Discussion
Welcome to #BikeNite on Friday, February 20th.
Thanks for joining our cycle-chat. Answer whenever at your convenience. Anyone can join, now or later. Reply to what you like, and boost for visibility.
Our intro:
Q1. Where are you posting from today? Do you have any thoughts to share about the Winter Olympics?
@ascentale @bikenite A1. Eastern PA.
I tend to watch the sled events and some skiing, my kid likes figure skating/ice dancing somewhat, and my partner likes the skiing and some skating. I also root for the Lithuanian team since they are my family's distant heritage and they need the help since Lativia is much better in the Winter Games.
But I also have to admit the high bar to entry for the winter games makes it often a rich country's sport.
A1. I'm posting from Berkeley as usual, but I missed the live portion of #BikeNite yesterday. I'm only watching the Olympics here and there, but I'll say I don't think I've ever seen any athlete skate as free, relaxed, unbothered, and utterly joyfully as Alysa Liu in her free skate program.
I'm happy she won gold, but I'm even happier for her doing this whole figure skating thing on her own terms.
@ascentale @bikenite Saturday evening here in south central Minnesota catching up on #bikenite . Have watched some of the events, mostly curling, hockey and some of the bialthlon. Need to see the Ski Mountaineering. Maybe we should advocate for winter cyclo-cross: fat tire bike, climbing up with ski’s on board and then skiing down to a finish.
@ascentale @bikenite A1. hello from Oxford where we are visiting Roach Minor for the weekend.
I like the racing events more than the artistic, and 🇬🇧 performances mean the TV has concentrated on skeleton and curling 🥱 to the detriment of many other sports.
The most noticeable thing about the Winter Olympics is how exclusive it is with next to no representation for much of the world. It's like all the technical events in the summer games that need money for the best equipment.
@ascentale @bikenite A1. Not in my normal place this time, but briefly out in the sticks near Allentown, PA.
I haven't really been following the Olympics, but where's the cross country fat bike race???
@edd @ascentale @bikenite Hey I live the area so I'm curious what brings you out here?
@InkySchwartz @ascentale @bikenite My parents live out in the area and I was up there briefly for a funeral. Hope the snow isn't too bad! I got out just in time to miss it.
@ascentale
A1. Posting from the train, on our way to the beach, to walk through the dunes, along the beach and meet some friends.
Olympics has mostly been ice skating for us, the shorter the distance, the better as far as I'm concerned. Plus some ice-hockey and langlaufing. bikenite@fedigroups.social
@ascentale @bikenite A1. In a city near Frankfurt, Germany. Caught some bronchitis. No cycling, but lying in bed while my wife is celebrating birthday with friends. 🤷🏻♂️
I hope that the Olympics in general have a positive effect to bring people together. But sorry for the athletes, I'm not interested enough to watch the games. And winter sports facilities always harm nature. That's why I don't ski anymore..
@ascentale @bikenite A1 - posting from the Belfast ferry heading back to Liverpool today. My thoughts about the Winter Olympics are how dangerous are so many of the events! But how exciting they are to watch!
@ascentale @bikenite A1. Tirana, Albania.
I haven't really seen any of the Olympics. I'm not sure how to see more than smaller clips. It's the Paralympics I really want to watch, but same problem. #BikeNite
@meganL @ascentale @bikenite If there's no local Paralympics coverage, a VPN (if required) and Channel 4 (UK) might do the job. https://paralympics.org.uk/articles/how-to-watch-the-milano-cortina-2026-winter-paralympics
@pete @ascentale @bikenite That would be my preferred way of watching it. I just wasn't sure if Ch4 has gotten as good as the BBC has at detecting VPN use. I used to watch iPlayer all the time until they figured out I was on a VPN. Then the fun stopped.
It's not as good (IMO) as it was years ago, but I still watch The Last Leg, esp when they cover Paralympics. Thanks for the link! #BikeNite
@ascentale @bikenite A1. Santa Clara, CA. I haven’t watched any Olympic coverage this year, I guess just busy.
As someone who has competed in nine world championships, the media focus on medal count by country turns me off. As an athlete, it’s always been about friendly competition, and each time we come together we renew old friendships, cheer on the good moments and come together to help each other when stuff happens.
We do also have a few races organized be teams from each country, but it is not a focus to us. The top placers are individuals, not countries. #BikeNight
@ascentale @bikenite #bikenite A1, posting from Carbon County, Montana. I really like the hockey and skiing, but don’t see as much as I would like to. I feel that there ought to be a bunch of #Fatbike events - like maybe a downhill dual slalom!
@RayKuntz @ascentale @bikenite I would watch that!
#BikeNite A1: Joining in from #WaterlooRegion, in Ontario, Canada. Midwinter thaw has started here, and the meltwater has infiltrated our basement and found a new hole in the roof over the summer kitchen.
Not a fan of the Olympics, any season.
@ascentale @bikenite #BikeNite A1. Snowy (again) Northern New England, again. Sitting at my kitchen table, waiting for the rice cooker to finish, so I can cook the salmon teriyaki that going with it.
I stopped watching the Olympics a long time ago, even though ice skating and skiing are my favorite sports. I think Surya Bonaly deserves an apology and a medal and cash. I hope Lindsay Vonn is OK, after her crash; she is one of my heroines.
@ascentale @bikenite My interest in ice skating began to decline once Michelle Kwan retired, and I really haven't kept up with it, since. She will always in my mind be the greatest figure skater of all time.
A1. Posting from my desk instead of out on my bike where I should be. Got a hectic couple of weeks coming up with no biking in the offing.
Olys: Eh. My partner is watching them.
@ascentale @bikenite A1. #BikeNite I wasn't following the olympics much until the Alysa Liu news. I like what she said about creating her own diet. I was talking to a local high school kid who explained how high school wrestling still does crazy dieting so the kids can make their weight category. Like not eating and wearing clothing to excessively sweat and lose weight before weigh-ins. That sounds downright unhealthy.
My older son stopped gaining weight his last few years of high school even though he was growing taller and we figured it was all of the cycling training he was doing for the bike team. He ate a ton, but couldn't take in enough calories. A lot of kids, especially the girls, don't want to eat as much as they should. With 4 practices a week they should probably be eating 30% more than their friends. Some focus on the power to weight, but you can't have power if you don't consume enough fuel.
@cmgrowell @ascentale @bikenite I’ve got a few wrestling making weight stories…
I get the not being able to eat enough to maintain weight (not currently a problem). For a while I had a dietician telling me to eat denser foods or I would continue to lose weight (recovering from chemo). I had to start making my own granola for breakfast (and I still do 10 years later). #BikeNight
@cmgrowell @ascentale @bikenite A1 #BikeNite Posting from home, near Boston. Had a really productive week at work, but also got a root canal Wednesday, and it hurt more than the previous two I've had.
Used the e-bike more than usual this week because root canal really burned a lot of spoons, plus snow+sleet on the ride home today.
@dr2chase @cmgrowell @ascentale @bikenite
Ouch. Hope pain goes away fast.
@cainmark @cmgrowell @ascentale @bikenite it started to really dial back yesterday evening, and wow am I glad it did. That was no fun.
@ascentale@sfba.social @bikenite@fedigroups.social A1: It's been a while! Posting from Seattle, WA. I watch a few sports in the Winter Olympics, including alpine skiing and figure skating. I follow figure skating closely, in particular. Imagine my excitement when Alysa Liu won the gold medal. 👍
#BikeNite
@ascentale @bikenite A1. Nashville, TN. No opinions on the Olympics. #BikeNite
@ascentale @bikenite A1) usual insomnia after midnight sofa, living room, southern Germany
No Olympics fan - sports should be about fun and health and not about competitive sponsored events IMHO.
@ascentale @bikenite #bikenite #biketooter A1 Central illinois where 33 mph winds had me riding the bus today
No thoughts on Olympics. It's too Big Time for me.
@ascentale @bikenite I have a friend who's an avid curler, had been playing for an amateur team and then got involved in the national organization as an interpreter. Unfortunately missing the games this year courtesy of glaucoma surgery.
@ascentale @bikenite oh I like curling ^_^
You mean Scottish Granite Floor Darts?
@moira @ascentale @bikenite #BikeNite A1 follow-up: Oh, right, I laughed about https://libretooth.gr/@misskoula/116067979533758656 which seems to relate to curling (and hence probably the Winter Olympics).
@xtaran @moira @ascentale @bikenite
I saw that video minutes after watching Olympic Curling and I just had to laugh. It was cute.
@ascentale @bikenite
A1.
Posting from a winter storm in Arden, Ontario.
I think the athleticism is pretty cool. I adore the Polish team's stuffed pierogi.
#BikeNite
@ascentale @bikenite A1: here in the Hudson Valley the frozen river is starting to thaw, snow is melting quickly now, but next week we’ll have overnight lows in the teens again. ay-yi-yi
Tomorrow we have a lunar new year parade called the Festival of Light. We’re decorating bikes with horses, and there will be a giant Fire Horse carried through the streets as well—it’s great fun every year.
Winter Olympics? I don’t even have a TV.
A1. Home in Albany, NY once again.
I was pleased to learn today that knitting is quite popular among many winter Olympic athletes! I don't have means or time to spectate, but appreciate the athletic feats.
https://www.npr.org/2026/02/20/nx-s1-5720897/olympics-ben-ogden-knitting
@ascentale @bikenite A1: Nagoya, Japan. A question about the Winter Olympics? Sure. Where are they being held?
@ascentale @bikenite Posting from the frigid wastelands of Portland, OR in the aftermath of a snowpocalypse that was promised but never happened.
I have no thoughts on the Winter Olympics.
@ascentale @bikenite #BikeNite A1. Ventura County, California. No thoughts on the Winter Olympics. Do they have any bicycling events? 🤪
The UCI keep politicking to get Cyclocross included in the Winter Olympics.
It's was properly snowy at the Brussels Universities Cross this week.
@ai6yr @ascentale @bikenite They have quite a few cycling events in the summer olympics. A winter downhill event might be interesting.
@ai6yr @ascentale @bikenite #BikeNite A1 follow-up: Wondered that, too. There exist at least downhill bicycle races on snow: https://www.ucc-sportevent.com/en/megavalanche-alpe-dhuez-en/
Oh, I just noticed that this downhill race on snow is taking place in July despite being held in the northern hemisphere. 🤪
@ascentale @bikenite #BikeNite A1: Posting from Zurich, Switzerland. No. 😇
@ascentale @bikenite
#BikeNite A1:
I'm posting from home in Rochester Minnesota.
My two hobby loves are cycling and hockey. So I'm tuned into the two hockey tournaments of the Winter Olympics. Yesterday I enjoyed the Women's Gold Medal game, and today I watched the 3rd period of the men's Finland/Canada semifinal game and the entire USA/Slovakia semifinal game. I'll be getting up early Sunday morning to watch the USA/Canada Gold Medal game.
@ascentale @bikenite A1. Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. That’s 90km west of Canada’s largest city, Toronto. And we’ve been getting a lot of rain and freezing rain the last week! Must be spring, right? 😀
And, no! 🤣
A1. Rushford, Minnesota.
Ukrainian person should have been allowed to keep thir helmet, other than that, not really watching.
@ascentale @bikenite A1: HI
Same place as usual, north of Seattle, deep in Cascadia, and, uhhhhhhhh I enjoyed the ice dancing, there. I missed the women's hockey from not really knowing when it was on and (because it's tax season for me) not really allocating the time to figure it out ;_;
@ascentale @bikenite A1 #bikeNite Naarm, and I think it funny that a festival for bad weather gets events cancelled for bad weather.
Yes, I consider weather that involves snow or ice to be bad weather.
Always.
@ascentale @bikenite A1) The kitchen and no. #BikeNite
