Rainy Day Sorbet

Seeing this sorbet-colored Brompton made me so happy the other day (though riding our Bromton 36+ weeks pregnant was not as much fun as I'd hoped - I felt ready for the clown car). Anyway, here's hoping this cheerful bike helps cheer your rainy day.

What do you think he has in that box?

Beacon Hill Elegance

Loved her boots and red coat (which we now allow in Boston!) as she cycled onto the Common.

PS - It's a strange New England thing to leave Christmas decorations up until Easter. I've been here for a while now and I still don't understand it.

Fabulous Dutch Cycling Video

My friend E sent this for us with the message:

I thought of you when I saw this video of bicycling in Holland in the 50s because:

• loads of chic ladies (and gents!) on bikes
• several shots of innovative transport methods using bicycle power
• all kinds of interesting baby-transport baskets and wagons
• plus, a nice little dutch ditty at the end.

She's right, and I think the flowers at the end are as fun as the space-pod baby trailer towards the beginning. What a cheerful way to start the day. Thanks E!

Helena Handbasket

OK, terrible title, but it was the "drag queen" name my friend chose for her bachelorette party, and she was just married on Saturday. Hurray!
Happy honeymooning J!

Back to Boston cyclists...

This pretty cyclist braved the cold temps to bike down Charles Street with a blinkie attached to her basket-backpack.

While baskets of that type are a look that make me think summer and beach, it was refreshing and cheerful to see one in the depth of winter.

OK, I blame hormones

But this is kinda cute, right?

Available from hellobanjobaby on Etsy.

Hope you all get to ride today with your Valentine!

love,
  Charlotte, the possibly hormone-addled

Bike Lane Wall

If you can't tell from the photo, the snow continues to just before the next intersection, where the bike lane area is plowed again. There's the snowy tree space all along this where, theoretically, the snow could go, if they were to plow it.

Is there a reason why they don't?

More than just Winter Quiet

I apologize for the silence on this blog. I haven't been able to ride and have been finding it just unbearable to think about cycling when I can't get out on my bike.

I thought I could ride yesterday but heard that we were expecting snow in the evening so I reluctantly took the bus. It was warm and puddled all day. Today I waited for the bus for half an hour then gave up in disgust and went home for my bike. If snow was not actually falling from the sky I wasn't going to worry about it. Maybe I still won't be able to ride home. Whatever.

This morning I rode slowly and safely, walked when I was nervous, and have been grinning like a fool with the endorphins from actually getting to ride my bike for the first time in almost a month. I feel so much happier!

I also got to use my new bike accessory:

I am not the only cyclist with big news, and I have been spending a bit of this last bus-bound month reviewing Totcycle archives. I've been lucky that I have been able to ride so much during this pregnancy, with only one other three day obstacle in December. We're 34 weeks today (hurray!) and as a person who has had setbacks, this seems like a nice, safe, good time to finally announce!

My husband thought you would all have guessed our news when my Italian "baby-moon" photos featured more Moms on bikes than sexy Italian bicycles, but I guess it was subtle enough. Now you all now know why I was so obsessed with lights this autumn!

I fear this blog may divert a bit into mom-bike territory, as even the Dawes for my own mother is getting reworked as our family station wagon (for when Future Cyclist is big enough).

In the near term I hope the Future Cyclist and I will be able to snap some good cycling photos for you all when we're out on walks. I'll also be back on my bike ASAP after s/he joins us, which should coincide with the nice weather arriving. I'm trying not to think about missing brevet season (and a PBP year at that!) and focusing instead on perhaps volunteering at checkpoints. We already have a baby-sized cycling cap and are working on cheering... "Allez les cyclists!"

So please bear with me as time rolls along, the seasons change, a focus shifts, and my bicycle transforms to continue to reflect my needs at any given time... aren't bicycles awesome?

Not a bike

Yet nonetheless essential for getting around Boston these days. It's hard to tell but these Original Muck Boot Company "Ice Pick" boots have metal spikes embedded in the sole to ensure good traction on ice. I'm very concerned about slipping these days so these boots have been a lifesaver (really!).

Cool Guy

Got to give him credit - he was out riding today!

Crazy question for you all

I got this email from a friend of mine, and am stumped by the "under bike shorts" part of it. I don't usually think of wearing underwear with bike shorts:

I have a very crazy question for you. My dad has decided that he is going to do the cross-country bike ride starting in March, and he was just over here asking my husband a lot of questions about gear etc.  Dad mentioned that a few years ago my mom gave him some underwear that had a leather insert and those were the most comfortable underwear he ever had for wearing under bike shorts. He said they were like the same kind of underwear that horse jockeys wear or something.  We had no idea what he was talking about, and I'm sure you can imagine what came up when I googled "leather underwear" and the results actually got worse when I added "horse jockey" to the search terms.

Of all the people in the world that might have an idea of this product that my dad is talking about which lives in the intersection of the Venn diagram for cycling, horse riding, and appropriate undergarments for all activities, you have to be one of the best :).  So - any idea what he's thinking of?

So my cycling friends, any thoughts? Is Dad thinking of just old-school chamois or is there some other garment out there, hidden behind all those photos we don't really want to look at?

Thank you for any leads!