Lately, it's been bitterly cold here in the city, and cabin fever is setting in. It can be difficult to get out and ride regularly in this weather and just getting bundled up enough can be a big ordeal. Fortunately, it was relatively warm on Sunday, and so I took advantage of it by going out at night, after finishing all of the errands for the day. (Seems like I'm never able to get out during the day time in winter). Riding is often better when you have a destination in mind, or at least a goal to achieve, and so I decided to ride out to my office in the burbs. Since starting this job, I've been curious about how feasible it would be for me to commute by bike to work - It's roughly 10 miles one way by bike, which isn't too bad, but I'd be dealing with both city and suburban traffic and arriving sweaty and without the convenience of a shower. Still, I've been curious, so I bundled up and headed out.
It took a lot longer than I thought. I had estimated it would take about half an hour, but it ended up taking at least twice as long. Part of the ride was spent cruising down the bike lanes on Elston. That was the easy part. After that I hopped onto the North Branch Chicago River Trail, and that's when things got difficult.
The condition of the trail was the equivalent of rocky singletrack covered in ice. Frozen snow full of footprints and ruts. It would have been nice to have a 29'er... maybe... maybe even a fatbike... At one point, I rode through a hidden puddle that was covered with a thin layer of ice and snow. The puddle was about 6 inches deep and the water quickly froze and coated the surface of my rims in ice - rendering my brakes practically useless. (I guess in this one situation, I'd have to give +1 point to the disc vs. canti debate. Although, Paul doesn't make a disc brake, and so I guess I'll be sticking to cantis). Eventually I made it to the office, after straying from the trail and hiking about half a mile through the woods.
In conclusion, cycling to work is very feasible, but not at all convenient. At least not in the winter. The ride was super fun though, and it was nice to get back on a trail and ride in the snow. It reminded me of the many Slender Fungus rides through DeKalb in the dead of winter. The SFCA flame still burns within me.
(P.S. I apologize for the crappy iPhone pics. I brought a real camera with, but when I took it out to snap a couple photos, I found that the battery was already dead. I just hate that...)
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