The weather here has been unseasonably temperate for the past few days. Usually, it gets a bit nippy when the trick-or-treaters hit the streets. But today, we hit an afternoon high of 70. Best to take advantage of it while it lasts, and there's no time like the present.
Of course I did the 'park and ride' today. But it was a bit different than usual.
My department was having a food day to celebrate Halloween. Now I don't usually participate in "food days", but one of our managers was giving me hard time yesterday and guilted me into bringing something. So on the way home I picked up the supplies for making oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and cooked up several batches last night.
This created a slight logistics problem.
I certainly didn't want to pass up the great weather today, but I felt obligated to bring in some food for food day. But where was I going to carry all this? I have one rear rack on the Quickie Blue Fixie, which gives me enough room for my Carradice Nelson Longflap and my lunch bag. Because most food days are usually only sweets, cookies (ahem!), chips, and assorted junk food, I wanted to bring my lunch just in case. I might have been able to strap all this on the bike somewhere, but I had visions of two platefuls of cookies hitting the trail, scattering and breaking into a million pieces. I'm sure the raccoons, squirrels, and other various and sundry critters wandering the trail would have been deliriously sugar rushed.
When all else fails, wife to the rescue!
My generous and lovely wife graciously offered to meet me at work with the cookies. But, she had to be at an 8 am meeting. So that meant I had to meet her at 7:40 am, NO LATER, so she could make the meeting. That meant I had to leave the house at 5:30 am, meaning I needed to get up no later than 5:00 am. Maaaan, that's early.
Now that's either dedication or just plain dorky weirdness. You can keep your opinions to yourself :>)
So I was on the trail by 6:00 am-ish. Yeah, this time of year it's still quite dark that time of day. Luckily, I've figured out a dual headlight system that lights the way adequately. I have two battery powered LED headlights, and managed to figure out a way to mount both on the QBF. Each light by itself is somewhat anemic...enough so that someone could see you coming but not really sufficient for bombing down an unlighted trail in the pitch-black wee hours. Both lights together, however, provide sufficient illumination to see more than a few feet in front of me and are plenty bright to scare most critters off the trail. The poor raccoon fleeing down the trail this morning as my lights were blazing, bell ringing, and reflectors reflecting, must have thought I was some macabre wheeled halloween spectre. I'm sure they aren't used to seeing humans on the trail so early in the morning.
Long story short, I made it to the cookie rendezvous on time, and the cookies were delivered undamaged.
And food day was saved! :>)
-Speedblend Guy (thanks Gravelo)
Friday, October 31, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Leaves and Temperatures
The weather is taking a turn for the worse, as far as my bike commuting plans are concerned.
In order to get to work by 8-ish, I have to be on the bike before 7 a.m. The temps this week are forecasted to be around 25 degrees around that time of day, but are supposed to warm up to mid 50's, low 60's by the afternoon...sunny and no precipitation. I don't generally like to ride below 40 degrees, even when I'm wearing my cold weather gear.
I wanted to brave the 25 degree morning temps but was vetoed. However, my vetoer offered to drop me and my bike off at work, then I could ride back to the trailhead in 60 degree afternoon temperatures. I'm definitely thinking about taking her up on that offer.
I like that invigoriating morning ride. Probably not below freezing invigorating, though :>)
-Dwight
In order to get to work by 8-ish, I have to be on the bike before 7 a.m. The temps this week are forecasted to be around 25 degrees around that time of day, but are supposed to warm up to mid 50's, low 60's by the afternoon...sunny and no precipitation. I don't generally like to ride below 40 degrees, even when I'm wearing my cold weather gear.
I wanted to brave the 25 degree morning temps but was vetoed. However, my vetoer offered to drop me and my bike off at work, then I could ride back to the trailhead in 60 degree afternoon temperatures. I'm definitely thinking about taking her up on that offer.
I like that invigoriating morning ride. Probably not below freezing invigorating, though :>)
-Dwight
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Soma Double Cross
Took a little recreational ride over the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian bridge today, then a trip south on the Wabash trail to the Mineola steakhouse for a couple of beers. Beer is a food!
I wanted to measure the mileage from the Wabash trailhead to my work. I've been parking my truck at the trailhead and bike commuting to work, and I was curious about the distance.
The bikes I've been riding lately are computerless. I've been commuting on the Quickie Blue Fixie, and the Rambouillet has been getting an inordinate amount of attention as of late. I decided this morning I'd take my Soma Double Cross, which of course has a cycling computer mounted along with some other tasty bits.
My Soma is actually a fusion of an old road bike I bought several years ago, along with a few new parts. A little background, perhaps?
A few years ago, I purchased a Giant OCR2. This was the first road bike I'd owned since college, when I terrorized the campus on my black 10-speed Zebrakenko Golden Sports. It had some decent components, 105 rear derailleur, Tiagra front, STI brifters, Xero 20 spoke wheels and hubs, Truvativ Touro crank. The frame is aluminum, 'compact geometry', sized XL.
It fit OK...not great. It may have been a bit large for me but I have long arms so I had no problems reaching the handlebars. The stock saddle put my wedding tackle to sleep so I purchased a new 'ergonomic' model with the center cutout. This was only my second bike at the time, so it got quite a bit of use.
I'd been reading about the advantages of steel frames, and had been drooling over the Rivendell bikes on their website. Since I wasn't yet willing to shell out the bucks for one, I purchased a 62cm 12-speed 80's vintage Schwinn LeTour on eBay at a very reasonable price. This bike probably hadn't been ridden more than a few times...it still had the original Schwinn tires with hardly any wear (although they were seriously weatherchecked). I replaced the tires, did some minor tuning and it was ready to go.
I fell in love with this bike. It fit me so much better than my Giant, and the ride seemed so much smoother...less harsh than the aluminum bike. Although it was heavier, I preferred the fit and ride and spent quite a bit of time on it. I call it my 'Pepe LeTour', although it definitely does NOT stink :>)
Because of my experience with the Schwinn, I decided to take the plunge and purchased my Quickbeam from Rivendell. Again, another bike that I absolutely love. The QB fits me perfectly and though it's a bit heavy it's a wonderful ride.
The Giant OCR languished in my basement. I definitely wanted to go steel and decided I'd find a decent multipurpose steel frame at a reasonable price, and swap out my OCR components. I looked at several frames and narrowed it down to either the Surly Cross Check or the Soma Double cross. I found a local dealer selling Soma frames and struck a deal. He would install a new headset and bottom bracket, and do the component swap. I dropped my bike off at the shop and waited in anticipation.
Several weeks later, my bike was finished! I picked up my new Soma and my old OCR frame and I've never regretted making the swap. It's kind of a 'light tourer'. I could classify it as a randonneur or maybe an Audax bike, since it has road bike components but I've outfitted it with a Tubus cargo rack, fenders, headlight and tail light, and a mounting bracket for my Carradice Nelson Longflap. I'm planning on using this for a commuter bike when I want to coast and shift.
I've posted some pics on cyclofiend.com, so check it out!
http://www.cyclofiend.com/cc/2007/cc353-dwightdau0807.html
BTW, it's 13.7 miles from the trailhead to the parking garage at my work :>)
-Dwight
I wanted to measure the mileage from the Wabash trailhead to my work. I've been parking my truck at the trailhead and bike commuting to work, and I was curious about the distance.
The bikes I've been riding lately are computerless. I've been commuting on the Quickie Blue Fixie, and the Rambouillet has been getting an inordinate amount of attention as of late. I decided this morning I'd take my Soma Double Cross, which of course has a cycling computer mounted along with some other tasty bits.
My Soma is actually a fusion of an old road bike I bought several years ago, along with a few new parts. A little background, perhaps?
A few years ago, I purchased a Giant OCR2. This was the first road bike I'd owned since college, when I terrorized the campus on my black 10-speed Zebrakenko Golden Sports. It had some decent components, 105 rear derailleur, Tiagra front, STI brifters, Xero 20 spoke wheels and hubs, Truvativ Touro crank. The frame is aluminum, 'compact geometry', sized XL.
It fit OK...not great. It may have been a bit large for me but I have long arms so I had no problems reaching the handlebars. The stock saddle put my wedding tackle to sleep so I purchased a new 'ergonomic' model with the center cutout. This was only my second bike at the time, so it got quite a bit of use.
I'd been reading about the advantages of steel frames, and had been drooling over the Rivendell bikes on their website. Since I wasn't yet willing to shell out the bucks for one, I purchased a 62cm 12-speed 80's vintage Schwinn LeTour on eBay at a very reasonable price. This bike probably hadn't been ridden more than a few times...it still had the original Schwinn tires with hardly any wear (although they were seriously weatherchecked). I replaced the tires, did some minor tuning and it was ready to go.
I fell in love with this bike. It fit me so much better than my Giant, and the ride seemed so much smoother...less harsh than the aluminum bike. Although it was heavier, I preferred the fit and ride and spent quite a bit of time on it. I call it my 'Pepe LeTour', although it definitely does NOT stink :>)
Because of my experience with the Schwinn, I decided to take the plunge and purchased my Quickbeam from Rivendell. Again, another bike that I absolutely love. The QB fits me perfectly and though it's a bit heavy it's a wonderful ride.
The Giant OCR languished in my basement. I definitely wanted to go steel and decided I'd find a decent multipurpose steel frame at a reasonable price, and swap out my OCR components. I looked at several frames and narrowed it down to either the Surly Cross Check or the Soma Double cross. I found a local dealer selling Soma frames and struck a deal. He would install a new headset and bottom bracket, and do the component swap. I dropped my bike off at the shop and waited in anticipation.
Several weeks later, my bike was finished! I picked up my new Soma and my old OCR frame and I've never regretted making the swap. It's kind of a 'light tourer'. I could classify it as a randonneur or maybe an Audax bike, since it has road bike components but I've outfitted it with a Tubus cargo rack, fenders, headlight and tail light, and a mounting bracket for my Carradice Nelson Longflap. I'm planning on using this for a commuter bike when I want to coast and shift.
I've posted some pics on cyclofiend.com, so check it out!
http://www.cyclofiend.com/cc/2007/cc353-dwightdau0807.html
BTW, it's 13.7 miles from the trailhead to the parking garage at my work :>)
-Dwight
Friday, October 24, 2008
Dorky and Weird
My wife is very proud of my blog. She's so proud of it in fact, that she introduced several of her co-workers to it.
To which they responded, collectively, "This blog is dorky and your husband is weird."
I'm not offended by this statement. Actually, I really don't mind being 'dorky and weird'. Really. And they are absolutely correct…however, I'd like to put that statement in context. If my interest in bikes seems a bit extreme to some folks, maybe that seems weird to them in their world. A grown American man riding a bicycle? Is he trying to be Lance Armstrong? Building your own bike? Wrapping and shellacking your handlebars? Mulitcolored Rivendell Pasela Speedblend tires on an orange bicycle? Seems dorky to me!
It's easy to judge. The lady down the street who has 50 cats must certainly be weird. The kid with the thick glasses and mismatched clothing who'd rather read a book instead of playing video games is definitely dorky. But they seem to be happy, anyway.
I'll blog and ride my dorky bikes until my legs fall off, with a weird, silly smile on my face.
To each, his (or her) own :>),
-Dwight
To which they responded, collectively, "This blog is dorky and your husband is weird."
I'm not offended by this statement. Actually, I really don't mind being 'dorky and weird'. Really. And they are absolutely correct…however, I'd like to put that statement in context. If my interest in bikes seems a bit extreme to some folks, maybe that seems weird to them in their world. A grown American man riding a bicycle? Is he trying to be Lance Armstrong? Building your own bike? Wrapping and shellacking your handlebars? Mulitcolored Rivendell Pasela Speedblend tires on an orange bicycle? Seems dorky to me!
It's easy to judge. The lady down the street who has 50 cats must certainly be weird. The kid with the thick glasses and mismatched clothing who'd rather read a book instead of playing video games is definitely dorky. But they seem to be happy, anyway.
I'll blog and ride my dorky bikes until my legs fall off, with a weird, silly smile on my face.
To each, his (or her) own :>),
-Dwight
Saturday, October 18, 2008
I HAVE RESPECT FOR BEER
When the wife and I go out, I usually have a beer with dinner.
Pairing beer (or wine) with food is always fun, and enhances the flavor of the food. But beer is a food all by itself, isn't it? Sure!
What's in beer? Water, mainly. Add some hops, malt extract, yeast, and grain and you have nutritional content. If it has nutritional content, it's food. Thus, beer is a food.
The relatively mild alcoholic content of one beer acts as a mild sedative, allowing you to more fully enjoy the experience and unwind after a hard day. Multiply that by two, three, or more and it begins to improve your mood and affect the hearing. Ever notice after you've had a few beers you talk louder? And get more affectionate? I LOOOOVE YOU BUDDY!! YOU'RE MY BESTEST FRIEND EVER!!
Lite beers? Screw 'em. It's not the beer that makes you fat, it's the pizza and fried breaded cheese sticks you washed down with your lite beer, hog. I like a good stout or porter myself, Guinness is one of my perennial favorites. Beer you can almost chew. Beer with color.
So the next time you enjoy a colorful, real non-lite beer, remember, you are getting some good nutrition too. After all, why do they call it a 'cereal malt beverage'? Cereal is a food, isn't it?
I rest my case. I'll go back to my Fat Tire now :>)
-Dwight
Pairing beer (or wine) with food is always fun, and enhances the flavor of the food. But beer is a food all by itself, isn't it? Sure!
What's in beer? Water, mainly. Add some hops, malt extract, yeast, and grain and you have nutritional content. If it has nutritional content, it's food. Thus, beer is a food.
The relatively mild alcoholic content of one beer acts as a mild sedative, allowing you to more fully enjoy the experience and unwind after a hard day. Multiply that by two, three, or more and it begins to improve your mood and affect the hearing. Ever notice after you've had a few beers you talk louder? And get more affectionate? I LOOOOVE YOU BUDDY!! YOU'RE MY BESTEST FRIEND EVER!!
Lite beers? Screw 'em. It's not the beer that makes you fat, it's the pizza and fried breaded cheese sticks you washed down with your lite beer, hog. I like a good stout or porter myself, Guinness is one of my perennial favorites. Beer you can almost chew. Beer with color.
So the next time you enjoy a colorful, real non-lite beer, remember, you are getting some good nutrition too. After all, why do they call it a 'cereal malt beverage'? Cereal is a food, isn't it?
I rest my case. I'll go back to my Fat Tire now :>)
-Dwight
Friday, October 17, 2008
Park and Ride
After my Great Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge Adventure, I wondered if I could actually commute from the Wabash Trace trailhead to work. Yesterday, I decided to give it a try.
The wife was concerned. "That's a long ride", "You'll have to ride through downtown traffic", "It will be cold", and so on. She worries a lot, but that's just because she loves me :>) Nevertheless, I was determined to try.
There were some logistics to consider. I certainly couldn't ever bicycle commute the entire way from my small rural town. And, in the past, even if I did live close enough there wouldn't have been a way for me to safely cross the Missouri river into Nebraska.
With the new bridge, I can park near the trail system and ride nearly all the way to my work downtown without having to deal with vehicle traffic. After exiting the trail, I would only need to ride a few blocks on city streets and if I timed it right, the traffic would be light. I began to formulate a plan...
My employer provides a workout facility in the building, along with lockers and showers. I could wear my bike clothes, then change and shower at work. Another convenience...one of the bank parking garages has bike racks inside, nice and dry and security patrolled. Since I have a number of bikes I can choose from, I chose the Quickie Blue Fixie. I wrote about this bike in an earlier post. It's nothing fancy, an old Schwinn frame converted to fixed gear. It looks like a beater, but it's really a good ride. The paint is chipped and scratched, with no expensive wheels or other components that would make it especially attractive to unscrupulous 'free bicycle procurement artists'. I have a decent cable lock as well, nice and thick with a heavy duty combination lock.
I'd already set up this bike as a potential commuter. I added some Planet Bike clip on fenders and a Pletscher rack knock-off. These parts probably set me back about $20...not pretty, but very functional. Again, not real attractive to anyone who'd be looking for expensive components. I needed a bag to carry clothes, bike tools, wallet, security badge, sunglasses, etc, etc. I already own a Carradice Nelson Longflap bag, and a quick release I'd purchased from Rivendell. The quick release consists of a stainless steel bracket which clamps to the seat rails, and a quick release skewer and shaft modified to fit through the bag mounting loops. The skewer fits into slots milled into the bracket, and also acts as a carrying handle for the bag. It's as easy as dropping the skewer 'handle' into the bracket slots and closing the quick release. I just had to move the bracket from my Soma to the Quickie Blue Fixie.
I needed to carry my lunch bag with me as well. Not a problem, the rear rack has a spring loaded clamp that fits perfectly under the handle of the lunch bag. Easy!
My plan: I'd get up and dress in my bike clothes, load the bike in the back of my truck, grab my bike bag and lunch bag and drive to the trailhead. I'd park, then ride the trail to work. Stop at the fitness center, shower, change clothes. When I got off work that evening, I'd just do it all in reverse.
This actually worked out pretty well. It took me a bit longer than I'd anticipated, since it took me awhile to get organized to make sure I had everything I needed for the day. I made it to the trailhead and got on the trail around 7 a.m. It took me about 45 or 50 minutes to get to work from there. It was dark when I started, but I have a headlight and taillight installed on the QBF so it wasn't a problem. It was about 40 degrees so it was a brisk ride when I started. I dressed in my inclement weather gear, jacket and bibs along with skull cap, balaclava, and cold weather cycling gloves. My fingers and exposed parts of my face were a bit cold, but as soon as the sun started coming up they warmed quickly.
There were no other cyclists on the trail with me, but I did see quite a variety of wildlife. A buck deer passed directly in front of me and I saw several others, along with a few squirrels and a fox. And I got to pass over the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian bridge as well, a bonus! Once I left the trail, it was a direct shot to work, a few blocks in light traffic. From there, I parked the bike in the garage and it was a quick walk to the fitness center. After I was done there, I made it into work about 8:30.
I felt great riding to work. I was wide awake and invigorated when I arrived, not groggy, grumpy and half asleep as I usually would be if I'd driven the entire way myself. I was going to do it again today since the wife had to work late this evening and we couldn't ride together. I got up this morning, dressed in my bike clothes, grabbed my stuff and walked out the door...
...and it was raining.
No bike commute today. But I'm definitely going to make this part of my routine, when I'm not carpooling.
Weather permitting, of course :>)
-Dwight
The wife was concerned. "That's a long ride", "You'll have to ride through downtown traffic", "It will be cold", and so on. She worries a lot, but that's just because she loves me :>) Nevertheless, I was determined to try.
There were some logistics to consider. I certainly couldn't ever bicycle commute the entire way from my small rural town. And, in the past, even if I did live close enough there wouldn't have been a way for me to safely cross the Missouri river into Nebraska.
With the new bridge, I can park near the trail system and ride nearly all the way to my work downtown without having to deal with vehicle traffic. After exiting the trail, I would only need to ride a few blocks on city streets and if I timed it right, the traffic would be light. I began to formulate a plan...
My employer provides a workout facility in the building, along with lockers and showers. I could wear my bike clothes, then change and shower at work. Another convenience...one of the bank parking garages has bike racks inside, nice and dry and security patrolled. Since I have a number of bikes I can choose from, I chose the Quickie Blue Fixie. I wrote about this bike in an earlier post. It's nothing fancy, an old Schwinn frame converted to fixed gear. It looks like a beater, but it's really a good ride. The paint is chipped and scratched, with no expensive wheels or other components that would make it especially attractive to unscrupulous 'free bicycle procurement artists'. I have a decent cable lock as well, nice and thick with a heavy duty combination lock.
I'd already set up this bike as a potential commuter. I added some Planet Bike clip on fenders and a Pletscher rack knock-off. These parts probably set me back about $20...not pretty, but very functional. Again, not real attractive to anyone who'd be looking for expensive components. I needed a bag to carry clothes, bike tools, wallet, security badge, sunglasses, etc, etc. I already own a Carradice Nelson Longflap bag, and a quick release I'd purchased from Rivendell. The quick release consists of a stainless steel bracket which clamps to the seat rails, and a quick release skewer and shaft modified to fit through the bag mounting loops. The skewer fits into slots milled into the bracket, and also acts as a carrying handle for the bag. It's as easy as dropping the skewer 'handle' into the bracket slots and closing the quick release. I just had to move the bracket from my Soma to the Quickie Blue Fixie.
I needed to carry my lunch bag with me as well. Not a problem, the rear rack has a spring loaded clamp that fits perfectly under the handle of the lunch bag. Easy!
My plan: I'd get up and dress in my bike clothes, load the bike in the back of my truck, grab my bike bag and lunch bag and drive to the trailhead. I'd park, then ride the trail to work. Stop at the fitness center, shower, change clothes. When I got off work that evening, I'd just do it all in reverse.
This actually worked out pretty well. It took me a bit longer than I'd anticipated, since it took me awhile to get organized to make sure I had everything I needed for the day. I made it to the trailhead and got on the trail around 7 a.m. It took me about 45 or 50 minutes to get to work from there. It was dark when I started, but I have a headlight and taillight installed on the QBF so it wasn't a problem. It was about 40 degrees so it was a brisk ride when I started. I dressed in my inclement weather gear, jacket and bibs along with skull cap, balaclava, and cold weather cycling gloves. My fingers and exposed parts of my face were a bit cold, but as soon as the sun started coming up they warmed quickly.
There were no other cyclists on the trail with me, but I did see quite a variety of wildlife. A buck deer passed directly in front of me and I saw several others, along with a few squirrels and a fox. And I got to pass over the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian bridge as well, a bonus! Once I left the trail, it was a direct shot to work, a few blocks in light traffic. From there, I parked the bike in the garage and it was a quick walk to the fitness center. After I was done there, I made it into work about 8:30.
I felt great riding to work. I was wide awake and invigorated when I arrived, not groggy, grumpy and half asleep as I usually would be if I'd driven the entire way myself. I was going to do it again today since the wife had to work late this evening and we couldn't ride together. I got up this morning, dressed in my bike clothes, grabbed my stuff and walked out the door...
...and it was raining.
No bike commute today. But I'm definitely going to make this part of my routine, when I'm not carpooling.
Weather permitting, of course :>)
-Dwight
Monday, October 13, 2008
Ride Report: The Great Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge Adventure PART 2
At last, I'd reached the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge...
As I moved closer, I was amazed by the size of the bridge and the amount of traffic. Hundreds of people were moving across the bridge sightseeing, taking pictures. A few intrepid bike riders were moving across with the pedestrians, so I decided to join them. Starting from the Iowa side...
A good view of the suspension supports and cables
A support close up
Looking north up the Missouri River
And a southern view
A view of the park under construction on the Omaha side of the bridge
Over the river, on the Nebraska side
Another view, off the bridge from the Nebraska side
A view from under the bridge
The bridge definitely moved and swayed under the weight of the pedestrians, coupled with the wind that day. It wasn't alarming, however, and the views were fantastic.
Visions of a daily bike commute over this bridge are dancing through my head :>)
-Dwight
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