Behind the Scenes

This weekend I did a crap-load of work on the "behind the scenes" world of a biking lifestyle... I cleaned my garage.

While this may not seem to have very much to do with cycling, it really does. When my garage is a mess, I work on bikes less, I tweak bikes less and I ride bikes less. And recently, everything was beginning to fall together into one giant pile of rubble.

I took all the non-outdoorsy stuff and threw it into tubs and stacked it all against a wall. If you're ever in my garage, don't breathe around this area, the tubs may fall over on you.

I've also had my dad's kayak for the last few months on loan. I finally took the initiative to move the 16' beast off of the floor and hang it from the ceiling. I owned a long boat before, so I had a ceiling rig of pulleys ready to use, I just hadn't utilized them yet. So really, it wasn't that hard.

I also hung four different stripped bike frames and their wheels from the ceiling. It pulls everything out of the way quite nicely and makes room on the floor for luxuries like parking and walking.

Now I have one junk pile (versus an entire garage that's a junk pile) that will soon enough be taken to my in-laws for permanent storage. The floor is almost completely cleared. Now I can park the Xtracycle, hang the short bikes and work at the repair bench with ease.

It really is crucial to have organized space for your bikes. In the process, I realized that I want to work on stuff when the atmosphere is conducive to getting things done. I also found all my camping stuff strewn about all over the place. Stuff had fallen out of bags, been shoved around and generally lost throughout the garage. The next time I would have gone camping, it would have been miserable trying to get everything together. I would have linked that emotion of frustration to the general camping experience and would have somehow started out with a poor attitude. Now that everything is organized, I'll be able to head out with no headache.

How about you? Do you have a place for all your outdoor needs? How do you keep it all organized?

Get out there.

Layers

For the last week I've been playing with my layers. I realized that I was, for the most part, wearing one standard combination of layers for anything from 25 degrees on down... and most days I was hot. I took a risk last week and stripped back a couple of my layers and it was perfect. I wasn't covered in sweat and I was never cold. Today wasn't the same.

Being that most of the time I wear too much, I risked it again today and stripped back. Not a good choice. I was really cold for the entire ride. And when you're uncomfortable, it's hard to enjoy the ride. I rarely have a ride that I want to be over, but that's exactly what today's was. Fifteen minutes into it, I wanted it to be done.

After being too chilly and fighting a headwind the entire ride, I was very pleased to pull into the parking lot. Hopefully the ride home will be a bit better.

Get out there.

Early Morning

This morning's ride was a bit earlier than most. It's the first time I've turned my head light on or saw the sun rise in a while. I've gotten into a good routine of putting our oldest on the bus, getting ready and heading out the door. That means I'm never out before the light is.

Today I had a meeting early, so I adjusted my plans and got ready before the bus arrived. After our oldest was on the bus, I hopped on the bike and left. I love being out in the dark. It's so much more peaceful for some reason. And being able to see the sun come up is a great way to begin your day. You appreciate it more than when you're driving in your car. There's a connection to it when you depend on it. You're thinking, "Okay, now I'll feel the warmth. I can be seen more easily and I can see everything, too." 

I can't describe it, really. I just get excited every time I'm out like that for sunrise.

Get out there.

More Snow

This has got to be some kind of record year for snow in Kentucky. I'm loving it. I can't wait to get on the bike and head home. As I type, it's coming down hard. I should have another three inches to pedal home on by 5 o'clock. Woo hoo!

Get out there.

The Dorkiest

After seeing myself on the bike in yesterday's post, I realized how dorky that reflective vest looks. I remember there was a time when I thought a lot of things were dorky. I thought fenders looked kind of dorky. I even thought a helmet looked dorky. This vest was the last step towards not giving a crap.

When riding becomes a larger part of your life than the preserving dignity, there's no thought that goes into that silliness. I don't care... at all. Look at the picture above. There's absolutely no color in the landscape these days. And wearing that obnoxious orange vest makes me stick out. I'm all about staying safe. The longer I go without a mishap, the longer I will get to ride. It's worth any sacrifice of dignity I may have left. It's absurd to think I even cared before.

Sure, the high school kids at the bus stop think I look dorky. But one thing is for sure... they don't appreciate a good ride like I do.

Get out there.

Two Hour What?

School was canceled again today which puts us on a two hour delay at work. No complaints from me. I love the extra time with my family and a little bit of cushion on the bike. But I have to say that today's school closing was a bit overkill. I have an intimate knowledge of the road conditions from riding two wheels and there was no cause for alarm from what I saw.

Oh well. It's easy to make a judgement call when you're not the one responsible for the safe arrival of hundreds of little people. I say "thanks" to you, school-closing-decision-maker. You gave me enough time to fiddle with my camera app and figure out how to take a decent self-portrait on the bike.

Get out there.

Winter Eye Candy

Photos from Surly

Surly did a write-up about their new Troll frame that just came out this year. When I first saw this bike, I wondered if it would become my new bike-lust in place of the Long Haul Trucker.

Seeing it in action, here, makes that possibility even stronger. It's looking like this thing has everything I would want in a touring/camping machine. Since a Pugsley would be an absurdity for me in my climate and geographical location, a bike that would sport 2.7" wide rubber and run a good touring set-up would be pretty ideal for me. I could give this thing huge tires for winter and run a more narrow slick for average commuting or touring. Seems tempting. We'll have to see how people use the Troll. It has so many capabilities, I'm excited to see what people do with them.

Get out there.