It's all meat...

...and it's all mine!!!

and Beth's

Bike Commuting

Well, I've been meaning to write a full post about bike commuting for awhile now, but haven't gotten around to it in part because I didn't have any good pictures to go along with it. Then when I did get one picture I put it up as a mini post with a promise to write more later. But lets face it, I'll probably never get a bunch of good bike commuting pictures because I'm rarely, if ever, going to take the time to stop riding, dig out a camera and take a picture before I go on my way. And neither is Beth, and no stranger is going to stop and take off his or her gloves to take photos for us on a cold dark morning. So no good pictures, but what I do have are questions, so I guess I'll use that as the basis for a post. Actually, it's pretty much the same question from everybody, so this should be pretty easy...


"why ride?"


Its always some version of this. Sometimes the implication is that I'm stupid, sometimes that I must be really hardcore, sometimes a super-environmentalist and sometimes just insane. But it boils down to the question of why a person with a perfectly good car in their driveway would leave that car in the driveway and set off over snow and ice in total darkness at temperatures down to a few degrees below zero. It's actually not any of the reasons people assume, and although its probably easiest to refute the idea that I'm super tough or that I do this because of strong environmental convictions, hopefully I can argue that I'm not stupid or crazy either.

First, the environmental aspect. It's 6 miles, roundtrip, by car to drive to work, so thats a maximum of 30 miles a week. I'm not saying thats an inconsequential distance, but for someone who is willing to drive 160 miles roundtrip to go snowboarding, or over 200 for a weekend getaway (this coming Friday), its tough to cite environmental concern as the justification for biking to work.

As far as being really tough, unfortunately I'd say that the discomforts of biking are pretty minor - comparable, actually, to the discomforts of driving. So far this week, I've had one ride where I was cold on my forehead because I didn't have my hat pulled down far enough, and other than that I was either just fine or even too warm while riding. By comparison, it would have been a lot colder to sit motionless in the car for 5 minutes waiting for the engine to warm up. I guess that this works as my argument for not being stupid or insane, too, in that biking in the winter is actually a whole lot easier than it would seem.

For example, it seems like slipping tires would be a big problem and sudden crashes a constant risk. But for the most part traction is just as good as any dirt trail in the summer. Of course, for the few icy patches there are 294 steel studs in each tire, which are a luxury I don't have in the car. All in all, its more than enough for a surefooted ride.

Then there's the question of being cold, but again it turns out to be easier than I expected to stay warm. Here's what I wore Monday morning when it was a couple degrees below zero:

• thin ankle-length socks


• bike shoes with neoprene covers


• bike shorts


• windproof, non-insulated pants


• t-shirt


• long-sleeved athletic shirt


• light fleece jacket


• paper-thin flourescent yellow jacket for visibility


• thin hat with ear flaps to fit under bike helmet


• neck gaiter


• cheap leather mittens

Basically, the only extra layers on that list are the shoe covers, neck gaiter, bike shorts and reflective coat, but out of those things only the shoe covers are something I had to buy to stay warm while biking. In fact, I actually take off layers in the morning between walking Bella and leaving for work.

Darkness is the other potential problem, but except for a couple hundred feet of trail at our local park the route is lit 24 hours a day. On top of that I have my Day-Glo jacket and 2 blinking lights on my bike plus a headlight bright enough to light my way on unlit trails. Beth's got three flashing lights and a headlight so bright that sometimes I think she's a car behind me. So every car, truck, skier, dog-walker and moose can see us coming from a mile away.

In the end, what it comes down to is the fact that biking to and from work is just a lot more pleasant than driving. I don't have to sit in a cold car waiting for it to warm up and I don't have to clear snow and ice off of the car in the pitch darkness. There's no traffic to worry about, and with their studded tires our bikes might even handle better in the winter conditions than our car does. By biking I get to stretch my legs out before I spend the day behind a desk. At the end of the day, biking gives me a chance to switch out of work mode as soon as I start pedaling, but when I drive I generally don't feel like I've left work behind until after I'm home. Seeing the occasional moose at the side of the trail is pretty cool, and yesterday on the way home I saw a fox sneaking across the frozen creek that runs alongside the trail (although apparently my sister saw a fox in DC the other day, which makes this a little less unique). At the end of the day I feel pretty good about having gotten some exercise and burning off some steam on the trails definitely seems to help me sleep better. All-in-all, I'd say I bike to work because I like the ride!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
turns out starting this post inspired me to try to get a couple pictures yesterday on the ride home:

Beth demonstrates the proper form for red cheeks and frozen eyelashes

a self-portrait while riding - if it were snowing my facemask wouldn't be so gross, but all that ice came from me

Beth (in front) and Bryn riding in front of me as we get close to home - the brightness of the reflective strips on Bryn's pants actually confused the camera and made the trail look a lot darker than it actually is

Backcountry Snowboarding - 12/23/2010

On Thursday Beth and I went out backcountry snowboarding with our friends Bryn and Louis. We were ready for some cold weather, but when we drove through a valley and the temperature suddenly dropped to -14 I was thinking of calling it quits. Fortunately, the temperature rose just as quickly as we climbed up the other side of the valley, and did so before I had the chance to give voice to my cowardice.

It was still right around zero when we left the cars, and I was more worried about Bella and Dash getting cold than I was about myself, mostly because Bella has been a sissy about having cold feet recently. But they were both fine all day until the very end, when I think they were so tired that keeping warm was more of a struggle. But thats getting ahead of myself. In the morning, it was easy to stay warm, since as soon as we left the car we started skinning our way straight uphill. In fact, we'd already stopped to take off some layers before we found ourselves bathed in sunshine, and it was probably for the best that the sun wasn't really adding any heat to the mix. This time of year its so great to get out in the sun, though, so we might as well have been on a beach somewhere.

With clear skies and bright sun, the highlight of the day was probably the amazing scenery. The snowboarding was a lot of fun, of course, but the surrounding mountains were just beautiful, and I kept stopping to snap more and more photos of the same peaks and ridges all day. Of course, all day is a pretty short time frame, so with the sun setting as we started back to the cars at the end of the day there was time for one last shot and then the camera had to get put away.

But I guess I shouldn't sell the snowboarding short. After reaching the top of our ridge around noon, we took a quick lunch break before making some turns down the back side of the ridge. Despite almost 3 weeks without snow there wasn't another ski or snowboard track in sight, although moose had made a mess of the powder at the very bottom of the run. We skinned back up to the top of the ridge and took our second run down the front side, where there were a good deal of tracks but the snow was probably still as good as anything in bounds after noon on a powder day. Of all things we ran into Beth's and Bryn's boss' boss at the top of the second run. Someone in his group was impressed with the fact that we'd made a run down the back side, but I think both of the ladies were a bit disappointed to have work catch up to them in the backcountry.

On a final note, it felt really good to get out and make some turns for the first time in a year and only the second time in 2 years. I had a ton of fun with the fact that I can go out and charge pretty hard right off the bat. I also loved the fact that my split board handled the chopped up snow on the last run like a champion. It brought back the feeling of riding my first Never Summer through that sort of snow for the first time - just great control and super steady underfoot.

Anyway, I can't wait to get back out again, even though I do hope its a bit warmer the next time. And a bit of fresh snow wouldn't hurt, either. Now here's the photos:

came really close to suggesting we turn around at 10:06, but seven

minutes later it wasn't so bad.

setting out from the car before the sun rises

above the surrounding peaks

the crew breaks into the sun for the first time of the day

happy to have some sunshine on our way up

Beth drops in at the top of run #1

heading back to the top for run #2

snow-covered mountains

beautiful scenery, all day

the sun was starting to set as we got back to the top

before our second run.

and a closing shot of Bella looking dignified...

Arriving at work

This is what I looked like when I got to work this morning:

It may not look like it, but I'm sweating uncontrollably under all that frost. It was -5 at the house this morning and my eyelashes froze together at one point, but the only part of me that felt cold was the exposed part of my forehead, because I let my hat ride a little too high.

I've been meaning to do a full post about bike commuting in the winter, so I'll still do that sometime, but I thought I'd share this shot now.

Winter in Alaska (part 2 of 3) - It's the Little Things

I know it's pretty cliche to say that its the little things that matter, but the truth is that cliches are like onions - they've got a lot of layers to them (get it? it's another cliche!). So I don't mind saying that when it comes to getting through a winter in Alaska, it's the little things that matter.

Like, first of all, there are the little things that will make you miserable if you don't do them. So make sure you bundle up before you go outside, because there's a big difference between taking the dog for a walk when it's 5 degrees out when you've got long underwear on and when you're just wearing a pair of slacks. And it doesn't just apply to things like walking the dog - there's no reason not to be wearing that long underwear under your slacks all day at work, since it was cold in the morning on the way in, cold at lunch, cold when you went to get coffee and cold on the way home. Come to think of it, pretty much everything in this category has to do with wearing enough clothes, but I guess that just shows how important dressing appropriately really is.

Second, there are the little things to do that will make things a little nicer, keep you a little more sane and generally stave off cabin fever. To me the most important thing here is to keep getting outside. You may not want to be outside all day like in the summertime, but getting out for a half hour to ski, walk the dog, ice skate or even bike to work instead of driving really keeps the walls from closing in. Then, when you get home you can take a nice hot shower, put on that long underwear we talked about and enjoy the heat from a roaring fire in the woodstove. All of those thing feel pretty sweet on a cold, dark day. Some other nice things are cooking a really good meal (kitchens are warm!) and then eating it with plenty of wine. The trick is basically to first convince yourself that its not so bad to go outside and then once you're back to believe that being cozy inside your house is the best thing ever (without regretting that you went outside in the first place.

Third are the little things about winter up here that are really great. The way that snow sticks to trees for days or even weeks after a snowstorm or icy fog is beautiful, the steam and smoke rising from a thousand chimneys on a cold, clear, still morning belongs in a postcard, and with the sun rising and setting at such a low angle there are beautiful sunrises and sunsets every clear day that last for over an hour. Watching Bella play in the snow is an absolute treat, and watching her curl up for a nap in front of a warm fire afterwards is about the cutest thing in the world. When it stays so cold and the sun is so weak, snow never turns to slush, so your feet never get soaked with icy water and the world stays white and bright without turning grey after a few hours. There are groomed ski trails and zambonied skating rinks all around town, with local kids and adults enjoying them every day despite the weather. Backcountry skiing is a short drive away, with snowshoeing even closer. Neighbors stop by to warm up and share a bottle of wine. People decorate for the holidays, because its so much nicer to come home to a house lit up by Christmas lights, so neighborhoods have a cheery glow. The case of beer that lives on the back step is always cold. Moose come into the city for the winter and can be spotted several times a week. On dark weekend mornings it's always easy to sleep in, and on dark weekday mornings, this is a city that cares about its coffee, so whether you're buying beans or brewed you'll have a mug of something warm, tasty and strong. The Iditarod goes a block from my house (the freaking Iditarod!!!), and so do the world sprint sled dog championships. Basically, there's a lot going on here that couldn't happen anywhere else, and sometimes there's nothing better than to just soak it all in.*

* As long as you're wearing that long underwear.

Trophy Time!!!

Both of you (all three on a good day!) already know that last year at the office Christmas party I drank too much egg-nog and knocked over the tree was transfixed by one impossibly large present at the gift exchange. "It's shaped just like a trophy," I thought, "but it can't possibly be a 4-foot-high trophy. So what on Earth could it be? I must find out!" It was a trophy, and despite my best efforts to give it away (for the past year, virtually everyone who has come into the house has been declared champion of something and offered the trophy) the trophy sat in our living room.

As this winter approached, I decided to give it away at the office Christmas party, where re-gifting is a valued tradition, but nobody was going to open the giant trophy-shaped present this time around, so I had to get creative. So I took the trophy apart and rebuilt it with hinges and locks so that I could fit it into a 2-foot high box. Here's how it works:

So I wrapped it up and snuck it into work, where I hid it in an empty cubicle. Then I printed a document asking whoever found the printout to find the gift and add it to the pile. This way, nobody would know it was from me, since it was still a waaaay oversized present and people were sort of expecting me to try to regift the trophy. I guess I got away with it because somebody got fooled:

opening the mystery gift...

Everybody loves the hinge action!

Liz couldn't believe she got fooled.

But I think this picture captures her true ambivalence about the trophy. Meanwhile, over her shoulder I think I spy a plan hatching...

A gift theft! Somebody actually knew what they were getting and wanted in - he says he's got big plans for sprucing it up to re-gift next year.

Winter in Alaska (part 1 of...)

Alaska is a pretty unique place year-round. I mean, the fact that the sun is up past bedtime for like 4 straight months in the summer takes some getting used to. But most people can deal with the idea of some extra sunshine and that’s why it’s the winter in Alaska that really sets the place apart. Since I mentioned daylight already, lets start there.

Sunrise today was at 10:08 AM and sunset will be at 3:40 PM. During the 5 hours, 32 minutes and 4 seconds that the sun will be in the sky*, it will make it 5.7° above the horizon. This means that at noon a 5’9” tall person will have a shadow 57 feet long, and that to get out of the shadow of a 50 foot tall tree you would have to stand over 500 feet from its base. Given that there are plenty of trees everywhere, this means that at ground level there is basically no such thing as direct sunlight. The good news here is that we’re not missing much. Sunny conditions this time of year produce up to about 15 W/m2 of solar radiation, compared to nearly 500 W/m2 in a place like Washington, DC. But then again, don’t forget how reflective snow is. With snow on the ground you can actually see in the woods at night and during the day it can be positively blinding. And we’ve got that going for almost 5 more months.

high noon in the Alaskan winter

So it’s dark and it’s snowy, but what’s it like outside? Well, here’s the current 7-day forecast for Anchorage:

You’ll notice that there’s no snow in the forecast – at least falling snow, since the blowing and drifting varieties make a couple of appearances – which isn’t that atypical. We’re on the dry side of the mountains here in Anchorage, with an average annual snowfall of about 70”, spread out over about 6 months. Not that were a desert, but that averages out to the equivalent of around 1” of water a month.

You’ll also see that while the current temperatures are typical – right around the mid-teens – we’re expecting a shot of arctic air tonight through the weekend. Those high temperatures as low as -10° tomorrow are going to be no fun at all. And Bella might have to learn to walk herself if it’s -15° outside the next couple of nights.

So that’s what it’s like here in the winter. Sounds miserable, right? Well, it is and it isn’t. In the next couple of posts I’ll try to explain what its like to live here and why its not actually all that bad.