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@Certifried 38498 wrote:

or, rule #5

Yeah, there is that. If you’re going to bring up the rules, I did rule #2, but you didn’t follow.

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@Certifried 38353 wrote:

I woke up about 2:00 and felt pretty rested, thinking I had woke up maybe a bit later than 2:00. I was excited about riding in!

You should have gotten dressed and headed out on the bike.

@Certifried 38353 wrote:

Woke up again at 3:30 with my back hurting, made the mistake of taking something for it.

See above. If you had been out riding, this wouldn’t have happened.

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@Steve 38357 wrote:

Is that like pedaling while out of the saddle?

Not exactly, “running” is like pedaling without the pedals.

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@GuyContinental 38131 wrote:

Now if I could just figure out my hands… I’ve been hovering over those Cozy Winters gloves for the last 45 minutes but probably won’t pull the trigger… now if they were $50 less Santa might come early. Sigh…

It appears the $300 ones are on sale for $200, which is the cheapest I’ve seen them. (Personally, I’d pull the trigger at that price, but I already have a pair.)

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@mstone 37993 wrote:

There’s a reason emergency vehicles use flashing lights; solid lights are much more easily lost in the background, while blinking lights draw attention. Stupid human brain. I assume that’s also the reason that people stare at oncoming strobes rather than looking aside.

Emergency vehicles need to “stand out,” which is different than to “be seen.” If I’m driving, at night, and I see a pair of headlights behind me, I know it’s a vehicle; if I also see flashing lights, I know it’s an emergency vehicle. (It’s also the reason they use them during the day, as the flashing lights make them stand out when they are responding to an emergency — when they are done responding to the emergency, they don’t suddenly become invisible.)

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I’ve always thought that if my headlight is bright enough for me to see, it’s bright enough for me to be seen.

As for “bright enough for me to see,” I mean I should be able to see well enough to ride just as fast as I could in bright sunlight on an unlit road/trail. If I have to creep along because I can’t see, my lights aren’t bright enough.

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@rcannon100 36563 wrote:

So what does the peanut gallery think? What bags you got? What do you like, what not.

I can’t recall why I did not go with Ortlieb, but I pickecd up a pair of Serratus panniers from MEC more than 13 years ago. They have been excellent — roomy and very waterproof. They’ve been replaced by the MEC Aqua‑Not 3 46L Panniers. If you don’t mind that sahde of blue, that clearance price a great deal.

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@dcv 35393 wrote:

what tires? reflective sidewall?

Marathon Plus Tour HS 404

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The workhorse for around all my commuting and errands requiring me to carry stuff, a Giant Yukon:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2028[/ATTACH]

The Dahon Matrix which handles the occasional quick dash here and there:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2029[/ATTACH]
(I probably should have folded it around a sign post for the picture.)

I don’t have pictures of:

– The Surly Cross-Check, but it looks like a black Surly Cross-Check.

– The Pashley PDQ, which is in storage (and I should probably sell).

– The stable of beaters (4) garaged elsewhere in Arlington. This winter they’ll be cannibalized into a single beater using a frame that’s hanging above Yukon. (At home, not in this picture from work.)

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@Dirt 35369 wrote:

Nothing spices up a marriage like knee warmers.

Damn, I wish I had known that back when I was married….

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@KelOnWheels 35317 wrote:

Or a bunny suit.

You do know that pics will be required, right?

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Since the polls don’t open early in Virginia, I couldn’t vote on the way to work. As usual, voting in the afternoon was pretty quick. I was out in under 20 minutes.

For the first time in 32 years, I was offered a Democratic Sample Ballot after I had voted and had gone back outside (and was unlocking my bike). Someone should probably have told her you get the “I voted in Arlington” stickers after you vote. On the other hand, she looked clueless when I said, “I already voted,” so maybe she was a politician and not a volunteer.

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@culimerc 34909 wrote:

The bike? yeah I bought one just for commuting and I bought bags and a rain suit and some cold weather gear.

Those are also costs that won’t recur every year, either. My commuter bike is on it’s 14th year of year-round commuting and it cost me less than $400 new. The panniers are at least as old as the bike. Although I’m on my second rain jacket in 12 years, the rain pants are 12 years old. Once you’ve got everything, it’s just maintenance and consumables and those are cheaper. (Not to mention less time consuming if you do it all yourself.)

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I use a Showers Pass Touring Jacket: “The ideal jacket for daily bike commuters, the Touring Jacket fits comfortably over street clothes, keeps out the elements, and features 7 different venting options.” I don’t know if it’s “ideal,” but I like it. Although I wasn’t going to wear it over street clothes, I wanted a jacket that would let me put on layers underneath it and not be tight and restrictive. I also have a Showers Pass Elite 2.0 and I have some issues with the build quality on it, but I don’t have any issues with the Touring Jacket.

Looking at their web site, it’s been replaced by the Transit Jacket. Now that it’s available in black, I may need to justify a reason to get a new one.

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@TwoWheelsDC 34839 wrote:

Wait…so not all Manhattan apartments look like this???

No, most have less lights and are messier.

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