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!

Specialized All Conditions Tire review

I am currently riding a 700x28 Specialized All Conditions tire on my front wheel and last week I took a close inspection to see how it was holding up. It's currently full of a zillion tiny holes, from I know not what. I do have glass on my route because I ride in traffic but I've never seen tire tread to this. On the other hand I haven't had any flats because of it either. I haven't replaced the tire and probably won't until it gets closer to failure. B

But this tire bears watching.

Cherry Blossom Ride

A beautiful tree in my own neighborhood, just as I'm leaving it.

This spray of daffodills are on Mercer Island just opposite the old Inn.

Capitol Hill looking back at the first block of Cherry trees

The next block, the trees are on both sides of the street.

The front of the girl's school up on Capitol Hill.

These trees are marked "protected" from the construction of that apartment building and it looks like they are going to make it just fine.

This apartment complex is two blocks from my office. The trees are surrounding a parking lot and then continue on the next block. You don't have to go to the other Washington to see the cherry trees but you do if you want warm weather! It was only 40F on the way in today.

New Bike trail on 108th SE in Belleuve

I checked out Bellevue's newest bike trail and it's awful. The reason is that it crosses several side streets and lots of driveways all with terrible sightlines. I recipe for getting hit if you ride on it. But to make it the city took out the shoulders on the road, so if you ride in traffic it's twice as hard for a car to pass you and you have no place to bail if they decide to brush you in passing.

Grade F for bicycling. Looks ok for runners through.

So much for riding in January!

Well maybe I can ride tomorrow after it finishes melting all this stuff off the trail.
(photo from a friend of mine, who walked this portion of the ride using ice creepers on his shoes and studded tires on his bike.)

2012 New Year's Resolutions

Looking back at 2011 I did at least ride more than the year before, which was one of my resolutions. In 2010, I rode 141 times to just crest 4K miles commuting. In 2011, I had an accident in February ripping my glove and my hand. That plus a vacation and I didn't ride at all that month so I figured it was already over. But by just keeping at it, I managed to ride 166 times in 2011, which is 5.2K miles. It's not exact as I'm not using a GPS or cycle computer and there is some variance in my daily commute so I don't get bored but it's close enough.

In 2012, I'm shooting for 6K miles. It may not be achievable. I have a lot on my plate in 2012 but it's good to have goals, and it is possible with even riding every day. And riding every work day is impossible for me.

I also resolve to remember that each day is a gift and not to be tossed away lightly. One never knows what's coming next. To that end I will continue to spread cheer to everyone I meet. Because the more joy you spread around the better you feel.

Anyway see you out there on the road! Ride safe!

Lost in space needle (in the fog!)

Another foggy day ride into work. This is from the 15th. It's been foggy most mornings on the ride in. However the weather is changing back to rain, so no more fog for a while.

A freezing fog ride to work

Friday there was a thermal inversion here in Seattle. When I left home the roads were wet, and the cars covered with dew. By the time I got to Seattle, which is about 500ft lower in elevation, everything was covered in frost. Fortunately, no black ice.

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More Tree Sweaters in Occidental Park.

Rode by Occidental Park the next week and saw more trees with sweaters! Talk about a tree hugging city!

And to think that I saw it off main street!

Some days you see something that makes you pull over and go, "did I just see what I think I saw?" Well Friday was one of those days. Riding up 4th Ave in Seattle I spotted trees with "sweaters." They look like they came out of a Dr. Seuss book so I rode back and took some photos. Pretty cool actually and the light was almost perfect, low angle and right on the trees themselves.

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K-Edge Chain Catcher Shift saver review

Every once in a while I buy something that is totally worth it. This gizmo is worth it. It was a small bit of work to install, you need to remove the shift cable, then unbolt the front deraileur cage, then using the bolt they give you and this bit of metal re-assemble it so that the metal just clears everything on the inside of your chain rings. Then reset the shift cable and test it. With a small amount of finaglling and that I put my shift cage back in alignment I got it to work.

Fall colors ride

Well with the wonderful Fall weather we have been having I brought my camera along to take a few photos to show "the folks at home" what a wonderful daily commute ride I have.

This is the I-90 bridge with Seattle missing in the morning fog.

This is Lake Union with Freemont missing in the morning fog

Another view of Lake Union and the fog.

A really pretty tree on Mercer Island on the way in.

With the time change I now ride home in full dark. I've got the brightest lights on the road on a bicycle. Tonight we've got a full moon and the city of Bellevue off to the left. It's a bit blurry as I didn't bring my tripod. Oh well. The bike path is along the roadway just to the left of the headlights of the oncoming traffic. We have a jersey barrier between us, so no worries.

Attack Cat!

About two weeks ago I was riding across the I-90 trail on Mercer Island when an approaching bicyclist yelled "Attack Cat"... I was majorly confused until I rounded the corner and this huge White cat jumped out of the bushes at me!

Since that time I've been carrying my camera and tonight it was out on the prowl again. I don't have a great attack video but he was thinking about his prey for the night. You can just tell from this video.




Hiding in the bushes!


That jogger was almost dead meat!

Afterwards when I didn't have my camera out another cyclist came by and I warned him and the cat did jump and he did swerve to miss it, but the cat was brushed by the back tire and ran back into the bushes. I went and looked and he was no where to be found, so that may be the last attack on bicyclists for a while until he has a new place to jump from.

A Tack on Bicycles!

I rode to work on Friday morning like I always do, and on my way across the Mercer Island I-90 trail, I noticed a lot of folks with flat tires. I didn't think much of it, but I did slow down and confirm that the riders were "Ok" before riding on. After crossing the bridge I came to the I-90 tunnel and saw my friend and co-worker James, who was patching his tire. Two other cyclists stopped to help him out with the job. From one of the other riders I found out that he had counted 6 riders with flats from carpet tacks. James's flat was also caused by a tack, that made 7 we knew about.

On my way home, I rode with another buddy from work, Tim, and we saw three more cyclists stopped fixing flats. We stopped right after that and rubbed our tires hoping that we hadn't picked up any tacks ourselves. We were lucky so far.

The rest of the ride home was uneventful, but Tim mentioned that he has had a lot of flats by tack in the last month, and had tried various ways to avoid them. He tried using Slime tubes, Kevlar tires, tire liners etc all to no avail. I resolved to take some time on Saturday and see if I could locate the source of these tacks and clean them up.

Saturday at the crack of noon I headed to the hardware store where I bought a magnet on a stick.

I drove to the park near the Eastern side of the floating I-90 bridge. I had seen people with flats as far away as the Eastern I-90 bridge but James had said he thought he picked up the tack on the Western highrise. The riders I had seen were at the other end of the bridge. So I parked and started down the trail.

I resolved to sweep one side of the trail and the other side going back. From my test trials in the hardware store, I realized you have to be pretty near the object to snag it. When you walk and swing this magnet it traces sort of a "Z" down the path. The arc doesn't quite cover the whole area where you walk. If this was land mine sweeping, I'd be dead, but it's not.

I now realize that bicyclists are jerks to pedestrians on this bridge. Almost no one said "On your Right!" or rang a bell or horn so that I could hear them coming. With the traffic driving by at 60mph, bicyclists, myself included tend to push it and when a cyclist rides by and close to you at 20+mph, it's not pleasant. I'm as visible as it gets as I was wearing my highway worker vest and some lime green gloves, I look sort of like a blind person and still they mostly passed way too closely, and with no warning. Now that's not all riders but it is a lot of them. Anyway after two hours of a slow pace across the bridge I was pretty hopping mad at the too close riders, thinking about other uses for a cane.

Well after a little more than an hour I reached the Western high rise with only this to show for my trouble. Yep metallic dirt, probably rust from cars or bits from the re-bar in the concrete in the bridge.

I did pick up these bits of junk. Not really sharp, but who needs this trash to wash into the lake.

When I turned around to go back across the bridge I noticed a real blind person. This woman with her cane was over near the overlook fishing around in the bushes. I asked her what's up and could I help, and she mentioned that she had dropped her main cane and could I see it? All I could see were bushes, but when I used my magnet stick, I was able to push the bushes from side to side, and low and behold, found her cane. It was about 4ft below the observation deck and I was able to snare the loop on the handle with my stick and return it. I had been wondering why I had bothered to sweep a clean bridge with a magnet, but now I realize that I was supposed to be here and help this woman.

Next here comes a guy walking his bicycle! Yep another tack flat. He told me that he noticed the flat tire on the other end of the bridge and had walked across the rest of the way.

So I went back across the bridge. Near the Eastern high rise I met this family who was also out looking for tacks. Only unlike me, they had found some.

This girl had spotted about 20 tacks. Turns out her parents bicycle commute from Mercer Island to Seattle at about 6:30am and had both gotten flats. They had come back to look today and found a few tacks and were headed across the bridge to look for more. I saved them that trip and we headed back to where they had found their first tacks.

With my magnet and an extremely slow sweep along the trail and the side I collected these tacks.

You'd think that a pleasant bit of trail like this wouldn't have tube tearing menace in it. This is very near the spot where all the cyclists gather to meet for rides around Mercer Island. It's no where near the road, so someone had to walk or ride a bike here to drop these tacks. My theory is that it's a disgruntled pedestrian. But it could be a driver who is mad and knows where the bikes go. Or maybe some crazy love triangle among the cyclists who gather? I must watch too many soap opera movies. Crazy people don't need a reason to do crazy things.

I think I got them all and if next week you find one in your tire, I'm sorry but I spent as much time as I had to do this. I'm just hoping that whoever did this realizes that it's bloody dangerous to have an unexpected puncture. You lose a lot of control when the tire goes flat fast and if it's the front one you could lose enough control that you actually injure yourself or someone else.

We need to remember we are all on this planet together and we need to share the roads, not make them more dangerous for each other.