Sunday, February 9, 2014

Quick update on commuting . . .

After 2 fantastic weeks of commuting weather (back when I started this), CT got a little bit of snow.  Then real winter hit us.  

It's been cold, and I was ill-equipped to deal with it. Plus, my last commute left me with 3 days of lower back pain (due to riding with a very heavy backpack).  So I haven't been riding to school.

In the meantime, I've made an investment in panniers and some Bar Mitts, and I'm in the process of setting up my Redline CX bike as a dedicated commuter.  

Donnie from DAS is letting me borrow his Kona Kapu for use on the trainer/rollers so I won't have to switch the commuter back and forth from an indoor rig to an outdoor rig all the time.  That will make life much easier.

Also, I made some discoveries on campus this week:
  1. There is a locker room in the athletic complex that anyone can use - not just athletes (this is in addition to the team-only locker room, and it is not really a well-known feature of ECSU which is why nobody told me about it when I was asking around).  This means access to a locker for storage of "stuff" and the ability to shower.
  2. The spin bikes in the athletic complex are actually nice.  I did an interval workout on them in between classes and work on Tuesday, and that's going to be a key training tool for me this semester until it gets warmer and the roads clear a bit (there's a perfect place to do hills on the road bike nearby).
So now I just need to figure out a way to store food on campus, and I'll be all set.  I have permission to leave some items in an alcove of the biology department's office wing, but I don't want to leave anything perishable there.  A refrigerator drawer would be ideal.  I'll have to make-do with the gold mine I've found this week (lockers, showers, and spin bikes).

Now, I want to get back to commuting this week, but the forecast is looking like typical New England winter weather.  Snow overnight tonight, and snow/rain all day on Thursday (Mondays and Thursdays are the days that I'm best able to commute right now).  I might end up trying for Tuesday instead. 

Despite whatever happens this week, warmer days are coming.