A Perfect Example Of How Cars Don’t Work For Boston

Yesterday our fair city got a good dose of snow, a sizable storm in its own right, but combined with the big ass blizzard we had last week, the entire city was struggling to keep up.  Today the city woke up to an public transportation system crippled by yesterdays snow, the head of the MBTA actually told people to drive to work…

Anyone unlucky enough to drive into the city today (or drove in any of the cities around Boston) knows that without the MBTA to carry most of the folks to work, driving simply is not an option.  Snow or no snow, there are just too many cars, and not enough road.  There was bumper to bumper grid lock for both the morning and evening commutes today.

This truck was stuck like this, cars were backed up for a long way in both directions, I just got off my bike and walked around.

I have been riding through this weather, and a lot of my coworkers have been telling me just how crazy I am.  But the only thing moving on wheels today was people riding bikes.

Not only did the cars fail to get people around, but they made removing the snow a lot harder as well. They also slid around crashing into things, getting stuck in snow banks, and potentially killing or harming people or property.

It doesn’t have to be this way.  If even 20-30 percent of people rode bicycles (levels many snowy northern European cities accomplish), the roads would be relatively unclogged, allowing the folks that absolutely needed to drive the road space needed to do so.  It is also a lot easier to clear space for cyclists on the road, as they need much less of the road clear in order to cycle safely.  The lack of cars parked on the road would also allow for more area to place the snow.

Sure it sounds like pie in the sky thinking, but as today’s epic traffic jams illustrate, the current system isn’t working for anyone.

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Winter Mega Storm Aught 15 To Close Hubway Stations

In case you couldn’t figure out from the apocalyptic messages emanating from every media device, its going to snow, a lot, Tuesday.  Stay inside, bust out the trainers, and sweat out some holiday calories while watching a movie, oh also the Hubways will be closed (duh).

From Hubway:

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Still Better Than The Bus: Open Thread

Good lord the roads are proper shit today.  Layers of ice and slush and lots and  lots of rump braille snow.  I went slow, and steady, and rode straight upright and didn’t have any problems with slipping, but damn it was a bit nerve wracking on the hills.  It was grade A gross.  But you know what, even crawling at half speed, even though my toes were a little wet, and even though it was super putrid out, it WAS STILL BETTER THAN TAKING THE BUS!

It wasn’t that cold, it wasn’t that nasty, and I got home only 10 minutes slower than normal.

I saw other cyclists, and I saw evidence of their trails, so I know I wasn’t the only yahoo out there today,  share your adventures below.

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Types Of Snow (Prize Give Away)

This winter I have felt like a native of the northern reaches, developing dozens of words for snow. Here are a few:

Play-dough: When the snow has been thoroughly mixed with road salt, but its just too damn cold to melt, you get play-dough snow.  Has the feel of clay, and squirts out from between your front fork like a play-dough fun factory.

Rump Braille: When the snow hardens to the ground in little archipelagos of solid ice.  These seem to form when the snow has been packed down by cars, and then it warms up real fast and rivulets of water run through the snow only to freeze again real fast,  leaving little islands of solid ice.  So named because of the feeling on your ass as you roll over them.   If only I could read their secret language.

Solid Water: A type of snow that for all intents looks totally solid, until you hit it with your front wheel and it explodes into water.  MAGIC!  I would imagine that there are just enough ice crystals in the slush to keep it solid until impact.  This snow can be cause brown shorts, as you think you are about to hit a giant ice ball and crash only to have it splatter harmlessly all over the road.

The Good Stuff: Crunchy for traction, but light and fluffy enough not to stick to your bike.  This is the snow we all dream about riding on.  Makes a satisfying “Crrrrssshhhh” as you ride on it.

Road Boogers: Much like ancient boulders left behind when the glaciers retreated, these mounds of snow are left after the plow comes through.  Ranging in size from “golf ball” to “holy shit I’m going to die!”  These clumps are usually not attached to the road, and therefor wander about as cars and pedestrians paw at them.  Avoid the big ones and you should be ok.

Salt Lick: Not snow at all, but looks like snow.  Its when the plow trucks lay down so much salt that it appears in heaps like snow on the ground.  Usually solid, but sometimes like a big pile of sand.  Avoid.

Trails of our Ancestors: When you ride on snow that many other cyclists have already ridden over.  You can see the tracks of all the wheels that have come before you, giving you a sense of security knowing its a good route, as well as letting you know that you are not the only one braving the storm.  Gives you sense of camaraderie even if no one else is around.

These are but a few of the many names that could be applied to biking snow.  What are some you have thought of?

The first 3 people to leave good snow names + definitions in the comments will get cycling books sent to them free in the mail. (I will decided which ones are good)

If there are more than 3 good ones, I might go find some more cycling stuff and mail that out as prizes as well.

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Pretty Much How I Felt All Winter

Nothing better than a bicycle to get just about anywhere in this town, I guess if you live farther north you need to make a bit of an adjustment to the front wheel…  Plus the song is cute.

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