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Showing posts from May, 2006

Final Test Ride Report!

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T his morning I checked all the screws on the new chain line for tightness and took a test ride. Every thing ran as expected with no surprises. The chain ran smooth and with no friction, but it is hard to prevent chain gunk from getting on my right calf. I will take a bit of dirt along with the better running chain and less friction. I did a 12 mile loop which included some down hills and up hill runs. I noticed nothing happening with the chain. I did notice that the rear shifter touched the chain slightly which is just an adjustment. The sky was bright with a humid 79 degrees and a wind from the NNE at 6 MPH. I will continue tweaking until it is perfect. I have included a photo of the new improved chain line.

Holiday ride yesterday!

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Y esterday I only rode 6 miles, really nothing to speak about. My wife wanted to go to some antique shops which were one and a half HRS away, so we had to start early. After we got there we found that our friend over stated the amount of stores by 90% and it was a waste of gas and time. Both of us were very annoyed, and needed some comfort, so we drove another hour to Philadelphia, PA to have lunch at a place we like a huge amount. After lunch we headed home and stopped on the way for me to buy some athletic shoes. Then it was home to relax. T oday I will move the chain to its new location on the new tube mounts I fabricated. I have already cut and mounted the tubes to the new mounts. I will post some pictures when it is finished and tested. Update: I relocated the chain to the new tube mounts, but had to modify the mount to allow for better alignment. I was able to test ride the trike and in the 12 miles I did, I was able to see a speed increase of about 2 MPH. The decreased frict

New Chain Tube Mounts and Ride Report:

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T his morning I went out early for my morning ride, and rode 12 miles before it started to rain. I headed home to complete the new chain tube mounts. These new mounts will allow me to relocate the chain to above and below the cross arm. This will also permit me to remove a good amount of chain tube and also create a clean chain line which will remove friction. I will have the chain line finished on Tuesday if all goes as planned. I have included a photo showing the mounts before the chain and tubes are installed.

Lots to do short ride today!

T oday is one of those days that I have a huge amount on my plate that has to get done. Today's ride was a short 11 miles on local congested streets. I would have gone farther but I knew I had to get home and shower. Tomorrow the weather is calling for rain in the morning and I might not be free in the afternoon to ride. The weather for today's ride was 62 degrees with a wind of 3 MPH coming from the East. I wanted to work on the brakes today, but not sure if I have the time.

Short but great!

I had to cut today's ride to only 12 miles, I promised to take my son to lunch today. Since I am on a tight schedule I decided to make this a local ride. I went to the other side of my development and across Henderson Road to the Timber Ponds bike path. The path is very short, but I could pick up a lot of speed. I cruised at about 15 MPH and sprinted to over 25 MPH in spots. The Black Widow took the sharp turns like a fighter plane. It was a mind blowing! I am always amazed how well this trike handles, better than some of the more expensive ones on the market. Not that I have tried a lot of them, but I did try some. The temperature while riding was a nice 71 degrees and the wind was out of the SW at 6 MPH. More and more I look forward to my daily ride, who ever thought I would enjoy exercise! I am still in the research phase in my parking brake project, and not sure if it will bear fruit. But I am making progress. My main concern is the mounting of the V-Brake on the rear for

Fantastic day fantastic ride!

A t 10:50 this morning the sun was shining and the temperature was a nice 67 degrees. The wind was a brisk 8 MPH which is nothing compared to the last few days. I headed out to the canal to run the road running parallel. I was there in no time and was on the road 3 minutes later. There was hardly any traffic vehicular or bike, which made the ride easy as could be. A few times the sky got dark and the wind picked up, but no rain anywhere. When I reached the Griggstown crossing I crossed the canal and the Milstone river and headed west on River Road, and did run into a huge amount of cars. I think that I will stay on the South side of the canal to avoid the traffic. It wouldn't be to bad if the road was straight, but there are a huge amount of curves and blind spots. I continued West until I reached Blackwellsmills Road and made a left and headed back for the car. When I got there I met a few bikers and continued on with them for a while, then turned back to the car. I ended up w

Exhausted!!!

I left early this afternoon for a ride along the road parallel to the D & R tow path. The sun was shining and there was a brisk breeze of 14 MPH coming out of the West. At least that is what my local forecast said. I headed south on the road for about two miles, and had to turn around and run the other leg do to the construction in progress. As soon as I turned I knew I was in for a rough ride. There were wind gusts of 30 MPH and when the wind wasn't howling it was about 20 MPH not the 14 MPH the weather channel said. It was like walking in mud. My legs were aching and I thought I would never make it back to where I started. When I returned to my start point the wind had either died or changed direction, so I continued straight. The wind was not bad and I did another 3 miles heading North, when all of a sudden the wind picked up again forcing me to turn back toward the car. The wind continued at my tail all the way back letting me pedal at speeds up to 28 MPH without any s

Might not ride today!

T oday being a food shopping day and a day to bond with my wife, I don't think I will get any riding in. I will try to get a few miles in after dinner. But the weather calls for thunder storms. I would prefer to ride on Sunday do to the weight gain from Saturday night dinner. I applied the Locktite to my steering knuckles this morning so hopefully it will set by this evening. It calls for 24 hrs for a full bonds so maybe not riding is a good thing. I will apply it to the lock nuts also in the next few days.

Wait to Ride!

W oke up this morning to a gray and dismal sky, I hope today isn't another washout as yesterday was. I have to ride every day if possible, I want to maintain my goal weight. I am 153 now and my goal is 151. But I think I have to change my goal because as I have lost weight, and I started gaining muscle weight which is heavier than fat. I was my goal weight for three weeks, and then I hit 153 after I started riding every day, so I am assuming this is muscle. Do to my back and neck problems I am unable to do any abdominal exercises, so it is very hard to loose the little bit of fat in that area. I will update the blog if I get out to ride today, I have my fingers crossed. UPDATE: I waited a while and the sun still didn't come out, so I decided to ride anyway. It looked like it would rain any second. I decided that a ride close to home was my best choice, so I did a local 2 mile loop and ran some sprints. I managed to do 10 miles and I felt rain drops, and the sky became real

Fantastic Ride Police in view!

T his morning I planned my ride around the chores I had to do during the day, and the coming storm. And everything seemed to fall into place, at least that is what I thought. I chose a scenic ride along the D & R canal, which has narrow roads and some sharp bends, which are no problem to maneuver. Sometimes the road is not in great shape, but it was fine today. I had reached my sixteenth mile when my cell phone went off, I thought it was my wife calling during break or lunch. Well I was wrong, it was the alarm company telling me that my alarm at home has gone off and the police were in route. I was a little concerned because we just had to replace our home alarm do to false alarms. Well I got home and the police had already left, and I entered the house to find the alarms motion detector had gone off. We had the motion detector turned off because we didn't have time to chase the cat down and put her in one of the rooms not protected by the motion detector. So right away I

Ride Report

T his morning I awaited the rise in temperature so that I can take a long ride. I had planned to do the D & R Canal tow path from Mercer to Blackwells Mills crossing. When the temperature hit 60 degrees I loaded the trike in the SUV and headed for the parking lot at the canal house. The sun was shining and there was a slight breeze when I arrived. I unloaded the trike and started up the trail, there were parts of the trail that were a bit damp from all the rain, but I could avoid the puddles with out to much zig and zag. I was about 6 miles into the ride and enjoying it very much when it started to sprinkle. I saw the sun was still out so I figured it was a sun shower. I went maybe another 100 or so feet when I ran into a DF biker I knew. He informed me that the trail was under water a few hundred yards away. I decided that if the DF rider turned back it would be up to my neck on the trike. So all in all I had a nice ride but only got 12 miles in today. It seems that every time I

Washed Out Again But not completely!

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I t has been three days since my last ride and I am bored silly. There seems to be no end to the constant down pour. I am hoping we get some clearing this afternoon, so maybe if the roads dry I can get out on the road. I installed the Sigma Sport PC-3 Heart Rate Monitor on its custom mount. I was able to get it working, but due to the excessive hair on my chest the signal was not constant. I removed some hair in the area the transmitter goes and I got it working. I might have to shorten the hair even more for good readout. The Black Widow now has three separate computers. One for Speedometer One for Cadence and One for Heart Rate. The two photos are self explanatory. UPDATE: After the storm passed and in between showers I headed for the open road. I planned on doing at least 14 miles if the rain stayed away, but I would have been happy with a few miles. I was on my tenth mile when doing 30 MPH on a slight downhill when I came to a curve in the road. The trike handled the curves real

No Ride Today it's Mothers Day!

T his morning I will not be riding because of two reasons. 1. It is cool and cloudy and rain is expected. 2. It is Mothers Day and we had to do our weekly shopping this morning and then meet our kids and there families in Princeton, NJ. I had some time this morning so I went to the auto supply and picked up some black RV Silicon which I used to fill the small cut in the tire from Fridays flat. I figure if I seal the openings where the flat was, I would prolong the life of the tire. I can't ride for 24 hours so this morning was the perfect time to do the sealing of the hole. I have to stay off these major roads because they are always filled with metal and glass.

Nashbar Delivery

A fter having Nashbar Fedex a replacement heart rate monitor for delivery on Monday, the postman showed up with the package. Now on Monday I will have to call and ask for a pre-paid label to ship one back. If Nashbar would not try to make money on the shipping this would not have happened. I don't feel sorry for them at all! On Monday I will mount the heart rate monitor on the Black Widow and post pictures of the new cockpit. L ast evening I went to my local optical store to buy a pair of Bolle vigilante sunglasses to use instead of my very good ones. The wind and dust are destroying the lenses. The price at my local store was less expensive than online stores. I bought the silver frame with the TNS lens. I can buy different colored lenses as needed, they also sell a add on prescription holder. I n a hour or so I will try to get out and ride, but there are things I must do at home first. I will update the Blog after I ride. UPDATE: I had some time so I able to ride, the we

Lots of Rain Maybe no ride report!

W e had lots of rain last night, we needed it real bad. Today it is very cloudy and 60 degrees, I am not sure I will get out for a ride if the ground is still wet. Not having fenders on the trike make it a messy ride when wet. I will look for a break in the weather and head out if possible. Today the wind is only 4 MPH out of the NNW which makes for not bad riding. I will post an UPDATE if anything new happens. UPDATE: I was able to get out today and ride, but I ended up with my first flat tire. I removed the tire and tube and patched the tube, but it wouldn't take air. The location I was in had so much road noise that I couldn't hear or feel the air escaping the tube. I even tried water and looked for bubbles, but no joy. I had a spare tube, but when I opened the box it was a 1.50 to 1.75 tube not 1.25, so I had to walk home. I loaded the trike into my truck and headed for the LBS. While there I replaced the tube and picked up one extra. I also had them put Slime in

Today might be a total washout!

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W hen I woke this morning the weather was nasty, heavy clouds no sun and threat of heavy rain. The temperature was 54 degrees with winds from the NE at 6 MPH. I doubt I will go out and ride, my back is real bad in this type of weather, and my mood is just as bad. UPDATE: There was a slight break in the weather, so I headed out for a ride. I was able to get in 12 miles before the wind really picked up a lot. If it wasn't so windy it would have been a perfect day to ride. It was cool and no hot sun to contend with. I am sure I would have done at least 14 miles, maybe even farther. I had contacted Kevin at http://www.recumbent.com.tw/ regarding the fenders for the Black Widow. He informed me that the prototype fenders worked very well in testing and he was waiting for the fender supplier to ship them. I guess it will be a while before they are available for sale. I will keep you up dated. Kevin also sent me photos of there newest trike called the Apoyo. I particularly don'

Wind, Wind & More Wind!

T his morning I took a look out side and the sky was totally gray and cloud covered. The rain looked like it was on the way. I thought that today would be a lost day as far as riding goes. Since my office is located in the basement and there are no windows, I never know what the weather is like unless I look outside. The internet weather at 10:00 AM said that there was currently rain and heavy clouds. At 10:30 AM I decided to go up stairs for a drink, and looked out side and it was a bright sunny day. I thought now is my chance! I ran up stairs and changed, put some sun screen on and went down to wait the mandatory 15 or more minutes for the sunscreen to work. The time was not wasted, I filled up my water bottle and then answered some email. At 10:50 AM I locked the house and headed out for a local ride. The longest leg of my ride is on State Route 27 which has a shoulder 90% of the way, and makes it really not a bad ride. The wind was out of the NE at 15 MPH which meant that on

Wind In My Face!

T his morning I headed to our the local sporting goods shop to pick up a pair of ankle height Dri-Wick socks to wear with my Schimano Sandals. I think the socks will prevent blistering, but I will find out soon enough. W hen I returned home, I put on my bike riding gear and answered some email. I stalled a bit waiting for the sun to come out from behind the clouds. The last couple of weeks the wind has been very strong and today was no exception. The temperature was 63 degrees with a constant wind of 12 mph. No mater which way I turned the trike the wind was in my face, you would think it was doing it on purpose. I still managed to get a short 10 miles in, but I would have liked it to be longer. As usual there was plenty of utility work going on but nothing preventing me from my riding. On State Route 27 where I travel for a good portion of my ride has a shoulder to ride on in many places, but today there were cars, trucks and tractor trailers parked on the shoulder forcing me to

Rained out and bored!

Y esterday we spent the day with friends shopping at Woodbury Commons in Central Valley NY. It was a very pleasant and relaxing day. My only complaint is that I was unable to get a ride in. It also looks like today is a wash out also. Hopefully tomorrow will bring better weather. I realized that I need to purchase a new pair of sun glasses as my good ones are getting pitted by the wind and dirt while riding the trike. They will last a lot longer if I use them only for driving. I am now researching which ones to get. I know I do need UV A & B protection and I want Polorizer lenses also. I t has been 13 days since I ordered the Heart Rate monitor from Nashbar and it still hasn't arrived. I am starting to loose patience. Hopefully it will arrive today! U pdate, the package has not arrived and I am ready to scream!

Sandals & Ride Today

T his morning after doing the usual Saturday morning cleaning I went out for a local ride. I was able to get in 12 miles before the wind picked up and the sun went behind the clouds. I was able to maintain 13 mph and sometimes 15 mph during the complete ride. Temperature was 74 degrees with wind at 5 mph out of the NW. T his afternoon I went to one of the local bike shops and purchased a pair of Shimano Sandals and a pair of Frog cleats. My mountain shoes are a bit to warm for me. Many people were recommending sandals so I thought I would give them a try. I wore them in the store and they were very comfortable. But with shoes only time will tell if they are good when riding.

Fantastic Day!

L ast evening a friend recommended that I take the trike to a new park in town that has a paved bike path. So this morning I loaded the Black Window in my SUV and drove over to the park. As I entered the park I saw a bike path traveling parallel to the entry road. I followed the path to the top and the parking area was at the top. This path was very hilly with huge climbs, and a total length of 1/4 mile. I unloaded the trike and hit the upper level of the path and started to ride, turned out to be a waste of time. The upper path was a circle around a clearing about 500' around. So not to waste the time I did a few laps and then down the access path and back up. It was the hardest hill I ever did, if I was on a bike I would have fell over on the first 100'. After I reached the SUV all but out of breath from the climb, I took a break had some water and a piece of fruit. I loaded the trike and headed to another place I could park and ride some more. I reached this new locati

Today's Ride

T his afternoon I took my usual run, but felt that something didn't feel as it should. It felt like I was having a hard time keeping speed. So I checked the drive train and that looked fine, I then tested tire pressure and found each tire to be 20 lbs short. I tried to use a gas station pump, but I couldn't add any air to the tires. I grabbed my pump and pumped up each tire to the required 100 lbs. The ride felt a bit rough, but maintaining speed was not a problem. The completion of my 11 miles went without incident. As usual there was a huge amount of road and utility work. It seems that all the utility companies decided to work on there new cables on the same road and same days. There was telephone trucks, electric and cable company trucks, plus at least 5 different lawn service trucks. Felt like I was driving in the big city. I am hoping that ActionBent will get there fenders in soon, with all the construction going on I am getting rocks hitting the back of my seat all the

Local road 2 mile course

T oday I did a course on local roads, the loop is 2 miles in length. The weather was partly cloudy and 63 degrees with winds out of the North at 6 mph. This course takes me on development streets and on county and state roads with the most heavily traveled being State Route 27. On Route 27 there is a 5 foot wide shoulder about half the length and little or no shoulder the rest of the way. The next heaviest road is Henderson Road but I am on there for only 4 tenths of a mile, and there is a shoulder for maybe 50' and it is very narrow. I one part of the loop there is construction going on for the addition of underground power lines. That is where the problem is, the construction workers felt it would be funny that on each round of my course they would move the cones out into traffic farther and farther each time. And as I came around expecting the cones to be in the same place, I would have to swing wide into the opposite traveling lane. As I went by I heard them laughing among t

Uneventful day!

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T oday was a very lazy day as far as the trike goes. I was able to get in 10 miles on the trike on local roads, and as usual the AB Tadpole (Black Widow) handled great. Again the wind was in my face for at least half of those miles, making it hard to keep up the speed above 12 mph. I spent some time updating my Recumbent Trike web page and it's mirror. I added a few pictures and added a page for my Service Stand Project. As I add more to the trike or refine the design I will update the page. T he other day I discussed using Pedros ICE Wax lubrication and how good it is. Well after a few days using it under some extremely dirty conditions and some normal conditions the chain and cassette look shiny and new. This stuff is worth every penny.

Service Stand & Ride Log

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T his morning I went to Home Depot and purchased the parts needed to build my service stand for the trike. I found it was nearly impossible to clean the chain and lubricate it without one. I decided I needed one, so I have built and tested it. It works great and it cut my lubrication time by more than half. It is not a beautiful thing, but it well serves the purpose. For larger photos go to my web page. T odays ride was a mere 10 miles at 10mph. The wind was out of the North at 17 mph making it a hard workout.