Books

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Weather.com has the current temperature at 6 degrees with winds up to 41 mph causing wind chill temps at - 17 degrees. In other words a perfect night to stay in and read a book. Or at least take a picture of all of your books and nerd out statistics-wise.

Total books: 367
Technical (UX, CS, and Art/Type): 27
Comic/Graphic Novels: 82
Not read yet: 13

Will never read: 4
- Webster’s New World Dictionary
- English / Chinese Dictionary
- Concise English / Chinese Dictionary
- Charles Dicken’s A Tale of Two Cities

Book I own which I hate the most: Tom Wolfe’s The Bonfire of the Vanities

Authors with the most books:
- David Mamet: 9
- Charles Bukowsk: 8
- Chuck Palanhiuk: 7

Top 5 Most Read:
1. Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood
2. Carl Sagan’s Contact
3. Jon Krakauer’s Into Thin Air
4. Alan Moore’s Watchmen
5. Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice

Sunday morning I headed out to go race Stage 1 of the Tour Da Chicago when I got a flat within spitting distance of my front door.  Getting a flat always involves some calculations in terms of what to do next.  This time my options were:
1. Fix the flat right there, go race, & pray I don’t flat again.
2. Go home & grab my tubular wheel & again pray I don’t flat again
3. Go home & change flat in the warmth of my apartment
or 4. Go back to bed.

Later, after my long, much needed sleep, I went to ride my trainer and found it totally broken.  Instead of the low roar that used to drive my downstairs neighbors crazy I was hearing a piercing scrapping noise that drove me nuts.  I tired my best to fix it, but I’m pretty sure it is trashed (I’ll try & warranty it)

Believe it or not my biking expenses have really lowered in the past couple years mostly since I own most everything a biker like me needs to get by.  My racing bike is in pretty great shape & other than a few tubes & a new chain I don’t have to really worry about it.  My jacket & shoes are getting a bit sloppy, but they’ve got a year left in ‘em I hope.

Winter Biking

Today was a tough day to commute.  The morning news had low temperatures at below 0 with the wind chill factor and fresh snow had fallen the night before.  On top of that I had a long day of work scheduled which had me leaving the office at 9pm.    I’ve been a 4-season Chicago rider for several years now and every year I learn a few new tips, but for the most part I’m dialed in.

– Get full fenders.  It keeps both you & your bike dry & clean.
– Keep a set of clothes at work.  I do this year round, but it is nice to know if you get wet you have something  to change into.  Especially socks & shoes.
– It get’s dark early so bring a red blinky light.  I have one attached to both my bag & my bike
– If you ride fixed, go free.  Some people may argue that a fixed gear will help you maintain traction & that there is less to go wrong than on a singlespeed and I won’t say they are wrong.  I will say that it is nice to be able to wear a big bulky pair of boots and that if you are taking a turn being able to coast & stick your leg out in case you slide out is clutch.  I go singlespeed so there isn’t too much else that can go wrong mechanically.
– Trade out your clipless pedals & cages/straps for some platforms.  Mine have the bonus of having reflectors.
– Good wool socks will last a long time & are usually enough to last a 30 minute commute.  I wear SmartWool which are pricey, but are really high quality (they don’t fall)
– Look for a snowboarding helmet in the spring on closeout.  Or get a skateboarding helmet and for extra warmth tape up the air vents.  I got my Giro snowboarding helmet for $30 at REI.  Buy a bit bigger so you wear a hat underneath even if you do end up looking like Dark Helmet.
– Use a front light!  It is against the law to ride without one.
– Use wider tires & lower pressure.  Again some will say that thinner high pressure tires cut through snow to the pavement.  I find that in slick or ice situations it helps to have more contact to grip the road.  Also you can roll over cracks with a lot more confidence.  Especially those crazy steel grated bridges.
– Know your route.  Does the kinzie bridge freak you out?  Take the sidewalk.  What about the Chicago ave bridge?  Don’t forget about the stairs on one side.  Michigan ave is great as long as you remember the tire sized gaps that start & end each bridge.  Remember those giant potholes on Milwaukee you’ve been dodging all summer?  Well now they are hidden by a layer of slush
– When you get home from your commute be careful not to grab your bike with your bare hands.  That stem has been out in the freezing cold for 8+ hours already.  Getting frozen to your bike sucks.