just in time

My silence this past week or so has been due to the fact that all I've felt like writing that is even remotely related to cycling would involve a torrent of vitriol against Pender Street and its designation as a cycling "route". Because it sucks and I am tired of riding it everyday, back and forth, in the rain and dark and those cars who cannot stay on their side of the lane or use a turn signal or 4-ways when they come to a complete stop directly in front of me in a no-stopping zone.

See? It wouldn't be positive, and I try to keep this blog mostly positive.

Pender is also boring. And has pot holes 2-feet wide. And--

It doesn't have this.



Or this.



So I've walked to work a few times recently (it's about twice as long as riding) to enjoy the wide variety of routes that I'd almost forgotten that I used to know like the back of my hand. One advantage of living diagonally across a city grid from where you work is the nearly infinite routes that can be taken from one side to the other, zig-zagging in a different combination every day for a year. Not all of these are optimal for cycling: there's a hill in the middle and on wheels it usually seems more efficient to go around, not up and over, even though on foot I don't seem to care.

Today, however, I logged on to Facebook to see this.



With thanks to Lewis Carroll: O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

It's finally here!