Smoke Anyone?

After pressing my luck and riding fixie without a lock ring, I decided it was time to get a true fixie wheel built up. Mean Todd at Web Cyclery builds great wheels and even turned it around in seven days -- a surly fixed/free hub laced to a Salsa Delgado rim and a Surly 18t cog.

Then it occured to me that I didn't have a tire for it. I've been running IRC semi-slicks 700X43 with good luck and planned to do the same until, from behind the counter, they pulled out a Panaracer 700X45. I've ripped knobs off the 26" version of these things so only time will speak to the durability issue but gads they're smokin on the Karate Monkey. Low rolling resistance on the pavement on the way to the trail, up to 85psi capability, and plenty of bite when you need to stop quick. They don't seem to get along with sand too well but at less than 2" wide and that much pressure, anything is gonna dive in a bit.

Wade of Vulture Cycles first turned me on to the tires during a group ride a few weeks ago (he rode fixie for 39 miles of dirt and pavement with a number of roadies) but I had never seen them available anywhere and had pretty much forgotten about them.

Give me another 200 miles or so and I'll get back with an updated review.

Are You Claritin Clear?

After a (few) morning(s) of coughing, sneezing, nose-running and just plain being miserable, Donna finally reached the conclusion that she might have some sort of allergies. One late-night stop at Safeway and we had $19 worth of Claritin non-drowsy allergy relief stuff.

So Donna pops one this morning with her coffee, banana and oatmeal and 90 minutes later she's dropping me on our ride like she got Kit's turbo boost button on her handlebar or something. The last few miles of the ride I'm drafting big time and still barely maintaining her pace. Dang! She swears she feels like she's on speed (I'd like to know how she knows what that feels like but I don't bring that up) and that it's the Claritin thats giving her the boost.

So I can't help but wonder exactly what they mean by 'non-drowsy'? Is it naturally a drowsy medicine so they add some sort of speed to counteract the effect or what? It was great to hammer with my better half but not at the cost of possible health risks. So one more day, I agreed to let her try it to see if her body just has to adapt but if the heart is still 'a poundin', no more claritin!

She Ain't Slow, She's My Wife

For it to be all that enjoyable of a ride, I need my better half with me. I mean come on, half the crap I try is just to impress (ok, show off for) the woman. But of course, our pace isn't the same - I started cycling almost ten years before her which gives me a considerable advantage on any sort of technical terrain.

So how do we balance out the pace? I've been convinced that different bikes would take care of the problem, but each type of bike excels on different types of terrain. Me on a cross bike and her on a mountain bike slows me down on technical terrain while she flies through but hit a long smooth patch and I'll smoke her with the skinny cross tires. We've thrown everything into the mix and in the process added a heap of bikes to the arsenal.

Bottom line, we'll never ride the same pace, and that's just fine! I've grown to enjoy the opportunity to stop and enjoy my surroundings while waiting for her to catch up. I miss that when I ride by myself... every time I finish a solo ride, as I'm pulling into the driveway I ask myself why I didn't make a few stops to enjoy the scenery, landscape and wildlife.

So it all works out, except for her attitude... complaining that she's too slow every time she catches up to me, and getting down on herself. Which takes me back to wishing that we rode the same pace, not because I want to ride the same pace, but because I get tired of her getting down on herself.

Ironically, she'd be happier if I enjoyed our rides less... that is to say, she'd be happier riding my pace which would mean I wouldn't have the time to stop and smell the roses which would mean I wouldn't enjoy the ride as much.... but she'd be happier, thinking she was making me happier.

Kind of feel like a dog chasing its own tail.

Where Have You Been All My Life

With well over 100 miles under my belt over the past week I have to say riding fixie off-road is certainly for me. Not easy. Not always even what I'd call fun. But wow what a connection to the bike and earth beneath! Long descents have proven to be exhausting and I frequently find myself looking forward to the climbs, much unlike my attitude while freewheelin'.

I think I'm adapting pretty quick, learning how to anticipate where the pedal stroke will be when approaching an obstacle. I've had tremendous success with rock gardens, leaning or rocking the bike to one side or another to help the pedals avoid the obstacles.

I'm bummed I waited so long to try this but anxious for the future rides. I'm having to learn every trail and every patch of obstacles all over again. Day one on the fixie, I stood up to relax a bit forgetting that I didn't have a freewheel and got bucked a bit (but not thrown) and I'm just hoping that doesn't happen again... maybe a note fastened to the handlebar that says "KEEP YER FANNY ON THE SEAT".

Freewheels & Friends

One charming quality to any small town is running into friends at the grocery store, bike shop etc. Its nice. It adds a little something to your day. But even better is running into friends on the trail. As the snow line retreats up the mountains and more and more trails open, the running-into-friends phenomenon becomes less common, simply because more trail equals decreased odds.

Surprise Surprise Surprise

Late Sunday evening a few snowflakes began to fall from the sky, but no worries, there's really only a 30% chance of scattered snow showers. Well, somebody needs to explain to me exactly what a "shower" is because when I woke up to eight inches of the white stuff, I considered it the fault of more than just a "shower"... thats just full blown "snowing".

Convinced riding was ruined for the day we decided to run some errands first thing. Two miles later, on the way to Home Depot, we discovered dry ground without a trace of snow! Talk about isolated. So we buzzed through the 'errands to run' list, got home and got out for a ride. Dry roads... paved and dirt. Dry trails would have been really nice but beggars can't be choosers, right?

Finally Fixed The Karate Monkey

Ok, so that White Industries freewheel still rests on the other side of the hub but after today's ride I doubt its gonna see much use. 90 minutes of constant pedaling and no coasting at 38X18 felt fantastic, as did the overall 'connection' to the bike and trail... slowing by applying a little resistance and laying off the levers was a nice change of pace as well.

It would appear that riding fixed is going to add that dab of challenge to the trails close to town that might revive my interest in rides I was starting to avoid out of boredom and a desire for something new. The rear brake will likely never come off due to the inevitable freewheelin' down the road but the front brake was all I seemed to need today.

Log crossings will be the next challenge - today's ride threw few surprises my way while I learned I need to pay better attention to the trail ahead while riding fixie, but for the most part it was a mellow ride.

I missed my better half - as she sat at home awaiting the arrival of the cable guy (who never did show up). I'm fine without tv for a few days but I'm a weather forecast junkie as I try to plan the next day's ride and I'm already feeling lost without those meteorologists who have a 30% chance of getting their forecast of a 70% chance of rain, correct.

Get While The Gettin's Good

Yet another Friday afternoon in the office, checking out the weekend forecast, not feeling so optimistic, and being thankful that mother nature was smiling on me and my desire to ride this morning. Today's ride was great - a nice breeze, dry trails, and two hours with nothing to do but pedal.

It felt sooo good to hit the dirt. I've been enjoying the road riding lately, don't get me wrong, but there is nothing like dirt, especially when you can throw in a few rock gardens, drops, and off-camber tight squeezes. One huge perk of the road riding is that after a few days of those skinny tires and drop bars, you feel like you can ride anything (and pretty much can) with 2.4 motoraptors and riser bars. Rock gardens that I remembered being more challenging felt like nothing today. And climbs that once presented a problem were no challenge for my 32T chainring and 16T cog.

Always Leading... By Example

Weird, living in a place like Bend, Oregon. You run across people like Adam Craig on the trail, as we did today. Despite his Giant/Pearl Izumi sponsorship and the fact that he could drop Donna and I in about five seconds on any given trail, he's still cool enough to slow and say 'hey, how ya doin', and even stop to yield right-of-way should he be approaching an uphill rider or hiker.

Sorry I Wasn't There For You George

This year's Paris-Roubaix was truly a nightmare from the start. Transportation problems prevented me from making it to the starting line on time - I'm sure you noticed Hincapie getting nervous, looking around for me. And it was all downhill from there.

If only I had been there, my trusty Surly Pacer providing the strength and comfort of steel.... no carbon steerer tubes or other sissy parts. If only... I would have bailed and left George with the Pacer, finishing the race with confidence, crossing that finish line before all others.

Pretty, Ain't It

There's nothing quite like the feel of a new bike. All that shiny stuff. Raise the seat a few millimeters, slide the rails back a pinch, drop one more small spacer under the stem, pull the left brake pad in just a tiny bit... eventually you're left with a ride like no other. So I really don't have a point here, just a photo of the new, shiny Surly Pacer. Having purchased a steel road frame keeps me out of the 'roadie' category, right?

Can't We All Just Get Along?

One should examine oneself for a very long time before thinking of condemning others. ~ Moliere

My first cycling experiences as an adult were on a mountain bike on the trails of Eastern Pennsylvania, at a time when it was so rare to run into another mtn biker that you'd generally stop and talk for a minute or two before continuing on. In choosing a mountain bike, I was convinced I had made the right decision because after all... road cyclists are just a bunch of snobs, bmx bikes are toys for kids, and cruisers... well gee wiz, I'm not heading over to the Beaver's house for dinner.

I think there will always be conflict between roadies and mtn bikers, freeriders and xc geeks, and so on. An attitude of self-righteousness and willingness to condemn other just seems to be human nature.

Not long ago during a road ride to Redmond, we were returning to Bend when we passed a group of teens on bmx bikes. Immediately I passed judgment that they must be some punk kids up to no good and that they were old enough to be on 'real' bikes. Pedaling furiously, one caught up and pulled up along side of me. I slowed down considerably and carried on a fun conversation for at least five minutes. Cyclist to cyclist, it was great.

As much as I hate all the 'attitude' that has come into cycling over the years I realized I can carry just as much as the next person when I'm not careful about it. So next time you pass a cyclist (of any kind), wave, nod, say hello, whatever... we're all about the same thing.

An Extreme Cyclist

Extreme is a very relative term. What I call extreme, Evil Knievel would have laughed at. Yet I glide through terrain that some consider extreme. Point being, its all a matter of an individual's skill level and limitations.

My better half may not be holding up any world cup downhill trophies in the near future, but still I consider her an extreme cyclist. Roots and rocks frequently present problems but 90% of the time she's willing to try.

Our weekend mtn. ride was great, dodging trails with snow or soft terrain in search of the ready-to-be-ridden trails. And despite being so early in the season, there went Donna, squeezing between two large rocks, pedals scraping on either side, heart ready to explode, and a huge sigh of relief once she cleared the section. She has never ridden the short drop but there she went, inspiring all along the way.

Many riders will tackle terrain she won't but she's more extreme than most simply because she pushes her limits on most every ride, either in terms of pace or skill. It seems odd that you might be able to find more inspiration on a beginner's course than on a podium but its very true.

Kind'a Hurts The Eyes, Doesn't It

Saturdays always seem to get too busy, cramming too much into my morning before heading off to work in the afternoon. So after some bike work today I was left with one hour for riding... not much.

The river trail was way too crowded and if Donna had been on her cross bike instead of her mountain bike we might have just taken to the streets for a while, but given what we had to work with we decided to keep dodging hikers and runners, knowing at the end of the (wide) trail was a rewarding section of (unmapped and unmarked) singletrack that was sure to be quiet.

Rounding the last corner I started to understand 'ecoterrorists' and the arson that has plagued so many new subdivisions. In place of the singletrack lay a long stretch of dirt road! What! What was once a beautiful Bend hillside is now being cleared for more $750,000 homes so idiots can sit on their back porch and look at what used to be a beautiful landscape.

So I've not been coping with this outrage very well today. There is so much land in this area that wouldn't even need to be cleared for building purposes and they have to take the most wooded property in the area and level it, leaving only a few scattered trees here and there.

After searching high and low for remnants of the singletrack I managed to find a 20 meter section that had not been destroyed... what a fun three seconds that was.

Maybe I should just be happy that in place of my trail will be some enormous home that some Californian will buy when they move here in four months. And they can run next door to their neighbor, who also moved here from California, when they need to borrow a cup of sugar or milk.

Hurray For Doohickeys

Granted, this little gadget might not be the newest of creations but its new to me and its the best thing since sliced bread. Running drop bars on my Karate Monkey means running road levers, but for all the off-road mountain riding I do v-brakes make more sense than cantilever brakes. So for quite some time I've tolerated these mushy feeling brakes.... until today.

The Problem Solver Travel Agent installs relatively easily (though I didn't anticipate that the cable would be routed 360 degrees around the pulley wheel). And as for the feel - a world of difference. Much snappier and responsive, though you have to 'break-in' the cable around the pulley wheel by squeezing the brake levers real hard a few times. At $15 a wheel, they're well worth it!

Sixty To Zero In Two Seconds
* editors note: this is being posted despite any contradictions to the previous post

While cycling provides the best moments of my days on a regular basis, its also been known to provide the worst. Over the years I've become quite the Surly fan, first with a 1X1, then Karate Monkey, and today, I was to add a Pacer to the list. But when I called the shop, I discovered it did not arrive as it was scheduled to. So here I sit, Friday evening, frustrated, trying to control my outrageous temper, knowing this weekend will be nothing like I had planned. I've got five bikes sitting at home but I don't want any of those... I want my Pacer (I of course can just sense the sentiments of pity right now). As childish as it sounds, I just can't get over this.

The trails are still in horrible condition which leaves only pavement and maybe a few forest service roads for riding and mentally I've crashed already. I'd like nothing more than to snap out of this funk right now but I'm seeing red, angry that I've got to forget about that 70-mile road ride I was anxiously anticipating.

So it just seems odd to me... during yesterday's ride I was thrilled the whole time about being a cyclist and this evening I wish I had never heard of a bike. Being passionate about anything I guess can lead you from joy to misery in a matter of seconds.

If You're Not Smiling, You're Not Doing It Right

There's a real lack of smiles on the trails and roads here in Bend, Oregon. Maybe the locals are just stressin' too much about their heart rate monitors, cadence, power output, or who knows what else. Bottom line, the joy of cycling seems to be the last thing on their mind.

Today's ride was great. The Karate Monkey, 38X17, with semislicks. The dull river trail gave me time to wake up, then a painful road climb that I thought for sure I wasn't going to clear, then some spinning and into Shevlin Park, through the park to Phil's Trails, then back into town. Cold temperatures kept the ground frozen, otherwise the soft soil would have forced me to turn around in interest of preserving the trail (too late unfortunately considering the idiots who already left 3" ruts in the trails).

It was just a great ride... little of this, little of that. Two blocks from the end of the ride, I passed and waved to a co-worker who later in the day commented on what a huge smile I was wearing. I paused for a second and thought, why wouldn't you have a huge smile on your face - its cycling!

Hemingway, Emerson, Cummings, Dickinson... And Whoever Wrote This Sign

Maybe I'm making a mountain of a mole hill here but as I passed this sign I thought, what a great literary expression. So simple. So to-the-point. Who possibly could have authored this?

"Pavement Ends". . . a.k.a., Stress ends, screaming motorists ends, shattered glass ends. Take anything bad in life, replace it with 'pavement', and there you go. Just pass a sign like this and you'll see what I mean, assuming you're not running skinny slicks at 120psi.

Running out of pavement just provides one of 'those' sensations, leaving the world behind and taking in the sights, sounds and smells. Its a sensation you can't get by driving to a trailhead. The Monday ride was a pure gem. 50 miles. Perfect weather. Paved roads, dirt roads, forest service roads, singletrack, and a destination (Sisters, Oregon). Absorbing motorists, exhaust, glass, nails, noise, and then getting to leave it all behind as the road grows more and more narrow, as any roads appears to at its vanishing point.

Literally, A Walk In The Park

I got super lazy today and decided I didn't feel like cleaning and lubing a bike after a rainy ride so I decided to do something kind'a stupid - I went for a walk. I can't go a day without at least an hour or two of fresh air and while cycling shoves oxygen up the nostrils much faster, I had to give some credit to the 'ol one foot in front of the other process.

Turns out walking is a lot like fixed gear riding... very simple and you only get out of it what you put into it. I had to admire the simplicity of the process. Comfy pants, light windbreaker and sneaks and its out the door. Not even a chain to lube afterward. Then just one foot in front of the other.

While adrenaline levels never spiked, it turned out to be an interesting morning, watching as Bend got going for the day. The bakery truck dropping off breads at the restaurant, seafood chefs unloading the catch of the (yester)day, store clerks polishing the hard wood floors, construction workers sipping out of there thermos containers, and the garbage man trying to grab trash cans so conveniently placed between tightly parked cars.

You really have the chance to observe much more and the experience becomes much more about your surroundings than the actual activity. Of course all things considered, I'll stick to cycling.

Kind Of Ironic

SRAM makes some really nice stuff. For $496.00 you can get 220g shifters and a 208g rear derailleur.

My shifters and rear derailleur cost me $496.00 less and weigh 428 grams less. Viva la singlespeed!

Did Dirt Rag Sell Out To The Man?

I wasn't too thrilled when the latest issue of Dirt Rag hit the mailbox. Gracing the cover, a full-squishy bike with some rider wearing Run DMC addidas sneaks. Say what? I've never renewed my subscriptions to the other cycling magazines - too much high tech crap with suspension that needs maintenance every 200 miles, special pumps, fluids, tools (been there, done that, hated it). Geez, I just wanted to go for a bike ride! But Dirt Rag seemed to be holding out, refusing to sell out to The Man, that engineering crazed bike industry that would love to empty your bank account with new parts and new stuff to maintain those parts.

I've started to question even Dirt Rag, wondering if that subscription would get renewed at the end of the term. So as I sat to read this issue, I started to realize maybe I was passing judgment too quickly. Yes, there's a bunch of crap I could care less about, but the staff deserves much credit for recognizing all types of cycling, from singlespeed to freeride to touring to commuting to cyclocross and more. As a matter of fact, I'm glad Dirt Rag is there to keep me in line and remind me its all about two wheels and human power. If you don't mind blown seals and seized freewheels, more power to you. Want to keep it fixed and simple, keep on rollin. Its all good, as long as its good for you.