Fixed what didn't know was broken

no coasting anymore

I have a good friend that has been riding fixed gear off road for a couple years.  I have been curious and last week decided to give it a go.  It is amazing!  My first ride was last Saturday and it was like riding a new bike.  I am pretty sure I was riding obstacles faster than with my freewheel.  There definitely is something liberating about not thinking about pedaling, knowing that there is no choice.  It doesn't matter where your crank arm is, it is always going to be moving forward.  There is a tiny amount of control, but pretty much if that rock is big enough to hit that arm, it's going to hit it.

We went out this morning and rode a different course that doesn't have as many technical sections and boy did I pay for it.  I knew I was geared too low, but I ran out of time to change things up.  It appears I should change gears depending on what course we ride.  I also switched back to a rigid fork which definitely changes the ride.  Kind of old school in a way and I think I can really dig this reverting back to old school riding.  We have an off road weekend planned in early October and it may be a difficult choice on what type of bike I take.  Maybe I will have to make space to take more than one.

Really never saw this before

otherwise boring fence

Spring is very promising.  One of the wonderful, twisted delights of spring is finishing work before the sun goes down.  Riding home this evening, I meandered my way home and came across this scene which I have ridden by countless times.  I really don't know that it was anything but my project of taking in my surroundings that made me stop and look harder at this fence.  I just love the way the shadows streak across the snow.  Another few days and this will not be near so dramatic.  We are at the last days of the deep snow pack.  I guess I should enjoy it while I can.

Snow and all the fixins

Not as snowy as I thought it would be

 We received a bit of snow around here.  Hopefully the last of the big snows for the season.  Usually around the first of March, spring fever starts to hit hard around the cities.  We see an increase in customers at the shop, and with the sun starting to kick out a bit more heat and staying around longer, it's hard to not be excited about longer bike rides and less clothing while doing so.  Unfortunately, we still have to deal with snow and cold wet weather for another month or so.  It can become a bit depressing.

I ride over train tracks almost every day

Door latch mechanism new spring installed

I had the day off today and with a house that is 100 years old, some stuff tends to wear out and need fixin.  I have a couple of inside doors that have been less than perfect for a while.  Today, I could take it no longer.  I took the first one apart and found a coil spring had broken, causing the latch to hang up and keeping it from travelling completely into the catch.  A slight alteration to a retractable pen spring and door #1 was back in operation.  On door#2 I wasn't planning on digging into the mechanism but upon further inspection I found a linear spring had broken (fixed easily enough with a piece of rack brace).  I may have started a bad trend as both doorknobs now work fantastic being cleaned out and having some Phil Wood grease on the moving parts.

Ice

We have some hellacious icicles growing off our roof. With a house that is celebrating it's 100th birthday this year, it isn't completely unexpected. I move quickly underneath them whenever I have to walk around the side of the house (pretty much every day to get my bike out and in). I started looking at other icicles around the neighborhood and when I am riding around town, and I have concluded that our icicles really aren't that bad. And there are some nifty things that happen to water as it freezes.

This pic is from the bike shop behind the building. We have some random cable running down one of the gutters and it has frozen all the way top down. It's about 30 ft total height. Tough to visualize through this camera lens, but interesting to my eye.

A Different Month

winter commuter at Como Park

I took the day off today to recover from celebrating my 40th birthday.  I had to stop by work for a short spell and the ride home was much more delightful than I had anticipated.  The sun is as high in the sky as it is in mid October which is one of the most pleasant months to ride around the twin cities.  It sure made all the difference today, with temps hovering in the mid teens, but I was able to ride with gloves that normally I wouldn't use unless it was 25 degrees warmer.  

I also decided I would try a new concept to go along with the new month of 30 days of biking.  I stepped up the date and am starting my 30 days of biking a month early and along with that, I am trying 30 days of photographs.  The idea is to be out, on my bicycle and make sure to take the time to really look at my surroundings.  

I will have no themes or restrictions when heading out.  I am sure there will be a fair amount of bicycles and bicycle related images that will emerge, but I am hoping that by doing this, I will open my eyes to a little bit more of my environment.  To capture different scenes and garner inspiration, I will have to ride different places.  This has always been one of my weaknesses, falling into habits of riding routes, which I am trying to change.  

True change should be deliberate.  

Really, again?

4th time better be a charm...and I hope number 32 is super lucky.

Leaving Las Vegas

I am not a fan of the Vegas city.  There is no hiding that.  Upon being picked up at the airport today I was struck with how much of my description of my week was about stuff I didn't enjoy about being in Vegas.  That is something I need to work on.

My coworker Cayley and I flew back to civilization today.  Coming back to the smells and subtle sounds of Minnesota is amazing.  But I am already thinking of products I didn't quite pick up enough information about.  Fender mounts, diversity of socks and gloves, freewheels.  There are a number of things that I just didn't get around to.

Personally, one of the exciting things this year is the growing acceptance of the 584 bsd wheel size.  Some refer to this as 650b or a growing trend of 27.5", but I like to stick to the actual measurement.  In talking with one of the guys from Park Tool, I referenced 584 and he was super pleased in being able to talk actual measurable numbers.  It's a trend I would love to see expanded on.  Anyway, there are a bunch of new components that are being introduced for 584 bikes.  Not a lot of bikes from the big companies, but there are a few popping up.  Forks (Rock Shox has around 6 different options), rims and wheels, and now a number of tyre options (around 6 from Schwalbe alone).  I am hoping to be able to squeeze one of these new bikes into my fleet sooner than later.

I liked what I saw from the bag company Deuter.  I don't know if we can sell any, but they seem to be a nice alternative to Camelbak or some of the other larger US brands.  Wednesday was the trip through the Shimano booth.  11 speed is here.  The electronic shifting didn't do that much for me.  I do appreciate the larger shift pad, sleeker front derailleur design, programmable sensitivity, and multi-shift options, but I really liked the improved mechanical front shifting and cable refinements.  There was zero hesitation on the front shifting.  I have a number of customers with small hands that are really going to like that technology.  It may have to creep down to some lower levels, but it should get there.  I cant' say I am unimpressed with the Alfine 11 electronic setup, but I don't think it is what most commuters want.  What is nice about it, is the ability to run a flat or riser or drop bar setup with a small change to your shifter.

Staying on the Shimano theme, the new 7900 system uses a 110 bcd  crankset.  It is the same no matter what kind of sizing you are dealing with.  That should be a nicer way to manufacture cranks with just having to bolt on a 53/42 chainring set on one, and then bolt a 50/34 on the exact same arms.  Nice for changing riding styles as well.  There are quite a few other changes that are happening at Shimano, but my brain isn't able to regurgitate them up right now.

Against my better judgment, I may try to convince the higher ups to try out a few Lyzene pumps.  They have always had great looking designs but there are a few things I have now seen in person that i think would sell ok.  Not that we need more pump options, but if there are products out there that are worth selling, we should have them, or at least have used them.

Still wading through some pictures and will have them up throughout next week.