[trailrunner]

I was pretty toasty this morning. The winter boots I bought in September have proven to be a very wise investment.

The worst part of my commute is that someone parked a utility or golf cart on the bike path. Don’t know if some kids stole it from Greensprings retirement home or from the country club and took it for a joyride or what. I can get around it, but just barely and I have to unclip and shuffle my bike between it and jersey barriers. I sure hope that it is removed before the snow comes, because on that part of the path the plows push snow from the road to the path, and if that cart stays there, the combination of snow and the cart will completely block the path.

[trailrunner]

As I said, I worked at the center for almost 20 years, so I’m familiar with the routes and roads. I was mostly interested in the facilities in the big building. How are the bike racks? I was there today and only saw two bikes locked to the rack in the parking garage. Is there a wait to get a locker in the bike commuting locker room? Any other issues, pro or con?

[trailrunner]

Some tires are notoriously tight and hard to mount. As Steve said, once you get the first bead on, move it to the center of the rim to free up a little wiggle room. Use the bottom of the palms of your hands to work the second bead on, and don’t be afraid to use some serious brute force. A little profanity will help. If that still doesn’t work, then don’t bother with plastic levers but go straight to metal levers, but be careful not to pinch the tube.

[trailrunner]

Most cycling shoes have poor arch support. It may not be as important in cycling shoes as it is with shoes that you walk in or run in, but I have insoles in all of my biking shoes (and I have a few pair). I have both Sole and Superfeet insoles, and would rate them both about equal.

I had a bad case of PF last year from running, and filled my running downtime with cycling. Not sure if orthotics or insoles will help in your case, but if your problem is in the arch, it’s plausible. Good luck – PF can be a tough injury to eradicate.

[trailrunner]

There are a couple of things you’ll need to specify on your new fork. Wheel size and brake mounts are obvious. You also need to match the steer tube to match your head tube and headset. You most likely have a straight 1-1/8 setup, but you should double-check that. As another poster said, try to match the rake and fork length between your old fork and your new fork as close as possible. On one of my older bikes, I couldn’t get a fork with the exact dimensions that I needed and stressed about it for a while, but when I got it installed, it was close enough so that it wasn’t a big deal.

Will you be reusing the headset? If so, you’ll want to take the crown race off your old fork and put it on your new fork. You’ll also need a new star fangled nut.

[trailrunner]

Quote:

he turns to running whenever he’s tempted to sin.

@TwoWheelsDC 128714 wrote:

I just stopped believing in the concept of sin. Problem solved.

With all the running I’ve done in my lifetime, now I need to start working on my sinning to equalize the balance.

[trailrunner]

I don’t have any photographs of the bikes of my youth, but I remember a bike that I had when I was in third grade that was supposed to look like a motorcycle. There was a metal compartment on the top tube that was supposed to look like the gas tank of a motorcycle; it had a hinged lid so that the compartment could be used to store things like my lunch. One of the things I chose to store in there was a dead bird that I had found one day. After a week or two, it wound up stinking pretty bad. At that time (around 1970), the bikes that were the rage were the Schwinns with a banana seat and a sissy bar.

My dad and I often worked on bikes. He brought back a 10-speed from Japan (he was in the navy), and I took it apart to learn how it worked. He had bins of ball bearings and other parts that he had accumulated from taking apart junk bikes that people were throwing away. I grew up in a suburb that was only a couple of miles across with a maximum speed limit of 25 or 30 mph, so the kids rode everywhere on bikes. In junior high I got a paper route. We put together a genuine beach cruiser (I grew up close to the beach, so it *was* genuine) with a big basket on the front to hold my papers. I learned to maneuver a heavy load of Sunday morning papers, which came in handy while giving my friends rides on the handlebars (a common way of getting around town). That was my primary bike through high school, because besides holding my newspapers, it also held a case of beer (not that I ever did that :p ). That bike was a Schwinn (back when that meant something) that probably weighed 35 pounds with exactly one gear.

Another bike I put together in high school was a retro bike with a Sturmey Archer three-speed internally geared hub. I liked it because it had gears *and* a coaster brake, although it was flat where I lived so I didn’t really need the gears. During my senior year of HS, I worked at a restaurant on the edge of town about two or three miles from my house. After work, I’d practice riding all the way home with no hands on the handlebars, zig-zagging in and out of driveways and on the deserted streets late at night. Believe it or not, I actually got cited once by the local cops for riding with no hands on the handlebars.

Life was pretty simple back then.

[trailrunner]

Lake Accotink on a very nice late November day.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]10146[/ATTACH]

[trailrunner]

Over the weekend I put a new rear rack on my Sutra. I wanted to mount my panniers lower, so I bought one with a lower rail. After I put the rack on, I mounted the panniers lower, and I moved them back. I figured that would help with the occasional heel rub I’ve experienced.

My commute yesterday was fine, but this morning I hit a bump and jiggled my pannier into the spokes. I quickly stopped (although I didn’t really have a choice) and assessed the damage. I use Ortliebs, and I tore the fabric shell off the backing about halfway around. Nothing spilled out, but I still had nine miles to go, so I jury rigged the pannier so that it would stay together until I got to work. Once I got to work and settled in, I duct taped the bag so that it would last for the ride home. My rear wheel is stout, with 36 straight-gauge spokes and a hefty rim, so it was in good shape, but some of the spokes were a little loose. My ride home was uneventful, and when I got home, I put the wheel on the truing stand and got the slight wobble out and tensioned up the spokes.

[trailrunner]

@wheels&wings 128405 wrote:

Seriously? Clean your bike before bringing it to the shop? [And do you wash your car before getting an oil change?]

A long time ago, I took my bike to Metropolis bikes to get a new headset installed on my mountain bike. The mechanic was kind enough to let me watch so that I’d know how to do it the next time. At the time, that was the only thing I didn’t know how to do myself, and this was pre-internet, so watching a youtube video wasn’t an option. On one hand, I think he was glad that I was taking an interest in my bike, and he was glad to have someone to talk to. On the other hand, my bike was muddy, and he gently chastised me for bringing it in in that condition. Point taken.

But since then I’ve done all my work myself. Now my only issue with a dirty bike is that I don’t want to drop mud all over the house as I get it down to my basement workshop.

As far as cleaning my car before an oil change – I do that myself also, so I don’t care what my car looks like.

[trailrunner]

On the way home tonight, I wound up riding through a construction site (long story) and eventually found myself mired in thick, peanut-butter mud from the last 24 hours of rain on freshly churned bulldozer clay. The only way out was to walk my bike to the road, but the mud was so thick that I cold barely push it. My bike and shoes are a mess now, and reminds of the old days when I did that for fun.

[trailrunner]

@mstone 126854 wrote:

REI is probably in a better position than most to experiment with something like this: their customer base will probably just shop on a different day.

REI is also a non-profit co-op. They don’t have to answer to shareholders demanding maximum profit. The only effect that it might have is to lower my dividend from 9.8 percent to 9.7 percent. I can live with that.

[trailrunner]

@AlexandriaBiker 126710 wrote:

If this comes to pass I will be leading a 50 mile bike ride from the front of the church every Sunday at 7:30. Convenient free parking. Right?

Sorta gives new meaning to a critical *mass* ride, huh?

[trailrunner]

Rode through the woods yesterday. A great fall day to be on a bike. I tried to capture the rich orange and green in this corner, but my iPhone can’t do it justice.

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[trailrunner]

@MattAune 125074 wrote:

Seems like a logical next step. Paving of the CCT south of Braddock rd in Accotink Park is scheduled to start this week.

Arrgghhh.

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