If you've ever wondered where a one year old, three year old and five year old want to go on a bicycle, I can tell you. They want ice cream. They always want ice cream.
If they see their bike helmet they say, "Can we go for ice cream?"
If they hear me rummage through the garage they say, "Can we go for ice cream?"
If they're watching le Tour they say, "Can we go for ice cream?"
It's a solid summer outing. I highly recommend it.
Sometimes big time cycling people challenge my choice to ride with flat pedals. "Clipless is the way to go," they say. I've ridden clipless. I love what they do with the efficiency and cadence in my pedaling. But they just don't fit my lifestyle of cycling.
I use my bike as transportation. I ride them to work, to the library, to the grocery, to the park with my kids. Having stiff, clunky, clicking shoes isn't a good option for those scenarios.
In the summer, these are my shoes of choice. I've seen lots of people that ride in Keens. They feel cool in the heat and work as easy options when it rains. I'd recommend them to anyone looking to do some summer riding without clipless.
Yesterday I was sitting on my back porch looking at Craigslist on my phone and got the bug to look at kayaks. I used to have a Dagger Blackwater 13.5T that I sold to fund my Cross Check. One of the reasons I sold it was because it was just too big. It was close to 80 pounds and 13.5 feet long... It made it quite a pain to get it anywhere. After I sold it, I always thought I might want to get back into the water with a smaller boat that would fit my needs a little better.
Well, back to Craigslist...
The random notion to check was all about research. I have no money. Angie and I both just got new iPhone 4's since our current phones were three years old and starting to crap out on us. There was no option to buy anything. But sometimes looking is fun.
But sometimes looking can be serendipitous as well. The first ad listed said, "Trade my 11' kayak for your iPod." I clicked and immediately realized this person may be interested in my first generation iPhone that I had just replaced. A few quick exchanges of emails and here we are.
Kayak, paddle, spray skirt... all for the exchange of my old phone that was going to sit in my top drawer for who knows how long. The boat is a no-name mystery. But everything looked to be in good shape with plenty of life in it to get me back in the water (and technically for zero cost).
Naturally, I wanted to see how I was going to haul this thing via bicycle. I thought about (and have seen pics) strapping it to the side of the Wideloaders of the Xtracycle. I think it would work, but I'm not sure it's really necessary to work so hard to balance the load. What I had in mind required no extra equipment or much work.
I thought I could fold down the kid trailer, lay the boat on top, then strap the bow of the boat to the bike.
It worked flawlessly.
Weight distribution and tethering strategies could be slightly refined. But overall, this is an easy solution. Once everything is fine tuned, this thing is headed to the water. My Saturday ride was about one mile short of hitting the river. It looks like I'll be finishing that journey shortly.
As always, the kids were helping me all along the way. When we were finished, they wanted to take a little joy ride. Naturally, we had a blast with it.
(By the way, I realize they're not wearing helmets. We are helmet people. This was an impulse ride about 15 yards down the street and back. Please, moms, don't yell at me.)
I have a lot to learn about this nice little town in Jessamine County. I've lived here for five years, but rarely have I ridden it on a bicycle. Normally, I hop on the bike and head directly into Lexington.
Today was different. Busyness at work and sickness in our family have kept me off the bike quite a bit in the last week. Today Angie suggested I take the morning and head out on two wheels. I gladly took the opportunity to explore a bit of our own little area here in the world.
There were lots of little pieces of culture that grabbed my attention.
Who knew we had a museum? And why does it contain girl scouting memorabilia?
As I headed way out, I saw this in the middle of nowhere.
Be honest, West Coasters. You expected to see this in Kentucky, didn't you? It was about two miles from the Kentucky river, but seriously nowhere near anything else. What exactly is "Kentucky Meat?" Horse?
There's also quite a bit of beautiful scenery within a short distance of my house.
Several creek crossings and lots of tree coverage along the way made the trip quite nice. I'm very pleased with how adventurous and beautiful things get without even heading 10 miles in one direction.
I was forced to turn around when I came face to snout with an unsavory dog. He made it clear that I wasn't going to pass without trouble.
I headed back at a leisurely pace. (I was riding the Xtracycle. It wasn't the best tool for the job. But it had been facing some neglect.)
As I type now, I'm on my back porch, sipping coffee. I'm thankful for this life and this place I live.
There aren't many bikes that could handle a run to the grocery to grab two coolers full of ice. "What's that, honey? You want me to take the two big kids, too? No problem. And, yes. I'll still take the bike."
Conversations around our house sure have changed since we got this special bike.
It's nice to know the possibilities are out there for our family. Sometimes I sit and think about what life would be like if I was never given the opportunity to become dependent on a car. Most people that smoke started when they were young. Someone offers them a cigarette at a point in their life when they're not equipped to understand the consequences. They choke down a puff or two at first, but eventually, it's a "must have."
I've never heard of a fully functioning intelligent adult starting to smoke at a mature age. They're wise enough to know the whole spectrum of smoking. They know it's going to cause a dependency. As an adult, starting an incredibly expensive habit that is bad for your health just sounds silly... or stupid, even.
But being dependent on a car is the same thing. It may seem like its a "must have" but it's really not. There are bikes out there that will haul your kids, your coolers, your ladder, or... your other bike. What if you never knew differently? What if our culture wasn't all about handing you the keys to that car when you turned 16? What if we weren't handed the cancer-causing temptation of the automobile until we were well into a mature age? Would we still drive as much? Knowing both sides of it before becoming addicted sure could change things.
I don't know if best friend is the right word, but my bikes certainly do love the company of new asphalt. I've said it before, but they're building new roads all along my commute and man does it feel nice!
The first road I hit (which won't be repaved) is incredibly rough. The Xtracycle, with it's 2" tires, is my only bike that doesn't beat me up on that portion of my ride.
But I love images like the one above. I'll see the road half-paved in the morning and all along the way home, by evening, it is smooth sailing. I'm enjoying it while it lasts. Trucks and cars will tear it up quite a bit more than my little bike tires.
Today is a rain day again. Those rainy days normally mean I'm staring at the bullhorn bars of my rain bike, a Redline 925. Rain or shine, riding your bike is fun. I'd recommend it.
