Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike commute:just below 0°C with slight northwest wind. Surfaces mostly dry - the forever puddle at Enzo Farone park withstanding.
Took the High Level Bridge/109th route as that is better for the summer folder, which served very well this fine moring.
Traffic weekday light, and fairly […]

Quick ride in this morning. No ice to speak of on my route. Very little ice visible on the 142 St boulevards. Stony Plain Rd MUP and 103 Ave are clear. Road barriers are blocking the 103 Ave bike path at around 107 St. Also, 103 Ave is blocked entirely from 102 to 100 St. #yegbike

Y’all, if my math is correct, I would need to do nearly 750 laps to hit 100kms ☠️

Maybe some good podcasts?

#YEGbike

2/2

[map portion] The City of Edmonton. 1979. Pedal around Edmonton. The City of Edmonton, [Parks and Recreation]. Map showing Edmonton's Bikeways. Includes: Bike Routes, Bike Paths, and Bike Lanes

[portion] The City of Edmonton. 1979. Pedal around Edmonton. The City of Edmonton, [Parks and Recreation]. Highlights BICYCLE LEGISLATION noting: Highway Traffic Act, Section 162, Subsection (1): “a person operating a bicycle on a highway has all the rights and is subject to all the duties that a driver of a motor vehicle has.” Cyclists are not allowed to ride their bicycles on City sidewalks unless so designated by City Council. Remember — pedestrians always have the right-of-way over cyclists.

[portion] The City of Edmonton. 1979. Pedal around Edmonton. The City of Edmonton, [Parks and Recreation]. Image outlining Edmonton city policy on cycling. Details What is a bikeway, including the definition of three classes: Class I: Bike Path, Class II: Bike Lane and Class III: Bike Route Shows bicycle safety Rules (do's and don'ts) as well as a bicycle checklist.

[map portion] The City of Edmonton. 1979. Pedal around Edmonton. The City of Edmonton, [Parks and Recreation]. Shows part of the River Valley along with many symbols for features and land use including: parking, washrooms, cross country skiing, telephones, picnicking, canoeing, snowshoeing, viewpoints, sports, boat launches, accessibility.

Pedal around Edmonton, 1979.
archive.org/details/WCWd...
Class III Bike Route - signed cycling routes where cyclists share the roadway with other types of traffic. This type of bikeway does not provide cyclists with increased road privileges; rather it informs motorists of the cycling route #Yegbike

If you didn't already think that our city driving culture was absolutely cooked, look no further than the person on the Edmonton subreddit arguing that exceeding the speed limit by 80km/hr is "probably safer" than going 80kmph on the Anthony Henday Drive during rush hour. 🤡 #yeg #yegbike

I don't get this. As an urbanist, I want mass transit to be properly funded so that drivers aren't stressed and overworked, making transit unreliable. I don't know about where you are, but urbanists here love labour, unions, and public service funding. I can't imagine it any other way.
#yegbike #yeg

#yegbike Putting back studs...at this rate going to leave them on until summer. /s

Snow on top of crunchy ice. Black ice in crossings and intersections. Plus temps will melt ice for the next round of snow.

Mostly slushy ride in this morning. Crunchy ice near the 142nd St traffic circle in Laurier. Slick ice on much of 103 Ave east of Rail Town. Walks, bike lanes and MUPs on Stony Plain Rd, 103 Ave and 102 Ave are not cleared. Sticky snow on all. #yegbike

Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike commute - sort of, I am taking at least today off sick. But it's just below zero with small amount of snow - looks to be just slushy and messy, not too icy.
I can tell you the cars are taking it slow and careful on the Saskatchewan Drive hairpin turn down Walterdale Hill.
I am thinking […]

Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike commute: just below 0°C, with a chilly southeast wind, medium strength. Surfaces mostly ice free, but some oatches remain. Took the urban summer folder with ordinary tires, to excellent effect.
Paths mostly empty, even in the inner city. Traffic light.
A bit of a chilly but excellent […]

Grasshopper posing in the Meadowlark parking lot with a Shell gas station looming in the distance. The parking lights are casting a shadow of the bike that has its front light on and a bright blue pannier attached to the back rack. You can see a few apartments in the distance behind the gas station. It's a calm night overall with a few light flurries falling.

High gas prices? I wouldn't know since I've got my own 2 legs and this sweet set of wheels under me 🤩 Outside of the River Valley, this city is so shockingly flat it's sort of blowing my mind a bit compared to Hamilton. It makes biking more than a viable option here!
#yeg #yegbike

My bike, Grasshopper, with the kickstand up on a multi-use path. It has a bright blue pannier on the back and there is a beautiful mural on the building in the back. The mural is of a sunset with mountains with some flowers on the left side of the mural. There's some snow on the ground with dead grass slightly visible.

View of the 127th Street separated bike lane. You can see street trees with no leaves, my bike's front tire in the bottom of the frame and the lane is clear.

Grasshopper just chilling by the circle of benches just off 114th Ave. on the linear park path. It's grey skies with a few trees in the background and a garbage can on the left and bench on the right. Both are coloured black and my bike has a bright blue pannier visible.

My Fitbit tracking data for my ride around the local neighbourhood near Central McDougall, WIHKWÊNTÔWIN, Westmount, Prince Charles and Prince Rupert in Edmonton, Alberta.

Went for a casual ride around my local neighbourhood and holy hell are there waaaaaaay too many awkwardly placed beg buttons when you're on a bike. Totally stunts your flow. Get more road/bike lane sensors stat @thecityofedmonton.bsky.social!!!
#yeg #yegbike

I hit a 50 ft patch of ice on a neighbourhood trail this morning. I thought I could roll on it but nope. The back wheel went sideways, I put my foot down, which also slipped. I didn’t fall but I kind of did the splits and tweaked my right upper calf muscle trying to not go down. #yegbike

Residential street with Toronto barriers across the intersection. There is a no entry sign and obvious SUV tracks passing through the gap in the barriers

Checked out the modal filters on 124Ave. Not sure at all what they’re supposed to filter. All the drivers I watched passed through with no difficulty. #yegbike

Me, a ginger bearded man with a black and white NASA sweater, glasses, red toque, black jeans and brown boots on. I'm standing in front of my bike 'Grasshopper'. You can see the electric poles on either side of me for the LRT track. There is a light dusting of snow everywhere and some weeds poking through the snow. The focus is soft in the background as it was taken in Portrait mode on my phone by the wife.

My wife, a short black woman wearing a grey sweater, black leggings, brown boots. She's posing with her bike, a purple youth bike she's affectionately called 'Pamala Plum'. She's holding up a peace sign with her left hand and her right hand is on her bike seat. You can see the electric poles for the LRT as well as the track in the background. A light dusting of snow covers everything with weeds poking through the snow behind her.

Grasshopper & Pamala Plum, our bikes as they sit by NAIT/Blatchford Station. You can see skinny silver bollards behind them and the Metro Line train waiting at the station to leave. There's a light dusting of snow on the bike path and station.

The wife and I took a slow roll ride last night in the light snow. It was her first time back on a bike in over 12 years! Here's us at the end of the track for the Metro Line and our babies together by NAIT/Blatchford Market 😍 So glad to be back in the saddle again here in Edmonton 🚲
#yeg #yegbike

Tomorrow, like every Friday, is Coffee Outside. It's also a holiday so you might have some extra time to join us!

Stop by Ezio Farone Park between 7-9am. At some point, we will head to Second Breakfast. We're a friendly bunch, and we'd love to see you!
buff.ly/yJoRGtp

#yegbike #yegevents #yeg

Here’s the math for my first full year bike commuting:
(Betty Bike is 26 years old, so FULLY amortized.)
$700 on tires, tubes, rack, lights and other accessories.
$150 in parking or bus fare for the 12 days I did not ride.

So about $374 less than annual bus fare, all told. #yegbike

Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike commute: just below zero C, with medium east by northeast wind. Surfaces pretty darned good - ice is dramatically less - but still there in spots, mindfulness still required. Small amount of snow, almost freezing rain, but not sticking around.
Traffic medium weekday light, not many […]

Bit of a slog this morning, but that was less to do with the head-wind from the northeast than with my ill-advised decision to shift up a ring yesterday. No snow or ice on my route. The boulevards on 87th Ave east of 156th have plenty. 103 Ave bike lanes east of Rail Town are still sketchy. #yegbike

#yegbike 91st MUP from Summerside to DT mostly clear with ice patches. Millcreek Ravine detours in residential areas all clear as well. Leaving studs on for another week.

Construction along 102 Ave brings the usual mess of confusing, poorly placed signage - best take an alternate route.

#yegbike

Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike commute: still cold at -8°C with slight southwest breeze. Lovely but obscured full moon. Surfaces sti with icy patches throughout. The little folder did pretty well, and the speed was great. But the spikes were still necessary.
Traffic was medium light, and mostly well behaved. A few […]

Stony Plain Rd was closed at 139th St when I got there this morning, so I had to take the 102 Ave bike route. Still a good amount of snow/ice for the first bit of the 132 St and 130 St detour legs. The 102 Ave bike lanes are clear. The 103 Ave bike lanes eastbound have sketchy sections. #yegbike

Wow, I wonder why we have so many potholes to deal with? 🤔 Couldn't possibly be the fact that we have over 12,000km of road 🤯 What do you expect? You'd need an army to fix it at the scale we have for vehicle space. Even more reason to build more ON STREET protected bike lanes 😉
#yeg #yegbike

Original post on mstdn.ca

I may have lost my mind, but I have put plump studded tires on my summer folder, the mini road bike.
We shall see how the #yegbike commute goes on this craft, but it seems the right choice for this shoulder season in #yeg right now.
I thank @EllenInEdmonton for the tires, and Larry at […]

Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike commute; still cold at -10°C, wind now southwest. Lovely fullish moon.
Conditions pretty much the same as yesterday, still icy patches throughout.
I am tired of the winter, maybe that’s why few people were about in the morning, perhaps everyone else feels the same.
#earworm ‘Let Me Roll […]

Quick ride in this morning. No ice to speak of on my route, but the boulevards by 142 north in Crestwood and the 103 Ave bike lanes downtown looked to have treacherous sections. #yegbike

Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike observations and thoughts for this shoulder season.
If one is primarily on the flats and main bike routes, an ordinary summer bike might be fine for this week.
But if you go through some shady valleys and forested paths, probably studded tires are a wise idea.
My treacherous spots are […]

My brand new bike who I'm calling 'Grasshopper' for now chilling by NAIT/Blatchford Market Station. There's light snow on the ground, Grasshopper is a blue bike (though hard to tell in the dark early morning). There is a light that is on both on the front and back of the bike. The kickstand is up and you can see a set of bollards behind him with the station sign nearby.

A large illuminated sign that says "BLATCHFORD GATE" which is shining down on my beautiful boy, Grasshopper, with light snow all around. The sky is pitch black and everything is calm. The station is still closed with construction gates all around it.

A view of Grasshopper with light snow all over the ground. The front light is beaming away and you can make out the Edmonton downtown skyline in the background. Grasshopper has fenders and blue brake cables. It has silver coloured alloy rims around the tires.

The original listing for the Specialized Rockhopper (Grasshopper now). The description reads as follows: While modern mountain bikes have become increasingly complicated and specialized, rigid mountain bikes boast a versatility that never goes out of style. They are capable of handling all sorts of off- road conditions without losing efficiency when they hit the pavement. This Specialized with upright handlebars and the best shifters Shimano ever made already has a rack and fenders installed, for increased commuting utility, and would be a good choice for someone who is looking for a bike to travel and play on all year round. Size 18" frame will fit riders in the 5'6" to 5'9" range. 26" x 2.1" offroad tires on alloy rims. Available at Bike Edmonton for $395.

Thanks to the amazing folks at @bikeedmonton.bsky.social I now have my first bike in Edmonton! The Specialized Rockhopper was the first one I tried out and fell in love 😍 Took him for a 4am spin up to Blatchford Gate Station this morning and it rode like a dream ❄️
#yeg #yegbike

Original post on mstdn.ca

#yegbike commute: still cold at -10°C with light northwest wind. A small amount of light powdery snow overnight covers most surfaces, giving good traction over the icy spots that are doubtless still there. The winter beater bike with studded tires did just fine.
Main roads bare but wet, lesser […]