No rain no rainbow

We have been having some really poor weather lately with lows nearing 15 celcius. Last night was probably the coldest ride home so far this year because I actually had to wear my jacket and second guessed my decision to ride to work in shorts. Once I was on my way I was alright and with a quick stop to have a beer and take in Tokyo tower I was feeling alright. This morning is another story, though, as it's pouring rain and I don't feel like getting sick before this weekend, going after a straight metric century. I will take the day off my bike and do the ride and read warm train. I don't ride to work because I have something to prove but because I honestly enjoy it. The people around me complain about the train, traffic, crowding etc. and I still have arm tan and under eye sunburn. Sure, they laugh at me when I have deep red line around my forehead from my helmet hat combo but they also complain about their weight and how lethargic they feel in the same breath. Morning wood at 30 should never be taken for granted and is seldom neglected in this, the nether, region. I posted a picture of some bike stuff just because I liked it and always remember to ride both bikes with the occasional dose of BMX in there. Maybe it's dorky (no doubt in my mind that it is) to have 2 panansonic cycling hats because they are the same brand as my frame when I should be wearing a campy or something for fashion but I don't care. Winter in Tokyo is Indian summer in Ontario and I don't take that for granted, over 400kms since the 8th of this month and I work full time.

Ride report; meeting people

On Saturday I had to go into work because we were holding a party for the clients at our branch and the staff is remarkably useless in those kinds of situations. The clients pay and teachers stay to have a few drinks and talk while the staff walks around being generally useless. I was going to take Saturday of but instead I was on bike to work at 10am. After the party there was some leftover beer that fell into my bag and started weighing me down on the trip home so I started looking for a spot where I could dispose of it. I took a quick detour to a park where you can find a lot bikers, skaters and people there to hang out. I was surprised to find so many people there at that time. There was a group riding fixed gear bikes and they were quite friendly. I talked with them and I got to ride two of their bikes. I think one was a brooklyn machine works which was pretty fun. It was like a commuter that could do bar spins. I am not really into tricks, at all really, but those guys were having fun and taking advantage of the unusually warm night. I have to give people props for getting out there and riding while other people lay around the house wondering if the gym is crowded. Maybe I should try and make it back there to ride with those guys some day. Thanks to Sven for sending the pictures.

Ramsberger sez:

this is just straight up dope.

got it from ecovelo.

New Yorker cover

this caught my eye in the mailbox yesterday. i like it. santa in a bike trailer. the wave of the future i say, the wave of the future...

I should have gone riding tonight

CadelGay De France Interview on Versus - How annoying was that to watch? It's worse than riding by the porches dealership everyday. The have some sort of moots comooter in the window that, I guess, comes free with every Porsche you buy. Not getting into it. This on the other hand is pure class and just goes to show how self righteous black people are. Don't be some flunky drop out rapper or a ambivalent pro golfer when you can be the president of the area between Canada and Corona land. Sure Michael Jordan may have shown kids the road to the devil but at least he, in my estimation, thought a stand alone Cadillac was worth something. These guys, however, don't. I guess a caddy ain't ish if it doesn't have dayton rims. I sure hope Tiger Woods doesn't make his Caddies carry 20 inch (50.8 cm CDN) rims while he is lugging his ultra lightweight nike golf bag around.

winter comes to hogtown

bad play on the title of an even worse movie - the point is, last week, the temperature was at -9, there was a blizzard thet i had to ride home in, and snow is still on the ground. it has warmed up considerably, and this week temps are supposed to hover around 3, mainly rainy. while we're definitely not in the grips of winter yet, it has shown it's face, and so have the bad drivers, who seem to forget how to drive in wet, snowy, icy conditions EVERY year. i now realize why - when you are in a car, the environment is always the same - the car feels the same, until you hit black ice and you're spinning out of control and have no idea what to do. however, on a bike, you are part of the environment, and any difference in rtoad conditions immediately affects the course of your ride. wet roads cause wet feet and, if you don't have fenders, a big dirty strip up your ass. snowy, icy roads immediately cause a cyclist to slow down, otherwise, you're going to go down.....hard. your bike responds immediately and often harshly to the weather conditions, and you as a PART of your bike, must react accordingly. and a good cyclist will anticipate rather than react. to make a long post even longer, i wanted to share this comic strip that was going through my head the whole ride home in the blizzard. i saw many drivers faces twisted and squinting, and a disturbingly larger amount completely complacent and blank, as if nothing outside had changed. and i noticed that the whole ride home i was smiling.
taken from Rick Smith's awesome daily strip yehuda moon & the kickstand cyclery. i highly recommend it, and there's almost a year's worth of archives to read on the cold days ahead. one of the first things i check every morning with my tea...

Gone Fishin

I think that this may have been posted before but nevertheless here it is. This video is fun because, no matter what kind of bike you ride, this makes you want to go and ride. We might only have a handful of days left before the weather isn't as pleasant as it has been but riding through the winter always makes Spring better. I would rather ride in the cold and rain than take months off only to return to the saddle bloated and lifeless. I had some time so I checked other blogs that might have something to do with cycling and I came across this I took my bike out for a spin for the first time in 08. It was a nice little boot. Got some errands done and ran into an ol’ buddy of mine which got me thinking which is a quote from a March 31st post. I guess livng in Canada can be tough and biking through the winter may be one of the slushier hardships that we have to deal with BUT staying off your bike until April! It sounds as though someone didn't wanna get their girl jeans all gross and salty. But I live in Tokyo and winter here is a prolonged Indian summer so I guess I don't have much to say.