A Week Of Rain

monday

the rain has finally come to fall here in the city. the early spring we hoped for seems deferred a bit further, so we took the forecast for a rare opportunity to test our rain gear, or perhaps our lack thereof. we decided what better way to get acquainted with our gear than on bikes. sarah writes:

As a child I loved to create mud pits in the backyard. I would take the hose and dig, then jump into what to me was an ecstasy of texture and sound. Dramatic yes, maybe, but it’s true. Biking off-road in the rain fills me with those similar childlike sensations.

so we drunk down our cups and started cruising through the west side of the city. salvation army was a bust, but with lunar new year approaching, the businesses on clement were bustling. folks were lined up outside the BBQ shops and produce markets, but we were able to get in and out of wheat field smoothly.

the buns weren’t much to write home about, but i found the sponge cake exactly not too sweet. the matcha roll cake was… we don’t talk about the matcha roll…

these buns, however, were of some significance…

onto the park we went! sarah:

My bike journey is this: from single speed, to road, and finally gravel. I decided to finally take the Bridgestone out (with Alex’s guidance) off road around Golden Gate Park. I was nervous because it was rainy, very rainy, and I have nothing that is really fully waterproof.

My rain jacket consists of an old Uniqlo puffer that Alex got me when I was 20 that now doesn’t fit my arm length. It works for a bit until it doesn’t. My shoes consist of the Merrells you always see on the rei sell back rack because people constantly return them. Why? I don’t really know. They’re ugly but not horrible, not fully waterproof but sufficiently so. I bought them and I will use them.

My favorite of the gear has to be my new smart wool gloves that kept my hands very warm and aided in my handlebar grippage (is that a word?) They are taking a long time to dry though, it’s been a day and a half and they’re still wet but we also don’t have heat in our apartment. I wore my Ben Davis pants and a cafe nyleta beanie that I stole from Alex cause I like how tight it fits around my head. Anyways, this rainy day I learned that I still love playing in mud and I need to buy better rain clothes.

after riding around the park and exploring the awesome network of trails for quite some time we ended up in the botanical gardens to peep the blooming, fragrant magnolias.

after a few hours of riding it was time to rest up and snack. while sarah was pretty wet on her upper half, i was soaked through to my chonies. riding around without fenders or waterproof pants proved exactly how you might expect: wet and uncomfortable.

i ended up shedding my top layers and just wore a t-shirt under the montbell as we were getting pretty warm from climbing. the jansport and gorilla cuts were completely soaked through. the jansport’s held up well over the years considering it’s like 15 years old. though a new, more waterproof daypack might be a worthy future investment.

after our outing sarah wanted to look at the outdoor stores for an actual dedicated rain jacket, but the trips were kind of a bust. everything is so expensive at retail and nothing much spoke to her.

finally, the weather called for soup and we responded.

tuesday

lunar new year is upon us at last! the lightning in the early morning and the sounds of firecrackers throughout the afternoon made me feel grateful to be in our city. so begins the year of the horse.

with the rain impending, and after much contemplation about a jacket to replace the uniqlo one, sarah landed on a fisherman type polyurethane-coated polyester joint, and pulled the trigger:

I ordered the Neptune Jacket from Grundens after spending a stressful Monday at REI. Shopping is horrible for me because of the insane amount of options. I also hate spending money. But I felt that this was a nessesary invesment especially since Alex and I like to go camping. I chose this jacket because it’s simple. No armpit zippers, no crazy lightweight material, no insane brand attached to it. All things that keep it in an adequate price range, but more importantly fit what I feel is my philosophy: a simple, good quality object that will last a long time.

on the topic of pickups, after work i spent most of the afternoon in anticipation for a DHL box containing some tomato-mountain-related items from japan. i have a deep, sort of sad feeling about my own obsessive, at times compulsive consumption, especially in contrast with sarah’s more frugal, utilitarian approach. i was, however, foaming a bit at the sight of this:

and while i won’t spoil everything now because i think some of the contents of these envelopes deserve their own post when they get tested a bit, i will show off these delightful south2 west8 semi-fingerless gloves, perfect for biking to work in the morning, superflous logo aside:

wednesday

the morning greeted us with heavy rain. i heard rumors of hail but didn’t see any myself. the rain did stop by the time i left for work so i didn’t pack anything waterproof, instead opting for a cheap collapsible umbrella. raining on and off throughout the morning, the sun poked out midday, and by the time i was done with work it was too warm for my insulated jacket.

sarah weighs in:

I think it was the rainiest day that week for me. After many rainy days in a row, I have to say those Merrell shoes are NOT waterproof, and the shoelaces constantly come undone. I wore a vintage Carhartt jacket because my other “rain” jackets were soaked through from the previous days. Something of note when looking for rain proof objects is also (obviously but not so obvious for me) how quickly they actually dry to be used again! Outfit pic attached below.

i too have been thinking about waterproof shoes. i took the bus to REI to look at some used danner boots with high rubber walls that were light and stylish which i remembered from my last visit. i tried them on but the insole just didn’t feel right. i’ll be sticking to a pair of late 70s danner mountain light boots with goretex lining, which get the job done just fine anyway aside from a little bit of seepage…

i did have a very drippy, functional fit though…

montbell superior down puffer

needles cowboys shirt

needles hd cords

70s cons

and my little porter toolbag

i grabbed some dry beans from the folks at the downtown farmer’s market as they were packing up, a slice of pizza, made a quick trip to grab some more groceries for the coming days, and completely escaped the rain.

in the evening i cooked up some sopa de fideo, a new weeknight fav for sarah and i…

thursday

while i did pack my rain jacket with me on the way to work, i didn’t need it all. maybe the rain we were promised wasn’t such a big deal anyway. it’s been cold this week for sure, but nothing unbareable. i wore a wool baselayer and was actually too hot at work. go figure… nothing much else to report. i don’t even remember any rain.

my buddy did pick up an extremely minty bridgestone MB-2 though. all the parts save for the chain and the seat on it were original.

the highlight of the day was a delicious bean stew i had braising in the oven for hours. pork, a couple kinds of beans, tomatoes, and topped with queso fresco was the perfect comfort dish for the cold evening. sadly we got no pics of it…

friday

yet another day without so much as a misting. so much for “a week of rain” huh? two days in a row without watery skies did embolden me to bike after work. i’ve been itching to get back out there and have fun. i ate a choco pie from japantown and set off.

i watched someone on youtube recently talk about their 2000th ride up hawk hill, which seems like an insane number, but it did inspire me to get on up there myself. i crossed the bridge and started up the steepest pitch, and slowly worked the whole way up. it felt easier than the last time, and being that it was twilighty and cold out i was completely alone for some segments which was amazing. i watched a container ship go by, a pair of deer jump the barriers down into the hills, and a truly gorgeous sunset.

the hills looked particularly majestic.

before i descended i had to enjoy a view of the bridge. it’s just undeniable. sometimes i feel so full of gratitude.

bombing down was great. even better was riding home through the presidio and getting a second bomb down the 15th street gate. another perfect day. i’m already looking forward to the next supposed “week of rain.”