On the commute today

[sg37409]

A devil of commute yesterday. It was my 666th commute to this job.

Bloody windy on the way back, and I really felt the hangover of a tough slog into the wind when I set off this morning.

[Andrew Br]

First bike commute in a while for me today. Going in was quite nice (I hadn't ridden much in the preceding week so it was nice to be back on the bike).
Coming home wasn't as much fun; it was late and I'd had quite a hard shift. I was thinking about using the car tomorrow during the ride so I need to have a word with myself and HTFU.

[L CC]

Head on collision.

I take a little bit of bike path that goes behind Wilton Engineering, under the old railway and on to Port Clarence Road. It cuts a corner. It's a blind right turn into the tunnel under the railway, and that's where I met the fellow cyclist. We both hauled on the anchors and apologised, but it's almost an hour ago and I'm still shaking.

Feck.

[DrMekon]

What's the Keto equivalent to a sweet tea? Double spoon of coconut oil in your coffee? Big fuck off bell on order?

[Jurek]

Fog.
Proper Dickensian stuff.
Unable to see the far side of the river.

And it seemed to get thicker as I made my way up the Lee Valley.

That, and the utter delight in the shape of a brand new pair of Assos 3/4s.
Did I mention that they are delightful?

[TigaSefi]

Never mind this...

That, and the utter delight in the shape of a brand new pair of Assos 3/4s.
Did I mention that they are delightful?

I am looking into this. What Assos make/name exactly?

[Jurek]

Never mind this...

That, and the utter delight in the shape of a brand new pair of Assos 3/4s.
Did I mention that they are delightful?

I am looking into this. What Assos make/name exactly?

   Assos TK.tiburu_s7 Knickers Blok Black
Wiggle currently have them for £20.00 less than I paid for them last week. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.......................

[TigaSefi]

Never mind this...

That, and the utter delight in the shape of a brand new pair of Assos 3/4s.
Did I mention that they are delightful?

I am looking into this. What Assos make/name exactly?

   Assos TK.tiburu_s7 Knickers Blok Black
Wiggle currently have them for £20.00 less than I paid for them last week. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.......................

Wow! That's eye-wateringly expensive *wipes tear from eyes*. Glad they wear well though.....

[Feanor]

First proper dark ride home tonight.

Twilight as I set off.
Saw a couple of bats in the countryside as it got darker.
Proper dark by the time I got home.

Bit wet, too.

[Andrew Br]

Contrasting rides today (yes I did HTFU  ).
Going in was sunny and warm, coming home misty and very cold and yet I still saw another rider wearing shorts.
There's a very good chance that I'll be riding in tomorrow.

[TigaSefi]

Passed an audaxer this morning under Blackfriars Bridge on the CS highway. How did I know? he was wearing an Audax UK white jacket. Very swish!

[sg37409]

2 cars coming way too close really got to me this morning, and I shouted at both. Need to revert to my more chilled out attitude as that just puts my head in a bad place for the start of my day.

Black bmw 3 series, 15 plate.
Black fiat punto bit older didn't see the plate.

Unhappy at them and my response.

[velosam]

Struggled to get in, after a day of very light winds.

Cyclists also want to seem to want to ride on the right, which makes life interesting

[TimO]

... I'd caution chaps to be wary of sodden leaves on the road. We don't want: "Sodding leaves – skidded on them!"

aka Chutney.

(That term courtesy of Woolly, I think).

[TimO]

   Assos TK.tiburu_s7 Knickers Blok Black ...

WTF does TIR mean, aside from being another term for XXXL, according to their size chart.

I hope I never need that size, but I'm curious as to what the letters mean!

[TigaSefi]

   Assos TK.tiburu_s7 Knickers Blok Black ...

WTF does TIR mean, aside from being another term for XXXL, according to their size chart.

I hope I never need that size, but I'm curious as to what the letters mean!

Apparently Assos says "TIR, = XLG but wider"

[pumpkin]

Never mind this...

That, and the utter delight in the shape of a brand new pair of Assos 3/4s.
Did I mention that they are delightful?

I am looking into this. What Assos make/name exactly?

   Assos TK.tiburu_s7 Knickers Blok Black
Wiggle currently have them for £20.00 less than I paid for them last week. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.......................

Wow! That's eye-wateringly expensive *wipes tear from eyes*. Glad they wear well though.....

These are fantastic as are the bib short in this fabric. I have other brands and in theory they are made of the same material but the Assos ones just raise the bar (and the price). They do all get damaged in the same way if you have an off

[Feanor]

These are fantastic as are the bib short in this fabric. I have other brands and in theory they are made of the same material but the Assos ones just raise the bar (and the price). They do all get damaged in the same way if you have an off

My winter commute bibs are my Assos former Audax ones that suffered an 'orf' in the Oyne Incident on the Snow Roads a few years back.
They have a few rips around the knee, but are otherwise undamaged, and are perfect for winter commuting!

[Pingu]

... I'd caution chaps to be wary of sodden leaves on the road. We don't want: "Sodding leaves – skidded on them!"

aka Chutney.

(That term courtesy of Woolly, I think).

He had a bike named for it. A veteran of the Pyrénées, I think

[Pingu]

Bit chilly today, might have to get the longs on soon.

[Feanor]

Yes, today was drier, brighter, and chillier than yesterday.
But I've been in longs for 2 weeks already!

( but last week I was lurgified and didn't ride at all )

[Andrew Br]

It was quite warm and sunny riding in this afternoon but it was cold coming home; the Garmin reported 0.7 deg. C at one point.
I was just about warm enough with a windproof over two LS tops, leg-warmers and windproof gloves with silk liners underneath.
If it stays like this, I think I'll be digging out windproof leg-warmers as well as heavier gloves.
One of the problems with late starts and late finishes is that I'm riding in during the warmest part of the day and coming home when it's really cold.

More of a issue is that I'm really not enjoying the commute on the bike. I'm continuing to do it mainly because I feel that I should; two fewer car journeys and I'm a cyclist. The reduced cost, the exercise and the contribution to weight loss aren't really doing it for me at the moment.
On the positive side, I'm looking forward to a bike ride with Helen on Thursday when we're both off work. If bike commuting starts to reduce my enjoyment of riding, I'll start using the car more  .

[TimO]

Definitely a bit chillier this morning, 2½°C, although it's forecast to be 10°C when I leave later on, so I can doff a lot of what I wore in!

It sounds like I'm getting the opposite temperature sequence to you, Andrew !

I don't mind it being a little chilly, it's dry, which is the main thing.

[alexb]

2 cars coming way too close really got to me this morning, and I shouted at both. Need to revert to my more chilled out attitude as that just puts my head in a bad place for the start of my day.

Black bmw 3 series, 15 plate.
Black fiat punto bit older didn't see the plate.

Unhappy at them and my response.

Try being deliberately nice to someone at the next opportunity. I have lots of chances to give way to pedestrians, so I say hello to them or try to get a smile. It seems to allow me to forget the adrenalin rush more quickly. Sounds a bit like hippy bullshit, but it does seem to make me forget negative interactions more quickly.

[Guy]

I arrived at the pedestrian gate at 0705 to see a big notice saying "Gate b0rked - closed until further notice". Not wishing to hang around in the deep shade and frost until 0730 when the moton gate opens, or ride the by-pass and A600 on my folder, I decided to ride the bridleway through the woods and across the fields to get to the main gate. The fresh woodland smell followed by the ride through frosty fields on a bright sunny morning was absolutely beautiful. And, the (nearly) new baby-size Marathons on the folder just laughed at the bumps, holes, rocks and loose sand on the track. I think I'll go that way again. Has to be dry, mind. The woods turn into a quagmire after rain.