Last weekend I rode with a large group on the east side of greater Seattle; Bellevue, Renton, Issaquah, and neighboring areas. Washington is often considered the friendliest state for cyclists to ride in. I generally agree. The city of Seattle is a city of passive and inattentive drivers, so while it is not a bad city to bike in, I don’t think it’s the best. Outside of Seattle, the roads and the behaviors immediately improve. I am impressed by how I can visibly see the friendliness increasing the farther I get out of town. You can imagine my surprise when a line of vehicles honked, yelled, and flipped off the string of us riders last weekend. We were riding on a wide, newer road with a wide shoulder and no bike lane. The weather was clear and dry. The cyclist in front of me switched gears as the incline switched grade, and his chain fell off. He recovered pretty quickly, and was able to get it back on track with his foot. I didn’t sway, but I did brake suddenly when he lost momentum. I couldn’t see the riders behind me, but they were all aware as they hollered, “Are you OK? Can you get your chain back on?” I have to wonder if the vehicles all honked at us because we were an unorganized mess at that moment (they drove past me less than a minute after the guy’s chain was back on). His whole ordeal lasted seconds, but it caused 10 people to brake and swerve and we all probably looked erratic from the viewpoint of a driver. Some of the riders behind me may have even swerved on to the road, I am not sure. This is the sort of incident that, had any of us been any less attentive or riding any more quickly or closely, could have been a disaster. Just one tire touching another could have meant the whole lot of us crashing. It’s probably more likely that the drivers just had some hate they had to get out of their system, and cyclists made a good outlet. But I wonder if that erratic ripple is what made them honk. I hope not. Often cars assume cyclists need to ride perfectly on the shoulder of a road, without ever changing their course. The shoulder of a road poses several hazards for cyclists that drivers probably never think of. Potholes, wet leaves, broken glass, roadkill, drainage grates, and parked cars are all roadside dangers to a cyclist. In this case, a mechanical issue is another invisible danger that could put a cyclist’s head under a car tire in seconds. We were all riding the safest we possibly could, but some hazards are out of our control. This is my reminder for all travelers to stay ever vigilant on the road, as something might happen to the person next to you that is undetectable yet completely uncontrollable.
"You're almost there, dude!"
The other day, as I peddled up the last push of the long Fremont hill, a panhandler hollered out to me, “You’re almost there, dude! You’re almost there, you can do it!” Often times, I drag on the way home from work. The Fremont hill is one I could spin through quickly and get a pretty good work out from. But, the timing is all wrong. It’s the end of my day. I’m tired, and I’m usually still recovering from the hair-bending stress of peddling through downtown. I tend to go as slow as possible, with my only motivation to keep peddling enough to not fall down. This guy on the side of the street had no idea how far I had to go, but he must have seen how much I was dragging. Supportive people are the best! If you have ever offered words of encouragement to a complete stranger, this is my thanks to you! Keep it up, your words move mountains (or move people up mountains, in this case)!
Fremont Bridge Bike Count: 191
Resting heart rate and exercise
I recently purchased my first activity tracker, or fitness wearable, or whatever you call this trendy market of tech gadgets. I now track my heart rate 24/7. Interestingly, the watch gave me a resting heart rate much higher than the last time I measured it. This measurement I took months ago came out in the low 50's. And for the first few weeks I wore the watch, it measured me nearly as 60. In the past two weeks, my activity level has jumped up to "normal levels." I was relatively sedentary in February. Oddly enough, the watch calculates my resting heart rate now to be a bit lower, at 57. I am not sure if the training effect takes place that quickly, or if the watch is just "learning" me more. There is a training effect where the resting heart rate drops with increasing fitness levels, so resting heart rate can be a good indicator of fitness.
Maybe I am getting healthier, maybe I was pretty healthy all along, either way, I am happy to see, (that according to some random chart I pulled off the internet) I still score as an "athlete". So, that's cool. I do feel like my cardiovascular system is pretty strong. And I still get out of breath every time I climb a flight of stairs! The part of myfitness I need to improve is my strength, I am still below average in many scores there. Luckily, I have at least one thing down pretty good!
Cougar Mountain! Zoo Hill!
I completed my first climb of Cougar Mountain/Zoo Hill! Actually, I very well may have done this climb before, before I knew how “legendary” it was. It’s one of the steepest climbs in the area. I hear cyclists can reach grades up to 20% depending on what part of the road they are on during the turns. A couple of years back, I looked for places to get climbing training nearby, and time and time again this climb jumped up as the best. The numbers intimidated me; what?! 17%?! I can’t keep up on 6% climbs! I didn’t plan the climb, and my legs were already spent from riding the day before, and yet, I did it. I’m pleased with my performance. I didn’t try to go fast, I only tried to keep from stopping. And once I got to the top, I felt surprised that was all it was (You can actually see this, by how much I sped up on the last segment).
Maybe I’ll get to ride it again this year. It will be interesting to see how I perform now that I know what I’m up against.
Look at that Hill!
Thought the heart rate peice was pretty interesting
Traffic Flagger WTF?!
Today, a flagger stood his stop sign in front of me as I biked through a construction zone. Various construction zones for investment properties have blocked the portions of the bike lane on Dexter Avenue. for the 5 years that I’ve been commuting. Being stopped by a flagger is a regular occurrence, however, when there is just one bike on the road and no cars, like today, the flagger will often let the bike pass. I didn’t mind waiting, though. The flagger didn’t look at me so he may not have known no one else was there. Maybe he was new at his job- he seemed pretty focused on the semi-trucks backing into the road. Then he walked behind the semis, with his sign. Should I go? Should I stay? The flagger was gone, so I should go…I guess. The flagger left without glancing at me at all. Here’s where I got annoyed. The semis pulled into THE BIKE LANE. So, the flagger stops me, then blocks the bike lane without so much as an acknowledgement to the person on the bike. A little polite nod would have been enough. Common courtesy can make someone’s day.
I can’t remember exactly what year it was, but in earlier years of my commuting career, the flagger for another investment property greeted cyclists with warm smiles and fun conversation. I looked forward to greeting this eternally cheerful bearded dude every day. We chatted about the weather, the traffic, the job, whatever. The jubilance of the bearded flagger was kind of legendary, too. Every commuter I talked to, whether at work or at Bikes and Bagels or at other bike-themed activities, spoke fondly of him. Connection is a sort of thing you can have on a bike that’s different from commuting in a car. You can actually converse with other commuters at lights, say hello to parents walking their kids to work, pedestrians getting coffee, and anybody else you see. You aren’t confined by the closed walls of a car. Most people still choose to stay silent, and that’s where the happy bearded flagger shined. It didn’t matter how many jackhammers pounded around him, he still hollered “Good Morning!” to me every day. Acknowledgement of your existence is a wonderful thing, especially in hazardous areas. I miss that cheerful flagger!
Fremont Bridge Bike Count: 191
Polite Commuter or Annoying Commuter?
The above image is the intersection at Blanchard and 7th downtown. It’s an intersection I pass every day. In the winter months I tend to see only one or two other cyclists on the intersection, but during the summer it can be a steady line of bikes making the bike numbers equal or more than the cars. The street paint is worn, making the sharrows a sort of vague suggestions. Most bikes behave like the red bike above, passing all cars as though there was a bike lane. When they turn left, as most cars also do, they end up getting a right of way as bikes can weave through the pedestrians before cars and few Seattle drivers are going to not give cyclists a right of way. I tend to sit in line with the cars (the green bike above) because I don’t feel like it’s right that the steady stream of bikes get to go sometimes making the cars sit through several red lights. However, I am taking up space a car could use, along with making my commute last longer. I am not sure which is best to be, the green bike or the red bike. I constantly struggle with this. I feel like when I am on narrow streets with sharrows but no bike lane, it’s safer for me to ride in line with the cars (as long as I can keep up with their pace). But I can’t accelerate or break as fast as a car, making my behavior a little different than the cars around me. Since nearly all bikes behave like the red bike above, I struggle wondering what is right. If anyone reads this and has an opinion, please share!
Complexities of Cycling
When I visit my health club, I travel on the sidewalk for a bit. Ideally cyclists wouldn’t be on sidewalks, but that’s where the bike racks are. When I leave the sidewalk to get back on the road I have the option of getting to the bike lane by crossing a left-hand turn lane (the blue path). I don’t like doing this as many cars turn left here and I have to slow them down just to confuse them by stopping part way through the crosswalk. So I behave like a pedestrian, traveling on the pedestrian crosswalk until I pass the turning cars and can safely reach the bike lane (the red path). Pedestrians don’t like this and turning cars still sneer at me. Cars traveling west who want to turn right also get confused because I enter the street at their turn spot. I think I’m doing the best I can and it feels weird merely because of the general congestion of the roads. It’s just these sorts of things one has to think about as a cyclist. I am certain neither the drivers nor the pedestrians saw me exit the health club and wonder why I am on the sidewalk in the first place.
Washington Rides
Cascade Bicycle Club sent me a newsletter that listed major rides throughout the state. I was pretty proud to see I've already done a number of them! I circled the rides I did in red; a total of 15 of Washington States' quitensential bike events. I added up 4 more I'd really like to do, and highlighted a couple that look like viable options to do this year.
All I can say, Is that my life is pretty plain...
Today the rain fell down relentlessly, without shame and without restraint*. I felt insanely grateful for my bike getup that keeps me feeling comfortable and safe. About 6 miles in, however, the wet soaked through my hands and feet. But it was wonderful and warm outside. I smiled as the drips pelted my face. This was way less painful than the hail that pelted my eyelids yesterday! At this point I had no reason not to ride through the puddles. I felt like a kid in the rain! Splash!
Plus, I knew I had a handy new boot dryer at work waiting to be tested. See, I have no problem getting wet on the way to work. However, putting on wet and soggy clothes to get home is no fun at all. So, the boy got me a boot dryer to use at work. It is being put to the task today, we’ll see how it performs. The label stresses not to use it on gloves, so I am trying them out on our coat rack.
Fremont Bridge BIke Count: 158
*I love anthropomorphizing all the things.
If you didn't catch the title reference, grab the earworm of the day, brought to you by Blind Melon:
All I can say
Is that my life is pretty plain
I like watchin' the puddles gather rain
And all I can do
Is just pour some tea for two
And speak my point of view
But it's not sane,
It's not sane
I just want some one to say to me,
"I'll always be there when you wake."
You know I'd like to keep my cheeks dry today
So stay with me and I'll have it made
And I don't understand why I sleep all day
And I start to complain
That there's no rain
And all I can do is read a book to stay awake
And it rips my life away,
But it's a great escape
Escape... escape... escape...
Bike Trend Tuesday: Animal encounters
http://www.bicycling.com/culture/advocacy/2014-readers-choice-poll
I am a little surprised how many people have encounters deer. I spent a lot of time riding in deer country, and have any near misses with any. I am actually pretty proud of my low number of animal incidents, both on the bike and the car. I've ridden over more than one snake while on the bike. One I am certain was still alive when I hit it, the others I am not so sure. I recently had an encounter with a rat while on the Elliott Bay trail here in Seattle. A large rat ran across the bike path, away from me. At the last minute, it stopped, turned, and bolted toward me. Just as I began to swerve, at that moment I rode past it. I felt my foot come into contact with its head as I rode past. WHACK! I hope it didn't suffer any brain damage or concussion from the impact. I Have a feeling it was fine. While it definitely ran into my foot, I have a feeling rats can take a lot of impact with no ill effects.
New Cool Bike Stuff
I got a nifty bike-themed Christmas gift this year- a picture frame that's a bike chain. How cool is that? I decided to display it prominently on my wall of bike ride memorabilia. Yeah, I really have gone on so many organized rides that the dowel is bowing from the weight of it all. Yikes! It’s a pretty fun frame. I put the picture of me, my uncle, and his friends from the MS Bike in Pittsburgh inside.
Traffic Calming
I had a scare to top all scares while riding my bike downtown a last summer. The experience has left me mortified and biking hasn’t been the same since. In fact, I avoided biking downtown entirely for 2 months after that horrid day. So, when Cascade bicycle club sent me an email, I felt like they were talking to me:
Anyone who has ridden a bicycle in the street understands the anxiety of being passed by a speeding vehicle. For some, it is enough to keep them off a bike for good
Yikes! My scare wasn't a speeding vehicle, but still, I don’t want to be off my bike for good. What is this all about? It’s about lowering Seattle’s speed limits. This change may result in improved safety, but I don’t like it. Seattle is growing rapidly and the roads are getting more clogged and more difficult every day. And the city’s focus is on “traffic calming.” I hate this word. Seattle is already too calm. The only improvements I’ve seen to roads since I’ve moved here are more roundabouts, more stop signs, narrower roads, and more potholes. As a cyclist, I should be thrilled with the new bike infrastructure that’s been added. I am, but it doesn’t take away from this focus on “calming” for vehicles. How much more calm can we get? The Seattle driving collective comes across as passive aggressive to me. Drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians alike seem to have this slow, it’s all good, demeanor where they allow everyone to go their way. Until. They’ve had enough. Then they are honking and yelling and blocking off as many people as they can. I get the data that says driving slower is safer, but this overall calming effort rubs me the wrong way and I wonder how many Seattleites will comply. Seattle is growing. At some point it's going to take forever to get from point A to point B if our only solution is to drive slower.
“Non-motorized and trips taken by transit continue to increase and rose 7 percent and 5 percent respectively between 2012 and 2014 in the City Center.”
I would much rather see a focus on the inattentive and distracted driver. While I've had a co-worker killed by a texting driver, I think the issue is more complex than making laws against texting (texting is ubiquitous in our culture. Telling people they can't text is like telling a dog it can't eat the food in front of it. Sure, you can make it stop but it takes constant vigilance). Also, texting is only one method of distraction. People are often exhausted, emotionally drained, attending to children, unsure of where to go and so on. All of these are facts of our life and aren't going to easily go away.
“In Seattle, inattention-related collisions increased 280 percent between 2011 and 2014.
...the likelihood of injury is high for pedestrians or bicyclists involved in collisions. The injury rate for pedestrians involved in collisions is 77 percent and 83 percent for bicyclists involved in collisions”
.
New road tires*
I researched online the best tire to get fory road experience. I wanted a tire designed to last a long time that at the same time wasn't so heavy so as to slow me down. I wanted a fast tire, but I also wanted grip. I longed for that tire (why didn't I keep records of what I'd purchased over the years?!) I bought back in '08 that felt like I could tilt 45 degrees to the ground and still feel stable. I confidentially took turns and descents at top speed. I have no idea what that tire was. My most recent two tires felt unstable. The best word to describe the feel was "squirley". I just never felt confident of their grip.
Without too much lamenting, I opted for the all-around favorite, the Continental Grand Prix 4000s. They seemed to easily be the most popular road tire. All around, riders felt like they had the best ratios for value/durability/flat resistance/speed "rolling resistance"/ feel.
I paid a good $20 more per tire buying them at a local bike shop instwad of buying the online. It seemed like an excessive difference in charge. I mentioned the price difference to the salespeople in the store, and they didn't make much effort to try to bring themselves up. The guy merely cast his glance down and said, "yeah, we can't compete." The store is doing well, they just opened a new, upgraded storefront, but clearly not from tire sales. Anyway, I'm glad to have had the option to pay the extra amount. These tires are already insanely expensive (about what I'd pay for a car tire) so I might as well help a local store out while I am at it.
The ride is nice, zippy, familiar. I haven't felt invincible on them, but so far I like them a lot better than my last tire. Zippy is the best word to describe the feel of these tires. I like it.
*This post is actually from last summer. I forgot to post it. The tires are still mostly "new" so I think the post is still relavant.
Seattle City Bike Map Glasses
I got these awesome Seattle bike map glasses as a gift for Christmas. Not only are they fun to drink out of, they include part of the route I ride 8 times a week and my work site (shown above). What a fun gift! I just had to share because they are so nifty. It will also be fun to keep these glasses and see how the bike routes change as the years progress. These Bike Map Glasses were printed in Pittsburgh, PA. Pittsburgh is my family’s hometown, making these glasses are extra special.
Bike Trend Tuesday: Beating the Odds
http://www.bicycling.com/culture/advocacy/2014-readers-choice-poll
I need to get updated reader statistics. I imagine since cycling has grown in popularity since 2014, these stats have probably changed. Still, these stats are fun to reflect on.
I am one of the 26% of women having been hit by a car while cycling. I've been nipped several times, but the only full-frontal car ramming right into me was at a 4-way stop. The teen age driver made eye contact with me and continued to drive right into me. She gushed with apology, saying she was just tired. I am incredibly fortunate that she chose to be tired at a 4-way stop and made a full stop while there.
I am also one of the 10% of women to have received a traffic ticket while on a ride. This is a hilarious story. Again, 4-way stop. The only other car in the intersection was a cop car who was doodling at something. When he didn't go, we proceeded across the intersection and he ticketed us. I wrote a letter contesting the $80 ticket and it was revoked. My friend on the ride forgot about the ticket and ended up having to pay upwards of $300 for not paying the ticket on time.
I have never broken a bone while riding.
I am one of the 9% people who have more than one bike stolen. Neither bike was valuable. However, the first bike stolen from me happened the night before my first midterm in college, so I had to content with getting to the test on time without a bike I thought I had. It was locked inside a secure shed, which goes to show you never can be too safe. The second bike was stored inside a key code-entry garage, but was not locked and had 2 flat tires and some broken gearing.
I am a little surpised I tend to be of the minority in these stats.
New study...
When I read this article by The Onion, I couldn't stop laughing. I often times feel sore from riding. Sure, I have a regular yoga practice, and I lift weights somewhat regularly to help balance out the muscle, so the soreness is probably better than it could be. Still, this article is one of those that meet the “It’s funny because it’s true” criteria. That doesn’t mean I’d ever consider slowing down, however. I’d rather be sore doing something I love than feel pristine and missing out on life’s joys.
Seattle blushes getting dressed this morning
What a beautiful day to be commuting by bike! The fragile and fantastical sensations of this morning’s sunrise made me forget the fear, discomfort, and concentrated focus that typifies the urban commute. I didn’t capture it on photograph, but the sunrise reflected on the water looked absolutely breathtaking.
Fremont bridge bike count: 170 (173 by the time I finished taking photos)
Everything is back to normal
I planned to write about another cold day, but I bundled up and was quite infected by the weather. This, of course is due mostly to the amazing life-saving Cold Killer Pant my mom got me from Title 9 Sports. I can’t imagine wearing any other pant in cold weather commuting.
The dreamy empty roads of the holidays are over. Cars and bikes are back to their normal winter numbers. I watched a car turn from a “no turn on red” lane while the light was red. As the car barreled into a steady stream of cyclists, one yelled, “NO TURN ASSHOLEWWWWWWW!” I couldn’t believe how well I heard him holler through his balaclava, the guy had pipes. Needless to say, I am certain the car didn’t hear him. And even if he had, he would have thought, “What the hell is wrong with all these bikers? I have the right of way!” See, if the car was being an asshole, he would have turned at any time. But he waited until the lane next to him turned green. If he had noticed his light was still red, he probably also would have seen the stream of bikes he turned into. I am certain the driver simply didn’t pay attention to the sign in front of him while he waited at the red light and/or didn’t pay any attention to the light at all. He was probably tired and possibly still hungover from the holiday. I wish there was a way to alert people of the ways their inattention puts others in danger, but that’s the problem with inattention, they probably just won’t notice. I am a cynic like that. It was hard to watch those bikes respond, I know what it feels like to be them.
Fremont Bridge Bike Count: 199
Happy New Year!
It was another cold one this morning. So, I decided to skip the morning workout (that’s right, I didn’t sleep in or anything, it was a decision) and wait to ride until the temps got a little warmer. Then I bundled it all up. I relished in another day of nonexistent traffic. Here’s hoping for many more joyous days!
Fremont Bridge Bike Count: 33
Bike Trend Tuesday: Leading the Curve
http://www.bicycling.com/culture/advocacy/2014-readers-choice-poll
This fun infographic from Bicycling magazine is from 2014. I bought a new commuter bike in 2012. I started shopping for a "commuter" in 2010. I got one off of Craigslist, but it wasn't the bike I wanted. I wanted a road bike with disc brakes. At the time, I lived on the top of Council Crest, I steep hill near downtown Portland. I needed a good set of brakes to go anywhere on my bike.
I shopped and shopped. It didn't seem like an impossible request. And yet, it was hard to find. I ended up getting a Redline, a bike made in Seattle that got bought out by another company and no longer exists. It's a great bike, but probably not what I would have picked had there been more choice. Fast forward a couple of years and its hard to find new road bikes that DON'T have disc brakes! I was just slightly ahead of the trend. If I wanted to buy a commuter now, it would be a breeze.