Finds from the Grind - April Fool's Ride

Some scenes from my ride around the Santa Fe Dam on April 1st. I like to include shots of other bikes because, honestly, I like looking at bikes as they roll around. As an aside, that means you'll usually see them in my videos as I'm passing them, because I'm one of those riders who is "faster than most, slower than some." Around my neck of the woods, "slower than some" means we all ride about the same pace within a percentage of each other. This statistical quirk also means that it might take dozens of miles along the same stretch of road before I get caught or I catch someone riding at a similar pace. That's why it's so rare to see anyone pass me in my videos. Not because I'm so fast, but because the "some" who could catch me would take so long to do so. I had one video where it took me 15 minutes to catch a guy who only had a 15 second gap when I turned onto the same stretch of road.

Besides all the passing of the cyclists going slower than me, I included my biggest pet peeve on the bike: sensor controlled traffic lights. I didn't want to push the pedestrian button at the cross walk because it's too quick at that particular intersection. Push the button, WALK! I've got to turn the bike, remount, and awkwardly start off again. Bike friendly cities actually aren't if all they crow about are pieces of slippery paint on the side of the road that pisses off drivers and serious cyclists alike.

I also had some, ah, creative traffic negotiation around some train tracks. I really do mean it when I say I play in traffic on Saturday mornings.