riding in the inner city.......who is up at 5:00am

[saltydog]

I am a firefighter for the city of Dallas texas, and recently my wife and I have gone down to one car...... I know...praise the death of the combustion satan. But let's just say that what lies between my lovely home and and my place of employment could be considered....mmm...a bad area ... This is putting it lightly. I have been working in one of the worst parts of dallas for about 4 years....I have learned that there is crime everywhere and that people are pretty much the same no matter where they live. But until I began riding a bike through this area I never saw what was really there. The typical sidewalk with a two foot drop in downtown was overlooked until you pedal off of it........I can honestly say that I discovered a new side of riding.

I have been riding moutain bikes since 1983...when I shelled out all 450$ of summer earnings......much to my parents dismay...for a schwinn high sierra...(which I still have)....and then I was free...

this is a ramble...but I just wanted to say....I have to find a commonality btween myself, the garbage men, and the local busdrives....for we are the only ones in downtown dallas at 5am....on any given day...
keep on riding....

[kennbenny667]

I commute home at about 4 in the am and also have a few friends who give me the lane day after day. It sucks on Fri night/sat morning however. 2/3 people on the road are piss drunk. It's like human frogger sometimes.

[Max]

My mother was having an operation so I rode through Pittsburgh at 5:15 in the morning so I could catch her before she went in to surgery. It was one of my favourite commutes through Pittsburgh. Beautiful.

[quazar76]

Despite all the bitching that people do about traffic in the burgh, one must admit that it is like a ghost town at night. I love riding through the city at night. Usually never have a problem with traffic - cuz there isn't any.

Also, my Mom just told me that some magazine voted Pittsburgh as having the most beautiful skyline out of all US cities. Has anyonee else heard about this? I do enjoy the skyline and the artfulness of the downtown area. This city is just big enough for me.

I think if I lived in NYC or something I would have a panic attack and die. One of my ultimate goals for life at this point is to someday live way from the city and be able to bike to work. I take the bus now, because my commute is quite far - but the bus sucks, better than driving, in terms of cost and maybe the earth-but it still sucks!:D

[DancingBear]

All of the buses in my area have bike racks, and they seem to get a lot of use. The one time that I wanted to take a bus (BONK!) the racks were full.

[sellmedonuts]

I'm not up at 5 am, but I do get to ride in alot ini Pittsburgh at night - It's empty and the sidewalks are clear. A favorite pass time is to ride from the North side to the South side. BBQ some mad meat, drink beer, smoke a hooter and attempt to make it home alive on sidewalks and back streets. It's very interesting and I get to ride drunk and take in the sites. It's not a difficault ride, but another good ride is to bike to the top of the West End overlook. Eat some nerds and then baum dahn da hill and stop at one of your favorite drinking establishments and sip a cup o' beans. Anyone willing to bike, drink or BBQ in Pittsburgh at night is OK with me.
Keep reachin for your piece n'at! -Out

[quazar76]

Hey donuts-that picture of Jeff is pretty cool I logve drinkin beans!

Uggghhh

Is there any shots of him riding trails on the 10 speed?

:p

[sellmedonuts]

nope- you have all the pics of Jeff on his ten speed on the trails

Eat em up and screw them on