Seems like every few months, we spent most of a day organizing our garage, only to have it overflow with stuff again in what seems like no time. I accept 95% responsibility for this. The other 5% I blame on the recession, since it seems our two perfectly lovely commuter bikes aren't going to find a new home for a while.
So, with the help of Rubbermaid, we set out to once again hack a path through the middle. I'd say we were fairly successful:
While we were in a groove, we went through several boxes and drawers full of bike stuff, and a box of goodies will be making it's way to Goodwill or the Community Cycling Center in the near future.
Then there's the stuff, we're still hoping to get a little cash for. So if you're in the market for:
...by all means, click on through. I also have a bunch of old Star Trek comics I'd love to see get a good home (not so attached to the cash). Something about dealing with all my mom's stuff has given me a strong urge to de-clutter my life. It's an ongoing project.
But for now, I'm going to pat myself on the back (and Jess too) and maybe wander back out to the garage before bed so I can revel in the orderliness of it all:
As I left the Mac Store on 7th & Multnomah, I was congratulating myself on staying out of SE, when I got a sudden urge for sour cream pancakes from Tabor Hill cafe. I was only about 15 minutes away so I caved, and headed south.
As I was locking up my bike, I heard someone shouting "HEY!!! HEY!" from across the street. I didn't know if he was yelling at me, but the last time I stopped for some guy yelling hey at me, a skeevy drunk guy tried to climb onto the back of my bike, so I was disinclined to look up.
The rider, for it was a rider, eventually crossed the street and he was in fact yelling at me. And when I turned around, I saw why:
Matthew has had his Big Dummy, which he named Lucy (I definitely need to find a name!), for two months. As soon as she was built up, he headed out of Seattle and hasn't looked back. He said he's been staying with 'redneck' relatives in Newburg and this morning he ran away in search of an apartment in Portland, where he has determined he should make his home. Duh.
In a quick bike check, we discovered we have the same bars and saddle. I meant to ask him about his brakes, which sported a monstrous rotor. I also found out that he built his wheels himself, which gives him +20 on me in bike geekdom. We compared tires (his Schwalbe Marathon to my Big Apples) and commiserated about the hassles of getting them properly seated on the rim. But he did confirm my suspicion that the Marathon's were pretty much bomb-proof in his ride down from Seattle. He asked about putting the Dummy on the bus (don't bother trying), and spoke with glee about stopping at a light, and having fifteen cyclists stack up behind him.
As he got ready to leave, a guy passed us and stopped to ask about the bikes. "This one's all yours," Matt said, and I got the feeling he's had lots of these conversations. I gave the standard answers and suggested he go test ride at River City Bikes. As of yesterday they had one built up on the floor. I'll be curious to see how long it lasts.
Matt, if you're reading, good luck with your apartment hunting, and be sure to check out Bikeportland and Shift. See you on the road.
Before I subject myself to the low-ballers and flakes of craigslist, I thought I'd post here and see if any friends or friends of friends or strangers who read this blog would like to give a good home to my trusty commuter Scott Sportster P4.
After commuting on a mountain bike for many years, I finally decided I needed something a little more versatile for carrying things around--but I didn't want to give up on the idea that I 'could go off-road at any time.' Enter the Sportster. Of course it was Jess who found it first (she is selling hers too--get a matched set!) but naturally I had to have one eventually.
It's got 700cc wheels for zippy travel around town. A suspension fork to smooth out pot-holes or the trail. Braze-ons to securely mount a rack and full fenders (rack not included, fenders included on one bike only). An easy-to-adjust stem height for upright comfort or more aerodynamic positioning. Good components for smooth, crisp shifting. For detailed specs on the bike, go here. You can also find a couple of reviews here.
This bike has seen me through two years of commuting, bike camping trips and even some real live mountain biking trails in Sisters and Bend. It really is the perfect do everything bike. As you know if you read this blog regularly, it took something pretty amazing to make me give it up. But the garage is only so big.
If you'd like to give it a test ride, leave a comment or email me with your number, if I don't already have it. The bike is a size medium frame and could possibly fit riders 5'3-5'6.
If it does sell to someone I know (or within one degree), who is a new bike commuter, I will throw in two hours of bike tips--this could be in the form of route planning, maintenance tips, gear advice, flat changing demo or even a full on escort of your home-to-work or route of your choice commute. Part of my mission for the summer is to bike-buddy more new commuters, and this is officially Bike Commute Challenge month so if you know someone who's at the tipping point, pass the word.
Today was the summer day I've been wishing for and just needed the weather to cooperate. I was scheduled to take my MTB in to River City for it's routine maintenance check up, which gave me the perfect opportunity to break out my TrayBien and perpetrate some more bike on bike love. I continue to be amazed at how smoothly the BD handles everything I can throw at it, though I really shouldn't be. Before I actually had mine, I spent plenty of time reading BD blogs and viewing BD porn on Flickr and they all pretty much said the same thing.
I cruised over to the dentist's office, where Jess was just finishing up. Aaron, the dentist, told her that she is one of the few people that he would gladly trade teeth with, making her officially, the dentist's pet. She's quite proud, as well she should be. Check out those pearly whites! Aaron is also an avid cyclist and sometime bike racer, so he came out to ogle my new and old toy.
From there we embarked on a little circle of bike shopping that we would eventually reverse. It started with a call to someone from the OBRA racing list who might have a drop bar that would work for Jess's new Cross Check that she's building up. He happened to live about a mile from Aaron's office and he was home, so we headed over. After procuring the bar, it was off to Seven Corners to see Corey and drop off more bike parts.
If I spend any more time in that shop, I'm hoping to take home a paycheck. Oddly, when I go in there, I usually have a bunch of things to work on, and as soon as I go in, 80 other people walk through the door, and I spend three hours there. Jess waited about five minutes and then had Corey's undivided attention--at least between handfuls of chocolate covered peanuts, which he even shared. The shop was like a ghost town for at least forty five minutes.
During that time, Jess gave him measurements for setting up her bike and made a tough decision about which shade of blue bar tape would best go with her navy blue Chris King headset, sending Corey into fits of uncontrollable giggles. But supportive giggles.
From there we had lunch at the Clinton Corner Cafe. We sat outside and had a whole 20 minutes of fresh air before someone at the next table started smoking. But that's a rant for another day. The food was good and we watched people ogle the Dummy as they walked by, and we ogled all the bikes of the commuters riding by.
Clinton street could be considered the heart of bikey Portland and there were a lot of hot bikes to watch, including a TON of Surlys. It seems lately as if Surly might be taking over the world. Corey told us that 7-Corners is the third largest Surly dealer in the U.S. which maybe explains it. We even saw another Big Dummy ride by and I couldn't stop myself from shouting "Dummy!" at the guy. He looked over at us, but he was plugged into his Ipod, moving fast and my Dummy was hidden behind a parked car so I'm sure he didn't see it. I was sad I wasn't riding when I saw him so we could compare notes. But with all the folks at shops who said they were in the process of building one up, I'm sure I'll be seeing more of my fellow Dumb riders on the road soon.
After that it was off to River City to exchange some parts and pick up some others. In addition to dropping off my MTB for service, I had notice that the seat bag I bought in June was already ripping at the seams. That got replaced with no problems, and returning our seat posts was equally smooth. We bought straight when we needed set back. They didn't have any in stock, so we'll probably be making the rounds at some more shops tomorrow.
The small hitch came when I tried to exchange an old River City long sleeve wool jersey. I got it as a gift and I've had a long time, but haven't worn it much because it's shown a disturbing tendency to fall apart. I pulled it on the other day and discovered *five* new holes. Fresh from my success exchanging my three year old Keens that were literally falling apart at the seems for shiny new ones at REI, I was hoping for similar luck here.
Mark, the manager came out to talk with me while he seemed receptive and willing to accommodate at first, he ultimately decided the holes were from moths and instead offered to sell me a new one at a discount. "That's OK, I've given you guys enough of my money," I said, and it's true. I've probably spent close to $4k in dead mom money in the past two years just at RC. I'm trying to ease out of the rampant shopping mode in preparation for school. I hung up the new shirt I'd been holding up to see if it would fit and held out my hand. He could tell I was pissed and wouldn't give me the old shirt at first. "Can I have my shirt back?"
"Yeah, you can have it." But it was another few seconds before he handed it over. I could almost see him trying to figure out how to save the situation. I wasn't pissed that he said no, so much as that he said yes first, and then backed out. Either have a policy and stick to it, or make a decision and stick to it. I thought it was really poor form. I went back to find Jess and told her, "Well Dorothy, we're not at REI anymore." I like River City, and generally have good or great experiences there, but I also make sure I buy things I don't think I'll need to return. As a small shop, they tend to be a little stricter about such things. The jersey swap was a long shot to begin with, but I didn't like being given false hope.
Corey had mentioned concerns that Jess's used drop bar might be a little narrow, so she spent quite a bit of time looking at other sizes and talking to Brandon, our favorite mechanic (and the manager of the dept). He helped us for over an hour when we went in to buy the bulk of the parts for our bikes and was super patient and nice. He offered to let Jess bring her bike in and try the bars she thought she wanted but I gently suggested maybe she should just buy them and have them installed in the first place.
"She's ready to strangle me," Jess told Brandon. Not exactly true, but I could already envision the frustration of getting a new bike that didn't quite fit, coming into RC to maybe find they didn't have what she needed in stock--let's just say her luck is not that great in general, and I thought it best to get while the getting was good.
Where does the day go? Suddenly it was 5:45 and we had 15 minutes to pay for the bars and hustle them back over to Corey's, which we did. As the public relations manager of the relationship, I got to call the OBRA guy and see if he would take the bars back and return our funds, which he promptly agreed to do. Classy guy. And that brought us full circle on our shopping journey.
On the way home, we stopped to see Lisa, Spike and Essex. Because of my cold, which is not quite gone, I couldn't touch the baby and it was pretty much torture. But he was still fun to watch. I tried to give my leftover snuggles to Otis the dog, but he was laying down some farts that had to be smelled to be believed. We were were relieved when Spike decided to take him on a walk.
When we left, we headed through the Mississippi neighborhood and north on Interstate to stop at New Seasons on our way home. Just before Killingsworth, we were almost mowed down by a huge semi that passed us with inches to spare, although there was an entire empty left turn lane he could have used to pass us safely. Jess screamed and nearly had a heart attack. I was calmer in the moment, and veered onto the sidewalk at the first opportunity. Then we both sprinted to the corner, where the lethal trucker was sitting at a red light. His windows were closed, but I'm sure he knew why we were both screaming at him.
"Too close!" yelled Jess.
"You almost killed us!" I added.
His reply was to rev his engine a couple of times and give us a look that said plainly that he really didn't give a sh*t if he killed us. As long as I live, I will always fail the Save vs Comprehend-idiots-who-have-no-regard-for-others throw. (Blame Wil for the D&D reference). We stayed on the side walk until he was well past, and I waited till we were safely parked at New Seasons to get the shakes. That was definitely my closest call of the summer. I sure would hate to die when things are going so well.
But we're both fine and we'll live to ride another day. And despite the occasional jerk off, I'll still take two wheels over C/offins/ars any day. Amazing that over 40,000 people die per year due to car crashes and we're so ingrained in car culture as a country that we largely accept it as a given.
A month or so ago, we signed up to count bikes for PDOT so they can update their traffic information and tell the purse string holders how many more people are riding bikes this year than last, so we can have more trails, bike blvds n stuff.
Our first mission was at the corner of Russell and Williams, quite the hot commuting spot. We set up at 3:50pm and from 4:00-6:00 we kept track of who went where, men vs women and helmets vs no helmets. It was definitely a two person job.
In two hours, we counted 531 cyclists. About 20% were without helmets and about 38% were women. One of the cyclists was an ex of mine, who stopped to chat, during the busiest stream of the time period. I actually enjoyed the challenge of keeping up conversation while trying to keep track of all the bikes. We have another intersection to count out near U of P that probably won't see quite as much traffic, but I'll be interested to see the numbers.
The carpocalypse is coming. Gas isn't getting any cheaper, and despite the host of folks who refuse to get it, the plain fact for anyone who cares to open their eyes, is that more driving is not the solution. Since inheriting my mom's car, it's been useful on occasion, particularly in the winter when I'm feeling lazy. But more often than not, it's a crutch, resulting in a prolonged debate between the devil and the angel on my shoulder about how I will get where I need to go. As the weather gets warmer, the devil wins less--but when she does, I'm almost always the loser, ending up stuck in traffic, frustrated and thinking how much more fun, faster and more pleasant my task would have been by bike. Even though traveling by bike is hardly a utopia these days, for me, it still beats the alternative 99.99999 percent of the time. For those .001% times, Jess's car is usually available, since she rides as much or more than I do (having a job and not being a shiftless bum like myself, she actually *has* to leave the house at least four days a week). We also both have Zipcar accounts (received gratis as perks for involvement with different bike-related projects), giving us the flexibility to get the right car for the job if we need say, a pick-up truck for a dump run.
With that in mind, I've decided to make good on a long held dream. I've been lusting after an Xtracycleever since I first saw one seven or eight years ago. For those who haven't heard of the X, it's a frame extension called a 'Free Radical" which attaches to a regular bicycle. The wheel base is extended about 15 inches and Freeloader bags are attached to two V-Racks. A snap deck sits over the rear tire. That plus a host of optional accessories allow you to carry just about anything on your bike: groceries, ladders, 80 lbs bags of dog food, people, oversize loads. The size of your load is limited only by your creativity, the length of your tie-down rope, and the strength of your legs.
I never had the money, the space or the need to justify getting one, but I light up every time I see one, and, if the owner is stopped, usually pester them with questions about how they like it. I've read through pages of testimonials on the Xtracycle website about how it literally "changes your life!" One of the pros of an X over a more traditional trailer system is the quality of the ride. The long wheel base means your bike rides like, well, a bike. I've heard lots of reports that an X rides even better when loaded. So, you don't have to try to decide whether to hook up the trailer that day, it's just always there. And we're not just talking nice paved roads here either. Xtracycles can tackle gravel, dirt and singletrack as well or better than a regular bike.
Now Surly has teamed up with Xtracycle and made a frame that's purpose built for Xtracycle components. The frame being all one piece means an even smoother ride and less flex in the frame when carrying loads. They call this new frame, the Big Dummy. Last week, I got lost in the rabbit hole and spent a whole evening watching Big Dummy porn on YouTube.
So it seems, the time has come to make the leap. The car will go on sale next month, and the resulting funds will be use to build the bike collection I've always wanted. Yes, I said 'collection.' After all the traveling I did last summer, and the $600 I spent on rental cars while visiting folks in California, I swore I would not go down there again without a bike. After spending a few weeks checking out folding bike options, I took the leap and ordered a Bike Friday Tikit. Sure, I could spend less on a Dahon, but the general consensus is that Bike Friday has the nicest riding folders of anyone around. You can get a lot of bike for car money, and I want these to be in the stable for years to come, so I decided not to skimp.
If you're not a bike person, you might think deciding to get a folding bike would narrow down the choices--but at Bike Friday, they have a folder for every occasion. Touring? Multi-modal city commuting? Off-road? High end performance? Tandem, triple, four person that comes apart and fits in two suitcases? You get the idea. So narrowing down the final choice was pretty tough. I called and talked to Hugh, one of the sales associates at BF and based on my needs, he suggested the Pocket Crusoe or the New World Tourist. But I couldn't quite get the Tikit out of my head. The wheels are smaller, which usually means a harsher ride, but Jess and I went down to Coventry Cycles on Hawthorne and tried some out and the ride was pretty smooth. Plus, the folding package is smaller, and you can roll the bike by the built in handle. And for travel, the breakdown and packing process is a lot quicker than the larger Crusoe and Tourist models.
After much deliberation, I decided on a custom built Tikit with 24 speeds, touring H-bars and the travel case that doubles as a trailer when you get to your destination. It'll be yellow and I'm still deciding what to put on my custom name plate. I'm open to suggestions.
The final steed is arguably the be-all end all of mutt do-it-all bike utility. It is will also be based on a Surly frame and it's called the Cross Check. It's one of three bikes that Surly sells as a complete bike, but I'm getting the frame only so I can build it up with just the parts I want. It will serve as my main commuter bike, but it could be pressed into service for light touring, or as an actual 'Cross bike (I'm getting a lot of pressure to race Cyclocross this year to which I say--we'll see). I hear nothing but good about the ride quality and versatility of this frame and so far, my test rides have been pretty sweet. Check out Vik's blog to see what a chameleon this bike can be.
The only really sad part of this affair is that for reasons of space, I'm going to have to give up my trusty Scott Sportster P4, which has been my dream bike up this point and is almost as versatile as the Cross Check. It's a cushy ride around town, but has front suspension in case I get the urge to go off-road. I even took it to Bend and took it on some trails that definitely tested it's limits. I hate to do it, but our garage is not very big. The Scott has been feeling a little slow for the past few months and I've been wishing for something a little zippier for around town trips. I can easily rationalize having having five bikes with different purposes, but not two bikes with the same purpose. That's just crazy. :-)
Jess is also trading her Scott for a Cross Check. She swears she had the idea first, but I don't know if I'm willing to give her full credit. :) However, it does mean that, once again, we will have matching bikes in the same color (Misty Mountain Grey). The components might be a little different though. I keep trying to get her to embrace our twin dork pride, but she's not quite there yet. The problem is, I've always done my shopping by noticing cool things that other people had and then going to find that thing. She just happens to live with me, and also have excellent taste in just the kind of clothes/gear I like. It's really quite convenient. And besides, I had my Timbuk2 bag first. So there.
So that's it. By the end of September, I hope to have a completely revamped bike stable. To sum up the final list:
Having no obligations today other than taking Chuck to the airport this morning, I came home and indulged in taped episodes of Heroes and Battlestar Galactica. By the time I was done with that, I was well on my way to wasting what could be the last sunny day until May.
That combined with the news of yet another cyclist getting picked off by a right hook from a truck yesterday spurred me into action. I threw on my team kit, pumped up the roadie tires and headed out on a one woman memorial ride. I went where I always go when I need to pedal out some pain--Rocky Butte. It doesn't take much hill to leave me panting and Rocky Butte always does the trick.
On the way I thought about the latest crash victim, Brett Jarolimek. He worked at the Bike Gallery and was well known in the racing community and the bike comunity at large. He competed in the cross race we went to watch on Sunday. I didn't know him and never met him but I'm all too aware whenever I throw a leg over my saddle, I could very well be him. I ride down Interstate all the time. I know how crappily the lights are timed and how narrow the bike lane gets just when your speed going down the hill is the greatest. I have felt the WHOOSH of semis passing me less than two feet away and you can bet I am watching to see if they need to turn. I do not want my memorial to be some ghost bike on a corner.
Still, there's only so much you can do and then you have to let go and live life. Which is the point of going on a ride. I attacked the Rocky Butte climb harder than I ever have, not fading after the tunnel like I usually do. I just kept pushing and pushing all the way to the top. I felt my lungs, bursting, legs burning, heart pounding between my ears and was grateful to be alive and healthy and pedaling. I sent some thoughts out to Brett and all the people mourning him right now.
I started out with a notion to time-trial the whole ride, but I had to stop at the top and take in the views of Mt Hood & Mt Saint Helens, cause working so hard and not enjoying the view seemed so pointless. Then I took my sweet reward, braking only a little on the backside and hitting 41.5 mph on the way down. I didn't get any bugs in my teeth, but it wasn't because I wasn't smiling...
The rest of the ride, I spun at a comfortable pace and kept an eagle eye out to make sure I made it home safe, taking the lane at most of the lights to avoid the suicide slot.
My friend Greg wrote a heartfelt guest post on BikePortland today urging people to turn sadness into action. Inspired by that message, I went to tonight's town hall meeting on the Safe and Sound Streets proposal that could actually put some money into making our streets safer for all road users. I'm glad I live in a place where our city leaders are willing to ask hard questions and tackle overwhelming issues like the 422 million dollars in deferred maintenance liability that has built up over the years. $72 per year in energy fees and gas taxes seems like a bargain for better signal timing, more sidewalks and hundreds of new miles in bike Blvds. Especially if it'll keep more of us on the road and out of the cemetery.
While I would've been perfectly content to wipe the sweat off my brow from making Cory lunch after he finished digging our fence post holes, Jess decreed that I should get off my lazy butt and do a house project. So we hung up the road bikes, which of course took about 1.8 hours longer than it should have and necessitated a trip to the store, which is what happens when the toolbox that's not really a toolbox isn't organized so that you think you're out of #10 two inch screws when in fact you have plentysix of them on hand. But I digress.
You're so observant! Why yes, we did. But sadly, bikes fall down, go boom. So we bought a support board that's been sitting in the garage for over a month and re-hung them. They better stay put this time.
A month or so ago, we signed up to count bikes for PDOT so they can update their traffic information and tell the purse string holders how many more people are riding bikes this year than last, so we can have more trails, bike blvds n stuff. 
