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The Rain Came Down

Yesterday I sat at the kitchen table writing thank-you cards and Barry announced that he was going kayaking. I thought this was a fantastic idea – as being on the water is something that Barry loves.

After he drove away with the huge kayak mounted on our tiny red car, I continued to write. A few minutes later I realized that it had started to rain so hard that it sounded like we have a tin roof on our house.

The rain was coming down with such force it reminded me of David Shannon’s book The Rain Came Down, a favorite of mine. I decided to grab my camera and take a few pictures of this down pour, but slowly realized that capturing the rain is like capturing the wind…

As the rain turned to hail I wondered if Barry would be returning, since he left slathered in sunscreen hoping for the sun to stay. Alas, he endured the hail, rain and partial sun only to return with a smile affixed on his face.

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Bike Vs. Car February Results

February had some great weather that reminded me a lot of spring.  There were quite a few days with rain showers, and sun breaks which made for some nice rides. February is also the month of Cascade Bicycle’s annual Chilly Hilly ride. This year, Brian and Adam joined me on an amazing day for a ride. We weren’t alone in thinking it was a great day, as over 6,000 people showed up for the ride. That was a new Chilly Hilly record. Having to wait in line for room on the ferries wasn’t fun, but it’s pretty cool to have been part of a record setting event. I didn’t count the Chilly Hilly miles as part of the February total, because I’m more interested in tracking commutes made by bike instead of a car. Here are a couple pictures I took during the ride though.

 

 

 

 

 

 

February results:
Driving = 41.7
Riding = 51

No new low temperatures were set during February, but I did have one 30 degree day.  Right after I shaved the beard too.

 

Overall Total

Driving = 411.8

Riding = 530.7

September, October,  November, December, and January Logs

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Hilly Chilly

A couple years ago I joined Barry, Kara, Adam & Chach to do the Chilly Hilly – a 33 mile bike ride around Bainbridge Island. This year I am not taking part in the cycle-fest; however, Brian, Barry & Adam are! Brian is new to the Chilly Hilly and he wondered aloud about making the 33 mile hilly climb.

I told him not to worry too much because he might be like as lucky as me and get a flat tire on mile 22. Chaya and I had the pace car pick us up and take us to the finish line. We tried to convince the pace car drivers to drop us off right next to the finish line so we could at least look like we finished….they thought that was a strange request and dumped us  in the middle of all the sweaty riders that completed the entire 33 miles.

That was a bit embarrassing.