Breaking the Bike

PBA Tweener Ride

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 02:59:35 -0500

PBA Tweener Ride
Owner:	traeblain
Location:	—
Activity Type:	Cycling
Event Type:	Recreation
Distance:	35.43 Mile
Time:	02:06:12
Elevation Gain:	694 Feet

Cycling artistry. Looks like it’s a community art...

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 08:48:35 -0500

Cycling artistry. Looks like it’s a community art piece.

via [daily dose of imagery]

PBA DB Lite North

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 20:30:38 -0500

PBA DB Lite North:

45 Miles with DB Lite group. Great route, some killer hils. Wind was terrible!
Owner:	traeblain
Location:	—
Activity Type:	Cycling
Event Type:	Recreation
Distance:

iaminlikewithmybike: pdvmorris: Now, the Flimwell Papers is...

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 19:43:50 -0500

iaminlikewithmybike:

pdvmorris:

Now, the Flimwell Papers is looking or a good trike but The All Things Bike & Cycle Photo of the Week brings you the work of Travis Cobb…nice poster work Travis!

Poor guy… somebody get this kid a Huffy…at...

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:40:31 -0500

Poor guy… somebody get this kid a Huffy…at least…

(via There, I Fixed It)

Performance…it’s the name of the game. Cycling music...

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:36:57 -0500

Performance…it’s the name of the game.

Cycling music videos are awesome. Thank you MC Spandx…

Busted Times, Busted Knee...

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:40:11 -0500

I have a new temporary American Indian name… Busted Knee.

The doc says I have a tendon or something over my bone joint instead of beside it. What does that mean? My tendon is being stretched farther than a half-eaten burger in the trash near the local hobo scene. So I may be out of commision for a while…but prior to thrashing my fragile tendon I did put in my longest ride yet… Check it!

This will not keep me down…I will rise again!!!

"Get a bicycle. You will not regret it if you live."

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 16:30:17 -0500

“Get a bicycle. You will not regret it if you live.”

- Mark Twain

Texans Please Help Fix Gov. Perry's Stupidity

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:48:00 -0500

Texans Please Help Fix Gov. Perry's Stupidity:

I know many of the Texans I know are not cyclists, but many of you are motorcyclists, runners, own horses, or have land near highways. Recently, Texas legislator passed a bill requiring people to give at least 3’ when passing these people. Then Gov. Perry (in the arrogant stupidity he often portrays) vetoed SB488, a bill that would cost Texans nothing and provide a statewide awareness push (as we know when it comes to the road, many of us need to be forced, *cough*Trae*cough*) that would make the road much safer.

A legitimate web petition is being drawn (run by BikeTexas and not just one of those worthless free-for-all petitions), asking not only our Texas legislator but also the governor (whoever it will be when this arises again) to support this type of legislation. If you are a Texan and are concerned with the safety of all members of the road, please follow this link and sign this petition.

I know some people have problems with many cyclists, not obeying traffic laws and/or not being respectful of the bigger machines with which we share the roads. That is also a charge I am working on. I’ve been buzzed inches from people on the road, almost got hit by a woman that didn’t want to wait on the cyclists so she tried to make a left turn from the right lane almost hitting me and another cyclist. I’ve seen people throw bottles at cyclists and blow their horns as they approach them way to quickly from the back. These were near misses, and more often people were not so lucky to have a miss. Legislation like this is a step in protecting those people that are too easily taken advantage of by disrespectful motorists. Thanks.

Where Will Contador Race?

Thu, 30 Jul 2009 07:51:41 -0500

Where Will Contador Race?:

Andrew Hood wrote an excellent article about what will happen to Alberto Contador next year. As the current Yellow Jersey wearer of the 2009 Tour de France, Contador is labeled one of the (if not “the”) best cyclists in the world. The man is a bit arrogant, which can be good at times, but Contador’s arrogance is different from a confident leader’s.

What does this mean? Contador needs a healthy support group behind him in order to win more Tours. Bruyneel was great at getting support where he needs it, but even he had difficulty getting Contador to ride as a team. He blew away Kloden in one mountain stage, he says he talked it over with Kloden but didn’t with their tactician (Bruyneel) and dropped Kloden down the GC. Contador is not a team player and will find it hard to gain support from people that know he acts in this way.

There is news spreading about Contador signing with a new startup team financed by Formula 1 star, Fernando Alonso. I think this would be a mistake because, as Hood points out, Cadel Evans—a spectacular cyclists—has had a hard time winning and is most likely attributed to his relatively weak team. With Great Brittan starting Team Sky and the USA starting Team RadioShack, it’s difficult to know where Contador and Alonso could find teammates and staff that could support another Tour win.

Hood points out that there are probably only 3 possibilities of people that could afford Contador’s lofty price tag. Garmin-Slipstream, Caisse d’Epargne, or Astana. With Astana’s success, even without Bruyneel and since Contador has another year left on his contract, Astana can hang on the Contador. But Contador will not have a good support team. And once again Contador will find himself jockeying for lead position with the return of Alexander Vinokourov. Garmin-Slipstream will probably only look to add Contador if Bradley Wiggins leaves the team to support Team Sky, and even then they will most likely have to seek an additional sponsor.

Last is French-backed Spanish team, Caisse d’Epargne. I think this is Contador’s only real chance. Valverde’s future is uncertain and this team has the experience that would benefit Contador’s future. Not only in ensuring and invite to the Tour de France, but also the experience of team manager, Eusebio Unzue.

Contador has many years of contending for the GC, but it’s Caisse d’Epargne that can bring him to the win. I believe all other options are not good career moves. But with all that said, until he can exhibit the kind of leadership skills that make a team want to fight for him (which I have yet to see), then he will quickly fade out of contention.

Where the Heck have I Been? And Bartape...

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:51:25 -0500

Yes, for some reason I have been away. I haven’t been able to sit at my computer and type away to update you chose few on how I’ve been doing on the bike. Well the latest news, maintenance.

Now maintenance sounds like a load of fun, right? Listening to someone talk about maintaining their bike is probably about as fun as riding a donkey through a dark dense forest while minstrels play and sing Toto’s Africa over and over. Yet this story is riveting…not really but I’ll do my best.

One thing I’ve found about me riding a bike is the lack of ab muscles I currently own. That’s right, I have a crappy core. What this means then is that I have to use my arms and shoulders to prop myself up on the handlebars much more than someone with a nice, tight, skinny, powerful…ugh…core. What this also means is that my bartape was in shambles.

I bought new bartape in order to replace it long ago, but lack the cahones to pull the existing tattered tape off and try to replace it myself. I looked at my messed up tape and thought, my it would be nice to have pretty clean looking handlebars with nice bartape… *sigh* The other night I hiked up the knickers and stepped into my second dive into bicycle maintenance. (My first was chain lubing…but that’s for a later post.)

Replacing the tape required me to do some research, I didn’t trust that I could slowly remove the current frazzled tape and remember how it was wrapped. Although my amazing eidetic memory has pulled me through many a scenario, I wanted some help. And this video is amazing…it tells you everything:

Fun, huh? It’s a little dry but I’m not looking for flash and bang here, I want the facts.

So with my wife sitting there watching me, biting her fingernails in suspense on whether or not I was going to ruin my handlebars, I ripped the old ratty tape (that’s 3 adjective for the old tape! WIN!) off. That was easy, in fact I encourage everyone to at least give that a try for a nice sense of accomplishment.

Getting the tape on was actually a breeze. All the how-to videos cautioned about over stretching the tape while wrapping for fear of tearing, but I never felt concerned once. Nice tension on the tape and no tearing. Due to my crappy core, I didn’t want to push my tape exposing the raw bar again, therefore I over-wrapped the tape. Due to the tighter wrapping, I was afraid then I was going to run out of tape before I finished…this apparently was absurd.

So my handlebars now look amazing (I promise I’ll take some pictures and post them). The tighter wrap is actually much better looking then before and the difference in the road vibration on my hands was instantly noticeable. So to all that need to re-wrap their bartape, do it now…it will be ok.

Cycling Blindfolded Any of you guys thinking about doing this...

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:34:06 -0500

Cycling Blindfolded

Any of you guys thinking about doing this let me know…I’d be happy to help out. You know me! I tend to think this man is peaking though…just my assumption…

(via xgeronimo)

Gov. Perry Vetoes SB 488

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:36:33 -0500

Gov. Perry Vetoes SB 488:

I was very disappointed when I heard this news this past week. I’ve never been Perry’s biggest fan, but this bill that has support by motorist organizations and cycling organizations alike, as well as strong bipartisan support was put on the chopping block by Texas Governor Rick Perry. Here’s one bill that raises awareness and could save lives, that doesn’t cost anything, only infringes on how close people can pass cyclists (pedestrians, mopeds, etc.) and Perry feels he should veto it. I really think Perry is on his way out the door and decisions like this is what makes it all the more obvious.

Ok, no more politics at the dinner table…too much contention!

Hitting the Wall

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:01:00 -0500

Man, what happened. I haven’t posted some new stuff as of late. Well here we go.

I hit the wall. I decided to go out for a nice ride (even though we are hitting over 100deg F/38deg C) and just getting back from vacation I didn’t prepare myself well for a ride. What does that mean? I bonked way too early. As you know I am a super amateur cyclist and my rides are somewhere around the 15-20 mile rides, although I’m trying to get longer and longer. Well this ride made me hit the wall around 11 miles. And when I say I hit the wall…my body screamed from within yelling “You hate me! Why do you do this, in response we will not operate anymore!”

I pulled off the road and grabbed a snack to try to get the sugar and stuff to push me over the wall and hopefully get enough to really keep moving. But two bites in I felt like I was going to spew choco energy mash all over the ground. So I stopped and chugged some more water. I was a few seconds away from calling my beloved wife and hang my head in manly shame. But being the stud and manly man that I am, I hopped back on the saddle and hit the trail again. Going noticeably slower, I breathed slowly and pushed myself to it’s limit.

A few miles in, the sugar from the energy bar mouse bites finally decided to provide a truce between my body and the bike. Now my cycling was moving at a better pace. I stopped quickly at a fountain to refill my water, and trucked on again.

Through out this entire trek, I kept getting lost. This was my first ride on this particular trail and I blame the city’s parks department for my problem (because it can never be my fault). Sometimes the trail would end, but if you crossed the creek the trail would continue. Sometimes the trail would go under cross streets on one side of the creek but make you cross the street on the other side. So confusing, but I got through it. Starting from my usual start point I threw on the GPS and tracked my progress. Here it is for your pleasure.

Bicycle harassment ordinance passes unanimously

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:06:42 -0500

Bicycle harassment ordinance passes unanimously:

This should be included in every state’s law code. Too many people feel that streets are for automobiles and all other users be damned. It’s horrible. There are a number of people, that have passed by me, their mirror inches from my arm, only to honk as they passed. They believe I didn’t have a right to be there.

This link talks about people getting ashtrays dumped on them as they ride. That is horrible. A little education for everyone, and punishment for those that don’t abide by those laws…on both sides, is in order.

My First Time on Rollers Ok that’s not me on those...

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:55:49 -0500

My First Time on Rollers

Ok that’s not me on those rollers, but I’ve heard over and over that rollers are much better than trainers when you have to ride inside. BUT, I’m also told that they aren’t easy. So I decided to go to my local Performance Bike store and ask the peeps there if I could try it out.

Let’s just say it wasn’t much different than this guy. I had the benefit of a large storage unit on one side and a dude pushing me back on the other side. An audience formed and got to laugh at my misforture.

But hey…at least I’m not this guy either:

Woman gets 3 years in death of bicyclists

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 10:30:23 -0500

Woman gets 3 years in death of bicyclists:

This upsets me to no end. I know the woman is old, but someone with the history she had and the fact that she was making her escape from shoplifting, all hopped up on perscription morphine and barbiturates, makes the whole thing unexcusable!

Also, revoking her liscense is not going to do anthing because you know after 1.5 years (good behaviour) she’s going to hop right back into that F-350 and take someone else out.

This is not Justice…

First Trot Out in a Group

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:30:48 -0500

Sometimes I’m amazed at just how much of an amatuer rider I am. But this weekend I decided that I needed to dabble in the world of group riding. I’ve ridden with a buddy but never is a mass of people. So, I felt it was time to try.

The local bicycling association has a number of rides for a number of experienced people and I figured the 16 mile Novice ride would be a great start. First it wasn’t fast, and I would get the hang of riding with a number of people. You know, work my way up to the 35mph decents inches from your neighbor and holding a perfect line.

This turned out not to be the best decision as it was a bit too slow and too novice-y. (By the way this was not the fault of the organizers.) We set out at a great pace, but within minutes we were stopping for 5 minutes at a time waiting for some people to catch up. Good people, but they didn’t really pay attention to the requirement of at least 11mph on this ride (I know, slow). Next the route really didn’t push me at all, fun route and I will probably do it again on my own. Yet I could have done that route at an easy 18mph most of the way with a 14-15mph on some of the longer/steeper hills. But it’s ok!

Next time I will go out on the next level up. It’s still not that fast but I think it will shake of the riff-raff (or I’ll be the riff-raff) and still be a great ride. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Summer Rallies

Thu, 28 May 2009 13:13:16 -0500

So I’m interested in doing a few 2 or 3 rallies this summer. Because I’m so new to cycling, I’d rather be very cautious about the ones I choose. Since I’m fat and slow, I will probably only do the rallies that have 20-30 mile runs or so. So I’m thinking about these few rallies, wondering what you think:

Tour de Pepper June 13, 2009. 7:00 am. Dublin. 9, 34, 64 miles. $30 before June 6, $35 after. Email.

Collin Classic June 13, 2009. 8 a.m. Mckinney. 4, 15, 22, 34, 47, 55 miles. Email.

Cow Creek Country Classic June 27, 2009. 7:30 am. Waxahachie. 10, 19, 36, 46, 75 and 100 miles. $20 before June 20, $25 after. Family and Corporate discounts. T-shirt. Showers and changing areas are available. Email.

Katy Flatland July 19, 2009. 7 am. Katy. 33, 44, 57, 100 miles. $25. Corporate T-shirt.

David Eikenburg Memorial Bike Ride July 11, 2009. 7:00 am. New Braunfels. 1, 12, 25, 62, 100 miles. $30. T-shirts, bandannas, food, door prizes.

Red Hot Chili Pepper August 15, 2009. 7:30 am. Dallas. 20, 40 and 60 miles. $25, $30 DOR. All pre-registered riders are guaranteed a T-shirt.

If anyone knows of one I should try let me know, so I’ll take suggestions.

Be Cautious Whilst Cycling I’m always concerned when I get...

Thu, 21 May 2009 20:03:53 -0500

Be Cautious Whilst Cycling

I’m always concerned when I get out on the road that I’m going to do something stupid like this. Then I will get caught on film, the video will be posted onto YouTube, and then people will point and laugh at me as I wail and cry and scream.

Sometimes you just got to suck it up and hope for the best. And if you do fall…post it to the internet first so that they cannot break your spirit! Yeah.