Winter....anyone.

Quoted message said:

So how's your winter going??

Congrats Ron on cycling each day. I haven't done that, though
don't have an automobile so the days without bike riding were
walking or staying inside.

On our coldest morning (-5F), my rear hub was causing problems,
but otherwise cycling has gone well.

I've decided I'll try the "Century of the Month" exercise and today
I cycled from Fort Collins, CO to Cheyenne, WY and back. Beautiful
lovely weather and only a bit of wind. However, also one of the
warmest days so far. I cycled to a "traditional New Year's Day ride"
of the local cycle club and discovered I was the only rider.

I returned from my 10 months of cycling touring at end of
December (the cold in Colorado was a bit of a change after
leaving Malaysia) but already can spend some time dreaming
and scheming of the next big trip :-)...

--mev, Mike Vermeulen

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

So how's your winter going??

Congrats Ron on cycling each day. I haven't done that, though
don't have an automobile so the days without bike riding were
walking or staying inside.

On our coldest morning (-5F), my rear hub was causing problems,
but otherwise cycling has gone well.

I've decided I'll try the "Century of the Month" exercise and today
I cycled from Fort Collins, CO to Cheyenne, WY and back. Beautiful
lovely weather and only a bit of wind. However, also one of the
warmest days so far. I cycled to a "traditional New Year's Day ride"
of the local cycle club and discovered I was the only rider.

I returned from my 10 months of cycling touring at end of
December (the cold in Colorado was a bit of a change after
leaving Malaysia) but already can spend some time dreaming
and scheming of the next big trip :-)...

--mev, Mike Vermeulen

Dare I ask what the next trip will be? After doing Amsterdam to
Vladivostok, across China and down to Singapore, you've pretty much
run the table.

"Zoot Katz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

On Sat, 26 Jan 2008 20:11:07 -0800, "Claire Petersky"
<[email hidden]> wrote, in part:

Quoted message said:

ObBikeContent: the professional two-day workshop I was at had about 20% of
the people attending get there by bike. I thought that was a remarkably
high
number, especially for this time of year.

Twenty percent is peak season numbers entering the UBC campus or
commuting downtown on a nice day during a summer long bus strike.

Given that the other professionals at the workshop were probably of
similar bent and background as your self, twenty percent shouldn't be
outstanding. It however is encouraging to see people using bikes as
transport. . . at least in nice weather. Thursday and Friday were
glorious days for riding.

Did you bring your bike too?

It was at the shop, having its hubs repacked while I was gone. One attendee
also from Seattle took the train up, rented a bike while he was in
Vancouver, and rode it to the workshops and around town.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
http://www.bicyclemeditations.org/
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

In article <[email hidden]>,

Claire Petersky said:

"Tom Keats" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

Worst of all are drivers who come here from places
where they get /real/ snow. They think they're
experts at dealing with Vancouver "snow", and set
out to teach the local populace a lesson about how
to deal with it.

Just came back from your fair city this evening. It was snowing to beat the
band. I <3 Vancouver. It's such a great city. I always feel like Vancouver
is to Seattle the way I'd feel about a more glamorous cousin - about the
same genetic material, but more beautiful, more sophisticated, more on top
of things.

Really? I've always thought of Seattle and Vancouver (BC) as
sororital twins, and as "slightly different" equals. The cultures
are slightly different, but just as rich & vibrant. The Seattle
arts community seems (to me, at least) to be more ... "there" --
above-ground and visible. I think Vancouver enjoys more kinship
with Seattle than with hoighty-toity Victoria. So many of us
(including myself) have extended families distributed & scattered
across the border. I wouldn't be surprised if Vancouverites
understand Seattlites better than most Americans, and Seattlites
understand Vancouverites better than most Canadians.

In a subsequent post in this thread you mentioned the train.
How I love the idea of our respective cities being connected
by rail! How apropos! Nowadays it's the Amtrak Cascadia.
Eons ago when I was a kid, I used to go visiting relatives
(in Everett) via the ol' Great Northern, which only went as
far as Bellingham. But what a wonderful train trip adventurette
that was! I'd like to do it again, but these days I'll have to
get a stoopid passport.

I love the Peace Arch and what it represents.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

Ron Wallenfang said:

From the look of the national weather map the whole northern US from
about Montana east is caught up in a real cold spell of weather. In
Milwaukee, we've alternated between snow and cold fairly steadily ever
since late Nov., though with a week or so of record or near record
high temps in between that melted the first batch of snow, the next
batch arriving just as the first was limited to snow banks. In all,
we're closing in on 50" of snow for the season, with a half dozen or
so below 0 degree F days. (My inbound commute this morning started
out at -4F.) Worse, the snow has an an uncanny way of arriving just
in time to make biking hazardous. Two weeks ago, I started home in
what looked to be a little light rain, which turned into an
unpredicted howling snow storm. I had to take cover and get my wife
to pick me up, which took a long time because auto travel wasn't so
easy either. That's the second time this month she's had to do that.
Anyway, I'm about to suffer the indignity of back to back months of
well under 1000 miles, which hasn't happened since 1995. The best I
can say is that I have gotten at least one mile of biking in every
day. The month got off to a bad start when, as per an earlier report,
bike trouble kept me from getting a century. Besides weather problems
and work commitments, I had low mileage days in order to attend the
two Packer playoff games, the last of which they lost, as some of you
may have noticed. At least I was acclimated to the cold and didn't
freeze.

So how's your winter going??

I've been a wuss. I'm in New York City, and it really hasn't been a
bad winter but I have a 15 mile commute so I'm a bit picky about when
to bike. It seems to be very windy this winter, and always into my
face. It's been very wet also; no snow, but it seems to rain a lot. I
note this because I'm hardly using the humidifier in my bedroom.

Having a subway makes it very tough to commute by bike. Let's see, I
can battle the elements and cars for 15 miles. Or, I can sit and read
and look up and realize that I'm at work.

My basic feeling is that I should enjoy the biking, and I usually do.
If I find that I'm [censored] about it, then I take the train.

Quoted message said:

Dare I ask what the next trip will be? After doing Amsterdam to
Vladivostok, across China and down to Singapore, you've pretty much
run the table.

That's part of the fun, dreaming and scheming of another long
trip :-).
Not quite sure. I haven't been to either Africa or South
America...and
am thinking of taking Spanish classes...

I have a spare bicycle sitting in Penza, Russia, left behind from my
2006
trip as a spare for Amsterdam to Vladivostok ride. It would be fun to
cycle
from Penza across Kazakhstan to Urumqi, China. In any case, sometime
pick up that bicycle and start riding from Penza.

In the mean time, put in some good hours at work and only take shorter
trips in North America, starting with Texas Hell Week ride in March.

--mev, Mike Vermeulen

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

If I find that I'm [censored] about it, then I take the train.<<<<

Glad I'm not the only New Yorker who's wussing out this winter. I'm not
sure why it feels so much colder in NY this year. Maybe it's just that
we're getting OLDER?

"dgk" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Ron Wallenfang said:

From the look of the national weather map the whole northern US from
about Montana east is caught up in a real cold spell of weather. In
Milwaukee, we've alternated between snow and cold fairly steadily ever
since late Nov., though with a week or so of record or near record
high temps in between that melted the first batch of snow, the next
batch arriving just as the first was limited to snow banks. In all,
we're closing in on 50" of snow for the season, with a half dozen or
so below 0 degree F days. (My inbound commute this morning started
out at -4F.) Worse, the snow has an an uncanny way of arriving just
in time to make biking hazardous. Two weeks ago, I started home in
what looked to be a little light rain, which turned into an
unpredicted howling snow storm. I had to take cover and get my wife
to pick me up, which took a long time because auto travel wasn't so
easy either. That's the second time this month she's had to do that.
Anyway, I'm about to suffer the indignity of back to back months of
well under 1000 miles, which hasn't happened since 1995. The best I
can say is that I have gotten at least one mile of biking in every
day. The month got off to a bad start when, as per an earlier report,
bike trouble kept me from getting a century. Besides weather problems
and work commitments, I had low mileage days in order to attend the
two Packer playoff games, the last of which they lost, as some of you
may have noticed. At least I was acclimated to the cold and didn't
freeze.

So how's your winter going??

I've been a wuss. I'm in New York City, and it really hasn't been a
bad winter but I have a 15 mile commute so I'm a bit picky about when
to bike. It seems to be very windy this winter, and always into my
face. It's been very wet also; no snow, but it seems to rain a lot. I
note this because I'm hardly using the humidifier in my bedroom.

Having a subway makes it very tough to commute by bike. Let's see, I
can battle the elements and cars for 15 miles. Or, I can sit and read
and look up and realize that I'm at work.

My basic feeling is that I should enjoy the biking, and I usually do.
If I find that I'm [censored] about it, then I take the train.

Papa Tom said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

>If I find that I'm [censored] about it, then I take the train.<<<<

Glad I'm not the only New Yorker who's wussing out this winter. I'm not
sure why it feels so much colder in NY this year. Maybe it's just that
we're getting OLDER?

Oh, I'm definitely getting older. No one aims commercials at my
demographic anymore. Still, I biked in this morning; it was 32F and a
beautiful day to bike. Coming home should be cloudy with a chance of a
sprinkle, and a nice SW wind at 10-15 mph. Perfect for me; I'll just
put up a sail.

Tomorrow back to [censored] though. Morning rain, afternoon very windy, WSW
at 30 mph. I think I'll take the train.

In article <[email hidden]>,

(Tom Keats) said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Jay said:

Why do I need to lecture a Packer fan on COLD?

Oh, well.

Quoted message said:

This is not rocket science...and I do know rocket scientists.

Just as there are various kinds of rockets,
there are various kinds of COLD.

I opine the PNW kind of COLD is among
the most miserable.

There's something to this idea. Having made a few trips to the Rest of
Canada in the winter (most lately, a trip to Toronto a week ago, when
they were experiencing unusually cold weather (-10 C or so, plus some
bonus wind chill).

Toronto was cold, and pretty fiercely so, but Vancouver runs to a
bone-bending iciness that I think is entirely down to the relatively
high moisture content of the air.

The very worst is the classic 1 C and raining that is so common in
Vancouver. You can defeat it (after years of trying, a good solution is
a simple plastic rain jacket as the outer layer), but the normal soft
outer garments will normally get soaked through, and the cold and wet
seep in rapidly and chillingly.

That said, I think this perception of cold also reflects the preparation
you make. In truly cold places, cyclists and citizens know enough to
dress for the weather, including really thick gloves, really warm coats
(albeit not necessarily rain-shedding ones: hello fur!), and maybe a
scarf or balaclava.

As for Vancouver, buying a set of MEC's neoprene cycling/paddling gloves
has solved my cold-hand issues. For the body, the aforementioned plastic
jacket, usually over a nice Garneau Wind-tex jacket (worth every penny)
and a jersey under that keeps me 3-hour dry. One or two pairs of shorts
and leggings are plenty for the legs. I am still struggling with an
effective footwear solution, which is my real bugbear. I have tried
neoprene boot covers, and found them strangely ineffective. It may have
been too tight; I shall try the next size up. If anyone has a
recommendation for a really weather-resistant cycling shoe (or maybe
magic socks), let me know.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"My scenarios may give the impression I could be an excellent crook.
Not true - I am a talented lawyer." - Sandy in rec.bicycles.racing

In article <[email hidden]>,

Andrew Price said:

On Sat, 26 Jan 2008 14:29:43 -0800, [email hidden] (Tom

Keats) said:

Just as there are various kinds of rockets,
there are various kinds of COLD.

I opine the PNW kind of COLD is among
the most miserable.

Why ?

It's wet.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"My scenarios may give the impression I could be an excellent crook.
Not true - I am a talented lawyer." - Sandy in rec.bicycles.racing

In article
<rcousine-0888FF.16050729012008@[74.223.185.199.nw.nuvox.net]>,

Ryan Cousineau said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Andrew Price said:

On Sat, 26 Jan 2008 14:29:43 -0800, [email hidden] (Tom

Keats) said:

Just as there are various kinds of rockets,
there are various kinds of COLD.

I opine the PNW kind of COLD is among
the most miserable.

Why ?

It's wet.

it's -19C in chicagoland this morning. brrr. Yesterday it was 9.5C
(-2F, 49F) It is a dry cold. . .

What i will hear at work:

1) Did you ride this morning (x4) (yes)
2) yer crazy (x2) (yes)
3) isn't it cold (x3) (meh)
4) no way i'd ever do that (x2) (sigh)

This seems like a good time to pimp my silicon carbide studded Nokian
Extreme 294 26" tires. 294 SiC studs per wheel. *Indominitable* on ice,
like my own personal superpower: I fear no winter hazard (they're
nothing special in snow >5", but there ya go, and anyway, that's why g-d
blessed us with bicycle snow plow guy).

And they only take twice the power to stoke, so now my pants don't fit
due to my bulging ripply quads.

..max

--
The part of betatron @ earthlink . net was played by a garden gnome

Ryan Cousineau <[email hidden]> wrote in news:rcousine-
617623.16045629012008@[74.223.185.199.nw.nuvox.net]:

Quoted message said:

I am still struggling with an
effective footwear solution, which is my real bugbear. I have tried
neoprene boot covers, and found them strangely ineffective. It may have
been too tight; I shall try the next size up. If anyone has a
recommendation for a really weather-resistant cycling shoe (or maybe
magic socks), let me know.

Get the MEC neoprene in the largest size you can (XXXL) and they work a
treat.

Quoted message said:

As for Vancouver, buying a set of MEC's neoprene cycling/
paddling gloves has solved my cold-hand issues.

=v= I also want to give props to Pearl Izumi's "lobster claw"
gloves, which got me through some Chicago and Omaha winters!

Quoted message said:

I have tried neoprene boot covers, and found them strangely
ineffective.

=v= Same here. They wear down much too fast!
<_Jym_>

In article <rcousine-617623.16045629012008@[74.223.185.199.nw.nuvox.net]>,

Ryan Cousineau said:

The very worst is the classic 1 C and raining that is so common in
Vancouver.

I've never understood that particular odium.

To me, that it's not freezing is a good thing.

That it's raining is just ... usual and normal.

If the streets are ice-free, I'm happier than
a kitten in a dairy.

Having to stand still @ 1C in the rain (e.g: waiting
for a bus) is horrid. But being able to move around
readily obviates and obliviates all the discomforts.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

In article <[email hidden]>,

(Tom Keats) said:

In article <rcousine-617623.16045629012008@[74.223.185.199.nw.nuvox.net]>,

Ryan Cousineau said:

The very worst is the classic 1 C and raining that is so common in
Vancouver.

I've never understood that particular odium.

To me, that it's not freezing is a good thing.

That it's raining is just ... usual and normal.

If the streets are ice-free, I'm happier than
a kitten in a dairy.

Having to stand still @ 1C in the rain (e.g: waiting
for a bus) is horrid. But being able to move around
readily obviates and obliviates all the discomforts.

The not-ice is, of course, the best feature, but what I find is that
after a couple of hours of riding, such conditions contribute to a
painful coldness. The big issue is that once you get water intrusion to
your skin (or soaked clothing), you start losing heat really fast.

The problem there is that I think the gear for dealing with dry cold
conditions is pretty good at dealing with dry cold conditions, but the
gear for dealing with wet cool conditions is much more prone to
problems: leaks, gaps, general failure.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

(Tom Keats) said:

In article <rcousine-617623.16045629012008@[74.223.185.199.nw.nuvox.net]>,

Ryan Cousineau said:

The very worst is the classic 1 C and raining that is so common in
Vancouver.

I've never understood that particular odium.

To me, that it's not freezing is a good thing.

That it's raining is just ... usual and normal.

If the streets are ice-free, I'm happier than
a kitten in a dairy.

Having to stand still @ 1C in the rain (e.g: waiting
for a bus) is horrid. But being able to move around
readily obviates and obliviates all the discomforts.

cheers,
Tom

We don't get the +/- 1 C and rain that much here but I tend to agree
that it's worse than reasonably cold weather say -5 or -10. Much more
chance of unexpected ice and and the chance of getting wet and very
cold very fast is much higher.

Of course you need to realise that a winter rider here does not
normally dress for wet weather.

In rec.bicycles.misc Ryan Cousineau said:

If anyone has a recommendation for a really weather-resistant cycling
shoe (or maybe magic socks), let me know.

Mec has the Exustar E-SM450 Cold Weather Cycling Shoes which are what I
use. If you are in a total downpour they will soak water in through the
neoprene 'sock' at top, but in normal rains they work a treat.

I've been spoiled by their ridiculously firm sole, which I miss when I
shift back to regular MTB/commuter shoes.

--
Dane Buson - [email hidden]
'You know all those spasticated-looking hip-hop gestures involving
extended fingers and wrists cocked at odd angles which are intended to
have a meaning to the effect of "Kinoath!" or "You have spoken wisely,
my friend."? I'm making one in your direction now...' Marko in aus.moto

In article <[email hidden]>,

Dane Buson said:

In rec.bicycles.misc Ryan Cousineau said:

If anyone has a recommendation for a really weather-resistant cycling
shoe (or maybe magic socks), let me know.

Mec has the Exustar E-SM450 Cold Weather Cycling Shoes which are what I
use. If you are in a total downpour they will soak water in through the
neoprene 'sock' at top, but in normal rains they work a treat.

I've been spoiled by their ridiculously firm sole, which I miss when I
shift back to regular MTB/commuter shoes.

Interesting. I ended up buying those exact boots a few weeks ago, though
I haven't given them a serious test yet. I suspect that slipping a
legging over the top of the "sock" would help.

The firm sole is nice, but as a nerdy racer, I expect such things.
There's quite a few "racer" MTB shoes that have soles that rigid; the
racier versions seem to take a road-shoe sole and add tread lugs to the
bottom. I don't do a huge amount of walking in these shoes off the bike,
but they're not horrible.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."