Slow Learner

I did a little wrenching on my rear wheel this last weekend. The cones had become a little loose. I was feeling a tiny bit of wobble from side to side... I'm no expert, but I don't think it's supposed to do that.

I have several thousand miles on the Cross Check and it has never needed anything other than tuning of the cables. This is the first visit to the shop for anything else.

As I was standing at the counter I was feeling a little brave. "Would it be cheaper to buy the cone wrench and do it myself?" There. I had said it. The guys at the shop are awesome. He didn't laugh. He didn't insult me. He actually acted excited to teach me something.

So, yes. It was cheaper. He probably took more time explaining it to me (way more than I needed to know, by the way) than it would have taken for him to fix it.

Of course it was easy. No big deal at all. It took me five minutes, actually. But I'm a slow learner and bike mechanics tend to end with bent metal and pierced skin when I'm involved.

Not this time. I'm getting there.

Get out there.

Back to Reality

There was a windchill of 30 degrees this morning.  I know that's not terribly cold... but last week I was riding in shorts.  Dang.

Good Pic

I think I like it because my wife is awesome and my bike is awesome (she's more awesome than the bike, though).

I found the photo here.

Gorge Trip

Quick Update

A great time was had on my overnight bike/camping trip. It was perfect weather, perfect ride and perfect amount of butt kicking climbs. I'll post some pics tomorrow.

Get out there.

Heading Out

I'm heading to the Red River Gorge this weekend.  I don't have enough time to travel via bicycle, but I'll definitely be taking it with me.  I'm going solo just to spend a good 24 hours in the woods hiking and biking.  It'll be great.

Get out there.

Another Adventure

For the last few weeks I've been contemplating different ways to get outside my comfort zone and serve the community more.  If you've read my bio, you know that I'm a pastor at a church in Lexington, KY.  It's an awesome place that truly exists to make a difference in the community.

There are several programs that serve women of abuse, feed kids, clothe those that are cold and house men and women that have no home.  Now, there's going to be one more.  I'll be working with a team to oversee a program to receive, wrench, distribute and empower people to use bikes for transportation and recreation.

I'm incredibly excited to infuse my passion into something that's going to help people. I am, by no means, an expert bike mechanic.  But I do know enough to get most bikes on the road.  We hope to collect bikes, fix them up and then work with adults to help them to understand how to use the bike as a tool to better their situation. We'll work with homeless shelters and inner-city programs to get the bikes in the right hand (or under the right butts).  We'll show them how to do minor work on their bikes.  We'll coach them through boundaries and responsibilities on the road.

There are similar programs like this all over the world, but nothing with a huge presence in the Lexington area.

It's a big risk for me... and it will probably drain quite a bit of time.  But I believe in it.

Get out there!