A Longer Ride Today

 Daylight Saving Time began in most of the US today, when 2 am became 3 am. EST.

So…there’s more light at the end of today’s ride!

Late or Early?

 Late afternoon, late in the season.  Or is it a prelude to evening, and a new season?

A ride to Randall’s Island after work, after lunch, after everything else brought me to the brink—of changes.

I went for a ride in spite of (OK, you know me well enough to know that I might’ve ridden because of) high wind warnings. Gusts blew at my face, sides and back, depending on which way I rode.  But once I got to the Island—with some of the largest expanses of open space in the city—it seemed there was nothing but wind.

The temperature was around 10C (50F):  not unusual for this time of year. But the inescapable gusts could make it seem that winter would never end.

Or are they what ushers in the Spring?

Is this bare tree a reminder that winter is still with us? Or do its bare branches reveal a sky that’s brightening?

And is the mud around its roots a graveyard of bones and melted snow? Or is it a cradle for irises, purple asters and hyacinths?

Ah, the riddles of a late day ride, late in the winter—or a ride at the precipice of twilight, and a new season!

When A “Ghost” Bike Vanished

I don’t think this is what the folks at Recycle-a-Bicycle—or similar programs across the United States—had in mind.

In May 2019, 41-year-old Michael Brooks, who was known in his Indiana community for using his bicycle as his main form of transportation, was struck and killed at the intersection of North Russell Road and Indiana Route 45. That summer, a “ghost bicycle “ was erected at the spot that summer .

People came to regard it as a fixture on the scenic road. So they took notice when it disappeared. 

What happened?

It seems that a plow truck ran over it and covered it. When the snow melted, someone saw the mangled bike, un-chained it and brought it to a recycling center.

Now Nic Newby, Brooks’ former partner, and some friends are planning to go through Brooks’ “stockpile” of bikes and frames to create a new memorial.

Of course, nothing can bring back Nic’s partner or the friend of many. But, he points out, there will always be a reminder for motorists to keep an eye out for cyclists.

The driver who struck Brooks was arrested and jailed. Newby said that while “I don’t support the carcereal state,” he is nonetheless “glad that she is off the road.”