I Only Have Ice For You

This winter thing is getting a little old. Specifically I mean the daytime runoff that becomes nighttime ice. I don't have studded tires, and right now I am riding 1.35 inch, basically slick tires. Coming home from work the other day, at 0600 hours, I was dodging ice flows like the Titanic could only dream of. But it does get to be a pain when you have to hop off your bike a few times when the ice blocks the whole street. Give me some more snow, but hold the ice, please. ``````````````````````````````````````````````photo from: http://www.varsitybike.com/

All-in-all, with reduced speed and the usual vigilance, winter riding in snow is not so bad, even on relatively skinny tires. Bikes and the humans who steer them can really do a lot if confident and careful. But it does send shivers to think about smacking the asphalt in a nanosecond if I were to hit an ice patch. Riding down the lonely office park boulevard this early morning that thought was in my head as I raced (okay, pedaled judiciously) home, and noted some of the street lights are burned out. This creates wells of shadow. I was on a keen crow's nest lookout for anything that glared and sparkled or otherwise reflected more light than a well-behaving, dry piece of asphalt ought to.

My hypervigilance paid off, and I was soon safely ensconsed in my bed for some much needed rest after a 10-hour shift. Hitting the bike after 10 hours really does feel great, though, and it's a nice preamble to a hot shower and bed. It's too bad that the last three trips of my work week will be by car. Unfortunately, on Saturday and Sunday, the bus I take does not start to run for over an hour after I get off work in the morning. Call me crazy, but I ain't waiting around for that. So, I shuttle myself up with the car on a Wednesday or Thursday, bike back, and have the car waiting for the Saturday trip back home to DC, and again on Sunday. My only recourse is to occasionally ride the whole distance back to DC, or at least back to the first Metro rail stop. I plan to map out a good route, and try this once the weather is nicer. I wouldn't mind the miles, but the time would kill me!

So the ice is a beast, but the cold is survivable, with thermal layers and a facemask. The bike seems to tolerate the cold just fine. We typically don't do insane cold here in DC, and that helps. But please, take the ice elsewhere! I am looking forward to days when I need give no thought at all to roadway glaciers. But I am sure by then I will miss the cool riding temps. Oh well, you can't have your bike and ride it, too. Wait, that's not right...Oh, time to quit my grumblings and ride. Happy cycling all!