Dan on Bike

Since I broke a spoke yesterday on my main ride, I pulled out my road bike after work for its first ride of the year.  It was covered in spider webs and dust from the recent remodeling work going on in the house and garage.  After pumping up the empty tires, my trip began.

I didn’t have much time between work and a 7:00 appointment, so I took a quick half hour route around the block another way – Newman Road to Sharon Chapel, on to SR26, south on 325W/350W, then Division Road back home.

I had forgotten that the hard, narrow seat on my black Trek is not very comfortable when wearing street clothes.  I felt every bump, along with the seams in my khaki shorts, throughout the ride.

While my legs complained over the one large and several small hills in the first half, I started getting a rhythm by the time I left the highway.  As usual, I felt pretty good when I got back.

The latest forecast calls for cold temps over the next few days, so the rides may be shorter, but they will still happen.  The bike shop said they may have my wheel fixed tomorrow.

As I rode into work today, I thought a lot about our car-centric society and how cycling can help us break the hold that autos have on us. Mostly, I pondered how even though I read about cycling as transportation, and talk it up with my friends and co-workers, I don’t really walk the walk.

I live kind of close to work, but I don’t ride in that often – only when it is easy. Plus, I rarely if ever ride to the grocery store. My kid’s school is eight miles away, and my wife’s workplace a similar distance.

The goal is to live, work, learn, and shop all within a short, rideable distance. I’m not sure if my town really offers that opportunity, and those areas that might be close to the ideal are not where we wish to live. I guess all I can do strive to get a little closer each year.

On the way home from work, after a long first day back from vacation, I thought: “food – food – food – pretty girl sunbathing – food – food – food – food – food – big hill – food – food – POP!”

That POP was the sound of a spoke breaking as I climbed the small hill to my house. Guess I’ll be riding the other bike tomorrow.

As I mentioned earlier, I’ve joined the 30 Days of Biking Challenge.   Today, April 1, is the first day.  After a rainy morning and yard work for part of the afternoon (and a movie after that), I was able to take a short ride before supper.

It was a very familiar route – west on Division Road, east on River Road, north on 300W to home.  Not very far, but quite relaxing.

Right as I arrived home, the rain started up again for a short time.

My route took me past the Big Tree.

Took this picture last weekend on the Indiana University campus. Now the IU Arboretum, this was once the site of the football stadium and the track for the Little 500 race – where the movie Breaking Away was filmed.

I was happy to learn that Jackie Earl Haley is still working.

Just one commute this week – rain and parent/teacher conferences kept me off the bike the other days.  However, my vacation starts on Friday, so I plan on several rides over the next week – and none of them to work.

With more wonderful weather today, I decided to perform my errands by bike.  First was a quick visit to Greyhouse Coffee for a Bulldog Root Beer and some web surfing.  The bike racks near the shop were full, so I had to find a place down the street.

Bike Racks Outside Greyhouse Coffee

Next, I rode across the river to the downtown bus depot to catch a ride to the east side of town. As I waited for the 11:15, I noticed families dressed in green walking to the parking lot.  It was then I realized that I had just missed the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade over the Myers Pedestrian Bridge.  Maybe next year.

Waiting on the 1A

Maybe taking the bus up the big hill is a cop out, but I enjoyed the ride – and the rest.

Look! I'm Multi-Modal!

Not surprised to find out that there is no bike rack at the Comcast office.  After leaning the bike on the window (so I could watch it from inside) I took my place in line.  The new digital cable box I picked up was smaller than expected, and it fit easily in my pannier briefcase along with my laptop.

A quick stop at Jethro’s BBQ brought me a tasty lunch, including my 2nd root beer of the day – a TripleXXX.

Pulled Pork Sandwich at Jethro's

Next stop was Lowe’s hardware – about two blocks to the north.  The intersection of Creasy and South streets is a busy intersection, and there are no special facilities for cycling.  However, a vehicular cyclist like myself has no problem taking his lane and getting where he needs to go.

I picked up a paint scraper and some light bulbs.  These two items fit in my grocery sack pannier with the bike lock and some other stuff.

Cargo Safely Stowed - With Room to Spare.

Heading home I had no problem riding down the same hill that the bus helped me up.  Too bad I always seem to hit the red light at the bottom.

Downhill on Salem Street

Riding the final leg on South River Road, I started feeling the sunburn on my arms, and the week’s worth of riding in my legs, along with a strong thirst in my mouth.  Apparently, two root beers isn’t enough liquid for this long of a ride! A lesser man would have made the call for a pickup, but I instead decided to tough out the last five miles.

I have declared this ride a success, and I look forward to many more this year.

The warm March weather this year has helped me get on the road and ride to work three times this week.  I also had a Sunday warm up ride to get my legs started.

Sunrise Over the Old Horse Pasture

For my first rides in my legs felt pretty good, and I still felt strong the days after.  That is a good sign for the rest of the year.

The little black specks in the far side of the field are deer and turkeys.

Looking forward to a good year of biking.

Large hunks of concrete from the former culvert

I’m wondering how the crew on the 231 bypass project will cart off the debris from the former culvert.  The pieces are much bigger than the SUV in the foreground.

I was reading this post by the Citizen Rider that discussed “feeling safer” while riding, and I was reminded of thoughts I have had many times while talking with co-workers, family, and friends about cycling.

Many people don’t feel safe riding on a road without a separate bike lane or ample shoulder in which to travel.  Drivers who have no intention of hitting anyone worry about cyclists not being safe when taking the lane.  Other, less polite, drivers think that a cyclist is wasting their time and in their way.

To me, these view point out an attitude that we in the US are subtly taught from birth, and reinforce every time we travel anywhere.  An attitude that is demonstrated by transportation design, and strengthened by everything from gasoline prices to penalties to drivers for harming cyclists.

ROADS ARE JUST FOR CARS

To anyone that regularly bikes using a vehicular cycling technique, this is not a new thought.  However, for those that don’t ride, the idea is not that obvious.

I read on in a webpost once (Sorry I don’t remember where) an account of a bicycle commuting speaker presenting to a community group.  During the Q&A portion, a nice older lady talked about cyclists riding through an area that included an interstate highway.  As one can imagine, there were no bike lanes on this part of the road, so the cyclist took his lane.

As the lady came up on the cyclist from behind, she says that she was worried about hitting him, and asked what she could do.  The speaker very politely told her that she should slow down to the cyclist’s speed until it was safe to pass.  She was shocked, and maybe a little embarrassed.

If it were a tractor travelling at the same speed, the answer would be obvious.  However, we are not taught to think that way about non-motorized traffic – or pedestrians for that matter.

I don’t have a solution that will change the attitude of drivers in the US (and maybe other countries as well) except this:

• Ride your bike safely, legally, consistently, and considerately.  Only by demonstrating to others that not all bike riders are dangerous scofflaws can we ever obtain an equal footing.
• Teach your children, friends, and cycling mates about proper biking behavior.  All riders must understand the laws and best practices in order to follow them.  “Common sense” is what tells people to ride on the wrong side of the road, use sidewalks, run stop signs, salmon on a one way street, etc.

Based upon the readership of this blog, I imagine I’m preaching to the choir with this article, but I hope I can convince a few riders to think a little about what they are doing and how it could affect everyone’s safety and enjoyment while travelling.