Another episode of Hybrid and Folder: Hybrid and Roadie discuss feelings of inadequacy and a crushing lack of purpose, or Winter came early this year

Roadie: *sigh*
Hybrid: Welcome to my life.
Roadie: So, I was at the Uptown winter bike tour the other day, and---
Hybrid: Huh, what? You? Why? That's my turf!
Roadie: Uh, I think you must think the entire world is your turf.
Hybrid: Pretty much, but go on.
Roadie: Well, so, I was at the Uptown tour, and, see, there was another Cross Check there, and---
Hybrid: It happens.
Roadie: Uh, to you perhaps, but, well, you see, I'm a niche model, so, aren't I supposed to be, well, unique?
Hybrid: Hey, it's a big city with lots of bike snobs. Frankly I'm surprised to see any bikes like myself anymore. Who rides a Trek hybrid in 2009?
Roadie: Uh, it's almost 2010, you know.
Hybrid: So it is. My, how time flies when you commute. Which I do. Every weekday.
Roadie: Um, so anyway, not only was there another Cross Check there, but this one had a Brooks saddle.
Hybrid: And that made you feel all jealous and inadequate? Come on, I thought the only value of those ugly things was for street cred among the retro crowd, like those fancy road bikes that don't ever leave the city and consequently never go on any actual roads. Unlike me. I've been on roads before, you know, lots of times, even though I am a hybrid. Anyway, what's your point? It's not like you're totally retro or anything.
Roadie: Uh, bar-end shifters?
Hybrid: Okay, that is a good point.
Roadie: Yeah, so, like, this other Cross Check also had road tires.
Hybrid: So what? So do you.
Roadie: Um, these are not road tires.
Hybrid: Sure they are!
Roadie: Uh, no they're not.
Hybrid: Come on, have you even seen most roads in rural Illinois? They're paved with this devilish substance called chip seal. All the bumpiness of gravel plus the unyielding hardness of concrete, until it deteriorates and basically turns back into gravel. I've seen it before, lots of times. Would've been nice to have tires like yours, actually.
Roadie: So, how did that aluminum frame of yours work out all those times?
Hybrid: *pause*
Roadie: Well...?
Hybrid: I hate you.
Roadie: Uh, well, I'm starting to hate myself. I never go anywhere.
Hybrid: My back wheel, you never go anywhere! You go everywhere except work!
Roadie: Well, nowhere else you've been, really. *sigh*
Hybrid: Cheer up---it's winter.
Roadie: Uh, isn't that an oxymoron? And don't you hate me?
Hybrid: Only in practice, but it doesn't work in theory.
Roadie: Um, I don't get it...
Hybrid: Nevermind.

Another CFL burnout

That's three in, what, three years?

The end of the Arkel Tail Rider

When the n00b acquired Frankenbike late this past summer, I passed along to him my old Arkel Tail Rider, as I had figured that if anyone could destroy once and for all anything made by Arkel, it would be him (with his proven track record---trail record?---of destroying the supposedly indestructible), and I was still insanely curious to see how long it would take. He also needed a swag bag for all the bike accessories I got him for his birthday. Admittedly about half of that was secondhand from my own swag stash, thanks to my rather expensive habit of acquiring two or three of everything. In the case of the Tail Rider, the D-rings had ripped out, the velcro straps were shot, and the whole thing just looked kind of sad, so I bought another one. But as long as one didn't mind securing it with bungee cords and possibly setting the Bicycle Movement back several years by means of ugly-ass accessories that Normal People wouldn't be caught dead using off-bike, the old one was still perfectly adequate for occasional use. So when would it finally be too worn out even for that?

Alas, we'll never know. Being still very much a Car Person when I'm not around, he found it most convenient to keep his bike stuff in his car so it would be on hand when he came over and I had some crazy idea to ride somewhere instead of drive. But last Wednesday evening, on account of the weather (just above freezing and miserably steady rain), we opted instead to take the L; meanwhile, some jackass broke into his car and made off with, among other things, his bike bag. The truly awful part, as he pointed out, was the fact that it probably ended up in a dumpster as soon as the culprit figured out there was nothing of any street value inside, unless there's a pawn shop owner somewhere on the southwest side who understands what a good bicycle headlight and some rechargeable batteries are worth.

Another t-shirt idea

"If I were driving a car, you'd still be stuck behind me."

Why do we hate the people we love?

Some jackass SUV driver beeps at me for seemingly no reason while I'm trying to balance between a pothole and a double-parked car, and I'm instantly all in a fury---




---until I realize it's my boyfriend and he just wanted to say hi.




Stereotyping, while wrong, is pretty useful 99% of the time, but that remaining 1% really bites you in the ass. It's just not worth it.

[True story, some weeks ago.]

Hipstress

So that's why I never followed through with actually doing cyclocross...

Hey, as soon as somebody invents midnight cyclocross in Chicago, I'm totally there. With my three headlights and four taillights.

Speaking of economic stimulus, any readers in IDOT District 8?

Have the Vadalabene Bikeway lanes been replaced along the Great River Road? Or am I in for a rude surprise when I return next summer?

They can't have not replaced them, right? I mean, it's a state fracking trail. It's been there since the 1970s. The bike lanes can't not be there. There's no way they could just not put them back and leave it that way. Right? Right?

"Get outta here, ya ugly normals!"

I'm wasting an awful lot of time lately being obsessed with clothes. As though I didn't have anything else to worry about.

The annual member meeting of what used to be the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation was some weeks ago, and for the first time I paid active attention to what people were wearing. I noticed no small number of people dressed for a board meeting, and still others dressed for an evening at the symphony. But there were also a fair number of people dressed about as casual as you can get, short of flopping out of bed and showing up somewhere. Most of the attendees looked as though they'd just gotten off of work, and in all likelihood they had. Some of us probably looked as though we'd just gotten of work and then frantically ridden 5-10 miles to get to the meeting on time, but nobody else really seemed to care. A few were dressed in full cycling regalia or other undoubtedly athletic apparel, but nobody was sneering or laughing at them. People came in, casually hung up waterproof jackets, gracefully set panniers or messenger bags down in the corner, nonchalantly draped helmets and safety vests over their arms, proceeded to mingle with each other as though it were all just the most completely normal thing in the world.

Later that night it occurred to me that at these kinds of gatherings, we don't really give the slightest damn what each other is wearing.

The next night occurred to me that in the Real World of Normal People wearing Regular Clothes in Mainstream Society, we still don't give a damn, or at least we don't waste a whole lot of time pondering how ridiculous a complete stranger's outfit looks.

But on the Internet, apparently---and ironically, if you think about it---the Bike Fashion vs. Bike Regular vs. Bike Specific debate goes on and on and on, and people write novel-length commentaries about what they and their fellow cyclists should be wearing in order to attract more newbies, secure more acceptance, and gain more visibility.

(Ah, but is that literal or figurative visibility? Earth tones are in this year, after all.)

Seriously, why do we care? Aren't there more important things to worry about than what to wear?

They're coming

DNA from Asian carp found 7 miles from Lake Michigan

On the Great Lakes side of the electrified barrier, mind you.

Clothing theme rides I'd like to see because I'd totally come

Goth Ride
Cosplay Ride
Slow Spandex Ride
Chicagoland Bicycle Federation T-shirt Ride
Marshall Field's/Carson Pirie Scott Final Clearance Sale Ride
REI Ride
Leather Ride
Vegan Pleather Ride
OMG Did You See Last Night's Episode of America's Next Top Model Ride

Fox!

I forgot to tell you about the red fox I encountered on the Lakefront Trail late Saturday night, near the Columbia Yacht Club. Beautiful animal.

[Aren't you glad we didn't drive?]

RTA public hearings for 2010 budget

As seen on PDF.

Monday, December 7
RTA Headquarters Building, Chicago, 9am
Waukegan Public Library, Waukegan, 6pm

Tuesday, December 8
Cicero Public Library, Cicero, 6pm
South Suburban Mayors & Managers, East Hazel Crest, 6pm

Wednesday, December 9
Village of Glen Ellyn, Glen Ellyn, 6pm
McHenry County - 6 p.m.
City of Crystal Lake, Crystal Lake

Thursday, December 10
Aurora Public Library, Aurora, 6pm
Joliet Historical Museum, Joliet, 6pm

General Carlessness guide to winter [cycling] in Chicago

The thing about winter in Chicago is that it sucks. Bicycling in winter isn't a whole lot of fun, and anyone who tells you otherwise is clinging to their delusion in order to survive, lest they succumb to a greater madness. But you know what, walking in winter also sucks, as does cramming onto a stuffy train in winter, waiting for the bus in winter, and digging your car out of the snow only to find that it won't start in winter. So all things considered, riding a bike is really no more unbearable than any other form of transportation.

This will be only my second (noncontinuous) complete winter as an all-season bike commuter, but it will be my tenth as a car-free city dweller, and I assure you that a lot of the special gear you'll need for winter bike commuting are articles that, if you ask me, should already be included in your wardrobe of "regular" clothes. In fact, they probably are.

Coverings for the head, face, and hands. At the more general end of the spectrum are your basic hats, scarves, and mittens or gloves. I usually prefer earmuffs and an insulated hood to a hat, but it does the same thing. Get the warmest gloves/mittens you can find. They will be ugly; just accept this. The point at which you are biking often enough to develop a soul-crushing hatred of wet fleece is the point at which you should consider getting a balaclava, but until then you can probably skip it unless somebody gives you one. Or you succumb to Bicycle Movement peer pressure. Whichever. In the meantime, a simple fleece scarf will suffice.

A waterproof top layer with ample butt coverage. That cute hip-length jacket is going to ride up as soon as you bend over your handlebars, so maybe that's why you haven't considered winter biking a viable option. Trust me, a longer coat will keep you so much warmer no matter what you're doing, so you may as well get one. Make sure it's waterproof. Don't trust anything labeled "water resistant" because it will probably only keep you dry in the event of fog. Oh, and don't use liquid laundry detergent on your outerwear; it compromises the waterproofing material.

Insulated waterproof boots. You'll thank me later.

Socks. Every winter I'm amazed by the number of people who don't seem to wear socks, or at least not much in the way of socks. Wool will keep you warm. Acrylic might. Cotton will not. Nylon most definitely will not.

A huge bag. You need to keep your hat, scarf, gloves, and extra socks somewhere, you know.

Steel: For real?

I'm accustomed to reading about or listening to people praise the advantages of steel bicycle frames without ever actually specifying what those are (with the exception of extraordinary amounts of nostalgia for some undefined "good old days" that allegedly took place sometime between last century and earlier this decade). However, the n00b is calling BS. He wants to know what it is that makes steel better than aluminum, and under what circumstances. I told him to Google it, but I think he landed in the middle of a pissing contest on bikeforums.net because the next thing I know he was huddled in the corner whimpering and playing with his car keys.

Well, I'm more inclined to just accept the fact that some particular bike is made of whatever it's made of and that's that, but I can easily see him turning into the guy you see riding loops around the park on an all-carbon road bike (because it's faster!) in a sweatsuit and cross trainers. So methinks we need to settle this now.

Why steel?

Wow

It's working!

Cyclelicious:
More Federal dollars for bike projects: Federal Transit Agency seeks public comment on proposed policy change for pedestrian and bicycle access projects

Design and execution is where these projects will stand or fall, of course. [/nitpick]