I rode today. Did you?

Nice first ride in the COLD.

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Permalink Reply by Tricolor on November 11, 2013 at 2:50pm

This is Chicago; short of a blizzard the street will be wet in either case.

JeffB (7+ miles) said:

but rain doesn't put me at risk of wiping out in front of cars that may not be able to stop. i can always dry off.

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Permalink Reply by h' Zerocats on November 11, 2013 at 4:18pm

Someone needs to update the wiki page with that photo promptly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_Metro_Van

Mark said:

That is my favorite part of riding in the city. Seeing all the cool shit that the city brings to bear.

Tricolor said:

I'd rather have snow than rain any night.

Biking has its advantages. I wouldn't have run across the Doughnut Vault's van this morning, for example.

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Permalink Reply by Tricolor on November 11, 2013 at 4:48pm

My phone's quality isn't the best but the original pictures are larger. I remember a larger version of this van used to sell ice cream in my grandfather's neighborhood back in the 80s. I'd want to see the builder's plate for the van to date it before adding a picture to Wikipedia's gallery.

Posts say it'll be at Clark and Monroe tomorrow.

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Permalink Reply by tim de la motte on November 11, 2013 at 4:52pm

Of course I rolled out this morning without my rain/snow gear - I'm grabbing a Divvy to go home. Stay a little drier up the back.

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Permalink Reply by Tricolor on November 11, 2013 at 4:59pm

I'm really looking froward to the ride home, myself. But then I've got fenders.

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Permalink Reply by tim de la motte on November 11, 2013 at 5:06pm

Yeah - I blame yesterday. Lousy gorgeous weather.

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Permalink Reply by Skip Montanaro 0mi on November 11, 2013 at 8:39pm

Kind of a rough ride home from the Loop to Evanston. I think I was ready for the cold and the wind, but wasn't expecting it to be snowing/raining. Once I got off the LFT and was navigating city streets again, I had to slow down considerably (stopping every few blocks, being extra cautious for cars who wouldn't expect to see me), so my fingers and toes were a bit cold by the time I got home. Fenders only provided so much help. There was plenty of precipitation coming from above.

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Permalink Reply by Bob on November 11, 2013 at 10:27pm

nice warm shower cured the soaked sock syndrome for me! totally miscalculated the deepness of a puddle 6 miles from home! still better than driving down town!

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Permalink Reply by h' Zerocats on November 11, 2013 at 11:44pm

Waaaay wasn't expecting my saddle to be covered with ice and my U-lock barrel covers to be frozen in place.

The street looked slick but I put my foot down a bunch of times to test it and didn't find any real ice patches.

Someone should study why riding in this stuff makes you smile.

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Permalink Reply by JMinHP on November 12, 2013 at 7:41am

I didn't know the road conditions last night (e.g., slush, possible road salt), so I left my bike in the office and Divvied home. Divvied back to work this morning with a much-needed tailwind.

Anyone see what happened between North and Oak Street this morning on the LFP/in the water? There were a ton of Fire and Police, along with the CFD Diving truck and an officer in a dry suit. I saw a younger guy getting into the ambulance but he was wearing a wet suit and booties (and had a hoodie in his hand?). This makes me think he meant to be in the water. Maybe he thought he could surf with the strong north winds were whipping up the waves, but I have no idea why anyone would think they can surf that area, since it's just a mashup of waves and swells.