See and Be Seen

At work we recently switched from a standard 5x8 schedule to a 4x10 schedule. Among the other complications of this change is one of particular concern for cyclists. While in the past there was a major portion of the year where I could ride without lights, it seems I will need to use my lighting system year-round now.

A couple of co-workers have asked what kind of lighting system I use so I thought I would share my experiences here.

See or Seen

There are really two issues with bicycle lighting. Can you see, and can you be seen by others. In an 'urban' setting you may only be worried about being seen since street and building lights may provide plenty of light for you to see. Your speed can also be a big factor in this as well, as the faster you ride the more important your ability to read road conditions becomes.

For 'being seen' almost any reasonably bright white light will do and one that flashes may be better than on that only has a steady-state mode. On the bikes my family owns I have used several different manufactures and models, but have been very satisfied with several models of Cateye brand lights.

For my commute, I typically ride through a couple of industrial areas that are not well lit. I also ride at an average speed of around 16-18 mph through those areas, so the AA battery driven lights don't typically cast enough light an an appropriate pattern for my commute.

A wide range of lights are available that are more suitable for this use.

Eddy's bike shop in Ohio put up a great light comparison page. You can click on various systems and see the illumination, beam pattern and light color.

My Recommendation

The difference in cost between a AA or AAA battery driven system and the brighter rechargeable systems is significant. Unless you know that your speed and the road conditions require the brighter, more expensive systems, I would recommend you start with a low-cost light with a flashing mode. Then, if you decide it's not bright enough for your needs you can still use it in flashing mode, or as a helmet light when you upgrade.

Bike Lanes

I made a mistake today. I read the newspaper opinion section which included a letter about bicycling. Then I compounded that mistake by going online and reading the comments.

Every time there is a plea in the paper for bicyclist safety you see the same arguments in the comments. From cycling opponents you see:

• Cyclists don't pay for the roads. (False, cyclists actually subsidize auto traffic)
  
• Cyclists should get out of the way, not impede traffic, or get on the sidewalk. (False, we are traffic, not impeding traffic; riding on the sidewalk is significantly more dangerous than riding on the road.)
  
• Cyclists are scofflaws who run every light. (I am sure no motorist treats Stop's as Yields, nor do they speed, make turns without checking blind spots...)
  
• Etc.

Each of those is a post or more. But one thing that frustrates me is when the cycling advocates plead for more bike lanes.

There are drawbacks to bike lanes The most dangerous place for cycling accidents are intersections. Bike lanes frequently complicate intersections and increase the conflicts between motorists and cyclists. A prime example is a bike lane that is a thru-lane, where there is a car turning right. The complications are even worse when a multi-use path crosses a road. Another drawback is that when a lane exists motorists sometimes believe that the cyclist must remain in that lane, so they don't allow or accept it if a cyclist has a legitimate reason to move to the left.

Don't get me wrong. I love some bike lanes. One of my commutes travels about 5 miles on a Class 2 (the kind that are striped like an additional traffic lane) bike lane. Bike lanes can be nice because they do separate traffic moving at different speeds, they may increase the passing distance when a car overtakes a bicycle, and I think they make novice "vehicular cyclists" feel safer.

At the same time, I am not sure people are really aware of what they are asking. I want to use my bike to ride to the library, Burger King, Subway, the grocery store, work. In short, I want to be able to ride everywhere I would normally drive. I recognize that I am not allowed on the major highways, but what these 'advocates' are really asking for is a bike lane on every road.

Clearly, that is not a realistic solution.

There are better alternatives. One is to advocate for and take advantage of vehicular cycling training. In Utah the Salt Lake Bicycle Collective teaches free courses that focus on riding in (becoming part of) traffic. You can visit the League of American Bicyclists education page to find similar programs or instructors in your area.

The other alternative is to advocate for Complete Streets. Complete Streets are designed and built with multiple user groups in mind; not just fast moving automobile traffic. From a cyclists point of view a complete street is a street with wider lanes and shoulders, rather than a marked bike lane, and includes traffic calming like median strip planters.

The movement for Complete Streets integrates well with the Safe Routes to School program. It also complements advocacy programs that highlight sustainable development and walkable communities.

Harmon's Best Dam MS-150 Report Continued

Saturday Night
After the first day of ridding there is a big dinner at the fairgrounds, entertainment, and a raffle. They announced that it looked like the ride would net over 1.7 million this year. While everyone was sitting around talking the couple sitting across from me had to leave. Standing up, they asked the woman sitting next to me if she wanted their raffle tickets. Wouldn't you know it, the grand prize ticket was in that set of tickets; she won a Specialized Epic Marathon worth over $4,000. I couldn't believe it.

Brennan didn't get enough to eat, so we went to an A&W for burgers and treats. Brennan slept in the spare bed in Ken's room at the college. I spent a second night in my tent at the fairgounds, and actually slept much better that night.

Worshiping at the alter of Eddy Merckx
Usually Brennan and I don't ride on Sunday, but we make an exception for this ride. The Sunday 75 mile route is beautiful, traveling up Blacksmiths Fork Canyon for 17 miles to Hardware Ranch Recreation area.

Ken was able to ride with us, but was pretty tired from running around as a volunteer the day before. Brennan and I felt better that I thought we would, but neither of us wanted to do the whole 75 route. The 40 mile route skips the canyon. In the end we decided to ride the canyon and back down, and then just ride the few miles back to the fairgrounds. It was a fantastic decision.

We really enjoyed riding together. Ken is a mountain biker who is just getting into road biking as he prepares for a sprint triathlon coming in a month or so. Brennan and I introduced him to the concept of a 'town line sprint' as our custom route went through three or four little towns on the way back into Logan.

Ride Stats
The following links will take you to my MotionBased account ride stats. I had my Garmin Edge 305 with me, but I forgot my HR strap, so heart rate is missing.

Saturday's Ride
Sunday's Ride

Thanks again to all who donated. Hopefully you believe that this is a worthwhile cause, and an activity you can support in the future.

Harmon's Best Dam MS-150 Report

First, that's not a typo - the Utah MS-150 ride took its name from the 3 or 4 dams that the ride passed when it was originally held in Park City. Even though it is held in Logan / Cache Valley now, it still passes a couple of dams and reservoirs.

The Fund Raising
I didn't make my goal but did raise a substantial amount. Brennan and I raised over $800 this year. We rode for the Harmon's team which looks to raise over $100,000 and the entire ride will probably raise over $1.7 million this year.

Thanks to everyone who donated to Brennan and I this year. There were a number of people who dug deep into their wallets and made donations in the last week, including a few that I know donated money that was budgeted for other expenses. I appreciate every penny.

The Trip
The drive up was great Ken from work rode up with Brennan and I. We left work early and made it on the rode by 1:00. Ken had to be at the Logan Fairgrounds around 4:00, so we had plenty of time. He volunteered (and worked very hard) on Friday and Saturday and rode with us on Sunday, which worked out perfectly. He also had a room at USU, so we had a place to shower even though I was camped at the fairgrounds.

We got to the fairgrounds early enough that I got a great camping space. Friday night was Team Dinner Night, and the Harmon's chefs put together a fantastic buffet of salmon, chicken, pasta salad and fruit. For a while I was sitting across from Dean, who I found out was the president of Harmons. Turns out that years ago he started as a stocker and worked is way up to the top. Inspiring.

Saturday's Ride
Brennan and I set out on Saturday not really knowing which of the three options (40,75 or 100 miles) we were going to ride. We really did very little training for the ride this year. We met Ryan and Natalie (friends from out neighborhood) at and early rest stop, but they were planning on riding the 40 route and we were feeling pretty good.

We then hooked up with Carmen from my spinning class. She was riding with Sophia who owns the salon where my wife and kids get their hair done. They had trained quite a bit more than we had and were planning on doing the 75. We rode with them to lunch and beyond, hoping to finish strong and together.

The Phone Call
Right before leaving on the ride I debated whether to bring my cell phone. I'm glad I did, even though it led to an interrupted ride. Neither Carmen nor Sophia had much experience riding in a pace line, so I was explaining to Sophia how to follow someones wheel safely when my phone rang.

Right before we left for Logan I had pushed some changes to one of my projects into production. On the phone was my boss, letting me know that the changes had a serious bug. It took about 45 minutes to walk him through the final stages of troubleshooting, backing out the bad code and publishing a clean application. Overall that went pretty well.

After 45 minutes of 'rest' hiding behind a tree so that every group that went by wouldn't ask me if I was okay, I felt pretty good. I cruised through the last rest stop in into the finish feeling pretty strong.

(To be continued...)

Two-Wheeled Wonder in Errandsville

Eric Sorensen had an excerpt of his book Seven Wonders for a Cool Planet published in a recent edition of Sierra Magazine under the title Two-Wheeled Wonder. I highly recommend you go read it before it disappears into the nether-net, even if you are not a cyclist. Here are a couple of excerpts:

The bicycle is a masterpiece of physics. It harnesses human muscle power directly to that old-time marvel--the wheel--and yields a vehicle more energy efficient than any other devised, ever, by anyone. A human on a bicycle is more efficient (in calories expended per pound and per mile) than a train, truck, airplane, boat, automobile, motorcycle, skateboard, canoe, or jet pack. Cycling is more efficient than walking, which takes three times as many calories per mile.

This introduction reminds me on one of the UTA Blue Bikes I see downtown every May.
You can see more blue bike pictures here.

There is a great point in the article about how we regard bicycles in the U.S. compared to the way they are seen in the rest of the world:

Bicycles outnumber automobiles almost two to one worldwide, and their production outpaces cars by three to one. Rush-hour traffic in China is dominated by these human-powered vehicles. Even in the wealthy cities of Europe and Japan, a large share of the populace gets around by bike. Only here is it treated as little more than a plaything.

It's always been frustrating to me the way mass market chains treat bicycles as toys. It seems like most chains use their bicycle section to mark the transition from Toys to Sporting Goods. In the never ending battles of alternative transportation advocacy it seems we are always trying to chip away at the perception that bikes are toys for children and eccentrics. I long for the day when parents look at buying their child a first bike the same way they would when buying a child a first car - take it seriously, buy quality, and teach them to ride right.

Finally, I am going to adopt his term 'Errandsville':

While advertising sells cars and trucks as tools for the open road, most often they help us inhabit a small daily realm--"Errandsville"--defined by home, store, job, and school. Many of these trips are easily bikable--or walkable--even on roads designed without bicycles or pedestrians in mind.

A topic for another post is Complete Streets v. Bike Lanes, but it is my experience that there are very few places I go to in my normal daily life that can't be easily reached by bicycle. I can arrive at most places without using any high speed / high traffic thoroughfares.

So, thanks Eric. Your book is on order at my local library and I have a hold on the first copy that makes it to the shelves.

A Smooth New Ride

It's terrible to think that this is possible, but my wife bought my love this week.

After many years of riding an excellently functional Novara Randonee touring bike, Mrs. GeekCyclist gave me a significant budget to buy a new bicycle for fathers-day.

This is the result:19 pounds of buttery-smooth carbon fiber Specialized Roubaix Comp sweetness, full Shimano 105, Mavic Open Pro wheels...

Okay, so you have to be a bike person to appreciate this, but I am a bike person...and every time I look at it I want to giggle like a school girl.

Mrs. GeekCyclist would want me to tell you that this bike is named after the hometown of her royal French ancestors through Pierre Apollonaire de Roubaix. (I hope I spelled that right.)

That picture doesn't quite do it justice, so here is one 'lifted' from the Specialized site:

Mind Your Own !@#$ Business

With gas prices at or above $4.00 a gallon there have been more cyclists on the roads than I have ever seen before. Some ride like they have been commuting for years, and others clearly have no idea how to ride safely or legally. There are two things I see frequently that really annoy me:

• Running Stoplights, especially in the busy downtown area; and
• Riding on the left, facing traffic.

I feel like each of these are egregious enough that given the chance I will try to (politely) discuss it with the offending cyclist. For light jumpers I point out that not only is it against the law and dangerous, it makes it difficult for motorists to predict what the next cyclist is going to do. It also irritates many motorists and cyclists alike. For wrong way riders, if I have time, I point out that it is more dangerous, cars don't expect you to be there, and that in an accident the cyclist will most likely be found at fault and recover nothing. Most people will either respond politely, or make it obvious that they are going to ignore me.

So the other day I was riding home on a two lane road with bike lanes in each direction. There was another cyclist on the opposite side of the road, riding in the bike lane but against traffic. We were almost matched in speed so I slowed down a little, waved, and said, "Great day for a ride." When he responded I said, "I don't know if you know this, but riding against traffic is against the law and very dangerous."

You would have though I had insulted his wife, mother and firstborn. He reacted to me with a violence almost physical, suggesting that I have an inappropriate relationship with both myself and my mother, among other things.

Maybe I should take his advise and just mind my own business. I know that since then I have seen two offenders and not said a word. That bothers me as well. Somehow, as a body of 'transportation' cyclists, we have to find a way to politely yet effectively educate new or oblivious cyclist about riding legally and safely.

A Rose By Any Other Name

It has been a very strange year for me so far. It has left me wondering; am I still a cyclist if I have only ridden 3 or 4 times so far this year?

For the last several years much of my identity has been tied to cycling. I promote cycling to work, provide 'maintenance' services for all the kids in my neighborhood, and usually ride several thousand miles a year.

This year I have even had a hard time making it to spinning classes more than once or twice a week. Admittedly, there are a number of factors that play into my lack of cycling:

• At work we went nearly 6 months down a developer on my team. My particular skill set meant much of the additional work fell to me.
• Between Mrs. GeekCyclist's work schedule and the school/activity schedule of the boys it seems like I have to be in more places at more times than before.
• About a month ago I took on coaching the local high school's freshman basketball team for the spring season.

I am going to try and rectify that over the next two weeks. First, our commuter club is doing tune-ups on Friday, and working on bikes always gets me in the mood to ride. The reason we are doing the tune-ups is that next week is Cycle Salt Lake Week as part of National Bike Month. We have a couple of bike tours and a ride to work with the mayor. I always get motivated during bike week/month.

Finally, I recently got around to signing up for the MS-150. I will post more on that later, including a link so that all my friends who have stuck by the blog while I have 'gone quiet' can support me while I ride. Signing up means organized training rides, and a need to get back in shape.

So, maybe I can still call myself a cyclist.

Backwards Thinking

My employer has a deal with the Utah Transit Authority that allows them to provide monthly bus passes to employees that forfeit their free parking four out of five days a week. It must be time for the deal to be renewed because they did a transportation survey this week. The survey had 4 questions, but the main points were these:

• If you drive and we offer you a free annual pass would you switch to the bus.
• If you drive and we let you keep your parking space, would you buy an annual pass for about $200.
• If you already ride the bus for free on our passes, would it bother you if we let other employees buy a pass and keep their parking spaces.

I think it is great that the powers that be are looking at ways to increase the use of public transportation, but I think they have it backwards. As it stands now, everyone is offered free (employer subsidized) parking, and if they are willing to give it up then they can have free public transit.

The question that that was missing was, "How many times a week would you drive and park if bus passes were free and parking cost x dollars per day or month?"

If we are serious about encouraging the use of mass transit we should reverse our thinking. We should provide transit passes to every employee for free, and then provide parking tokens, validations or punch passes at a reduced rate for those who want to drive.

For example - the $228 cost for the ECO pass comes out to a little less than $2 a day (there are ~ 240 working days in a year if you factor in holidays and vacation) Everyone could receive an ECO Pass and then the employer can create a parking voucher system that allows employees to buy 15 vouchers for $30 or $40. If they need to park frequently they can by a lot of vouchers. If not an employee can just buy one or two packs to last all year.

Another advantage to a Transit First mode of thinking is that it will minimize the number or single occupancy vehicle trips around a congested downtown area. Since a parking voucher would not normally allow for in and out privileges, and since every employee would have a pass, there would exist a strong incentive to use the bus and Trax to get around downtown for mid-day errands.

Be a Patriot, Ride a Bike

I came across this YouTube video of a Miller High Life commercial via the Commute By Bike blog. I have never embedded a video so I thought this might be a good first try:

Enjoy. And stop on over at Commute By Bike; it's a great cycling site.

Gorgeous Day for a Ride

Just so we are clear; There is usually a delay of a day or two between when a particular event happens and when I get a chance to write about it. The day of which I speak in the title was actually last Saturday.

I had to get up early because JuniorClimber (who hasn't blogged in over a year) made the high school basketball team and had practice at 8. So I drove him to the practice and returned home and got the road bike down from the hooks in my basement. It has been weeks upon weeks since I last showered the road bike with some love.

I made a multi-leg journey in perfect 'utility' or transportational cycling style. First I rode a couple miles to the local rec center where I attended my Saturday morning spinning class. I know, I know. When ever I ride to spinning I get a few weird looks and comments, but spinning has really helped me maintain my fitness this year, and I know I ride harder in an hour of spinning than I do in any of my normal outdoor rides.

After spinning there was a parents meeting for the basketball team. The high school is pretty close to the rec center, so that ride wasn't far. While I was in the meeting my wife sent me a text asking me to pick up her prescription at the pharmacy. That meant another 8 miles round trip which was just what I needed.

The weather was perfect. High 50's to low 60's with hardly any wind.

I fear we may not see as nice a day for cycling until March or April.

How to Irritate Three Women at Once

I love my spinning class. The depth of my love is largely a result of my spinning class being the only cycling I have been doing for weeks. The class is held three times a week, has a great instructor, and a group of 3-4 'regulars' who make it to most of the classes. On days when it's only me and the instructor she tends to customize the class to the things I am working on.

During yesterday's class we had completed two of the three core sections and were finishing up with a seated sprinting section. It's not so much that I like the sprinting drills, but just that I am pretty good at those drills. I can spin at a much higher cadence when seated than most of the other participants and usually have to turn the tension up a bit to keep from bouncing off the bike. After the first sprint Ali was complementing our effort and doing the typical motivational pep talk about working hard and sticking with it. I swear I heard her say, "Two more laps and then we cool it down."

We did another sprint and after returning to pace Ali said, "One minute at this pace and then we cool down." In the seconds after that comment I made the critical mistake of not staying quiet. Instead I said, "You mean we aren't doing one more?" At that moment I was subjected to the glares of Ali and the other two participants. The glares continued through the 'added' sprint...

I am going to miss class tomorrow because of another commitment. I think they may let me back in the class on Saturday, but we'll have to see.

On Your Left

The Jordan River Parkway is a fairly typical urban greenway with a paved shared-use trail. It gets a lot of use by walkers, runners, skaters and cyclists, especially on the weekends.

A while back I took a group of scouts 'hiking' on the parkway and before our hike we had a discussion about courtesy and behavior on the parkway. We talked about yielding the right of way, walking single file, keeping the noise to a respectful level, etc. For almost the entire 10 mile hike we had no conflicts between trail users.

Then near the end something interesting happened. We had been passed by several cyclists, most of whom slowed, and announced themselves either vocally or with a bell. Now I ride the parkway all the time, and I know how annoying it gets to be saying "On your left." every two or three minutes, especially when the pedestrians are wearing headphones and can't hear you anyway. But I still try to do it.

As we passed under a bridge, one of the scouts up ahead of me picked up a piece of rope or twine and began swinging it around. You can probably guess what happened... Shortly thereafter a cyclist on a fairly nice bike, kitted out, zoomed past me. Why do I say zoomed? Because not only was he traveling the fastest by far when compared to all the cyclists who had passed us; he was moving so fast that I could not yell the scout's name before the cyclist overtook him. The cyclist was promptly, but quite accidentally hit in the face with the swinging rope. He turned and expressed his displeasure in an understandable, but I though excessively vile manner and rode up the trail.

I told the scout that he shared the blame for the accident, and shouldn't be swinging the rope. I also told him that it wasn't entirely his fault, because the cyclist was traveling too fast while overtaking, and did not announce himself.

I had a chance to express that opinion to the cyclist as well; he came riding back the other direction a few minutes later. I told him as politely as I could that the scout was sorry, but that by simply announcing his presence, which is common courtesy if not legally required, would have saved the scout the embarrassment and him the pain. Unfortunately I think my comments fell on deaf ears.