Tournez à gauche

Should be a meme: 5 nice things about my bike commute

2008-07-25T07:01:00.001-07:00

1. The showers at work are not gross

2. They even provide free towels (well, covered in my $3 monthly fee)

3. I am glad not to be the only "freak" who rides my bike to work (two other people that I know of ride to work at least occasionally)

4. Bonus of riding to work: My brain is already operational once I get to work

5. This seems to be the only ride time I get these days, aside from the Monday night ride

6. Now that gas prices are high, I see other bike commuters on the road and we ride together and chat. It is nice!

Miles to work (one way): 7.9
Mileage upon arriving at work: 3784.2

What I ate: Monday, June 2, 2008

2008-06-02T11:34:00.000-07:00

Breakfast: 1 Van's frozen waffle

Lunch: Egg white omlette with tomato, spinach and mozzarella, half a piece of toast, some fruit

Drinks: 1 water at lunch

What I ate: Sunday, June 1, 2008

2008-06-02T11:32:00.001-07:00

Lunch: Burger and fatty sides at Oeder's Lake picnic
Snack: 2 Hershey's Special Dark miniatures
Dinner: Yagoot with Cap'n Crunch and Strawberries (I recommend this combo)
Drinks: Water

testing mogulus embed code

2008-05-16T09:07:00.001-07:00

test

2008-05-09T11:02:00.001-07:00

I'm putting my money on team Slipstream

2008-04-12T22:04:00.000-07:00

First, cuz they have the nicest team kits. Second, because husband thinks so.

How you know it's time to get back on the bike

2008-02-12T09:06:00.000-08:00

1. You're flabby and plain old out of shape

2. Your "baby" excuse is no longer valid - the kid is nearly 2 years old

3. Your evening physical activity consists of sitting on the couch with the laptop

4. You have a vivid nightmare about your hand cracking open in the thenar web area, due to skin that is dry to the point of brittle. Instead of seeing blood, ligaments and muscles below the skin, you notice that everything has turned to a grey-brown dust, which disintegrates upon contact. And, on top of that horror, you notice green pustules are placed nearly, though not perfectly on the grid of disintegration, ready to pop at any moment.

I thought that writing about the nightmare would make it stop creeping me out. Nope. :-(

Cincinnati, a modern land

2008-02-08T13:50:00.000-08:00

My town, Cincinnati, is home to some great cycling stuff, including great cycling clubs, great racing including road and cyclocross racing and a weekly crit near my house, a bike messenger, alleycats, a river-side rails-to-trails trail, swell bike shops, the Sunflower Century and now....our own pedal-powered food delivery service.

Man, now all we're missing is a velodrome!

Video profile of bike commuter

2007-09-10T09:06:00.001-07:00

The talented Carrie Cochran produced this video on local bike commuter Wes Crout.

Here's the text and slideshow.

Getting the baby to enjoy the bike trailer

2007-09-05T09:17:00.001-07:00

The baby - 1.5 years old - doesn't enjoy riding in her bike trailer. Our longest ride with her to date is 2 miles.

We were SO excited to take her out on the bike (and for us to start cycling again,) so as soon as she turned 1, we wanted to try out the trailer. Her helmet - the smallest size available - was too big.

So, we waited for several months. Five months to be exact.

Now that the helmet fits, my kid doesn't get a kick out of the trailer. We gave her snacks (occupied her for the most part) and loaded the trailer with stuffed animals and books, but after awhile, she had had it. I think she wants to ride on her own bike, not in a trailer.

A friend suggested what she used to do ... give the kid a radio with a knob so she can tune it. Cool idea!

The cost of my commute

2007-09-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

I live in Cincinnati, Ohio, and first, travel about 5 miles to drop my child off at daycare then head about 3 more miles to work. My husband picks up our daughter, so I usually head straight home from work.

According to GoMetro.com's cost of driving calculator, my monthly commuting cost is $312 and my annual commuting cost is $3744.

The parking garage (downtown, same building where I work) is $150 a month.

Pre baby, I used to ride my bike to work and my cost was about $200 in the first year:
- Winter riding stuff - Tights ($85) and heavier duty winter cycling gloves ($15?)
- Tires - One pair, I think ($80-ish)
- About 5 tubes ($25-ish, probably less)
- Shampoo - An extra shampoo for at work - I use soap as body wash, not just for the head ($3)

Husband now wants to eat Chipotle all the time

2007-09-04T07:16:00.000-07:00

This is because Chipotle is sponsoring a cycling team. Quoteth the husband: "They are very serious and very stylish."

And now, they want you (the generic form of the pronoun) to design their new jersey!

Going on the Reser ride

2007-08-21T14:54:00.000-07:00

Gotta leave so I get there on time! (See, twitting isn't reserved for Twitter!)

I remember the old Internets

2007-08-17T19:26:00.001-07:00

JACK HANDEY-ESQUE MUSING:

I remember, back in the days of 1.0, that there were lots o free services but then they shut down because they weren't making money. There's a heck of a lot of free stuff out there now. Hm.

testing

2007-08-03T12:28:00.000-07:00

back on (again) and those damn inchworms!

2007-04-30T11:13:00.000-07:00

notes.

1. i went riding sunday with my husband. it was nice, except the weather is causing his asthma to act up.

2. we rode a few miles on the new bike trail to lebanon. it was nice and included a nice bridge and hill. we didn't go the whole way (long story, my fault) anyway, despite my husband's bitching that trails are not as fun as streets, this was nice.

3. i never thought i'd say a caterpillar was ugly, but the tent caterpillars sure are. perhaps that's because they've invaded my street, wriggling all over the damn place. i wanted to use the deck for a's birthday party, so i am paying $50 to have them killed off of the tree in the back yard. gah.

this relates to cycling because they drop from the sky on long webs and, yech, just another reason not to ride with your mouth open.

4. now that i'm off for a few weeks, i'm planning a ride every day. it's about time to go out now...

5. in local news, the newspaper reports a man was pulled over for not having a headlight on his bike. police discovered crack and coke on the guy as well.

Eating: Flavored potato chips

2007-02-08T18:15:00.000-08:00

Why do you ride? Personally, I ride to enjoy the scenery, ride to enjoy passing fit-looking people on super-expensive bikes, and, of course, ride to EAT.

I love to try new food. Chocolate covered bugs? Check. Pickled kimchee? Check. (I'll skip the balut though.)

So when I saw the online offer for Kettle brand's Passport to Flavor pack, I had to proceed.

Soon enough, the tasty chips in their cute bags (and CD and fancy chip clip and flyer and postcards) arrived on my doorstep, and I dug in with both hands.

These chips are worth riding extra miles for. Here's my review, and by the way, I'm ordering several more packs for friends.

1. Azteca Chocolate

Dagoba chocolate-dusted yumminess. They seemed to be greasier than the other packs, so score them down for that, but I was licking the inside of the bag, if that gives you any idea. I bet this would be good with dipping chocolate. The other flavors were savory-sweet but this was sweet with a bit of savory (red chili and cinnamon - sounds Skyline Chili-esque, huh?.)

2. Dragon 5 Spice

The spices are exotic-y: anise, black pepper, cinnamon, fennel and ginger. I couldn't taste the black pepper so well, but I wouldn't be able to eat a bunch of these in one sitting, but the taste was interesting. My husband, on the other hand, LOVED these.

3. Island Jerk

This chip does a good job at capturing the essence of Jamaican BBQ, but despite the greatness of flavors, I'm just not a BBQ chip person - well, I've gotta be in the right mood. Really well done, just not my cup of tea.

4. Twisted Chile Lime

The taste was like an upscale Fritos brand flavor, but props to the flavor engineer - it was more of a symptom of the flavor rather than the excellent engineering/balancing of the flavors. (I remember being thrilled when Fritos chili cheese flavor came out a few years ago.) Perhaps I'm spoiled because chili that isn't either Texas Chili with beans and stewed tomatoes or Skyline Chili to me is CRAP.

5. Royal Indian Curry

Some other blogger suggested these would pair nicely with raita. That's a swell idea and perhaps I'd like them more if I was dipping to diffuse the sweet-tart flavor. The same blogger also discussed how this seems very British, as Brits are always creating masala or curry flavored snacks. But, unlike the other blogger, was not a fan of this flavor. I happen to enjoy curry flavored items and I'm a huge fan of Indian food, but my bag of chips was too overpowering. I needed more subtlety.

Fat mommy

2007-01-23T19:50:00.000-08:00

My daughter's 8 months old and I'm not yet back on the bike.

I rode around a few times after she was born, but never got back in the habit. I also didn't get back in the habit of exercising and eating right. Big, fat mistake.

It's amazing that I could go from health "fan" (I was in no way a nut) who rode my bike to work in the COLD and RAIN and even raced (twice) and went to yoga class (the hard one) a few times a week to fat ass has to squeeeeeeeeze on my old jeans - then has to wear a long shirt to hide the muffintop.

Gross.

The hardest part of having a kid and exercising is being organized. I'd say it's finding the time, but if you are organized, you have time.

And, it's also about tearing yourself away from an adorable kid who you want to shower with love and attention. There's something about being a working parent that, at the end of the day, brings you back to your child like a magnet, not wanting to let go until they drift off to sleep. (The too-late bedtime didn't help, but we're fixing that.)

Number three on the list would be remembering how good it feels working hard on the bike and seeing great things you wouldn't see in a car. Or, remembering how it feels after a long ride and how good it feels to pull on those jeans over my hips, not over fatty hips.

Another thing. I might as well sell my Cannondale and buy a Goodwill Huffy so I don't look like that fat idiot tooling around at 15 mph, sweating up a storm. (Don't worry. I'm not going to sell it.) That's why I'm staying inside on the trainer (for bike purposes, only) until I start looking a little more...respectable.

I'd like to see that study with Lycra as the variable

2006-12-09T22:48:00.000-08:00

Here's the link to the NYT article about Ian Walker's study (University of Bath) on cars overtaking (or, in America, "passing") bikes on roadways. Direct link to study here.

The study results make perfect sense to me - if a motorist percieves a cyclist to be more skilled, they'll subconsciously pass closer to the cyclist. This is the same thinking cyclists encounter while passing the little kid, weaving back and forth, on the bike trail - STAY AWAY.

Actually, there's a whole list of people to stay away from, on and off the trail.

--- Old lady riding Wal*Mart bike with big shock absorbers - What is up with these oddly shaped, off-balance bikes, anyway? They weigh a zillion pounds and don't corner. Nope, they just tip over unless ridden by member of circus high-wire act.

--- Dehydrated person - See, their bike didn't come with a water bottle, so they just ride and ride and stay "tough" until they faint from dehydration. Nice.

--- Aforementioned little kid - Please keep your out-of-control monsters off the bike trail. Same goes for aloof teens who are so embarrased to be on a family outing that they zone out and end up crashing.

--- Freaky drivers - It may seem like fun at the time, or not fun but a "duty," but let these a-holes go and don't yell back or try to get even. Just not a good idea.

That's just a start...

So, here's my new plan: dress like a kid, ride a kiddie bike and weave in and out of busy traffic. Perhaps someone will stop, ask if I've run away from home, and offer to phone my parents! (Kidding, folks.)

Baby carrier

2006-11-19T16:56:00.000-08:00

Well, not really...

Women, take note!

2006-11-18T21:04:00.000-08:00

The ad claims: "One can be genteel and neat, and still indulge a love of out-door sports."

Need to get back on the bike

2006-11-14T18:33:00.000-08:00

No excuses. I'm sick of pigging out at work, pigging out at home, going to bed way too late, waking up way too late and not riding my bike AT ALL. As in, my gut is too big, too much moving around makes me winded, and that's a disgrace.

To motivate me, here's a cute photo that was used for a SF Critical Mass poster. And, to think, that I've never been to a Critical Mass ride. I've promised myself for at least a year that I'll go and yet I never have.

Click here to view the photo on Flickr.

Happy Halloween

2006-10-31T18:11:00.000-08:00

Above photo found on Flickr. It's someone's costume.

Go Further

2006-10-28T21:33:00.000-07:00

I just finished watching Woody Harrelson's Go Further, an independent documentary about Harrleson's speaking tour/clean-living initiative.

I was a bit surprised that Harrelson and his cohorts spent so much road cycling time sans helmets. I've ridden Route 1 in California, and I wouldn't dream of riding without styrafoam and plastic around my cranium.

On a non-cycling note, I thought the movie lacked focus, but as I watched more of the movie, more of a storyline emerged, and it became more clear that one doesn't have to be a biologist or any other -ist professional to have an understanding about responsible living.

Fox and hound

2006-10-16T19:02:00.000-07:00

Saw this on my local Craigslist: Someone wants to start a Fox and hound bicycle game in my city.

I love my little blue Cannondale and I've had some wonderful times on bikes, but reading this particular post made me long for the days when riding to me meant horses.

I've been on a foxhunt before - the kind with horses and doggies, er, hounds and MFHs (masters of the fox hunts) and whip (or, to the green, whipper-ins) and it was way fun.

I was a young Pony Clubber at the time, but to ride in the hunt as an adult is a whole different ball of wax. The adults get to drink afterwards. They have flasks! And now that I'm an adult I ride my bike.

Sorry to say, but the horse version of "Fox and hound" is more exciting to me than the bike version. I have no choice. I don't have a horse anymore. My custom chaps - embroidered with my initials, and with fringe!, custom tall boots, helmet, Tailored Sportsman breeches, hunt coats, spurs, draw reins, bell boots, splint boots, bridles, oiled shipping halter with brass nameplate and real lambswool, polo wraps, hairnets - for showing, martingales, curry combs, scrims, turn-out blankets, tack trunks, a saddle, and every other piece of high-end, overpriced gear that my parents bought for me -- bless them, I had so much fun -- are packed away in my parents' basement. I haven't even transferred the gear to my own, as in we own a house, I have a little girl of my own now, basement.

I should, someday, tally the list above, though that list isn't exhaustive. That list doesn't cover the monthly board that at one time topped $1,000 a month, the purchase price of several horses, the monthly vet bills - the one horse needed corrective shoeing, which is $150 (cash) per month. I don't even spend that much on my own shoes. Then there's lessons, private lessons of course. There's the show weekends, which included $30 a day for a professional braider (I do not make this crap up) to braid the horse's mane and tail for a polished look in the ring. There's the other expenses at a show - the trainer's daily expense, the rental of the stall at the show, the bedding for the rental stall, the trailer that takes all the horses from the barn, the tip to the grooms who scoop the poop from your horse's stall and polish your horse's feet with shellack before you (I) go into the show ring only to totally bomb the course that one time or get moody for no reason other than every other kid is a snob and you figure you should be one, too. Sure, there were wins, too, but if you are (I'm ) thinking back on all of this now that you're (I'm) a parent, you realize how good your parents were to you and how much opportunity they gave you.

There's good reason why, when I had outgrown my banana seat two-wheeler and it was time to get a 10-speed, my father took me to the expensive bike shop several Saturdays in a row and patiently let me try every bike there was, offering to buy me a high-end bike. Yet I opted for horses and he didn't complain except to joke about the hayburner.

Let's hope my daughter takes her father up on his offer to buy the sweetest custom ride ever, but if she goes for horses, too, I won't complain. Often.