Subway platform

Right Hooks Aren't Good For You

View Cathartic Mapping in a larger map

I had an encounter with an overly aggressive cyclist on my commute in to work today, which is recounted on the map above.

Colder days are here again

Colder days thin out the herd. Those left over are the faster, healthier cyclists. Between now and the first snowfall, get out your faster bikes for the commute, because the average speed will increase until people are riding their beaters again.

Idea: Start a bike gang

note: not an actual bike gang.

Riding to work along Harbord today, I noticed that I had unwittingly rolled into a critical mass of cyclists (not pictured above).

It wasn't exactly critical mass, but more like a convoy. It got me to thinking, "it would be nice to ride like this all the time, kind of like having a roving pace line that demands respect."

We wouldn't have to be a militant bike gang like you'd see in a movie. We wouldn't go around beating on anyone who crossed us, or anything like that.

We could just provide mutual support and strength in numbers. And matching jean jackets with custom patches.

And we'd be called The Bike Gooniun...



Takers?

Back At It, And By Christ It's Cold!

Sometime last week, the $20+ weekly expense of the TTC started to seem like an extravagance to me. Since then, I've been riding to work again, and it's not fun. I miss reading on the subway.

As for the biking, I have all the winter gear, so that the ride is doable. Unfortunately, all of the fenders and snow pants in the world won't plow the bike lanes, or convince motorists to give you a bit of space.

On a more fun note, the Bike Awards are being held tonight at the Gladstone. The awards themselves are usually insignificant, but it's a good excuse to see some of the cyclati.

Frozen bike image from Teppo.

Death Clock

I've added a widget to the side bar of the blog which I have called Death Clock. People spend a lot of time commuting to and from work, and those hours add up very quickly. You can plug in your own estimates and see how many hours of free time you have in a week, and how many of those are spent commuting.

For the full death clock experience, my favourite is here.