I came out of the office building after work to find that my little area had just experienced a rain shower. It was sunny, but everything was pretty wet. A co-worker who was formerly employed by UC Davis told me that they used to call the wet spot on a fenderless bike rider’s clothes the “Davis Stripe”. I expected to get one on the way home, but since I had changed into riding clothes, I didn’t really care.
The bike lane on Grant Street has a seam in the pavement that runs vertically along the road. I don’t have to tell you that seams are bad, since the tire can catch on an uneven spot and toss the rider into the auto lane. At the south end of the street near the Union, the portion to the left of the seam is only about 14 inches wide. Up north by Salisbury, it widens up to around 22 inches. Neither is very wide by bike lane standards.
After I passed Klondike Road (where I could have cut south towards home), a light rain started. It never got very strong, but I did get wet. Not “drippy” wet (except for the helmet), but the front of my clothes was wet enough that I had to change everything when I got home. The cotton/polyester blend clothing, the leather shoes and belt, and the metal and plastic electronics in my pannier bags stayed completely dry.
I checked my shirt and shorts, but found no “Davis Stripe”.
Maybe tomorrow; the forecast is for pop-up thunder storms.
Miles Ridden: 11.9