Looking to the high ground...
Topic: Riding and learning...
1/13/07:
Apparently riding a fixed gear daily isn't enough to combat the impact of an otherwise unhealthy lifestyle -- too many burgers, chips, and the odd cigarette. So I decided to add more hills to my rides and spin... on a road bike.

Out came the Trek 1000 frame. This thing was bouncing around between fixed gear and road setup for a while; it was setup as a fixed when I crashed on it and busted up my shoulder. Now it's got downtube shifters and 170mm cranks. 8-spd rear wheel, and 52/36 up front. "I hope to gawd this helps..."

Near me we have a few decent hills, namely Southgate in New Providence, Snyder Ave in Berkeley Hts. and Hillcrest and Stirling Rd coming out of the Watchung Circle. Hillcrest is pretty steep, only rode up it once, but Stirling is often part of the Sunday ride route for the lbs. I also lost a pair of nice bike gloves there once when I was answering nature's call and nearly fell in the creek... Well, add in Union Ave, a street that cuts through from Springfield Ave up to Mountain Ave, and the Watchung Rez, and you have a fair assortment of hills all around. Of course they aren't all easy but that's where practice comes in. First day I rode up Southgate twice, then did Union and another 10 miles on my fgixed gear. Then came more Southgate, alternating the Trek with my Lemond which has a standard 53/39 up front, and more miles. And then Johnston Drive.

Johnston Dr is a steep, winding several hundred foot climb. We went down it one Sunday ride, but going up was new. The word at the lbs is they rode up it this morning, but I missed it. However, just to try, I set out to see if I could get up the hill. It was fun, tiring as heck, but worth the view on top. Spining in the second to easiest gear, I managed to pull myself to the top of the world -- my own little world, at least. On a clear daqy you could see forever -- well, to NYC at least. However, it wasn't a clear day, it was wet and cloudy and my bike was covered with road grime. so, come to think of it, were my legs. But I got back on my bike and smiled. I still had enough legs left for another 20 miles afterwards.

- Elvis

Any given Sunday
Riding back from the new year's day rie at the lbs. Actually, it was more like a party... a few of us showed up with bike equipment but the ride was cancelled on account of rain. I was the only one who rode in. Nevertheless, between bloody mary's aplenty, snacks, and coffee, it worked out -- plus, Dave brought a miniature highwheeler, and it was a hoot to try and ride it without falling off.

I was neading up Bonnie Burn Rd. on my fix when I heard the noise behind me. "thump!" I turned and saw a Jeep has gone into the guardrail on the curve.

The driver was nervous, I helped her get the vehicle out then looked it over. She drove off okay. But it made me think; if I had been there when she went off the road, I'd be playing a harp right now. The road is full of dangers, and it isn't getting any safer. Yet, to distract ourselves from the dangers -- potholes, trucks going off the road in the rain, yuppies in bmw's who run red lights -- we focus on tiny details. Is my seat height exactly right? Maybe I could adjust the handlebar angle slightly? Working with your hands is theraputic, and the virtual repairs that go on in the mind as you consider your bike and what sort of ga-ga hi tech parts you'd like to hang on it, is even better. Each Sunday ride as I'm enjoying my weekly cruise, I'm pondering new and unneeded parts I can't afford and will probably never buy.

Why?

Because it helps. Because, at the end of the day, we are left with one scary fact, illustrated this afternoon by one errant Jeep Liberty: Any given Sunday could be the last.

Enjoy it while it lasts.

- Elvis

roadkill and roadhogs
this entry is to be finished - still in progress.

12-25-06

Sharing the road
Topic: RANTING&RAVING
10/17/06

"Share the road". You hear the expression over and over again, on t-shirts (I have one), on bumper stickers, from the lips of roadies and bike messengers and the local dude on the singlespeed. But what does this actually mean?

The concept is often misconstrued by both cars and bicyclists -- to the detriment of both.

Cyclists often think that this means they can take up the whole road, or that cars have to stop for them, regardless of who has the right of way. This is not true, and riding as if it were is one of the reasons intolerant drivers keep on justifying their intolerance.

Drivers, on the other hand, don't acknowledge the concept at all, or if they do, they simply see it as "don't run over the bicyclists" or otherwise intend them harm. This is well and good, as no one wants to be run over or harmed, but just as the common misconception of bicyclists is too broad, the idea that "sharing the road" is limited to not committing a vehicular homicide is far too narrow.

What "share the road" actually means is that bicycles are vehicles like cars. They are supposed to be on the street and are entitled to no more -- or less -- consideration that the driver of a automobile.

This doesn't mean a bicylcist has the right to swerve into oncoming traffic. But it does mean that cars coming out of, say, a driveway, have an obligation to stop for the bicyle, just as they would a car.

Sadly, this often doesn't happen. The driver sees the bike, pulls out in front of it anyway, thinking either "oh, he can stop," or "why should I wait for a bicycle?" both these thoughts are based on the fact that the bicycle doesn't have a internal combustion engine. If that 20 lb bicycle was a 20 ton truck, you can bet your grandma's pushup bra the driver would wait rather than risk a collision.

So what can be done?

The concept has to be named, and understood. T-shirts and bumper stickers are great for naming concepts, but not for explainign them. Anyone, for instance, can put a "share the road" bumper sticker on their car. But how many can articulate just what it means and why it's important? That is the issue. Cyclists are often angry -- and justifiably so -- by idiots driving cars that nearly kill them. However, how can you by angry at someone for failure to grasp a concept that you yourself are unable to articulate, beyond a bumper sticker slogan?

Cyclists demand recognition of their place on the road -- with good reason. But they should also realize what this entails. Riding in a safe manner, as part of traffic. Not riding the sidewalk. Not riding on the wrong side of the street. Using lights after dark. Every one of these behaviors is not only unsafe but also reinforces the idiots idea of what constitutes bicylcing norms. Every fool riding an expensive road bike on the sidewalk is telling drivers that that's where bikes belong -- on the sidewalk. The bicycle is a vehicle, and it belongs on the road. Not the sidewalk, path or park (the exception being mountainbikes or cross bikes, which are offroad vehicles).

What to do? Cyclists who ride in ways that aren't keeping with traffic out of fear need to take back their place on the streets. Don't let cars crowd you over or onto the sidewalk. Ride as part of traffic. And then you can demand others "share the road" with you. But only if you are willing to share it with them.

Most bicyclists are perfectly willignt o share the road with cars, provided they aren't piloted by maniacs. Are car drivers willing to have the same regard for bikes?

- Elvis

Bucks County by Bike
Topic: RIDE REPORT
10/17/06

Having been riding for several weeks with the crowd from the Scotch Plains bike shop, The Bike Stand, I took my Lemond -- rebuilt with old-school downtube shifters -- on the Covered Bridges ride, a 63 mile trip through rural Bucks Co., PA. It was an excellent ride and there were several thousand people in attendance, most of them experienced cyclists. I saw Cannondales, Raleighs, Orbeas, Treks, and numerous other new bikes, as well as a few other steel Lemonds. There was also a great deal of vintage steel lugged frames, and the winding roads and decent amount of hills made the ride exciting -- and a visual treat. I am not ashamed to say that towards the last ten miles I became somewhat tired, despite riding daily on my track bike and taking my Lemond on 40-60 miles weekend rides. But it was a good fun ride, and that night I slept the sleep of the just.

- Elvis

GT fixed geat mtb -- for the town
Mood:  caffeinated
Topic: RIDE REPORT

Took the road parts off my GT mtb frame, and built it up like this: v brake up front, 26" mtb rims, 42x16t gearing. The perfect around town bike, after the fashion of the old-school messenger (pre fixed gear/track) bicycles, when they old rode rigid mtb's for urban use. Around town, this thing shines, though waiting on street tires the knobbies are slower than I want to be.

- Elvis

The Ross is reborn...
Mood:  caffeinated
Topic: tales from the garage

My Song

Built up a new Ross yesterday, while listening to the above... it's good ridin' tunes. The ross is white with several layers of clearcoat. Hope the paint lasts. This thing handles sweet on the street and the old 3-speed cranks give it that "old school" look.

- Elvis

Folding in MA -- the fix goes on!
Mood:  caffeinated
Topic: RIDE REPORT


Took my fixed gear Dahon -- rebuilt -- to MA this past weekend. Only got in an hours ride but it was fun, Brookline is full of cars and trucks and trolley tracks...

- Elvis

skewed statistics: bikes vs. cars
Mood:  caffeinated
Topic: stupid news
6/9/06 - Reviving some thoughts on the issue I began thinking about the truth: do bikes cause most bike related "accidents" or is there really some merit to the idea that cars, pedestrians, etc. are careless around bikes and non-observant?

The following article from msnbc.com about a cyclist hit and killed in Lexington, KY, is informative:

"A Lexmark employee was hit by a car and killed Wednesday morning while riding his bike to work.

The incident happened around 6 a.m. in Bourbon County. Police say Joshua L. Shaw of Bourbon Countywas driving a car down Hutchinson Station Road near Royal Oak Farm when he hit 61-year-old Bruce Ostermeier. Ostermeier was pronounced dead at the scene at 6:51 a.m.

Police closed Hutchinson Road between Bethlehem Road and Bryan Station Road until around noon while they were investigating the incident.

Drugs and alcohol are not suspected factors in the incident, and no charges are expected to be filed against Shaw."

No drugs or alcohal were involved -- and no charges filed. Why? It is obvious that no drug or alcohol charges would be filed, since drugs and alcohol were involved, but why no charges? Unless the guy on the bike is riding against traffic the driver was clearly at fault. The "I didn't see him" argument only works if one believes drivers don't have an obligation to be observant of their surroundings. They do.

Yet, drivers can basically kill any one of us and walk away scott-free.

And the news media is happy to oblige, providing not even the most basic details about the crashes, such as: Did the cyclist have a blinking light, if so, why didn't the driver see him? Was the driver speeding, was the cyclist riding on the right side of the road? No answer is provided because all the article says, in a nuthell, is that at such and such a time this man killed this man with his car and hasn't been charged with anything.

When cyclists then begin debating amongst themselves, the issue of statistics come up, with many asserting that most crashes are caused by cyclists themselves. But if we assume cyclists to mean what most of us mean when we say "cyclist" -- meaning NOT those people who ride against traffic, etc. but regular road users -- then it becomes clear most of the accidents are not the cyclist's fault. However this is based only on our definition of cyclists, who largely obey traffic laws and have a right to be on the road, and at such aren't at fault. It cannot, however, be based upon much statistical analysis of news-report incidents, for the incidents are reported so poorly, as in this example above, as to be meaningless.

pista!pista!pista!
6/6/06 - The world is supposed to end in 10 minutes tonite so I'll be quick..... replaced the chopped alu ergo drop bars on my Pista with narrow steel drops (also chopped slightly) as shown below. Then after the pic was taken added black griptabe where the rubber mtb grips are shown... Vaya con dios me compadres!

- Elvis