Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Another Winter Storm

Took this snapshot on my way home yesterday afternoon. I tried to get out before sunset and I think that I may have barely made it. Sunset was at 3:50pm. This is on a small road running through the back of the university connecting the West Ridge portion of the campus and the back entrance. It used to be a construction road and I think they plan on keeping it open as it significantly reduces the traffic through the middle of campus. As you can see, pretty boring picture.

Today, I didn't ride in due to another winter storm warning serious enough that they preemptively cancelled K-12 school and the university made classes at the discretion of the instructor. Yesterday, it was -1°F and now it is up to 16°F and it is supposed to get up to 35°F by the afternoon. All the while dumping a foot of snow followed by rain. Right now, we have frozen drizzle that freezes to your windshield on contact. All the way in, cars were pulled over to scrape their windshields of the layer of opaque ice building up. Weather like this is why everyone should live near a bus route.

20 comments:

  1. The pictures are anything but boring. Just the fact you are out riding in it makes it interesting. Hell, I have been thinking twice about riding in the mid 50's!

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    1. I guess I see the same scenery every day and after a while, it all looks the same. But thank you for stopping by and commenting! Enjoy your near tropical weather!

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  2. I like the photo. It's very you-are-there. And boy, can I feel that cold and quiet.

    Do you see homes that have little bus shelters made for their kids and put out on the edge of their property? I see those in WI all the time. Like little saunas, but just nice shelters for the kids.

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    1. It was very quiet back there. The snow does a great job absorbing sound. One of the really nice things about winter around here. Just a couple hundred yards away is the natural science building.

      I don't see to many of the little, home made school bus shelters. Maybe because we don't have the wind that a lot of other areas have. It may be cold but without the wind, it's pretty pleasant.

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  3. Richard, it seems that the following rule applies: Have sidecar, will ride in snow ;-) So cool! Be safe out there.

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    1. Now if only I had 2WD to make it through the drifts…

      Thank you, I'll try to minimize my drifting through corners...

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  4. RichardM, that's a good pic! And yes, not much around Fairbanks for photo ops but there are spots like the one you found....heck, the turn off from the main road to the road up to the hill to your place: Snowy Drive

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    1. Yep, not much. Most of it is flat and boring. No mountains.

      I guess I should explore more rather than simply ride back and forth to work...

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  5. Richard that picture is exactly what comes to mind when I picture motorcycling in Alaska. I agree with Arizona, not in the least boring. More like inspiring.

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    1. Thank you, I figured that the scenery around here was pretty boring. All snow and scraggly trees.

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  6. Richard:

    Your rides are definitely NOT boring. Thank you for stopping, I hope you didn't get stuck there and be careful not to stop in the middle of the road.

    It is also getting dark early here too. When it is raining we lose our light around 4pm too

    bob
    Riding the Wet Coast

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    1. Most of the roads aren't plowed more than they need to be and most don't have any shoulders. But on this day, there wasn't much traffic.

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  7. Not boring at all. Very pretty scene. I can enjoy snow from afar. :) The freezing drizzle sounds awful though. Did the freezing rain thing from Corvallis to Lebanon many years ago-ice build up and all. Not fun! Stay warm!!

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    1. The freezing drizzle has turned into freezing rain and there is a hard crust building up on the surface of the snow. The president of the university just sent everyone home due to the extremely hazardous road conditions. This morning there were cars in the parking lot with 1/2" of ice built up. Not fun.

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  8. Love the snow covered trees - definitely picturesque, not boring (that is until you've looked at it for 6 months straight, then it may be another story.) You are right - ice rain is not fun, that's about the only thing that will shut us down here.

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    1. I'll keep looking for better locations. And you're right about not looking too good after six months straight. Right now the ice drizzle has turned into frozen rain i.e. it feels like you are being pelted with tiny bits of ice. Not snow or hail but frozen rain. They are thinking that school will be shut down tomorrow as well.

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  9. Banner picture. I dread to think what an exciting picture would look like, oh pioneer man. cold front here brought winds and mid 70s. Brrr

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  10. I was riding in 37 degree temp the other day, damn cold, I can only imagine 16. Sorry, Alaska for me only in July ;-)

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    1. I have a heated jacket liner and heated gloves as well as a barn door sized windshield so I don't feel the cold too much when riding. The heated gear makes a world of difference. When it drops below 0°F, the heated grips come on as well...

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