First Ride Report

On Wed, 19 Mar 2008 21:40:20 -0500, Jeff <[email hidden]>
concluded:

Quoted message said:

The Bad:
The front fender is rubbing on the tire. I'll have to take it back to
the dealer and get it adjusted.

The smallest percentage of bike/car collisions occur from behind.
Most hazards and potential conflicts are in front of you.

Adjusting the clearance of a fender is something a cyclist should be
able to do with a minimal tool kit.. It's usually a compromise
between tire clearance and toe-overlap.

I remember your wanting an off-the-hook fully equipped bike and
hoping to avoid any fettling of your own. Perhaps my attitude is
different. I see bicycles as unstoppable because they are so ruggedly
simple that most problems are obvious, their solutions are self
explanatory and usually can be remedied en route. It's terrifically
empowering to gain those small bits of knowledge. Practice changing
inner tubes at home before having to do it along the road.
--
zk

In article <[email hidden]>,

Zoot Katz said:

I see bicycles as unstoppable because they are so ruggedly
simple that most problems are obvious, their solutions are self
explanatory and usually can be remedied en route.

That's why I generally carry a bunch of zip ties
with me. Except last week I got caught off guard
as my rear fender wanted to ride up the rear wheel
when rolling the bike backward. No sweat, I just
walked a block to the nearest dollar store and
bought yet another bunch of zip ties, and used one
to retether the bottom of the rear fender to that
little bridge thingy behind the bottom bracket.

I guess my Planet Bike Freddie Fenders have lasted
about 8 years now (when was the last Transit strike?)
They even still have their cute li'l mudflaps on 'em.
I've killed a number of metalized plastic SKS's on
other bikes during that interim. But I had to do some
nasty mods to 'em to get 'em to fit around Vee-brakes.
After the fact, I learnt of my across-the-lane, bike shop
wrench, neighbour's nifty li'l trick of melting discrete
little holes in the fenders with something like a cheap-o
Radio Shack 15W soldering pencil, to run the noodles through.
Oh, well. Vee-brakes are for real mountain bikes that
neither need nor want fenders, not city runabouts.

Anyways, since Jeff's beautiful new whip is so new, I
expect it's got some warrantee stuff on it. Might as
well take it to the shop for tweaks. I expect a good shop
would want it back after a while for a follow-up check of
cable stretch and unusual wears & tears, etc. Maybe Jeff
can watch what they do, and ask questions about general
maintenance. And besides, he'd get the opportunity to
once again enjoy the ambience of a bike shop (the olfactory
aspects of which I've deduced to consist of the fragrance
of packing grease so predominant in old-school, heavily
timber'd floor hardware stores, combined with the
quasi-organic aroma of fresh tire rubber.)

Quoted message said:

It's terrifically
empowering to gain those small bits of knowledge. Practice changing
inner tubes at home before having to do it along the road.

Heh. I have many bittersweet memories of performing
roadside repairs in the pouring rain.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

Tom Keats said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Zoot Katz said:

I see bicycles as unstoppable because they are so ruggedly
simple that most problems are obvious, their solutions are self
explanatory and usually can be remedied en route.

That's why I generally carry a bunch of zip ties
with me. Except last week I got caught off guard
as my rear fender wanted to ride up the rear wheel
when rolling the bike backward. No sweat, I just
walked a block to the nearest dollar store and
bought yet another bunch of zip ties, and used one
to retether the bottom of the rear fender to that
little bridge thingy behind the bottom bracket.

I guess my Planet Bike Freddie Fenders have lasted
about 8 years now (when was the last Transit strike?)
They even still have their cute li'l mudflaps on 'em.
I've killed a number of metalized plastic SKS's on
other bikes during that interim. But I had to do some
nasty mods to 'em to get 'em to fit around Vee-brakes.
After the fact, I learnt of my across-the-lane, bike shop
wrench, neighbour's nifty li'l trick of melting discrete
little holes in the fenders with something like a cheap-o
Radio Shack 15W soldering pencil, to run the noodles through.
Oh, well. Vee-brakes are for real mountain bikes that
neither need nor want fenders, not city runabouts.

Anyways, since Jeff's beautiful new whip is so new, I
expect it's got some warrantee stuff on it. Might as
well take it to the shop for tweaks. I expect a good shop
would want it back after a while for a follow-up check of
cable stretch and unusual wears & tears, etc. Maybe Jeff
can watch what they do, and ask questions about general
maintenance. And besides, he'd get the opportunity to
once again enjoy the ambience of a bike shop (the olfactory
aspects of which I've deduced to consist of the fragrance
of packing grease so predominant in old-school, heavily
timber'd floor hardware stores, combined with the
quasi-organic aroma of fresh tire rubber.)

Quoted message said:

It's terrifically
empowering to gain those small bits of knowledge. Practice changing
inner tubes at home before having to do it along the road.

Heh. I have many bittersweet memories of performing
roadside repairs in the pouring rain.

cheers,
Tom

Even better, the LBS is in the process of moving to a location more than
5 times the size of the current location. Lots of stuff on sale.

I'm not very handy (changing a light bulb is cause for celebration). In
their new location, the LBS is hoping to offer basic maintenance
classes, so I'm hoping to take some.

On Thu, 20 Mar 2008 20:13:20 -0500, Jeff <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

It's terrifically
empowering to gain those small bits of knowledge. Practice changing
inner tubes at home before having to do it along the road.

Heh. I have many bittersweet memories of performing
roadside repairs in the pouring rain.

cheers,
Tom

Even better, the LBS is in the process of moving to a location more than
5 times the size of the current location. Lots of stuff on sale.

I'm not very handy (changing a light bulb is cause for celebration). In
their new location, the LBS is hoping to offer basic maintenance
classes, so I'm hoping to take some.

Riding a bicycle helps free us from limitations we put on ourselves.
That's what still makes it a radical thing to do.

Bicycles teach us in subtle ways. They can guide and carry us to
personal achievements undreamt by our pre-cycling selves.
--
zk

In article <[email hidden]>,

Zoot Katz said:

Bicycles teach us in subtle ways. They can guide and carry us to
personal achievements undreamt by our pre-cycling selves.

Best of all, they can get us home after a rough day,
like a milk-wagon horse that knows every stop by heart.

And yeah, if something goes awry, we don't have to
confusedly gawk at an hodge-podge of fuel injectors
and other fancy techno-razzmatazz. We don't have to
hog an whole lane of roadway with the hood raised as
a signal to other road/street users that our vehicular
corpse needs to be somehow pushed aside like a dead
rhinoceros so other people can continue to proceed.

Bicycles are so beautifully conducive to sociability
and independence. The sort of independence car drivers
/think/ they have, until they have to call [C|A]AA.

cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

Zoot Katz said:

Quoted message said:

Riding a bicycle helps free us from limitations we put on ourselves.
That's what still makes it a radical thing to do.

Bicycles teach us in subtle ways. They can guide and carry us to
personal achievements undreamt by our pre-cycling selves.

I don't think about it as much as some of you. I just like to ride. I
am not too handy either, but it is easy to learn to fix flats, clean and
lube your chain, adjust your brakes, change brake pads and so on.
Otherwise, my bikes would sit for weeks before it was convenient for me
to take them in to some shop. I do have two bikes. They are not the
same setup, but if one breaks down, I can ride the other one till I fix
what's broken. I take them to the shop as an absolute last resort.

The most disturbing thing about the original post is that he has not
ridden since the new year. I don't ride as much when it is cold and
rainy, but I enjoy riding too much to lay off for months at a time. I
hope he can get into riding where he enjoys it that much.

catzz66 said:

Zoot Katz said:

Quoted message said:

Riding a bicycle helps free us from limitations we put on ourselves.

That's what still makes it a radical thing to do.

Bicycles teach us in subtle ways. They can guide and carry us to
personal achievements undreamt by our pre-cycling selves.

I don't think about it as much as some of you. I just like to ride. I
am not too handy either, but it is easy to learn to fix flats, clean and
lube your chain, adjust your brakes, change brake pads and so on.
Otherwise, my bikes would sit for weeks before it was convenient for me
to take them in to some shop. I do have two bikes. They are not the
same setup, but if one breaks down, I can ride the other one till I fix
what's broken. I take them to the shop as an absolute last resort.

The most disturbing thing about the original post is that he has not
ridden since the new year. I don't ride as much when it is cold and
rainy, but I enjoy riding too much to lay off for months at a time. I
hope he can get into riding where he enjoys it that much.

Oh, I do enjoy it that much. The layoff was mostly due to road/weather
conditions and the lack of a bike suitable to those conditions.
Winnipeg winters are on the extreme end of things. Cycling is possible,
but it does require care and forethought and a certain amount of discretion.

The new bike is, hopefully, better suited to winter riding than was the
old bike. For one thing, it is the proper size, so coming off the
saddle in a hurry presents less of a risk of going from bass to soprano.
It also has a rack, which makes for a much more comfortable commute
than the rackless old bike.

Jeff said:

Oh, I do enjoy it that much. The layoff was mostly due to road/weather
conditions and the lack of a bike suitable to those conditions. Winnipeg
winters are on the extreme end of things. Cycling is possible, but it
does require care and forethought and a certain amount of discretion.

The new bike is, hopefully, better suited to winter riding than was the
old bike. For one thing, it is the proper size, so coming off the
saddle in a hurry presents less of a risk of going from bass to soprano.
It also has a rack, which makes for a much more comfortable commute
than the rackless old bike.

I'd have to join a spin class if I lived where you do, Jeff. I realize
how nice it is to be able to ride most every day. Good luck to you.