Ride to the ride - Home to P1

Inspired by last week's adventure at the Hill'n'Dale Hundred, I crafted a new challenge for myself. A review of Google maps revealed that my favorite nearby mountain bike trail exists a mere 7.8 miles from my home. Probably 85-90% of that route is on a bike path. Not just any bike path, but the Ohio-to-Erie Trail: a multi-use path that connects the Ohio River with Lake Erie. I will mention that I live as far as 100 yards from that trail. My newly built Surly Ogre, in it's fully rigid state, just begs to travel on a mix of pavement and dirt. As luck would have it, despite days of rain, the mountain bike trails were open to riders, so I set out. I also made a point of testing out a homemade "snack bag"--a small zippered pouch attached to my top-tube and steer-tube, capable of holding snacks and things for easy access. Once I arrived at the Phase 1 mountain bike trail at Alum Creek State Park I opted to ride a loop on the 1.5 mile long "beginner" trail. Halfway back home I realized that I wasn't yet exhausted and how easy the commute was. What a shame that I had only ever driven there with my mountain bike hitched on the rear of the car. Total: ~17.1 miles.

Riding the Hill 'N' Dale Hundred

First, I want to thank my wife (C) for supporting me--both with moral support and physical support--for doing this ride. If she didn't agree to drive me up and convince me that she would be happy to entertain our daughters in the middle of Nowhere Ohio on a cloudy, windy, 40-degree day, I'm not sure I would have done it.  Knowing I had a ride to pick me up in a bad situation far from home was extremely comforting. I'm extremely grateful for the support C gives me even when I have a hard time finding confidence in myself.

And thanks to my mother- and father-in-law. They were generous enough to meet the girls in nearby Lodi to help entertain their granddaughters.  Just mentioning "Nanny and Jagee" is the magic password to transplant two young girls from cozy beds at 7:30 on a Saturday morning into cold car seats.
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Yesterday I participated in a ride called Hill 'N' Dale Hundred organized by Swallow Bicycle Works of Loveland, Ohio. A route of 100K (~62 mi) was mapped around Mohican State Park area, starting at Pleasant Hill Lake reservoir. This was marketed as a "choose your own adventure ride"--an unsupported jaunt where only a map and cue sheet were provided. More or less: every rider for him/herself. A few weeks prior to the ride, when it was announced, I realized it miraculously fell in a weekend on which we didn't have prior plans. The day I decided this was a fun idea I suspect it was 70-degress and sunny and I wasn't yet sick with a cold. This was the ride I've been wanting to do all year long.

Up until the moment I strapped my bike to the car I had unsuccessfully tried to talk myself out of the trip. In the days before the ride, temperatures plummeted, rain clouds took up residence, and I was coughing up loads of phlegm while binging on a smorgasbord of honey-infused tea, Ricola drops, and generic Tussin. At 7:31 am on the day of the ride, I told C I had decided not to ride. Without hesitation, C dismissed my lunacy. She reminded me of the alternative: staying at home all day without plans. That was all the motivation I needed.

We hurriedly woke the girls and packed for a day trip up north. Coffee from Starbucks (a grande bold coffee with an added shot of espresso for me) and breakfast from Tim Hortons were bought and we bolted up the highway. C and the girls dropped me off at the start point around 9:45am. The reported temperature at this time was about 38-degrees. Winds of 23 miles per hour accounted for a wind chill of 28-degrees. The sun peeked out as if to jump start our internal engines. A group of about 16 (?) of us bumbled around until everyone was mounted on their bikes.

To my delight we rode together as a pack the entire time. We would get spaced out slightly, but generally met up at points of interest or after nasty climbs. Grey clouds and increasing wind really started to break me. Around mile 20 I broke the news to a couple riders that I would be breaking away from the group at an alternative route on mile 30. I called C and told her of my plans, noting also my phone was low on battery [great planning!]. It was a fortuitous decision made not too soon. Around mile 23, I'd guess, we exited pavement for gravel back roads. Up hills no less. Pure brutality. Forsaking the group, knowing I'd be splitting off soon anyway, I walked my bike up two major gravel hills and cruised down their other sides. That's not to say I didn't try to bike up them, but my thighs started to spasm at the extreme effort so I opted out. My eyes began splitting time evenly between the terrain ahead and the odometer mounted on my stem.

The road on which I deviated from the planned route at least promised to drop me off in the town of Perrysville. Knowing I was nearing places of business was comforting even though the hills were long and car traffic was increasing. After a quick stop at a gas station I attempted to rejoin the planned route but was stymied by what appeared to be a wall of a road ahead of me. I literally couldn't see the top of the hill obscured by the trees in front of me. I shouted an expletive and backtracked to yet another alternate route that appeared to circumvent the damned hill. What I didn't account for was the exposure to winds in the openness.  I pushed hard against incessant headwinds, stopping at a farm to eat a Snickers bar.  To my chagrin the thing was FROZEN hard. I made it to an inviting gas station that sat at a major intersection but I decided to keep moving forward. That is until--while trying to coast down a hill--I was hit with such a gust of wind I said "F*ck it" and hobbled back humbly to that store.  I grabbed a bottle of chocolate milk and sent C a text to tell her where I'd be waiting. I was slightly disappointed that I didn't quite finish the ride, but was proud that I was able to participate in such an adventure. I biked about 42 miles, averaging 11 mph (with a maximum speed of 33 mph), over a total time of 3hr 44min.

I looked back at the weather data from Saturday. It was reported that at Mohican State Park, a high temp of 45-degrees was reached at 3:05pm. Wind speed was recorded as 27 mph, gusting up to 48 mph.

What I wore:
Long-sleeve merino wool baselayer
Short sleeve cycling jersey - I stashed one of 4 water bottles
Mountain Hardware Epic rain jacket (never took it off)
Pearl Izumi Cyclone gloves
Bib shorts
Pearl Izumi thermal knee warmers
Tall wool cycling socks
Toe covers (worn over top of my cycling shoes, purchased the day before the ride)
Buff-style neck warmer
Cotton cycling cap
Giro Reverb helmet

What I ate:
3/4 of PB&J sandwich
Shot Blocks - one pack
4 Water bottles
1 Snickers
1 packet of Scratch drink mix
(+ 1 bottle of chocolate milk to celebrate)

Video of the Colorado Trail (Race)

Found this really nice video of the CTR (Colorado Trail Race), but it shows the Colorado Trail from a first-person perspective. It condenses 550 miles into 13 minutes of really beautiful scenery along really breath-taking singletrack. Ellie sat on my lap and watched nearly the entire thing and agreed it felt like she was riding a bike in the mountains. She also graciously agreed (acquiesced?) that bikepacking this trail or one like it would be an awesome family vacation. It's well worth the watch--and the Bon Iver track on it is heart-squeezingly beautiful.

2013 Colorado Trail Race from Aaron Johnson on Vimeo.

MYOG: Make Your Own Gear

I've always been glad that we have a sewing machine but never have the motivation (or supplies) to make the things I want to make. Lately I've been interested in upping the cargo-carrying capacity of my bike by acquiring some rad bags that fit within the main triangle of frame (a "frame bag"), and along the top tube. Unfortunately a frame bag needs to be more or less custom, and professional models start around $130. Some internet searching revealed how simple it can be to make your own frame bag, so I am diving in to these new D.I.Y. waters.

I found some really detailed instructions and inspiration from the following resources:

• Type2fun - Frame Bag, clear concise instructions
• Instructional Video - from the maker of Bedrock Bags
• Bedrock Bags Flickr  - detailed pics of different types of bike bags

I would really like to use some ultra-light and super-strong techy fabric called X-Pac, but it is expensive; so I've settled on a a coated (waterproof) ripstop fabric. You can see my purchase list below, from a company called Seattlefabrics.com.  Supposedly I will only need 1/2 a yard of fabric to make a simple frame bag, so I ordered over twice that to account for mess-ups, or hopefully some smaller accessory bags.

With the shipping estimate ($18?!), I am spending about $60, which will potentially provide me with 2 frame bags and more. I'm waiting on the stuff to arrive and will try to update after I get started.

Alum Creek P1 Video

This is one of the two trails I ride as often as I can, Alum Creek's "Phase 1" Trail. Someone recorded this hi-res video of an entire 6 mile lap, though they finished in just under 30min. I think a good lap time for me has been closer to 40. At 13:00min you can see a pretty awesome boardwalk section that usually keeps me nervous, followed by a wicked rooty descent. And the section after 23:00min, just after the trail dips back into the woods from the road, is a pretty fun, techy part. Because the camera is strapped to the rider's chest, it's hard to tell when he is climbing and when he is going down. The elevation gain/loss is not crazy, but it is very much like a roller coaster in my opinion.

Alum Creek P1 whole lap on Pinkbike

Bike camping inspiration

i want to go to there

Back to Earth from El Zumpango on Vimeo.

Bikes! Bikes! Bikes!

Here is a pretty creative sideways view of Ellie rocking her balance bike down the hallway. She has been rolling around on this thing every waking moment since we bought it yesterday. It was pretty much an impulse buy--I couldn't resist it--which was easy to cave into considering the price was $13. These things usually run $50, up to $100. This particular model is the Chicco "Red Bullet" bike and I wouldn't have bought it if it was much more. Then again, Ellie is all about this and I've been super proud about how much she is enjoying it. This video shows Ellie's skill level after using it for almost 2 days at 32 months old (a.k.a. 2-years-and-8-months). I can't wait to post her improvements after a year... Maybe on the mountain bike trails...

a review: the burley encore

Earlier this year I got excited about warm weather and the fact that our youngest daughter was getting close to that One Year tally mark that signifies, above all else, an appropriate age to be strapped in a seat with wheels that travels 15 miles per hour in a relatively bumpy fashion while wearing a helmet. What with having two of these young'ns, a bike trailer was the way to go.  After hours of deep consternation, pouring through internet reviews, images, and videos, I had narrowed my choices to those of the Burley variety.  Coincidentally, our neighbors had a new (2012) Burley Encore AND a two-year old they were willing to lend me.  So with their kid and one of mine all strapped up, we set off on a ride around the block. Ellie enjoyed it. That's all I needed to know. I decided we would go with the same model, as reviews of the more expensive deluxe model (the D'Lite) were mixed and I'd rather keep the difference.

Well, this thing has been a treat. It's light weight, has a good amount of storage capacity, and has made my life better. The handlebar that folds forward to double as a roll bar offers me some peace of mind and adds to the perception of it's safety.  The large 20" wheels appear to offer a fairly stable, cushy ride for the girls.  Granted, our two kids are young (14 months and 29 months) and small, and they don't seem to mind being in such close quarters, but they are pretty much shoulder-to-shoulder.  My one complaint is really that, at such a young age and short stature, my daughters' helmets get pushed forward by the back of the seat. This accounts for the most common reason for fussiness between them.

Our ride to the nearest park is maybe 5 minutes by bike path. It also enables us to get to another cool park about 1.5 miles away without having to drive. Lately, as summer temperatures have cooled a bit, I've set out on a couple longer rides to the grocery store.  That trip turns out to be about 4.5 miles, round trip, exclusively on a bike path.  I'd say I fit about 3 canvas bags full of groceries in the rear storage area of the trailer.  There is a lot more vertical space back there, it just get's tricky trying to stack groceries.

In the past two weeks my two-year-old has fallen asleep in the trailer twice. I think that is about the best compliment a trailer could receive.  Big ups to Burley.

Ride days, not miles

I've been trying to log a few nano-miles on my bike whenever I find a chance. I thought to look at the total odometer reading on my (inconsistently used) computer. Looks like I've logged 1,341 miles since 2009. Is that right? I don't know.

In Grant Petersen's book Just Ride, he recommends this: "I think there are better things to count, such as minutes, elevation, or days. Minutes add up quickly, and if you ride slowly, you get more minutes per mile... When you count a day, you check it off whether you ride five minutes or five hours. I rode my bike today!"

This has become pretty important to me, and a good way to stay grounded. If I ride my bike on a day--to the park with the girls; to work; to the grocery or around the block to drop off mail--I am pretty pumped.

Rivendell - good reminders about riding bikes

It's been a while since I looked up the Rivendell Bicycle Works website, but recently I did and it made me happy. This shop seems to be built around a philosophy that riding a bike is not complicated, can be done by anyone in anyway, and is fun. Or should be. The stuff sold by Rivendell has a very old school, classic, almost European style. Leather and tweed and steel are the materials of choice and harken back to a simpler time. There are a lot of articles posted up with tips and thoughts about a wide variety of things and one that stood out was "How to Make the Rest of Your Family Hate Riding." Included in the bullet-ed list were these tips:

• Buy them upscale bikes, and remind them how expensive they are. The guilt they’ll feel for not appreciating them is a fantastic motivator.
• Make sure they know that expensive bikes make hard hills easy, so when they’re struggling, they’ll think it’s them, and work harder to improve.
• Force them to wear lycra shorts and jerseys. This will reinforce how easy and natural it is to just hop on a bike and ride somewhere.

I showed C those first two and she smiled because she realized, as I did, that I've been trying to convince her she needs an upscale bike. (That's not necessarily true, I just believe she needs a better bike than the heavy, poor-fitting, abused bike she currently owns.) It's true, however, that I've been pushing an upscale bike largely because of my employee discount; and it's true that she doesn't need an expensive bike considering she has very little enthusiasm about riding, at least relative to my own obsession. 

Anyway, I find myself around young guys without their own families and a shit-ton of disposable income and free time. What that allows is big stable of expensive bikes with carbon fiber this and lightweight that. And I'm constantly comparing myself to them. It sucks. It's hard to remove myself from it. It's also hard to be surrounded by "nice" (expensive) bikes all the time and not yearn to have one for myself. It's also hard to not feel that having a certain bike would allow me to do all sort of cool things (i.e. tour across America, or win a road race, or become some sort of amazing, fast, balls-y mountain biker), because the reality is I ride my road bike 0.2 miles to work or to the grocery or to pull the bike trailer and I ride my mountain bike pretty slowly and timidly on nearby trails. That's not to sound too self deprecating, because I always enjoy the riding I do, but it's to point out that I don't need an aggressive road racing bike or a crazy spec'd-out mountain rig. I just need the right tool for the job. Something to pick up a couple pizzas when it's time; to haul our girls to the library, pool, or park; and something that won't break when I misjudge an obstacle on the local singletrack trail.

Trail-er

Yesterday morning I went out on an early solo ride at the nearby trail, Alum Creek "Phase 2." I'm not much of a cyclist; my commute to work is at best .25 miles (and all of 3 minutes if bad traffic holds up my left turn to the main road). I don't go on long rides anywhere really. Last summer my shop-mates turned me on to mountain biking and with only a handful of trail rides before winter I fell in love pretty fast. This trail has easily become a favorite ride of mine and it is chock full of challenges for a "noob" like me. It's funny because for the entire ~6 mile loop, which takes me about 50 minutes to complete, I feel like I'm going to die. But on the drive home I feel like a million bucks. I've managed to do one trail ride every week for the past 3 weeks and I can feel the improvement. There are a bunch of stream crossings like the one above, varying in size and shape, and this is one of narrower ones that I crossed for the first time last week. Unfortunately the poor camera phone pic doesn't show the depth of the scene, but it's pretty awesome and I was also proud for finally having the cojones to cross this one without bailing. In fact, this week I crossed a skinnier "skinny"--consisting of two 2-by-4 planks placed together--for the first time.  I'm still slow and the short climbs through the woods really get me everytime, but if I can try to keep up the frequency of trail riding (approximately once every couple of weeks), I can hopefully get faster, walk less, and start improving my pace. I like these solo rides though because I can take my time, stop for pictures/water/etc and not feel like I need to apologize to my mates for holding them up.

So there it is: my workout plan for 2012. 

Trail

A surprise change in the weather forecast spurred me to get out to the trail early today. It was my first trail ride since last November and I'm completely out of shape but it was great to get out in the woods. Lots of early blooming native wildflowers were popping up including some of my favorites like trout lily and Dutchman's breeches, plus small white trillium and the first leaves of some bloodroot. As soon as I got off the trail the clouds let loose a quick and heavy shower. Timing like that always makes me feel like I am awesome at planning. The only casualties were my knuckles from when a couple trees tried to play Ping Pong with my handlebars

Film: Riding The Long White Cloud

I'm in the middle of watching the coolest series of videos and it's blowing my mind. A bicycle tour of professional skateboarders across New Zealand: "Riding the Long White Cloud." I heard mention of this a while back, never had cable to catch it on TV, and recently thought to look into it. Well the film is viewable in a 5 part series (at thepredatorybird.com). Unfortunately our internet is pretty slow, so I've been struggling to get through the first couple of videos, but my excitement has helped me be patient. I don't usually have enough time to watch for more than a few minutes anyway. This whole concept is a dream to me and I'm in awe of the whole project.

It has inspired me to look deeper into realizing a goal I have merely considered in the past: biking across Ohio. Cincy to Cleveland; or, perhaps, Cleveland to Cincy. Whichever. Both. Not sure what is realistic in terms of how soon, not to mention how to prepare; to train. Maybe a solo trip (that is, if I can't convince C to get a good bike suitable for the trip!)... not sure. I'm thinking this is a couple years down the road, but maybe now is time to start planning.

I really think you, whoever you are, should watch at least one of these videos. Maybe it will inspire you, too.


Riding the Long White Cloud Part 1 from predatory bird on Vimeo.

Garden of Eden, Bikes, Babies, and coffee

Finally getting some stuff done around here. Once you find the motivation to get up off the couch, everything changes for the better. I'm getting smarter about starting and/or finishing important chores during each day. This, in turn, is helping me realize my potential for doing other things--maybe art, or sewing projects, which I've been reluctant to pursue as of late.

Our garden is starting to look like something: soil has been turned; weeds have been weeded; two raised beds are constructed and finally planted (kale, lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, jalapeno, onions); bush beans have been sown; zucchini mounds are mounded; strawberries seems to be doing their thing; Asian poppies are popping; irises are iris-ing; and hydrangeas look to be surviving. That AND our lawn is mowed, thanks to our gracious neighbor who said we could borrow his (working) mower.

I've been getting super excited about biking. New cycling shoes are being shipped and new pedals (Crank Brothers "Candy" eggbeater pedals!) are waiting to be installed. One of my mechanic buddies said he would go with me to take our 'cross bikes on some singletrack at a nearby trail park which has got me bursting at the seams with excitement.

Meanwhile, Ellie is becoming her own little person, talking like crazy, naming things, feeding her babydoll, walking, climbing, feeding herself, and playing in the dirt. Not to mention that she sleeps like a champ through the night and two solid naps every day.

Did I mention that "Baby 2" is almost here? Just less than 2 months away and wanting to settle on a name is driving me crazy. It is impossible but I'm starting to get pretty excited. Plus I know Ellie is going to be an awesome big sister and she is proving it every day.

And I've been loving my French press coffee lately.

(Part time) JOB!

So I've been sitting on this for a week now and got confirmation today: I got a part time job as a bike mechanic at a shop down the street. Woo! Literally about 0.2 miles away. A few hours a week, every other weekend. My first thought is, "Awesome, it's become a dream of mine to work at a bike shop!" (It satisfies my desire for more social interaction while also promising to fulfill my obsessive bike-fix.)  My second thought is, "...and I can bring home a little bit of money to supplement our income!" (Thereby feeling good that I was doing even more to help our family.)

My third thought, which sort of trumps the others, is "But is this going to be a stress on C and/or Ellie, trying to schedule time away from home and not be worth it overall? Is C going to hate whatever our new schedule works out to be?" (This is partly a selfish endeavor that pays little and will require I work some weekends and possibly some evening hours.)

Well, we'll see. If it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out and life goes on. I've been imagining this to be the skate-shop job I never had, where I am surrounded by bikes and get to talk about bikes and geek out about bike stuff at the shop with people who care about bikes, instead of my poor family who has to listen to me talking about bottom bracket spindles and chainlines and so forth. Plus, employee discounts, group rides, and the like... I'm having trouble imagining it sucking. That is, unless it doesn't work out with the fam. That will always be a deal breaker.

Day 2

Second day back in the saddle for my short jaunt to the office. Weather.com is telling me that my area is 43-degrees-eff currently with a windchill of 35! Woo!

Quote: Bike

A great quote from today's post on BSNYC:
"I may be naive, but I continue to believe that one day humanity will reach a point at which we will no longer need to feel special while we do something normal. Putting on pants will cease to be the subject of a feature article. The notion of a "bike culture" will dissolve like body paint in the rain. Riding a bicycle in street clothes will no longer be "cycle chic." Best of all, we will no longer need to be cultural aspirants or fashion models to ride to the store, and the simple act of buying something at that store will not need to be a statement about "sustainability." Instead, we will be regular schlubs doing regular crap, and we will be confident enough to do so without naming it and without baring our inner thigh sideburns in the process." - BikeSnob NYC (6/14/10)

A Break from the Positive: Dumbass of the Week Edition

Found this article by D. Dowd Muska called "Four Wheels Good, Two Wheels Bad." The name itself, in its suspiciously explicit literalness, should imply satire. He starts by saying this: There is something profoundly wrong with a nation where more adults ride bicycles than children. Then he writes: Two odious ideologies fuel the popularity of bicycling: anti-obesity extremism and eco-lunacy.

This no-name blogger realized his opportunity for quick fame: denouncing cyclists. There are few other groups that are quick to spread such an article like wildfire. Re-posting and re-posting. The new shock-journalist need only stereotype cyclists as smug, de-legitimize bikes as toys rather than true vehicles, and trivialize this right by over-generalizing the fact that some cyclists violate road laws (while ignoring the numbers of automobile drivers that do the same).

Who knows why Muska is mad at cyclists? Is it because, as he points out, some funding for bike projects is coming from the federal gas tax? He whines, [S]tate and local pols... gleefully commit drivers’ forced contributions to dubious bike schemes... “Bicycle planning” is providing lucrative jobs for bureaucrats eager to wield the coercive power of government to change commuting habits. He has even attempted to coin the term "Big Bicycle." Wow. I bet it hurts to stretch that much. He mentions that 4 out of every 10 dollars of that tax goes to non-highway expenses, but fails to describe where those 4 dollars are spent. Probably not all on cyclists and pedestrians. I'm splitting hairs here. This tirade has no point. It's just mud slinging to gain popularity by riling the poles of a political spectrum over a subject that really has no political affiliation. Like many of his other posts (esp. the one I just read about climate change), he drops what he probably believes are devastating bombs--these little factoids--but leaves them more or less unsubstantiated, leaving me irritated only long enough to write a cathartic blog post to cleanse my palette and forget about it.
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Funny aside: In his "bio" he claims he enjoys searching the woods of Connecticut for the mountain lions wildlife bureaucrats say aren’t there. Yea, fuck Big Wildlife. Paranoia is a beeotch.

pizza bike

i'm getting better at stacking pizza boxes on my bike. it's nice to make time to run errands this way...

Protection

Bought this fender at the local bike shop. It came recommended by the shop owner and I expect to be pleased. Apex Designs front fender, $12, installed on the rear so as to not repeat the soggy butt I was sporting yesterday whilst riding in the rain.