Sorry for this, out-of-towners...

Central coast folks,

With the notable exception of Little Jewford, you are all pussies. What the hell is wrong with you?!?! If you are even reading this then you should have been there for the Full Hunter Moon. I don't want to hear some winy bullshit about how you were (for example) babysitting your brother's kids for his wedding anniversary or some other lie like that. Fuck you people.

That is all.

Familiar Doings

Got out today for the (now) Regular Loop. A nice blend of pave and dirt, with 2 climbs of the ridge from top to bottom, and lots of small rollers in between. Some sneaky things. Some Town, some Country.

Fall really has arrived judging by the smells, the chill in the air, and the activation of allergies here in our household this past weekend. But you wouldn't have known it today. The Pacific was totally becalmed here on the central coast. Hot. Clear. Blue.


I took the fixxed Crosscheck. Having put on the new Hunter stem last week, and taken it for a test ride on the (yes) same loop, I put the bike away with the intention of sorting out the current issue. That being the finding of a loooong bolt to hold the top cap firmly in place or the purchase of a new fork which would enable the use of a standard top cap bolt. Or just leave it as is. And you know how I do. Same as you do.



Yes, Dear Reader, for that initial ride I threw caution to the wind and rode the new setup with no top cap, figuring the adjustment would be held just fine by the pinchbolted brake hanger while I swapped stems. Well, I paid it some mind, and thought about it as I tore threw the maritime chapparal that passes for underbrush around here. In the time between then and now, the best intentions being what they will be...I did not address this issue in any way. But today I wanted to ride this bike anyway, so I did it again. The new fit is outstanding (thanks, Rick) and looks sharp, too.


Man, I love to ride a fixed gear bicycle! Climbing up the hills, I feel centered over the bike and the way foward. Just getting tractor beamed along in a nice rhthym. Super traction, immediate response. No sitting back at any point; it's simply not an option. Legs not as supple as they could be on the spinny descents, but not too terrible. Good Times.



Now, alls I have to do is sort out the top cap issue.

Oh, and adjust brake lever position and play with the bar angle to accommodate the new fit.

And Ride by the light of the silvery moon tonight!

Full Hunter's Moon

Git up! Up! Off that couch!

Calling all bikes...Full Moon Ride in Fort Ord on Tuesday, October 14th. It's the Full Hunter's Moon and it's time to ride bikes without lights and drink beers without limes (unless Sr. Mr. Dr. D____ G___ comes along, I suppose) until late in the evening. Meet at Parker Flats Cutoff. Dark thirty, and don't involve the police or those flashing red lights. Or else.


This guy would go. Are you yeller?

Finally got around to modifying the basket for L___.

We got this last winter(!) from the Hershbergers(?) via Mr. G.B. -thanks for the help and know-how, Gunner! They made the basket panniers we bought from Velo-Orange, and I believe they have a similar model currently on offer there. Not as supremely stylish and awesome, but similar.

I used my woodworking "skills" to fabricate this bracket which will hold the basket securely inside the rack frame. So's it don't bounce around, you understand.



Here it is in place.



The sharp-eyed among you will recognize this sweet leather strap recycled from an old pair of touring skis and used extensively throughout my cycling equipment. Repurposed again, to attach the basket to the upright at the back of the rack.



On the bike here to test it's viability. Matchy, not-matchy.




So I shellacked it to matchy.



I love the usefulness and craft of the Epic Designs Bags, but the aesthetic is just too plastic for me to fully embrace. (That's your link, J. As per our discussion whilst bike-camping.) This lovely town and country biking vibe we have right here, though...that's right up my alley. Now L can carry all her junk to work. And in style, too.

hi little guy!

...you're way more fun than Mary. And cleaner than Lucille.



Bike camping Adventure in the middle of the week?!? Hai, little guy. The kids are out of school this week for "October Break" (I know.) And I started at 1pm today, so we met J____ J______ at 5pm yesterday and loaded up.

After spending much time after work yesterday swapping parts around to make the Big Dummy operational, I found the sweet XTR M900 crank was wallowed out on the drive side and had a crack in the corner on non drive. (Now I know what the mystery creak was...) So I used a Sugino crank from the pile- it needs nicer rings. But the chain line is right. Borrowing the rear wheel from the BlurLT until I build a new one. Shimano Generator/centerlock disc front, without the light set up so far. Avid BB7 front and rear- which feels like aaaaaaaaaaaaass with it's ~6ft of solid housing, but works fine and is easy to service. Thumbshifters, maing! Stoked for it's first time out to be an actual offroad camp run. That's why I got it. It's the land version of a float trip. If I don't haul all the gear, the family won't come, so there it is.



Holy Mother of Pearl! The increase in stiffness over the Xtracycle! Handling without wiggle! The fit is much more aggressive. Some of it is parts pick (Jones Bar and 1 1/8" threadless stem vs. Albatross and 1" quill), but most of it is integral frame vs. bolt-on. What a fantastic improvement. I need to swap over the Brooks conquest (sprung) saddle, though.

So we rolled out at 5pm and got camp set up as night fell. The fellas putting in work on stakes:



But, uh, I forgot that we used up all the propane at SSWC2008, and packed the heavy ass bulky ass stove and the heavier griddle thinking we'd have pancakes. So we cooked dinner (Brown Lunch! Lentils, carrots, arugala and polenta. J was super stoked. It's been a while) on the trusty back-up- the Esbit. 1 fuel tab and some twigs. (Even still, I want one of these. Bad.) Feeding 5 people required cooking in shifts.

The coyotes came out around 10pm. We heard them gather, split into 2 separate groups, and go high and low. The moon was about 1/2 full, but it cast so much light you could see well without headlamps. Which is how I lik it.

The coyotes showed up again at just before dawn much closer and yipped and howled us a good morning. The 2nd alarm clock:



We dug a pit this morning, cleared the area around it 3 feet out to bare sand, and cooked old school.

When I put the oil (which ha! I remembered this time) on the griddle I started a grease fire. It was tilted just enough for the oil to run out a corner and the fire jumped up it onto the griddle. Whoa. We needed a spatula (again), so J____ fabricated one out of a Tecate can. This required that he drink a morning beer. He liked it so much, he decided to fabricate another. Pancakes with fresh strawberries sliced into the batter, and some Fakin Bacon.


For those that keep track: I went with the titanium french press.


J and his "contraption" for bug relief:








Good Times. This is so doable, maaaan. If it looks fun, that is because it is. Our total time commitment was from 5pm to 11am. And I made it to work today for my 1pm start. Kickass.



Ready? GO!

...and here comes the WATER!

So this is just here for atmospherics- proceed.


I have been having a behind the scenes running argument with Mr. Coach Burningmanhandler with regard to... Demon Electricity! Yes, that's right, you heard right- and he's totally committed to the 50 bucks.


"Looks to me like something funny
Is going on around here
People laughin' 'n' dancin' 'n' payin'
Entirely too much for their beer."
That sounds like Interbike to me. And I will state , for the record here and now, this state of mind is still affecting our boy if he thinks electrickal shifting is what "we will all be riding in 5 years."

So let's see these mechanical protruberances that have got him upset:

Big ones!



Wet ones!


Big Wet ones!



In the innerest of full disclosure: I stole these photos from Speedgoat Cycles' Blog. And fuller disclosure: ELECTRONIC SHIFTING IS A PROBLEM WAITING TO HAPPEN. I am against them on principle. And looking at the photos, the rear derailer is still cable-activated which seems laughable in light of claims of futuristic leaps in performance and accuracy,etc. What? Huh? Naw, I'll use my kickass brain and fingers to shift. Especially since I'd have to use them to push these buttons anyway. Battery power seems significantly less reliable than human power, also. I further think biological pathways for electric stimulus are reliabler than these artificial ones. I have yet to short my nervous system.

Admittedly I have not ridden this equipment and am not qualified to speak, BUT. How much "better" can it be? And the answer is none more black.

I'll tell y'all what I told him, which is that in 5 years I'll be riding the same friction shifters as today. Ask me again in 10 years, 15 years, 20 years and the answer'll be the same. Maybe even the same pair. Because they work. They work great. They will continue to work great, and they are damn near indestructable.


"Whaddaya say fellas? Nice set of jugs?"
Now Shimano, how about shaking it around a little.

do you think you could refrain from _____ing any more ______s that remind the inmates they're in prison?

Saw this video at houvenagle's




Rode my bike today. Not so spinny as these fellas here, but plenty rpms. Bluebird the whole way. Go ride yo bike!