Speed Racer

I had a haircut appointment on the other side of town last night so I hitched a ride with a co-worker who lives nearby. I knew my ride home would be easy because it was downhill until I got downtown to pick up my regular route home.

The first part of my ride was great. I went through Manito Park. Even the streets leading up to the park are nice. They are wide tree covered boulevards. It was pastoral, peaceful and entirely enjoyable...and downhill, even if ever so slightly.
Heading into downtown, the route became very downhill. I took a fairly busy street that goes right through the heart of downtown. At one point, my speedometer read 37 mph. That is fast on a bicycle. I was peddling for all I'm worth to keep the speed up. I didn't want to impede traffic. I came upon another guy on a bike in my lane and we rode through downtown together. I never felt endangered or uncomfortable around all the other cars.

Once I was on my normal route home, I made a slight detour. Instead of traveling up Wall Street which is a residential street with low to no traffic, I went up Howard Street, which is one block to the east. It's a four lane arterial that isn't terribly busy and has traffic lights at the busier intersections. I was not able to maintain my speed to keep in sync with the lights. I had to wait for the light at the busy cross street. I kind felt obligated to follow the law whereas I would sail through an uncontrolled intersection...providing it was clear of course. I probably won't go that way again. My total mileage for the day was Eight point Four miles and it took me about 25 minutes to ride the six miles across town.