New Segment here at Domestique! We're gonna track the weather of four cities around the country for the next month or so with en eye towards bikability. Being able to bike, which has the distinction of being both my preferred and only form of transportation, is going to be a factor in deciding what sort of climate I might be able to move to next. I am afraid this metric might severely hurt Minneapolis's chances, so let's just say it might be a factor in the decision, but by no means will it be the only one.
Without further ado...
| Feb 18 Today |
| Mostly cloudy this morning with showers developing this afternoon. Snow levels above 2000 feet. High 47F. Winds SSW at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 80%. |
| Feb 18 Tonight |
| Showers this evening becoming a steady light rain overnight. Low 43F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%. |
| Feb 19 Tomorrow |
| Cloudy with periods of rain. High 49F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Rainfall near a half an inch. |
| Feb 19 Tomorrow night |
Periods of rain. Low 42F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 90%.
|
BIKABILITY RATING: 19 spokes (out of 32, of course).
Hmm, tough one to judge without seeing it in person... sorta windy, not too cold, and rainy. True, Seattle being rainy isn't exactly newsworthy. But look at those temps? 40s? Nice. That's what I'm
talkin' 'bout. Verdict: if it ain't coming down too hard, its
bikable, but not pleasurable. Might require travelling with a dry change of clothes. Minor inconvenience, but I'm still mobile.
| Feb 18 Today | | Mostly cloudy skies this morning will become partly cloudy this afternoon. High 63F. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph. | | Feb 18 Tonight | | Mostly clear. Low 42F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph. | | Feb 19 Tomorrow | | Plentiful sunshine. High 64F. Winds NW at 10 to 20 mph. | Feb 19 Tomorrow night
A mostly clear sky. Low 41F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph.
|
BIKABILITY RATING:29.5 spokes. Beautiful biking weather, except that 20 mph-er. If its in your face going up those famed hills, my guess is it's pretty brutal. Temperature looks about perfect tho.
| Feb 18 Today | | Sun and clouds mixed. High 21F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. | | Feb 18 Tonight | | Mainly cloudy. Low 17F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. | | Feb 19 Tomorrow | | Mostly cloudy. Turning warmer. High around 40F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. | | Feb 19 Tomorrow night | | Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 22F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. | |
BIKABILITY RATING:7 spokes. My guess is snow and ice still abound, and that is what is really driving the rating down here for me (I'd a "roadie" as they say, no mountain bike in my stable). I can bike in cold, maybe not the night time low type cold, but 20's and up are fine for me. But add in the wind, and damn, that shits pretty cold. Hard to motivate for morning rides, this weather pretty much confines one to commuting only. Anyone know the ins-n-outs of bringing a bike on the newfangled
LRT out there in '
Sota (
lookin' at you here, James)? Is it OK, do they shun it?
And lastly, we've got Washington, DC. I'm including this as a baseline comparison since I am now very familiar with winter biking in DC and which conditions allow for it and which don't (at least for me). And also, it's entirely possible I actually won't leave the District area, so it seems like it should be included here (even though I am tired of this post and really just want to be done now).
| Feb 18 Today | | Cloudy with rain and snow showers. Windy. Cold. High near 35F. Winds NW at 20 to 30 mph. Chance of precip 30%. | | Feb 18 Tonight | | Some evening flurries with clearing conditions expected after midnight. Cold. Low 18F. Winds NW at 15 to 25 mph. | | Feb 19 Tomorrow | | Mainly sunny. High 37F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. | | Feb 19 Tomorrow night | | Partly to mostly cloudy. Low 32F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. | |
BIKABILITY RATING: 16 spokes. It really sounds worse here than it really is outside. That said, we were recently hit by a nice snow and ice storm that has the roads a mess. The weather, otherwise, is fine (mas o menus, its still a little cold for my liking). But it's really the roads that are the problem here.
Weekly winner: Hands-down, its Berkeley. Berkeley could very well win every week, and it really isn't fair I suppose to compare these disparate climates. But then again, Berkeley isn't even an option yet, and probably won't become one.
Weekly winner: Hands-down, its Berkeley. Berkeley could very well win every week, and it really isn't fair I suppose to compare these disparate climates. But then again, Berkeley isn't even an option yet, and probably won't become one.
2 comments:
a spoke rating system...awesome.
Minnesota still rules.
It's going to be almost 40 degrees here today!!
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