That was Cold
(I am taking a small break from the document I am editing).
It was -22° Celsius (that's -7.600000000000001° for those of you who use the antiquated Fahrenheit scale) when I hopped on my bicycle this morning. Now, my forward motion through the Alberta Clipper must have created an added wind-chill. At -25°, skin is in danger of freezing, but I had forgotten about that during the ride. I was quite warm, except for my face, of course. And, my feet were a bit chilly, which momentarily concerned me when I reflected on the fate of Robert Peary's feet.
Robert Peary lost eight of his toes during his first failed attempt to reach the North Pole. He elected to have the other two hacked off to make things even, I suppose. The good news is that my toes did not freeze. In truth, I have cycled in colder weather. Next time (probably tomorrow), I will double up on the socks.
In case you think I am insane, I would like to point out that I counted eight other cyclists on the roads this morning. And, I got my daily exercise.
4 comments:
I have to admit I remember biking in those conditions.. I am so glad we dont have to rely on bikes anymore. Its so cold today they cancelled schools here. its like -45 with windchills.
Hey now, don't be blaming Alberta for all your cold. It's a balmy 3 C in Edmonton today. ;D
Some say Peary probably didn't reach the North Pole because of those missing toes. Something about not being able to balance properly on the dogsled for long periods of time. I don't know - I haven't really fallen on either side of the Cook-Peary debate yet.
I think of you every morning at 6;30 when this guy bikes by the restaurant on his 2 mile trek to town. It's been -40F the past 2 mornings and he's still peddling his ass to town.
SME's right. They're calling this cold spell an "Arctic Blast", rather than an Alberta Clipper.
I remember my last winter in Michigan. Sometimes I would just cry because I was so tired of being cold all the time. Reading about this makes me want to cry again.
BTW, we use Fahrenheit out of sheer orneriness, you know that, right?
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