SpokEasy

SpokEasy

Author name: CAL

Thwarted

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Brake rub thwarted me yet again this morning. The wind had dropped considerably since last night; and I wanted to go to the salvage store. I still have scads of canned goods; but the constant din in the media about COVID-19 makes me want to keep well stocked. So, I hitched up the trailer. It didn\’t work out. As soon as I climbed aboard and began pedaling, I heard an odd \”grrk\” noise. Before long, it became harder and harder to pedal; and the headwind was no help. Finally I stopped to see what was going on. As I suspected, the rear wheel had brake rub. Again. For the last few months using the trailer nearly always results in brake rub! I wasn\’t even halfway to the store; and I decided that it was better to go back home. Later this morning I went to the bike shop to see what was going on with those brakes. They said something about the quick release not being quite right; and they also said, put the bicycle in an upright position while hitching up the trailer. If the bike is leaning on the kickstand, the wheel gets pulled a bit out of position when I hitch up. The result is brake rub! So today\’s plan was thwarted; but maybe I can try a Sunday trip to the salvage store. It will be cold again tomorrow; but at least there won\’t be much wind. The store opens later on Sundays, though; and that could mean more traffic. Or maybe I\’ll let the salvage store wait until next Saturday; and do my long ride tomorrow, as usual. I just got new cleats put on my cycling shoes, and I hope my left foot won\’t come unclipped as I ride!

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Cold Holiday

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It\’ll be a cold holiday! Yes; I have a three-day weekend before me. Snow is a great rarity here; and none is expected. But it will be cold enough for me! This afternoon the wind started to strengthen. Around 3:30 I heard a few gusts that were quite strong; and I decided I\’d better drop work for a minute, and bring in my recycling bin before it got blown away. Indeed, the wind now is 22 mph. It\’s blowing from the West, which is unusual. If this wind keeps up, my neighborhood will be smelling the fumes from the petroleum refinery 25 miles away! I\’m glad that doesn\’t happen often. I\’m also glad the wind is supposed to drop to about 10 mph by morning. The predicted low is in the upper 30s; and such a temperature plus a 22 mph wind means a chill factor well below freezing! So — shall I go to the salvage store, or not? Even if the wind drops to 10 mph by morning, as predicted, the chill factor will still be around 29 degrees. I can put warm packs inside my gloves; but my feet will still be too cold. At least I should have a tailwind on the way back home; and that always helps. How about the Sunday long ride? It will still be cold in the morning. I won\’t be trying for 40 miles yet; I\’m still getting back into road-bike condition, and 25 miles would be a more sensible goal. Monday? It will be great to have a day to sleep a few extra hours. I might go for a short ride; and take Tuesday off from bicycles. But whatever I do, it will be a cold holiday.

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Heat Wave!

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We\’re getting a heat wave! Relatively speaking, that is. I won\’t be digging out the sun sleeves just yet. Day before yesterday, the chill factor at 5 am was a miserably bone-numbing 31 degrees; and I didn\’t want my hands to suffer a repeat of Sunday\’s ride. It was in the mid-40s at that time; and I still got home after an hour or so of riding with my fingers bloodless and waxy-looking. Yesterday morning it was a bit warmer; about 42 degrees; and almost no wind. That\’s a little more bearable. Unfortunately it was still very cold in my abode; and being cold makes me feel numb, slow, and clumsy; and brain-dead as well. I didn\’t get out on the bike until at least 20 minutes later than usual; so I had to do a short ride. Today, Thursday, is a work-from-home day — hooray! On days when I work remotely, I can start my ride later; I still have time to eat breakfast in a leisurely fashion; and I don\’t have to rush around fixing a lunch to take with me. Around noon I stepped outdoors briefly to put something in the trash; and I was surprised at how warm it felt. In fact, it was a sweltering 67 degrees! At about 3:30 pm I heard the wind start to kick up; and tonight it\’s supposed to plummet to 44 degrees. So the heat wave is over already; and tomorrow\’s wind of 10-20 mph will drive the chill factor as low as 35 degrees! I was considering a pre-work ride to Whole Foods; but that forecast gives me pause. I might have to resort to online ordering — again.

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Heat It Up!

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Let\’s heat it up! It\’s too cold right now for cold chocolate! I didn\’t ride Monday morning, but that didn\’t stop me from having a mug of hot chocolate. Last Saturday at the salvage store, I found hot cocoa mix; and made with dark chocolate, too. Only after I got it home did I notice that it\’s single-serve cups of the mix; and meant to be used in a machine! Guess what. The machine isn\’t necessary! I emptied the contents of one mini-cup into a mug; and added hot water. Then I stirred it up; and it worked fine. After Sunday\’s ride, I drank the vanilla Gatorade Super Shake. It\’s OK, but I think I\’ll stick with protein powder in milk. That\’s something I love about the salvage store. I can try new things; and often at low cost. Monday night\’s predicted low temperature was 36 degrees; and the humidity was a miserable 76%. The chill factor was 39 degrees that evening; and I was certain that the next morning would feel even colder! I was right. It\’s so easy to say, let\’s heat it up by going for a brisk ride. That isn\’t so easy to do when I\’m not warm enough indoors! In fact, I decided to skip the morning ride yesterday. The chill factor was a bone-numbing 31 degrees; and I remembered too well how cold my hands got Sunday, when it was in the mid-40s. There are products that you can use to keep hands and feet warm. Some are meant to be inserted into gloves; and I ordered some online. When even heavy gloves don\’t keep my hands from getting too cold; and my circulation suffers; it\’s no time to be macho.

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Through or Over?

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Do you step through or over your bicycle when mounting? The step-through design has an advantage or two. Some ladies want or need to wear a skirt while riding; and they don\’t want to have to fling a leg up into the air! A step-through frame can help prevent indecent exposure. Slacks can be binding; and that can make mounting a bicycle with a top-tube awkward. Older people might have physical difficulty in mounting a top tube-style bicycle. A step-through reduces that problem, and helps them continue cycling! How about the top-tube design? This has an advantage when speed is of essence, because it makes the frame a bit more rigid; and lessens \”frame-whip\”. So, to paraphrase Hamlet, through or over? That\’s hard to say. I have both types of bicycles. My hybrid is a through; and my road bike is an over. The road bike is much more fun to ride; but there are times when the hybrid is far more practical. That\’s when \”through\” is better! When I \”make groceries\”, as they say around here, I might have a considerable load; and the hybrid is much better suited to carrying loads. I have a rack; and panniers; and a bike trunk. For a super-big load, I can use panniers; and rack; and trailer! Then, when I get home, my legs feel like rubber! \”Over\” rules the day when I\’m out for a long Sunday ride. I can put my ride food in my top-tube pouch. If I ride the hybrid, I have to put my food in the trunk; and then I have to stop and dismount every time I need a bit to eat! Overall, I think I\’ll take \”over\”!

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Paper or Cloth?

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Is paper or cloth better material for a filter mask? The whole world is wearing masks, so that\’s a reasonable enough question. Disposable masks, aka paper ones, have their upside. I don\’t have to wash them; that saves me a bit of time. On the other hand, disposable masks must be changed at least once daily; and the cost of them adds up quickly. Cloth masks can be washed and reused; but how can I be sure that I\’m getting them properly cleaned? And what about fit? At work everybody was issued two cloth masks; and they aren\’t comfortable. I believe those masks are \”one size fits all\”. That means they don\’t really fit anybody. They\’re too big for me, even when I twist the ear loops. They slide down my nose. The ear loops don\’t have enough stretch for my liking. Getting back to disposable masks, do they provide enough protection? Maybe so; at least, I\’ve remained COVID-negative so far. On the other hand, even when I have to work on site, there aren\’t many of us there at one time. I still go to brick-and-mortar stores; but I go early in the day, when there won\’t be many other people there. I get in and out as quickly as possible; and I\’m ordering more of my groceries online. I read of a test that can help you decide the paper or cloth question: if you can blow out a match while wearing a mask, that mask isn\’t sufficient. I haven\’t tried this test yet. Maybe I won\’t. I don\’t want to set myself on fire!

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Back in the Saddle

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I\’m back in the saddle of the road bike! Today I rode less than 15 miles. A ride more than 20 miles long requires on-bike fueling; but the temperature was in the low 40s, so I wore my heaviest gloves. Heavy gloves make fueling awkward; and despite those gloves, my hands got too cold. After several low-mileage weeks, I judged it unwise to push for 40 miles, anyway. In fact, I\’m glad I didn\’t have to ride against the wind for 20 miles to get back home! The weather meant having to drink chilled water; and of course that only made me feel colder! Incidentally, I was a little afraid that my muscles had forgotten how to get a bidon in and out of the bottle cage. The first try, I did fine; but soon it began to get tricky. That\’s what comes of thinking too much! Speaking of thinking, I think I\’ll skip the bikes tomorrow. Temperatures will be in the mid-40s; and rain is likely. Add winds of 10-15 mph, and I\’ve got miserable conditions for a ride. My gloves don\’t shed water well; and wet, cold hands are no help for Raynaud\’s. Heck, cold alone is bad enough for Raynaud\’s. Rain here is typically heavy, anyway; and \”water-resistant\” clothing gets soaked through. A poncho isn\’t much help. The wind makes it flap all over the place, so I get wet, anyway; and the wind resistance is infuriating. If I could find a rain suit the right size, it might do some good. Yes, I\’m glad to be back in the saddle; but it looks like tomorrow won\’t be a good time for it.

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All Over H

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All over H and half of Georgia (as the Southern saying goes) is where I\’ve been today; or so it seems. I began by deciding to brave this morning\’s chill to ride to the salvage store; and it was worth it! As usual, my first stop inside the store was at the grab-bag bins. I made a small bag; and right there I made some big savings. Today those bins had a lot of Fit Crunch Bars. I took seven; and one bar still had the original price sticker on it: $3.99. Talk about sticker shock! After I factor in the four other items I put in my grab bag, I got those bars for 27¢ apiece. You can see why I love that store, right? There\’s more! I found Gatorade Super Shakes, $1.34 each; and got two. I\’ll try one after tomorrow\’s ride, and see whether I prefer it to protein powder in milk. I like to try something different now and then, anyway. I got my load home from the store; and then I headed for the bike shop to pick up my road bike. While I was there, I got a new pair of cycling shorts, too. I got home again; and then got busy running around the kitchen, making Hoppin\’ John. This time I used feta cheese; and fire-roasted canned tomatoes. Months ago, I bought a one-pound bag of frozen field peas at the salvage store. Today I used it for the \”HJ\”, and got finally it out of the freezer. After I clean up from making HJ, I have to start running around the kitchen again. This time it will be a sweet potato mash. It really does feel like I\’m rushing all over H!

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Topsy Turvy

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Things are really topsy turvy! COVID-19 cases in my city spiked sharply since last week; and we\’re back in \”modified Phase 1\”. It can look like the situation is improving, and then we get knocked back to square one. The weather is topsy turvy, too. Yesterday at 5 am, it was 60 degrees. Within the next few hours, the temperature dropped by about 10 degrees. Overnight, it fell to the low 40s; and with a nasty wind besides. Tonight will be even colder! I\’m turning my kitchen topsy turvy as well. Last night I began another spell of cooking stuff to freeze for later. First on the list: squashed sauce! I call it that because I use it as pasta sauce, and it has squash in it; zucchini in this case. It isn\’t complicated, but the prep is time-consuming. The upside: I used up four cans of stuff various foods from the salvage store. I need to get some of that stuff out of here. I\’m undecided as to whether I\’ll head over to the salvage store tomorrow. It will be a cold ride if I do! I want to look for garbage bags, but I rather doubt my ability to resist buying more canned goods. I keep thinking, What if we all have to hunker down indoors for several weeks? And I keep on buying supplies. My road bike is finally ready for me to pick up at the shop ? There wasn\’t time for me to get there after work today, so I\’ll have to get it tomorrow. To ride it home, or walk it home? That depends on how many layers I\’m wearing!

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Laos by Bicycle

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Laos by Bicycle This blog/page may contain affiliate links. “We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.” Laos by bicycle would let me become acquainted with an entirely unfamiliar country. I know where it is, but little else. At the time I first though about Laos by bicycle, the COVID-19 pandemic meant that travel was out of the question. My home city then had a 10.4% positivity rate; and I was amazed that the town wasn’t entirely shut down. But, there’s always armchair travel. Or rather, armchair cycle touring! I enjoyed reading this account of crossing Laos on two wheels. I’m like the author prior to her journey: nervous about doing such a ride, especially alone; worried that I might not have the stamina to ride miles per day every day; and how I’ll cope with weather. I also have concerns about coping with the terrain. The country is roughly 70% mountainous. For me, that would be one arduous journey! Laos by bicycle will let you see more than you would via other touring modes; and likely more contact with the people who live there. So — I sound like the proverbial broken record here — brush up on your etiquette. Some things on the list apply to other Asian countries, such as avoiding physical contact with monks. The caution about “unexploded ordinances” wouldn’t have occurred to me. That’s why prospective travelers abroad need to do their homework before leaving home! The climate of Laos is tropical. Between October and April the weather is apt to be warm and dry; and the best time to visit. Dry also sounds good for bicycle touring. Be aware that Laos has no trauma center; and in the event of a serious accident, you’ll have find a way to Thailand for treatment. Lao culture, in general, is quite easy-going. If you opt for cycling adventures there, I hope your trip is easy, too!

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