I'm All About That Blog

When I was working, I commuted daily 52 miles one way.   Not really practical to ride a bicycle.   I enjoy riding a bike but for my safety I'll stick to the trails or the paved paths.   I've known three people that were killed riding their bikes on the road, the message to me is clear.   

I just got a nice bell for my MTB. I use it to alert people on the trail that I am coming so I don't startle them with "On your left!". It is not loud enough for cars though.

 

19 hours ago, billchao said:

NYC subways are falling apart because they're old and half the reason for the delays is because they're trying to upgrade stuff. NYC Metro isn't London, Hong Kong, Singapore, etc., but it isn't Los Angeles, Detroit, or Mumbai, either. But the grass is always greener somewhere, right?

There's also the trash problem, trash causes fires. MTA doubled fines. Not sure how much of that is to distract from infrastructure issues though.

 

 

 

Yes, I agree with this YouTuber, this intersection is hairy and scary.

 

 

 

I can't play golf right now due to my knee. Even practice swings are an issue. But for some reason I can ride and it doesn't hurt the meniscus tear. So I've been hitting the trails again and did a road ride yesterday. I felt very comfortable on the bike.

We talk a lot about muscle memory in golf, but the same applies to cycling. Other than fatigue, my pedal cadence is the same and the way I approach hills and obstacles on the trail hasn't changed. I don't even think about it much (stupid monkey I guess applies here too). 

When I learned to ride to race, I studied a lot about proper form, cadence and tactics. They became ingrained with good practice. The only 'ride thought' I would have would be to kick the knees toward the handle bars during the pedal stroke to smooth out the circle or watch your breathing rhythm. Everything else was on autopilot.

I want to get there in golf too. I'm not close to the number of hours training I had in cycling yet in golf. But I will continue to take the right approach.

On 9/25/2017 at 7:22 AM, boogielicious said:

I can't play golf right now due to my knee. Even practice swings are an issue. But for some reason I can ride and it doesn't hurt the meniscus tear. So I've been hitting the trails again and did a road ride yesterday. I felt very comfortable on the bike.

We talk a lot about muscle memory in golf, but the same applies to cycling. Other than fatigue, my pedal cadence is the same and the way I approach hills and obstacles on the trail hasn't changed. I don't even think about it much (stupid monkey I guess applies here too). 

When I learned to ride to race, I studied a lot about proper form, cadence and tactics. They became ingrained with good practice. The only 'ride thought' I would have would be to kick the knees toward the handle bars during the pedal stroke to smooth out the circle or watch your breathing rhythm. Everything else was on autopilot.

I want to get there in golf too. I'm not close to the number of hours training I had in cycling yet in golf. But I will continue to take the right approach.

Hope you get better quickly Scott.

I agree, I take for granted the skills I've accumulated from riding for so long, don't even think twice about riding in places most people would be petrified to ride in (as am reminded by family and friends who say nooooo to riding in the city, even in carless Central Park), the death avoidance, avoiding puncturing tires, riding straight between tight spots without touching anything, figuring out ways to sit on the bike without putting a foot down, taxi-ing another bicycle while riding, knowing exactly what gear to shift to, etc...

I bought a folding bike.

Have always thought of these as oddities, but never considered using one. You can bring it on commuter trains (yes, during peak hours), some buildings - still, not all buildings are bike friendly, guess especially for older buildings that may be historical landmarks don't want you scratching them up. You can put it in the car trunk and still have plenty of space, no need for a bike rack.

Instead of going all in and buying something like a Brompton, which starts at 1,200 USD and can go up to 4,000 easily, for a bike yes (it's built in London, high quality craftsmanship, etc...), dipped the toes into the water and paid $180 for a simple single speed 20 pound made in China. It's not the best build, there's some rattling, it doesn't fold up to the smallest size, but it's actually not a bad deal, considering a Citibike membership costs 160, 170 ish USD, annually. You can't go as fast, steering is a little dodgier but you get used to it and it's really light. I can fit the bike and two golf bags in the trunk, maybe bike, bag and push cart. Have yet to figure out locking it up, don't want to carry a seat around and can't fit the lock cable through the seat post. Wonder if someone would steal the handlebars too. 

Anyways, my traveling options have opened up and the Urbana has saved me time and money already, if it stays together, it'll be well worth the price and if I get hooked on the concept of a folding bike, may upgrade. Now I have a road, mountain, commuter and folding bike. Mountain bike's gonna gather dust.

 

I quit Citibike.

Empty stations, full stations, broken bikes, not docked charges that took 15 minute call to undo, monopoly - doesn't allow competition. Don't get me wrong, it's a life changer for many people and I'm glad it's expanding, but it doesn't fit my use case. Until it allows competitors, convinces me the chances of me being charged 1200 dollars for a bike that I properly docked are close to nil, I'm out.

 

CARMEL, INDIANA, IS SHOWING SUBURBS HOW TO GO BIG ON BIKING

http://peopleforbikes.org/blog/carmel-indiana-showing-suburbs-go-big-biking/

 

Carmel has a nice big bike path and stuff, yes. It's quite nice.

Reddit on Carmel, IN:

 

Fly and ride baby.

I've seen this guy riding around, you can't miss him, was wondering how he got on and off. Falling must be painful. Now locking it up...

 

Should really drag that trainer out of the closet and use it.

TIL Ikea sells a bicycle. It features a belt drive, front disc brakes and has some cool accessories. 33 pounds is heavier that I'd like and not that many gears but there are some thoughtful features.

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30326728/#

A review:

https://www.citylab.com/life/2017/03/we-rode-the-ikea-bike/519315/

 

If only this were true:

 

I have to say this is where I stand for the most part. More than a few holier than thou cyclists out there.

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But before readers decry this as a fossil-fuel enthusiast’s rant, consider these facts: I cycle to the office at least four months a year, walking and taking transit the rest of the time. I don’t drive much, but have a car and a driver’s perspective, as well as a cyclist’s. From those vantage points, here are a few ways I see the pedal-pushing revolution going awry:

The Right to Die:

A car turns right from a main street onto a side street and the driver’s focus is on one thing: the pedestrians crossing the intersection in front of them. They are not looking for cyclists speeding up from behind, swerving in front of them just as they’re about to complete the turn. And yet this happens constantly, cyclists putting their lives on the line in the process. The rules are clear: the car in front turning right has priority; the cyclist has to go around to the automobile’s left or, God forbid, wait a second or two.

Quote

Manners!:

Almost daily, I watch a cyclist ride up alongside a car and slam his or her palm against a window, make an obscene gesture, or shout epithets at the occupants for seemingly inadvertent – or non-existent – offences. This usually occurs after some death-defying slalom through traffic went amiss. Drivers do stupid things sometimes, but cyclists cannot expect the rest of the traffic to essentially part and let them through unencumbered. They’re just another vehicle that should be observing the rules.

I joined the bicycle revolution, but my comrades are worse than I expected

Tom Blackwell: From my vantage points as a driver and cyclist, here are a few ways I see the pedal-pushing revolution going awry

http://nationalpost.com/opinion/lets-stop-treating-drivers-as-villains-and-bicyclists-as-angels

Finally got around to test riding a Brompton the other day, forgot the name of the model, there are so many, it had 6 gears I think, went for around 1600 USD. Compared to riding my entry level single speed, it is a much tighter ride and having the gears is much better, I think the Brompton's tires are 100 psi and mine are 40 psi, that makes a difference as well. The Brompton build quality is excellent and folding up is a cinch after you learn the moves. Still muddled as to whether it's worth the cost, will have to try other brands, like Dahon, etc...

Recent photos of NYers 

 

A lot of the counter-cultural is gone from NYC and much has been corporatized. But not all of it is gone.

http://gothamist.com/2017/10/29/bike_kill_not_dead.php#photo-37

Just redid my grip tape.  White.  What WAS I thinking?!