Year's End

Well here we are at the end of a really crappy year. A tsunami, two hurricanes, a big earthquake, floods, fires, endless war. Tell me where God fits into this. If there is a God, he's a really big asshole. Freud said "If I met God, I would show him the bone of a child with cancer and say "Explain this, sir". That's about how I feel on the subject. Now, on to the rest of my year-end wrap-up.

I met my mileage goal for the year (5200 miles) back on the 17th of December. Yay! Riding more is something we all talk about but don't always do. It was hard reaching this goal and I'm glad to have met the challenge. I started noticing sometime in late summer that I really was faster and stronger. Hills got flatter and longer distances didn't seem quite as daunting. I guess that's the real pay-off.

I've ridden about 35 or 40 miles since then. I hadn't intended on trailing off so dramatically. The weather has been unbelieveably wet and nasty. So I did something that is a bit of a novelty for me. I drove. Almost every day. Driving really is a pain in the ass. I did get a lot of stuff done I wouldn't have if I was riding. I was able to do some Christmas shopping and general errand running. Tricky by bike even when the weather is nice. Cars are truly a necessary evil. I hope to one day expunge this evil from my life.

Here are some things I tried and liked in 2005:

Schmidt Dyno Hub & E6 headlight - Is there anything as elegant as generating your own electricity? Awesome light. How about an LED version? Better connections would be nice too. Made in Germany.

PrincetonTec Eos headlight - Helmet or handlebar mounted, incredibly bright. A new, powerful defensive weapon in the War on Careless Drivers. Made in USA.

Light & Motion Vega - Bright, compact, long life on one charge. Once they figure out how to focus the beam it's all over for Halogen and HID lights. Made in USA.

Showers Pass Rain Jacket - I wore this jacket on a 2 hour ride in constant heavy rain today. The only thing that was dry when I got home was my jersey. Good stuff! Made in Taiwan.

Limar 911 helmet - Easily the most comfortable helmet I've ever had on my head. Made in Italy. Bella!

Pedro's Road Rage Chainlube - Good wet weather protection. Keeps chains quiet, too.

The Golden Age of Handbuilt Bicycles by Jan Heine. Buy this book now! His obsession pays big dividends to anyone that cares about the history of cycling. Incredible photos, excellent backrounds on the bikes. Really nicely done.

I'll add more bike stuff as it comes to me.

The year in music wasn't especially that great for me. The Jayhawks may have broken up. Hot Club of Cowtown may have broken up. My two favorite bands, damn it!
I saw the Stooges back in September at Bumbershoot. My son shook Iggy's hand! How cool is that! I wanted to see the Stones but the ticket prices were outrageous.
The death of WinMx is a real bummer. I'm glad I used it while I could.

Happy New Year to anyone who actually reads this. I don't know if you're out there but, there you go. Drop me a line sometime.

And finally, George Bush is a lying sack of shit! And so are all of his pals!

Really Bright Lights (and their idiot users)

Now, is it just me, or are there a whole lot of stupid riders out there with really bright lights? The new generation of HID (high intensity discharge) lights are just ridiculous. They were developed for 24 hour off-road racing, not the freakin' bike trail! Now there are batallions of dumb asses out there blinding the rest of us. And they get pissed when you tell them to dim it. Freakin' morons! I don't like having them (the lights) in the shop. It's like selling bad manners. They cost too much. They probably get them mail order, anyway.

Now, on to more pleasant things. I've become obsessed with the idea of owning an Independent Fabrications Ti Club Racer. We're a dealer so I would get a pretty sweet deal. It would still be spendy but, I could sell a lot of stuff to pay for it. I could get down to 2 or 3 bikes, even. My wife's tone is "I'll believe it when I see it."

This requires much soul searching and strategizing. The IF bikes are all customs so I'd get the bike of my dreams and probably the one I'll be riding for the rest of my life. Not that I plan on dying any time soon. I'll post events as they unfold.

Oh yeah, Bush is an idiot.

A Dumb Guy On A Bike

Now this here's a bike!

A Smart Guy On A Bike

Leadership

Bush is an idiot. There is no denying it. Lucky us. I remember when Reagan gave his exit speech back in '89. He alluded to a repeal of the 22nd Amendment. That's the one that limits a President to two terms. I say do it, so we can re-elect Bill. Is that a crazy dream or what? I get so embarrassed every time our retarded monkey President opens his mouth. Maybe I can come up with some sort of countdown timer that will tick-off the remaining days of President Monkey and his truly tragic remaining term. I could put it on this blog. Keep an eye out. I'm onto something here.

Quantum Mechanics and the Holidays

I guess that last post should have read 3 months later. I subscribe to the Einsteinian concept of time. But, I usually make it to work on time. Tomorrow I'm gonna sleep late, go for a long bike ride, and eat my weight in turkey. I like Thanksgiving. No pressure on people that aren't adept in the kitchen. I wish Christmas was more like this. Maybe it was, once upon a time. Or in another universe. Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving to all!

2 Months Later

Sometimes I get something I really like and then don't utilize it the way I'd hoped I would. Like this blog. I really haven't taken the time to get to know it inside and out. I'm barely computer literate and don't always understand what it is I'm supposed to do. I want to post my favorite link but don't get code at all. So, the easy way is to cut and paste the links in my posts. Here is my favorite bike site:
http://www.rivendellbicycles.com
Rivendell has been around for about 10 years and specializes in really beautiful but practical bikes. I have one of their frames and would like another one of these days. They are quite expensive but that isn't as much of a problem as the wait is. I believe it's 2 years at the moment. That's the price you pay for hand-built craftsmanship. No disposable crap here! Check the website out for more on their philosophy.

I got the new Rolling Stones Cd "A Bigger Bang." Better than anything they've offered since "Undercover" back in '83. Still not up to the heyday. I'd like to see more of the twangy stuff they did when Gram Parsons was hanging around. Ah, Keith likes to rock.

The Winter Ales are starting to show up around here. I really like the Anderson Valley Solstice Ale. Anderson Valley is a brewery from Northern California. They produce some really excellent brews. Get some if you can.

I'm bracing myself for the Christmas onslaught. I like the music, the food, the smell of the tree, seeing the family, that kind of stuff. But, I really hate the crass commercialism and incredible stress unreal expectations cause. For many it seems like a chore and a damned unpleasant one at that. I try to strike balance but it never seems quite right. Some years we decline to participate. I try to explain but I just get the upward roll of the eyes. Then we get presents and feel guilty. I know that isn't the intent of the giver but, it (the guilt) happens just the same.

I'm closing in on my goal of riding an average of 100 miles a week for a year. I should hit 4700 tomorrow. I'll be glad when the year is over. I don't think I'll ride as much next year. Too much has gone undone. Good thing I have such a patient wife. She indulges my obsessions with a smile and encouragement. I'm a fortunate guy.

Bush is an idiot.

Gas? Oil? Bio-diesel?

I saw gas for $3.09 a gallon yesterday. The fools keep driving. Oil was $30.00 a barrel when we invaded Iraq. Now it's around $65.00. And the GI's keep dying. I'm amazed more politicos aren't picking up on bio-diesel. Motor fuel you can grow. Don't they get it? I think we should just stop building gas powered engines and switch completely to diesels for new cars. Bush and his cronies would shit! Maybe not so much. I'm sure he has plenty of friends at Monsanto and ConAgra. I'll just keep riding. I have noticed fewer cars on the roads. It's probably just people out of town for vacations. I don't recall privately owned vehicles in "1984". Hmmm...

Sneering racers

Why do bike racers seem to have such a huge sense of entitlement? Here in Seattle we have the Burke-Gilman Trail (today is National Trails Day,btw). It's a former railroad turned into a widely enjoyed linear city park. On any given day you will find runners, walkers, bicycle commuters and racers all using it. I have logged thousands of miles on this trail. I know the etiquette. Why do racers seem to be above this? Arrogant youth? Nope, plenty of bad behavior with gray hair. Confidence in skills? Maybe, but I'm skilled too. I'm just going to go with bad manners. Unfortunately our culture seems to embrace bad manners. Bike racers (and the wannabees) tend to ignore the courtesies that allow us to peacefully co-exist. But it's ok if this helps your performance. At least that seems to be what they think. Riders like myself are widely disregarded as commuter nerds and thereby, obstacles. I don't wear bright clothes, my bikes don't look like race bikes. They have racks and bags on them. I'm not just a recreational rider. I ride for my health. I ride because of the freedom it gives me. I ride to see the world up close. I ride to avoid driving a car and to decrease the burden of cars on the environment. 95% of my work commute has been by bike for the last 5 years. I think I'm viewed as an old VW bus. I get buzzed on the Trail every time I ride it. If I feel like it, I'll give chase, catch the offender's wheel, and just sit in for a while. Sometimes they get agitated and try to ride me off. Unless they're really fast, I can keep up for a long time. I'll break it off when traffic gets thick. The racer-type usually just rides like an asshole through the crowd. Does this serve a purpose? Probably not. It makes me feel better though. Am I making it worse? Maybe. If it's too crowded I don't do it. I guess my rant is about wanting the racers to knock it off. It's not gonna happen. I know this. I try to be Zen about it. Sometimes it works. My friends say this makes me unhappy. That may be true. What is the solution? Searching, searching.....

Big Gourds 

My first post

Took me long enough to do this. I've been told I tell a story well. If anyone bothers to read this I guess I'll find out. Tonight I'm tired and I'll try for something more substantive later.