Back on the Bike
I've started riding everywhere on my bike again. Finally. After not riding for over three months, I'm out of shape and ready to start crankin'. I also purchased a fancy little u-lock that fits in my back pocket (the Evolution Mini).
San Francisco has way, WAY gnarlier hills than Seattle. Holy shit.
Lake Washington Loop
Two friends and I cycled around the Lake Washington Loop this Memorial Day Sunday. We started at Gasworks park, headed north on the Burke-Gilman, east towards lake Samammish, south through Bellevue and Renton, then finally north back to Seattle. Along the way we stopped at Marymoor park to check out the RC flying field and the velodrome, which was unfortunately closed for maintenance. The whole ride was about 60 miles and took 4.5 hours, not including stopping. Including stopping the ride took about 6 hours, because we spent a lot of time at Marymoor and stopped for a smoothy in downtown Bellevue. There's only one really big hill at about mile 25, but I would say that a large majority of the ride is flat. We only spent a small amount of time on high-traffic roads, the rest being spent either on trails or low-use roads. It was an awesome ride, and I would totally recommend it.
I'm thinking about stepping it up next weekend if the weather is nice, so stay tuned for more Seattle cycling!
Karma Prevails – A Tale of Passing
I've complained before about cycling passing etiquette. I was stopped at a red light on my morning commute earlier today, when just as the light turned green a dude in a super fancy, multi-thousand-dollar bike whizzed by me. This particular light was at the base of a long, steep hill, and I was determined to catch up with him. He was hauling, but I managed to pass him and his insane bike. I kept a 16mph pace climbing Dexter from the Fremont bridge, and I was hammered when I got to the top. He passed me on the gradual downhill leading up to downtown, but before the commute was over I had my vengeance. Just before my turn onto 2nd Ave., I sprinted and got ahead of him. BOOM!
Karma prevails, at least in this case. I've been passed plenty a time with bad etiquette and not been able to catch up, but not this time. Vengeance is sweet.
For the record I think it's fun to complain about this, and I don't actually get angry when I get passed with bad etiquette.
San Juan Island Cycle
Last weekend my roommate, Matt, and I cycled around San Juan island. I thought I would describe our trip for those of you who might be interested. It was a ton of fun, and I would recommend it everyone.
Drive from Seattle to Anacortes
The trip started with Matt and me leaving Seattle at 6:00am. We arrived in Anacortes at around 7:30am, just in time for the 7:45am ferry. Look here for a complete ferry schedule. The drive was quick and easy.
Ferry from Anacortes to Friday Harbor, San Juan Island
The ferry ride cost us around $14 each -- $10 per person and $4 per bike. It was very empty and very pleasant. The ferry weaved through the San Juan islands and stopped at Orcas Island before arriving at Friday Harbor. The ride was about 90 minutes and probably would have been around an hour without the Orcas Island stop.
Cycle around the Island
We started and ended our loop in Friday Harbor. The route we took is mapped here. Google says it's 25 miles, but I have no way of confirming that. The roads were constantly changing pitch, giving us short amounts of time on downhills and long amounts of time on uphills. The island is generally flat, so each hill was relatively moderate but still challenging. The whole ride took us about three hours, including at least 45 minutes of site seeing, relaxation, and photography. The scenery was totally diverse -- we traveled along cliff-side roads, through thick forests, beside farms (including Alpaca farms!), and across small prairies. It was tons of fun!
About half way around the island was a national park and campsite. If I were to do this ride again, I would pack a sleeping back and tarp and spend the night at this campsite. The site is right on the water with a view of Victoria Island, and it was relatively deserted when we stopped to rest.
We ate awesome fish and beef burgers at The Hungry Clam restaurant after our ride in Friday Harbor's quant downtown. We also took a short stroll around the town, which consisted mostly of souvenir and tourist shops.
Ferry to Anacortes, Drive to Seattle
The trip back to Seattle was more or less the same as the trip up. However, this time our ferry had come from Canada. This meant that we had to go through customs on our way off the boat, which took all of two or three minutes. We didn't have our passports, and the border patrol officer was content with that.
Conclusions
All in all the trip was awesome, and I'm totally glad I did it. It's a relatively easy ride, but the scenery and isolation make it worthwhile. I wish I would have camped one night at the national park, but I suppose it was nice to pack light. Actually, come to think of it, it would be pretty challenging to bike around the island twice in a row. Maybe I'll do that next 
.
Attn: Cyclists, Please Use Passing Etiquette
So I'm somewhat competitive, and I cycle to and from work everyday. My commute is roughly six miles each way, and I tend to enjoy it most of the time, at least when it's not poring rain and freezing cold. However, lately I've been frustrated with a few cyclist commuters who don't following what I like to call, "Passing Etiquette." For sake of example, let's assume that Biker A is the lead biker and Biker B is the biker following Biker A. The following cases outline when Bike B can and cannot pass Biker A:
Biker B can pass Biker A if:
-Biker B and Biker A are both on the open road
Biker B cannot pass Biker A if:
-Biker A is waiting at a stop light
-Biker A is kindly letting a car turn or pull out
All bikers who do not following the Passing Etiquette are subject to open road passes, tailgating, and general loss of glory. (haha)
It probably sounds like I hate when people pass me while I'm waiting on something. It definitely frustrates me, but it's all good. I just thought it'd be funny to be formal/serious about it.
My First Cycling Accident
Check these pictures out. I was turning onto Valley St. from Fairview Ave. N. and got caught in a train track. Here's the map. I fell so fast that I didn't even have time to avoid it. I thought I was hitting the tracks at a good enough angle, but I guess I was wrong. I went down and luckily didn't get run over by the cars behind and beside me. I messed up my handle bars, pedal, back axle, left elbow, and left chin, but me and my bike are fine. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right?
This was definitely an eye-opener for me. I need to be more careful in traffic, and I need to avoid train tracks at all costs. I knew train tracks were bad prior to this accident, but now I understand their true wrath.
Bonus image thanks to Sierra:
