risky business

i am not a risk taker. well, i may take risks occasionally but they're usually well-calculated, thought about risks. risks i'm most likely going to win/enjoy/survive. i'm not interested in jumping off a bridge with an elastic tied to my feet. i'm not that stoked about the idea of racing down rapids in a blown-up vessel (though jumping out of a plane does sound kind of cool...). so i never thought that i would be risking my life every day. but i do (at least on weekdays).  you see, i ride my bike. in montreal.

don't be so dramatic you say? well, you've clearly never tried to ride a bike in this city. i ride my bike to work every day, unless it's pouring when i wake up. i'll even tough out a light misting of rain on my way to work if i have to;  i don't mind getting wet on my way home (which i've done. more than a few times). cycling to/from work clears my head and allows me to arrive at work ready to start my day (read: awake) or ready to end it when i get home (read: letting go of work as i ride). i will keep doing so until i can't because of winter weather conditions.

the challenge with riding your bike in montreal is just that: riding your bike in montreal. drivers here are amongst the worst in the world (in my humble opinion...) and roads are atrocious at best. the combination makes for interesting cycling conditions. don't be fooled by the "montreal has hundreds of kms of bike paths" spiel they love to rhyme off. those paths are mostly along waterfront or in parks. there aren't that many safe places to ride, unless you live and work in the few city blocks that make up downtown "bike path region". i, unfortunately, do not.

every day it's the same thing. i get on my bike and start peddling. i'm a safe rider- helmet, lights, bright clothes. i signal when i'm going to turn. i don't ride the wrong way on one-ways. i don't ride on sidewalks. i wait at lights. the only "road sins" i commit are coasting through 4-way stops (but drivers do too, so i feel less guilty) and turning right on a red when it's safe (which, to be honest, isn't that often). so i get particularly irate with drivers who honk at me because (god forbid) they have to slow down for 5 seconds. or at drivers who zip past me only to slow down and cut me off to turn right, causing me to have a significant amount of near accidents this summer. or drivers who curse at me because i'm not "over far enough" in the right lane.

the thing is, the roads, whilst horrendous to drive on are downright treacherous to ride on. there are potholes that can eat my bike, cracks that would love to catch my wheel and wavy pavement at a variety of intersection that make me wonder when montreal had tectonic plates shift directly underneath it. grates and sewers always in the far right of the road, exactly where i'm supposed to ride my two-wheeled vehicle. so you know, if i feel the need to be a bit further over, deal with it. just deal with it.

i don't think i'll have to deal with it for much longer though. with the temperature steadily dropping and the roads starting to be frosty/slick in the mornings, i think my somewhat calculated risk is slowly becoming a much risker venture. it's perhaps time to put the bike away for winter *tear*

i wonder it's possible to cross-country ski to work...
xo