Day 26 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Today was the 26th day of #ridingeverydayinNovember, and just about a 180 from yesterday's weather.

I awoke to the sound of rain on the roof.  It would continue to rain as I geared up for a wet ride.

I drove to Gasworks, to avoid the slippery descent off of Queen Ann.  Even the pickup slid around a bit going down today.

I unloaded at Gasworks and headed northeast under a steady rain.  There were a just a few people out walking dogs, and even fewer riding bikes.

I kept the pedals spinning as much because I had an afternoon appointment as I did because I was afraid I'd get cold if I stopped too long

I did stop a couple of times to quickly get a photo.

It continued to rain as I pedaled northward along the western shore of Lake Washington.

"Cold hearted orb that rules the night, removes the colors from our sight.  Red is grey, and yellow white, but we decide which is right, and which is an illusion".  But the moon had made its journey across the sky and the sun was out there somewhere trying to add color back into our lives.

It wasn't going to happen today.  I reached the end of the Burke-Gilman Trail and turned around.  I pedaled back to Gasworks, loaded my bike up, and headed back up Queen Ann.

Despite the rain, it was an enjoyable ride.

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today ........30................0..................0.......................0..........30
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............488..............0......................0......................0...........488
YTD...... 2655.............0...................83.......................0..........2788

Day 25 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Today was the 25th day of the #ridingeverydayinNovember challenge, and what a beautiful day it was! My friend Julie has not been on a bike since mid October and has been indicating that she'd like to ride to Alki Beach for well over a week.  With the unexpected blue sky this morning, it was time for the rubber to meet the road.  She was a bit slow in getting going, but once out there she did surprisingly well.

We started from Pier 91, saving a few miles, and some elevation gain.  A few days ago I rode along Pier 91.

The weather was nicer today, and the water smoother.

Julie and I continued our way along Elliot Bay which meant navigating through the construction on Alaskan Way.  Julie is a trooper when it comes to vehicular cycling.  We took the center of the right lane, and when it narrowed to just one lane, we took the center of that lane as well.  There was no room to "share" the lane.  For us, share meant first come first served.  We were pedaling near the speed of traffic, and in this case, we were the traffic.  The few cars that followed were patient and understanding.

Having safely passed through those few blocks, we accessed the multi-use path.  We worked our way around the south end of Elliot Bay, finally stopping at the Duwamish River (aka Duwamish Waterway) to take a photo and watch some sea lions frolicking.

We continued over the West Seattle low bridge.  Julie was concerned about being able to pedal up the bridge's gradient, a "gnarly" 6%! ;-)  She made it just fine.   We continued along the water's edge, pulling into Jack Block Park to take in the best view of Seattle.

While there we were entertained by a half dozen sea lions catching fish.  We also noted a juvenile Harbor Seal hauled out on the rocks just below us.

After spending some time watching wildlife, we continued on around Alki Point.

We turned back northward and as we rode along Alki Ave we  could see that the recent rains had fallen as snow in the 7000-8000 ft Olympic Mountains.

As we rode through Myrtle Edwards Park we saw a pair of Bald Eagles sitting in a tree.

In addition to the wildlife, we found a woman's wallet and a 500 watt inverter.  We sleuthed down the wallet's owner with a Facebook search and a 15 mile drive.  The inverter had an easier disposition.

It was a nice day for a bike ride, and nice that Julie could join in, for what she called her "#ridingmyonlydayinNovember" ride.  ;-)

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today ........24................0..................0.......................0..........24
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............458..............0......................0......................0...........458
YTD...... 2625.............0...................83.......................0..........2758

Thankful for Day 24 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Today is Thanksgiving and the 24th day of #ridingeverydayinNovember.  Among other things, I'm thankful for the ability to ride my bike.  While that sounds like a simple thing, I'm well aware that many my age are no longer able to do such a simple thing.

That being said, I took one look at this satellite image this morning and knew that with my limited time available to ride today...............

......that I was going to be riding in the rain.  I wasn't feeling so thankful for that!

I had skidded down Queen Ann on wet roads a couple of days ago, and not wanting to repeat that experience, I hauled the bike down to Fred Meyer and planned to ride from there.  I made a quick trip in and got a nice little box of donut holes. (a little go power!) As I was moving through the self checkout line, I saw fellow #ridingeverydayinNovember participant Mike Kelly.  We shared pleasantries and talked about the craziness of riding in the deluge.

While I was getting my bike off the rack and gearing up to ride, Mike rode off into the falling rain.
I soon pedaled off.  I rode out toward Golden Gardens.  It was raining, but I had a tailwind.  It could have been worse.

As I pedaled across a parking lot following taking the above photo a older couple in an SUV nearly hit me.  They were going way too fast in a parking lot, and were going to run a stop sign, until they saw me at the last moment, and skidded to a stop..........less than two feet from me.  No words were spoken, but they knew my thoughts on the situation.

I continued on to Golden Gardens.  I turned back around and pedaled back into the wind.

 I passed Fred Meyer (and my pickup) and decided to ride to Gasworks Park.
My rain gear was working well.  I was wearing short fingered gloves, but that wasn't a deal breaker.  When I got to Gasworks I looped back around and pedaled back to Fred Meyer. I racked the bike and had a few more of those donut holes!

 It was a surprisingly nice ride.  Good rain gear was key.

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today ........12................0..................0.......................0..........12
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............434..............0......................0......................0...........434
YTD...... 2601.............0...................83.......................0..........2734

Day 23 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Today was the 23rd day of the #ridingeverydayinNovember challenge.  The forecast for today called for rain.  It might rain yet today, in fact, it probably will, but the challenge for me today was the cold and wind. It was in the low 40's as pedaled out.  In the first mile I came to a viewpoint overlooking downtown Seattle.

Just a short distance away I got this look across to the Duwamish River.

I couldn't see any impending rain showers so I zig zagged my way down the west side of Queen Ann.  It was a challenging descent on the fixed gear bike, gradient to 21% and cobble stone streets. I survived but resorted to using the brakes.  Once at the bottom of the hill, I crossed over the numerous Interbay railroad tracks via the Dravus St overpass.  I continued along the waterfront at Pier 91.  The wind was making work of this in this exposed section.

I went through Centenial Park and continued through the construction mess along Alaskan Way.  I kept looking at the steep streets to my left (water to my right!) and when the hills relented a bit, I turned eastward on Washington St.  I rode uphill on the Second Ave Cycletrack of Death.  It wasn't so bad as I rode slowly on the fixed gear bike up hill, but I did notice that most coming down the hill were playing it smart, and riding vehicularly in the lane, rather than in this crazy piece of bicycling infrastructure. The cycletrack was full of construction incursions, debris, pedestrians, mis-parked vehicles, and wandering homeless.  I used the slow pace to take in the sights of a big city.

I managed to go right by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Mr Gates was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom yesterday.

                                

I made a few course corrections and rode back up Queen Ann via Taylor St.  The long 7-8% climb was pretty much my maximum sustained effort today.

It was a good ride (I stayed dry!)

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today ........12................0..................0.......................0..........12
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............422..............0......................0......................0...........422
YTD...... 2589.............0...................83.......................0..........2722

Day 22 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Today is the 22nd day of #ridingeverydayinNovember and the early morning TV news weather

person was talking heavy rain approaching the area, and showed a radar map showing she was likely correct. Rain was less than two hours away.

 Though it wouldn't be daylight yet for well over an hour, I was on the bike by 6:15 AM in search of a few miles to keep my #ridingeverydayinNovember record clean, and to stay dry in the process.

It was actually quite nice to be out before daylight!

I rode two laps around the top of Queen Ann.  The sky was just beginning to brighten in the East as I finished up........ still on dry roads!  I love it when a plan comes together!

The first drips began to fall as I rolled the bike into the garage.

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today .........9................0..................0.......................0...........9
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............410..............0......................0......................0...........410
YTD...... 2577.............0...................83.......................0..........2710

Day 21 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

Today is the 21st day of #ridingeverydayinNovember.  The weather was pretty nice and the shopping list was comprised of small items, so I biked to Home Depot to get supplies for a wiring project I'm doing.  While the weather was nice, the topography would be a challenge. It wouldn't be hard to find 8-10% grades today, and on my fixed gear bike that would be about my limit.

I started down the 8% 3rd Ave N, the roads were a bit wet and the rear wheel would skid a bit from time to time as I put back pressure on the pedals to keep the bike from running away from me.  Once I got across the Fremont Cut, I started the climb up the other side. I would end up at an elevation higher than Queen Ann, but had more distance to attain it. Grades still reached 8% at times.

As I neared Home Depot the climbing leveled out a bit and I got on the Interurban Trail for a short distance.

I had to get across Aurora Ave, a busy 4 lane highway with a concrete center divider. Safe crossings were few and far between.  My route today went a bit farther north than my destination before crossing Aurora Ave, then backtracked south. My secondary street turned into a power company access road for a few blocks, closed to automobiles, but open to pedestrians and bikes.

 I was riding along the backside of Home Depot so I rode around the side of the building and entered the parking lot via the "back door"   I locked the bike up and went shopping.

After getting my supplies I more or less retraced my route. Pedaling back down toward the Fremont Bridge was considerably easier than pedaling up and away from it!  I soon arrived at the Fremont Bridge, and the end of my easy riding.

I crossed the bridge and started up Queen Ann.

Rather than going back up 3rd Ave N, a steady 8% climb for a half mile, I headed up via the "Kralik Way", an easier way up the hill that I learned when on a Cascade Bicycle Club ride a few years ago.
The route is easier because the average gradient is not so bad, but it still goes to 10% in some short segments early in the climb.  Being out of shape, I resorted to a paperboy weave, zig zagging path to get up those segments.

I eventually reached the top of the hill.

It is predicted to be the last dry day for a few days.
It was nice to out for a few miles of dry riding.

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today .........19................0..................0.......................0...........19
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............401..............0......................0......................0...........401
YTD...... 2568.............0...................83.......................0..........2701

Day 20 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

I'm still suffering the effects of a cold, but can't let that keep me from working toward successfully completing #ridingeverydayinNovember.  Today I'm in Bonney Lake, WA and biked a bit along the shores of Lake Tapps.

I get to attend a combination birthday party/Seahawks game in the afternoon.(considered by some locals to be on par with a national holiday) so I was not able to be flexible with time.  This forced me  to have to ride in rain  for the first time this November,  I put the clip-on rear fender on the fixed gear bike, rain gear and booties on me, and took off.

On a clear day Mt Rainier would be prominently in the background

It was grey and wet, but not cold at 62 degrees.


.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today ..........8................0..................0.......................0...........8
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............382..............0......................0......................0...........382
YTD...... 2549.............0...................83.......................0..........2688

Day 19 of #ridingeverydayofNovember

Today is day 19 of #ridingeverydayinNovember. My recent wimpiness on my bike has finally shown itself to be a cold.  Today's ride was a "take it easy" ride around Graham Oaks Park.

With the easy commute to and from, I ended up with 7 miles.

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today ..........7................0..................0.......................0...........7
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............374..............0......................0......................0...........374
YTD...... 2541.............0...................83.......................0..........2680

Day 18 of #ridingeverydayinNovember

It  was in the mid 40's this morning as I took off for a few laps around the top of Queen Ann today.  It was a perfect day for riding, but I need to be at the Community Cycling Center in Portland later today to help repair/build bikes, so my riding time is limited today.

There is supposed to be a zero percent chance of rain today in Seattle, a rarity this time of year, but there was a solid covering of clouds that appeared to be around 9,000 to 10,000 ft elevation. The clouds were low enough to obscure the top of 14,409 ft Mt Rainier.

To the west, the shorter Olympic Mtns would not be impacted as much.

I had time for 3 laps around Queen Ann before I had to head south.

Once I got back to Portland, I helped out the Portland Wheelmen Touring Club as they prepared bikes for the Community Cycling Center's Holiday Bike Drive. It was a fun time tuning up donated bikes for those in need. I only biked a few blocks from where I parked to where I was helping out.

Kathleen H photo

.........Road Bike.....Rollers.............MTB..........Lifecycle......Total
Today ..........12................0..................0.......................0...........12
Jan...............0................0...................0.......................0............0
Feb..........124...............0...................0.......................0...........124
March......277................0..................0........................0..........277
April......559................0..................0........................0..........559
May.........414...............0..................0.......................0...........414
June........337...............0..................0.......................0...........337
July........310...............0..................0.......................0...........310
August.......40.............0....................0......................0............40
Sept..........100..............0...................83......................0...........100
Oct.............29...............0....................0......................0............29
Nov............374..............0......................0......................0...........374
YTD...... 2541.............0...................83.......................0..........2680