I'm turning into a wuss

dgk <[email hidden]> wrote in news:0umsk19h0dh6r9jvn9odnp1ag0fiqegq8b@
4ax.com:

Quoted message said:

I really need to get back to biking though. I biked all through last
winter and it is going to be tough getting back into that routine
unless I do it through November. Oh well, I'll have to wait until the
standing water gets off the roadways at the very least.

May I suggest taking a temporary position delivering chinese food until the
new job comes through? Looking out my window, I see plenty of these guys
on 14th Street.

--ag

DGK--

I live in Florida, so my summers tend to have surprisingly bad weather
for cycling, especially for those of us who work. The seniors and retirees
can ride during the morning, but I get stuck with the afternoon
thunderstorms. Winter weather here is fantastic, not usually much rain. The
problem is, it gets dark here at 5:30 or so in the winter months. I don't
really mind riding in rain, but the darkness freaks me out. I live in a
semi-rural place, and there is absolutely no lighting on most roads. I'm
hoping I don't get run over this winter on my commute...

Gooserider said:

DGK--

I live in Florida, so my summers tend to have surprisingly bad weather
for cycling, especially for those of us who work. The seniors and retirees
can ride during the morning, but I get stuck with the afternoon
thunderstorms. Winter weather here is fantastic, not usually much rain. The
problem is, it gets dark here at 5:30 or so in the winter months. I don't
really mind riding in rain, but the darkness freaks me out. I live in a
semi-rural place, and there is absolutely no lighting on most roads. I'm
hoping I don't get run over this winter on my commute...

Of course it is very flat. That's a plus. But perhaps you get attacked
by fire ants when you have to change a flat? I was once driving across
alligator alley and had to change a tire. I didn't realize what those
ants were until my hands started to swell.

dgk said:

I had some knee pain and have been off biking for a few weeks. I went
to the doctor and had an MRI done which showed no significant damage
but I'm on an anti-inflamatory of some kind. Well, I wanted to get
back to riding this week to see how it reacted but I'm in the
northeast and it has just been horrible weather. It's been pouring for
a week and is expected to continue into the weekend.

The weather has been disspiriting. I've missed a few days myself. Lucky
for me, *not* riding makes my bad knee get worse, so it's a constant
incentive to get back on the bike. Almost as powerful as the bleeping
stationary bike, which is like the Bizarro world version of real
cycling.

Quoted message said:

Plus, I'm leaving my job (might have another one lined up) and I might
not be able to bike to the new one as easily as the old one. Or at
least it will take me some time to build up to showing up in spandex
rather than a suit.

Now, see, that would be a deal-breaker for me. No bikee, no workee.
Fortunately, I'm in a line of work that means I don't even own a suit.

Quoted message said:

I really need to get back to biking though. I biked all through last
winter and it is going to be tough getting back into that routine
unless I do it through November. Oh well, I'll have to wait until the
standing water gets off the roadways at the very least.

Riding through puddles is the prize, not the challenge!

RichC

Do you have a trainer or rollers? Especially if you've got a knee
you'd like to protect, a trainer might be a good alternative. Gets you
out of the rain, too. Nasbar's got a couple of mag trainers for under
$100 right now.

-JR

"dgk" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Gooserider said:

DGK--

I live in Florida, so my summers tend to have surprisingly bad
weather
for cycling, especially for those of us who work. The seniors and retirees
can ride during the morning, but I get stuck with the afternoon
thunderstorms. Winter weather here is fantastic, not usually much rain.
The
problem is, it gets dark here at 5:30 or so in the winter months. I don't
really mind riding in rain, but the darkness freaks me out. I live in a
semi-rural place, and there is absolutely no lighting on most roads. I'm
hoping I don't get run over this winter on my commute...

Of course it is very flat. That's a plus. But perhaps you get attacked
by fire ants when you have to change a flat? I was once driving across
alligator alley and had to change a tire. I didn't realize what those
ants were until my hands started to swell.

Not so flat here. South Florida is very flat, and the Panhandle is, too. I
live on the Gulf coast two counties north of St. Pete, and there is lots of
elevation change here. Not mountainous, but it's not flat, either. This area
had lots of mining, and there are caves and such. The afternoon
thunderstorms absolutely SUCK. I don't mind rain, but lightning crashing and
40 mph winds will ruin a ride quickly.

Gooserider said:

Not so flat here. South Florida is very flat, and the Panhandle is, too. I
live on the Gulf coast two counties north of St. Pete, and there is lots of
elevation change here. Not mountainous, but it's not flat, either.

I thought the highest point if FL is ~ 400'. Is that so? If that is
even close- that is flat.

gds said:

I thought the highest point if FL is ~ 400'. Is that so? If that is
even close- that is flat.

The highest point in Florida is way up north in the panhandle, within a
mile of the Alabama line. Altitude is 345', the lowest of all fifty state
high points.
I kind of suspect that fact is related to the fact that Fla. leads the
nation in lightning deaths.

Bill

-------------------------------------------------------------
| With enough education and brains the average man would make |
| a good lawyer - and so would the average lawyer. |
| -Gracie Allen |
-------------------------------------------------------------

Quoted message said:

I kind of suspect that fact is related to the fact that Fla. leads the
nation in lightning deaths.

Interesting! I've always heard that my area (Tucson) lead the country
in lightning stikes. So what explains the low death rate here vs. FL?

gds said:

Quoted message said:

I kind of suspect that fact is related to the fact that Fla. leads the
nation in lightning deaths.

Quoted message said:

Interesting! I've always heard that my area (Tucson) lead the country
in lightning stikes. So what explains the low death rate here vs. FL?

Terrain. We get a lot of lightning >strikes< here in Utah too, but
most of them hit the mountains. First thing you should do if there's a
threat of lightning is get to lower ground. How you gonna do that in a
place like Florida?

Bill

----------------------------------------------------
| Only when the last tree has died & the last river |
| has been poisoned & the last fish has been caught |
| will we realize that we cannot eat money. |
----------------------------------------------------

Quoted message said:

gds said:

Quoted message said:

I kind of suspect that fact is related to the fact that Fla. leads the
nation in lightning deaths.

Quoted message said:

Interesting! I've always heard that my area (Tucson) lead the country
in lightning stikes. So what explains the low death rate here vs. FL?

Terrain. We get a lot of lightning >strikes< here in Utah too, but
most of them hit the mountains. First thing you should do if there's a
threat of lightning is get to lower ground. How you gonna do that in a
place like Florida?

Makes sense. I imagine population density is also a risk factor.

"gds" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I kind of suspect that fact is related to the fact that Fla. leads the
nation in lightning deaths.

Interesting! I've always heard that my area (Tucson) lead the country
in lightning stikes. So what explains the low death rate here vs. FL?

You have to remember that Florida is a peninsula. Storms travel from the
Atlantic to the Gulf, or from the Gulf to the Atlantic. In the summertime,
there are thunderstoms every afternoon. Not almost every afternoon---every
afternoon.

http://eo.ucar.edu/webweather/thunder.html

More thunderstorms = more lightning = more lighting strikes. It has nothing
to do with elevation or anything. It has to do with the fact that Florida
has more thunderstorms than anyplace in the US.

"gds" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Gooserider said:

Not so flat here. South Florida is very flat, and the Panhandle is, too.
I
live on the Gulf coast two counties north of St. Pete, and there is lots
of
elevation change here. Not mountainous, but it's not flat, either.

I thought the highest point if FL is ~ 400'. Is that so? If that is
even close- that is flat.

Miami is flat. South Louisiana is flat. My commute is up and down. I lived
in Wyoming, so I know what mountains are like. I don't have that, but my
commute is not a flat cruise, either.

"gds" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

gds said:

[email hidden] wrote:
> I kind of suspect that fact is related to the fact that Fla. leads
> the
> nation in lightning deaths.
>

Quoted message said:

Interesting! I've always heard that my area (Tucson) lead the country
in lightning stikes. So what explains the low death rate here vs. FL?

Terrain. We get a lot of lightning >strikes< here in Utah too, but
most of them hit the mountains. First thing you should do if there's a
threat of lightning is get to lower ground. How you gonna do that in a
place like Florida?

Makes sense. I imagine population density is also a risk factor.

Nope. Florida simply has more thunderstorms.

Quoted message said:

Gooserider <[email hidden]> wrote:
:> "gds" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
:> news:[email hidden]...
:>>
:>> [email hidden] wrote:
:>>> I kind of suspect that fact is related to the fact that Fla.
:>>> leads the nation in lightning deaths.
:>>>
:>>
:>> Interesting! I've always heard that my area (Tucson) lead the
:>> country
:>> in lightning stikes. So what explains the low death rate here vs.
:>> FL?
:>
:> You have to remember that Florida is a peninsula. Storms travel from
:> the Atlantic to the Gulf, or from the Gulf to the Atlantic. In the
:> summertime, there are thunderstoms every afternoon. Not almost every
:> afternoon---every afternoon.
:>
:> http://eo.ucar.edu/webweather/thunder.html
:>
:> More thunderstorms = more lightning = more lighting strikes. It has
:> nothing to do with elevation or anything. It has to do with the fact
:> that Florida has more thunderstorms than anyplace in the US.

I remember spending a summer down is extreme southern MS in the yellow area
on the map...that gets a lot of thunderstorms. I was amazed how EVERY
afternoon I could hear lighting strikes almost one after another for long
periods of time. It was other-worldly strange....

Gooserider said:

You have to remember that Florida is a peninsula. Storms travel from the
Atlantic to the Gulf, or from the Gulf to the Atlantic. In the summertime,
there are thunderstoms every afternoon. Not almost every afternoon---every
afternoon.

That is undoubtedly so, but OTOH, Florida having no mountains does not
get orographic precipitation. I watched a PBS show on lightning once, and
I think that's where I heard that Florida is #1 for lightning deaths. But
that same show stated that scientists who want to study lightning, go to
the Southwest.
Probably it's a combination of all the factors: number of storms,
population density, and flat terrain, and possibly others that don't
spring to mind just now.

Bill

--------------------------------------------------
| A dictatorship would be a heck of a lot easier, |
| there's no question about it. |
| --George W. Bush (AP, 7/27/2001 |
--------------------------------------------------

On 14 Oct 2005 13:23:47 -0700, "SlowRider" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Do you have a trainer or rollers? Especially if you've got a knee
you'd like to protect, a trainer might be a good alternative. Gets you
out of the rain, too. Nasbar's got a couple of mag trainers for under
$100 right now.

-JR

I could do that I guess, or go to the gym and do NordicTrak and the
exercise machines. I don't really have a good place to put the bike on
rollers in the house. I'd be killed if it went in the living room. I
guess I could put the rollers in the garage. I could store them under
the bike. But I wouldn't use it. I don't use my own NordicTrak which
seems to have become a coat rack in the hallway.

Well, I've been so busy that I can't even get to newsgroups but I'm
back now. I took a three day class (Tue-Thurs) and on Wednesday I
biked in, for the first time in a month or so. Then I went to a
meeting around the same area, and at 8 PM decided I that the knee was
feeling well enough to bike home. Total round trip was 28 miles or so.

I figured that I'd rest a few days before trying again but the weather
report was for four days of rain starting Friday (today) so I biked in
again on Thursday. Went to Microsoft's NY HQ for a seminar, then to
class, then biked down (for the first time) to my current company's
new location WAYdowntown, biked back to Microsoft for an evening
seminar, and then took the train to near home and biked from there.
About 35 miles total. Probably not too smart.

My knee doesn't seem to be hurting but I AM still taking some
anti-inflamatory things so maybe it would be hurting if I wasn't. Ah
well, a few days off the bike and then next week I try again.

I had a big smile on my face biking in on Wednesday though. Knee not
hurting, nice cool weather, NO RAIN. And BACK ON THE BIKE!

Now if I can only get out of this job. I really REALLY need a few
months off. But, instead, I have a job interview after work today. I
hope I don't screw it up and get the job. Actually it's mine if I want
it, I know that already. I just don't think that it is what I want to
do but I'm going to find that out. It's computer programming but not
the language and stuff that I like. It is also right near where my
current job is, right near South Street Seaport. Which adds seven
miles to the round trip commute. From 25 to 32 miles I think. I don't
mind the miles but the added time is going to be tough.

I'll see. Still, back to riding just feels great.