New rear rack for my Cruz Bike

In an effort to get the weight low and minimize the wobble from having the rack sway when I pedal I bought an Arkel Low rider front rack and mounted it reversed on the back wheel of my bike. This took only one bit of finagling,  and that was to use two Nitto Steel clamps, and to cut two spacers (1 1/8" long) to mount the forward bolts. No test ride yet, but it seems solid and I was able to put a Ortlib rolltop rear pannier on it without it seeming to want to fall into the wheel. Once I put it on the road for a serious commute, I'll post a full report.

Micro tool kit! Fits in an Altoid tin

So I have been working on collecting my own tool kit since I started riding back when dinosaurs roamed the world and all I had was a stick and rock and the wheel had yet to be invented. I started with a 1/4" hex drive breaker bar and some sockets from Craftsman and Snap-on (the Snap-on one's were allen hex heads and screw driver heads). Recently I was told by a mechanic friend about the Wera 1/4" ratchet and I added some extensions to run regular hex drill bits which are now a dime a dozen... well maybe a dollar each, but it's not hard to collect them. The Altoid tin works as a thing to hold all the bits and keep them from poking through the 1qt freezer bag, because I don't want to lose any of these while on the road. I stuck in all the weird allen keys that have come with various racks, water bottles bosses etc and you can see the heap I now have. But with these tools I can do a lot of on the road repairs. If you get a 1/4 to 3/8th converter you can add the breaker bar for bigger sockets like a 15mm, and disassemble almost any bike. But I've whittled my pile down to this.

The funny shaped tool is a Leatherman(tm) MAKO Shark Ti tool. I carry it because it has spoke wrench cutouts, the bottle opener, and it's another way to use the sockets.

The rubber "O" rings you see hold the extensions in the Shark tool and allow it to sort of "ratchet" if you slide the o-ring off, insert the extension in the hex hole, and put the o-ring back on. It keeps the extension in place.

The Wera ratchet is really nice, and has held up well. There may be a better quality one out there but so far I haven't seen it.

Anyway it fits in a nice tight package, and rides in my tool roll. Along with some latex gloves, a multi tool, etc.

Tool Roll

I bought a tool roll from SILCA.ca (it was their biggest at the time) and it was too small for all the stuff I carry. So I used it for a pattern and made my own using a yard of black Cordua(tm) nylon some heavy duty carpet thread, some velcro(tm) tape (without the sticky bits on the back.) and some nylon binding ribbon. The idea was not to have one that fit under the saddle as I'd hate to lose my tools and I nearly always have at least a trunk bag with me, but to have a way to lay out my tools alongside the road and find the one I need, do the repair, and get back on the road.

The nice thing about a tool roll gives you a clean place to lay stuff down as opposed to the dirt, and black won't show the inevitable grease marks. The pockets were eyeballed for size to fit my tools. If I make another I think I'd move the velcro straps closer to the edge of the roll and force you you to roll it one way, vs what I have now are these really long straps that roll either way.

The dimensions of finished project are 21" x 12". Like the Silca one, I folded the material in thirds to make the flap and pocket, Take one of the long edges and roll it into a 1/4" seam and sew it flat. (this will be the top edge of the inside pocket.) Invert the material so that the nice side is in and sew the top 2/3'rds all around the edge.  Turn the material rightside out and sew the pocket closed. Sew the velcro strap (tack down about 2" of it.) to the middle. Sew a velcro tab to one edge. Invert the bottom material into a pocket  Fold the bottom 1/3 up and trim the corners and sew the edge. You should now have one big pocket on the bottom. If you are good, make that big pocket with a pleat in the bottom bit. The SILCA one has a pleat along the bottom edge but I got sloppy and didn't sew one. I probably should have as it makes the pockets better and the roll lay flatter. Now lay out your tools and eyeball the size pockets you want, be sure to put the narrow tools at the fold points about a 1/3 of the way in from each side. This way it will have a chance at laying flat when you are done and the tools are all in it.  But it's really up to you, a tool flap, tool ball, whatever it still holds your tools.

Anyway it was a fun Saturday project. I used a basic sewing machine, nothing fancy.

I've Moved! I'm now in San Diego! Home of the endless summer!

Well until this last winter! Hahahaha! Wettest on record! End of a 5 year drought! But my SO got sick and tired of the rain and the gray of Seattle and so I got a new job and we packed up and left. So far it's been great! And before I moved here I had a dream that my commute would involve riding along the coast. That was before I found the job, or the house. So here are some photos from my new ride.

Along the coast in Solana Beach

Just above the beach at La Jolla

The bike trail along the freeway. I get to ride about 4 miles of this trail. Eventually it's much closer to the road.

The view from my office

The desert along the route home.

A riding stable alongside the trail on the way home.

Back along DelMar at sunset

The last view of the ocean on my way up the hill towards home.

This is one truly beautiful ride. It's not as "bike safe" as my commutes in Seattle. It's a lot longer, 22 miles vs the previous 16. There is generally a headwind both ways!!!! It's a long climb to the office, but the route I take has no really steep hills. There is an alternative route with steep hills that is shorter but because of the hills it takes just as long. There is a much shorter route to work, but 3 miles of it are so bike unfriendly that I won't ride it.

Green Laser!

My new favorite gizmo is yet another light. I have some of the worlds best lights already from www.dinottelighting.com I spent a small fortune on them with the theory that it's still cheaper than being hit by a car. And that I ride in thick traffic in the city so I need lights that stand out.
Then I spotted this kickstarter project. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/embrooke/blaze-bike-light
and I had to have one... well now it's two years later and they finally shipped. And it's nearly everything they said it would be. The team at http://www.blaze.cc have been working like crazy to make it perfect.
I can attest that with that new light I make folks move out of my way on the sidewalk. The light runs up the sidewalk in front of them as I approach from behind. I alert cars when I underpass them when they are stuck at a light then the light changes and I'm still moving. The drivers of the cars spot the green image in front of their car and give me time to either pass, or more room before they turn into me. (giving me time to slow and avoid them.) It also seems to help with cars at cross streets as it lights up the intersection before I get there.
The battery lasts about 6 to 8 hours before I have been recharging. It's not totally depleted but I have a two and a 1/2 hour commute so I want a full charge in case I need it both ways.

The white light is my Dinotte 880L on full to show how bright the green laser is. For perspective, the laser image is about 5 to 6 meters in front of my bike. As you can see I've got the bright white light aimed just in front of me to not blind on coming drivers & riders and to illuminate any potholes.
I've ridden with it in pouring rain and the case is watertight.
If you commute in the dark check it out. It's a quality product that may just save your life.

New Amazon Jersey!

A long time ago I contracted with Vintage Velos to make some custom jerseys for my then employer Amazon.com. I no longer work there, a long story not to be repeated here, but I still had this project going. Well the short sleeve jerseys are finally done and I think they look great! It took almost two years to do the full project from the time I first did designs on paper, ran a focus group, came up with 5 key designs, ran a survey monkey, contacted the manufacturer on what is actually possible, took the orders, got clearance from Amazon's logo lawyers and then got them manufactured. The manufacturing was quite the life story as well, with the father of the key person dying in the middle of this, the husband of the person doing the chain stitching having an accident then dying, the custom wool, moving the manufacturing from China to Italy to acquiring the jerseys to distributing them.

Was it worth it? I think so. Will I do it again? Well this time I'd know more about matching a vertical stripe to a raglan sleeve (don't do it! even though mine came out ok.) To no chain stitching on the side panels as the knit runs the wrong way and it bunches up.

Key details to notice if you decide to do your own custom jersey. The side panels and the neck trim are black! Yes your sweat won't show as much. Although you will have white salt streaks after a lot of wearing and no washing. Next, no elastic in the hem. Elastic always dies and sewing in a new piece is a pain because you have to cut the fabric or unroll the hem to get at it and it's a mess, trust me I've done it on other clothing and it was almost not worth the trouble. Regal sleeves, I'd do set in sleeves next time, easier to match up stripes etc. No one expects the stripe to run up under the whole sleeve as well as up the side. Also, maybe next time a logo on the top of the shoulders on the back, or a small one on the middle pocket. Both of them are places of wear if you wear a backpack or a messenger bag but the back feels a bit blank when you are standing around. Of course while riding no one can read those logos.

Meantime I'm pretty sure everyone who gets one of these will be happy as there is nothing else like it out there.

Summer Reading

This summer I was given a copy of "Miles from Nowhere: A Round the World Bicycle Adventure." by Barbara Savage. I had never heard of this book before but I am an armchair adventurer and so I read it. It's a wonderful travelog of a pair of crazy kids who "rode" around the world. Now obviously that includes some flying, ferries etc, but they took their bikes in 1979-1980 all across the world. And rode places, I now have no desire ever to visit! OMG bugs, mud, poverty etc. Who really wants to deal with that? With my college roommate in '79 we rode across the USA. Now of course for these two, they didn't stop. We did because a) we ran out of money, and b) civilization was calling. One has a hard time justifying going to college and then becoming a travel bum so we returned home and joined the 9-5 crowd. (ugh)

It's not the only book on riding around the world, I have also read Ultimate High: My Everest Odyssey by Goran Kropp and that's another amazing journey.

There is also Full Tilt by Dervla Murphy who in 1963 rode from Ireland to India, I think all the way to the Nepal border.

All good adventure on a bicycle reads!