170. Macho Commuting

The bike (security) cage at one of my work places has both traditional stands (below) and vertical stands (right).  One morning I ride up and see that the former are all empty, the morning cyclers having chosen the stands where you have to lift up the bike. 

The face value of the vertical stands is space conservation, but I suspect that most of us have other things in mind.

169. A Four Hour Commute

Sure, given a winter storm or an unannounced routing change, a four hour round trip commute is understandable, but here's what happened last Tuesday.

It all started on 
Monday while pruning a lilac tree (I know, too late in the season to be trimming but whatever), I fell head first into the tree, with my left arm straight, hand extended: radial fracture.

So no driving, no cycling, and certainly didn't feel like running.  At 6 am I started with a 35 minute walk to light rail station, waiting just 2 minutes then a 15 minute ride to the stadium station.  As I exit, I see my express bus leave the stop across the street.  Wait 25 min for next bus, 45 min to my stop, then 10-15 min walk to my office, walking into my office at 8:15.

Going home a little easier because I caught a bus from my office to the express stop, then another bus from the light rail station to within a few blocks from home (so three buses and one light rail).  Day total 4 hours. And people ask why I'm retiring next year.

168. Prius Personality

Disclaimer: I do not own a Prius (but I'd like to--well, I'd rather own a Tesla or Bolt, though not now in the market for a new car, so it's all theoretical.)

Anyway, a few years ago someone stood near a pedestrian crossing and kept track of drivers who ignored the pedestrians' right of way. Turns out that luxury car and Prius owners were less likely to stop for pedestrians, as required by law and common courtesy.

A couple days ago a Prius crossed over several lanes, cutting off my bus.  I was in the front seat and mentioned this study to the driver.

"Ask any bus driver," he said, "they all hate Priuses."  

I decided not to inform him that Toyota has decreed "Prii" to be the plural of Prius based on a public vote, though "Priuses" did come in close second.

167. Thumper's Law

Which is worse:

A couple of Sundays ago, I was aiming for the first bus run of the day, not initially aware that my stop was cancelled for that morning because of the city's annual St Patrick's Day Dash, a 5km run though downtown (even though the race didn't start until more than an hour after the missed run. Another rider discovered the reason for the missed bus and we walked/biked to the first active stop. 

OR

So shivering and frustrated, I caught the next bus and at my stop pulled my bike off the rack and started up the hill to my office.  I'm near the top and pause at an intersection to allow a dog-walker to cross the street.  He looks at me (I assume he thought I paused to catch my breath, not as a courtesy to him) and says, "hey, you're looking good; most people your age wouldn't even try this hill."  

166: It's All Relative

When I bought my Volvo wagon 27 years ago it was a big car.  Now I park it in "compact only slots.

When I took it in for maintenance a few weeks ago, the service guy told me the bill ($1200--first repair work in 10 years), he asked me, "you really like this car, don't you?"

Yes, I do.  

But not for commuting--I'll staying with my bike.

165. "SRO" a tragedy in one act

The setting: standing room only intercity bus.  There is just one seat left, currently occupied by the belongings of a 30-something woman, who I will call Beth.

Cast of Characters: Beth, 60 yr old Sharon, 25 yr old Isabel, and 25 yr old Roberto.

Sharon to Beth (calm, but with the tone of a elementary school teacher): "You know, if you move your things, there will be room for one more passenger."

Beth to Sharon (dripping with sarcasm): "I was just rearranging them, but thank you for being the authority figure here."

Sharon then leaves the bus (another will come in 15 minutes).  Isabel and Roberto remain standing for the next 40 minutes; the seat remains vacant, Beth having moved her purse and pack to the floor.

164. Subway Etiquette

With a new light rail system (subway light) in town, the transit authority figured an education campaign is in order. Cute.

163. When in Rome

Came home the other night to find this line-up in front of my house.  Must be parent's night at the nearby private high school.  Either that or the President is coming to dinner.

Full disclosure: among my neighbors along the street there are 3 black SUVs plus a couple of other SUVs, three Volvos, and one Prius.

162. Ciao Folding Bike

For a few months, my folding bike chain had been slipping (sign of an aging, stretched chain), easy but annoying to fix. One day I turned the bike upside down to fix the chain and the pin from the central hinge dropped out. Yeah, just dropped out. You know, the hinge in the frame that folds the bike.  There is another hinge that folds the steering column, but the frame hinge is the key to the folding process.

So what did I do?  I turned the bike over, replaced the pin, held in place only by gravity, and kept on riding.  Not one of my finer moments.

Sure enough, the pin fell out again, fortunately not down a hill or rounding a corner but while I was finding refuge on a side walk, the pot-holed street too rough for a ride.

Took the bike in to REI who pronounced it unfixable.  I looked at the new model folding bike and noticed that it had a different, presumably more stable/durable hinge. After some back and forth discussion I was offered a refund which I accepted, notwithstanding the moral, dilemma rooted in my failure to disclose that I had continued to ride the bike after the hinge problem presented itself.

Now I've seen REI take back 2 year old hiking boots with 2 year wear because "they're uncomfortable," so clearly REI has a liberal return policy.  And I've bought things at their garage sale (which has a strict no return policy) that should have been thrown away, not resold, and then there was a sale item from their website that I never got around to taking back, even though it was defective from the start.

So they owe me right?  Yes, but still...  

In the meantime, I'll stay with my Costco mountain bike converted to commuting bike with duct tape holding the seat together and replacement derailleurs that weren't quite the right replacement and risk being bumped--I only commute 1 or two days a week, so the risk is low.

161. Back in Business

Biking may be slower than a car in all but the most congested cities, but that gives us time to appreciate the world around. 

Like the moon setting over the Space Needle at dawn.  

Or Lake Union at dusk.

160. Ciao

Time for a hiatus, unfortunately on low note as King County (Seattle, Bellevue and environs) just voted down a proposal to increase public transportation subsidies.  "About time," said one of the naysayers, "they need to run it like a business."  You mean, as in pay the CEO millions and millions more for lobbyists?  Just don't complain when freeway congestion increases as former bus riders return to their cars.  

But I'm okay, history's on our side.

And speaking of public transportation, from Philippines (pix 1-5) to Cuba (6-9):

159. Penultimate

About to take a break in blogging about my daily commute.

Continue to cycle/bus to work every day; I'm 65 now, can I see myself doing this at 70? Sure.

Local transit ridership increases by 10-12% with each quarterly accounting. Fifteen years ago, early hourly runs would have just me and a couple of other passengers, traveling agains rush hour. Now the more frequent 20-30 min runs are more than half filled.

Sometimes it's nice to be different but I like being part of this trend.

158. Good Cop, Bad Cop

You'd think that cops and cyclists would have some natural affinity. You know, sports, physical exercise, independence.  But my experience would not support that, nor would this dude's encounter with NYPD:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzE-IMaegzQ

157. Windmills

Don Quixote waged battle against windmills--"Just then they came in sight of thirty or forty windmills ... Don Quixote... said to his squire, "Fortune is guiding our affairs better than we ourselves could have wished. Do you see over yonder, friend Sancho, thirty or forty hulking giants? I intend to do battle with them and slay them... this is a righteous war and the removal of so foul a brood from off the face of the earth is a service God will bless."

I had a skirmish of my own a couple of weeks ago--choosing the arms of a parking garage gate as my target.  Following close to an exiting car, the arm came down as soon as the car passed, before I could make it through.

Designed to immediately raise when encountering any resistance, the arm left no more than a scratch on the bridge of my nose, a warning as it were.  But my war is righteous, and I will continue the fight; I just need to do a better job of selecting my opponents.

156. Fitness Age

More than just the environment; green commuting also embraces personal health.

Using DIY measurements and responses from thousands of adults across cultures, a Norwegian University of Science and Technology created a fitness calendar.  I come out 10 years younger than my calendar age.

So there you go.

155. Better Than New

Bike came back, better than purchased, having received the "basic" (as opposed to the previously recommended "silver") tune-up per the warrantee.  So ends that little adventure.  

REI is not a bad store.  It is a "non-profit cooperative" after all; margins turned into expansion and rebates. A little expensive, sometimes arrogant, but that initial mechanic wanting to do more than needed wasn't some guy working on a commission.  He just loves bikes, likes his job, and wants to see all bikes in perfect condition all the time.

Like the surgeon's "a chance to cut is a chance to cure," the bike shop's motto is "I never saw a cable that didn't need replacement."

154. "Warrantee Tune-up"

My folding bike, now credited with three saves during the first 5 months of use, was about due for its six month "warrantee tune-up," so I took it in the to dealer.  The mechanic put it up on a stand and with some disdain asked me how many miles. "I don't know" (later I decided about 200 miles, with many hills and some rain, both suggesting more wear and tear that one might expect in six months). 

"You're beyond your warrantee."

"But it says six months, nothing said about mileage."

"You need a 'silver' tune-up; can't let you leave without it; bike's unsafe."

"Silver?"  Why not platinum or titanium"  Or molybdenite?  

Well I did leave, rode my bike home without incident, put in new brakes, then a few days later returned. The mechanic this time accepted without question my request that I receive the promised tune-up with no work replacement of parts not covered by said warrantee. We'll see.

153. Drip Dry

Parking garage bike cage at one of my work sites. Not only anti-theft but also a place to hang out wet clothes during the rainy season.  I'm lucky, I have a warmer, drier area for my wet gear.

Didn't see any underwear hanging up to dry, which is more than I can say for one of my co-worker's office a few years ago when I walked by the open door and saw a pair of jockey briefs hanging from a book case (after a few months, he brought in a small Ikea closet).

As back-up, I keep an extra set of everything stuffed in a desk drawer.

152. Anti-Bike Mayor

New Mayor: anti-bike, pro-car, and unenthusiastic about rapid transit.  But of course he wouldn't describe himself that way, so we should give him the benefit of the doubt for a few months.  There are more car votes than bike votes, so he did what he had to do to get elected. What's important is not what he said before being elected, but what he does after.

Note: both outgoing and incoming NYC mayors agree on the need for more bike lanes.

151. Hometown Pride

I'm so proud of my hometown, having just finished its first dedicated bike lane.  Barriers separate the two bike lanes from cars; they even have their own traffic lights.

But next week's mayoral election threatens progress.  The anti-bike challenger makes misleading or simply false claims that bike lanes take away parking and slow down traffic.  He also enjoys a substantial lead.

150. Spreading the Message

I have two colleagues who struggle with the same commute and now use the same bike-bus strategy that I do.  Not every day, but often.  When Emily first started working in the same department, we had talked about the commute, but I had no idea she was considering biking.  She has small children at home, so the extra time of bike-bus vs car would be an issue.  Mike, also relatively new to the company just heard about me and emailed, asking about how I did it.  He works in the same building, but in a different department on a different floor, and I've never actually met him. The other day Mike emailed me saying he had converted to at least part-time bike-bussing and has liked it, and asking about my folding bike.

149. Gloves?

Suddenly aware that I have an appointment in ten minutes one mile away, I grab my bike (just as fast as a car in city traffic) and head off.  Immediately realize that I left my helmet and lock at home but no time to go back.  About half-way there, another cyclist pulls out from a side street.  Just a quick glance, but it's clear that his cycling gear cost more than my bike.  He passes me and says something along the lines, "You should be ashamed, no helmet or gloves." Gloves?

148. Three Months of Folding

When my hometown built a new bb stadium, partly with tax revenue, team owners insisted on a moveable cover.  Fiscally wary critics noted that during the bb season only rare games would have to be cancelled on account of rain.  That's not the point, they answered; the city's notoriety for off-season rain discourages season ticket purchases or any long-term planning ("let's plan for taking in a game next weekend... nah, it will probably rain, let's visit my sister instead").

So goes my folding bike.  In the past three months I've only had to fold it twice when busses rolled up with already full bike racks and once I've taken it off the rack and brought it onboard to make room for another cycler.  Is that enough to justify purchase?  Sure, for the same reason: don't have to worry about  being bumped/rained on.

147. Just a Warning

On the way home last night a cop pulled along side me and told me to stop. It appears that he had been following me for several blocks (note to self: buy handlebar mirror) and proceeded to recount the handful of traffic violations that I had committed (a tactic I can only assume is covered early in Traffic Cop 101). 

"I'm not going to give you a citation," he reassured me, "this is just for your safety.  Not long ago a little old lady ran into a pothole, cracked her helmet and now she's a vegetable."  

Okaaaay, I'll be on the lookout for potholes, I thought, wondering if I were 30 or 40 years younger he'd be telling me a story about a hot chick falling into a pothole.

146. Cycling Camaraderie

Not wanting to be the center of attention or to delay anyone's commute, I was uncertain how I would react to a totally predictable event: first my folding bike on the rack, then a few stops later another bike, then at another stop a cyclist unhappy when he sees the approaching bus with a full rack.  What else can I do?  I tell first the driver and then the cyclist that I’m going to bring my bike on board.

I exit, take my bike off, fold it (~30 seconds), and re-enter, taking no more time than it takes the other cyclist to put his bike on the rack and board the bus. Quick and smooth, I suspect commuters at the back of the bus hardly noticed.

145. PDX Rules

If you've travelled in developing nations, you've seen motorcycles used for transport of just about everything, from families of 5 to furniture to farm animals headed for slaughter.

Now Portland has taken up not motorcycle but tricycle transport. Though not yet cost-competitive, the "B-Line" still attracts customers for reasons that transcend the bottom line.

 "It feels good psychologically knowing that our ... fresh bread is in that cargo box,” says the manager of Grand Central Bakery. “It killed us that all of our deliveries were in a van,” she adds. “We’re all avid bikers.”

144. Merge?

Merge?  Yeah, right.

When I see this sign, I head for the sidewalk.

Because you know, whether the pitcher hits the stone or the stone hits the pitcher, it's the pitcher that ends up as a pile of broken glass on the ground.

143. Folding Bike in Action

Been riding my folding bike most days (but not with rain, it's too new to get wet).  Sometimes I bring  it on the bus, sometimes I leave it on the bike rack, which would be a mean thing to do if the rack filled and then down the line some other cyclist couldn't get on.  Well, maybe not mean but certainly contrary to cycling camaraderie

notice how my bike matches my backpack

If I saw that coming, I like to think I'd get off and do a quick fold, bringing it on the bus to open up a space on the rack.  

A noble act you think? We'll see.

142. New Yorker

Celebrating NYC's new bike share system

141. Great Price

Just an ordinary street fair; bought a couple of bowls and while talking to the potter and his wife (or the potter and her husband), somehow the subject of bicycles came up (but of course, some would say that I bring up bikes in every conversation, which I categorically deny).

I just bought a new bike, she said, a really nice bike for a great price. You don't think it was stolen? There were so many.

Yes, I do think it was stolen; why do you think it was so cheap?  And too many bikes? Traveling gangs hit campuses and parking lots.  From there to Craigs list or that corner where you got yours. I don't want to know. Go back to your clay.  Bikes wouldn't be stolen if dupes like you wouldn't buy them.  And don't tell me about the great price on that Ebay iPhone you're holding.