Blowing … and sucking

By Staff     Nov 7, 2008

I’ve ridden my bike to work in all kinds of weather – summer’s swelter, winter’s chill, rain, snow and just about everything in between.Of all the elements, I have to say I like wind the least.At least the strong kind.I can always throw on another layer when it’s cold. Seam-sealed jackets and fenders on the bike keep the wet away. But there’s no defense to a really bad blow, like that which has been whistling around on all the organ stops the past couple of days.I know this is Kansas. It blows all the time. But even by Kansas standards the past couple of days have just, well, blown.Tuesday, as I made my way south to racquetball, I found myself standing up and grunting into a 20-plus mph headwind – downhill – and barely making any headway. I even considered hopping onto the sidewalk, since I was progressing at such a pedestrian pace.The only upside: My ride home was a breeze.Thursday was even worse. I thought I’d be blown off my bike as I trudged along into a wind the Weather Channel said was gusting well into the 30 mph range.The wind’s a vindictive witch.I once read somewhere that a blow only benefits a cyclist when it’s in a small triangle extending 20 degrees to both sides of directly behind the bike. In other words, wind coming from 320 of the 360 degrees does no good.Of course, a headwind’s the worst, but a bad crosswind can be just as tiring – and more dangerous. Nothing like the threat of an unexpected gust blowing you into traffic to keep you on your toes. Even more exciting is getting used to leaning into a crosswind, only to have the gust blow itself out, causing the unsuspecting cyclist to veer into the void.Whenever the wind kicks up and I find myself grinding along, I can’t help but remember the line of a fellow cyclist who cleverly declared that the wind doesn’t blow, it sucks.

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31190Blowing … and sucking