RAINY FRIDAY HAIKU

MICRO DROPS OF RAIN

STINGING NETTLES ON MY FACE
WIND-WHIPPED, WET RIDE IN



-KJT, 01August08

Soaked to the Bone

After several days of record temps I was wilting like limp asaparagas. Now I resemble a drowned rat. This morning might have been the second hardest rain I've ever ridden in.



Thinking ahead, I rode my "rain bike" (the one with fenders) home last night, because the weather reports said we might have isolated thunderstorms today.

For once they were right on the money. Thunder, lightning, and it was pissing rain. The ride from the house to the train station downtown takes all of 10 or 11 minutes. In that time I was thoroughly drenched. After drip-drying a bit during the 15-minute trip south to my stop in Tukwila, it was then back on the bike. The rain was just a gentle sprinkle as I started the ride from the station to the Raleigh offices. Two blocks into it, and the skies opened up. It dumped, and then dumped some more. It was actually pretty comical - the trail looked like a creek. At the office I had to wring my gloves out. Twice. Now I'm just hoping everything dries by 5pm.


Oh yeah, fenders and rain gear are a joke in that kind of downpour.

MARDI GRAS MAMBO

Although I guess today it could be called “Jeudi Gras Mambo” since it’s Thursday...

Got my first flat tire of the month yesterday on the ride in to work. Not too bad considering I’d put almost 400 miles in for May, especially with the condition of some of the roads I ride in on (Yea, I’m talkin’ to you, Rainier Avenue South...). Anyway, Brian was kind enough to help out by documenting the tube change on film. I don’t think I’m ready for any speed change contests.



Today was cloudy but warm. Ran out of coffee beans last night, but had some fancy-pants ground stuff my sister had sent me from Switzerland so I tossed that in the French Press this morning. It made a couple of damn fine cups o’ java. I tip my hat to the Swiss. It put a needed extra kick into the legs.

Had the iShuffle filled with my New Orleans music playlist: a Jazz/Funk Gumbo seasoned liberally with The Rebirth Brass Band, Dr. John, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Prof. Longhair, Louis Armstrong, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and The Meters. Nothing like riding in to the boogie & swing of some sick stride-piano, trumpets, trombones, and especially the Tubaluba (R.I.P. Tuba Fats!)


Highlights/Lowlights: Everything was great today...

CHANGE...

As I have been swamped with work (which means riding solo to and from work) - I am glad my co-workers are documenting more of their trips and thinking about writing. Here is a new post by Brian. Enjoy.

{words by brian}

Last night riding home, Matt B and I got to talking about how hard it is to break a habit. How easy it is to stick with what is familiar, how comfortable routines can become, and how difficult it is to break them.

Driving the car into work everyday can be pretty enticing, especially in Seattle during the winter. It can be as crappy as your mind can imagine: wet, cold, dark, and windy. The comfort of a climate controlled car is everything riding a bike is not.

Change...? Set my alarm clock an hour earlier...? Give up the short drive for a long leg burning ride...? Give up coffee on the drive for a water bottle filled with tepid water...? Why do this again...?

So I applaud everyone on our commute team for changing up their routines to ride their bikes to work.

It also got me to thinking about change; I’ve become a slave to my own patterns this winter. I’ve been riding the same bike routes, stopping at the same coffee shop, and riding the same bike. I’m not a creature that gets lulled into a pattern easily, but I found myself in a bit of a rut this winter. So this week I’ve changed up my routes…I haven’t ridden the same one twice and I’ve been stopping at a new coffee shop in the mornings…delicious. I’m not going to change up my bike right now as my wallet has an echo to it, but... my Rush Hour does have a “fixed” cog on the other side of my flip-flop…hmmmmmm.

Just random. The pics are all from this morning.

THE RIDE TO WORK IN PICTURES

{pictures and captions by kevin - click images to enlarge}

Miles 0-1: Madrona Hill, overlooking I-90; and goose topiary.

Mile 2: Leschi sailboats

Miles 3-4: Heading under I-90; rowing crew out on Lake Washington

Miles 4-6: Lake Washington Blvd, fellow commuters; Seward Park entrance

Miles 8-10: Reflection in Pub window; The “Ugly Mug” on Rainier, almost to Renton; stop for an espresso as others fly by

Mile 15: Tukwila, and the second best way to commute to work

Mile 16: Joining up with the Green River Trail

Mile 17.5: Green River Trail, continued

Mile 18: Crossing the wooden bridge near South Center

Mile 19: The Raleigh office, meeting up w/ Brian (perfect timing)

MINOR TRANSIENT IMAGES OF THE DAY

It's been great having new voices on this blog; I am happy and relieved that you will be entertained by others. This week in Seattle has been gorgeous and it seems our skin is showing signs of sun exposer (finally!). Here is a quick post in pictures; as always click on them to see the details.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's post; it will include one eyed artists, drag races, routes, commuting stats & some visions.

{bicycles will always be bigger than cars!}

A DISTURBANCE IN THE FORCE

{words by kevin}

Hmmm... Strange vibes on the ride in this morning. Not particularly pleasing ones either.

First case in point: About 3 miles into the ride: I’d just come down off the ridge and onto Lake Washington Blvd and I’ve got a real nice rhythm going, ticking it out at about 23mph. About a half a block ahead of me a car backs out of the driveway into the street, sees me, and stops. Had she kept backing out I could have gone past without slowing. As she was now blocking the whole lane from curb to oncoming traffic I had to slow almost to a stop to squeeze past her. Killed my nice rhythm.

Point two: Further along and I’m passing three cyclists heading the opposite direction and suddenly one of them touches tires with another and goes down. Hard. Glasses flying, waterbottle flying, expletives flying. I yelled “You alright?” as I rode past. He grunted a rather melancholy “Yeah” and so I continued on.

Point three: Dead raccoon lying in the middle of the road just past the Renton Airport. Didn’t make it across. Hate to see that. Buzz kill.

The ride home last night was tiring. Stiff headwind the last 10 miles. You know the wind is really blowing when Lake Washington has whitecaps. The legs were really heavy this morning (also due to a bit too much Chateauneuf-du-Pape last night). Had planned on just meandering in this morning, but ended up riding fairly fast in the end. Just felt like going once I was out there.

Highlights: No wind!; Only having to stop once during the entire 19-mile ride (good traffic-light karma); Jane’s Addiction (how can you ride slow during “Mountain Song”?); Really cranking it out even though you’re tired just because you feel good, have a great song, and it’s great to be alive and out on the bike - even with heavy legs; Honey on toast aprés-ride.

Lowlights: See above strange vibes.

One last thing: I think “Basso” must be Latin for “Full Of SH%@”...

HIT THE CITY:

{words by kevin}

This morning marked my third ride in to work this year – brilliant weather. Sunny, warm (even at that hour). Stopped above the I-90 floating bridge to just enjoy the sunrise and the view. Then it was back down to the lakeside and on into work.

Highlights: the aforementioned view and sunrise; Mark Lanegan & PJ Harvey’s “Hit the City” in my ear (maybe my new fave riding song); passing a long line of dead-stopped cars caught in traffic near the fun center & the feeling of smug self-righteousness; and watching the squirrels scatter on the trail.

Lowlight: coming down over the railroad bridge full speed into a blinding, opaque cloud of who-knows-what as an AirGas truck vents it’s trailer right over the trail. WTF?!?

FINALLY OFF THE SNIDE

{words by Kevin & photos by Carey}

Rode to work today for the first time this year. Feel a little annoyed that it took this long, but that old nemesis "inertia" had a stranglehold on me; I just couldn't pry my ass out of bed early enough on those dark, cold winter mornings. Not when the dogs are curled up next to you in bed and it's dark, dark, dark outside the window...

But the ride was great. Looked like rain, but the sun actually came out a couple times and the traffic was light at that hour.

Highlights of the ride: The smell of fresh cut grass; the buzzing sound of my new Fulcrum wheelset whilst freewheeling; early morning fog on Lake Washington; John Coltrane, Iron Maiden (Paul Di'Anno era), Jeff Buckley, and Tom Waits on the iShuffle (kept low enough that I could hear the traffic sounds over Mr. Waits' demonic growling); and hot coffee after the long ride.

Lowlights: empty banana peel left on the side of the road by some anonymous, lame, selfish cyclist. Yes, I realize it's biodegradable, but until it degrades it's TRASH on the side of the road. Show some class.
Pack it in, pack it out. Humphf!

Kt

{riding home through seward park}