Commute Loop – 2023.07.25

I hope I didn’t disappoint anyone when I didn’t upload a commute yesterday. “Wow, that Elvis goes and does a big tour and now he’s not commuting.” Surprise! I did cut out the Wandrer miles though. Those will be back soon enough.

I left the house a few minutes earlier than usual. It was nice because by the time I got to the St. Rose and I-215 area traffic hadn’t picked up much. While waiting on the trail/sidewalk to cross Paseo Verde it was clear so I jumped the light and started riding St. Rose. I was able to make it past Serene and nearly to I-215 before any traffic that had been waiting at the light caught up to me. Then I got extra lucky by hitting all the lights along Pecos green until Robindale.

I made decent time along Tomiyasu, and had fun getting a look at myself in the reflection of a few offices along Sunset Corporate Drive. Seemed odd to see Shadow and I, but without any bags mounted.

I did have a little scare at Hacienda and Maryland Parkway though. As I rolled up to the light I saw there were no cars coming for my direction. I jumped onto the sidewalk and rode it until the corner. Once there I hit the button for the pedestrian crossing and started to wait. As I’m waiting, a SUV traveling east and turning north onto Maryland Parkway rolled up to the light. Soon enough the light cycled and I got a green and the walk sign. I entered the road to cross and got just about halfway when I noticed the SUV was already rolling toward me. I yelled out 4-5 “Woahs” and thankfully their window was cracked and they heard me. They didn’t get incredibly close, but it was certainly enough to get my attention.

I can’t help thinking I’m partially to blame. Most people aren’t looking for a cyclist in a crosswalk near a light. In the future, if I need to hit a crosswalk button to activate a light, I’m going to push the button and then move back into the roadway. That way at least I am closer to where a car normally sits and oncoming traffic might actually see me. At least if I’m solo and there is no other traffic going my way.

Ride home this afternoon was a warm one! Thankfully I got busy near the end of the day and ended up putting in an extra hour. By the time I was pulling onto Anthem Pkwy from Reunion the sun was pretty much down making the heat even more bearable.

I kept looking to the east as the sun set because it looked like the clouds were going to pop off and get pretty. I was bummed to make it all the way to the house and the skies never reddened up any.

Overall a great day of riding and awesome commute. Kinda missed it after all these weeks. Happy to get some miles in the heat to help get acclimated to riding in it. A few more commutes like today and I’ll be ready for longer hot weekend rides.

New bike fund: $22.45 (+$0.28)
194 vehicles @ 5.9 per mile, 1.6 per minute, Speeds: 37.2 mph (avg), 64.5 mph (max) — MyBikeTraffic.com
Partly sunny-Mostly sunny, 89°F-110°F, Feels like 87°F-108°F, Humidity 28%-8%, Wind E 4mph-SSW 6mph — by Klimat.app
— myWindsock Report —
Weather Impact: -4.2%
Headwind: 58% @ 6.4-13.9mph
Longest Headwind: 11h 22m 29s
Air Speed: 16.7mph
Temp: 88.4-107.7°F
Precip: 0% @ 0 Inch/hr
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