Books, Breads and Bikes: #Minneapolis

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Winter Cycling and 30 Days of Biking, version 11

The good news is winter is probably over. I mean it snowed yesterday, but not enough to ski on or anything. There has been a lot of news lately; besides President Biden getting elected, the vaccine distribution for the Covid-19 virus and yours truly moving once again, Derek Chauvin was just found guilty on all three counts against him - Keith Ellison said it well: "George Floyd's life mattered."

Peyton Scott Russell mural, Lake Street, Minneapolis, 3-21. Photo by Michael McKinney.

Since October I have been riding my bicycle and keeping busy, probably not reading as much as I would like, (I read The Goldfinch last year and loved it, so far this year The Rub of Time is a big favorite), and still working on getting a few good bread recipes together for myself.

Lake of the Isles ski trail, Minneapolis. 2-21. Photo by Michael McKinney.

The fishing has been good for me this spring, maybe a bit of redemption after not doing as well as I would have liked in Colorado. The fishing could always be better, but it is funny how quickly 6 hours of not catching anything can turn into the best day of the year. I read some author who said all fishermen are unwilling optimists, in that they eternally expect to catch something more significant than their last day on the water - most never do, but that never stops them from trying.

Sabo Bridge Sunset, 11-20. Photo by Michael McKinney

Hiawatha Bike Trail, 12-20. Photo by Michael McKinney

Selfie, Houlton WI, 12-20. Photo by Michael McKinney

In any case, the winter cycling was not without some challenges this year. I got caught in a pretty gnarly blizzard, and needed to commute about 5 miles through it on the night before Christmas Eve. My studded tires are great for some winter conditions, (packed snow on road surfaces, infrequent ice patches, fresh snow less than 2" deep), but this was a substantial snow fall with high winds. I came off my bike three or four times on the way home, either to dismount and carry the bike over snowdrifts or sliding out on areas where wind had pushed away all of the snow and left a solid ice surface over the roadway.

Sky blue sky, Minneapolis, MN. 12-20. Photo by Michael McKinney

Anyway, that was one commute home. On another commute, a familiar bike path had frozen over completely, with solid ice rutted and deep enough to thwart my studded tires. I washed out pretty hard that night, and on one other occasion as well.

Sunset, North Cedar Trail, Minneapolis, MN. 11-20. Photo by Michael McKinney

After 8 years of trusting the studded tires on my cyclocross bike to get me through winter commuting, I think I will try something different next year - outfitting my 29er mountain bike with studded tires is probably the right choice.

As far as the here and now goes, it is April again, and that means 30 Days of Biking. Today is day 20 and I am not riding nearly as much as last year's furlough-enabled 1,000 miles. Being back at work has been rewarding and challenging, and I feel fortunate to be able to do the things I enjoy while being employed. There was a recent traffic ticket for "entering an intersection on a red light", but maybe I will talk about that some other day.

Chonky brown trout; Rush River, Pierce Country, WI, 4-21. Photo by Michael McKinney.

Today is a pretty good day.

Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Late May, 2018

One of the most common questions people ask me when I first meet them, is: "What do you do?"

It would be nice to say it is strictly a Minnesota thing, but I really have not seen that much of Minnesota. I have lived in Stillwater, Saint Paul and Minneapolis all of my life. Maybe people in Embarrass don't ask that question because they are all freezing cold year round...I mean I know a little geography but if you sent me to Windom I would spend all of my time trying to find the Wind Farms, I probably wouldn't go out of my way to do brief employment surveys of my peers.

So, what do I do?

Since injuring my foot in 2015 I have tried to maintain a fairly compulsory rehabilitation schedule. There was a full time job, after college, which never paid much...there were a couple of full time jobs, actually. I delivered newspapers for a year. I worked in retail and the service industry. I worked for a small outdoor industry retailer specializing in rock climbing, cross country skiing and sea kayaking...it sounds too good to be true; what I have learned since 2010 tells me some of it was. I worked in arboriculture and bakeries as well, to limited success.

I sold my car in 2009, have moved five or six times, depending on your opinion of temporary housing, and have struggled to find full time employment that matched anything as reliable and equitable as something that now seems fictional. There is irony in there somewhere but I never put it together well enough to explain it.

Since moving to Saint Paul in 2010, I have volunteered at a number of different agencies that pertain to either my educational or professional experiences. I read as much as time allows, ride a bicycle and bake bread when doing so does not seem like more trouble than it is worth. Sometimes, I have to re-prioritze things in a way that values self-preservation over dedication.

In February and March of 2014 there was still so much snow on the roads I decided to ride less, because fighting traffic became too difficult. What happens is the more snow is plowed to the side of the road, the further out cars parking on the side of the road have to be - rather than being parked next to a curb, cars are parked three to four feet off the curb (on both sides of the street) because a big snow pile is there instead - so cars are pinched into both lanes and bicycles are less welcome.

Anyway, that was my experience. Die hard cyclists would provide much counter point here and I did see people riding that spring, as I walked onto the bus, stepping over snow piles four feet from the curb.

So what do I "do" though?

Mostly I volunteer, and I try to remember that being employed again relies heavily on an equanimity sufficient enough to utilize whatever social and professional skills I have learned in a productive manner. Volunteering is often a great opportunity to test that sense of place without feeling like a failure will cost me my livelihood. And so it goes.

Anyway, I did participate in another #30DaysofBiking this April, and while I missed out on the handful of group rides occurring around the Twin Cities, I did manage to ride all thirty days, despite a massive blizzard, cold temperatures and a worn drivetrain that eventually will cost me some sad amount of money to replace. With a move to Minneapolis on March 30th of this year, I was hard pressed to get my rear in gear, but managed over 500 miles and a good day at the Fulton Fondo in May.

So for now that is what I have been doing.

My bicycle is at a shop, and I have been happily enjoying Minnesota NiceRide as a reliable adjunct to my commute. It would be nice to get back to feeling like the bicycle was something more essential in my day to day routine, but time will tell.

The fishing has been getting better, so that makes me happy.

Adieu, adieu, to you and you and you.