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.
Swift Campout 2018
The Wooleaters are planning a bike camping excursion! I am very excited about this! Adding self-supported camping is a thing I've been wanting to add to my biking repertoire for a while.
Bucket list riding?
I spend a lot of time thinking, "What's next on the bike?" Long ago, I had an idea of riding an MS ride in every state. But with limited time off and many rides happening on the same weekends, it would be a long time before I could hit all the states. On top of that, I'd have to more than triple the amount of fundraising I do. It occurred to me that I could just ride the states on my own. Sure, I wouldn't be putting money to a charitable cause, but maybe I could plan out a way to simply promote bicycle transportation, if nothing else. It seemed like a pretty attainable goal. Then I mapped out how many states I have left. Hm, maybe this goal isn't so attainable after all. Still, if I start mapping out a plan now, I'd be one step father to doing it.
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.
Bike Thing Thursday: my rear bike light
Hotshot tail light earns a solid 4 bike score
This HOTSHOT USB Rechargeable 2 Watt light was a gift for me a few years ago. Since I commute in the dreary year-long gray of Seattle every day, strong lighting is key to my safety. This light does a great job. The battery lasts a long time for the moderate price of the light. It's USB-charged so the LEDs don't dim as time wears on. There are a variety of light options, but I find only a couple of them best to be easily seen without being annoying. Sometimes I accidentally change the light pattern when I am turning the light off, but it's easy to leave it at whatever pattern seems right.
I've been riding with it for years and the battery is still holding out. It is easy to remove for charging, but doesn't ever fall off the bike (yes, this has been a problem with other lights!).
The light has 2 flaws; it requires a micro-USB charge so it's not so convenient to charge out of the home. It also doesn't give me any warning that the battery is running low. I know it says it has a low batt indicator, but the light is behind me and to be honest I've never noticed it. I keep a cheaper light just below it for redundancy. If it dies, I still have something to keep me visible until I get home. I actually have 2 additional lights, however I usually use one of the 2nd lights along with this one, just to add dimension to my silhouette. If I get the "feeling" that this light will die soon, I turn all 3 on just in case. Overall, I've been very happy with the simple lasting durability of this light. I would easily buy it again.
update on the bib display
I finally got around to adding this year's rides on my bib display! Actually, I only did one organized ride in 2017, but I am still proud!
Bike Thing Thursday: Schwalbe Marathon Plus HS 440 Road Bike Tire
Schwalbe Marathon Plus HS 440 Road Bike Tire earned a 4-bike score. It's not the tire for me, but it is certainly bombproof.
I wore the stock tire that came with my commuter bare, and I desperately needed it replaced. The existing tire was unridable, and I couldn't bear to take the bus to work. So, I decided to order one online. I researched tires, asked questions, visited forums. The 2 best reviewed and most popular commuter tires were the Continental Gatorskin and Schwalbe Marathon. I commuted on Gatorskins in Portland. They rode fine, but I felt like trying something different, so I ordered the Schwalbe.
This is a time where buying from brick and mortar would have been better. The tire arrived in a GIANT box. It didn't occur to me that I could mail-order a non-foldable tire. I should know better. The thing also weighs a ton. I mean, it's really heavy. I feel like this tire completely changed my bike from a nimble road bike to a heavy, lumbering beast. That's what it feels like when I ride my commuter now, a beast. Sure, sure, it hasn't had a single flat yet. Sure, it holds it's 100psi tire pressure for weeks without wavering. Sure, it has a cool reflective stripe all the way around the tire. Yeah, OK, it's a great tire. It's my own fault for not noticing that it was a BEAST. I can't fault it for that, right? But, yeah, I won't buy another one. I'd happily take a few flats a year to not feel like SUCH A BEAST!
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.
Bike Thing Thursday: The Garmin Vivoactive HR
Garmin Vivoactive HR scores 3 bikes out of 5.
My beloved Pebble watch started to die shortly before the company was destroyed by one of its greedy investors. I had planned to replace it with a new Pebble, seeing as this watch/piece of wearable tech was one of my all-time favorite devices. I couldn't believe the company ended just like that. It was the business story of horrors. Here I was, with an amazing device I loved, that became increasingly unusable every day. The screen started to pixelate and garble. Apparently this was the one flaws of pebbles, something that eventually happened to all of them. I felt pretty lucky, since mine lasted years longer than my boyfriend's. Still. Time to get a new device.
I spent hours upon hours reading reviews online, comparing features, and looking as devices in stores. I settled on a Garmin Vivoactive HR, in hopes to offset the expense of the device by having it serve as a watch and bike computer in one. From everything I read, the device's one flaw was inaccuracies with it's sleep tracking, which wasn't a concern for me. Sleep tracking was the one thing I didn't care to venture into.
I started writing a review for this watch when it was still new. I'm glad I waited over a year to finally publish it, as my feelings for it have warmed with time. It seems to work a little bit better with every update. I've had a lot of issues with this watch. I'll start by pointing out that I generated 17 threads thus far on the Garmin forum, trying to understand inconsistencies with this watch that haven't been addressed on the web. For instance, buttons on different windows respond differently. The two physical buttons on the bottom of the screen do the exact same thing with every window except one, the "review workout window." On all other windows the left button is a back/exit and the right a forward/toggle. For some reason the review workout screen, they do nothing. The touchscreen is also variable. For example, on the "review workout" touchscreen, the "no" option cannot be selected. Other users agree with my observations, but in over a year no one can explain why they are like this.
It has several other weird inconsistencies. If I use the "live track" option when recording a workout, the device won't sync to the app on my phone afterwards. If I am lucky, I can sync just by turning off live track and restarting both the device and my phone. If I am not lucky, I have to unpair the watch, restore it to factory settings, turn it off, clear app cache and data on the phone, uninstall the app, restart the phone, and then reinstall and pair the two devices all over again. Pairing the watch to my phone used to be a complicated dance that often took hours on hours of attempts until it would finally, randomly, connect. Luckily, I haven't had this issue for several months now. I imagine these annoyances might just as much be due to my phone as the device.
Still, the Garmin software itself seems bizarre. The Garmin Connect app for the desktop needs to be updated almost daily. Frequent updates are par for the course these days with phone apps, but not so much with desktop apps. It's annoying to have an update for Garmin every time I try to use my computer at home. The mobile app is the most fun to use out of the whole Garmin experience, although it's strange to me why Garmin Connect online is inconsistent with the mobile app. Take a look at the 2 calendars below. They are both for the time period, but I can see all sorts of daily data on mobile. Is there any reason Garmin opted to not have all this juicy, colorful data viewable from a desktop browser? I'll never know.
My biggest gripes with the watch are it's functional inconsistencies. One day it stops syncing, the next day it unpairs. I used to have to go to the watch, Garmin Connect Online, Garmin Connect Mobile, and Garmin Express all at the same time to disable my "move bar". Then, the second I have to reset any settings, which is frequently because all of the software is so buggy, the move bar enables again. And don't even get me started with this move bar!
“The red bar on the epix, fenix 3, Forerunner 920XT, vivoactive, vivofit, and vivofit 2 is referred to as the Move Bar. The bar will be displayed after one hour of inactivity. This bar builds in length the longer you are inactive. The first red bar equals one hour of inactivity. Each additional bar equals 15 minutes of inactivity.”
There is all this data out there indicating that just moving a little bit, but frequently and throughout the day, is healthier than being highly active for long periods of time paired with long periods of inactivity. So, I get the intent of the move bar. Apparently, people need to be reminded to get up and move around. Me, I have the opposite problem. There are often times when I need to concentrate, or at a minimum, focus on one thing for a even a short period of time. That's great if I can move around while doing so. Our culture is a sitting one though, and I really struggle staying put. This makes the move bar all the more annoying. First off, the move bar doesn't adjust to any other activity you do. I could have just ridden 100 miles on my bike, which takes me several hours. I could be home, taking a shower, getting dressed and eating some food (things the move bar timer doesn't sense). The move bar can vibrate before I even get a rest. However, the move bar is most frustrating when it vibrates when I am sitting and have little choice about it. The move bar goes off when I am in the dentist chair, at the theatre, sitting in traffic, stuck in a meeting, on an airplane with the seatbelt light on, and all the other times when taking walk would be quite welcome, but quite inconvenient. I hate the reminder. It's not for me. I don't need it and I don't care about walking or "steps" or whatever the trend is these days. I wish it were less of a hassle for me to clear. It's bad enough there there is no watch face that doesn't include the red move bar line into it's design. I just don't care.
One true problem is the hardware's temperature sensitivity. The unit is rated to work in conditions to -4, but mine can't handle temps below 10 or 15 degrees. The screen freezes and the devices stops tracking. Once the device continued to track with the screen froze, but I lost all my data the 5 other times I skied in cold weather this year, even though I had the device tucked in a pocket where I hoped it would stay warm.
Now, you might be wondering why I gave it a 3 bike rating with all these complaints. It's a buggy, annoying piece of technology, sure, but it's also pretty fun. I have always been fascinated with tracking my own activity. Garmin does this well. Garmin tracks what I want to track better than any other competitor I've seen. Nearly every wearable tracker these days is step-based. Since my activities are cycling, skiing, and gym-based, step counters counter my activity. Garmin tracks what I want; distance, elevation, speed, weather, heart rate, maps and more. The newer software interface is colorful, fun to look at, and motivating.
Take a look at some of the images below. It is really gratifying to see data like "you've logged more cycling activities than 99% of other users (all ages, male and female). Who knows how many commuters use Garmins, but it feels like a nice pat on the back regardless. I also get to see a super low resting heart rate, and it helps me to feel healthy and strong. I enjoy how the new interface gives you a snapshot of the day or the week. I enjoy the graphs of various attributes over time. The Pebble is a better piece of hardware, but I never had so much juicy sports data as I do now.
The Vivoactive has a great battery life for my level of use. It lasts almost a week for my typical activities, a couple of days when I am riding for hours on end. Not only that, it charges very quickly. It charges fully in about an hour. If I wake up in the morning and notice I let the battery die, I can charge a couple of day's worth in the few minutes it takes me to get dressed. Syncing with My Fitness Pal, Strava, and MapMyRide has been flawless. I get awesome videos from Relive, too. Relive pulls data from Strava, which uses data from Garmin.
And I trust my data. I can't say if the "calories burned" data is at all accurate, but it is consistent and predictable at this point. I burn about 300 calories commuting to work in one direction. I burn anywhere from 350 to 550 calories taking a boxing class, and the burn is consistent with my perceived effort. The heart rate tracking seems true. The wrist monitor is consistent, and tracks continuously. It also tracks a low heart rate, something my old monitors couldn't do. My older Polar, Suunto, and Sigma tended to lose connection when my heart rate dropped below 60. What it can't do is manage sudden surges in heart rate. When I am biking to work, I can see the wrist monitor under report when I suddenly put out a big effort. Compared to commutes when wearing the watch with a chest strap, the wrist monitor seems to lose accuracy above 130. When my heart is pounding at 160bpm or above, it may report a 40 or 50 reading. At least the inaccuracies are easy to spot. I don't mind this, as it's know that wrist monitors do a better job tracking the heart rate at rest anyway.
I went on a couple of ski trips with other people who had other Garmin GPS devices. While the devices never agreed, they were consistently close within a couple hundred feet, both in distance and elevation. One device would tend to rate the elevation higher than me, so while neither were probably perfectly correct, they all seemed consistent.
This watch has been a hassle, but the activity tracking is fantastic. It works as a bike computer, too. I just strap it on the handlebars like it's a bike and pedal on. Overall, I am glad I made the purchase, but I am going to do a lot of research before I'd buy one again.
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.
Registered for Bike MS 2018
I am all registered for Bike MS 2018 in Oregon. It sounds daunting, being so far away. As I type this, it's cold, dark, and rainy outside. And I'm fighting a cold. I think back to last year, all the sweat, the long, lonely training rides, and the smoke from forest fires that clouded our views and fought with our lungs. I think of how my mind and energy is constantly bombarded with so many people in need. Children are at risk of being shot in schools left and right. Homelessness engulfs the most fragile at epidemic rates. Health care is feeling more and more like a privilege. Our very environment is constantly under criticism (winter is coming). I wonder about Bike MS. What will this year entail? Bike MS is never easy, but it is always rewarding, and always important. I think of how my body is at it peak right now. I am healthier than I've ever been, and more physically capable than I'll ever be. Is riding enough? It's something, I feel compelled to do something. How much will I be able to raise? My donors have been SO amazing over the years. I feel so indebted to them. What can I do for them (you?) this year? There is a lot to think about, and the time will come before I know it.
I am already older than most people who develop disease. I am several years older than my mom when she was diagnosed. It seems like a lifetime ago. What does it feel like to her? When my mom was the age I am now, she was barely able to work, but she kept trying, she tried and tried. Do I have it in me to try as hard for her as she did for the world?
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.
Zwift Thoughts
Like shower thoughts, but even less interesting....
These are the things that rattle through my head while riding on the trainer:
- I'm doing a really good job keeping my watts on track! Go me!
- Hey...my chain just fell off! Can it do that?
- Wow...They really want me to push it! Do they seriously want me to ride that many watts? Will I fall off the bike? Will I break it?
- This is boring. I'll stop after I hit 5 miles.
- Looks at all that detail on the graphics. They got the crafts in the asphalt perfect. There's even weeds growing through it.
- If they can put weeds in the roads, why can't they add roadkill? I haven't seen a single roadkill!
- My helmet doesn't match my jersey! Ug.
- Well, I can't stop now. I have to finish this stage.
- Why am I even wearing a helmet? I can't get injured in a virtual world.
- I wonder if more routes will unlock for me as I do more. The graphic effect is pretty good, but inconsistent. The roads and mountains are amazing, but that field over there...bleah.
- I wish my avatar could have massive dreadlocks down to it's knees. Why not? They could blow all over in the wind.
- Almost done, stopping as soon as I hit 20 minutes.
- I let the program pick a course at random for me. And here I am on the same course I was on yesterday! I've only done one ride so far!
- What a wonderful trainer this is. I can't hear a thing.
- I am looking at a window, and it's not miserable outside. I should be outside.
- Where did all these of Zwift users come from? Why aren't they riding outside? Do they ever ride outside? I wonder what the app was like when it was new? Did they have to release it at a big expo so they could at least have 10 users on at once?
- Well, I only have 10 minutes to go, I'll just finish the whole thing.
- Does anybody actually drink as much water as thier avatar? She cannot stop reaching for that bottle!
- Since it's a virtual world, why don't they embellish it a little? Do more things you can't do in real life? I want to bike through the snow! How about biking through a sandy african safari, complete with wild animals lapping at your pedals? I want to bike through water, not just a tunnel, but in it with fish swimming by. I'd like to bike up a single-track rail that takes me all the way to the moon!
Trying Zwift for the first time
I set the bike up on the new trainer this morning. I hadn't had the bike on the trainer since last spring. I tried TrainerRoad out before and found it OK, but the interface appeared outdated and uninspired for something with a monthly fee. So, today I tried Zwift. Such a different experience! Zwift gamified indoor training. I am not much of a gamer, but I must admit that "unlocking achievements" and choosing my own virtual kit entertained the crap out of me!
The screenshot above shows my avatar taking a break on the side of the road in an underwater tunnel. In a virtual world, I get to ride in places I never would in real life. This program also includes other people like me, all over the world, who are doing the same route as me at the same time. Avatars can interact by giving thumbs up or even text-based messages. The expansive community appeared warming, pleasant, and positive. A group riding at my pace were concerned about their buddy, Andy, who wasn't keeping up the pace today. They cheered him on, and extended best wishes when he dropped out. I have no idea who Andy is, or if these other people even knew, but I felt encouraged by all their support.
After I finished the ride, I figured out how to add modifications, like how to add a helmet and change my hair. The more you do, the more options you get. There are fun medals you can earn, like the "stalker"- an award for following another rider's progress for at least 15 minutes.
I started out with the FTP test, to get an idea of my starting place. Sadly, my FTP score flashed across the screen at the end of the ride and I have no idea how to see it again. I remember it being lower than I thought it would be. I averaged 190 watts during the test, but the watt level it gave me was much lower. I thinks that's disappointingly unmeasurably low beginner level. However, the recommended watts that the test told me to ride at seemed incredibly low. I felt like I was barely pedaling for the first 30 minutes. For the test, I had to ride at a pace I felt like I could maintain for 20 minutes steady. I think I did a good job riding at the same pace throughout, and think I matched the recommended watts pretty well for each segment. Since I am not used to indoor training, I have no idea how my performance matched what I can do outside, or how how well I can do period.
The bike felt like it leaned to the right, which distracted me. I worried that the rear triangle would snap off the trainer and I'd crash to the ground with a broken bike. I tried to offset the lean by leaning to the left, but I felt uneven throughout. I called my live-at-home-barista (aka bf) over to look at the bike. He could see how much I leaned to the left, but didn't think the bike leaning to the right was much of a concern. We both contemplated it's placement. Since the drive train of the trainer is off-center compared to the placement of a wheel, it was hard to tell if it was aligned correctly.
Ride details are below. Apparently I rode on an island near Papua New Guinea today. I wish I could see the results of the fit test. If I continue using this app, I'll have to do the test again after I get my bearings a bit.
After riding, I took my sweat-soaked (you really sweat riding indoors!) self to the other room. The afore-mentioned home barista made banana pancakes for breakfast while playing Jack Johnson's Banana Pancakes on the radio. Because it was raining outside. Even though it was raining, I got to get in my ride and some pancakes, too!
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.