Amateurs

That word is often used as a slight.  It can signify lack of expertise.  But the word has a meaning.  It means, simply lover of.  An amateur cyclist is a lover of cycling.

I work to cultivate that amateurism.  I love my work.  I love riding.  I love good bikes.  On the other hand, I’m a professional.  That means I get paid for my work.  (Not a lot, mind you.)  I have the happy situation of being paid to work on bikes and with bike people.

The largest number of my clients are also amateurs.  They are doing this stuff because they love it.

Another sense of the word amateur, is volunteer.  In this sense, our military are amateurs.  We have an all-volunteer force.  We have had to resort to conscription in the past.  Hopefully this won’t happen again.  For now, our whole military are volunteers.  They are there because they choose to be there.  They serve out of love of country.  They choose a work that is poorly paid, difficult, demanding, and dangerous.  They may, as a result of that choice, be called to make enormous sacrifices, possibly to give their very lives.  They stand between us and “war’s desolation.”  They protect and defend us.

Many have fallen so that we may stand.

Never forget them.

Friday Follies ~~ Oh Susanna!

When I was a kid, I thought the song “Oh Susanna!” was funny.  Then I moved to Georgia.

Yesterday I spoke, at some length about the gradual changing of cycling wardrobe, with the seasons.  I’ve learned to do this.  The experience has been hard won.

About ten years ago, I started on a long and grueling event.  It was February.  The day started cold and dreary.  It was wet.  The temps were in the low 40s.  The forecast said it would stay that way.

By noon, I was peeling layers off, and trying to find ways to pack them up.  I didn’t really have enough space in my bags to manage that trick.  The Sun had come out, and the mercury was climbing rapidly.  I was climbing too!  The route had been climbing most of the morning, and the mountains were still ahead.  There was a limit to how much clothing I could actually take off.  When I hit that limit, I was still over-dressed, and overheating.  Not good.

Take another example.  A few years ago, two other stalwarts and I tackled something I called the “Insane Gaps Ride.”  The idea was to leave here at around 9:00 PM and ride to Dahlonega.  It had been a warm clear day.  The forecast was for a temperate night, with a 0% rain chance.  Now how often do you see a 0% chance of rain here?  That looked as close to perfect as one could ask for.

The first shock arrived near midnight, a bit north of Atlanta.  We were descending down to the Chattahoochee.  As we did, the temperature was dropping like a rock.  We stopped and put on everything we were carrying.  It wasn’t enough.  We were all freezing.  Worse, we were mostly descending, so we weren’t making any heat, and the windchill was ferocious.  I was starting to have some serious misgivings about the whole enterprise.

Once we crossed the river, we started to climb.  That helped.  Oddly, by the time we finished climbing out of the river valley, the temperature rose.  Remember, this is in the middle of the night.  Soon enough we were all feeling pretty comfortable again.  It was a clear starry night.  The temperature was pleasant.  We were generally climbing, so we were making plenty of heat.  I thought,  “Well, that was odd, but apparently just a weird local phenomena.  Looks like we dodged the bullet.”

It continued to warm as we rode along.  We stopped briefly and adjusted clothing, each of us dropping outer layers.  The ride was good, and conditions were excellent.  As we approached the town of Cumming, we all noticed occasional, distant and dim, flashes in the sky.  Someone remarked about “heat lightening.”

Clouds started to drift over us, from the north.  The flashes in the sky become more frequent, and a bit brighter.  By the time we were rolling through the town of Cumming, the sky was completely overcast, and we could hear the rumble of thunder.  “Maybe it’s behind us,”  someone said.  I was hoping the same thing, but I was scanning the quiet and darkened town as we rode, looking for possible shelter.  Turned out, I wasn’t the only one doing that.

Just after we rolled out of town, the first rain drops hit.  Split!  Splat!  Not frequent, but big drops.  “You think it will?”  someone asked.

“Don’t know,”  I replied.  By the time we were three miles past town it was obvious.  We were heading into a thunderstorm, and it was heading toward us.

“What do you say?”  someone asked.

“Turn back and run for it,”  I said.  We did.  We turned around and accelerated.

“I saw a car wash, just this side of the square,”  Gary shouted.  It had an overhang.  We can shelter there.”  Good plan.

The car wash did have a bit of shelter.  But we were still getting wet.  It was absolutely roaring, and the water was cascading down, as if we were underneath a major waterfall.  I pulled a space blanket out of my pack, and the three of us huddled under it for the next hour.

We hit intermittent showers for the rest of the night.

“Zero percent rainchance,” the forecast had said.  “Lows in the upper 60s,” it had said.  It was late Spring.

We saw the dawn on Auraria Road, approaching Dahlonega.  It was chilly.  We were all, again wearing everything we could put on.  It was chilly!  But with the rising of the Sun, it warmed nicely.  By the time we had climbed into Dahlonega, we were all sweating, and by 9:00 AM we had all shed everything but summer riding clothing.

“Climate is what you expect.  Weather is what you get.”  Friends, in this climate, we get a lot of weather.

It rained all night

 the day I left

The weather it was dry

The Sun so hot,

I froze to death

Susanna, don’t you cry!

Thursday Thoughts ~~ Seasonal Changes

There are various rites and rituals that mark the passage of the year.

Cyclists and other outdoors types have their own rituals, triggered by the seasonal changes.  I’m involved in one of those right now.  It’s the annual “Changing of the Wardrobe.”

Each year, as the Autumn advances, it becomes necessary to bring out more and more technical riding clothing.  It starts with arm warmers and vests.  By the end of December, I usually have the full range of Winter equipment out of storage, and in rotation.

Come Spring, it’s time to begin to gather stuff up, clean it, and put it away.  I’ve learned not to do this all at once.  On the other hand, it doesn’t make sense to keep everything out.  That’s kind of like leaving the Christmas lights up until Easter.

It’s complicated by our climate.  It’s an odd thing.  Here, in north Georgia, the seasons arrive exactly on time.  But inside the seasonal changes, we get weather.  To understand that last statement, consider what Robert Heinlein once said.  “Climate is what you expect.  Weather is what you get.”  My brethren and sistern, let me tell you, we do get us some weather here.  In early Spring, it’s not unusual for us to have heating and cooling degree days on the same day.  I’ve seen days that started with the temps in the low 40s, and raining, turn into sunny and 80s.

Those contortions require a bit more in the way of riding gear than just a jersey and shorts.  Still, it does warm up.

So I’ve found some useful guidelines.  When the temperature gets into the 80s and does it for three or four days (not necessarily in a row), it’s safe to put the heaviest stuff into storage.  The Winter boots, chemical warmers, heavy gloves, heavy tights, and thermal underwear can go.

I always wait until after the thermometer hits 90.  After that, I figure it’s safe to round up all the full finger gloves, the medium weight tights, the heavy jerseys, and the heavy foul weather jackets.  But I still keep a couple pair of arm warmers, some light tights, a wind vest, a light windshell jacket, and a couple of light skull caps.  I never put the light rain jacket, and helmet cover away.  But I do make sure I have plenty of sunscreen out.

I don’t put all the cool weather gear away until it hits 95 a couple of times.  And I always have a couple pairs of medium weight wool socks available.

Think that sounds a bit goofy?  I used my light tights on yesterday morning’s early ride, and my hands got pretty cold in fingerless gloves.  (Should have kept one pair of windshell gloves out!)

There are parts of this country where folks don’t have to consider stuff like this.  Southern California has a very reliable climate.  So (usually) does south Florida.  But here in north Georgia, we have to think about weather and clothing.

Why?

That question comes up a lot.  Sometimes I’m the one asking it, as in  “Why are you looking for a bike, and what do you want to do with it?”

On other occasions, the question is directed at me, or others I know.  “Why do you ride a bicycle?”  Or,  “Why all this talk about commuting?”

I’m not sure I have the answers.  I have some that work for me.

No, I am not going to list the benefits of commuting or utility cycling.  Most are obvious, and I do a lot of that.  I’m not going to go into the “practical” benefits of cycling as a sport or an exercise either.  There are many, but we are talking about a deeper question here.

If it were only for the health and fitness benefits, a gym would do fine.  For many folks, that is answer enough.  To them there is no “why” to cycling.  They don’t do it, and I guess that’s okay.  But it’s sad.

The real answer to “Why?” is joy.  There is joy in riding a bike.

Oh sure, there is pain too.  Sometimes a lot of pain.  For the athletically inclined, there is a lot of discipline and effort needed.  It takes time.  It takes mastering a bewildering array of equipment.  It takes effort.

For others, the joy seems to be somewhat muted.  It’s a social thing.  It’s about being a part of some clique.  I guess that’s okay.  I don’t see the harm in it.  Just doesn’t appeal to me.

The joy I’m talking about is in the simple pleasure of moving.  The act of getting outside, and experiencing the world.  You can’t really see the sky from a car.  On a bike, it’s always there, and always changing.

There are these transcendent moments in cycling.  Suddenly the cares of the world fall away.  The movement is so perfect, the geometry so right.  The wind sings a different song, the sound of rain falling through the trees whispers and roars.  Even the way the tires connect to the pavement, this becomes something more.

In these moments, the soul expands, the mind-chatter drops to silence, life becomes one timeless eternal now.  For that, and for the glory of a good hard climb, well executed, followed by a long smooth, perfectly ridden, effortless descent, bending into a clean, flawless turn; for the sight of a hawk on wing, pacing and making eye contact; for the turtles and field mice; for the sheer joy of being and moving while perfectly still; for seeing young foxes playing; for being paced by coyotes in the night hours; for sunrises seen from the saddle; for a friendly wave and word from a neighbor while on the way to work; for time alone, to think; for time riding with close friends; for the friends we meet along the way; for all this…  Because!

Utility Cycling ~~ Stuff You Can Do on a Bike

Take a bicycle.  Any working bicycle.  Just as it is.  It can take you places.  That’s its primary function.  And that is a valuable, good, and worthy thing.  But we humans also tend to want to carry stuff with us as we move about.  This means, to really use a bicycle, it needs to take us places, and to carry stuff.

Small stuff isn’t a problem.  It can go in pockets.  But larger, or heavier stuff starts to require more infrastructure than the basic, unadorned bicycle has.

Let me illustrate a problem.  A young lady I know was going of to college for the first time.  I’d trained her.  I taught her to ride in traffic, to get from place to place safely, and to use the bike as more than a pleasure and fitness tool.  She took a bike to campus with her.  Almost immediately she found a good sound use for it.  The bookstore was way the hell and gone away from where she was quartered.  She rode the bike there, and bought her first semester’s load of books.  The double armload went into two large plastic bags.

There was no place on the bike for these bags, and the lady in question did not have a back pack.  She draped the bags over her wrists, one on each side to balance the load, and mounted the bike.  She managed to get going, but the first turn brought her down.  The bags swung independently of the bike, and one of them went into the spokes of the front wheel.  Result?  Some road rash, and two nicely sprained wrists.

This particular lady solved that problem by using a backpack.  There are other solutions.

Three strategies for Carrying “Stuff”

Racks: With a rear rack on your bike, and panniers on the rack,  it’s possible to carry an amazing amount of varied stuff.

Utility Trailer:  There are a variety of these things on the market.  They can be uncoupled from the bike when faster and lighter riding is desired.  They allow for more bulky loads.  They can usually carry more weight than the rack and panniers approach.

Back Packs and Messenger Bags:  Like the trailer, you don’t have to carry these all the time.  The drawback is that you have to support the weight as well as supply the power to move it.

And one more idea:  If you are really getting into hauling stuff, you might just want to investigate portuer bikes or “heavy haulers.”  (I’ll write more in this in the near futre, along with examples.

Things I’ve managed to transport with a bike:

Two 50 pound bags of lawn fertilizer

20 paver flags and 20 each eight foot 4X4s (multiple trips with a trailer)

One large window air conditioner

SAG support load:  One cooler, tool kit, multiple spare tires, first aid kit, and radio

A large dog

A squirming cat

Enough clothing to allow commuting for a week

Three large bags of laundry to and from a Laundromat

One automotive automatic transmission

A carburator, intake manifold, jack stands, hydraulic jack, and tool box

A medium child

Multiple adults (one at a time on a tandem)

Tent, sleeping bag, ground pad, bike tools, clothing, food, and cooking equipment

Enough stuff to self support a one week tour

Two large automotive tires, mounted on their wheels

Improbable things I’ve seen transported by bike:

A half dozen chicken coops with live chickens

A live Poland-china sow

A spinet piano

Two adults, two children, and a dog (on one bike; not a tendem!)

Three complete bicycles

One small motorcycle

A miniature “pop-up” camper suitable for sleeping two adults

A 20 foot extension ladder

A “long board” surf board

A sea kayak

An injury victim in a stretcher (trailered)

The rider’s prosthetic leg (while he was riding one-legged)

Winnings and Commuting:

Below is David Lakly, the proud new owner of the Origin8 Scout.  This was the First Prize in the 

The Great and Weird Road Dragon Bike Contest.

I’m sure that some of you might have entertained the thought that this contest was a send up.  Honest, it was real.  David is a real person, not related to me.  I don’t really know him all that well.  But his contest entry was a standout.

David speaks of his ability to get lost.  Now he will be able to go and do that in the woods as well as on the road or paths.

When asked why he wanted to win one of the contest bikes, David’s reply was illuminating.

“Well, I really want to learn to do a lot of my own wrenching.  However, I only have one bike, and fear of mistakes leading me to being without a ride makes me more hesitant than I want to be.  Having a backup option would allow me to really get my hands dirty and figure out the mysteries of things like adjusting cantilever brakes or pulling and regreasing a bottom bracket. “

Congratulations David

Folks, keep watching this blog.  I will be posting more news about the contest as I have it.  Progress on the Grand Prize Build will be coming soon.  And hopefully, I will be able to update you on the winners a bit later in their on, as they experience their new bikes.

Commuting:  It’s still Bike Month.  I’d love to have some commuting or utility cycling stories from some of you.  How are you doing out there?

Friday Follies ~~ And the Winners Are..!

But first…

It’s Bike Month, Bike Week, and Ride Your Bike to Work Day!  So get out there and do it!  If not now, when?

Perhaps this week has given you some ideas, but you haven’t put it all together yet.  If so, good!  Next week we’ll be covering some info about approaching commuting and utility cycling.  Maybe, just maybe, you can start getting even more out of your bicycle.

And now, without further ado…

The Great and Weird Road Dragon Bike Contest

It was a difficult task.  I had to choose from literally dozens of entrants.  (I guess everyone already has all the bicycles they want.)  But, after hours and hours of contemplation, navel gazing, and Hamlet-like vacillation, the job was complete.

For the Second Prize, Mountain Bike, Brandon.  (Last name withheld by request.)

The First Prize, Origin8 Scout, single speed mountain bike goes to David Lakly.

The Grand Prize, yet to be built, Single Speed/Fixed Gear Conversion goes to Teresa Moore.

Lisa Price takes the consolation prize of “a thing from my shop.”  (Ill be choosing a suitable thing in the very near future.)

Keep watching this blog for photos of the winners with their winnings.

The Contest, like most of my bright ideas, did not go at all as I envisioned it.  I rather expected floods of responding emails.  I was attempting to do two things here, drive traffic to this blog, and increase membership in the South Side Cycling Club.  Both of those things happened, but not nearly at the levels I envisioned.

I did manage to learn a thing or two from the experience.  I have had a lot of fun with it.  On the other hand, I won’t do this again soon.  And on the third hand (bicycle mechanics all have at least three hands) when I do hold another contest, it will take a totally different form.

Thanks to all who read this blog, and all who entered.

Thursday Thoughts ~~ Thinking about the Utility Special-

What is a “utility special?”  It would be a bike you could commute on.  It would be a bike that could do errands.  It would be a bike that could haul stuff.

A utility special is not (usually) a “pretty” bike.  Rather, they are machines for getting stuff done.  These are the pickup trucks of the bike world.  They need to be sturdy, tough, reliable, and above all ready.

What makes a utility or commuter bike?  The answer can be as different as the people who use them.  I have a friend who has used a high end, all carbon time trial bike as a regular commuter.  That’s a bit out of the ordinary.

Usually the factors to be considered are distance of the ride, terrain, and load.  Shorter rides, with light loads can be done on almost any kind of bike.  That svelte and sexy brakeless fixie might be a really neat bike, but if there are a lot of big hills on the route, something with a wide gear range and good brakes would be more practical.

For longer trips, with heavier loads, a “light tourist” might just be the ticket.  That is a road bike, with a more relaxed riding position, a bit heavier frame, and lots of eyelets and braze-ons, to accommodate fenders, racks, and other accessories.  When the route is over rough pavement, such as city streets, heavier wheels, with wider tires make a lot of sense.

We are being pretty general here.  Each rider is different, and has different needs.  I know one character who has managed to cobble together a 15 mile commuting route, that is all dirt.  It includes some gravel roads, a couple of long sections of power line right of way, and one stretch through a neighbor’s woodlot.  Here, a hard tail mountain bike is the obvious choice.

My own regular choice is a road bike.  I like the efficiency and the variable positioning.  Sometimes I’m equipped with racks and panniers.  Sometimes I use a messenger bag.  I’ve been known to haul a trailer.

Fenders:  Are fenders necessary?  That depends.  They become mighty nice when the weather turns wet.  On the other hand, having fenders mounted means having to put up with the extra weight, and the additional air drag whether it’s raining or not.

Lights:  If the commute or utility ride takes place in the daylight, this isn’t a concern.  But if a rider wishes to use the bike during the darker times of the year, then lights become paramount.

Drive Train:  Reliability is a major key.  Modern drivelines are pretty reliable, but if they are subjected to a lot of use, and to a lot of weather, they are going to take more maintenance.  Possibly the most maintenance free would be something equipped with a Shimano Nexus internally geared hug, or even the Rohloff type hub.  These things are bomb proof, and require very little attention.  On the other hand, they are a bit heavier, and a good bit more spendy.

Repair and maintenance:  Who does the work?  If one is going to do regular commuting, the maintenance requirements increase.  It makes a lot of sense to learn how to do routine, and some non-routine maintenance.  Of course, going deeper into self maintaining, implies an investment in tools, supplies, and training.  Just how mechanically adept are you?  Do you have the time to do the work?

The “beater” approach:  I’ve seen a lot of folks start out to attempt utility riding by buying a second hand bike, or by dragging an older, less used bike into service.  This approach can be economical, but it can also be a recipe for failure.  That used bike (particularly the internet variety) may just come with its own serious reliability problems.  Worse, it may not fit well.  The old “second bike” can have some of the same issues.  I would recommend this approach to a more seasoned utility rider.  I you are starting out, get professional help, and pick the right tool for the job.

Maybe the best approach is to just go out and ride the bike you have, and use it to get to and from places you need to be.  You’ll quickly develop a list of needs and wants.  That should help you decide just exactly what is best for your commute/utility riding.  It bears thinking about.

Commuting Tactics:

This one is aimed at folks who haven’t tried to commute by bike.  It just might be helpful to those who have tried it too.

Let’s deal with the indelicate parts of this first.  Showers and changing.  If your planned commute covers any real distance these will apply.  Some happy few of us have the ability to shower at work.  If so, count your blessings.  For the rest, here are some things I’ve found helpful.

Clothing:  Lugging your work clothes around can be a real bother.  Is it possible to store several day’s clothing at work?  If so, you can cache clothes for your commute days, and decrease the load you have to carry.  Then, one day a week, use your car to bring in fresh laundry, and cart the used stuff home to wash or clean.

No showers:  Keep a towel and washcloth (or several) in a plastic trash bag.  Assemble the following “wonder potion.”  In a spritzer bottle, mix three parts water, one part liquid soap, and one part rubbing alcohol.  Add a dash of cologne to taste.  You can spray this liberally over yourself as you change and washcloth and towel off.  This helps cool you down from the ride, and gets the stink and crud off.

Note:  Most of us go to work in the morning, when it’s cooler.  Don’t ride as hard on the way in to work.  Save the high output for the evening commute home.

What if I have a flat?  Learn to fix it!  Carry the necessary repair equipment and supplies with you.  Always allow enough time to fix one flat.  You’ll arrive fresher that way.  Use quality tires, and keep them properly inflated.  Then relax!  Flats are actually few and far between.  A decent bike, with good wheels and good rubber will, with just a little care, go years between flats.

What if something else breaks on the bike?  Oh come on.  What if something breaks on your car?  It will you know.  You will deal with that as it happens.  Good maintenance prevents most of this, but sooner or later, it will happen.  I will add, if your bike actually breaks down, it’s easier to deal with than car trouble.  You can actually carry your bike away from the site of the break down.

Long Commutes:  Consider doing one of the following.

Two Stage:  Drive part of the way.  Park it.  Use your bike as a second stage.  Some folks reverse this a bit if they work in a very traffic congested area.  They will stash a beater car along the route, ride to the car, and drive the final leg.

Split Commute:  Drive in one day, with bike on car.  Ride home.  Ride in the next day.  Drive home.  (I’ve done this one a lot, to simplify scheduling problems.)

Finally, remember always:  Where there is a will, there is a way.

Bike Week ~~ Why Commute?

BikeSnob NYC has been referring to Bike Month and Bike Week as a celebration of smugness.  I guess it could be that.  I’d like to suggest that we can make it more.  We can, and should, use this time to invite our friends, co-workers, neighbors, and family to ride.  Get someone on a bike, and you have helped.

I’d also like to suggest that this week is an especially good time to invite folks to use their bikes to get to work.

Stats:  Typical Trip in the United States = 5 miles, 1 passenger, 5 pounds of cargo.

Surely we can reduce this in some way?  If we who ride cannot find a way to replace at least some of that with something saner, then who will?

Please consider the following issues.  Our roads and streets are becoming more crowded and difficult.  Congestion is a serious problem.  Bicycles don’t take up as much room on the road.  We have serious money problems at all levels of government.  Roads are falling into disrepair.  The money to fix them is going to be harder to come by.  Bikes don’t damage the roads as much as heavier vehicles.  That saves us a lot of cash. 

Riding your bike can save you a bucket load of money.  It doesn’t burn gas.  It’s that simple.  Every mile you ride, instead of driving, is another mile that you preserve your investment in your motor vehicle.  I derive an enormous amount of pleasure from a very simple thing.  It’s a lot of fun to not go to the gas station every week.

My brother is very knowledgeable about automobiles.  He is a real “car guy.”  Back a few years ago, when I had just purchased my new truck, he was helping to admire it.  He asked me what kind of fuel mileage I got.  I replied, somewhere around 40mpg.

“Wow!  That’s incredible!”  he replied.  There was a pause, as he thought about it, and then he said,  “That’s not possible.  How do you figure that?”

“Simple,”  I replied.  “I keep track of all the miles I go, and all the gas I use.  I divide the gas into the miles.”  (I should add, at that moment my commuter bike was leaning against the side of the truck.)  It took a few minutes for the penny to drop.  But the truth is, I spend only about half as much in gas for the distances I travel to work, the store, etc.  In a year’s time, this amounts to a considerable savings.

So those are pretty good reasons to ride instead of driving.  It’s also a lot more fun, and it’s good healthy exercise and mental therapy.  But one of the bigger objections to bike commuting is often unvoiced.  It’s the “image problem.”

In short, many folks won’t use the bike as a tool to get to work because,  “People will think I’m a dork.”  Let’s deal with that.

First off, people already think you’re a dork.  If you ride, your friends, neighbors, family, and co-workers know it, and they think you are out of your mind.  So you can relax.  You aren’t going to hurt your image by riding a bit more and doing some practical good.

Besides, being thrifty is getting to be cool again.  (It’s about time!)  And your day will come.  Let me illustrate.

Back in the early 1970s I was a rider.  I rode to work.  At that time, I did not work in the bicycle industry.  My acquaintances all thought I was a total idiot, at best a goofy eccentric.  Gas was cheap and plentiful.  Cars were big, powerful, and fast.  Then there was this complex political/economic thing, and the Arabs hit us with an oil embargo.  Suddnely gas cost twice as much, and worse, it was almost impossible to get it!

Overnight, I went from being an idiot-eccentric to a guru.  People thought what I did was cool, and they sought me out to ask me how to do it too.

“I used to worry about what people thought, until I realized that mostly they don't."

Ride Report: Audax 200K

Some rides are better than others.  Some are simply hilarious. 

Yesterday was the latest edition of the Annual Audax 200K.  We had a modest sized group, of happy riders.  Start time was a cool 07:30.  Ready to roll, the group consisted of Chris, Cindy, Lisa, Amy, Teresa, Ty, and me.  Our good and great friend Ed could not ride with us, but he managed to come down to Warm Springs and join us for lunch.  (More on that shortly.)

Before I go much farther, everyone finished, and did so in fine style.

The weather was most cooperative.  It was pleasantly cool at the start.  It never got truly hot, as we had some good cloud cover for the warmest part of the day.  We missed out on rain.  We did, in fact have some tail winds, and they were with us for a large part of the day.

On this particular ride, the joking and cajolery started in the parking lot, and never truly abated.  Bacon, fudge, doughnuts, pralines, and the absence of the letter “C,” were all topics of great mirth.  We had loud and humor, and louder humorous songs.  Sometimes the laughter was so contagious and outrageous that it was hard to keep the bikes in a straight line.  (We will draw a discrete curtain across the scene now.  This is, a pg blog, after all.)

This ride covers a lot of ground, much of it pretty demanding terrain.  I mention that because we had a mechanical problem.  These are rare.  But we had one.  A bit before we reached the town of Pine Mountain, Teresa suffered a broken rear derailleur cable.  That meant that her rear gear set immediately self-shifted to the highest (hardest) possible gear.  This with the tough climbs up into Pine Mountain just ahead.  Suddenly, she had three gear choices, hard, harder, and incredibly hard.  She managed to tough it out, and stayed on the bike until we got into Pine Mountain.

Once in at our planned stop, I was able to diagnose the problem.  The best I could do, with a field expedient repair, was to limit her rear gear set to a mid-range gear.  That was better than before, but still, she had the mountain ahead.  The best we could do was to give her a gear about five ranges higher than her lowest.  She elected to try the mountain.

I’ve seen lots of folks completely stopped on that mountain, and they had full working drivelines.  Teresa made it, and did so with style.

I mentioned that our good friend Ed came down to Warm Springs to meet us for lunch.  He brought his bike with him.  I was able to rob the shifter cable and derailleur hardware from Ed’s bike, and transfer the parts to Teresa’s.  That helped.

Ed deserves high praise for this selfless act of generosity.  Bravo, Ed!

Of course, the repair was somewhat makeshift, and for technical reasons (which I won’t discuss here) it partially failed in the next 15 miles.  That left Teresa with a slightly better situation than before, but still without the ability to access the lowest of her gears.

So what did the lady do?  She simply soldiered on!  Without complaint.  On what had become, essentially a singlespeed bike!  And, she made it!  Wow!

I should mention Ty too.  This was, by far, the longest ride he’d ever done.  Ty is preparing to do a cross-continent, charity fundraising tour.  He did just fine with us, and I don’t doubt that he will do well in his future endeavor.

I should also like to add that the fun and merriment continued right ont throughout the long afternoon.

This was one truly grand ride, with an outstanding bunch of folk.  I can’t recall when last I had so much fun on a ride.  The camaraderie was terrific, spirits high, and a splendid time was had by all.  Bravo!

Oh yes!  It never rained either.

Friday Follies ~~ Ride Long Enough and Everything Happens to you…

(See the post from 5/4/10 for Audax 200K details)

There was a time when I seemed to break chains a lot.  I finally figured out that if I stopped “power shifting” this didn’t happen.  Chains can take an enormous amount of power, but they don’t react well to impact.

Then I went through the “Time of many flats.”  I sort of thought that was just the nature of the beast.  But just as I was starting to notice that most of the folks I rode with didn’t seem to have this problem, I had that day.  I started out for a nice Summer afternoon ride.  I deserved that ride.  More, I needed it.

I got about a mile into my ride when my front tire went soft.  I pulled off the road, and went to work.  I found the leak, marked it, and checked the tire.  I removed the offending hunk of debris, and completed the repair.

The next flat occurred about a mile and a half later.  I wasn’t too worried.  I had started with two spare tubes.  This time it wasn’t a puncture.  Or at least I couldn’t find anything in tire.  But there was a definite hole in the tube.  Not a big one, but it was there.

I was getting pretty hot from standing in the sun and pumping tires, but I completed the repair.

At mile five, the rear went down again.  Okay.  Deploy patch kit.  Patch a punctured spare.  Look up at the sky and say,  “I get the message.  I’m going home now.”

The fourth flat occurred about a mile later.

The fifth flat happened when I was still a mile from home.  I walked the final mile, dragging the bike with me.  As I recall I didn’t get on the bike for a week after that.

I did eventually learn that quality tires, good tubes (not the ones from the department store), and proper inflation took care of this problem.  I go years between flats.  I did double flat on a brevet a few years ago.  But that’s another story.

There was the day I was riding in the mountains.  Solo.  I was underprepared, and starting to bonk.  I needed water.  I had no idea where I was, or how far it might be to services.  I found an open store, in the middle of nowhere.  I had just walked out side and sat down with my meager purchases, when… 

A car passed by.  It had a bike on the roof rack.  The car stopped sharply just beyond the store, reversed and pulled in.  Two grinning people emerged.  “Steve!”  The leader called.

Here were a couple of folks I hadn’t seen in ages!

“Yeah.  We came up for some mountain biking, but it got rained out,”  One said.

“Rain?”  I replied, looking up at the hot sunny sky.

“Yeah, the other side of the mountain, it’s pouring!”  came the reply.

So suddenly I had a reunion with old friends, a ride back to civilization, and an escape from an afternoon and evening of torrential rain.

It’s true.  Ride long enough, and good or bad, everything happens to you.

Thursday Thoughts ~~ Why Not?

(See the post from 5/4/10 for Audax 200K details)

The weather forecast for this coming Sunday is for 68 degrees F at ride time, rising to a high of 83 degrees F.  There is a chance of widely scattered showers.

What is a prospective rider to do?

Answer:  Bring a rain jacket, a helmet cover, sunscreen, and ride!  The rain gear is light and doesn't take up much room.  It's good practice to do this on any long ride.

There is a chance of some rain.  In the afternoon.  It’s by no means a certainty.  Although it should be said, if one rides long enough, the likelihood of encountering rain increases pretty sharply.  The thing is, riding in the rain is no big deal.  It happens.  On a warm day it can be kind of pleasant.

A few years ago, on this ride, we hit rain during the last 20 miles of the ride.  I was a bit apprehensive.  I wasn’t worried about the rain so much.  I’ve logged many a mile in it.  Rather, I was concerned about how my group of riders was taking it.  And how was that?  Well, they were laughing and joking with each other.  At the end of the ride a couple of them actually came up to me and thanked me for the wet finish!  They had enjoyed the refreshing feel of being cooled down, and they’d had fun.

Excellent!

Contest Prizes, and Audax 200K Preparations

(See the post from 5/4/10 for Audax 200K details)

The Great and Weird Road Dragon Bike Contest

Here they are, the Grand Prize (still a work in progress) and the First Prize.

Pay Attention!  This is one possible "donor frame"

And here's another...

 These are some of the "goodies" that will make this a real ride

You will notice that the Grand Prize shows two different frames.  No, there are not going to be two bikes.  But rather, I will finish the frame that is appropriate to the winner.  That means the winner gets to pick which of these frames will be finished out as a fixie/singlespeed.  There is a lot of appeal either way this project goes.

As for the First Prize, that’s an Origin8 Black Ops Scout.  It’s a rigid 29er, with Avid disks.  The bike is suspension-ready, for those who just have to have a shock.

There’s still time (barely!) to enter (and win!) this contest…  But you are going to have to hurry!  Prizes will be announced on Bike to Work Day.

Want to know how to enter?  I’ve put this up enough times.  Start looking through the back posts on this blog.  You should be able to find everything you need.  Good luck and good hunting!

 Preparing for this weekend’s Audax 200K?  Mostly you should be resting.  Oh yeah!  And you should be contacting me, right now!!!!  It’s real, and it’s happening this coming Sunday.  That’s 16 May 2010.

What should you bring?

• At least two spare tubes
• A bit of cash for munchies at the stops
• Your favorite on bike foods
• Sunscreen
• Any spares that are unique to your rig
• Dress for the weather (Rain or Shine we’re going!)Your best smile!

International Ride of Silence

(Please see the post from 5/4/10 for Audax 200K details)

On Wednesday, 19 May, at 7:00 PM EDT, the world-wide Ride of Silence will begin.  There will be rides all over the East coast.  They will last for an hour.  At the end of that hour, it will be 7:00 PM in the Central Time zone, and rides will begin there.  An hour later, in Rocky Mountain time zone, rides will begin.  For a period of 24 hours, the Ride of Silence will continue around the world.

These rides are in honor, memory, and support of riders who have fallen, killed or injured in traffic.  We will ride slowly, and respectfully.  We will ride for an hour.  We will keep silence and remember.

Please come out and ride.  Somewhere near you, there is a Ride of Silence.  For those of us who are close to Peachtree City, Georgia, the ride will start at City Hall, at 7:00 PM.  We will have a police escort.  We will ride at a pace of no more than 12 mph, for one hour, ending at City Hall.

Please come out and join us.

For further information, or to sign up, please go to the South Side Cycling Club website.

Bike to Work Week is Coming

(Please see the post from 5/4/10 for Audax 200K details)

Bike to Work Week is next week, May 17 through May 21.  Bike to Work Day is Friday, May 21.

I’ve spent a lot of time, here and elsewhere speaking to the various benefits of “Utility Cycling.”  I use that phrase for a reason.  A lot of us get hung up with the idea that our bikes can only be used for one practical purpose.  That would be commuting.  The truth of the matter is that the bicycle can take the place of an automobile for just about any practical function.

If you are a regular subscriber to my Tuesday Tome weekly email newsletter, then you have seen my weekly Commuter Log.  I record the milage that I do on a bicycle, for strictly utility purposes, going shopping, running errands, and yes, going to work.  I also assign a monetary value to this travel.  In short, the use of the bicycle, in place of a car, saves a lot of money.

There are health benefits to the practice too.  Instead of just traveling in a car, I get to use necessary errand and commuting time to ride.  That’s free exercise, and it saves money.

At the same time, I get to have the positive “head space” of riding, instead of driving.  In fact, a lot of my utility riding is pretty therapeutic.

And I get to park in a prime spot, right at the door.

I urge each and everyone of you, please give it a try.   Ride to work at least one day next week.  Ride to the store, or some other errand, at least three times.  I’m pretty sure you will enjoy the process.  At the same time, you do good, for your wallet, your community, and your planet.

Friday Follies ~~ Something a bit different

(Audax 200K  See the post from 5/4/2010 for details.  Also, search this blog for lots of information on these rides.)

I’m departing a bit from the usual Friday Follies format this week.  First off, it’s Bike Month.  Second, the Audax 200K is coming up in a bit more than a week.  So first some advice about doing the 200K.

Advice:  Take it easy next week!!!

That’s right.  Lay off.  Go easy.  Don’t ride a lot.  Chill.  Don’t ride hard.  I know you will want to.  Avoid the temptation.  This will make for a much nicer ride on the 200K.

Now for a little illustrative story.

I knew better.  I did!  I’d been riding endurance type events and distances for some time.  Centuries were old hat.  I’d done double centuries.  Admittedly those 200 mile events pretty well whupped me, but I’d completed them.  Then I got into randonnuerring.

The first year doing brevets was instructive.  I overloaded for my first 200K.  I finished, but just barely.  (I’d made other mistakes, but that is another story.)  I completed the 300K, again just barely.  My first attempt at a 400K (approx 250 miles) didn’t go so well.  Weather, mechanicals, the wrong bike, and I was under-prepared.  I went ahead and attempted a 600K, but withdrew at the halfway point.

The second year of rando riding never really got started.  I had a serious problem with my eye, requiring surgery, and total physical restriction.

The following year, I was going to attempt to qualify for Paris-Brest-Paris. Didn’t work out.  I got hung up on the 400K.  I made three successive attempts at it.  All of them dismal failures.  I determined that I would use the next year to really learn this stuff.

I breezed through the 200K and 300K events.  I was training well and carefully.  I was focusing on the 400K, figuring I’d get that done, and then let the 600K take care of itself.  I knew exactly when the 400K would be.  I’d planned a training season around that event.

I tapered correctly, starting the taper two weeks prior to the event.  I did very little riding in the last week leading up to the day.  Then there was the long long drive down to Florida’s Space Coast on Friday.  By the end of that day I was feeling kinked up, stiff, and twitchy.  I consented to go out for a “leg loosener” with another guy.  We both agreed that we would “take it easy” and just pre-ride the first little bit of the course.

When I first got on the bike, I was feeling puny.  My legs were like lead. But after five miles, or so, I was feeling a bit better.  This was flat land riding, and it was easy to pick up speed.  Soon we were motoring along.  I wasn’t breathing hard, and the pace felt great!  Next thing I knew, we had gone a bit over 20 miles into the route.  We decided to turn around and go back.

By the end of that ride I felt fantastic!  I’d been quick without any apparent effort.  I ate a huge dinner, not my usual pre-ride fare.  Then I was so buzzed up that I didn’t go to bed.  I stayed up way too late, feeling good, and not tired at all.  I went over my gear, did useless maintenance checks on the bike, and wasted precious resting time.

I didn’t realize how much damage I’d done until around mile 100 of the event.  By then I was feeling terrible.  I was depleted, and sleep deprived.  And I still had 150 miles to go.  I bonked hard, just ten miles after that.  The remainder of the day, and well into the night were a long, relentless death march.  I got back to the start/finish hotel, at mile 200, with absolutely nothing left.  Worse, I was so far behind the event clock that, to compete successfully, I would have to make a 19mph average for the last 50 miles.

What went wrong?  I allowed my feeling of strength, so carefully built and nurtured, to lead me into the mistake of over-exerting and fatiguing the night before the ride.  I broke routine, and over-ate, which made me eat less at breakfast.  I should have rested the night before, even if sleep was impossible.  I should have forced myself to go to bed and stay there.

The lesson?  Take it easy the week before a long event.  Really!  You are going to feel strong.  Don’t let that feeling lure you into developing a “fatigue load” just before the event.  And always remember, your training is done two weeks before an event.  From that point on, additional riding can only seriously mess you up. 

Thursday Thoughts ~~ Bike Month

(See the post from 5/3/10 for Audax 200K details)

This is a vision of the world.  Imagine, more bikes than cars on the roads.  Imagine, Interstate type highways, limited access indeed, but in a different way.  Imagine that these interstates are closed to cars, and are for bikes only.  Try to picture our cities as quiet and clean, with well ordered processions of bicycles and pedestrians moving along greenways.

Picture a nation in which the majority of the population is fit and healthy.  Can you see a nation in which the typical senior thinks of a 100 mile ride as a good day on the bike.  For that matter, what if the typical young teen thought the same thing?

How would our world look if we didn’t squander a huge amount of our income on rapidly depreciating automobiles, and the support of a huge infrastructure to serve them?  What if we stopped subsidizing middle eastern potentates?  What if the average private car or truck lasted 15 to 20 years, because it was only driven about 3500 miles a year?

What would this world look like?  What would it take to make it possible?  What if our recreation and fitness were also our primary means of travel?

Is this a fantasy?  Can this dream come true.

Please think about it.

Audax 200K Visualization:

(See yesterday’s post for details)

It’s just after 7:00 AM.  You have pulled into the parking lot to make ready for the ride.  The Sun is just peaking through the trees, low on the eastern horizon.  You look around.  Other riders are starting to arrive too.

In short order, everyone has bikes on the ground and each is sorting and checking equipment.  It’s a little cool, and you are trying to decide.  Do you want to wear arm warmers and a vest for the first couple of hours, only to carry them the rest of the day?  Or…  Are you going to tough out the first couple of cool hours, and not carry the extra stuff with you?  Should you apply sunscreen now, or wait until later?  (The answer to that is do it now!)  Are your tires pumped?  Bottles full?  Have you forgotten anything?

Soon it’s time.  The Road Captain calls you all together for a quick pre-ride briefing.  And it’s time to go.

A group of you assemble and push off.  Just like that, you are heading south on the Peachtree Parkway.  The group is big enough, and you all take command of the right hand lane.  The pace quickly establishes itself.  After the first mile, folks begin to settle down, and steady up.

In short order, you are all at the edge of Peachtree City, and startng the long climb to Senoia.  There will be the possibility of a stop in Senoia, but everyone hopes not to do this.  Better to go long on this first leg.

Once clear of the hills around Senoia, you are out on GA-85.  The group has settled down, and the leader starts to push the pace a bit.  This is fast country.  The road is flat, and there is little traffic.  It’s a good place to “bank “ some time.  By the time the turn for GA-362 comes up, everyone is feeling a little winded.  This road is one long set of rollers, so it’s a good place to settle down a bit, and ride a steady, even pace.  Recover and breath, hills ahead!

After the long climb up to Greenville, the group makes the first planned stop of the day.  You’ve done 33.5 miles, and your legs are good for it.  It’s going to be a good day!  It’s just over 16 miles to the town of Pine Mountain, and a quick stop to stretch and fill bottles.  Then the climb over Pine Mountain.

The group breaks up a bit on the Pine Mountain leg, but stops and regroups at the intersection with GA-85A.  Then there’s the tremendous downhill blast into Warm Springs.  Lunch awaits.  A brief break after lunch.  Time to check gear, re-apply sunscreen, and get mentally prepared for the return leg.

The big rollers on GA-85 are still ahead of you.  Your legs are feeling a bit tired, and you are a touch “loggy” after the big lunch.  But the general mood is upbeat and happy.  The pace is controlled.  It won’t really start to pick up again until 17 miles later, in the little town of Gay. 

You are conserving water.  The store in Gay is notoriously unreliable.  If necessary, an alternate water stop is possible in Concord.  But the next planned stop, after Gay, is in Digby.  That’s a big, reliable store, with good stocks, and the all important restrooms.

By Digby, you know you have this thing done.  It’s just 20 more, mostly easy miles to the end.  You look around.  You know you are tired, and you can see it in the other riders.  Tired, but not too tired.  Let’s go finish this thing!

As the group enters Peachtree City, the Road Captain forms you up into a column of twos, to ride north on the Peachtree Parkway.  This is a tradition.  It’s the triumph of a long hard ride, well done.

A snack, an change of clothing, possibly a quick shower at the end.

Is this a good day, or what?