletown for stamps, both places that escaped my exploration before. I feel in love with both neighborhoods instantly. The Sunset Hill Green Market reminded me of a lovely neighborhood grocer I walked to while vacationing at an Air bnb in Vancouver, Canada. I didn’t believe such a cute neighborhood existed in my own hometown!
- I met the bf at Full Tilt in Ballard. This took some effort since I kept riding into Ballard amidst giant summer festivals that closed the roads. The guy loves himself some ice cream, however, so I had to treat him. The server there remarked how happy she was that we bought something. Apparently she had a rash of bingo players who just stamped and ran. Never had I felt so good about spending money! I tried spending money everywhere I went, but it wasn’t always easy. The cashier at Ride Bicycles had a very hard time ringing up the tube I tried to buy. I am not sure why, but it took several tries and 2 other cashiers to do it. I read the website for Mighty O wrong and got there right as they closed. They still stamped my card, but I felt bad that they couldn’t sell me any doughnuts!
- I stopped at Tutta Bella for a late lunch. I filled about half my card at this point, but hadn’t yet started reaping the benefits. Getting to Tutta Bella by bike from work proved to be a hair-bending journey through construction, traffic and road closures. Construction noise filled the air and it took a while for me to find the restaurant. I sat down outside to relax before ordering. At that moment, my notebook flew open in the wind. My table sat several stories up and I watched my papers fly up and over the railing into the street below. My precious Bike Bingo card flew up with them! I grabbed for the card with all the reflexive speed I could muster. I caught it just in time. I have no idea what papers I lost. Surely pages with my deepest secrets and credit card info. But who cares, I saved the Bike Bingo card!
- I earned a free slice of Pizza at Ian’s Pizza, so I brought the bf there so I could also buy a slice. They had so many fun flavors! I got pizza with French fries and BBQ sauce on it! The location is not convenient for me to get to, but I want to try all their flavors now! The whole scene made both my bf and I nostalgic for college.
- I concluded my game at Peddler Brewing, where my final blackout stamp earned me a free Growler, fill, and pint. I met Bryant and Kristen, and we enjoyed our spoils!
Bike Bingo proved to be challenging, rewarding, engaging, and delightful. It felt like work at times, but overall a time to indulge in the privilege of living in a robust city full of local businesses and bike-able streets. I'll keep my blacked-out bingo card forever. I imagine I'll laugh and chuckle remembering these humble adventures when I'm 83.
Video of my daily commute
#Relive
I absolutely love the beauty and simplicity of this new app! Hurrah to the app developers for making riding more fun! It doesn't have a lot of options for free users unless you time the upload of your ride so you can edit right then and there. However, that's a small price to pay for free. I am tempted to be a paid user. I likely will in time.
Bike Commuting in Pollution
Screenshot of time-lapsed air quality close to the time I woke up from AIRnow.gov
Thick, hazy, smoky; that’s the air in Seattle these days. My eyes watered yesterday from the thick. Fires from BC, Canada are blowing down to Seattle and sitting in the valley. We are in the midst of hot, stagnant weather so nothing is really blowing the air out once it sits here.
I wondered about biking to and from work. Am I safe? Am I going to hurt my lungs? I didn’t really think so. I have no existing lung issues, and I don’t really exert myself commuting. Plus, I don’t have a better option to get to work. I could take the bus, but that opens up a whole other realm of unpleasant inhalants.
The internets say I am going to be just fine. Most research focuses on the pollution caused by the carbon monoxide in car exhaust. This is a special pollutant for cyclists because we are literally a few feet from exhaust pipes the entire time we ride in traffic. Plus, we can't really escape breathing fumes in a downtown setting. The best thing to do is ride fast and pick the best route. Pollution is the most deadly public health hazard second only to smoking. Still, riding a bike in pollution is better than no exercise at all. With smoke pollutants, fast is my only option. Getting out of the air quickly is more beneficial than exerting/breathing less intensely.
“...riding a bike is still healthier than not riding. Bike commuting is a healthier alternative to driving to work—which also happens to expose you to air pollution. In 2015, a study from the University of Copenhagen elaborated on this, suggesting that the positive impacts of exercise are more important for our health than the negative effects of air pollution. And in March of this year, the University of Cambridge published findings that the health benefits of walking and cycling outweigh the negative effects of air pollution on health, even in cities with high levels of air pollution. ”
So, yeah, I got a headache after commuting today. But it's not likely to cause any long-term issue. I am lucky that I live in a region that scores higher for air quality than most of the rest of the world. All sources agree that riding is still better than not riding. Even the EPA suggests riding a bike to combat poor air quality. Sure, riding a bike isn't going to put out any fires. Still, I am doing my tiny little part to combat climate change and air pollution every day ride. That's a good enough reason for me to push through the haze.
A thief in the night...left me in the dark
To the thief who stole the lighting off my bike this morning, I would have happily given you a light. I have several extra. Just ask. The world doesn’t need to be that harsh. But don’t leave me without a light when I have 8 miles to ride to work in the dark rain. I depend on my bike to get to work, and I depend on my lights to get there safely.
I know, I should remove these things when I locked the bike. It takes time to remove all that stuff. Stupidly, I didn’t want to take the time. I mistakenly thought this quiet, bright parking lot was safe. I park in a locked cage at work, I parked my bike inside at my old health club. I've going to this new health club for 2 weeks, and have been parking my bike outside. Today I just didn't feel like taking the time to remove all the lights like I have been. I mean, who am I to be so mistrusting of people?
Bike Everywhere Day!
Today is #bikeeverywhere day! The warm, spring air and sunshine blessed all cyclists this morning in Seattle. I got up early with grand plans to ride by 10 stations on the way to work. This is one of the greatest advantages of working downtown and commuting along a major (if not the most popular) bike corridor in a large and largely bike-friendly city.
The first 2 stations I planned to visit couldn’t be found. Either I read the map incorrectly, or they simply weren’t there. I began to wonder if getting up early was such a good idea. Then I stopped at the F5/Cascade Station. I danced around to some fun tunes from the DJ and filled my face with energy food. I passed the PEMCO station across the street, but made it to the Facebook Station. Facebook nonchalantly handed over a high quality bag full of high-quality goodies. I made a point to engage with other riders. This is community building, right? I’m usually rushing into work. The sooner I get to work, the better the day! The harder I ride, the better the work out! No time for chatting! Today, I had to concentrate on kicking bakc in pointless banter. Then I got some fun snacks at the next station. Kilroy made my day, though. They had a large banter that said something about “Bike to Work Day”! Sometime back, the name of this celebration changed to “Bike Everywhere Day”. But I’m biking to work! I’d I were simply biking everywhere, I wouldn’t need doughnuts to entice me, the ride in itself is reward enough. Biking to work everyday is a different kind of hard. I stopped at Oculus Eye Care and entered a raffle to win a pair of sunglasses. I could really use a pair of prescription glasses for biking, so I am secretly crossing my fingers for the win on that one. I veered one block off my route for the SubPop stop. They tried to give me a CD and I instantly didn’t feel cool enough to get a free CD from SubPop. But they gave me one anyway. All in all, it was a wonderful morning. I could have veered even more off course and gotten cans of cold brew coffee and other wonderful things, but I am happy that so many people and businesses are out there supporting cycling and cyclists. Thanks for the loot, Bike Everywhere Day!
Images of vulnerability
I slowly pedaled up the Dexter hill as dawn opened up into morning. The usually bustling road lay empty at this hour. I looked around and saw nothing; no cars, no busses, no other bikes. A man walked toward me on the sidewalk. He started yelling just out of earshot, getting louder as I drew closer. "...she won't respect what I say, SO I KILLED THAT WOMAN! I KILLED HER! and no woman will...." His fists violently pumped as I lost earshot biking away.
People walk the streets, yelling obscenities and imagined arguments all day long downtown. After years of working in the city, the yelling has become a part of the soundscape, a thing no less expected than sirens, honking, and engine noise. It's a guarantee with every trip. Also guaranteed, is the safe feeling of being surrounded by a crowd. Downtown, I am never out of eyeshot of several other cars and pedestrians. It's an admittedly misguided sense of safety, but mental instability and other shapes of human suffering is diluted by the populations of the privileged and busy.
Being alone with someone like this, on a street with no cars or other visible people, takes on a whole new feeling. Sure, I had a speed advantage being on a bike, but I was going up a hill, and he had plenty of leverage and proximity to throw something into my spokes. His fist pumping made this option seem plausible. I felt fear, since his anger was directed at woman. But more I felt curious, as I usually hear the word "bitch" in place of "woman." Since he coupled that switch with the word "respect" it made me wonder about his story, and I felt sad that my fear, socialized culture of isolation and rush to work kept me from ever finding out.
The Puget Sound Regional Travel Study
My household got selected to participate in the Puget Sound Regional Travel Study. I admit I felt excited to participate, because transportation is of key importance in our society. There are several studies connecting health and wellness with time of work commute. Being someone who loathes commuting with all my being, I have a particular investment in this sort of thing. Being able to bike to work has probably been the single biggest factor in my sticking with my current employer. I've been with my current employer longer than any other, so that says something. Needless to say, Seattle's roads and transit are, in my opinion, the biggest blemish keeping Seattle from being an epically beautiful place to live.
The above data says it all. Perhaps I am more sensitive to satisfaction than others, but most people look at me as though I am a bizarre alien when I admit that I've chosen jobs paying at poverty with no or next to no commute over more traditional choices for most of my adult life.
That being said, am thrilled that my choices will be counted in a study like this. However, I must admit that the study has been tedious and time consuming to say the least. I can't imagine anyone less passionate than myself actually completing it. The study is based on a phone app (rMove) that tracks your travel for a week. However, every walking and driving trip I take is mapped incorrectly, and false trips are recorded when I'm just walking around the home. The study requires that the whole household participates, and I convinced a begrudging boyfriend to participate. His app has tracked him taking out the trash, getting a shopping cart, and other short activities as "trips". Last night we took a walk around the neighborhood. The app captured our stop to pet a friendly cat as a "stop". How do we track that? Were we going to work? Home? Restaurant? Errand? The options are many, but the importance none. Luckily there are options for error correction at every turn. If you still think the study isn't consuming enough, you have to realize there are 5 PAGES OF QUESTIONS FOR EVERY SINGLE TRIP AND 5 PAGES OF QUESTIONS AT THE END OF EACH DAY. I expected the study to be similar to the app-based happiness survey I've participated in since 2009. Puget Sound Regional Council and rMove, if you have low compliance from your participants, you may want to take some notes from Matt Killingsworth. If everybody actually diligently answers all these questions, well, count me amazed. I can't wait to find out the results of the survey, and I hope the results are considered valid. Itwon't help is participants cherry-pick trips because the process is tedious. A lot has changed in Seattle since the last time the survey was completed. It's only been since 2014, but already I am seeing more cyclists every year and the urgency from King County Metro Transit's alerts to work from home every time there is a transit delay (which is nearly every day). If we all worked from home, there'd be no baristas, Seattle! C'mon, let's fix this!
There's a Reason Cyclists Take the Center of the Lane Sometimes
A metro bus crowded me against a construction barricade the other day, brushing my arm with its side body. Bikes have to merge into one-lane traffic during a stretch of road where construction overlaps the bike lane. I take “merge with traffic” literally, assuming the center of the lane with my bike as though I were a car. Depending on the traffic load, sometimes cars have to wait behind me because I can’t get up to the 30 they like to go. Usually the traffic is heavy and we all go slowly through the construction. Some bikes speed by, weaving in and out of cars, but I stay safe and center. For some reason I hugged the side of the road the other day. I don’t know why I did that. Perhaps I was preoccupied with thoughts in my head. And that's when the bus brushed me. The rest of the day, the resultant rug burns on my elbow rubbed painfully against my clothing, a constant reminder of my idiocy. I felt completely at fault. Why didn’t I take the defensive center of the road position?
Then the burns scabbed over, lessening my pain and subsequent guilt. For the next several days, the tender bruising on my elbow completely changed my conscience. I have several bright lights on my bike. I wear reflective, bright clothing. I signaled my merge and rode at a consistent speed. The bus came up from behind and passed. The driver had no reason not to see me. As it approached, I slowed my speed, but it slowed as well. I was so sure it would veer left and give me more space. Instead, it veered closer to the construction barricade and blocked me in. The bus driver had every opportunity to see me, and every opportunity to give me space. Even if I wasn’t being defensive, I should have been safe. As the bus wall banged into my left arm, my bike involuntarily short to the right, making my front tire touch the construction barricade. Here, as I tried with all my might to keep my bike steady, the bus driver still had opportunity to veer left. Instead, it continued to narrow my passage. For a moment, while my elbow kept banging again and again along the bus wall and my wheel swerved madly, I was sure I’d fall. I didn’t fall, and I take full credit for that. Had I not had the practice of commuting 60 miles a week for the past 5 years, I may not have maintained control. If I were a new rider, that could have been my last ride.
I’ll never know if the bus driver didn’t see me or was just being an ass. One thing I do know is that I will always take the center lane now when no shoulder is available. I also know that even if I am not riding perfectly defensively, others on the road share a responsibility to keep all of us safe.
I wish I could teleport all the drivers who honk at me and hate on me to that moment when I was sandwiched between bus and barricade, just for a moment. I am not trying to be “that” cyclist. I am not trying to hog the road and make life miserable for everyone else. I don’t have an agenda, I don’t have any snooty attitude. I am just trying to get to work. I think we all have a right to do that without having to wonder if we’ll ever make it in.
Your bike, it talks to you
Bikes do a pretty good job of telling us what they need. Often times I hear chains crying that they are thirsty for oil. Sometimes brake pads like to squeal that they aren’t quite toed in right. Bikes, just like cars, send signals telling us something is wrong. It’s just up to us to listen. A couple of weeks ago my shifting cable was arguing with me; being tight and resisting me. I took note, and thought I should go to the bike shop about that. But I was about to go on vacation and my mind (and my lunch breaks) were elsewhere. I’ll deal with the cable after I get back, I said. Well, here I am back from vacation and the cable didn’t make it one trip. Just as I started peeling down 5th avenue, she snapped. That was it, my bike told me, no more. While I wasn’t in the best gear for climbing up the hills of 5th avenue (there are hills out there, people! Just because you can’t see them doesn’t mean they aren’t there!) I managed okay. Still gotta get to work. My brakes were not affected, and except for riding slower, I felt safe to finish my ride into work and to ride to the bike shop. Whew!
Fremont Bridge Bike Count: 149