Monday, December 31, 2018

Jingle in my pocket!

I probably pay more attention to the morning weather report than lots of people do... during the winter months, my safety can be impacted by the weather in a significant way.

Take this morning, for example.  They were saying there was an overnight dusting of snow.  The temperature was in the mid-20s.  And... I remember arriving home last night on a damp roadway.  All of that could add up to treacherously slippery conditions.

As a result - I put bus fare in my pocket as I was making my preparations.  On a dangerous day, I'll often bite the bullet and limp to the bus stop, rather than riding all the way to the office.  But... as I pulled out of the driveway the roads didn't seem dangerously slippery, so I decided to take my chances.  I rode slowly and deliberately... all the way to the office, without mishap.  And the bus fare is still pocketed.  I can use that money for something else... or possibly the next early-morning bus fare.

This is a lesson I learned at an early age.  When I was in fifth grade, Mom would give me lunch money... I believe it was 35 cents back then.  BUT - I signed up to be a lunchroom helper.  Instead of heading for the playground for 15 minutes, I would stay after lunch and make sure the trash was properly deposited and wipe down the tables with warm, soapy water.  For services rendered, I got a free lunch.  The 35 cents stayed in my pocket - at least until after school where it often got surrendered at the Roosevelt Market candy counter.

What if every commuter put his/her commute money in pocket or purse in the morning, and could keep that money pocketed by choosing an alternative form of transportation?  Would such an immediate and obvious reward result in changed behavior?

For most people, their transportation expense - in the form of owning, operating and maintaining that single-occupant motorized vehicle - isn't so obvious.  Instead of making a $15 car payment every day, you pay the entire amount once a month.  Instead of that $1 or $2 insurance expense, you pay every six months.  Gas?  Fill 'er up - every week or two.  Registration?  Just once a year... it's easy to lose track of that transportation expense.  It's all very incremental, and makes it easy to overlook the fact that maybe 20 or 25 percent of your income is going to getting you to your job.

On the other hand... the thousands and thousands of dollars I've saved by riding a bike for 33 years have been absorbed by the family budget mostly, over those years.  But if I'd saved them out in a special account, it would've have accumulated quite a healthy sum.

Friday, December 28, 2018

Off-season cycling

There are some very nice things about bicycling during the "off season."
1) Volume of users on the Greenbelt, bike lanes, parks, etc., is way down.  Another guy at the office says cold weather "weeds out the weak and infirm."  Exactly!!  (But these days it's rare for me to be making the first tracks, when it snows.  There are obviously other intrepid cycling souls out there.)
2) "Powder cycling."  Do you like "powder skiing"?  Cycling shares much in common... when you're cutting a new track through fluffy snow, it's a little more work, but it's so very serene and predictable!  (Once it melts and then re-freezes, the magic is gone, obviously.)
3) It's easy to prepare for cold weather.  I recommend layers.  (Above freezing, I usually wear a fleece-type jacket and some lightweight gloves.  When it drops below freezing, I add a wind-proof/water-resistant layer over the fleece, a balaclava that's thin enough to fit under the brain bucket, and trade in the gloves for some heavier ones.  My duration is usually 45 minutes or less this time of year... if I was going to be out longer, I'd need to layer up a little more.  But - it's surprising how much heat you generate, when the propulsion furnace is working.)

There are also some negative factors to consider.
1) Studded tires (on cars)!  I don't think motorists realize how noisy those blasted things are!  Why would they?  They are ensconced in their climate-controlled, pressurized cabins.  The windows are up, the heater fan is usually blasting away, and often there's some programming emanating from the 8-speaker sound system.  I'm even more likely to venture away from roadways during the winter, partly because of studded-tire racket.
2) Slippery surfaces.  Much harder to prepare for.  Especially because motor traffic is slippin' and slidin', too.  I try to avoid putting myself in situations where I could get injured or worse.  (I'm known to take the bus from time to time, when the roads are downright treacherous.  Usually I'll soldier on, taking the side streets, and sometimes on my fatter-tire beater bike.)
3) "Black" ice!  Even when the roads are dry - which they frequently are in our lovely community - it's not unusual to encounter a bit of slippery here and there.  It's only black when it's frozen over a black surface.  It's clear - hard to see, except for the glare, and glare is dependent on reflection.  (The best way to survive an icy patch... just coast easy!  Don't try to speed up or slow down or change direction, or you're lost!)

Some early-winter photos, taken on the "scenic route" home from work.  The last photo was taken a couple weeks ago - I was astounded to cross paths with a big ol' FROG!  (Or is it a toad?)  He was sitting in the middle of the Greenbelt, near the Fairview underpass.  The weather was barely above freezing; I'm sure his plight was grim.  He was hardly moving; I set him off to the side of the path, so at least he wouldn't get smashed by traffic.





Thursday, December 20, 2018

I love my commute!!

How's your commute?

Mine is about 3.5 miles each way. It involves a bit of downhill in the morning, and a bit of "payback" uphill in the afternoon. It takes about 15 minutes - by bicycle (of course). In any given year, there are a few wet days, a few cold days, and a few hot days... but the compromise in comfort is more than offset by the $ savings, emotional well-being, and FUN! (It's a rare day indeed, when my commute time isn't some of the best time of the day.)

I especially appreciate my commute, when forced to consider the alternatives.

A couple mornings ago I was listening to Public Radio while thinking about getting out of bed. They had a story about "Super Commuters" (transcript HERE).  "Super commuters are people who spend more than 90 minutes traveling to work every day. It's a rough way to live, but more and more people are doing it."

A woman named Jodie Collins works in San Francisco (as a makeup/hair stylist and Lyft driver). She lives in Sacramento... 90 miles away. If everything lines up perfectly, the commute takes her 1.5 hours. Often it takes 3 hours... because how often is urban interstate travel "perfect"? She rises at 4:45am ... and arrives back home at 2am the next day.

Oh my goodness! How much money would I have to earn, to put myself through such a regimen?!!

Closer to home... Jayson Hicks and his wife used to live in Seattle, but traffic was so bad, and housing so expensive, that they moved to Idaho. Twice a week, they drive 100 miles to Boise (so... maybe from McCall?), and fly to Seattle for work.

Sean Wright has what would see "on paper" to be a more sensible commute. He lives in Riverside and works in Los Angeles. (That's like Meridian and Boise, no? Not quite...) Sean says, "The worst part is knowing how many hours I'm spending commuting - four hours a workday, 20 hours a week, 80 hours a month all spent commuting."

I'm so fortunate! The farthest distance I've ever dealt with, from home to workplace, is probably five miles. I listen to the morning traffic reports and am convinced I wouldn't even be able to handle a drive in from Meridian or Eagle. Way too much that can go wrong, and I don't have enough faith in my fellow commuters. I'll stick with my 15-minute bike commute, where the worst-case scenario is less-than-ideal climatic conditions (and if treacherously slippery, surrendering and taking the bus instead).

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Bicycles as Landscape Art

Check out these custom-built gates, that incorporate vintage bicycles as decorative features.

They are at the home of my friends Abe and Laina and their family.  And, they were custom-built by their neighbor and my friend Joe.  Awesome!  I want some!

(The twisted-around handlebars are hard to look at... but they're for lookin' at, not for ridin'!)




Tuesday, November 27, 2018

5K miles for 2018

Today my bicycle odometer clicked over 5000 miles for the year.  (Or more accurately, the mileage accumulated on three different bicycles totals 5000+ for calendar 2018.)

Are there people who ride more miles per year?  Oh yes!!

Are there people who have been accumulating bike miles for more years?  No doubt!

(I started accumulating bike miles in 1959 or so; but I never kept accurate track until 1986, when I invested in my first electronic bike computer.  Back in the '70s, I had a Schwinn mechanical odometer - each time the front wheel did a revolution, it clicked a little cog-wheel.  But it was never consistent; the mechanical nature resulted in much fiddling and frustration.  And, for 10 years or so, I pretty much turned my back on bicycle transportation.  "I once was lost, but now I'm found!")

Many cyclists ride farther and faster.  But - I would assert that my consistency over 33 years puts me in a fairly rarefied group.

Since 1987, I've ridden 4000+ miles every year.  Of those (32) years, I've ridden 5000+ miles in 14, and 6000+ miles in another 11 years.

I have not yet ridden 7000 miles in a year.  But next year... ?  (I'll be retiring from my 8-5 job next year, which will afford more discretionary time.  But on the other hand, that discretionary time may result in other pursuits which have so far been elusive... travel and such.  Time will tell.  I expect my bicycle to be a significant part of my life until my kids pry the handlebars out of my bent and bitter fingers!)

In the meantime, thanks for indulging me, while I contort myself and pat myself on the back!

Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Invasion of the Scooter Zombies!!

Halloween's a-comin'!!

If you like BIKES ON THE SIDEWALK, "E-bikes" on the Greenbelt, etc., then you're probably ecstatic about the recently-released news from our City Fathers:

Stationless devices - bicycles, E-bikes and E-scooters - will soon make their way to Boise. Two companies - Lime and Bird - will be the first to bring stationless E-scooters to our city in mid-October.
To plan for the devices hitting the streets this month, the City of Boise updated our bicycle code to allow for the arrival of this new model of transportation ... The updated city code allows for:
    Stationless bicycles
    E-bikes with a motor that has a power output of no more than 750 watts and a top speed of 20 miles per hour
    E-scooters with a motor that has a power output of no more than 300 watts and a top speed of 15 miles per hour …
They can be used within City of Boise limits:
    On streets
    On sidewalks and crosswalks
    In bike lanes
    On the 25 miles of Greenbelt paths managed by City of Boise


The timing of the trial period is interesting... October 15th to January 15th.

If there is any time of year when potential problems will be minimal, they picked it.  But if they're all toasting the incredible success of the program in mid-January and give it the full go-ahead... how will it work between June 15th and September 15th, when the facilities are crammed with other disparate users?  On a lovely summer evening or Saturday afternoon, the "no motor vehicles" Greenbelt is already challenging to navigate!

Another looming question... exactly who is the "target demographic" of the E-bike and E-scooter rollout?  And what is the envisioned benefit of having this futuristic mode of transportation?

Based on my first week of observation, the scooters are being ridden almost exclusively by hipster millennial-types.  And it would seem that most of the trips are replacing WALKING trips.  I certainly can't imagine anybody depending on an E-scooters as his/her commute vehicle, because it might be there one day, but not the next.  (They are "dockless" - apparently you get on one and punch in your account on your "smart phone," and ride it to your random destination and walk away.)

Also - do they have a holder for your Starbucks cup?  Because a lot of the riders will be holding their "smart phone" in one hand and their vape device in the other hand.

Just in case I'm being too subtle... I'm quite concerned about the direction we're going with our bike/pedestrian paths.  The Greenbelt (and traditional bike lanes and sidewalks) were conceived and constructed to carry non-motorized users.  The Greenbelt had NO MOTOR VEHICLES signs posted for 40+ years.  MUCH easier to understand and enforce compliance, than the "no more than 750 watts for bikes and 300 watts for scooters" mumbo-jumbo.  When it was clearly posted NO MOTOR VEHICLES, I routinely observed people on various powered devices, including those awful bicycles with the noisy, stinky bolt-on gas motor!  Assuming there were law enforcement people around - which is rare - will they be carrying ammeters to measure the wattage?  I'm skeptical, and I'm very disappointed that the cow has been let out of the barn.  (The City Council claims to be impartial, but these ordinance changes have been enacted with breathtaking efficiency and precious little, if any, citizen input.)

In another generation or two, the young kids' jaws will drop, when you tell them about the dark days of yore, when you walked or rode a PEDAL bicycle to get from place to place!

Wednesday, September 12, 2018

Electric-powered bikes - are they really bikes?

I continue to have reservations about the gradual but steady increase in the number of people coasting around on electric-powered bikes.  Particularly, based on observation, I'm not convinced that they will ever mesh nicely with human-powered transportation.

It's always dangerous to stereotype, but (here goes...) riders of electric bikes seem to be generally inexperienced - it may be the first "bike" they've ridden in 20 or 30 or 40 years!  Their bicycling skills are rusty... they have grown unfamiliar with the bicycle rules of the road and common courtesy.  They tend to move at a considerably faster pace than their counterparts who are supplying their own forward propulsion.  (That's understandable, since e-bikes seem to zoom right along with the slightest rotation of the pedals or push of a handlebar-mounted lever.  And - I've never ridden one and don't intend to - but that's how it seems.)  Fast speeds and rusty skills tend to be a dangerous combination.

Many - perhaps most - seem uncomfortable riding anywhere but on corridors that have traditionally been reserved for "no motor vehicles" - and many are still posted as such.

Earlier this week, I was riding on the Greenbelt.  Traveling at what I consider to be a fairly brisk pace for the Greenbelt - 13 to 15mph.  Traffic was almost non-existent.  (Most people put away their white pants and bicycles after Labor Day - haha!)  A seasoned couple came crusing up behind me on their e-bikes.  I observed in my rearview helmet mirror that they were barely pedaling, but overtook me with ease.  A lady followed by a man.  They didn't try passing, but were riding close enough behind me to catch a little slipstream - ha!  We reached a point where the pathway was closed, and a sign directed traffic across the (Veterans Parkway) bridge, to the other side of the river.  A block up the pathway on that side - it was closed (!!) and a sign directed traffic onto city streets (which were covered with gravel for a chip-seal - is there ANY road or path that's not being repaired right now??).  I was somewhat amused when I left the path for the streets... and left the e-bike couple in the distance.  They were obviously unwilling to venture out on city streets.

At least they had the common sense to not attempt a pass, unlike some e-bicyclists who keep the pedal to the metal regardless of limited sight distance, heavy multi-mode traffic, etc.  (They are the pickup truck drivers of the bike path!  haha)

Finally... I can't imagine there would be much emotional reward to riding an e-bike.  A large part of my incentive in bicycling comes from ability to do so, and the sense of independence.  It's very satisfying to arrive at destinations powered completely by myself; it's something that most people are not able or willing to do, and frankly I feel like I rise above the masses, at least in my transportation choice.  Would you feel any such satisfaction if it's just a different form of motorized transportation?  (As a regular motorcyclist, I speak from experience.  I don't derive that same emotional reward from going someplace on the motorcycle.)

HOWEVER... for those few e-bike riders who would otherwise be driving someplace in a single-occupant motor coach, I s'pose I can get behind that.