Friday, July 30, 2010

Weeks 86 - 88 and Counting

Very little to report from a bicycle commuting standpoint:

Week 86 (July 12-16)
Mon - Friday: Car
Although I could have taken bicycle paths to within 0.5 miles of the client site (in Plymouth), I still would have had to traverse approximately 19 miles of on-path commuting. The time commitment involved, plus the potential for a sultry weather mix had me opt for the auto.

Week 87 & 88 (July 19-23, July 26-30)
I've been on vacation for the past two weeks, so no need to worry about the commute.

Counting
A few weeks ago I noted that I have not kept tabs on total miles. As I think about it, this omission seems ridiculous at best, and negligent at worst for someone who prides himself as a cyclist who counts for a living. Nevertheless I now have the necessary means to easily track mileage and report it as frequently as I'd like.

After some brief online research I decided on the Cateye Micro Wireless. It meshed up well with the basic features I needed, and appeared to be one of the most modestly priced wireless units on the market. I mounted it below my Cateye headlight, so my bicycle is no longer a Cateye cyclops. As of last Friday (July 23), I've logged just shy of 200 miles (195.3), most of which came from riding two days of RAGBRAI 2010. Keep your eyes peeled for a future post on my first experience riding on RAGBRAI.

In other counting news, I hope to soon be counting bikeshare stations in Minneapolis. I don't have a burning desire to test the assertion that there are 65 stations in operation, but the NiceRideMN bikeshare program recently issued the Nice Ride 65 Challenge for anyone who can successfully check-in to all 65 stations in 24 hours without incurring any trip fees. I'm not sure when I am going to attempt this, but I hope to do so soon. It doesn't appear that a full-year membership is required, so day passes ($5) likely work for this challenge, too. If anyone is up for the challenge and wants to join me, let me know.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Someone hasn't been driving and playing well with others...

Well, mostly just the driving part. I'm commuting to/from Plymouth this week so you can imagine what happens to me when I have to get behind the wheel:

I sped. I followed too closely. I manipulated the Highway 100 exit lane off 394 to cut in front of other drivers and I did the same for the 94 exit right before the tunnel.

You want me on that bike. You need me on that bike.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

A summary and a revelation

Summary
Last week (July 6 - 9) wasn't bad:
Monday - vacation (no commute)
Tuesday - Car & Bikeshare
Wednesday - Car (AM & PM carpool)
Thurs - Friday - Bicycle

It has been nice to have the option of the bikeshare, even if the closest station is only 1-1.5 miles from my place and I have to hoof it home.

My folly revealed
I had one of those moments where realized I seriously dropped the ball in terms of generating content for this blog. I read this article about bike theft and after talking to some co-workers on a ride last Thursday realized I haven't replaced my bicycle odometer since my last bike got stolen a few years ago. What could be much better than a Cycling Public Accounting charting his tally of bike miles on this blog! How could I have wasted such a great opportunity?

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

An answer to the question

So what exactly was I doing on a bike...during business hours...within the city limits?



I'll tell you what I was doing: I was making use of the Nice Ride MN bikeshare. I was able to park on the street on Portland, grab a green bike, and ride to within a block of the office for my meeting. I'm just glad I didn't have to pay parking.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Two Weeks and Two Words to the Wise

First off, the weekly summaries:

Week 83 (June 21 - 25)
Mon - Tues - Car
Wed - Friday - Bicycle

Week 84 (June 28 - July 2)
Monday - Plane, Train, and automobile
Tuesday - Automobile, Plane, Train
Wed - Friday - Bicycle

Overall I was happy with my two week stretch. Even though I had to ride solo in the car, I got to mix things up in Chicago going multi-modal both days.
**Disclaimer, the actual order was automobile, train, plane.

And now, the promised "Two Words to the Wise":

#1 - Getting the Chorizo Hash at Bad Waitress is a great idea
#2 - Lighting off fireworks is still a good time.