Wind is an asshole. I have no patience left for it. It has all of it been used up, gone, finished. It is the only force that I’m aware of (with the possible exception of gravity) that is more stubborn and less willing to listen to reason than I myself am. It blows me around on my bike, it embezzles speed from my Magnificent Stroke. No matter how emphatically I lose my temper with it, no matter the unprintable curses and insults I hurl in its direction, it just keeps on blowing like a big stupid blowing thing.
The weather systems that move in and out of the Puget Sound Convergence Zone are accompanied by a gale and, and as every Cyclist knows, gales blow exclusively against the direction of travel. With the changing seasons come the frequent storm systems and the unreliability of the meteorologists is amplified by the complexity of the weather patterns. Taking Bike Number One is a gamble during any of these times, but sometimes living dangerously feels better than it is sensible. Every now and then, taking #1 when you really shouldn’t can offer a bit of much-needed redemption.
Fall winds steel us for the arrival of colder, darker days. Winter around here comes with less wind, but with annoyances of its own. Our friends in more harsh climates than mine will agree: we have had a dark Winter here in the Northern Hemisphere. Seattle is a mild place to live, but even here the damp, cold, short days have taken their toll. The sun is down when I arrive at work, and it is down when I leave for home. With vitamin D in short supply, our moods sour, the chickens stop laying their eggs (there is no creature more entitled than a clucking chicken who refuses to lay an egg), and alcohol, food, and sloth start looking like viable plans of remediation.
But as Winter makes its slow exit, the winds begin to blow once again and Spring starts to dot hints that she is about to make her entrance. The redbud trees are in blossom, and the Earth is letting loose the green stalks of tulips and crocuses. The work we did over the winter was supposed to make us feel strong and fast; instead, trees bow to our arrival as the wind pushes against our face and robs us of the free flight that a Cyclist in form works so hard to achieve.
Nevertheless, this weekend I rode with bare legs, the strong headwind filling my senses with the fresh smell of damp, life-giving earth and budding blossoms. Rebirth is infectious and like the trees and plants around me, so too have I been reborn.
Wind might well be an asshole, but when it signals warmer, brighter days it somehow seems more tolerable. Vive la Vie Velominatus.
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Ha! Lovely.
This weekend I rode in Gabba and Nanoflex, into the wind (both ways), wind that was filled with water. But I'm glad someone was made to feel reborn.
Maybe today.
Wasn't it bloody brilliant? Just the novelty of the sensation of fresh wind on the knees was enough to keep me entertained for quite a while. The sun was warm but still on the weak side -- I have to peer pretty closely to find a tan line. It's only ten days since it was miserably dark and sleeting, which at least had the redeeming feature of reassuring me money spent on good gear is never wasted.
The glory of a bike ride with bare legs and on Bike Number 1 was mine yesterday, and looks like again today, and perhaps even a club ride on Saturday. (Vancouver, BC, just up the road from you).
I have been doing 4-5 days a week on the trainer, so getting outside has been fantastic.
Exactly frank
You had me whince a bit as you started this article out, like you could hit the refresh button on Rule #5, but you pulled it out nicely by making it clear, spring is here and we are back in full saddletime. Winter this year in the Midwest has been a ball busting MoFo. One for the records no doubt and I have been chomping at the bit like a rabid rotweiller to do an early 180k this year as I have some graveur races coming up. However, I still have the belgian socks on, the knee warmers and such, but knowing our weather originates from the great NW, I am holding it to you that your sending us warmth
Tomorrow, I go without arm warmers and bare knees and this weekend will be 150k days
and will rub on Rule V til it hurts
Ahh, Seattle. The Flanders of the US. Almost moved there once upon a time.
This weekend was glorious in Belgium, but two weekends ago it was all about the wind. One long solo ride nearly all kanaal work. 110km and all it did was get worse and worse until you end up meeting the man with the hammer while going the wrong way on the wrong side of the Albertkanaal. If that is where, and in what, Tommeke grew up training it...it is no surprise to me that he is who he is. The headwind was so bad in the end that if I had stopped pedaling I would have instantly come to a complete stop and fallen over. I have to admit, the grass did start looking comfortable. I effing hate that kanaal.
Did the same ride this weekend with the LvdK with just a light wind and blue skies....what a difference!!! But I still hate you AK!
Spring is here as well as the classics! All is right with the world again!
Frank, I think you can read my mind. What an appropriate and timely article. We've had a very, very long cold winter here in WI and this past weekend continued the trend, albeit with a hint that better days are around the corner. Saturday was 27/28 degrees but with little wind and what there was was NNW. 80 kilometers in generally bright sunshine was great and the furthest this year. Sunday was a bitch. 33 degrees but with a nasty SSW wind that took the windchill to Merckx-knows-what. Almost all my rides head north then south. the last 40ks were brutal, despite me using every back road I knew to get a bit of relief. Totally shagged at the end, but felt good.
Today is around 50 with bright sun and some real warmth in the air. It would have been a 100kms Don't you hate it when the weather is one day out of sync with the weekend? The hour has gone forward giving us light until almost 7pm. That means after work rides are on the cards. Spring is finally here!
Frank,
Cry usa river. The PNW does occasionally have a breeze, but on this side of the mountains at least, there are very few places not somewhat protected by terrain or trees. You're from Wisconsin aren't you? Remember the times where it just blows and blows uninterrupted across hundreds of kilometers and always in your face.
OTOH, congrats on riding on the right day this weekend. Saturday's ride for me was 110 Km in unrelenting rain. I should NEVER trust NOAA...
@wiscot
You used the only word I could come up with to describe the back half of my ride yesterday: brutal. Going out was a breeze (no pun intended...I don't think it was at my back...just not in my face) yesterday but coming back in was a nightmare as I experienced 'the teeth' of the wind all the way home. But I made it. I just kept thinking of the hot shower and nap I was going to take when I got back. Plus, it builds stamina and strength...at least that's what I keep telling myself.
p.s. My gf (who rode her new commuter across town to her yoga class and then back across town to her Mom's) texted me and asked if I would come and pick her up (from her Mom's) because of the wind. If I was struggling on my more aero road bike, I can't imagine what she was enduring on her (almost upright) commuter.
Blame fluid dynamics too. Isn't only a straight on tailwind the only thing that'll not cause some sort of drag (maybe up to a few degrees either way)? At least that's what all those aero guys yap about. The freakin' deck is stacked wind wise.
Quite timely for sure. 50km commute this morning into a fierce headwind. But it was blowing from the South, so temps were mild. This was the first day of the new year I felt overdressed. With a tailwind home, I don't even mind the prediction of rain. Tomorrow, we should get 2 inches of snow. That's Spring weather in Utah. Woohoo!