Bad Air

Last night I added strips of reflective tape that I purchased at www.flighthelmet.com. They seem to have the best deal on 3M Scotchlite tape. Despite their check-out info, shipping was only $2. I've been a little uncomfortable with riding a stealthy black bike with a bunch of blinkies.

It was cold this morning- the coldest morning so far. Summer truly is over. I think the temp was in the 40s. I wore glove liners under my regular gloves, knee warmers, arm warmers, a vest, and the usual. What was different was that I didn't need to stop to disrobe. I don't know how I'll be able to handle the real cold. I reviewed my bike log, and was surprised how much winter riding I did last year. I'll need to dig deep for cold motivation.

I've been riding so much lately that all the commutes are starting to blur together. To mix it up a bit, I rode through Fort Snelling and took the Highway 5 bridge, rather than the Ford Bridge. I smelled much more exhaust fumes today. I don't know what it is about cold weather, but it seems that it amplifies the smell. Today it was bad all the way to work. I guess I could purchase one of those particle masks for commuters that they sell at Performance, but I'd also need to line my helmet with aluminum foil to get the full effect.

I look forward to moving to where the air is clean- blowing off the ocean. I would still like to know what air pollution smells worse in colder temperatures.