CR Biker: In Which I Ride a Cold Day in Denim

Friday, January 28, 2022

In Which I Ride a Cold Day in Denim

About 8 a.m., looking east as I cross the C Avenue Bridge. It's 3, very cold, but very pretty, and I'm dressed warmly, so I'm enjoying the cool morning.

So, as I speculated in my latest post, Thursday was warmer than the days before, and I rode my bike.

I wasn’t as sure about Friday. The temperature this morning was 3 above zero Fahrenheit, pretty close to my “don’t ride” temperature of zero. And there was a windchill-not much of a wind, but it doesn’t take much wind to make it feel like teens below zero when the temperature is so low.

But the wind was from the northwest. I do have to cycle west a bit, but most of the miles from my house to campus are facing south. Wind chill at my back is not really that much of a factor, and the wind was light enough that, when I rode with it, there really wasn’t any wind. So, I rode.

C Avenue Pond (above and below) on a cold winter morning.

And it worked out. I almost got an ice-cream style sinus headache headed west down the 33rd Street hill, but it was only for a few blocks and I got better once I turned south again.

In fact, I was feeling so good when I got to campus that I headed for the far end and rode up the hill by the convent. I do that fairly often when riding my hybrid bike, but only rarely on the winter mountain bike, because the front derailleur of The Fancy Beast rubs on the back tyre when I’m in granny gear, and the hill by the convent is a granny gear hill for this old biker. It just felt too pretty of a morning to not take in a little extra distance on the ride.

I paused for a second to make some images of the pretty sparkly snow on the hill before turning onto campus. Because, why not?

Riding beside Mount Mercy University campus in the morning.

Snow blows off of passing car as I ride by campus.

Entering campus on Mercy Drive.

I was warm this morning partly due to the magic of denim. Fridays are “casual days” on my campus, and I had on blue jeans over my long, insulated winter underwear. I know denim is not supposed to be warm, but if there is a good under layer, for me it works as an outer layer. I’m warmer in very cold weather on jean days than most dress pants days—it’s even better than canvass, although canvass is better than other materials. I was in full winter regalia, long-sleeved undershirt, dress shirt, warm sweatshirt, two leg layers, three pairs of socks, warm winter boots, winter biking cap under hood under helmet, warm mittens, wind-cutting thin coat. I was OK. I regretted forgetting a scarf I usually wear on colder rides, but the beard helped with that.

So, here’s to a cold winter day when the sunshine is pretty and it’s not too cold. And here’s to denim as the outer layer on a winter bike ride.

I know RAGBRAI announced its route tonight, and I haven’t checked it yet. But bike season is coming. And I’ve passed 90 miles—maybe I’ll get 100 before January is over.