Sunday Bike Vibes

Sunday offered up another opportunity to ride some backroads of Jessamine and Woodford County. I put together a ride that was close to 30 miles and hit up Pauls Mill Road, a nice little creek crossing and the primate rescue center. Pat was the only other rider on that particular day and he was atop his brand new Long Haul Trucker build. It's always fun to ride with a new bike... even if it's not yours. I was on the Cross Check with some new bits and pieces. More on that later. But the gist of the updates is new (to the Cross Check) Brooks B17, a short stem with lots of rise and new cloth bar tape. I'm trying to make it my go-fast bike and a comfy bike. Mission accomplished, I believe.

Pauls Mill Road was as scenic as ever. In this time of year, there's just green everywhere. We spied the old mill and hypothesized what all that old machinery does. I'm convinced it's a steam-punk hot tub time machine. Pat just thinks it's a lumber mill. Who knows who's right? But it's probably me.

Pat got to baptize his new bike in a gentle creek crossing. He built up a flat bar LHT with a new frame and wheels with some additional spare parts in his garage. I love those kinds of builds. This bike will slowly get more and more new components and, eventually, be a brand spankin' new road/touring machine. It'll take time. But it's a budget conscious way to build a bike. And, in the meantime, he's riding it and it's awesome already.

No pics of the monkey sanctuary. We heard them monkeys yellin' at us but I can't ever seem to sneak a peakaloo at 'em. But it is fun knowing they're just a short distance through the woods.

I didn't add up the mileage yet. But it's close to 30. I had planned 26 but we got sidetracked and added quite a bit to our route. That's always nice, though. I love when a plan gets adapted to include more riding.

Get out there.

Picture Dump

Often times, I ride my bike and forget to post anything about it here. I just came across some photos that I thought were worthy of sharing. They're probably not worthy. But you've chosen to read this far. Why not keep scrolling?

I rode an e-assist bike a while back. There's not throttle on this thing. It just uses the effort you're putting into the pedals to calculate how much power to put into the electric motor. It was awesome. Super fun and super fast. I got up to 40mph like it was nothing. The only real use for it would be commuting, I guess. And I'm a fan of using my own power and getting the exercise along the way. But it was super cool, nonetheless. 

We rode road bikes at the MTB park a couple weeks ago. Whatever it takes, right? Here's Noah on his LHT. I love using a bike for all that it can do.

I've missed logging many-a-lunch-ride on here. Most of those rides have been in the dirt. Leading the pack in this photo above is Pat on his Pugsley. He had just put on a new set of Nate tanwalls. I'm a fan of that bike.

And a couple week's worth of Troll commutes have gone unpublished. Super fun to ride this bike to work. Makes me feel like there's more options on the ride. I guess I've pictured touring bikes in the dirt and dirt bikes on bike commutes, huh? Well, anything goes. I like it that way.

The blog isn't a priority these days. I'm okay with that. It's still fun to keep around. I'm under no obligation to give it all I've got. But I'll try to post more. In the meantime, this is peek into a few weeks' worth of riding.

Get out there. 

Fam Time!

We made a fun run to Lowes with the kiddos. Always a good time!

Get out there!

LHT is Back!

Well, I'm happy to say that the Long Haul Trucker is back in action! New build looks quite different but is gonna be lovely.

• swept back On-One Mary bars wrapped up with some cotton bar tap for grippage.
• front basket (of course)
• front low-rider rack (to be installed soon!)
• Brooks Cambium seat (I wanted to keep a Brooks but this is gonna be a rain bike. Solution? Cambium!)
• SRAM i9 internally geared hub (perfect for all weather commuting)
• a set of crappy, brown cruiser tires that were free (because why not?)

I'm going to use this bike as a loaner MTB and foul weather commuter. I'm super excited about it!

Get out there.

The Old LHT

I am super excited about this. In fact, I may even be nervous. Since the Disc Trucker is in play nowadays, the old LHT is getting a makeover. I'm throwing on the 2.3" Kenda K-Rads, an On-One Mary Bar, a Brooks B17 and most notably, the SRAM i9 internally geared hub. This thing is going to run front and rear racks and throw down on fowl weather commutes, dirt rides and all-around horseplay.

So why am I nervous? This bike has been my favorite bike of all time. I replaced it with the Disc Trucker. Yet I'm afraid that this touring dirt klunker may still climb the charts to be my go-to fave. The way it's coming together sure is getting my attention. It'd be a shame to walk past that purty Disc Trucker to grab this crappy ol' thing. But I think it may happen more often than you'd think!

Get out there.

Whoops!

Had a great lunch ride today... for a while.

Snow was coming down hard and the bike path was completely white. Good times for a guy on a bike. Eventually, though, the slickeriness got the best of me and I went down. The wind was so strong that, at one point, it swept my front tire out from under me and I found myself tumbling across the pavement.

I was fine. No long term injuries or anything. But to add insult to injury, my fender eventually captured enough snow to completely lock up my front wheel. After turning back to head to the office, I had to keep getting off the bike to clean out the fender. Otherwise, it just kept locking up on me.

It wasn't the most fun ride of the year. But at least I gave it a try!

Get out there.

Change is Coming

Riding on this iteration of the LHT is about to come to an end. In the trunk of my car is a brand spanking new Disc Truck frame. And the full run of components and parts on the LHT will be moving over to that frame. So what's to come of this LHT? I've got an internally geared hub, some cruiser bars and fatty tires to make this big guy my foul weather bike. Being that this has been my go-to ride for the last couple years, it's strange to change it. Why mess with a good thing, right?

We'll see.

Get out there.

A New Record

A new record is on the table for me as of yesterday. The temps were at -3 with a windchill of -20 when I pedaled my way into work. Before that, my coldest commute was 7 degrees. So I'm pleased that I made it work on such a cold day. I'm guessing I might not have that opportunity again any time soon!

I think I dressed perfectly for the ride. If anything, I could've added a down vest under my jacket. There were a couple times that the wind bit me on the back a bit. But it never became a deep cold that even caused a shiver. Everything else was great. I was able to ditch small outer layers like ear covering and an extra buff on my face. But, by doing so, never overheated either. I was pleased with my choices (albeit a bit worried going into it since I had never ridden anything that cold before). One highlight worth sharing; hand and toe warmers. No shame in sticking these in each glove and boot. I think that's what made it work for me. I don't have gear that will take me to sub-zero temps on their own. But those little bad boys kept me cozy in what I did have.

We'll see if I get any rides as cold this week. But let's hope this is all over.

Get out there.

Stable Shift

Recently, I've been contemplating a change in the bicycle line-up. For one, I've realized that I really prefer the feel of a 26" wheel on a bicycle. I'm a short guy and it just feels better underneath me. Another factor is the fact that, as my kids have grown and are riding their own bikes, I use the Xtracycle much less than I used to.

So I think that I've made the decision to get rid of the single speed Cross check and the Xtracycle frame. If I were to do that, I would use the cash to buy a Disc Trucker frame. Also, the Xtracycle would relent to me an internally geared hub on a 26" wheel. Thus allowing me to put an internally geared system on the old Long Haul Trucker while moving the current LHT component line-up to the Disc Trucker.

Here's what the whole garage would look like:
Disc Trucker: 3x9 setup for commuting, camping and touring. Probably my go-to bike for recreational rides and catting around town.

Long Haul Trucker: 9 speed internally geared hub with chubbier tires and cruiser bars. Used for rainy and snowy weather riding and secondary loaner mountain bike.

Troll: Same ol' trusty mountain bike. Nothing new.

Cross Check: 2x9 road bike used for when I want to go fast... er... faster. I never go fast.

The single speed Cross Check, Xtracycle and the Klunker 1x6 Trek would all disappear. I'd lose three bikes but actually gain capacity in the riding that I do most often. The big miss will be the Xtracycle. But I'm a firm believer in getting rid of something that you don't use. I haven't touched it in probably a year... which means I don't really need it.

And so the Craigslist posting begins...

Get out there.

Chuggin Along

It was a downright balmy 36 degrees this morning. Nothing to report other than a sweaty slog into work this morning.

Get out there.

Slippy

'Tis the season of slippery wet leaves all over the ground. Things got squirrelly a little this morning on a turn when my back wheel slid out from under me. I have to remember that these things are like tiny oil spills all over the road. Be careful out there!

Get out there.

Paul's Mill Road

During my lunch break on Monday I headed out with a few guys to hit up Paul's Mill Road. I've ridden through this quaint little road before. But I wanted to catch it in fall colors.

All I know of Paul's Mill Road is that it feels like a time warp. Nothing along this short stretch feels modern.

An old mill building along the creek. Somewhat restored but still holding onto it's heritage.

Boiler, maybe?

We rode along the creek the entire route. Some lovely swans taking in the colors, too.

And then we headed back to the future.

Get out there.

S15O

This past weekend I got to do a quick S15O. That's a Sub-15 hour-Overnighter. My buddies Brian and Jason had talked about doing something that night at the Kentucky Horse Park and I decided I'd join in as well.

There are no real photos of the event. I met Jason at the bike shop at 6pm and we rode at a pretty steady pace until nightfall. We were at the Horse Park by about 7:45 but the sun was already gone. And I never even thought about getting out the camera to grab photos. (And I have to admit that's a nice feeling to ride, camp and talk bike stuff all night without thinking about gathering blog content!)

Brian rode in with Huston, Alan and Andy. These were guys I'd never met but had a wonderful time hanging out with. Bikes is a nice common denominator amongst strangers. Is easy to get to know each other through the lore of old bike adventures.

I crashed around 11:30, only to get up at 6:30 in the morning to hit the road again. Jason had to work and I had family obligations. So we hit it early and we hit it hard for the ride back. This one photo of the trip is in my neighborhood right before I pulled into the garage.

My only real noteworthy comment is on my camping set up. At this point, I have everything I need to do these trips at a moment's notice. I can throw everything in a bag and go. The LHT with Ortliebs and basket does the job beautifully.

I'm up for another.

Get out there.

Nice Day

Today is a nice day.

Get out there.

Fall!

Fall is here! The face was covered this morning on the commute in.

And the sun is just rising above the horizon. It seems like it was just a couple weeks ago that the sun was high in the sky during my morning commutes. Welcome, New Season!

Get out there.

Extra Time

There was a little extra time in today's commute. As I pulled up to the stoplight, I decided to go straight instead of my normal, quicker right turn. Extra miles, extra time and extra fun on the bike. It's always nice to take the long route in.

Get out there.

Fire!

 This was super cool on my commute in this morning. They were burning down an old barn in a field along my route. As far away as I was while taking this photo, I could feel the heat coming off of this blaze. It was nice, too, being that it was 53 degrees on the way in.

On an unrelated note, the LHT got some love during Bike Night the other night. It got a fresh coat of shellac on the tape. The old coat had faded significantly. Now it's back to the more Brooks saddle leathery look.

I love the look of this bike. Browns, greens and blacks. It blends into the outside world oh so well. It is almost as if it was made to reside in nature.

Get out there.

Creak, Creak, Creak, Creak

The LHT, right now, is the bicycle equivalent of an old man with achy knees. Each crank of the pedals emits a high pitched creaking sound that makes my skin crawl. I pull back on the effort and it silences itself... but I know it's there. Tomorrow night is bike maintenance night. Once again, I'll remove pedals, cranks and bottom bracket to try and track it down. But I'm ready to get it fixed. I love this bike too much to pity it. But, up to this point, the culprit has evaded my efforts to pinpoint it.

Get out there.

Picnic Time

During lunch today I had to go from Campus A to Campus B. Stopped at the Arboretum for a little lunch break. Not a bad way to live.

Get out there.

Lot of Rain, Lots of Green

I'm digging the green.

Get out there.