Today I took a rainy ride through the city of Syracuse just to show myself that I can. I made a point of buying the right kind of gear to ride in reasonable rain while staying mostly dry. I've followed the blogs and forums pretty closely to see if one can ride in heavy rain and stay dry, and it seems like it is possible with some careful preparation.
This was not a ride in heavy rain. This time of year in Upstate New York, the rain is not usually heavy, just mostly persistently light. I have a Showers Pass Double Century (the link is to the EX 2013 version) that is a shocking shade of orange for visibility and a pair of Rainlegs in black. I thought that since both pack small, they would be a good choice if I were caught out with rain. And today was the day to try them out.
This is a view up North Franklin Street. It's kind of gray day.
This view is down North Franklin Street in the distance you can see the very attractive federal building. You can see it's damp and drizzly. I was a little concerned for my brooks saddle.
This view highlights a must-visit location in Syracuse. The Dinosaur Bar-B-Q is a rockin' rib joint that is very colorful. The food is the best b-b-q north of the Mason-Dixon line and there is live music there, I think, 5 days a week. The bar has 30 ales on tap. This was a slow day for the Dinosaur; you can tell because there was no line out the door. In this photo it almost looks like the sun is coming out. It was a lie. It rained on and off for the entire ride.
I've mentioned the Creekwalk in other posts. This is the lower end starting point.
The Creekwalk is a series of paths and sidewalks that lead from downtown to the big mall on the lakefront. It's really the only safe way to travel this section. I'm learning much more about riding in traffic, because Syracuse does not really have an bike sense. I'm pretty sure there are sharrows on only one stretch of road in the city.
My double century jacket performed very well. The front zip works both directions, so I could cape the jacket for ventilation. I stopped partway through to open the pit zips and loosen the velcro at the wrists for more ventilation. The jacket keeps the water out completely. The length is right, which is important for my shape. I'm long in the body. If the temperature were higher, the jacket might have been steamy, but in this case it was just right.
The rainlegs worked like a charm. While they are odd looking, they keep the top of the thigh and knees dry in the light rain, and since they do not encase the entire leg, they do not make the whole leg wet with sweat.
Although the rain meant that my brompton was a mess when I got home and needed a cleaning, I'm certainly not afraid of the rain!
No comments:
Post a Comment