Thursday, 1 September 2011
I found myself pushing hard today, since I left work a half hour later than I had hoped to. Late in the afternoon today, Chuck expressed a wish to go to a film at the Neon tonight, and during the phone call I looked up the times: Another Earth plays at 7:50. So I placed the burden on Chuck to have plans for dinner that would allow my arrival and shower to be done by 7 p.m.
The going was good through checkpoint 2, and high winds along the Mad River made my third leg much slower than I wanted. Nevertheless I made it home by about 6:40. Chuck was on his way back from Linh's Asian Market with two Vietnamese sandwiches for us.
Ride conditions
Temperature: 95 to 103°F at 17:30
Precipitation: none
Winds: 10 to 15 mph from the west
Clothing: Skinsuit, ankle socks, open-finger gloves
Bike: Lotus Legend fixed gear
Time: 00:41:29 for 11.92 miles
Heart rate: 133 bpm HRave, 147 bpm HRmax
Bikeway users: 19 cyclists, 4 pedestrians
Playback of the ride
Showing posts with label Linh's restaurant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Linh's restaurant. Show all posts
01 September 2011
29 June 2011
Bike-commute day 45—to home
Wednesday, 29 June 2011.
Biking home and thinking of what to prepare for dinner. Known immediately: broiled Salmon with a Worchestershire glaze. Inspired by the business near the bikeway: broiled Goi cuon from Linh's Vietnamese Restaurant. With a short jaunt to their location, I resumed the commute with four rolls packed into the backpack.
Ride conditions
Temperature: 81 to 94°F at 16:55
Precipitation: none
Winds: calm to 5 mph from northerly
Clothing: Skinsuit, ankle socks, open-finger gloves.
Bike: Lotus Legend fixed gear
Time: 00:43:06 for 12.05 miles
Heart rate: 126 bpm HRave, 140 bpm HRmax
Bikeway users: 13 cyclists, 20 pedestrians
Here is a playback of the ride.
Biking home and thinking of what to prepare for dinner. Known immediately: broiled Salmon with a Worchestershire glaze. Inspired by the business near the bikeway: broiled Goi cuon from Linh's Vietnamese Restaurant. With a short jaunt to their location, I resumed the commute with four rolls packed into the backpack.
Ride conditions
Temperature: 81 to 94°F at 16:55
Precipitation: none
Winds: calm to 5 mph from northerly
Clothing: Skinsuit, ankle socks, open-finger gloves.
Bike: Lotus Legend fixed gear
Time: 00:43:06 for 12.05 miles
Heart rate: 126 bpm HRave, 140 bpm HRmax
Bikeway users: 13 cyclists, 20 pedestrians
Here is a playback of the ride.
05 April 2011
Bike-commute day 11—Linh's restau and home
Tonight's ride home was a bit weird. I decided in the locker room to dress with only two layers, and I packed all four layers that I had worn this morning. Yeah, I knew that it was cooler than 50°F; yeah, I even asked Hunter Everett if he had been outside and whether I should add at least the Lycra tights.
But I found myself walking to the Lotus and thinking Well, it's not really cold, but it sure is cool. By the time the whipping winds took hold of my ride at the north edge of Research Park, I told myself I can stop anywhere, pull out a layer, and add it to my kit. I stopped at the Grismer store at Woodman, ripped off my shoes, pulled out the Lycra, pulled on the tights, tugged the crotch up, and then pulled the wool-Lycra jacket out, and put it on.
The wind and chill changed my mind about going to the gym, and determined my commute would include a nice, hot dinner at Linh's. So 15 minutes into my commute, I was seated and enjoying two goi cuon, and anticipating a steaming bowl of Hu Thieu ga saté (Chicken-shrimp noodle soup). Dayton marketing guru and political activist David Esrati came in with his family and knew that I was stopping at the best restau in Dayton on my way home from work.
Fully satisfied, I resumed my commute and arrived home after a leisurely ride.
Temperature: 46 to 50°F at 17:35, 46 to 48°F at 19:45
Precipitation: none
Winds: 10 to 20 mph
Clothing: Top 2 layers (Lycra longlseeve undershirt, skinsuit); ankle socks.; open-finger gloves. Then top 3 layers and bottom 2 layers.
Time: 0:xx:xx (no timepiece) for 11.86 miles
Bikeway users: 0 cyclists, 11 pedestrians, 5 dogs
17:55—depart from work.
—trestle remains at Linden.
dinner at Linh's
—west gate to Eastwood Park
—passing the zig-zag up from the Mad River Bikeway.
19:45—arrive home.
But I found myself walking to the Lotus and thinking Well, it's not really cold, but it sure is cool. By the time the whipping winds took hold of my ride at the north edge of Research Park, I told myself I can stop anywhere, pull out a layer, and add it to my kit. I stopped at the Grismer store at Woodman, ripped off my shoes, pulled out the Lycra, pulled on the tights, tugged the crotch up, and then pulled the wool-Lycra jacket out, and put it on.
The wind and chill changed my mind about going to the gym, and determined my commute would include a nice, hot dinner at Linh's. So 15 minutes into my commute, I was seated and enjoying two goi cuon, and anticipating a steaming bowl of Hu Thieu ga saté (Chicken-shrimp noodle soup). Dayton marketing guru and political activist David Esrati came in with his family and knew that I was stopping at the best restau in Dayton on my way home from work.
Fully satisfied, I resumed my commute and arrived home after a leisurely ride.
Temperature: 46 to 50°F at 17:35, 46 to 48°F at 19:45
Precipitation: none
Winds: 10 to 20 mph
Clothing: Top 2 layers (Lycra longlseeve undershirt, skinsuit); ankle socks.; open-finger gloves. Then top 3 layers and bottom 2 layers.
Time: 0:xx:xx (no timepiece) for 11.86 miles
Bikeway users: 0 cyclists, 11 pedestrians, 5 dogs
17:55—depart from work.
—trestle remains at Linden.
dinner at Linh's
—west gate to Eastwood Park
—passing the zig-zag up from the Mad River Bikeway.
19:45—arrive home.
Bike-commute day 11—to work
How not to smooth auto-bike traffic
The rains stopped last evening, and the roads were dry in the morning. But as I crossed the Monument Street bridge, shielding my eyes from the bright sunshine, I saw the river was overflowing to the bikeway. Since I was on my Lotus fixed-gear, taking the gravel concourse above the river was out of the question, and I took the sidewalk—slowly, careful of two pedestrians and one with a vacuum cleaner in tow—against the flow of traffic in the street. At the ziz-zag down near the Green Bridge, I saw that the Mad River was living up to its name: an even higher and stronger flow was coursing into the Miami, and the bikeway was flooded at least to the railroad trestle near Valley Street.
So I took Monument Avenue through the light manufacturing area.
One pickup driver did everything possible to thwart his easy entrance to Monument from a service yard. As I rode along Monument going east, a pickup driver pulled to the street from a Rumpke service yard, stopped, looked both ways, apparently saw me, and released his brakes enough to coast an additional 3 feet. I interpreted his coasting as impatience and potentially a sign that he had not seen me approaching. I slowed a lot, expecting him to pull into the street. He stopped again. It was clear he had seen me, and he had just anticipated moving into the street prematurely. His impatience (my inference here) resulted in a few more seconds of stopping before his turn onto Monument, and (I infer again) increased what impatience he already felt.
Then another pair of drivers exhibited their at-any-cost ownership of the road at the bikeway crossing at Airway. This crossing is well marked with pedestrian slashes embossed on the street, auto signs posted for the approaching two lanes of autos from each direction, in-path signage for the approaching bikeway users, and a pedestrian island placed to allow a pause in the crossing. As I approached the crossing from the north (top of image), the street was clear of traffic from the east, and two vehicles approached from as far away as Linh's Restaurant. —At about the location of the green car in the image.— I crossed the two westbound lanes, and saw neither of the two roadway users were slowing. So I stopped at the island. The near driver, of a pickup marked Extermital, sneered and flipped me off. Do I infer again some attitude of impatience—or dominance—from this driver?
No ego from me (for once) feels offence. No shift in mood. And my mood was heightened not more than a couple miles down the bikeway, at the corner of the DPL Executive Golf Course. My happy whistling startled three beautiful, strong deer who looked up from their grazing beside the bikeway. They glanced at each other, then scattered into the trees that line the bikeway. Four more deer inside the DPL compound galloped in the opposite direction toward the tree-lined creek.
At Woodbine, I saw Two-dog-Jason approaching the crossing from the south. Since I had to stop for a car, my crossing was slow. I introduced myself and Two-dog-Jason told me his name: Pat. It's been at least three years that we've seen each other on the bikeway during my morning commute. Finally there are real names for us to add to our hellos.
In New York City's Central Park another controversy is developing. In the hardcopy version, the article was titled "Neither Pedestrian Nor Auto." (It is otherwise titled in the online edition.) But the summarized assertion of the original title exhibits a basic misunderstanding of the position of the bicycle in the mix of transportation. Absolutely the bicycle is a vehicle. The cyclist is also a pedestrian—when a cyclist dismounts, the transformation is then complete. But nevertheless, all—motorist, cyclist, and pedestrian—must obey posted traffic signage. At issue for cyclists using Central Park are the questions of courtesy and obeying the hierarchy of trail usage. (In trail usage, cyclists must give right-of-way to pedestrians and horses; pedestrians must give right-of-way to horses; horses must give freedom-from-road-apples to everyone.)
From the few visits I have made to Central Park, it is not the best location for bicycle training. The number of strollers who also use the streets and paths that are closed off from vehicular traffic is too large for developing power, heart strength, stamina. The park is, though, well suited for the casual, pleasant Sunday ride with the family. Begging for attention is whether any convenient location exists on Manhattan Island for cyclists to train, free from the traffic snarls, exhaust, and stop-and-start progress of the streets.
Temperature: 37°F at 07:20, 29 to 39°F at 09:15
Precipitation: none
Winds: none
Clothing: Top with 4 layers (Lycra longsleeve undershirt, skinsuit, arm warmers, poly fleece vest, Lycra-wool jacket); Bottom with 2 layer (skinsuit, quilted tights); ankle socks. Quilted gloves. (Comfortable at first, but zipping down 3 of the top layers by the time I reached Woodbine. Moderate sweating in chest & back.)
Bike: Lotus fixed-gear
Time: 0:55:00 (approx.) for 11.86 miles
Bikeway users: 3 pedestrians, 4 dogs, 7 deer
07:50—departing from home.
08:xx—passing the zig-zag up from the Mad River Bikeway.
08:xx—passing the west gate to Eastwood Park.
08:xx—passing the trestle remains at Linden.
08:45—arriving at work. (No checkpoint times available.)
So I took Monument Avenue through the light manufacturing area.
One pickup driver did everything possible to thwart his easy entrance to Monument from a service yard. As I rode along Monument going east, a pickup driver pulled to the street from a Rumpke service yard, stopped, looked both ways, apparently saw me, and released his brakes enough to coast an additional 3 feet. I interpreted his coasting as impatience and potentially a sign that he had not seen me approaching. I slowed a lot, expecting him to pull into the street. He stopped again. It was clear he had seen me, and he had just anticipated moving into the street prematurely. His impatience (my inference here) resulted in a few more seconds of stopping before his turn onto Monument, and (I infer again) increased what impatience he already felt.
 |
| Bikeway crossing (magenta) at Airway Rd, Riverside OH |
No ego from me (for once) feels offence. No shift in mood. And my mood was heightened not more than a couple miles down the bikeway, at the corner of the DPL Executive Golf Course. My happy whistling startled three beautiful, strong deer who looked up from their grazing beside the bikeway. They glanced at each other, then scattered into the trees that line the bikeway. Four more deer inside the DPL compound galloped in the opposite direction toward the tree-lined creek.
At Woodbine, I saw Two-dog-Jason approaching the crossing from the south. Since I had to stop for a car, my crossing was slow. I introduced myself and Two-dog-Jason told me his name: Pat. It's been at least three years that we've seen each other on the bikeway during my morning commute. Finally there are real names for us to add to our hellos.
 |
| Central Park, New York City |
From the few visits I have made to Central Park, it is not the best location for bicycle training. The number of strollers who also use the streets and paths that are closed off from vehicular traffic is too large for developing power, heart strength, stamina. The park is, though, well suited for the casual, pleasant Sunday ride with the family. Begging for attention is whether any convenient location exists on Manhattan Island for cyclists to train, free from the traffic snarls, exhaust, and stop-and-start progress of the streets.
Temperature: 37°F at 07:20, 29 to 39°F at 09:15
Precipitation: none
Winds: none
Clothing: Top with 4 layers (Lycra longsleeve undershirt, skinsuit, arm warmers, poly fleece vest, Lycra-wool jacket); Bottom with 2 layer (skinsuit, quilted tights); ankle socks. Quilted gloves. (Comfortable at first, but zipping down 3 of the top layers by the time I reached Woodbine. Moderate sweating in chest & back.)
Bike: Lotus fixed-gear
Time: 0:55:00 (approx.) for 11.86 miles
Bikeway users: 3 pedestrians, 4 dogs, 7 deer
07:50—departing from home.
08:xx—passing the zig-zag up from the Mad River Bikeway.
08:xx—passing the west gate to Eastwood Park.
08:xx—passing the trestle remains at Linden.
08:45—arriving at work. (No checkpoint times available.)
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