Yesterday, I took the new bike on a 55-mile shakedown ride. That is, with everything I'm going to take with me loaded onto the bike. See picture at left. We sped through the Burke-Gilman Trail around the northwest portion of Lake Washington to where this wonderful trail ended and then attempted to find the Sammamish River Trail to take us all the way down to Lake Sammamish (love that name). The idea was to take the SRT to the I-90 trail, the I-90 trail to the Elliot Bay Trail back to the Burke-Gilman and then to Chris and Mo's house. When the B-G Trail ended I spent about 30 minutes looking for the SRT. Despite asking a number of other cyclists and motorist, I was unsuccessful and found myself staring at the prospect of being lost. Oh well, I said, I'll just head south and will eventually hit the I-90 trail (mind you, I'm not really sure which way is south and the I-90 is about 15-20 miles away). I had been averaging about 18 miles an hour on the B-G Trail and I was feeling pretty confident. Three 25 degree climbs later, I wasn't feeling so confident. Oy, the Seattle area has some unforgiving hills. I finally found my bearings and made my way slowly (due to busy traffic and more hills) through some posh neighborhoods until finally I hit the I-90 trail. I have got to digress for a minute. Seattle is the best city I've ever ridden a bike in. Period. There are so many miles of non-motorized trails and bike paths that it boggles the mind. NYC is making strides, but are still way way way behind in this respect. The I-90 bridge is a lovely ride that goes across Mercer Island kind of the same way that the Queensboro goes over Roosevelt Island--except about 5 times as long and with a trail devoted solely to bike and pedestrian traffic. It was beautiful. The 45 degree climb that was waiting for me on the Seattle side of the bridge was not. I was having a little trouble coaxing the front derailleur to shift into Granny so I ended up pushing my bike up the final 3rd of this climb. Boo! I wandered north from this climb until I found myself at Volunteer Park. Nearly a year ago, Chris introduced me to this lovely spot. I wasn't quite able to enjoy this spot though. I had biked 50 miles so far and it was getting dark. Oh, I forgot to mention that I didn't start this ride until about 3:30 in the afternoon. I made my way to Eastlake Avenue and after crossing University Bridge, was back at casa Putnam in about 5 minutes. Overall, I'm tickled pink with the Surly. It provides an extremely tight ride. I think I may have nailed the weight distribution on the first try, but don't want to count my chickens yet. Because of the front rack, I've got a limited turn radius (the top of the rack hits the downtube if I turn too deeply, I'll need to be careful of that), but the bike seems to handle pretty well. My stopping ability isn't the greatest, especially on the downhill (again, I'll have to be careful here). I went to bed last night sore, but very happy with the initial results. Today, I'm going over to the Bicycle Alliance of Washington to meet Kent Peterson. He's the author of Kent's Bike Blog and someone who knows a great deal about long distance riding. He's also a terrific writer and has an eye for the quirky. I like the quirky too. I think we're going to have coffee and talk shop.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Shakedown (or Getting Lost is Half the Fun)
Yesterday, I took the new bike on a 55-mile shakedown ride. That is, with everything I'm going to take with me loaded onto the bike. See picture at left. We sped through the Burke-Gilman Trail around the northwest portion of Lake Washington to where this wonderful trail ended and then attempted to find the Sammamish River Trail to take us all the way down to Lake Sammamish (love that name). The idea was to take the SRT to the I-90 trail, the I-90 trail to the Elliot Bay Trail back to the Burke-Gilman and then to Chris and Mo's house. When the B-G Trail ended I spent about 30 minutes looking for the SRT. Despite asking a number of other cyclists and motorist, I was unsuccessful and found myself staring at the prospect of being lost. Oh well, I said, I'll just head south and will eventually hit the I-90 trail (mind you, I'm not really sure which way is south and the I-90 is about 15-20 miles away). I had been averaging about 18 miles an hour on the B-G Trail and I was feeling pretty confident. Three 25 degree climbs later, I wasn't feeling so confident. Oy, the Seattle area has some unforgiving hills. I finally found my bearings and made my way slowly (due to busy traffic and more hills) through some posh neighborhoods until finally I hit the I-90 trail. I have got to digress for a minute. Seattle is the best city I've ever ridden a bike in. Period. There are so many miles of non-motorized trails and bike paths that it boggles the mind. NYC is making strides, but are still way way way behind in this respect. The I-90 bridge is a lovely ride that goes across Mercer Island kind of the same way that the Queensboro goes over Roosevelt Island--except about 5 times as long and with a trail devoted solely to bike and pedestrian traffic. It was beautiful. The 45 degree climb that was waiting for me on the Seattle side of the bridge was not. I was having a little trouble coaxing the front derailleur to shift into Granny so I ended up pushing my bike up the final 3rd of this climb. Boo! I wandered north from this climb until I found myself at Volunteer Park. Nearly a year ago, Chris introduced me to this lovely spot. I wasn't quite able to enjoy this spot though. I had biked 50 miles so far and it was getting dark. Oh, I forgot to mention that I didn't start this ride until about 3:30 in the afternoon. I made my way to Eastlake Avenue and after crossing University Bridge, was back at casa Putnam in about 5 minutes. Overall, I'm tickled pink with the Surly. It provides an extremely tight ride. I think I may have nailed the weight distribution on the first try, but don't want to count my chickens yet. Because of the front rack, I've got a limited turn radius (the top of the rack hits the downtube if I turn too deeply, I'll need to be careful of that), but the bike seems to handle pretty well. My stopping ability isn't the greatest, especially on the downhill (again, I'll have to be careful here). I went to bed last night sore, but very happy with the initial results. Today, I'm going over to the Bicycle Alliance of Washington to meet Kent Peterson. He's the author of Kent's Bike Blog and someone who knows a great deal about long distance riding. He's also a terrific writer and has an eye for the quirky. I like the quirky too. I think we're going to have coffee and talk shop.
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Red Hook Vendors Pressed to Get New Permit
Those of you who know me know how much I love the soccer taco season in Red Hook. This news from The New York Times is just horrid. Horrid, I tell you.
Bike Governor's Island
I just learned that Governor's Island in NYC is once again open to to the public this summer. What's more, they're allowing cycling in designated areas. This is very cool (car free!) and I hope I make it back before their summer season ends. I'd love to check it out. Here's some information. Looks like a bunch of concerts and stuff are taking place there too.
The Bike
Here are some close-ups of my new cross-continental conveyance.
Ze whole ting, mit fore and aft cargo racks. The frame is made by Surly and is called The Long Haul Trucker. 54 cm.
Shimano SPD Clipless pedals and Shimano 105 3-ring crankset
Shimano Deore 11-34 megarange cassette, Deore LX rear Derailleur
Jannd Extreme Front Rack, Planet Bike Fenders, Mavic Crossride wheel, Serfas Barista City Tire
Axiom Odyssee Tubular Alloy Rear Rack
The Cockpit: Planet Bike Lite, bell, Cat Eye Microwireless Computer, and Shimano Dura Ace bar-end shifters.
Ze whole ting, mit fore and aft cargo racks. The frame is made by Surly and is called The Long Haul Trucker. 54 cm. 
Shimano SPD Clipless pedals and Shimano 105 3-ring crankset
Shimano Deore 11-34 megarange cassette, Deore LX rear Derailleur
Jannd Extreme Front Rack, Planet Bike Fenders, Mavic Crossride wheel, Serfas Barista City Tire
Axiom Odyssee Tubular Alloy Rear Rack
The Cockpit: Planet Bike Lite, bell, Cat Eye Microwireless Computer, and Shimano Dura Ace bar-end shifters.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Arrival
Maybe the delay was due to the JFK fuel depot "terrorist" scare or maybe it's because of Paris Hilton going to jail...all I know is that it took 11 days for the new bike to be shipped from NYC to Seattle. In any case, it's here and I'll be picking it up tomorrow morning--at which time I'll share more photos--of both the bike and of all the equipment I'll be carrying with me. So...Hooray! Now that the bike is here, I'll be able to take it on a few shakedown rides before leaving this weekend. I'm a little anxious--you don't normally switch ponies before the big steeple chase--about getting used to the new set up. The adage "It's just like riding a bike" does not apply in this situation.
Tonight, I'm playing poker with Chris and some of his buddies. It sounds like it's something he does on a regular basis with a regular group of people, so I don't know exactly what I'll be getting into. He says it's small stakes (a $10 buy-in) so it ought to be a relaxed friendly game. A full report will follow.
Oh...and an elaboration on my statement "Chris acted honorably, I did not." from my last post. The Blue Moon Bar, where we spent the last part of the evening, is festooned with a large decorative library of technical manuals, out-of-date encyclopedia sets, etc. I walked out of the bar at the end of the evening with a copy of The New Comb Honey Book by Dr. Richard Taylor. It's a how-to bee keeping book that caught my attention and I was so enamoured of it, that I just walked out the door with it. Tonight, I plan on returning the pilfered paperback to its proper owners.
Tonight, I'm playing poker with Chris and some of his buddies. It sounds like it's something he does on a regular basis with a regular group of people, so I don't know exactly what I'll be getting into. He says it's small stakes (a $10 buy-in) so it ought to be a relaxed friendly game. A full report will follow.
Oh...and an elaboration on my statement "Chris acted honorably, I did not." from my last post. The Blue Moon Bar, where we spent the last part of the evening, is festooned with a large decorative library of technical manuals, out-of-date encyclopedia sets, etc. I walked out of the bar at the end of the evening with a copy of The New Comb Honey Book by Dr. Richard Taylor. It's a how-to bee keeping book that caught my attention and I was so enamoured of it, that I just walked out the door with it. Tonight, I plan on returning the pilfered paperback to its proper owners.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
I Have the Hiccups
It is June the 2nd and I am still bereft of a bicycle. No matter, I have a much more interesting situation. Said sitch is 13 pounds and 100% pure joy.
Chris and I took the evening and shattered the peace at a number of pubs. Let it be known that Chris conducted himself with honor. I cannot say the same for myself.
It is late in the evening and I must soon to lay my head to rest. A Friday night in Seattle is, after all, a friday night in Seattle.
T-minus 8 days until my departure...hopefully.
Chris and I took the evening and shattered the peace at a number of pubs. Let it be known that Chris conducted himself with honor. I cannot say the same for myself.
It is late in the evening and I must soon to lay my head to rest. A Friday night in Seattle is, after all, a friday night in Seattle.
T-minus 8 days until my departure...hopefully.
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