Well, yesterday was 1 week of commuting to work, with a workout ride on the weekend. All and all it went very well so far and I am getting the hang of commuting again. Commuting on a bike is not that difficult, it just takes some discipline (i.e. getting up a bit earlier and getting home a bit later) and a little bit of planning (i.e. what do you absolutely need to carry each day).
While I'm not saying I've gotten back into shape in only a weeks time but I do feel stronger each day and I can see my ride time to/from work slowly coming down. I weighed myself last night and I've lost 2lbs over the week which is probably a healthy amount and hopefully a trend I can keep up. I also looked at my bike computer and realized that I rode 98-2 miles (do the math) over the course of my first week. 24 miles was a ride with my old friend Rich who I hadn't seen in quite awhile. It was good to catch up with him and I felt pretty strong on the ride.
While San Diego is not known for cold weather, it does get cool in the mornings and evenings so this weekend I stopped by REI to pick up a light for my bag and ended up buying a warmer jacket for the upcoming colder rides (Novara Headwind Bike Jacket). I'm pretty excited to try it out for the first time but the nice weather seems to be holding so I will stay with my other jacket.
Today, a good friend from work gave me a six-pack of home-brewed beer to try out. The problem was though, I got it at work so I had to carry it home. A six-pack doesn't weigh much until you have to strap it to your back for the 8.5 mile commute home with 2 hills. Although, part way through the ride, I was able to adjust my bag to balance the load a bit better. That is one thing I have found with the messenger bag, arranging the load is critical.
That is all I have for now, I'm hoping to keep this going but for now, my posts may be here and there. Hopefully I can add some photos occasionally too.
Stay safe out there
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
HANG UP AND DRIVE!
Yesterday was my 2nd day of commuting and it actually felt pretty good. I don't know if it was because my bag was lighter or my body was not shocked by biking again, although the hill I have to climb immediately after leaving my office is going to suck for quite awhile. I work in a building at the bottom of a steep hill (~5% to 13% grade) so I have to start my evening ride with a climb and I'm not a huge fan of hills but I'm sure I'll get better.
So I made my way home last night with very few issues (slightly annoyed by drivers that feel the need to rush past me only to get to the red light immediately in front of me) and was actually have a lot of ideas to put in this post but instead you will get a rant.
I don't understand how society has become so self-absorbed to the point that people think they are the only ones on the road. I was at the end of my block trying to turn left when a car (with 2 girls in scrubs) pulls out of a medical building parking lot so I stop to give them the right away. At this point, I realize that the driver is talking on her cellphone (not hands-free) and has not noticed me trying to balance on my bike waiting for her to figure out what in the hell she is going to do. BTW, she has stopped in the middle of the street, trying to figure out which way to go. Finally she notices me, starts to move out of my way, stops, and decides to let me go first by waving me on. So I start to go, annoyed that this driver can't figure out what she wants to do, but apparently I wasn't moving fast enough for her because she started to go. At this point, I have to stop and unclip (almost fell over). I'm sure she could see the rage building in my face so I think she finally just decided to stop and let me get on my way.
I know this could situation could be chalked up to a situation where 2 people are trying to get out of each others way but you keep moving left or right at the same time and it looks like you are just doing some sort of funky dance but I see too many distracted drivers on the road and this is just one example. Instead of figuring out her route and finishing the phone call prior to leaving the parking garage, she felt the need to do all of this in the middle of the street.
Obviously, making it illegal to talk on a cellphone while driving has not really deterred people from doing it (like a lot of things) so I guess I'll have to wait for Google to perfect the self-driving car.
HANG UP AND DRIVE!
Stay safe out there...
So I made my way home last night with very few issues (slightly annoyed by drivers that feel the need to rush past me only to get to the red light immediately in front of me) and was actually have a lot of ideas to put in this post but instead you will get a rant.
I don't understand how society has become so self-absorbed to the point that people think they are the only ones on the road. I was at the end of my block trying to turn left when a car (with 2 girls in scrubs) pulls out of a medical building parking lot so I stop to give them the right away. At this point, I realize that the driver is talking on her cellphone (not hands-free) and has not noticed me trying to balance on my bike waiting for her to figure out what in the hell she is going to do. BTW, she has stopped in the middle of the street, trying to figure out which way to go. Finally she notices me, starts to move out of my way, stops, and decides to let me go first by waving me on. So I start to go, annoyed that this driver can't figure out what she wants to do, but apparently I wasn't moving fast enough for her because she started to go. At this point, I have to stop and unclip (almost fell over). I'm sure she could see the rage building in my face so I think she finally just decided to stop and let me get on my way.
I know this could situation could be chalked up to a situation where 2 people are trying to get out of each others way but you keep moving left or right at the same time and it looks like you are just doing some sort of funky dance but I see too many distracted drivers on the road and this is just one example. Instead of figuring out her route and finishing the phone call prior to leaving the parking garage, she felt the need to do all of this in the middle of the street.
Obviously, making it illegal to talk on a cellphone while driving has not really deterred people from doing it (like a lot of things) so I guess I'll have to wait for Google to perfect the self-driving car.
HANG UP AND DRIVE!
Stay safe out there...
Monday, October 17, 2011
Day 1 (Commuting Begins)
As many of you know, I love cycling but only do it on a part-time basis; today's effort highlighted that fact when I almost threw up a lung. Since I decided to start commuting on my bike today, I thought I would start a blog about my experiences and random thoughts I have while biking.
While this blog is to share my experiences, I am also using it as a tool to keep myself motivated and accountable. I'm just sharing a few stats as a way to document my current state to compare it to some points in the future.
Age: 35
Height: 5'9" (69 inches)
Weight: 197 lbs (I'm a foodie and love the cocktails. I'm hoping to see this drop. I was in the Dr.'s office the other day and saw that to reach a healthy BMI, I need to get under 170 lbs. I doubt I can get under that but it is a good goal.)
Bike: Trek 5200, it is 5 years old and unfortunately probably doesn't have 5K miles on it
Messenger Bag: Chrome Citizen (really like it but need to get used to a few things)
Commute: ~17.5 miles round trip with 1 hill going and 2 hills coming back
Well, that is about it for now, not a great post but need to get going because Sarah is currently making martinis (I'm so excited to have her home) and we need to figure out vacation plans.
I'm not convinced on the name of the Blog so feel free to suggest things.
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