It was above 20° this morning with southwesterly winds so I opted to strip down to only one pair of long underwear today. I found my left mitten was still clammy from perspiration the day before. Nothing like putting on wet gear for a cold ride. I guess that's what glove liners are for.
There was light snow the night before but for some reason I didn't wear the usual plastic bags on my feet. Early in the ride I realized the error of my ways. The roads were wet from the snow and salt but not enough to soak my feet; yet my toes got really cold. Despite that I still took a more leisurely pace to work. I was comfortable, the weather was clear, not too windy, so I might as well enjoy myself.
No bicyclists on the Lakefront Trail until around North Avenue I was passed by a guy on a Giant roadbike out for a training ride. He might have been the same guy that passed me last week on my ride home but he didn't have a bag, helmet or intensely bright tail light this time. I greeted him as he glided by and he returned the favor. Just north of the Oak Street curve, he slowed and turned around. I continued on the Lakefront Trail. Except for the light dusting of snow, the curve was passable to myself (and others judging from the tracks). South to Ohio Street was slick and somewhat exciting.
The westbound ride on Roosevelt was hellacious and the winds buffeted me as soon as I got off the bike path. While waiting out a red light on Michigan Avenue, I smiled at a young lady on a fixie turning south and got a smile in return. Splendid. On the uphill section west of Clark I cranked out a measly 8 mph in the bike lane as cars zoomed by me on both sides. Once past Halsted the winds seemed to settle down and it was a routine ride the rest of the way.
Distance Traveled: 24.3 miles
Distance to date: 1848.3 miles
Price of gas: $2.28
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