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Showing posts from August, 2006

Great but strang ride!

T his morning is the first day in many that I was able to ride, the rain is gone for at least today. I added another mile to my loop and increased my speed on average by 2 mph. While I was riding on one of our local country roads I came around a turn to see 5 deer directly in my path, I had plenty of time to apply my breaks and come to a stop right in the middle of the group of deer. They didn't even run they just stared at me. I was more afraid of them than they of me. I decided that it was time to say goodbye and head on my way, but they refused to move. A few seconds later a car came down one of the side access roads and then the deer bolted, I thought I would be trampled! This is the first time I was so close to these beautiful animals, and I felt very small compared to them. I assume that these animals have been around people many times and that is why they show no fear. The weather today was 61 degrees and very cloudy. The wind was very strong at 10 mph gusting to 15 mph. The

Spent the last three days in HELL!

F or the last three days I have been unable to ride do to very bad weather. I has rained the last three days with no end in site. And as those who read my blog know when it rains or it is going to rain my neck and back become very painful. I feel so much better when I am able to ride, but the pain has been so bad that I couldn't even ride my indoor recumbent bike. I hate complaining and venting, but pain changes your whole attitude on many things. I find I become very down and snippy. I am not what you call severely depressed, but chronic pain causes some level of depression. I contacted my doctor at the pain center to try to get an appointment, but he is out of town. I have a appointment on Friday of this week, so I will have to wait. I am so looking forward to getting out of the house and especially to ride again, hopefully tomorrow will bring better weather. For all those that are reading this I would like to apologize for the complaining, and I will try to avoid it.

Ride ended because of rain.

S tarted out late do to spotty rain, but as soon as the sun was out I started to ride. It was getting darker and darker as I road, and I knew that little bit of sunshine was not going to last. On my second loop I decided I will head back home, and I made it home just as it started to rain. The weather today was very cloudy with spotty rain. The temperature was 75 degrees with a wind out of the North West at 3 mph with gusts up to 10 mph. Hopefully tomorrow will bring a better riding day. I don't know who I was kidding when I said I wanted to do at least 20 miles today, but even if the weather was great, my back is really hurting so I most likely would have done maybe another 5 or 6 miles. I rode today using the Air-Mesh seat pad and found that it would not be as comfortable a ride as with the open cell cushion.

Air Mesh Seat Pad and Closed Cell riser + ride report.

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T his morning I went out to ride as soon as the rain had stopped. The weather for today was very cloudy with a temperature of 82 degrees and a wind out of the North at 1 mph. I completed 17.5 miles on country roads with moderate hills and long climbs. All in all a nice ride! A t 1:30 UPS showed up with the closed cell camping mat that I am using under the Air Mesh seat pad. It took about an hour to cut and shape the pad, and cut out the two spine slots in the back of the seat. These two slots will allow for more air to circulate. The seat is now very comfortable, which it wasn't before. My neck was hitting the neck-rest at a bad angle causing severe pain.

Long Detour

T his morning I headed out at 10:00 AM for a local tour on back roads. I had done about 10 miles when I saw two police cars ahead of me. When I got to where they were they informed me that I would have to detour from my normal road. This small detour added a few miles to my route. I ended my ride with 16 miles done. The weather today was 88 degrees with a wind out of the NW at 7 miles per hour. I noticed today that on a rough road if I let go of my handlebars with both hands I get a pronounced wobble that goes away as soon as I put a hand on the handlebar. At first I thought it was a loose headset, but further investigation ruled that out. It could be the width of the tires, or the pressure or lack of inflation pressure. I have filled the tires to the suggested 100 pounds, and I will test tomorrow. The weather for tomorrow calls for rain, but I could test it on a nearby road. T omorrow the camping mat will be delivered, and I could start the pad project. My only concern is the cutt

Uneventful ride and pad update.

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T his morning I left for my ride at 9:40 under partly cloudy skies. I did my local course and loop of 5.5 miles each loop. I ended with 17 miles for today. The temperature was 84 degrees with a wind of 5 mph coming out of the NW. Camp Mat 6'x2'x5/8" A s I mentioned in a prior post, I have the new Air Mesh seat pad but found it to thin to use my neck-rest. I decided to add a closed cell foam camping mat under the Air Mesh Pad. It should bring the height up so that I could use the neck-rest and the Air Mesh Pad. I bought the pad from a dealer on EBay. After I receive it I shall cut it to the proper size and try it out. I am not sure if I want to cut the camp mat to include the center ventilation slot, I will try a figure this out before the mat gets here.

Busy, Busy Day!

This morning I was up bright and early to take the wife to the doctor for a Colonoscopy. After I got her home and put her to bed I headed out for a short ride as I didn't want to leave her home alone until she was wide awake. I did some local country roads and development streets, just to do a little climbing and some sprints. My total miles for today was 16, and the weather was mostly sunny and 86 degrees. The wind was 12 mph coming out of the NNW with gusts to 20 mph. Those gusts sure put a damper on climbing against the wind.

Decals and Bottle mount came!

T his afternoon the mailman showed up with a package from TW-Bents. I was very surprised since it was Sunday, but the postman told my wife that the USPS is trying out a new system for overnight mail delivery. If this works out they will have 7 day a week overnight delivery in USA. OK back to the package, it contained decals to replace the ones that were peeling and two different prototype accessory mounts. One mount was a foot long bar that had a clamp for the stem on one end and a T bar on the other. There were to threaded holes on the riser bar for a water bottle cage. This item was not usable as far as I was concerned, because when mounted on the stem it was in the way when trying to sit. It also would end up broken because people would try to use it as a handle to get in and out of the seat, and it isn't made strong enough. The second item was a small adapter to mount on the stem so that a water bottle cage could be mounted. Of course it couldn't be used with my steering mo

Local 5 mile loop with additional half mile added.

T oday I started my ride at 9:00 AM under very cloudy skies. The temperature was 78 degrees with a wind out of the NNW at 3 mph gusting to 10 mph. I decided to add one half mile to my local loop which added some gradual climbs and moderate descents. This route will now add at least one mile total per day, I don't think I will even notice it. For some strange reason I went from 151.5 to 153 in one day, I didn't even add any additional food to my diet, very frustrating. I heard from TW-bents regarding the replacement decals for the front cross T, they were shipped out yesterday so I should have them next week. He also sent a prototype mirror and water bottle mount for the trike. I am very anxious to see this item, and how it mounts.

A very relaxing ride!

I started out a little late this morning because it was cloudy and looked like rain. Once the sun was out I started my ride on my local course but in reverse. Running the course in reverse makes it much harder do to the fact that it becomes long climbs that are a little steep and short descents. The other problem is that I am running on the opposite side of certain roads that only have the shoulder on one side. And of course the side I was on has no shoulder and I must cross this road twice to continue on my way. That is why I usually avoid this reverse course. The temperature was 78 degrees and the wind was out of the East at 3 mph gusting to 15. Running reverse slowed me down do to the climbs and the wind. T his afternoon I went over to the local Bob's store to buy some Nike Running socks. I like these because they are made of Dri-Fit material and they are very thin. I wear these socks with my bike shoes and sandals.

Local 5 mile loop

T his morning was a beautiful day to ride my 5 mile loop, and I rode 20 miles while deviating from the standard route. I was looking for a more varied ride to consist of some gradual climbs and quick descents. I think now I have a fairly good route laid out, and will run it tomorrow. The weather was just magnificent, the temperature was 82 degrees with a wind out of the NNW at 5 mph. I was surprised I was able to ride 20 miles since I was sick with a bad stomach all day yesterday, chances are I have a summer bug. I still haven't received my new decals from TW-Bents, but I sent Kevin an email to check on status.

Nice days for riding and chain tube swap

Y esterday my ride was 15 miles and totally uneventful. The temperature was a beautiful 82 degrees with a wind out of the NNW at 7 mph I started out late because of early morning showers. Today I went out a few minutes later, but I was able to do 17 miles before I had to head home and take care of business. The weather today is just beautiful, the temperature is 78 degrees and the wind is out of the NNE at 3 mph. O n today's ride I decided to detour from my usual route and try some of the new roads that have been put in over the last few years. Most of these roads are as smooth as glass and are very wide for a local street. Between some of these roads are multi-use paths about 7 foot wide and no kind of traffic at all. I think I will add some of these streets to my local route, but I have to check out distances so I might get an accurate count. Y esterday while waiting for the early morning showers to stop I decided to replace my chain tubes with Teflon tubes to decrease chain lin

Another Nice Day for a Ride!

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Y esterday was a no ride day, I had many things to take care of. Today I started out early and it was only 60 degrees, talk about a chill. The ride was local on paths and local streets. The ride was totally uneventful and very nice and relaxing. By the time I had finished my 15 miles the temperature was 82 degrees and climbing. The wind was blowing from the WNW at 8 mph with gusts up to 15 mph. My only complaint about the wind today was that many people cut there lawn on the weekend and there is plenty of small pieces of grass and pollen blowing around. My eyes were red the time I got back, but it could have been worse. I n a prior post I had wrote about buying some wicking shirts at Target. Well I returned one and bought another which was exactly like the one with the zipper. I wore it today for the first time and found it to be just as good as a jersey. It has a 1/3 zipper and form fits like a jersey, but no pockets. The shirt runs a little large, so instead of a medium I bought a sm

Beautiful day to ride and have a Parade

T his morning after helping Alayne with her cleaning I headed out the door for my ride. In many posts to my Blog I have mentioned how some drivers are very cautious around bikes and especially around trikes, while others are very aggressive. Today I had both and the extreme end of both! I will start with the parade. As I was riding down a local two way street in the curb lane (this is the lane where cars would park) as there were no cars parked a car came up behind me I signaled the driver to pass as there were no cars in the traffic lane in either direction. The driver refused to pass, before I got to the top of the hill which is very long I looked in my mirror and saw at least 10 cars lined up behind this women forming a parade. But to my surprise not one driver blew his or her horn or made a remark out the window. I figured they all understood that it wasn't me since I was the only one in the curb lane. And now for the driver that gets the A**hole award. I came to a corner whi

Into the Wind!

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T his morning I started my ride at 9:00 AM and planned to do at least 20 miles, no such luck. The wind was very strong at 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph making for a hard ride especially up hills. There is a portion of the route that I do locally that I can maintain 20 mph, but today I was having a hard time at 12 mph. There is also a moderate climb that I have to do which is not very steep, but it is over a mile long, which I normally can keep my speed around 10 to 12 mph but today 6 or 7 mph was more like it. After 15 miles I called it quits and headed inside. I wouldn't call it a wasted day by no means, but I was very tired after this ride, and my legs ached. A fter showering , I had some lunch and headed for my local Target store to try and find some wicking shirts to use in place of a jersey. I found some which should fit the purpose just fine. Both shirts are made of wicking material and are very light. Target seemed to be out of many of the colors, but the two I picked will

Great Ride Amazing Weather

I was going to ride with my friends today, but I had to be somewhere by 8:00 AM so I couldn't be at the meeting place at 8:30. At 9:00 AM I headed out the door to get my ride in before it gets very hot. The weather was magnificent, the temperature was 79 degrees with a wind out of the NNW at 5 mph. The weather couldn't be any better. I rode some of the back roads near my home, which are void of traffic. The road conditions could be much better, but for a back road I guess they are par. These roads have a huge crown, so you can't take your hands off the steering or your eyes off the road. If you do decide to let go for a second you would be in the ditch, and some of these ditches are 4 feet deep. I didn't see a sole on the road, so I was being very conservative regarding speed. I took it nice and slow so I could take in the scenery. I rode 20 miles today, and felt I could have done more, but I had things to do so I headed home. Y esterday afternoon I decided to re-mount

Battle against the wind!

T his morning I went out for my daily ride intending to make it relatively short. The wind seemed to be in my face no matter what direction I turned. I was having a heck of a time keeping my speed constant even while trying to adjust my cadence. I was riding the white line at the edge of the road and Hank's accident kept popping into my head. I was constantly looking in my rear view mirror for a car riding to close to me. Ninety nine percent of the cars that passed gave me an extremely wide berth and crossed the center line to get away from me. There were a few A**sholes that thought it was funny to pass and blow there horns, most were in pickup trucks. It must be something in those trucks that make there drivers act like fools. I stopped for a rest at the park and while sitting there a huge dog came to pay me a visit. First he sniffed me up and down, I thought once he got a whiff of my cat he would tear me to pieces, but no he just started licking me from my chin to my forehead.

Cyclist Friend hit by car!

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T his morning 4 of us met at a friends house to start a 25 mile ride through Princeton, Plainsboro, and South Brunswick. We were about 7 miles into the ride when the accident happened. Another DF biker and myself were about 400 foot ahead of the two other DF riders, when we didn't see them in our mirrors, we stopped and waited for them to catch up, after a short while we received a phone call from Gus telling us that Hank was in an accident and hurt. We turned around and got to them in a few minutes. What had happened was that Gus was behind Hank when he saw a car trying to pass them, Hank and Gus were riding the white line which shows the edge of the road when there isn't a shoulder. As the car was passing Hank, the cars mirror struck Hanks handlebar and put Hank into a front wheel flip. He came down on his head, shoulder and left arm and side. The police were there in 3 minutes and the EMT was there 2 minutes later. They tried to get basic information from Hank, but he didn&#

My First Flip!!!!

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T his morning I took my ride along the bike trail and had my first flip, and hope it is the last. The accident happened like this. I was doing about 30+ mph going down a hill on the bike path when I came to a crest in the path. I knew from before there is a branch off of the trail at this point, which I never use because it is loose gravel. Well as I came over the crest I saw a abandoned car sitting across the trail. I knew I didn't have enough time to completely stop so I headed for the right-hand branch off. And that was a BIG Error! I was so panicked I didn't lean into the turn, and the trikes wheel came off the ground. There was a one foot drop on my left, and the trike flipped over 3/4 of a turn and landed on my side off the 1' drop off. I also have a small bit of road rash and my helmet got pretty badly messed up. The rubber cap on the wheel was dirty, and not a scratch on the trike. If it wasn't for the helmet, I don't think I would be writing this. I thre

Cooler but windy!

T his morning I headed for the back roads in the area for a short ride, I wanted to do about 10+ miles if possible. The roads seemed more crowded than normal, and filled with some of the most erratic drivers I have seen in a long time. I was riding a 5 foot wide shoulder in the center, when car after car would try to pass another car making a turn and ride on to the shoulder just missing me by just a few feet and sometimes by inches. It wasn't that I couldn't be seen, it was more the fact that people are oblivious of what goes on around them. One driver came alongside and yelled nice ride and then proceeded to cut into the shoulder and cut me off. I was glad when I left that section of the road. The roads I were on are small local roads with very sharp and high crowns, which make it hard for two cars to pass yet alone for me to ride on a trike. These roads have been re-topped so many times that the edge of the road to the edge of the soil is sometimes as high as a foot. There

Pleasant ride and good company.

T his morning I met up with friends for a nice leisure ride through Princeton Forrestal Center. The ride consists of paved bike trails and smooth to rough roads with little or no traffic. We were going to start early but we ended up starting 45 minutes later. The weather was Sunny and a warm 85 degrees. The wind today was out of the NNW at 8 mph, and sometimes directly in my face. We were averaging around 13 mph and rode 12 and 3/4 miles. It would have been nice to go a little farther, but I had an appointment and it was very humid. Sol sure knows all the roads and trails in his area, I wish there was a map of them. If there was I would go more often, and ride these quiet paths. The ride was mostly flat to some gradual up grades for road crossing and railroad crossings, but a most were very short climbs. Y esterday I bought a stationary recumbent bike to use during the winter months. This way it won't take weeks to get my bent legs back. I bought a Edge Fitness Cardio 6.0. It was

Smokin Speed!

T oday I went on a ride with 4 DF bikers and another trike. I was not very familiar with the route or the condition of the roads. We came to a hill which was hard to climb, but with lots of shifting I made it to the top. The WW Cruiser also made it to the top but barely. One out of the 4 DF riders made it to the top, while the others walked. At the top was a huge surprise, this hill was steep and long but I decided to go. I was increasing speed extremely fast and before I knew it I was doing 43-45 MPH, I knew I had better slow down as I was coming to a curve, I didn't realize it was two S turns back to back. My Black Widow took the hill and turns as if it was mounted on tracks, I applied my breaks and the trike took a while to stop, but it stopped straight as an arrow. When the others reached the bottom of the hill they all wanted to take a test ride. I think I have turned at least two DF riders to the dark side. I wish I knew how to get back to that road, because I will be sure to

Hot and getting hotter!

T his morning I headed out early to get a few miles in. I managed to do 15 miles and it felt like 100. The heat was so bad that I was going through my water supply very fast and loosing as much through perspiration. The temperature was 89 degrees with a hot wind of 8 MPH coming from the WSW. There were areas on the road's that the asphalt was wet and sticky and other places where the asphalt has buckled. Very unpleasant riding conditions, and the fumes from the cars and trucks added to the yuck factor. There were a few places where a car or truck stopped and there exhaust was almost in my face. I hope this hot spell doesn't last to much longer.

Air Mesh Seat review!

A fter I rode with the new Air Mesh seat for 17+ miles I have found the following Highs and Lows. H ighs: Seat allows more air to circulate allowing for a dryer back. The lumbar support becomes more prevalent. The seat molds to your body on sharp high speed turns. Two removable and washable covers, great idea. L ows: Much firmer and sometimes jarring ride. A lot more pressure on your butt. Better chance to get numb butt. T o sum it all up, I have gone back to the Open Cell foam, but I will try the Air Mesh cushion again. I am sure that some will find my remarks completely wrong, but again everyone makes there own decision. S tarted my ride this morning at 8:45 in order to beat the heat, no such luck. It was 88 degrees and very sunny. There was a wind out of the WNW at 5 MPH. By the time I had finished I had rode 17+ miles and finished my 20oz bottle of water.