First Ride Into Work This Year!

Well, the snow and ice near the roads have nearly disappeared, so I decided to ride in to work this morning. It was -3C and I don't think there was even a breath of wind. Despite being cool, it was quite pleasant. The KLR started like a charm, the engine cranked fast and caught after two, even in the cool air.

From scouting it out on Monday and Tuesday, I knew that my regular route to work had a lot of ice so I took a different path in. There was a bunch of sand on the road, which despite making for the odd interesting turn, helped immensely when I rode over ice on the road. There was only one point along the way where I felt the back wheel start to slowly slide sideways. Fortunately, it wasn't too long of a stretch before I was back on dry pavement, so the rear wheel just skipped a tiny bit and everything was back to normal.

This afternoon it was a little windy and cloudy but the air was quite comfortable - somewhere around +5C, I think. I left work a little late so I ended up going pretty much straight home.

So... unless we get another blizzard or another batch of freezing rain, it looks like my riding season has officially started!

I've got to say, though - the KLR is fantastic when dealing with potholes. It's probably because I've got the suspension set too soft, but boy is it comfy. I'd rather be on a rough road on the KLR than in the car!

Oh, and on another note, it looks like my panniers have finally made it through customs, hopefully they'll be here in a week or two. With luck, it'll be warm enough for me to put on the pannier racks, too.

Safe riding!

Odometer reading now: 9129.2km

Distance since last fill: 50.5km