Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2003/12/08
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Hi Marc, I too enjoy cold weather. I lived in Buffalo for 2 years and quite enjoyed walking to the bus stop to go to the university, while watching the poor car owners doing their daily morning excavation routine. Where I live now it seldom gets that cold, and it was also a rarity in Switzerland, since we lived at a low elevation. But last Christmas I was in Poland, and remember a Christmas Day walk in the park at an invigorating -18C/0F. Very nice. When it comes to riding, though, remember that I was talking motorway speeds (120 km/h, 75 mph) which I doubt you reached on either your bicycle or the Honda 50. The windchill factor at that point becomes quite signifcant, especially on a motorcycle with only a minimal fairing, such as my Suzuki 500. Nathan Marc James Small wrote: > At 09:28 PM 12/8/03 +0100, Nathan Wajsman wrote: > >I made a slightly different discovery this morning. It was also around -5C, > >gorgeous weather, so I took my motorcycle to go the office. I discovered, > >however, that neither my gloves nor the long underwear I wore are adequate > >for a 45 km commute at motorway speeds. This weekend I will have to go to > >the local MC emporium and buy some proper winter gloves and thermal undies. > > Shucks. I used to ride my Honda 50 around in sub-zero temperatures thirty > years back without regard for anything other than proper layering -- but, > then, I grew up camping out in -40 F (oddly, this also is -40C, I believe) > and even colder venues, where staying warm is a matter of art, not science. > > I have ridden my bicycle at -20 F (-30 C, give or take) without much more > caution that wearing a balaclava. But, then, I've never done a ride longer > than 10 miles (16km, give or take) in such weather. > > Today, I enjoy the magnificent heater of my '84 Audi 4000S, as I detest its > weak air conditioning during the draining months of summer. > > I feel a lot of bad guilt about you guys trapped in California. It is > really magnificent to get up in the morning and walk out to 0 F > temperatures (-20 C, give or take) to get the morning paper. Fair makes a > real person feel like a real person. The snow crunches magnificently under > the feet, the glint of sunlight off crystals creates a wonderland almost > impossible to capture on film. > > Who wants rain from October to March? Been there, done that, and I will > admit a San Francisco weekend with fog and chill winds is a delight -- but > it is not the real thing, and youse guys who think it is should move back > to wear weather means something and where people appreciate the kiss of > cold and the sweep of an icy wind over a neglected field. > > Marc > > msmall@infionline.net FAX: +540/343-7315 > Cha robh bąs fir gun ghrąs fir! > > -- > To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html - -- Nathan Wajsman Almere, The Netherlands e-mail: n.wajsman@chello.nl Mobile: +31 630 868 671 Photo site: http://www.wajsmanphoto.com - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html