2013 Winter Biking: What I Learned Today

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Reba 4.0 mi on January 8, 2013 at 9:18pm

aside from looking like a giant bug, GOOGLES ROCK!!! 

just bought a pair at Costco and wow, what a difference even on these not-so-cold days this week!

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Permalink Reply by David P. on January 8, 2013 at 9:35pm

I'd love to imagine a Great Chicago Roadkill Patch somewhere out in the middle of Lake Michigan.

Haddon said:

I just want to acknowledge that Kara B's bit is witty and insightful.  I've been thinking about it all day. The city produces couple hundred pounds of road kill a week and, as a city, manages to dispose of it all.

My current theories are that A) the rats eat it and then the rats eat the rats that ate the rats and eventually mutants arise and this explains why they sometimes get frighteningly big B) the road kill gets washed out to sea and the same way there is a Great Pacific Garbage Patch there is a smaller patch just make up roadkill or C)the road kill does, in fact, become 2 dimensional and beyond our ability to perceive and comprehend.

H

Kara B said:

I always wonder what happens to dead stuff in the road. Rats, especially, because that's what i see the most of, and because they don't typically get officially removed from the roadway: they start out super gross and bloody, then just get flatter and flatter until they - disappear.

where do they go? smushed into the concrete? dispersed over the city via the tiretreads of the drivers who ride over them? evaporated? all of the above?! 

reminds me of one of my favorite things about riding: you notice a lot more. (not to mention you kill fewer animals)

Bill Savage said:

I'm keeping a roadkill journal this year.

Haddon said:

I learned that my legs get incredibly stiff, after I ride my legs get so tight I can almost not walk down stairs.

Also learned that the dead cat I saw a couple days ago still looks fresh.

h

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Permalink Reply by Gene Tenner on January 8, 2013 at 9:44pm

Roadkill removal: I would suppose that the street sweepers that go by once per month remove the pesky-critter corpses. Dead cattle or similarly-sized creatures, on the other hand, are removed by a call to the Alderman, Streets and Sanitation or 311 ... size matters in this case.

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Permalink Reply by yai danche on January 8, 2013 at 11:12pm

not only do i worry about the car exhaust fumes i've been breathing in, now i have to worry about roadkill particles.  winter riding has meant no longer seeing cute little bunnies on the lakefront path and i have the path pretty much all to myself!

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Permalink Reply by Julie M. on January 9, 2013 at 7:47am

I learned that I shouldn't say my usual "mmm, bacon" out loud when I'm passing Yolk on Wells on days like today, when there's so many more cyclists around.

I also learned that you can look up the cab company a specific cab belongs to here:

http://www.cityofchicago.org/content/dam/city/depts/bacp/publicvehi...

which is convenient for reporting cabs that are blocking the protected lane on Dearborn.

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on January 9, 2013 at 10:00am

Goggles make an amazing difference in eliminating the problem of eyes watering in the cold, and even stopping or minimizing snot-so-fun sinus effects.

Reba 4.0 mi said:

aside from looking like a giant bug, GOOGLES ROCK!!!

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Permalink Reply by JMinHP on January 9, 2013 at 11:35am

I'm reminded that because it's winter people are less apt to look for or be aware of cyclists. This applies even though it has been relatively mild out thus far.  It's not beach weather, so people just assume that no one is around on bikes.  

Combine this lack of awareness with the decreased sunlight and it makes for a more perilous commute in the evenings.  I've been almost-doored more in the past week than all spring/summer/fall.

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Permalink Reply by Cheryl on January 9, 2013 at 1:20pm

I had no idea such a site existed - awesome.

Julie M. said:

I learned that I shouldn't say my usual "mmm, bacon" out loud when I'm passing Yolk on Wells on days like today, when there's so many more cyclists around.

I also learned that you can look up the cab company a specific cab belongs to here:

http://www.cityofchicago.org/content/dam/city/depts/bacp/publicvehi...

which is convenient for reporting cabs that are blocking the protected lane on Dearborn.

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Permalink Reply by Reba 4.0 mi on January 9, 2013 at 1:23pm

Er, yes that would be GOGGLES, although googling them helps too :) I have amber lenses which worried me at first. However I've found that they really highlight the road in low light conditions. And the over the glasses kind are wide enough to not obstruct your peripheral vision.

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Permalink Reply by Haddon on January 9, 2013 at 3:25pm

Since it seems relevant this is my Self Portrait (Winterized)

Gear: Bell Helmet, blink-light zip tied to helmet, nylon hat, polyester neck wrap, clear sports glasses, 3M mitten-gloves worn to crap.  I have a baklava (which spell checker doesn't catch, should read Balaclava) but only wear it when it's single or low double digits in temperature. Tried lab goggles but they cut down on peripheral vision too much for me. 

And your Self Portrait (Winterized) and what works for you? I mean, we all look like a bunch bank robbers right?

H

PS of course the Great Road Kill Patch from Chicago is in Lake Michigan.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin C Dormant on January 9, 2013 at 3:32pm

Baklava:

Balaclava:

It's a common Bike Winter error.

Haddon said:

Since it seems relevant this is my Self Portrait (Winterized)

[snip]  I have a baklava but only wear it when it's single or low double digits in temperature. [snip]

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Permalink Reply by Tony Adams on January 9, 2013 at 3:38pm

So does having a gut full of baklava have a warming effect? (burning calories?) or an apparent cooling effect as blood is drawn from the extremities to aid in digestion?

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