SpokEasy

SpokEasy

Author name: CAL

Clothes Make the Cyclist?

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Do clothes make the cyclist? Yesterday\’s post was for, as you might say, warm-weather gear. Now let\’s look at Part II: some things to help keep you warm when the mercury drops. First, a cycling jacket. The kind I have has built-in magnets around the armholes and collar. That lets me remove the sleeves if I start to get too warm, but still would feel chilly if I took off the jacket entirely. I replaced my original cycling jacket a year or two ago. Not a week after I bought my first one, I skidded while in a turn one wet morning. And I wasn\’t even going fast at all! The left sleeve got a tear in it, and the dirt got ground into the fabric. I was on my way to work; and couldn\’t wash the jacket until after I got home at the end of the day. I never did get the dirt stain washed out. I repaired the tear with awning tape, but the tear gradually enlarged. When I bought my second jacket, I discarded the sleeves from the old jacket. Now I have a \”vest\” to wear under the new jacket when one jacket isn\’t warm enough. Sometimes it\’s not really cool enough for a jacket, but still too chilly for short sleeves. Arm warmers come in handy then. I sometimes wear them under the jacket\’s sleeves because my arms are sensitive to cold. Leg warmers are good to have when it starts to get chilly. My legs seem to be less cold-sensitive than the rest of me, but they say you should take care to keep your knees warm. Heads Up! I find a skull cap (or helmet liner) to be vital once the temperature starts to fall below 60. That\’s especially true if it\’s windy. I\’m miserable when my head gets cold. Another misery of riding when in cold weather is, as you might guess, cold feet. I have some cashmere socks that I\’ll wear over regular socks in cold weather, but my feet still get cold. Maybe some thermal socks like these would do the trick? Let\’s also keep our hands warm. I believe I mentioned gloves yesterday, but there\’s no harm in repeating it. About 2010 I developed symptoms of  Raynaud\’s. It\’s a nuisance. So, unfortunately, are full-fingered gloves on a long ride. It\’s harder to pull out a bite to eat because of the loss of fingertip sensitivity. Jacket, arm warmers, leg warmers, skull cap, thermal socks, gloves. Do clothes make the cyclist? I guess so. These items make riding possible on a cold day!

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Low Watt Bulb?

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I felt like a low-watt bulb this afternoon; or even about as bright as this dying light bulb! About a week ago, a low-battery indicator showed up on my hybrid bike\’s computer. I was out of the coin batteries I needed; and couldn\’t get to the store until Saturday. There didn\’t seem to be many #2032 batteries in stock, which happens sometimes. I didn\’t notice that the ones I found were lithium until I was already in the checkout line — and the lithium kind cost more! I got home with the new batteries; removed the old battery from the Cateye; and inserted a new one. I couldn\’t get the screen to light up, and thus could not set the Cateye. Does that thing not like lithium batteries, I wondered? Or is it (perish the thought!) wearing out? This week I wasn\’t able to get to the bicycle shop until today. They\’re closed Mondays; Tuesday I needed to get home to make a phone call before 6 pm; and yesterday evening I was busy doing the laundry. I had to guesstimate my distances and times as well as I could. After work today, I at last got to the bike shop, to let them look at the Cateye. Did I ever feel foolish; I had forgotten to peel the label off of the contact side of the battery! Why on earth didn\’t I think to check that battery?? At least the Cateye is working again, and I didn\’t have to buy anything more. I\’ll take a minute of feeling like a low watt bulb over buying a new cyclocomputer any day.

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Clothes Make the Cyclist?

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Do clothes make the cyclist? Perhaps so; and no, it\’s not necessary to spend megabucks on fancy kit. Specialized cycling clothing might not be necessary. Unless, that is, you intend to do lots of miles. Then \”real\” cycling togs make the ride more comfortable. Then, I\’d say, you do need real cycling shorts, with a chamois. There are \”normal\” (as my brother would say) shorts, and bib shorts. I can\’t give any advice as to the latter, never having tried them. I don\’t think I\’d want them in hot weather, anyway. The \”bib\” part probably would make me hotter by adding another layer of clothing. Jerseys? I didn\’t get my first one until I\’d been riding for over two years. It was my reward to myself for riding my first century. Of the jerseys I have, the one shown above is my favorite. I love sky blue; and the edge of the black stripe just shows at upper left. A Handout? I quickly developed the habit of wearing cycling gloves. Without them, your hands can get rubbed sore; and possibly even blistered. Hands get sweaty; and gloves go a long way in keeping them from slipping. Or, if you get caught in the rain, gloves serve that purpose, too. In cooler weather, of course I don\’t want those half-fingered gloves. I dig out the full-fingered gloves when the temperature gets down to about 60. For temperatures below 50, I dig out my so-called Wombat Gloves. They\’re very heavy, and really too big for me. Even they don\’t keep my hands warm enough; and full fingered gloves of any sort make eating on the bike hard by rendering my hands clumsy. Hard Work Afoot I use cycling shoes when I ride the road bike. Mine are MTB shoes, though. I like having velcro fastenings. I don\’t have to worry about tucking shoelace ends and loops inside the shoe, where they could conceivably get loose and snag in the pedal. In fact that happened once, luckily on the tricycle; so I didn\’t fall over. The lace had somehow come untied; gotten tangled up in the pedal; and was pulled too tight for me to wiggle my foot out of the shoe. My leg was in such a position that I couldn\’t make the pedal move; and I couldn\’t reach the shoe from the tricycle\’s saddle. I had to — carefully! — get off the saddle and stand on my free foot and work the other shoe\’s lace loose enough to pull my foot out, and then untangle the lace from the pedal. Back to the wardrobe. Of course there are cycling socks. They seem to be a bit more comfortable than regular terry socks. The difference is especially noticeable when the socks are brand new. I like socks that come up a couple of inches above my ankle. The \”no-show\” style of sock has a way of slipping down into my shoe. That drives me crazy. So those are the basics: shorts, jersey, gloves, shoes, and socks. And a helmet, of course even for the youngest rider. So yes, I guess clothes make the cyclist.

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Upon Reflection

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Upon reflection, you might realize that there\’s quite a variety of rearview mirrors used by cyclists. Which is best?  When had the tricycle, I thought I that I needed mirrors on both sides. Fairly soon I came to realize that I this was unnecessary; and took off the right-hand one. Here is the kind that I now have on my hybrid bike. I like it because I can easily see things in it. Recently I had to replace it when I somehow let the bicycle fall. The bike landed in such a way that the mirror-stem holder cracked; and could no longer hold the mirror securely. Perhaps ironically, the mirror itself survived just fine!  I have  a handlebar-end mirror on the road bike. That thing can be very annoying, because it changes position too easily! I nearly always manage to bump it when getting the water bottle in and out of its down tube cage. I suppose, however, that that is a safety measure. In a crash, a handlebar-end mirror that\’s in too rigid a position might cause abdominal injury; especially in a crash at high speed. Off-Bike Mirrors Once I tried a helmet-mounted mirror; and that thing drove me crazy! It was very difficult to position the mirror correctly; and even then it seemed to have a mind of its own. It shifted position at the slightest touch; or would even slip out of place without being touched. Even when I managed to get that mirror positioned correctly, I couldn\’t get the hang of seeing anything in it; and eventually I gave up on it. I haven\’t tried glasses-mounted mirrors; but I\’ve seen other riders using them. In fact, glasses with a mirror are supposedly a sure sign of a genuine cyclist. I\’ve read of putting a mirror patch inside the left lens of a pair of glasses; but I haven\’t tried it. Upon reflection: if you don\’t use a rearview mirror on your bicycle, I\’d certainly suggest that you get one; especially if you must ride alongside traffic. Try out different models, until you find one that suits you.

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Remembering

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We are remembering the day. As someone who lives in a hurricane-prone region, my thoughts naturally tend to get caught up in hurricanes. Hurricane Florence continues barging towards the Carolinas. If Tropical Storm Isaac continues his current westward track, it looks like he could get into the Gulf of Mexico. Then everybody who lives on or near the coast will be gnawing on their fingernails. With all that on my mind, it was easy for today’s 9/11 anniversary to slip by me almost unnoticed. That’s especially true as the event, terrible though it was, didn’t have a direct impact on either myself or anyone I know. I remember being at work that day, and hearing somebody mention that a plane had flown into a building in New York. At first I thought it was freak accident involving a small, single-engine plane. It was shocking to learn what had actually happened. Later in the day I heard about the crash on the Pentagon, and the plane that ultimately went down in a field in Pennsylvania. I hardly need to say any more; there’s no point in repeating what we’ve all heard so many times since that dreadful day. Today many will be remembering their lost loved ones. May they rest in peace.

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Orthotics

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I\’ve had orthotics in my cycling shoes for at least five years. Not long after I switched to two wheels, I noticed that my left foot rolled inwards when riding. It was especially noticeable if I half-rose from the saddle. This rolling-in made the inner side of the knee feel strained; and I knew that not addressing the problem immediately would likely lead to much bigger issues later. Ultimately I visited a sports medicine clinic, to get custom-made orthotics. When you go for such a fitting, the clinician (or whatever the title may be) presses each foot into a block of memory foam; and the impressions are used to make orthotics that will fit your feet properly. Such devices are expensive; at least $300. But they\’re meant to last for 3-5 years. In fact, at a price like that, they had better last a long time! Recently my left foot started acting weird immediately after a long (say, 50 miles) ride. When I took my cycling shoe off, the smaller toes felt like they were going into spasm; they\’d curl under, and it took several seconds for me to get them to straighten. Then, when walking, it felt like something sharp was under the bases of those small toes. I consulted my primary care physician, and he said something about metatarsal inflammation; and that my orthotics probably needed replacing. I visited the sports medicine clinic again last week; got the impressions done; and my new shoe inserts should be ready before the end of the month. I took along my cycling shoes to the \”fitting\”. I wanted to be sure they were still in decent condition. Thank goodness they are!

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Snail?

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I guess I\’m a snail; or, what Joe Friel, in his Cyclist\’s Training Bible, calls a \”slow responder\”. Last November I began on-bike exercises to try to improve my force so that I can cruise faster. It took something like seven months for me to really see some results. That\’s why I feel like a snail; and it\’s precisely why I began these exercises a year in advance of Tour de Cure. I know that I need plenty of time to build up to things. It\’s better for me to bring it along slowly for six months, than to frantically try to build up over a period of six weeks. I\’ve got less than two months left to work on this; and for the last week or two prior to the big day I\’ll need to let force exercises go. Even then, experience has shown that I never can prepare adequately for a big event. I\’m hoping for a Tour de Cure day of calm winds, no rain, and about 70 degrees!

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Need a Break?

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Do I need a break? Today I rode 51.7 miles! It sounds like a lot; but there\’s not much time to work at lengthening my weekly long ride before Tour de Cure. And I wish they\’d post the exact route; and what average speed will be necessary. I wish I were sure whether my preparation is on the right track. I never am, and it drives me crazy. Luckily there was little wind this morning. I didn\’t try to push hard, because I felt a bit \”off\”. My resting blood pressure was crazy low today; and I had some spells of feeling light-headed. That\’s not good when you\’re on a bicycle! Maybe I need to take a Sunday off from riding; but with Cycle September in progress, I\’m reluctant to do that. Perhaps a shorter ride? We all need a break sometimes! Maybe I\’d better lie down and put my feet up for a bit. The usual post-long-ride orthostatic hypotension has set in. The catch is, I need to hie me into the kitchen and fix lunch!

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ME a Slob?

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ME, a slob? OK, I\’ll be the first to admit that I\’m a Grade-A slob. I never have been good at tidiness. I could, as indicated at left, strive for the \”Creative Mess\” grade. Until I get there, the set-up shown at right helps me to keep track of cycling stuff. It\’s really a shoe bag, but I don\’t have that many pairs of shoes. I can roll up a pair of leg warmers and put them in one pocket. Ditto for a pair of arm warmers. Other small items of cycling clothing, such as gloves, also go here. I keep my back-up tubes of electrolyte tablets in this bag; and a spare tube of Chamois Butt\’r. I even have a spare water bottle there, ready to go the next time I drop a bottle and can\’t find it because it\’s still dark out. With this storage system, I don\’t have to go running all over the place when cool weather approaches, hoping I\’ll find the leg warmers before a cold front arrives. Things such as cashmere socks I keep with my regular socks; so I know where they are. Incidentally, they don\’t seem to keep my feet very warm. Maybe my cycling shoes are too well ventilated. Me, a slob? I\’m not so sure now, after all; but maybe, just maybe, one day I\’ll get better organized!

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Biggest Haul Yet!

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Biggest Haul Yet! Behold, my biggest haul yet! Today I hitched up the trailer, and rode to the salvage store. As it turned out, the trailer wasn’t big enough for all my purchases! If I hadn’t also had the bicycle trunk, I couldn’t have brought home the loaf of bread without smashing it. The problem was that 36-roll pack of bathroom tissue. I wasn’t quite sure that the price of $12.99 was a true bargain; but I decided to get it. It took up most of the room in the trailer. I had brought the cooler so I could bring home bologna without worrying that it would get overheated. Thanks to that big package of tissue, I had to tie the carry-strap of the cooler to the frame of the trailer’s top; and hope it wouldn’t detach itself on the way home. Yes, I got a big haul; but even in a discount grocery, you need to keep your eyes peeled. Not everything is such a bargain, as I’ve learned. I found some hibiscus drink mix, sold by the single envelope. I got three of them. Remind me not to do that again if there isn’t a price sticker on each envelope. When I checked my sales slip later, I saw that each one cost fifty cents! I’ve found that mix for as little as ten cents per envelope. And after I got home from the salvage store, I walked over to the local drug store. There, a 12-roll pack of the cheapest bathroom tissue cost $4.00. I could have bought three of those for $12.00, not $12.99. And next time I want to get a really big haul, I’ll bring the panniers, too!

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