Fort Worth Critical Mass

So I took part in my first Critical Mass ride on Friday. I wasn't sure if I would; there was a pretty good chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. But there's a facebook page promoting Car Free Fridays in Fort Worth, so I decided to ride the bike to work and see how things worked out.

Rather than riding my boring commuter hybrid, I decided to ride my 1973 Schwinn Varsity. It made the trip just fine, but it's a slow bike; it took me about 20 minutes longer than usual to ride to work. On the other hand, I didn't feel as tired as I usually do when I get into the office. I was still worried about the weather... what do old sailors say? "Red sky at morning, sailor take warning." Was this too much red?

Commuting to Dinner

So as I left work, I called my wife said and she was also on her way home and asked if I wanted to meet her at Freebird's (a burrito shop) for dinner. Without a second thought I said, "Sure!"

Then I started riding and realized that construction of the new Southwest Parkway lay between my location and Freebird's. To be honest, there isn't a good bicycle approach to Freebird's from where I work even when there's no construction.

I rode my normal route, then jumped into rush hour traffic on Bryant Irvin Road, which is always an adventure in car herding. I was able to navigate across three lanes of busy traffic and turned left onto the I-20 access road. I turned into the parking lot for Main Event (a bowling/laser tag place), which connects to the Costco parking lot that empties onto Overton Ridge, which is where the construction is. Normally I wouldn't cut through a parking lot like that but I was trying to minimize my time in the construction zone. I couldn't avoid it entirely though and had to ride through the barrel zone for about a half mile, and finally made it to my destination.

I was in my commuting clothes, sweaty from the commute, and in comparison Mrs. Doohickie was a vision of loveliness in her work clothes. We enjoyed our burritos then she drove home while I rode.

The ride home was much less stressful. I just followed the side streets behind the busy retail area to get home. I rode right past the home base of Rat Trap Press but it was a long day so I continued on. The weather this time of year is just... peachy. Not too warm, but very comfortable.

I got home in time to catch the Texas Rangers game; they seem to be peaking at the right time, coming back from a 4-1 deficit to crush the Detroit Tigers 11-4.