Wednesday, November 07, 2007
The Man is Holding Me Down
I've been having a shitty couple of days for a variety of reasons I don't want to go into right now. So, in response, I rode my bike over to a friends house to talk about stuff. Upon my return, I put my bike in its usual place at the bottom of the stairs, walked up to my apartment, and walked to kitchen. It should be noted that my bike has been in the stairwell the entire time I've lived here. Within moments of my return home, my landlord (who lives on the floor below me) called me up and said that it is no longer acceptable to have my bike in the stairs. Messing up the paint, apparently. I find this humorous because while the stairwell has just been painted, IT WAS A SHITTY JOB! "I want to keep the front stairs, you know, nice," he says. Whatever. Nothing about this house is nice, least of all the paint in the stairways. I'm not a painter, but I've done lots of painting and I know what a good job looks like. This ain't it. And now, in the defense of this horrible paintjob, the White Boot of Oppression is making it that little bit harder to subvert the autocentric paradigm! Fuckers!
Monday, September 24, 2007
On the road...
I spent the weekend on the road, in a car. My grandmother turned 90 recently so we gathered the tribe in New Jersey to celebrate. Here's the bike-ability report for Medford, NJ: Not very bikeable. There is a bike rack in front of the public library but I didn't see any others. I saw no cyclists and the roads made me feel uncomfortable even thinking about riding. Something about narrow shoulders and 50 mph speed limits...
Monday, September 17, 2007
i am in hell...
The cheating, lying Patriots beat San Diego (I believe it means "Whale's Vagina"... Anchorman, anyone?) 38-14 last night. That means I get to listen to my co-workers talk about what a great team "we" have, how deliberately and consistently violating the rules "doesn't make a difference," how "we're going all the way if everybody stays healthy." F that, I say. You people need to shut the hell up and get back in touch with, um, ethical behavior. I sure do hope the Eagles can win one tonight... that'll go a long way towards making me feel better.
It was 46 degrees for my ride in this morning. In the span of a week we've gone from hot, humid, sticky summer riding to brisk (i.e. COLD), eyes watering fall riding. Awesome!
It was 46 degrees for my ride in this morning. In the span of a week we've gone from hot, humid, sticky summer riding to brisk (i.e. COLD), eyes watering fall riding. Awesome!
Friday, September 14, 2007
TGIMFF
It has been a long week...
I only rode for fun once this week, and I hesitate to use the term "fun." This was Monday. There was a termite hatch Monday afternoon because the little bastards were everywhere. I couldn't find my sunglasses so I rode without. This is how I discovered the termites. They all tried to get in my eyes. They stuck themselves to my crotch and the sleeves of my shirt. They hit me in the chest. I may or may not have eaten a couple, but it was hard to tell since I was busy avoiding cars. Three near misses in a mile and a half to start the ride. Then the rain came. I originally intended to do a quick ride to Riverside, but when it started raining I decided that the odds were stacked against me. Too many bad omens. So, instead, I rode the hills in the neighborhood behind my house. Intervals for wusses, short but steep climbs. I think I was only on the bike for 45 minutes...
It'll be better today, I'm going to hit up Lincoln Woods.
Congratulations, by the way, to Mike and Anna on the birth of their son last Saturday...
I only rode for fun once this week, and I hesitate to use the term "fun." This was Monday. There was a termite hatch Monday afternoon because the little bastards were everywhere. I couldn't find my sunglasses so I rode without. This is how I discovered the termites. They all tried to get in my eyes. They stuck themselves to my crotch and the sleeves of my shirt. They hit me in the chest. I may or may not have eaten a couple, but it was hard to tell since I was busy avoiding cars. Three near misses in a mile and a half to start the ride. Then the rain came. I originally intended to do a quick ride to Riverside, but when it started raining I decided that the odds were stacked against me. Too many bad omens. So, instead, I rode the hills in the neighborhood behind my house. Intervals for wusses, short but steep climbs. I think I was only on the bike for 45 minutes...
It'll be better today, I'm going to hit up Lincoln Woods.
Congratulations, by the way, to Mike and Anna on the birth of their son last Saturday...
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
NEMBAfest
The plan was flawless, but I should have known better than to expect to ride well after a Sharks Come Cruisin' show. So that's where we start. Friday night Sharks Come Cruisin' played at Patrick's Pub up on Smith Street. The show was fantastic, as usual, despite a lame group of pirates. Pirates? Yup, there was a "Pirate-themed party" in the house. Apparently the buccaneers didn't realize that they were supposed to be drinking heavily and singing along. By singing along, of course, I mean yelling at the top of one's lungs. Anyway, I was not impressed by the pirates, except for the cute one we nicknamed Pirate Spice, so I felt compelled to redouble my efforts and "sing" louder. This continued well into the night, i.e. until the bar closed at 2. The ride home was interesting as well, but the important point here is that I remember it being 3:26 when I closed my eyes.
When I opened my eyes, my clock said 7:00. While I waited for the anvil to drop on my head, I quickly realized that there were two ways the day could go. I could stay in bed and sleep more, read: all day, or I could suck it up and go riding. Since there were five other people involved in the planned NEMBAfest adventure it really wasn't a choice, so I got up. Stumbling around, drunk over, or maybe hung ovunk, it took me 40 minutes to load my rig onto the car. I also brought tools and a bike for E to ride. I did not eat because there was no food in my house, but I did suck down a pint of water. Off we go, quick stop to "fuel up" at Dunkin' Donuts. An hour later I arrived at Wompatuck State Forest in Hingham.
Originally I had planned on getting up to Hingham early enough to check things out, register, and maybe jump on a 10 o'clock group ride. I chose 10 because I knew I'd probably be tired from the night before. The reality of the situation proved that I had woefully underestimated the amount of fun I'd have on Friday night. While I successfully navigated to Wompatuck by 9:30, I was in no way prepared to ride near other people at 10. It took until nearly 11 to get everybody together, bikes prepped, lids on, mentally pumped and jacked.
There were group rides firing off every half hour, so despite the fact that J and I missed the start of the 11 o'clock "Advanced Intermediate" ride we were able to catch up quickly. It took us one climb to demolish the group, despite the fact that I was sweating alcohol. We decided to ditch the group when the group leader couldn't make a rock garden section and proceeded to stand right in the middle of the trail, obstructing me and everybody else. I could have made it, I swear...
So off we went on our own, following the red arrows. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but I have to admit I was a little nervous about committing to 22 miles in 95 degree heat with no food and a raging hangover. Onward we rode, J battling through minor mechanical issues and me fighting my caloric deficit and dehydration. And then there was the issue of water... about half way through the ride, right when I was getting worried about how empty my camelback was, we discovered a water source in the campground area. This absolutely saved me because I was already starting to get the chills from being overheated. Supply replenished, I was again able to drink heavily. Water, not booze... Onward we rode.
I ran out of water for the second time when we were close enough to the finish to hear the announcer-guy setting up the contests for the afternoon. Huffy toss anyone? The only way out was through, so we kept riding. I was on the verge of serious problems as I was thoroughly chilled, despite the heat. I was still sweating, but I knew bad things were happening to me. The announcers voice was ahead of us until the trail bent and we realized that we were riding around the field instead of towards it. The only way out is through! My front tire washed out in a swoopy section and I nearly ate a tree. The voice is closer! And then, success! The heat crushed us as we emerged from the forest back into the festival field. I rode directly to the water tent and was restored.
The rest of the afternoon was spent chilling out and attempting to gather my wits. We watched the aforementioned Huffy Toss contest (which J entered and won...), watching Mike Steidley throw down some amazing trials skill, and talking to the girl in the Larabar tent. Mmmmm, Larabars. Actually, I had never eaten one before, but the girl in the tent was beautiful and fun to talk to so I felt compelled to chat for awhile and try out each flavor. Should have gotten her number... lesson learned, I'll do better next time. Did I mention I was hung over and dehydrated? After some more lounging around in the shade, we disbanded and headed for home.
Wompatuck is a cool place to ride. It's big and confusing, but all the major trail intersections are numbered so it's fairly easy to figure out where you are. There are also lots of fire roads and bail-out points if you, say, run out of water. It took a little over an hour to get there, so it's not the most convenient place for those of us in the PVD, but it would definitely be worth getting a group together and heading back.
When I opened my eyes, my clock said 7:00. While I waited for the anvil to drop on my head, I quickly realized that there were two ways the day could go. I could stay in bed and sleep more, read: all day, or I could suck it up and go riding. Since there were five other people involved in the planned NEMBAfest adventure it really wasn't a choice, so I got up. Stumbling around, drunk over, or maybe hung ovunk, it took me 40 minutes to load my rig onto the car. I also brought tools and a bike for E to ride. I did not eat because there was no food in my house, but I did suck down a pint of water. Off we go, quick stop to "fuel up" at Dunkin' Donuts. An hour later I arrived at Wompatuck State Forest in Hingham.
Originally I had planned on getting up to Hingham early enough to check things out, register, and maybe jump on a 10 o'clock group ride. I chose 10 because I knew I'd probably be tired from the night before. The reality of the situation proved that I had woefully underestimated the amount of fun I'd have on Friday night. While I successfully navigated to Wompatuck by 9:30, I was in no way prepared to ride near other people at 10. It took until nearly 11 to get everybody together, bikes prepped, lids on, mentally pumped and jacked.
There were group rides firing off every half hour, so despite the fact that J and I missed the start of the 11 o'clock "Advanced Intermediate" ride we were able to catch up quickly. It took us one climb to demolish the group, despite the fact that I was sweating alcohol. We decided to ditch the group when the group leader couldn't make a rock garden section and proceeded to stand right in the middle of the trail, obstructing me and everybody else. I could have made it, I swear...
So off we went on our own, following the red arrows. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but I have to admit I was a little nervous about committing to 22 miles in 95 degree heat with no food and a raging hangover. Onward we rode, J battling through minor mechanical issues and me fighting my caloric deficit and dehydration. And then there was the issue of water... about half way through the ride, right when I was getting worried about how empty my camelback was, we discovered a water source in the campground area. This absolutely saved me because I was already starting to get the chills from being overheated. Supply replenished, I was again able to drink heavily. Water, not booze... Onward we rode.
I ran out of water for the second time when we were close enough to the finish to hear the announcer-guy setting up the contests for the afternoon. Huffy toss anyone? The only way out was through, so we kept riding. I was on the verge of serious problems as I was thoroughly chilled, despite the heat. I was still sweating, but I knew bad things were happening to me. The announcers voice was ahead of us until the trail bent and we realized that we were riding around the field instead of towards it. The only way out is through! My front tire washed out in a swoopy section and I nearly ate a tree. The voice is closer! And then, success! The heat crushed us as we emerged from the forest back into the festival field. I rode directly to the water tent and was restored.
The rest of the afternoon was spent chilling out and attempting to gather my wits. We watched the aforementioned Huffy Toss contest (which J entered and won...), watching Mike Steidley throw down some amazing trials skill, and talking to the girl in the Larabar tent. Mmmmm, Larabars. Actually, I had never eaten one before, but the girl in the tent was beautiful and fun to talk to so I felt compelled to chat for awhile and try out each flavor. Should have gotten her number... lesson learned, I'll do better next time. Did I mention I was hung over and dehydrated? After some more lounging around in the shade, we disbanded and headed for home.
Wompatuck is a cool place to ride. It's big and confusing, but all the major trail intersections are numbered so it's fairly easy to figure out where you are. There are also lots of fire roads and bail-out points if you, say, run out of water. It took a little over an hour to get there, so it's not the most convenient place for those of us in the PVD, but it would definitely be worth getting a group together and heading back.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Aftermath...
Ah Reno... have you ever been? It was my first time out there. I've visited all of the other states in that part of the country, but not Nevada. As far as I can tell there's nothing in Nevada except for Reno and Las Vegas. I know this because I flew first to Vegas, changed planes, then continued up to Reno. I sat in a window seat and looked out the whole way, seeing nothing but high desert. There were dirt roads here and there, but I didn't see any paved roads. There must be some, somewhere, because I'm pretty sure you can drive between these cities without a four wheel drive vehicle. It's an odd view for someone from the Northeast... On the outskirts of Vegas, the buildings stop, the roads continue another block or two, then the desert takes over. Then, an hour later, the desert stops, roads begin, and buildings appear. Welcome to Reno!
Reno is, uh, skeevy. That's the best word I can think of to describe it. The city consists of casinos, pawn shops, and bars. There are allegedly crackheads and meth addicts on the streets, more so than in other places. I didn't see any in person but they were all over the local news. Everything is dusty and dirty. You can smoke pretty much everywhere in Reno, so the whole place smells like cigarettes. Our conference was in Harrah's Casino, where you can't get anywhere without walking through the gaming areas. There are people draining their money at all hours of the day and night, it's a little depressing. This is not a joke, but I saw a guy playing video poker when I stumbled past on my way to my room at 2:30 in the morning. Saw the same guy, in the same place, at 7:30 the next morning when I went down for breakfast. It's nuts.
However, having said all that, I had a great time out there. The conference was moderately interesting but I did meet some really cool people, including, but not limited to: A Canadian, a bartender who dances on the bar for extra tips, a little guy who's in the UFC, a recently retired NFL player, and a bunch of folks like me looking to have fun on a business trip. We got our work done and then went to visit the sketchy bars every night. With the exception of the place that used to be a strip club, none of the individual places were any sketchier than what one might find out here. Rather it was the sheer density of sketchy bars. Here you have to seek out the dives, out there it's the other way around and you have to seek out nice places.
By the end of the week, however, I was ready to come home. Too much drinking, too much nasty food (or too little healthy food is maybe a better way to say it...), too much smelling tobacco smoke, too little sleep. I think I'm sick, actually, something is wrong with my sinuses. I'm still on Pacific Time, so I've been unable to fall asleep before 1 a.m. since I've been back. Hopefully I'll be tired enough to get to bed early tonight...
Reno is, uh, skeevy. That's the best word I can think of to describe it. The city consists of casinos, pawn shops, and bars. There are allegedly crackheads and meth addicts on the streets, more so than in other places. I didn't see any in person but they were all over the local news. Everything is dusty and dirty. You can smoke pretty much everywhere in Reno, so the whole place smells like cigarettes. Our conference was in Harrah's Casino, where you can't get anywhere without walking through the gaming areas. There are people draining their money at all hours of the day and night, it's a little depressing. This is not a joke, but I saw a guy playing video poker when I stumbled past on my way to my room at 2:30 in the morning. Saw the same guy, in the same place, at 7:30 the next morning when I went down for breakfast. It's nuts.
However, having said all that, I had a great time out there. The conference was moderately interesting but I did meet some really cool people, including, but not limited to: A Canadian, a bartender who dances on the bar for extra tips, a little guy who's in the UFC, a recently retired NFL player, and a bunch of folks like me looking to have fun on a business trip. We got our work done and then went to visit the sketchy bars every night. With the exception of the place that used to be a strip club, none of the individual places were any sketchier than what one might find out here. Rather it was the sheer density of sketchy bars. Here you have to seek out the dives, out there it's the other way around and you have to seek out nice places.
By the end of the week, however, I was ready to come home. Too much drinking, too much nasty food (or too little healthy food is maybe a better way to say it...), too much smelling tobacco smoke, too little sleep. I think I'm sick, actually, something is wrong with my sinuses. I'm still on Pacific Time, so I've been unable to fall asleep before 1 a.m. since I've been back. Hopefully I'll be tired enough to get to bed early tonight...
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Back from the edge...
I'm just back from a week-long "business trip" to Reno, NV. I'll try to post more on the trip later since it was a solid adventure, but for now this'll just be a bike inventory from the journey. While in Reno I saw three cyclists, one person who looked like they were riding because they wanted to and three who seemed to be riding because they had to (i.e. oh crap, lost my license...). Reno does not appear to be a very cycle-friendly city because although the roads are wide, people drive super fast. Left turns on a bike involve taking not just a lane, but three or four to get over to the middle of the road. On the other hand, since the city is in a valley, it's pretty flat.
Ok, that's all for now, I'll do more later.
Ok, that's all for now, I'll do more later.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
A quick update...
Been busy lately, so no new posts in awhile. O.k., that's not true, I just haven't posted. I'll get back into it shortly, but in the meantime I've added a couple links to keep you busy. My friends Pat and Cathy are spending some time in Africa where it is significantly warmer than it is here. Also, my friend Gina is living in Brazil for a couple years. She's a far better writer than I am, and more verbose, so her blog will keep you busy for awhile. Gina, since you're probably the only person reading this, take some time to reflect on your literary skill! The other links are just a small selection of the sites I check out when I should be doing things like working or cleaning or updating my blog.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Manners
When I ride to work, I keep my bike inside my cubicle. This means that upon arrival, I need to dismount and walk through three doors. I'm always amused by other people's reactions when I get to the door at the same time they do. More often than not, folks will try to open and/or hold the door for me. This is very thoughtful of them and it probably looks like I'm burdened by the need to wheel my bicycle somewhere it really isn't supposed to go. The funny thing, however, is that when somebody else opens the door for me, they're really just in the way. I've got a good technique for getting myself and my bike through doors quickly and without banging into anything. Add another person, even a kind, courteous one, and everything gets out of whack and I end up crashing into the door or the doorframe. This makes me laugh. So, thank you friendly co-workers, but I've got the door. Don't worry about it.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Wednesday, January 03, 2007
The Sickness...
The holidays have come and gone and I managed to make it all the way until January 3 before I got sick. Fantastic. I suppose it should not surprise me, considering the vast quantity of booze I consumed this past weekend, the few hours of sleep, and the contact with random people on my trip to New Hampshire. It turns my stomach (actually, makes my throat hurt...) to think of all the dirty children who used the same ping pong tables I used at the Nordic Inn.
At any rate, the new year is here! The new Congress has been sworn in. The United Nations has a new Secretary General. Rhode Island has the same old governor, but just about everybody else in charge is new. Exciting times, no? I hope that all this "new energy" will actually result in some positives, like maybe some meaningful policies to deal with climate change. You know, just to pick a tiny example. I'd be happy with real, actual bike lanes in Providence, but we've got to start somewhere. May as well be climate change...
In bike related news... I bought a full face helmet for myself. Merry Christmas, me! I've been thinking about this for some time, considering that I've hit my face on the ground the last two times I've crashed my mountain bike. I've just been lucky to touch down in soft dirt instead of pointy rocks. I chose a Bell Bellistic after spending about 45 minutes in Mystic Cycle Centre trying on different helmets. Giro? Nice, but didn't fit quite right and a little too dh/moto for me. 661? Didn't fit at all. Specialized? Ooooh, nice, seemed like the closest to an actual bike helmet, and comfortable, but the retention system was poorly done. I tried the Deviant model which has an adjustable retention system in the back, sort of like every other bike helmet nowdays. Unfortunately, it just doesn't work. The parts are crappy and the ratchet mechanism doesn't hold. Poor execution for a $100 helmet. So, after plenty of hemming and hawing, I chose the Bell. It fits well and is comfortable, although I think it'll end up being too hot for the summertime. We'll see, I suppose. There's plenty of riding to be done between now and then...
At any rate, the new year is here! The new Congress has been sworn in. The United Nations has a new Secretary General. Rhode Island has the same old governor, but just about everybody else in charge is new. Exciting times, no? I hope that all this "new energy" will actually result in some positives, like maybe some meaningful policies to deal with climate change. You know, just to pick a tiny example. I'd be happy with real, actual bike lanes in Providence, but we've got to start somewhere. May as well be climate change...
In bike related news... I bought a full face helmet for myself. Merry Christmas, me! I've been thinking about this for some time, considering that I've hit my face on the ground the last two times I've crashed my mountain bike. I've just been lucky to touch down in soft dirt instead of pointy rocks. I chose a Bell Bellistic after spending about 45 minutes in Mystic Cycle Centre trying on different helmets. Giro? Nice, but didn't fit quite right and a little too dh/moto for me. 661? Didn't fit at all. Specialized? Ooooh, nice, seemed like the closest to an actual bike helmet, and comfortable, but the retention system was poorly done. I tried the Deviant model which has an adjustable retention system in the back, sort of like every other bike helmet nowdays. Unfortunately, it just doesn't work. The parts are crappy and the ratchet mechanism doesn't hold. Poor execution for a $100 helmet. So, after plenty of hemming and hawing, I chose the Bell. It fits well and is comfortable, although I think it'll end up being too hot for the summertime. We'll see, I suppose. There's plenty of riding to be done between now and then...
Monday, December 18, 2006
A Carbon-Neutral Christmas?
This past weekend I completed my holiday shopping with a two hour adventure ride through the streets of Providence. I was searching for a specific gift for my mother. Online sources couldn't get it here in time. As it turns out, only one store in Providence had it. I had a blast riding all over the place searching, but it was only later that I realized the significance of what I had done. All of my Christmas shopping was done either by bicycle or on foot. Zero driving! On top of that, (I'm pretty sure nobody in my family actually reads this...) I bought carbon dioxide offsets from Carbonfund.org for each of my family members.
Now to be fair, I should think about this further before I claim carbon neutrality. I will be driving my car 40 miles each way to go be with my family for the actual holiday. My family members will be driving quite a bit as well. The gifts themselves involve carbon emissions in their production and transportation to market. Making my bicycle created carbon emissions. There's no such thing as a free lunch and there's no such thing as truly carbon neutrality, at least yet. I think it can be done, though, with more use of offsets.
I have also been lucky in terms of the weather this month. It's easy to ride a bike all over town when it's 50 degrees out. Had it been a snowy, rainy, cold, nasty month, would I have had the dedication to shop this way? Who knows, but I'm proud that I did complete all my shopping without using my car. Sure was a lot of fun...
Now to be fair, I should think about this further before I claim carbon neutrality. I will be driving my car 40 miles each way to go be with my family for the actual holiday. My family members will be driving quite a bit as well. The gifts themselves involve carbon emissions in their production and transportation to market. Making my bicycle created carbon emissions. There's no such thing as a free lunch and there's no such thing as truly carbon neutrality, at least yet. I think it can be done, though, with more use of offsets.
I have also been lucky in terms of the weather this month. It's easy to ride a bike all over town when it's 50 degrees out. Had it been a snowy, rainy, cold, nasty month, would I have had the dedication to shop this way? Who knows, but I'm proud that I did complete all my shopping without using my car. Sure was a lot of fun...
Monday, December 04, 2006
Snow!
Just a quick one today...
After a 65 degree day on December 1st, we've got snow today, December 4th. Hooray for climate change and destabilized weather patterns! Anyway, being the toughguy I am I rode in to work today. I dressed poorly, however. I thought that snow would simply bounce off of me and I would stay relatively dry. This was not the case. The snow, in fact, stuck to me, particularly my pant legs. I wasn't as wet as the time I rode home in a downpour, but I was pretty damp. But who cares, right? Commuting to work by bike on a snowy Monday morning is a pretty good adventure... although I'm not sure what that says about the rest of my life right now. Hmmm, riding my bike in the snow is an adventure? Sheesh, I need to get a life.
After a 65 degree day on December 1st, we've got snow today, December 4th. Hooray for climate change and destabilized weather patterns! Anyway, being the toughguy I am I rode in to work today. I dressed poorly, however. I thought that snow would simply bounce off of me and I would stay relatively dry. This was not the case. The snow, in fact, stuck to me, particularly my pant legs. I wasn't as wet as the time I rode home in a downpour, but I was pretty damp. But who cares, right? Commuting to work by bike on a snowy Monday morning is a pretty good adventure... although I'm not sure what that says about the rest of my life right now. Hmmm, riding my bike in the snow is an adventure? Sheesh, I need to get a life.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Reality catches up...
As I said in my last post (I think it was my last post, anyway...), my chain tensioner on the SST bit it last week. I also, way back in February, predicted the demise of the cheapo Nashbar tensioner, but that's not the point. The point is that last night I ordered a snazzy new Surly Singleator to revive my rig. Thanks to the miracle of ebay, I scored one for $31. Not too shabby. Hopefully the thing I ordered is actually what I'm expecting, but we'll have to wait a few days to see. If, in fact, a Singleator actually turns up at my door, and also includes the "pushing up" spring, I'll be able to rig up a much smoother, more stable drivetrain than what I was running before. The shorter chain I've got going wraps at least twice as far around the cog as it used to (before the link removal last week) and so the bike is pedalling significantly more smoothly. Remember the idea of building a singlespeed on the cheap? Yeah, me too. And soon I'm going to need to buy a wheelset for it...
Thanksgiving is coming up, so it'll be a short work week. I'm travelling with my Kona for Turkey Day, so hopefully I'll get some good, fun riding in towards the end of the week. The life of JZ has been somewhat, uh, confused lately, so I'm looking forward to four days of family, food, riding, hopefully some surfing, and most importantly, no work.
And in other news... At last, a comment on my blog that's not from a machine! How exciting! Anyway, I've received a gentle reminder that the "mission statement" (ha!) of this blog includes consideration of stuff other than bikes... Right. I had forgotten. No, that's not true. I've not forgotten, but I definitely have not motivated to write about much else. I'll get on that soon...
Finally, anyone want to donate a digital camera to The Cycle? It sure would spice up the content here...
Thanksgiving is coming up, so it'll be a short work week. I'm travelling with my Kona for Turkey Day, so hopefully I'll get some good, fun riding in towards the end of the week. The life of JZ has been somewhat, uh, confused lately, so I'm looking forward to four days of family, food, riding, hopefully some surfing, and most importantly, no work.
And in other news... At last, a comment on my blog that's not from a machine! How exciting! Anyway, I've received a gentle reminder that the "mission statement" (ha!) of this blog includes consideration of stuff other than bikes... Right. I had forgotten. No, that's not true. I've not forgotten, but I definitely have not motivated to write about much else. I'll get on that soon...
Finally, anyone want to donate a digital camera to The Cycle? It sure would spice up the content here...
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Cheap crap...
This past weekend I thought it would be a good idea to take a link out of the chain on my singlespeed. I've been having problems with the chain skipping and it looked like the chain wasn't grabbing enough teeth on the rear cog. The other reason for this project is that I can't leave well enough along. Anyway, seems simple enough, right? Just take a link out of the chain and off we go. Not so easy, as it turns out.
Shortening the chain meant I needed to fiddle with the spring on the chain tensioner. Since I've been using a cheap NASHBAR tensioner that came with no information on spring adjustments, I was working somewhat blindly. Well, let's just say that I'm really lucky that my newly shortened chain fits perfectly with my 36-16 chainring-cog setup with no tensioner needed. At least for now. In trying to adjust the chain tensioner I managed to totally break it such that it exerts no pressure on the chain. Great. For now, and at least as long as it takes for the drivetrain to wear further, I'm running no tensioner. It actually feels really nice, somehow crisper to ride. Unfortunately, as the parts wear it'll start to get sloppy and I'll have to throw a new tensioner on there. This time I think I'll lay out for a Surly Singleator, not least because they provide much better tech support for their products than our friends at NASHBAR.
Shortening the chain meant I needed to fiddle with the spring on the chain tensioner. Since I've been using a cheap NASHBAR tensioner that came with no information on spring adjustments, I was working somewhat blindly. Well, let's just say that I'm really lucky that my newly shortened chain fits perfectly with my 36-16 chainring-cog setup with no tensioner needed. At least for now. In trying to adjust the chain tensioner I managed to totally break it such that it exerts no pressure on the chain. Great. For now, and at least as long as it takes for the drivetrain to wear further, I'm running no tensioner. It actually feels really nice, somehow crisper to ride. Unfortunately, as the parts wear it'll start to get sloppy and I'll have to throw a new tensioner on there. This time I think I'll lay out for a Surly Singleator, not least because they provide much better tech support for their products than our friends at NASHBAR.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Just made it
I rode in to work today just as the rain was arriving... I could see the gray line slowly approaching as I travelled North Main St. But now I'm here and hopefully it'll stop raining by the time I leave.
There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad gear. I think jeans count as bad gear... that's why I'm lucky today.
As I walked into the office, one of my co-workers saw me with my bike and said "You're brave today!" My response was something along the lines of "Yeah, well, we'll see what happens later... hopefully it won't rain all day..." I'm so clever and erudite early in the morning. Upon further reflection, I think I'm brave every day I ride my bike to work. So there was a little sprinkle of rain today. Whatever. It's water. Otherwise it was a really easy ride. Traffic was light, nobody cut me off or honked at me, I made all the traffic lights. But most days are not like this. I would estimate that people in cars do stupid things near me on about 90% of my trips. Bravery is not riding quickly to dodge an approaching rain storm. Bravery is getting back on the bike every single day, knowing that there's a strong chance that I'll have to use my skills to compensate for the ignorance, obliviousness, stupidity, or even downright negligence of my car-bound fellow commuters. And who knew being brave could be so much fun?!
I do not believe that we, as cyclists, will ever win the battle to convince automobilists that we have a place on the roads. There's just too many of them, they're just too fat, and the car centered world view is just too deeply ingrained in their collective psyches. But we have to keep trying...
But seriously, I hope it stops raining by 3...
There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad gear. I think jeans count as bad gear... that's why I'm lucky today.
As I walked into the office, one of my co-workers saw me with my bike and said "You're brave today!" My response was something along the lines of "Yeah, well, we'll see what happens later... hopefully it won't rain all day..." I'm so clever and erudite early in the morning. Upon further reflection, I think I'm brave every day I ride my bike to work. So there was a little sprinkle of rain today. Whatever. It's water. Otherwise it was a really easy ride. Traffic was light, nobody cut me off or honked at me, I made all the traffic lights. But most days are not like this. I would estimate that people in cars do stupid things near me on about 90% of my trips. Bravery is not riding quickly to dodge an approaching rain storm. Bravery is getting back on the bike every single day, knowing that there's a strong chance that I'll have to use my skills to compensate for the ignorance, obliviousness, stupidity, or even downright negligence of my car-bound fellow commuters. And who knew being brave could be so much fun?!
I do not believe that we, as cyclists, will ever win the battle to convince automobilists that we have a place on the roads. There's just too many of them, they're just too fat, and the car centered world view is just too deeply ingrained in their collective psyches. But we have to keep trying...
But seriously, I hope it stops raining by 3...
Saturday, October 28, 2006
The Road Back
I rode 15 miles yesterday... First time back on a bike since my wreck on Wednesday. I took my hardtail mountain bike the length of the Blackstone River Bikeway. I was a little worried about my shoulder since it's still pretty sore, but it worked out o.k. After a few days of recovery, most of my muscles are back to normal, but there are definitely a few REAL sore ones right around the top of my shoulder. The area by the outboard end of my collarbone and my clavicle is tender. All this did not, however, stop me from riding a little bit, and it was good. I don't think I'll do anything off road for a few more days, but I'll be back soon.
Perhaps most importantly, I'll be back riding the SST to work on Monday...
Perhaps most importantly, I'll be back riding the SST to work on Monday...
Thursday, October 26, 2006
A bad run...
Not a good week on the bike...
This past Saturday afternoon I rode out to Lincoln Woods for a quick spin. It's funny because I was too lazy to put my roofracks back on my car, but not so lazy that I wouldn't actually ride my bike the 5 miles to get out to the Woods. Anyway, the ride went well for awhile, but then I got a pinch flat and lost my momentum and motivation. It was also getting late in the afternoon. No problem, I though, I'll fix this tube up and head for home. I shot through the pedestrian tunnel and out on to old 146 and was riding down the hill towards North Providence. As I was cruising along, some kids drove past me in a car and beaned me right in the back of the head with an egg! Assholes... I was actually pretty lucky, I think, because the egg hit me on my helmet. There's a cool looking circular dent with egg shell embedded in it... but it also stinks like egg now. As does the shirt I was wearing, as does my bike. Anyway, I was sort of hoping they'd be stuck at the red light at the bottom of the hill so I could drag them out of the car and beat them senseless, or at least get a license plate number, but no such luck. I'm sure the karma police will catch up to those douchebags... so watch out for maroon Jeep Grand Cherokees when you're in Lincoln. Crazy, no?
And then yesterday I went back up to ride Lincoln Woods yet again, although this time travelling to and from by car. I rode for awhile, just like Saturday, but then IN THE EXACT SAME PLACE I FLATTED ON SATURDAY, I crashed off a drop. Now I haven't actually crashed my mountain bike in awhile, so I think this one was designed to make up for lost time with its sheer bone-crunching force. This might be the hardest mountain bike crash I've ever had. I hit a drop I've never actually done before and got too far foreward. The landing is less steep than the takeoff, so you really have to get the front wheel up. I failed to do this, bottomed the fork out, and got catapulted over the bars. It all happened so fast I'm not really sure of the sequence... but I felt the bike bottom out, I heard a loud bang, and then I was on the ground.
Ouch, I thought. Let's see. The bike is over there, check. Let's see if all my parts work. I can move my hands and feet, my legs appear normal except for the road rash on my right knee. Hmmm, my right shoulder is numb, better check the collar bone. Tap, tap, tap, nope, doesn't feel broken. Range of motion? Uh, sorta. Hurts to take a deep breath, but not sharp pain. Let's try standing up. I think I hit my head because my teeth feel funny... they're all there, but let's take a look at the helmet. Scratches and dirt, but no cracks or dents. Still smells like egg. Owee! Shoulder's no longer numb, now it just hurts. Recheck collar bone, seems o.k. Gotta get out of here.
Let's have a look at the bike... Hmmm, the bars don't line up with the wheel. Maybe that's what the banging noise was from... Wheels are still true, not flat, chain is off, seat is still there, brakes work, we're in business!
I straightened the bars, tightened the pinch bolt on the stem, reset the chain, and cautiously remounted. I rode the rest of the way down the hill, but boy did it hurt. Pushing on the bars? Not good. Nonetheless it feels like it's all muscular, not bones or anything else. I managed to struggle my way back to the car, riding mostly on trails. This was maybe not smart, but I made it. Also able to put the bike in the car, drive home, carry the bike upstairs, and take a shower. Painful, but I could do it. I considered going to the hospital, but eventually decided against it.
I'm still trying to decide about seeking medical attention because this morning I thought I might throw up when I woke. It feels a little better now, a little looser. Now I'm just pissed off because I couldn't ride in to work today, I won't be able to climb this evening, and I should probably take at least a few days off the mountain bike. Maybe I'll set up the indoor trainer early... The climbing thing especially bugs me because I've had two good days in a row (Sunday and Tuesday), sending some boulder problems I have never even been close to getting. Damn! Oh well, I'll rest, try to rehab, and hopefully be back on it soon. My goal is to be able to ride to work on Monday... and climb by Tuesday. But we'll see. I still don't know how screwed up I am.
This past Saturday afternoon I rode out to Lincoln Woods for a quick spin. It's funny because I was too lazy to put my roofracks back on my car, but not so lazy that I wouldn't actually ride my bike the 5 miles to get out to the Woods. Anyway, the ride went well for awhile, but then I got a pinch flat and lost my momentum and motivation. It was also getting late in the afternoon. No problem, I though, I'll fix this tube up and head for home. I shot through the pedestrian tunnel and out on to old 146 and was riding down the hill towards North Providence. As I was cruising along, some kids drove past me in a car and beaned me right in the back of the head with an egg! Assholes... I was actually pretty lucky, I think, because the egg hit me on my helmet. There's a cool looking circular dent with egg shell embedded in it... but it also stinks like egg now. As does the shirt I was wearing, as does my bike. Anyway, I was sort of hoping they'd be stuck at the red light at the bottom of the hill so I could drag them out of the car and beat them senseless, or at least get a license plate number, but no such luck. I'm sure the karma police will catch up to those douchebags... so watch out for maroon Jeep Grand Cherokees when you're in Lincoln. Crazy, no?
And then yesterday I went back up to ride Lincoln Woods yet again, although this time travelling to and from by car. I rode for awhile, just like Saturday, but then IN THE EXACT SAME PLACE I FLATTED ON SATURDAY, I crashed off a drop. Now I haven't actually crashed my mountain bike in awhile, so I think this one was designed to make up for lost time with its sheer bone-crunching force. This might be the hardest mountain bike crash I've ever had. I hit a drop I've never actually done before and got too far foreward. The landing is less steep than the takeoff, so you really have to get the front wheel up. I failed to do this, bottomed the fork out, and got catapulted over the bars. It all happened so fast I'm not really sure of the sequence... but I felt the bike bottom out, I heard a loud bang, and then I was on the ground.
Ouch, I thought. Let's see. The bike is over there, check. Let's see if all my parts work. I can move my hands and feet, my legs appear normal except for the road rash on my right knee. Hmmm, my right shoulder is numb, better check the collar bone. Tap, tap, tap, nope, doesn't feel broken. Range of motion? Uh, sorta. Hurts to take a deep breath, but not sharp pain. Let's try standing up. I think I hit my head because my teeth feel funny... they're all there, but let's take a look at the helmet. Scratches and dirt, but no cracks or dents. Still smells like egg. Owee! Shoulder's no longer numb, now it just hurts. Recheck collar bone, seems o.k. Gotta get out of here.
Let's have a look at the bike... Hmmm, the bars don't line up with the wheel. Maybe that's what the banging noise was from... Wheels are still true, not flat, chain is off, seat is still there, brakes work, we're in business!
I straightened the bars, tightened the pinch bolt on the stem, reset the chain, and cautiously remounted. I rode the rest of the way down the hill, but boy did it hurt. Pushing on the bars? Not good. Nonetheless it feels like it's all muscular, not bones or anything else. I managed to struggle my way back to the car, riding mostly on trails. This was maybe not smart, but I made it. Also able to put the bike in the car, drive home, carry the bike upstairs, and take a shower. Painful, but I could do it. I considered going to the hospital, but eventually decided against it.
I'm still trying to decide about seeking medical attention because this morning I thought I might throw up when I woke. It feels a little better now, a little looser. Now I'm just pissed off because I couldn't ride in to work today, I won't be able to climb this evening, and I should probably take at least a few days off the mountain bike. Maybe I'll set up the indoor trainer early... The climbing thing especially bugs me because I've had two good days in a row (Sunday and Tuesday), sending some boulder problems I have never even been close to getting. Damn! Oh well, I'll rest, try to rehab, and hopefully be back on it soon. My goal is to be able to ride to work on Monday... and climb by Tuesday. But we'll see. I still don't know how screwed up I am.
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
The streak is broken...
I drove my car to work today. Sorry. I'm not even sure when I last drove, but it only took one trip to remind myself of how much I hate it. I had to actually wait in line at red lights rather than ride right to the front. A woman with a sticker on her car ("My soul was removed to make room for all this sarcasm") cut me off, but at least she used her turn signal. I had to walk from the parking lot to the office, no door to door transit here. No wonder everyone is all bitter on the road, driving to work in your car sucks. Tomorrow I'll be back on the bike.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
This is rich...
This has never happened to me before:
On my ride in this morning I came to a stop in the left turn lane at the intersection of Doyle and N. Main. Nothing new, I always take the lane there. I was earlier than I usually am, so traffic was much lighter than I'm used to. The traffic signal at that intersection has a sensor in the road so it knows when to change. If I'm sitting there by myself, I don't trigger the sensor and the light never changes. For this reason it's actually helpful to have a car pull in behind me to set the thing off. The light will change and we all go merrily on our way.
Today, as I waited for the light, a woman in a blue-ish BMW pulled up behind me and stopped. After 10 seconds or so, I heard her engine revving, so I looked back to see what was happening. Revving engines usually don't mean happy things when I'm on my bike. She was in the process of backing up the hill to gain some clearance so she could then speed past me in the right lane. Hurry, lady! The light, of course, changed halfway through this maneuver, allowing her to rip on through the intersection as I turned left. She was easily doing 35 by the time she had exited the intersection. I can almost hear her saying "Goddammit! Get your friggin' bike out of the road, idiot!" I hope she feels better this morning, sitting at work knowing she got there .7 seconds faster. I feel great this morning, knowing that I got here under my own power, thankful that I got to see the sunrise, and glad to have shared the road with such a 'considerate' driver... after all, she could have sped past me without changing lanes.
On my ride in this morning I came to a stop in the left turn lane at the intersection of Doyle and N. Main. Nothing new, I always take the lane there. I was earlier than I usually am, so traffic was much lighter than I'm used to. The traffic signal at that intersection has a sensor in the road so it knows when to change. If I'm sitting there by myself, I don't trigger the sensor and the light never changes. For this reason it's actually helpful to have a car pull in behind me to set the thing off. The light will change and we all go merrily on our way.
Today, as I waited for the light, a woman in a blue-ish BMW pulled up behind me and stopped. After 10 seconds or so, I heard her engine revving, so I looked back to see what was happening. Revving engines usually don't mean happy things when I'm on my bike. She was in the process of backing up the hill to gain some clearance so she could then speed past me in the right lane. Hurry, lady! The light, of course, changed halfway through this maneuver, allowing her to rip on through the intersection as I turned left. She was easily doing 35 by the time she had exited the intersection. I can almost hear her saying "Goddammit! Get your friggin' bike out of the road, idiot!" I hope she feels better this morning, sitting at work knowing she got there .7 seconds faster. I feel great this morning, knowing that I got here under my own power, thankful that I got to see the sunrise, and glad to have shared the road with such a 'considerate' driver... after all, she could have sped past me without changing lanes.
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