Before I get to the "anxious" part, I need to relate a story that happened this past weekend.
We took our dogs for a walk on the Greenbelt near Eagle. It was the first time we had taken this particular route. The dogs were having a great time, alternating between chasing ducks in the ponds that have cropped up to attract wealthy buyers to soon-to-be "exclusive" subdivisions, and exploring countless, burr infested trails down to the banks of the Boise River. (By "the dogs", I mean the "big" dogs - Keiko is a Border Collie/Spaniel mix, and Shadow is a Lab/Golden mix. The third wheel, and smaller dog, is Bandit; a Corgi/Something/Something runt. He really doesn't like to swim all that much and only gets his feet wet most of the time.)
As we continued down the trail we met a couple walking in the opposite direction. I asked how far this particular trail was. "Well, it's about a mile or so before you get to the next subdivision. Of course, you'll go past the cows first", was the reply.
Sure enough, after a few hundred feet we crossed a footbridge, turned the corner, a saw this pristine setting - maybe 10 fenced-in acres, and 50-75 head of cattle. How cool. Didn't expect that.
Keiko and Shadow noticed the cattle, but since they had seen cows before, were mostly uninterested. Bandit, however, definitely took notice - ans started barking. I'm not sure if it was his Corgi instincts, or just the fact that he had never encountered big "dogs" like this, but the herd certainly got *his* attention.
After we quieted him down we continued along the trail. He was fine until a couple calves decided they wanted to play, and that little dog looked "fun". So, they started running along their side of the fence teasing Bandit and goading him into doing something. They succeeded. Bandit took off after the calves, barking merrily - oooh, this was fun. The big bull standing nearby apparently didn't think it was fun (or amusing - party pooper); he snorted, lowered his head, and stormed after Bandit. Uh oh.
The next few seconds were absolutely hilarious. Bandit, still chasing after the calves, heard the bull chasing him. The look on his face changed from happy fun to sheer terror. His eyes got wide, he reversed his direction, kicked it into high gear, and literally blurred back to us and safety. I thought he was fast, but I never knew how fast. We were rolling on the ground with laughter.
Now, why am I anxious? I ordered some bike panniers from Amazon, and I'm anxiously waiting for them to arrive. I'm hoping it will cut down on "back sweat" and lower back soreness during my jaunts to and from work. Waiting... waiting...
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Friday, August 1, 2008
My Bikes
I suppose I should provide a bit of info regarding what I'm riding.
My "mountain bike", that I am using to commute right now, is actually a circa 1990 Huffy "Canyon" model. Nothing spectacular about it. The derailleur has H.I.S. stamped on it (I thought that was a clothing company?), and I can't find much info about it. It's pretty crappy, but it works for me. The brakes are OK, and it seems pretty solid. I've replaced the inner tubes with the "no-more-flats" solid tubes, so the ride is not as smooth as it could be, but at least I don't have to worry about flats.
I have a Centurian Accordo road bike (circa 1980's) that is actually a pretty good bike. But, I hesitate to ride it on the Greenbelt because of all the root damage along certain sections of my route.
Last night I ordered some small panniers from Amazon with the intent of replacing the backpack I'm currently using. The lower part of my back gets sore, and I'm blaming the backpack at this point. We'll see if the panniers (Sunlite Travellers) will help.
Other than that, all I'm outfitted with is a pair of gloves and a sweatband. I wear a t-shirt during the ride and change into other shirts at the office. Since I'm lucky enough to not have to "dress for success", I can wear shorts almost all the time. (I wear shorts from early April to late October anyway).
My "mountain bike", that I am using to commute right now, is actually a circa 1990 Huffy "Canyon" model. Nothing spectacular about it. The derailleur has H.I.S. stamped on it (I thought that was a clothing company?), and I can't find much info about it. It's pretty crappy, but it works for me. The brakes are OK, and it seems pretty solid. I've replaced the inner tubes with the "no-more-flats" solid tubes, so the ride is not as smooth as it could be, but at least I don't have to worry about flats.
I have a Centurian Accordo road bike (circa 1980's) that is actually a pretty good bike. But, I hesitate to ride it on the Greenbelt because of all the root damage along certain sections of my route.
Last night I ordered some small panniers from Amazon with the intent of replacing the backpack I'm currently using. The lower part of my back gets sore, and I'm blaming the backpack at this point. We'll see if the panniers (Sunlite Travellers) will help.
Other than that, all I'm outfitted with is a pair of gloves and a sweatband. I wear a t-shirt during the ride and change into other shirts at the office. Since I'm lucky enough to not have to "dress for success", I can wear shorts almost all the time. (I wear shorts from early April to late October anyway).
Thursday and Friday
Thursday morning I arrived at the parking lot and started prepping myself and my bike for the morning ride. As I was putting on my gloves a young woman roller skated past me. As it turns out - she was flying! Once I started out it took me a good five minutes to catch up with her and pass her. I really hadn't thought about using skates for transportation, but I guess you could.
Friday morning the Greenbelt was packed! It took me about 5 minutes longer than normal because I had to slow down so many times. This is getting interesting.
Friday morning the Greenbelt was packed! It took me about 5 minutes longer than normal because I had to slow down so many times. This is getting interesting.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Alternate Route
Wednesday night I took my bike with me to Alive After Five to grab a beer and check out the band. It was packed! So much so that I decided to leave before the show was over.
While I was loitering there I had a wild idea. Instead of using the Greenbelt, I decided to try out Hill Road instead. I headed up 8th street, cut over to 13th via Lemp, and got on Hill Road.
Once I passed Harrison Blvd I noticed that the bike lane was actually pretty wide - wide enough that 2 or 3 bikes could fit side-by-side on it. I also discovered that Hill Road must be where all the road racers train (or at least keep in shape) because there were quite a few road bikes. And, they were flying. I think I was passed about 3 times during my trek.
Hill Road has very few stops. The only light I encountered was at 36th street, and the rest are all 4-ways. Once I passed the Collister intersection I used Castle Drive to get back to State Street. From there I just followed Plantation (Drive?) around until I could get back to my parking spot by the Glenwood Bridge.
I figure I added 2-3 miles to the distance, but it was kinda fun.
While I was loitering there I had a wild idea. Instead of using the Greenbelt, I decided to try out Hill Road instead. I headed up 8th street, cut over to 13th via Lemp, and got on Hill Road.
Once I passed Harrison Blvd I noticed that the bike lane was actually pretty wide - wide enough that 2 or 3 bikes could fit side-by-side on it. I also discovered that Hill Road must be where all the road racers train (or at least keep in shape) because there were quite a few road bikes. And, they were flying. I think I was passed about 3 times during my trek.
Hill Road has very few stops. The only light I encountered was at 36th street, and the rest are all 4-ways. Once I passed the Collister intersection I used Castle Drive to get back to State Street. From there I just followed Plantation (Drive?) around until I could get back to my parking spot by the Glenwood Bridge.
I figure I added 2-3 miles to the distance, but it was kinda fun.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Deer Crossing
Wednesday evening I had a wonderful ride home. I had stopped by Alive After Five and listened to a great band from South Carolina called "Need To Breathe". I guess I would describe them as "Aerosmith meets John Mellencamp", or something like that. (Even though I'm a musician, I'm not really a great music critic. So, don't take that observation as gospel).
I hit the Greenbelt at about 8 pm, so it was starting to cool-off. I was flying. The temps were very comfortable, and the Greenbelt traffic had cleared our a bit. As I got near Glenwood, where the horses are shacked up for the race track, I glimpsed a bit of tan up the path a bit. As I rounded a curve, two deer suddenly appeared before me - I guess they either thought they were in deer territory because of the horses nearby, or they simply smelled the hay recently brought in.
The smaller of the two fled as soon as "she" saw me. But, the other one (I'm guessing male) stood his ground for a bit. I could swear he squinted at me, and had a look on his face like, "What the hell is that? It looks human, but it seems to almost be running like a deer." After a few more seconds of staring (and me wondering if he was ever going to move), he bolted back down to the river and hoped-for safety.
Now, I'm not sure what it is about that spot, but on Friday I had to slow down and stop for a duck "family" at almost the the exact same stretch as I encountered the deer. It's becoming Grand Central station through there.
I hit the Greenbelt at about 8 pm, so it was starting to cool-off. I was flying. The temps were very comfortable, and the Greenbelt traffic had cleared our a bit. As I got near Glenwood, where the horses are shacked up for the race track, I glimpsed a bit of tan up the path a bit. As I rounded a curve, two deer suddenly appeared before me - I guess they either thought they were in deer territory because of the horses nearby, or they simply smelled the hay recently brought in.
The smaller of the two fled as soon as "she" saw me. But, the other one (I'm guessing male) stood his ground for a bit. I could swear he squinted at me, and had a look on his face like, "What the hell is that? It looks human, but it seems to almost be running like a deer." After a few more seconds of staring (and me wondering if he was ever going to move), he bolted back down to the river and hoped-for safety.
Now, I'm not sure what it is about that spot, but on Friday I had to slow down and stop for a duck "family" at almost the the exact same stretch as I encountered the deer. It's becoming Grand Central station through there.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Introduction
Well, it's getting toward the end of July, so I've actually been cycling to and from work for over a month. Here's the quick story....
When I was younger (I'm 50 as I write this), I was an absolute bicycling freak. During my teens and early twenties, 10-20 miles per day was the norm; and of course when I went touring, 50+ was common. But, as I grew older, I fell into the trap of total reliance on a car for transportation, with the sporadic visit to the gym to stay in shape.
With the recent jump in gas prices, along with the "new" focus on being green (I've always been a bit greener than most), I decided to revisit the bicycle as a form of transportation. It kills three birds with one stone - saves gas, saves money, and provides an excellent means of exercise (without actually thinking about it as exercise).
So, in mid-June of this year (2008) I decided to start riding to and from work. There was a dilemma, however. If I were to ride the entire from my house to the office - using a "safe" route - I'm looking at 12-14 miles each way. The less safe route is about 10 miles each way, but... it's just not safe.
My primary goal was to ride on the Boise Greenbelt, a stretch of land on either side of the Boise River, with nicely paved bicycle and walking paths. I wanted to avoid traffic as much as possible, and I did not want to have to stop and wait at intersections. The only spot I knew about (at that time), between my house house and the office where I could easily get on the Greenbelt, is a parking area near the Glenwood Street bridge. From there the distance is 6.2 miles (if my cheap little bicycling computer is accurate), and it satisfies the goal of using the Greenbelt.
Although I still have to drive several miles to get to the drop-off point, I've found my gas savings to be far more than expected. That's because the route I have to drive to get to the Glenwood bridge has few stops (most of the time I can avoid all of them), so I can drive at a pretty constant speed. Previously, most of my stop-and-go driving occurred at I got near the city center, and that was where the gas mileage dropped.
To me, the funniest part of all this is the time it takes to get to the office. When I would drive, the best I could hope for was about 35 minutes (30 minutes driving to where I parked, and a 5 minute walk to the office). Now, it takes me 10 minutes to arrive at the drop-off point, and 30-35 minutes to bike directly to the office. We're talking about an additional 10 minutes! (I should have started this years ago). On top of that - I save gas and money, get exercise, and get to experience beautiful wooded areas and wildlife (like the two deer I almost ran over the other night).
I'm still looking for alternate routes so I can extend the ride. There are some possibilities opening up. I'll report any modifications to my route here.
When I was younger (I'm 50 as I write this), I was an absolute bicycling freak. During my teens and early twenties, 10-20 miles per day was the norm; and of course when I went touring, 50+ was common. But, as I grew older, I fell into the trap of total reliance on a car for transportation, with the sporadic visit to the gym to stay in shape.
With the recent jump in gas prices, along with the "new" focus on being green (I've always been a bit greener than most), I decided to revisit the bicycle as a form of transportation. It kills three birds with one stone - saves gas, saves money, and provides an excellent means of exercise (without actually thinking about it as exercise).
So, in mid-June of this year (2008) I decided to start riding to and from work. There was a dilemma, however. If I were to ride the entire from my house to the office - using a "safe" route - I'm looking at 12-14 miles each way. The less safe route is about 10 miles each way, but... it's just not safe.
My primary goal was to ride on the Boise Greenbelt, a stretch of land on either side of the Boise River, with nicely paved bicycle and walking paths. I wanted to avoid traffic as much as possible, and I did not want to have to stop and wait at intersections. The only spot I knew about (at that time), between my house house and the office where I could easily get on the Greenbelt, is a parking area near the Glenwood Street bridge. From there the distance is 6.2 miles (if my cheap little bicycling computer is accurate), and it satisfies the goal of using the Greenbelt.
Although I still have to drive several miles to get to the drop-off point, I've found my gas savings to be far more than expected. That's because the route I have to drive to get to the Glenwood bridge has few stops (most of the time I can avoid all of them), so I can drive at a pretty constant speed. Previously, most of my stop-and-go driving occurred at I got near the city center, and that was where the gas mileage dropped.
To me, the funniest part of all this is the time it takes to get to the office. When I would drive, the best I could hope for was about 35 minutes (30 minutes driving to where I parked, and a 5 minute walk to the office). Now, it takes me 10 minutes to arrive at the drop-off point, and 30-35 minutes to bike directly to the office. We're talking about an additional 10 minutes! (I should have started this years ago). On top of that - I save gas and money, get exercise, and get to experience beautiful wooded areas and wildlife (like the two deer I almost ran over the other night).
I'm still looking for alternate routes so I can extend the ride. There are some possibilities opening up. I'll report any modifications to my route here.
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