Not Making Enemies

It was rainy the night before and I figured I'd take the train in rather than bike in the cold and the wet. But when I got up this morning there was no precipitation and none predicted. So I geared up for a frosty ride. Except for a slow leak in my front tire, my morning exit was pretty fast and I was out the door by 5:55 am. It was clear and in the mid to high 20s. Except for my fingers, the cold didn't bother me. For about four miles I biked with my hands in fists except in areas I might need to brake. Gradually my hands warmed up but it wasn't until the Lakefront Trail that my hands didn't bother me at all. I should find an old pair of gloves or mittens and make something just for my fingertips.

It was clear but I had gotten up too early to see the sunrise.

At Oak Street Beach a laddie on a mountain bike eased along side and informed me that my blinking taillight was looking a little dim. We greeted each other and chatted for a bit. He bikes every day and parks at Madison and Wells. Hopefully he has a place to shower and change. I have a veritable bike commuter's nirvana at work; secure covered parking, big locker room and showers. If it wasn't for that I'd probably bike once a month at best. Coming up the ramp from Ohio Street Beach I saw I had a chance to make the light crossing Grand Avenue and I gunned it. But I nearly wiped out on some ice on the sidewalk, did a little cross country on the grass and got back on track to make the light in plenty of time. Kind of stupid on my part but the ride was pretty unexciting otherwise. My companion made the light at a less dangerous pace and we rode together until he turned off at Monroe.

The ride west was quite helacious. Stiff westerly winds slowed me considerably until they seemed to abate at Halsted. Got to work earlier than usual. Since I didn't piss anyone off it was a good way to start the week.

Distance Traveled: 24.3 miles
Distance to date: 1559.7 miles
Price of gas: $2.46