Ahh, Clear And Cold...The Way I Like It.
Shortly after I posted my entry Wednesday, the weather turned really bad. The wind picked up dramatically and the rain was heavy. Heavy enough to turn the doppler image to red over all of western Washington. Local gusts were clocked at between 49 and 70 mph. Blowing this hard sucks.
I felt lucky because I now have Wednesday's off. Due to scheduling issues at work, I encourage some people to work a split day-off schedule. Basically, I don't want to ask someone to do something that I'm not willing to do myself, and it works out well for me through the winter months. This spring I'll go back to more of a regular routine.
By lucky, I mean that I didn't have to ride in this storm. I wasn't into it, and told Dena that if it was still raging in the morning, that some serious thought would go into my decision to ride. But was I surprised.
I woke up to a calm starry sky that turned into a frosty cold sunny morning. No serious thinking at all, I was jacked about rolling out into the day. It was 33 degrees when I left my shop and I was looking directly into the sun as I crested my neighborhood hill. The streets were a bit sketchy where the sun hadn't been, but I took my time and really enjoyed the ride.
The day remained sunny and clear, so I took a rare ride home to have lunch with my two youngest, and to just get a chance to ride. As I had to attend a meeting after work, it was good to get in a little Daddy time.
The ride home was just as fun. I took a different route through an older part of town where the houses are up close to the street. You can see folks in their living rooms reading the paper, watching the tube, or in their kitchens going about their dinner making chores. It felt good seeing these things from the dark streets as I putt by on my scooter. I'll go this way again.
Today was much the same, with the same conditions. Considering the forecast of rain that we were supposed to have had the past two days, I feel very grateful that the cloud watchers have gotten it wrong again.
Tomorrow, who knows? As long as there are no trees blowing down across the road and transformers aren't showering sparks onto the cars below, I won't have to put serious thought into whether to ride. Just thought into how many layers to put on when I ride.
Have fun,
Bill
Shortly after I posted my entry Wednesday, the weather turned really bad. The wind picked up dramatically and the rain was heavy. Heavy enough to turn the doppler image to red over all of western Washington. Local gusts were clocked at between 49 and 70 mph. Blowing this hard sucks.
I felt lucky because I now have Wednesday's off. Due to scheduling issues at work, I encourage some people to work a split day-off schedule. Basically, I don't want to ask someone to do something that I'm not willing to do myself, and it works out well for me through the winter months. This spring I'll go back to more of a regular routine.
By lucky, I mean that I didn't have to ride in this storm. I wasn't into it, and told Dena that if it was still raging in the morning, that some serious thought would go into my decision to ride. But was I surprised.
I woke up to a calm starry sky that turned into a frosty cold sunny morning. No serious thinking at all, I was jacked about rolling out into the day. It was 33 degrees when I left my shop and I was looking directly into the sun as I crested my neighborhood hill. The streets were a bit sketchy where the sun hadn't been, but I took my time and really enjoyed the ride.
The day remained sunny and clear, so I took a rare ride home to have lunch with my two youngest, and to just get a chance to ride. As I had to attend a meeting after work, it was good to get in a little Daddy time.
The ride home was just as fun. I took a different route through an older part of town where the houses are up close to the street. You can see folks in their living rooms reading the paper, watching the tube, or in their kitchens going about their dinner making chores. It felt good seeing these things from the dark streets as I putt by on my scooter. I'll go this way again.
Today was much the same, with the same conditions. Considering the forecast of rain that we were supposed to have had the past two days, I feel very grateful that the cloud watchers have gotten it wrong again.
Tomorrow, who knows? As long as there are no trees blowing down across the road and transformers aren't showering sparks onto the cars below, I won't have to put serious thought into whether to ride. Just thought into how many layers to put on when I ride.
Have fun,
Bill
posted by Bill Sommers at 7:35 PM
2 Comments:
Wind that hard is a nightmare. I've ridden in 30 - 50 MPH gusts and felt like I was going to be thrown off the road. Always good to know your limits and when to pull off the road or stay at home.
Putting by things is a great way to travel. There are times when I am out in the yard reading when I hear sportbikes winding up their engines as they race down the road or big V Twins rumbling past and I wonder if they know what they're missing...
steve
Steve, I find that my day seems to go by so fast, and to stay in the "hustle" mode when I clock out doesn't make sense to me. I choose the "low and slow" approach to my commute so as to take in the moment.
In reference to the crotch rocketeers, the only thing they won't miss is the rush that comes with a fully twisted throttle.
Have fun,
Bill
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