Last night Dara and I rode to the Emergency at Memorial Hospital to get x-rays of Dara's arm. Temperature must have been around 100 degrees when we left home about 4:30. We had to wait at least three hours before they finally did the x-ray. Somebody has mistakenly marked that the x-rays had already been taken, when in fact, no x-rays were done!
We spent about four hours at the Emergency, before we rode home again, from about 9:30 until 10:15. Ride home was pleasant, as the temperature had cooled to about 75 degrees.
Total ride for yesterday = 16 miles
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Dara Took a Spill on the Townie ...
I rode into town, then took the bus with my old Switchback to work. After work, I rode over to pick up Dara at his friend's house. We rode from there into town. While riding through the park, Dara slipped on the Townie, and crashed. He hurt his hand pretty good, but was able to ride all the way home. When we got home Dara was complaining about his hand hurting really bad.
Total ride for today = 16 miles
Total ride for today = 16 miles
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Dry Creek Trail - Lots of Squirrels!
Rode the Dry Creek Trail with Benny. There were so many squirrels out! Benny almost ran over one, and in order to avoid hitting the poor thing, Ben crashed his bike!
Benny rode the entire trail, 4.5 miles each way. I pooped out about half way, or less. Needed to find a shady spot to sit down and rest. All the best shady rest areas were already taken, so I had to ride back towards the start of the trail. Finally found a bench to sit on and rest.
Benny pointed out to me a bunch of squirrels playing around in the trees. They were jumping around from one branch to another! I've never seen anything like that before ...
I took lots of pictures of the squirrels. Was able to get pretty close to some of them. Some squirrels were standing perfectly still ike a statue. Others were dragging their bellies on the ground. One was so occupied with finding nuts, that they didn't seem to be too worried about my presence.
Talked with some friendly people when we got back to the trail start. One lady had a cockateel in a cage that didn't make a sound! Her two boys were having a blast riding their skateboard down a short hill (both boys on the same board!).
Benny rode the entire trail, 4.5 miles each way. I pooped out about half way, or less. Needed to find a shady spot to sit down and rest. All the best shady rest areas were already taken, so I had to ride back towards the start of the trail. Finally found a bench to sit on and rest.
Benny pointed out to me a bunch of squirrels playing around in the trees. They were jumping around from one branch to another! I've never seen anything like that before ...
I took lots of pictures of the squirrels. Was able to get pretty close to some of them. Some squirrels were standing perfectly still ike a statue. Others were dragging their bellies on the ground. One was so occupied with finding nuts, that they didn't seem to be too worried about my presence.
Talked with some friendly people when we got back to the trail start. One lady had a cockateel in a cage that didn't make a sound! Her two boys were having a blast riding their skateboard down a short hill (both boys on the same board!).
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Guy On a Titanium Bike
Went for a ride on the Dry Creek Trail with someone from a new club I just joined. We met at Star Bucks, and just as we were about to ride out, we met a guy on a titanium bike, Gary. Chatted for about 20 minutes, then headed out for the trail ....
We rode the trail to the end and back, which is nine miles. When I got back to Star Bucks, I saw the guy with the titanium bike still at Star Bucks. I rode over and we chatted for about two hours! I'm glad I met Gary. He told me his life story in a nutshell -- how he used to play hocky, ride in bicycle races, and lots more ....
Total ride for the day = 17.2 miles.
We rode the trail to the end and back, which is nine miles. When I got back to Star Bucks, I saw the guy with the titanium bike still at Star Bucks. I rode over and we chatted for about two hours! I'm glad I met Gary. He told me his life story in a nutshell -- how he used to play hocky, ride in bicycle races, and lots more ....
Total ride for the day = 17.2 miles.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Biggest Grocery Haul ....
Today was my biggest grocery haul yet .... $195 and about 80 pounds in just food items ... !!! I maxed out my handlebar bag to see just how much it will hold. I also wanted to know first hand just how the bike would handle with the front panniers loaded and the handlebar bag packed full .... I packed 14 pounds of food in the handlebar bag. Steering was wobbly, unstable, and actually scary ... !!! I won't load the handlebar bag with that much weight again!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Call from the Bike Shop ...
The bike shop called me this morning .... Looks like it will take a couple more weeks to get my Trucker back on the road. The wheel has to be specially built and will cost another $43.34. So, I had to call the person who rear-ended me and ask them to go back to the bike shop and pay the additional cost for building the wheel. They agreed to that. Thank God ...!
The wheels for my LHT were specially designed for my bicycle. I'll have to settle for a black rim, instead of silver.
The wheels for my LHT were specially designed for my bicycle. I'll have to settle for a black rim, instead of silver.
Monday, April 13, 2009
Off to the Hardware Store ...
Yesterday, I rode the Townie to Home Depot. Picked a variety of hardware so I can put together some kind of brackets to install lights and reflectors on our bikes. Short ride of only three miles. Still feels good to get out and ride ....
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Morning Ride on the Townie ...
Took the Townie for a morning ride to Big 5. Bought a pair of cycling gloves, then picked up more groceries at Cost Less. I'll be riding Dara's Townie until my Trucker is fixed.
For larger images of my LHT, see my new pages:
My Surly Long Haul Trucker
For larger images of my LHT, see my new pages:
My Surly Long Haul Trucker
Friday, April 10, 2009
Back On The Road ...
I've calmed down a bit from the accident yesterday. Took my son's Townie out today. Went to K-Mart first, then Home Depot. Dropped off the stuff I bought, then rode into town to check the PO. Got a money order from Save-Mart, and sent in my order for the DiNotte 140.
Total ride for today = 8 miles. Only one small incident. While riding through downtown, driver in big pick-up behind me was angry because I stopped to allow someone to back out of a parking space.
Just as I was leaving Save-Mart, a guy asked me if he could use my air pump. I pumped up his tire with my Topeak Road Morph. Guess that's my second good deed for the day ....
Total ride for today = 8 miles. Only one small incident. While riding through downtown, driver in big pick-up behind me was angry because I stopped to allow someone to back out of a parking space.
Just as I was leaving Save-Mart, a guy asked me if he could use my air pump. I pumped up his tire with my Topeak Road Morph. Guess that's my second good deed for the day ....
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Bad News - My New LHT Rear-ended!!!
Really bad news ... I had just left the bike shop, on my way to the sporting goods to see if they had some cycling gloves that would fit me. Had rode my LHT about two miles, and a car rear-ended me! I almost crashed ... don't know how I managed to stay up!
I noticed instantly that the rear wheel wouldn't turn, and thought the bike was trashed. The young lady (19 years old) was totally freaking out ....
After we exchanged information, the lady wanted to pay for the damage, rather than go through the insurance. One of the witnesses was nice enough to help me out. He put my bike in the back of his pick-up, tied it up real good.
Took me to the bike shop. We waited for the lady. The mechanic said that the only damage is the rear wheel. So they ordered a new wheel, and the lady paid for everything.
I'm really bummed out, and afraid to ride anymore .... I had my Real Lite on, pedaling about 15mph, in the center of the right lane. It had just started to rain, and the young girl was following me too close, then slammed on her brakes, and went sliding out of control.
I just hope I don't have any more close calls! That was too close!
I noticed instantly that the rear wheel wouldn't turn, and thought the bike was trashed. The young lady (19 years old) was totally freaking out ....
After we exchanged information, the lady wanted to pay for the damage, rather than go through the insurance. One of the witnesses was nice enough to help me out. He put my bike in the back of his pick-up, tied it up real good.
Took me to the bike shop. We waited for the lady. The mechanic said that the only damage is the rear wheel. So they ordered a new wheel, and the lady paid for everything.
I'm really bummed out, and afraid to ride anymore .... I had my Real Lite on, pedaling about 15mph, in the center of the right lane. It had just started to rain, and the young girl was following me too close, then slammed on her brakes, and went sliding out of control.
I just hope I don't have any more close calls! That was too close!
Lights on my Trucker ...
So many people have asked me about the lights on my Surly Long Haul Trucker. These are the lights that I presently have on my Trucker. I will add more later ...
* Real Lite, 18 super bright LEDs (!!!), two settings (flashing or steady), four AA batteries, 60 hours. Visible for 1/4 mile in bright sunlight, and over a mile at night
* CatEye TL-LD1000 OptiCube, with 10 super bright LEDs, four settings for the upper level (5 LEDs), and four settings for the lower level (5 LEDs), two AA batteries, 100 hours.
* SuperFlashStealth, 2 extreme LEDs, two settings (flashing or steady), three AA batteries, 100 hours.
* CatEye EL-520 LED Opticube Headlight
* Coleman 60 lumens helmet light, three AAA batteries.
* Two blinkies on the back of my helmet, AG13 batteries.
* two 6-mode Bell flashers (each has six LEDs)
* On order, the DiNotte 140 Pro Series Ultra Taillight
I use rechargeable batteries, which reduces the cost for batteries tremendously! Except the two blinkies on my helmet, which use the small flat batteries (AG13).
* Real Lite, 18 super bright LEDs (!!!), two settings (flashing or steady), four AA batteries, 60 hours. Visible for 1/4 mile in bright sunlight, and over a mile at night
* CatEye TL-LD1000 OptiCube, with 10 super bright LEDs, four settings for the upper level (5 LEDs), and four settings for the lower level (5 LEDs), two AA batteries, 100 hours.
* SuperFlashStealth, 2 extreme LEDs, two settings (flashing or steady), three AA batteries, 100 hours.
* CatEye EL-520 LED Opticube Headlight
* Coleman 60 lumens helmet light, three AAA batteries.
* Two blinkies on the back of my helmet, AG13 batteries.
* two 6-mode Bell flashers (each has six LEDs)
* On order, the DiNotte 140 Pro Series Ultra Taillight
I use rechargeable batteries, which reduces the cost for batteries tremendously! Except the two blinkies on my helmet, which use the small flat batteries (AG13).
Rain, Birds, Proverbs ... More Birds
Rode into town to take care of business. After picking up a prescription at the clinic, went to get my allergy shot. Then hit the Dry Creek Trail. It had just started to sprinkle. At the first bench, I rested to eat half of my sandwich, and watch the birds. When I got to the beginning of the trail, at the park, rotated my handlebars so the bar-end shifter won't hit my knees. Seemed to work pretty good.
As I rode into town the rain started coming down pretty good, so I stopped under a huge tree on the corner of the library, and read from Proverbs chapter seven. Next, I went to the bus terminal to see if my Trucker will fit on the bus rack. The front tire was raised up about 1/2 inch. As long as the bike is secure, should be ok. I want to have a supervisor check it for me though, just to make sure! I don't want my new bike falling off and getting crushed ... !!!
As I rode across the Lion Bridge, saw two geese, maybe Canada geese? They were standing on the shore of the river, and were big, and tall. I watched them for a few minutes, then they took off flying.
As I rode into town the rain started coming down pretty good, so I stopped under a huge tree on the corner of the library, and read from Proverbs chapter seven. Next, I went to the bus terminal to see if my Trucker will fit on the bus rack. The front tire was raised up about 1/2 inch. As long as the bike is secure, should be ok. I want to have a supervisor check it for me though, just to make sure! I don't want my new bike falling off and getting crushed ... !!!
As I rode across the Lion Bridge, saw two geese, maybe Canada geese? They were standing on the shore of the river, and were big, and tall. I watched them for a few minutes, then they took off flying.
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