Originally posted to ydnar.vox.com in June 2006.

...or maybe just Cingular sucks. Or perhaps it's just my phone. In any case, having a shiny new tricked out Smartphone with the most expensive data plan available in an area that should have more cell coverage than flies on shit just goes to show you, it doesn't. Mean. Diddly.

Two beautiful pictures taken at 7 this morning from the top of the headlands, one click two and they're off! Or are they? Despite all my tries, pleas and harassment, my phone still refuses to email the messages I had intended for this blog.

Which I suppose is OK, since the two most interesting events of my ride weren't captured in pictures anyway:

1. Riding down the back descent of the headlands I envisioned being passed by a Ducati with a dry-clutch motor. Sure enough, on the last 50 feet of the headlands road before it enters the one-lane tunnel back to civilization, a Duc Monster S2R with a ventilated clutch cover rumbles, clanks and clicks past. The fellow pulls up the light and promptly shuts off the motor (he's done this before). I mention my premonition to him, and he smiles (or at least I think he does, it's hard to tell under a full-face helmet). After which he informs me I can ride a bicycle through the tunnel despite the red light: "There's a bike lane!" I bid him good ride and drop into the tunnel. I did not see or hear the motorcycle again.
2. Riding up Market street can be a scary thing for a novice bike rider. I've done it a few times (and had my share of almost-oh-shit-I'm-gonna-wipe-out-on-the-rails moments) on different bikes in all kinds of weather & traffic, so it doesn't really bother me. In the morning (around 8:30 or so) it tends to be clogged with commuters of various persuasions, including motorcycles, pedestrians, buses, trams, taxis, cars and  cyclists. Including this one girl on a Cannondale, with iPod, blazing up at the front of the bikes-waiting-at-the-next-light mob. This goes on for a few blocks, she and I trading pole position, until I give it up on a techicality (a senior citizen in a Crown Vic shoulders me out of my share of the lane). This is going fine until we hit the beauty that is Market & 4th. There are about 10 cyclists now, and one poor driver stuck in the intersection. Well, not quite stuck enough to compel Ms. iPod to stop. So she tries an around-the-back, between-the-rail-and-bumper swerve around the Corolla. At which point Corolla stops to avoid hitting the more conservative cyclists going in front of her. Ms. iPod eats shit, slams into Corolla's bumper and does an inverted aerial, landing on her back right in the center of Market street. This happens about 2 feet in front of me. Everything stops for about 5 seconds while a few pedestrians & cyclists (including myself) query as to her condition. She gives me a thumbs up from the pavement, neither her hair, nor sunglasses nor iPod headphones out of place. I ride on, and when I look back, she's already on the curb putting her chain back on.

Reminds me, need paragraphs in <li> elements in this hizzie.

Update: Finally my phone synced. Sweet!