The little storm that couldn't

The weather folks were tracking a storm that was headed right for my little suburb this morning. They drew a little cone on the map with a projected storm path and time markers for the little towns in its path. They marketed it as an "intense" storm and mentioned that it wasn't severe, but would carry rain, lightning, and possibly hail with it. ETA for Lenexa, KS: 6:10 AM.

I left a little after 6:00. It usually takes me about 8 minutes to ride to the express bus stop. Upon leaving, I encountered some fierce headwinds out of the south, so it took me a bit longer than usual to get to the bus. Raging, furious lightning was approaching from the west as I rode my vulnerable steel frame across the Quivira viaduct, suspended 40 feet in the air on a concrete structure. I felt like a sitting duck. I pushed against the breeze and back to ground level just as rain drops started pelting me. My weekly USNO-synchronized cyclometer's clock read 6:09. Not a bad guess by the meteorologist.

I fought through the rain for about a minute, and heard thunder, but not from dangerously close strikes. Then, nothing. The storm seemingly dissipated or moved on. I was actually disappointed since I had geared up as much as I do for rain above 55 degrees or so. Supposedly, there's a possibility of more violent storms later today. We'll see how that pans out.

I walked with Lorin to grab some coffee after we got downtown. Along the way, a visitor from San Diego stopped us and asked if bicycles just ride in traffic in KC. I guess I was the first cyclist this person had seen out here so far. Most of the big cities in California have bicycle lanes, so riding in traffic was a totally foreign concept. Welcome to Kansas City, a true bastion of progress. Sheesh.

Random Tunage:
Orbital - Walk Now
Moby - Porcelain (Rob D Remix)