Chatter

I couldn’t let Scarface get away with being the first to ride this year, so I slapped the new chain onto the old CCM that I salvaged from the landfill and rode it around the block.  The tires stayed inflated just long enough to get home again.  Yeah, Harakal probably hammered out 80k or something ridiculous like that today, but a rides a ride and I have witnesses!

bicycledreamsmovie.com

Valentine’s Day is coming fast, so I better get cracking on a love poem. Make that 8 love poems, one for each of my one-and-only’s. (Stolen from RoadBikeRider)

To my race bike:

Roses are red

Violets are white

I love you

‘Cause you’re so light

To my mountain bike:

Roses are red

Violets are purdy

I love you

‘Specially when it’s dirt

To my commuter bike:

Roses are red

Violets are black

I love you

And your pannier rack

To my folding travel bike:

Roses are red

Violets are da bomb

I love you

When I fly to see Mom

To my tandem:

Roses are red

Violets are great

I love you

When it’s a ride and a date

To my cyclocross bike:

Roses are red

Violets are scarier

I love you

When I vault any barrier

To my recumbent:

Roses are red

Violets are gray

I love you

When my back goes astray

To my fixie:

Roses are red

Violets’re the most

I love you

Till I try to coast

Check out “Bike The Border” – another North Dakota bike tour.  This one is held in June.  $75 for three days of riding includes camping, sag support, t-shirt and rest stops every 10 to 15 miles.  It’s promoted as a casual ride (no drafting) and it’s 60 to 80 miles a day.  It is a bit of a hike from here – starts in Westhope, ND which is approx due South from Melita, just over the border.  Although not much longer of a drive than Park Rapids.  Maybe we launch our season in Westhope and end our season in Park Rapids?

…is another mans treasure,  or so the saying goes.  My heart skipped a beat when I saw this old gal.  At first I thought she was an old Eatons Hiawatha, like I once rode all over Fort Rouge  - Riverview when delivering newspapers in the early 70’s.  Churchill Drive, Arnold, Morley, Bartlett, Hay, Mabel, Baltimore, the old King George Hospital, the Park Theatre (still a hap’nen place), tons of memories.  Many a loaded lush had their heart irrationally softened by the pencil necked kid with the home made flannel shirts, bleached blond hair & big brown eyes who showed up Friday nights on his Mom’s humongous old bike to collect for the Winnipeg Tribune and score an unheard of $0.50 tip for just two weeks of deliveries!  Sadly, turns out the old gal is a CCM.  But I didn’t have it in me to leave the old lady at the Steinbach landfill where she lay abandoned after 4 decades of faithful service to someone.  She’s in pretty good shape and even came with a funky ’74 plate from Kenora.  I think I’ll enjoy tinkering on the bike over the winter and then get double pleasure from giving her to someone when she’s road ready.  Maybe my neighbour, who makes incredible bread which she occasionally drops off at my place….

Here it is January and many are cranking away on rollers and spinners indoors or cross country skiing.  We had some great rides in 2009 here are some numbers.

Duh!

When I started on my rollers in December I could maintain an average of around 30km/h fairly well, but as time passed it seemed to get harder and harder. Was my fitness slipping that badly? Was my age beginning to show? Am I that unmotivated? I could hardly keep my average at 26 – 27km/h! I could barely force myself to ride!

So this morning, before my torturous ride on the rollers I decided to check my tire pressure. 40psi!!!! After pumping it up, I hopped on and veritably flew along at well over 30km/h!

What a dimwit!

Hey roadies,

For the endless posting by yours truly, I should be cut-off by the website admin by now.  Anywho, Jac’s recent poem post had a link to the Bike Forum’s website which I had never been too.  One thing led to another and I’ve now registered and started a thread on Bike Forum entitled “The One Thing” – How has cycling changed your life? .  There are some really great stories being posted to the thread.  Real courageous stories about recovery from dire health & other circumstances.  If you’re cycling passion is waning in these dreary winter months, I would encourage you to read at least a few of these inspiring posts.

MIT Elections 2010

Santa forgot I was a roadie this Christmas – no schwag.  Ah well, those Laurentian Chiefs are so cozy, maybe with a steel insole and a drill bit….