Bicycling in Bloomington

Friday March 14, 2008 

This was spring break week at Indiana University. For many people, spring break is a trip south. For me, spring break was a ride to the south end of 446. We take what we can get. 

This week, the weather has improved in Bloomington. I was able to commute Monday to Wednesday. On Wednesday morning, I rode Old 446, a standard morning ride. I decided that I would take a little time off to do the ride - my spring break. 

Spring break has another meaning to me. It is time to think more about riding outdoors. Since Indiana started DST two years ago, it’s hard to get out in the morning before work. But, every so often I can arrange something. My preference now it to ride outside instead of on the trainer but I will be on the trainer until late April. 

I reviewed my training log for the year. It’s pathetic. I had two rides by January 6 and Wednesday was the first since then. Only about 80 road miles. Also, I’ve commuted to work only about 10-12 times. (I often forget to include commutes in my log.) Most years, I might not be able to commute about 20 or so days from January through spring break. This year has been awful. 

I was not able to commute the past two days because of a minor injury that I think was the result of an attempt to do a strange yoga stretch.  

I estimate that I have 35 hours on the trainer so far this year. And, I have reasonable number of running miles. (I estimate that I did about 50 hours of yoga and tai ji.) But, as much as I like the diversity of working on the trainer and running, I don’t enjoy them as much as outdoor riding. However, both are more efficient forms of exercise. When I’m riding outdoors, I don’t focus on training but focus mostly on all that’s going on around me. Some days, like Wednesday, I use the ride to think about work or other issues. 

Spring arrives next week and I expect that my riding time will improve substantially. I’m looking forward to it.

Sunday March 9, 2008 

Every winter, I usually take one or two long walks as my Sunday exercise. Most times, the walks are part of a recovery from a cold or bad weather that made it difficult to bike or run. I thought this year I might miss the walk if I waited for a similar day, so I decided to walk on Sunday. The walk had some bicycling connections.

The day was reasonably warm and sunny. I walked through the goat farm which is at the end of Winslow and High Streets. Then, I crossed over to Sherwood Oaks Park. I checked a path along west side of Jackson Creek that has usually ended in a muddy mess. I’ve taken my mountain bike on it a couple times. It hasn’t changed; still muddy.

Then, I walked up the path towards Olcott Park. A few weeks ago, fellow Bloomington biking blogger Mitch Rice mentioned that mud covered part of the path. The mud is mostly removed and straw bales were put on the side of the path to prevent more mud. A typical Bloomington response to a problem - an unattractive solution that is bound to fail and doesn’t solve the real problem.

About half-way up the hill, there is a series of paths that appear to be used both for walking and off-road riding. The paths continue to be developed. But, many places on the path a rider would have to dismount to cross the obstacles. Good riders could ride over obstacles that I can’t, but some just don’t seem possible to ride.

While on the path, I stopped to talk to Mitch Rice. He and Jojo were on the path. They stopped to throw snowballs.

I finished the walk on the east side of Sare Rd. A new biking / walking path has been laid down near the small creek east of Sare Rd. My initial review indicates it will be maintenance problem, just as is the biking / walking path near Sare Rd. I guess the developers say they are doing something and then dump the problem on the city. Some things never change in Bloomington.

Bloomington has many off-street paths that can be used by bicyclists but they are poorly maintained.  

 I have not been on the bike since last Tuesday. It’s the weather !!

I don’t particularly mind cold weather and wet weather is generally fine. But, cold, wet weather causes problems for me. My morning commute from home to College Mall Rd has a number places where the road is narrow and shaded. There are a few consistently dangerous spots on Sare Rd that seem to gather moisture during the day and freeze overnight. If Sare Rd had little traffic, it would be possible to avoid the ice but the road is heavily travelled, and narrow and curvy in places.

I have some experience riding in ice and snow and after doing it for awhile, I decided it wasn’t much fun. Of course, it’s not much different from off-road riding in many ways. Last Friday, it snowed and iced. I drove my spouse to work and was driving towards my office when I saw a bicyclist riding on 7^th St. I’m fairly certain it was my fellow Bloomington biking blogger - Ear to the Breeze. The look on his face was similar to what I feel riding down a rooty, rutty, rocky hill on a mountain bike. His words.

A second reason that I don’t commute in wet weather is because I often need the car to arrive a meetings in clean clothes. I work in a building that is more than a mile from most of my meetings. It’s always faster to ride than drive to the meetings. When the roads are dry, it’s fun to ride. But, I don’t like to arrive at meetings with wet, gritty pants from wet roads.

Together, the cold, wet weather has prevented me from riding for a week. I’m happy that I can ride the trainer and run occasionally. And I’m looking forward to better weather.

 I was able to commute to campus yesterday and today. Yesterday, I waited until the snow stopped in the morning and had a pleasant sunny ride in. During the afternoon, a number of heavy snow showers covered the ground and made the roads wet. The temperature dropped over the day.

The snow and colder temperatures caused my drive train to be covered with frozen snow. It seemed to function well after the crust broke. The ride home was in a snow shower but it wasn’t terrible. I am always concerned about drivers when snow or other conditions might distract them but the commute went fine.

This morning, it was 13^o when I left for campus. It was sunny but windy. I wasn’t cold except for my hands but they weren’t as cold as last week. I tried a different pair of gloves. This evening’s commute was cold but I was glad for the chance to be riding outside.

Interesting thing happened on the way home. I stopped for the light at College Mall and Moore’s Pike. While waiting my turn behind 6 cars, a bicyclist passed me and rode to the front of the line. After the light changed, I figured that I should catch up to him so there weren’t 2 bikes 15-30 yards apart and causing problems for cars on the narrow part of Sare Rd. He wasn’t riding as fast as I was, so he slowed traffic. As a result, a car was caught beside me and had to drive partially in the other lane. Even worse, as the cars slowed for him, I didn’t so I was going faster than the cars and creating more problems. A bad situation. If he had waited in line, he would have done the right thing, and we could have travelled the narrow road together for more safety. Oh, well.

Tonight, snow is predicted, so I guess that I might not ride again for a couple days.  

 I rode outside only two days this week. Monday, I commuted to campus. It was 12^o when I left home. When I started up the street, I noticed that my chain and cogs were completely rusty. The last time I rode, it was muddy and wet and I forgot to clean the bike. Also, my front tire had little air. I forget about maintenance when I don’t ride often.

The low air was a benefit in a way. Gravity usually takes me up to about 27 mph going down the hill on Sare Rd. Monday, I reached only 20 mph. It was so cold that I was grateful to go slower.

I was warm riding in with a sweater and a windbreaker. But, my hands got cold after 2 miles. The third mile really made them cold. When I got to campus, I struggled to make the cable and lock work in the cold and with cold hands.

I also commuted to campus on Saturday. It was a nice day, so I was happy for another chance to ride to work. The rest of the week, the road conditions were not so good or I had commitments that required a car.

As usual, I rode on a trainer most mornings. So, my bicycling is doing fine, even if my riding isn’t.

This coming week looks like more of the same. Wet weather predicted for tomorrow. It’s possible to ride through the winter in Bloomington because it rarely gets too cold but the wet, cold weather makes riding on the busy roads a bit challenging.

 This week, I was able to commute only once. While I did not get out much this week, I was able to ride indoors Monday - Thursday. Today (Sunday), it was cold (16^o in backyard) and windy at 8:30 AM when it was time for me to go out, so I decided to ride indoors.

Riding indoors is not as much fun as outdoor riding but it’s at least as challenging for me. Most DVDs that I watch use some form of interval training. Reps range from 20 seconds to about 2 minutes. The videos have a variety of sets of high speed spinning, one-legged throws, pyramids, builds, and other forms of intervals. The sets range from tolerable to very challenging. I have a couple DVDs that are more than 40 minutes but most of those I do range from 30-40 minutes. That’s a reasonable amount of exercise time in the morning.

I have one DVD that is a simulated ride of about 17-18 miles. It’s similar to riding with a Testosterone Tom, so there a no breaks. The uphills are done in the big ring and small cogs; the downhills are high speed spins in more reasonable gears. But, there is no rest for the entire ride. The video is about 50 minutes.

I’m starting to miss riding outdoors but I believe that I will be in reasonably good shape when the weather improves.

 My January riding was more than usual but less than I hoped for. I rode at least 81 miles but almost 60 miles were done on two Sundays early in the month. However, I don’t think I recorded all my commutes, so the mileage was a little higher. While the mileage wasn’t high, I rode indoors on 21 days. Usually, indoor training is more efficient than outdoor riding but it’s not nearly as much fun.

More rides were possible in January but I chose alternate activities. For example, the past two Sundays (my long exercise day), I ran for at least 75 minutes. This morning, the temperature averaged 25^o on my two outdoor thermometers, so I chose to run. I have often gone for rides at that temp, but I’m trying to do more running this year.

I generally ride as early in the day as I can. During the summer, I try to get out at first light. In the winter, I try to get out as close to 8 AM as I can. This morning, I would have experienced a lot of ice on the roadsides if I had gone for my typical winter ride. I could tell because I ran along some of the route. Later in the day, the same ride would have been much more pleasant.

Winter weather in Bloomington generally is not too bad and many days, it’s nice after the sun has warmed the air. For those who ride in the afternoons, it’s possible to ride comfortably through most of the winter.

 I did not get to ride much this week. I was away two days and the other days, I needed the car. Tomorrow, I will commute to work just because I want to. However, my wife will have to pick me up because I will be on campus until 7 PM. I rode on my trainer four mornings.

Today (Sunday), it was 22^o when it was time to exercise. I decided to run instead of riding. I am going to try to run more this year. I ran for about 85 minutes which is long for me, especially considering I have done only 2-3 3-4 mile runs since Thanksgiving.

Running in Bloomington is somewhat like biking. Generally, it’s a pretty good place to run. Today, I ran on the sidewalks for almost the entire run. Many sidewalks were icy and snow-covered. I have been running for more than 35 years. Prior to coming to Bloomington, I lived in PA, MD, and CT. Each has substantially more snow than Bloomington. I’ve learned how to handle ice and snow when running, so it doesn’t bother me. In fact, it’s a good skill to practice regularly.

Bloomington has an ordinance that requires property owners to clear their sidewalks of snow and ice after snow. It is not enforced and few property owners clear their sidewalks. This behavior causes pedestrians (and unskilled runners) to run or walk on the street with the cars. A dangerous situation.

However, it doesn’t snow often and not much when it does. So, outdoor running can be done most of the year.

 It was a cold weekend in Bloomington, so I did not ride outdoors. Saturday is typically a rest day for me. Sunday, it was zero at 8 AM, so I trained indoors. I did two DVD sessions over 1.25 hours. The second session was rated 9.5 on a 10 scale. It was challenging but it’s often fun to be challenged on a bike.

Today (Monday), it was cold again, so I trained indoors. I was going to commute to campus by bike but I had so much stuff to bring in that all of it didn’t fit in my backpack. I had to drive. I’ll be away until Thursday, so not much riding this week.

Saturday morning, I attended at presentation by “walkability expert” - Dan Burden. He designs Walkable Communities. He included a fair amount of information about bicycling in his presentation. His suggestions for improving transportation flow included creating narrow lanes for car traffic, slowing speed limits, and creating more bike lanes. However, his bike lanes are different from those in Bloomington. He recommends 6″-7″ depending on the roadway and parking. Wider bike lanes would also mean the road debris might get moved farther to the right, and allow safer use of the lanes. Changing  the roadways to slow speeds and improve traffic flow and at the same time, increasing bicycling and pedestrian use is a very good goal for all cities.

During his presentation a thought came to me - why do we consider biking, walking, and mass transit as “alternative transportation?” It would be better to consider car and truck traffic as alternative transportation.

 This week was reasonably good far for commuting. I was able to commute Monday - Wednesday. Today, the snow was too wet. Tuesday, however, I had to transport the bike home. When I got to a stop light about 1.5 miles from home, my rear brake would not work. Squeezing it felt like on the cables were moving and the calipers were stuck. I checked to sure the brakes weren’t rubbing and continued to work.

When I got to work, I tried to diagnose the problem. Almost immediately, the brake cable went limp and I couldn’t seem to fix it. It was about 20^o, so I decided that it would be better to fix it at home. My wife picked me and the bike up on her way home from work. When I got the bike into the garage and re-strung the brake, it worked fine.

Wednesday, a similar problem occurred on the commute to work but I decided not to be concerned about it. Going home, the brake worked fine. I guess the problem is related to the cold weather. I need to stop by the Bike Garage and ask them about it.

Mitch Rice, a fellow Bloomington biking blogger, wrote an article for the IU News Room that describes his winter commuting - Bike Riding, Weather or Not. I recommend it.  

Mitch is more likely to ride on wet days than I am. I don’t mind the wet much but the possibility of frozen fingers on the roads makes me cautious. I can’t remember how many times I said to myself - a body in motion stays in motion - as I crossed an ice patch that I hadn’t seen in time. I generally ride home as the sun is setting and on the shady parts of Sare Rd, the ice causes serious concerns.  

So far this year, I’ve been fairly active even though I haven’t been out on the bike often. I rode the trainer or ran 5 days each week. This year, I decided I needed to be more flexible, so I started doing yoga. It’s harder than I thought but I’m starting to see some benefits. I hope that when biking season starts, I am better able to look behind me and that my leg muscles are more flexible.

Enjoying all the weather but looking forward to the warmer, sunny days.