A bike ride in Chicago

I wrote this last night about my ride yesterday.  I hope that you enjoy reading it and getting a feel for the experience.

I put on my put on a wicking shirt, a pair of shorts, and sandals, grabbed my helmet, gloves, and backpack, and went downstairs to get my Raleigh hybrid out to ride the 14 miles to work this morning.  I rode last Friday for the first time in over a year and want to make it a healthy habit.

Living in Chicago makes this, like many other activities, an adventure.  First is being aware of traffic.  Chicago traffic is not necessarily the worst traffic in the country, but there is a lot of it and, with drivers talking, texting, eating, smoking, and whatever, you better watch for them as they are not looking for you.

I roll down Aldine, taking its jog at Broadway, cross Sheridan and take the underpass to join the others already on the path (actually mostly an asphalt mini-road with fine gravel on each side) that runs the length of Lake Shore Drive.  The underpass had recently been hosed out so there were no homeless sleeping there this morning.  Not too much traffic although there are several commuters with their biking shirts on that zoom past me. 

I try to keep on a 14 mph pace – enough to be aerobic but not going to win any races.  A serious rider from work told me a couple of years ago that the key to riding is to keep pedaling at the same number of rotations per minute and shift to match the terrain, so that is what I try to do.

Immediately I am at Belmont Harbor, which is sleepy this morning at 7:15 am.  No sign of life there.  The boats in Chicago harbors rarely leave their slips as they are more for parties and watching whatever “the game” is on Saturdays and Sundays on satellite TV.   I see various types of bikes and clothing along the way.  Recumbents, and those with windshields, collapsible bikes, and then new and old, most with many gears – no three speeds anymore, like my Schwinn from childhood.  Some with milk crates tied on the back, other with commercial baskets.  Most with no fenders.  However, I added them on mine since I don’t like the feeling of the wet stripe up my back.

As I ride south the Parks Dept folks are out and busy.  Mayor Daley likes spiffy parks, you know.  The sand is being groomed for the afternoon volley ball leagues, swimmers, and sun bathers, and some parts of the path are actually being swept by hand.  Most riders wear sun glasses to avoid eye contact, much like walkers on city streets, but I avoid them as I like eye contact and can put up with a little sun.

The temp is about 73 – not too bad, but I will be soaked by the time I get to work in Hyde Park.  I continue along at my pace passing the Theater by the Lake, the Lincoln Park Marina, only for motor boats, the Lincoln Park Zoo, and then get to the North Avenue and Ohio Street beaches.  No one there yet except the beach groomers.  A few walkers are out, one being the first nun in full habit that I have seen for years.  They will be full this evening when I return.

The Lake is brilliant, looking like a sea of diamonds sparkling in the bright sun.  It is a wonderful natural resource that we take for granted in Chi town.  It presents a different look every morning, and today looks almost like a fishing lake in Wisconsin – very smooth with just little rills and no waves.  It is mesmerizing and I could just watch it all day, if I had the time….

I pass by Navy Pier next, the biggest tourist attraction in the City – almost 9 million visitors per year.  Although many boat and ship rides leave from the pier to the Lake and Chicago River, the majority of the folks who visit just walk up and down and get a beer and a hot dog.  Take in the day and the sun and the spectacle of the people there.  Sure there is a Shakespeare Theater, an IMAX, and a Children’s Museum (soon to be put underground in Grant Park), but with today’s economy and unemployment rate, those activities are rare treats at inflated prices.

This part of the trip takes me on the road level under Lakeshore Drive that takes cars to lower Wacker Drive and the sidewalk, although about twelve feet wide, gets very crowded later in the day.  Now I share it with just a few riders and joggers and can ride above walking speed.  My return trip this afternoon will test how slow I can ride.

Now I am around by Monroe Harbor (I don’t know how many harbors we have here, but I know that some people keep their boats in Waukegan or Kenosha, WI.)  Activity picks up a little now as many riders peal off for downtown.  There is a bike garage in Millennium Park that holds about 300 bikes and there are many other racks for those who commute this way.  Daley is trying to encourage bike riding as one of his efforts to be green.

Next is a long straight and flat stretch along Grant Park where I can get my speed up a little and look over into the park to see the Taste of Chicago set up to draw folks downtown for the next week.  Then the path takes me down and around the Aquarium and under the road that goes out to the Planetarium.   The boats of Burnham Harbor now appear on my left and more Park workers doing their trimming.  The traffic drops off drastically now as there are fewer riders to and from the South Side than the North Side (a basic matter of economics, my friend).

I ride through the Police Memorial Park and then the Fire Fighters and Medics Memorial Park with McCormick Place and its lovely waterfall sandwiched in between.  One thing we do well here is honor our fallen.  Next comes the Burnham Centennial Wildlife Area, under construction.

The path moves a little farther away from the Lake on this side of town and there are many more trees.  It is a relief to be out of the sun for a moment of time occasionally.  There are still many limbs and branches on the ground from recent storms but by my return trip this afternoon most of them will be picked up.  The path drops a little which makes this morning ride a little easier but the pedaling harder this afternoon.  Also the wind has not been much of a factor but it will pick up significantly on my return ride.

This stretch is longer and it feels like it because there are fewer distractions besides the Lake.  A beach here and there, some park workers out, the traffic on nearby Lakeshore Drive, a lady deep in prayer on a bench, a few of the public housing high rises that remain to be torn down, and then the tall buildings of Hyde Park still in the distance.

The north half of the trip will have city approved vendors selling water, popsicles, and snow cones this afternoon, but here individuals will be selling water out of their own coolers for one half of the price of the vendors. 

So I continue on my trip as my muscles tell me that I have not taken this trip frequently enough to build them up and my butt starts hurting.  I wonder if a pillow duct taped to my seat would help without increasing wind resistance too much.  The cost of those riding shorts is way up there!

So I finally reach my building at Kenwood and 61^st Street and get my bike into the basement where secure storage is provided as part of the facility being green.  Up to the shower that I purposefully put into the design and build out of our space for occasions like this (we do have several biker riders who ride much more regularly than I do).  I beat my time of Friday morning by five minutes.

The return trip in the afternoon is slower and much more crowded, with more wind and hotter temps.  But I see more, hurt a little more, and keep on my goal of fitness.  I will ride again on Thursday.

Take care.