The luxury of time

Pittsburghers suffering with cabin fever were rewarded for their patience with a delightful 52 degree day. Snow and ice melted and everyone was out and about. They were jogging, cycling, walking, shopping and eating out in restaurants.

Hubby and I shared a gigantic omelet breakfast at Pancake House before he dropped me off at work and I got the bike and on the road early-ish. I made sure to put my new Fitbit through my laces so it would register my pedal strokes as steps.

I decided to get over to Thick and see if they could help my cadence computer issue and take a look at my front derailleur. The chain was still skipping and it was having a heck of a time shifting into the small ring despite having a tune up last week. It was raining when I started, but not long after I was on the road, I removed the Cleverhood and stashed it.

 The ice was melting on the Mon.

When I walked into Thick, Adam and Chris remarked at how bright my hi-viz pink was. I think I like the hi-viz pink much better than the yellow or orange. I chatted with the owner of Thick (Chris), we talked about the MS150 and I oggled the wares at Thick while I waited for the Wrenches to work on Ruby. I decided to get a different Bar extender and the Oberlauda mirror with the intention of attaching the mirror to the bar extender. As it turns out the mirror fits just fine on my handlebars, I was told it wouldn't work when I tried to buy it a few weeks ago. Yaaa! Rear-view mirror is back! I like this one much better than the Mirrycle mirror I had before my grip-change. I have buttloads of handlebar real estate now. I also picked up a much needed ParkTool chain cleaner contraption.

I stopped at BigDog in another attempt to have some oatmeal for lunch, but I was denied... again. I opted for a coconut macaroon and a latte. I had to be careful with the macaroon and restrain myself from eating the whole thing at once so I didn't have a hypoglycemia issue later. I love macaroons and it was difficult to not scarf down the whole thing. Even if the oatmeal was available, I would have had to go easy on the sugary dried fruit.

The cadence computer still registers no more than 50. *sad face* The chain fell off while downshifting before the Hot Metal Bridge switchback. *very sad face*

On the EFT, a rider coming in the opposite direction held up his arm to shield his eyes and jokingly said "I can see you!". Smartass.

I ran into Marko going the opposite direction on the return to base, and we had a brief chat on the Duke bridge before we went our separate ways. I thought it was very nice of him to turn around and make conversation. The weather was so nice that no one is trying to get to a sheltered destination in a hurry, so chit chat is no longer a dangerous luxury.

I stowed the bike in my office and walked to the T station (the TROLLEY for you non-Pittsburghers). I saw this poor frame at the racks at the station and I had a moment of silence for it. My Fitbit vibrated and lit up on the walk there, so I had met my 10,000 steps minimum! However, it told me I'd only gone 4.7 miles. Wrong.
Only one jerk flipped me the finger while left-crossing me on East Carson.

I took the T home and was happy to ride through Beechview, my old stomping grounds. I hadn't been through there in a long time and it was interesting to see how things have changed on Broadway. I was able to glimpse the Beechview Mural as we zipped by.


I lovely unhurried ride, 17 miles.