Tuesday, June 3, 2014

June 2, 2014

   This has been a challenging year for cycling; between epic flooding followed by arctic blasts and snow then long bouts of illness, I just didn't get out as much as I'd have have hoped.  Starting now, though, I'm trying.  This last Saturday did include a 36-mile ride, which was refreshing, though it admittedly left me pretty sore after having not been out for about five weeks.
   The previous ride included my tire (not just my tube) blowing out, so I've had to get new tires.  At the suggestion of a colleague who's a devout cyclist, I put on 25m Vittoria's (up from 23m).  They have just a little bit of tread and extra material, which makes a surprising amount of difference, especially when cornering...the tread doesn't actually touch the pavement much except when cornering.  They're also Kevlar, so I'm hoping they hold up a lot better in the fall against slashes and the dreaded and demonic goat heads!
   On top of all of it, though, we've inherited a trailing bike for the oldest, which I attached to the hybrid last night to take out for the first time:

Honestly, I was a bit terrified at the thought of keeping us both upright, but we did well with only a little wobbling.  She, however, freaked out at first.  I didn't account for the fact that she's used to going around with training wheels and not having to maintain speed, so there she was, holding on while I was going 5 mph to keep us upright.  After the tears, we were fortunate enough to have a neighbor out with his dog, so he paced us as I got going again, and he was able to add enough distraction that we made it to the corner.  Soon, she was going like an old trooper.  In fact, I was coasting down a hill when she called, "Daddy, you're not pedaling!"  When I told her I was just letting us roll, she said, "We'll, I'm pedaling!"  No wonder I was accelerating despite the feathering of my brakes!  And, along with everything else, I noticed that one of the back brake pads is past the wear mark, so I get to learn how to replace bike pads now!

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