The Health of the Planet!

It has occurred to me that I have not said much about the daily grind here... I am again working at a shop that I worked for years ago. I left then to concentrate on school full time, but recently was invited back by the fine folks at Flying Fish Bikes in South Tampa. I am again wrenching on bikes, this time though, it feels more permanent as my major is Environmental Science... now i dont think I really need to explain the correlation, but for the sake of having something to blog about im going to go ahead and say it anyway: I am not merely a bicycle mechanic, but rather, an ambassador for environmentalism. Let me explain. Bicycles are the most efficient form of transportation as they have ZERO emissions, get INFINITY miles per gallon, and are much less expensive than cars. I am doing a service to the environment by keeping folks rolling on two wheels. I am not merely working a job repairing and cleaning POS BSO's, I am doing a service to my field and to the world! So if you ask me what I do I will no longer tell you simply that "I am a bicycle mechanic" I will have much more to say about the things I do for the health of the planet.

wow

This guy is the Rodney Mullen of the Cycling world. freakin amazing!

Project: Budget Touring Bike Part 1

So I had to sell my Long Haul Trucker... I wasn't happy with the decision but at the time I was in need and the bike was too small for me... I must be growing... anyway, recently I was given an old Giant hybrid bike which I thought could be made to be a decent touring bike. So far not much has been done but just enough to make it really road worthy. Here are some of the mods so far: in the first picture I have added tires(Vittoria Randonneur 700x35), my Brooks saddle off my mountain bike, and a bag that I stitched up just for this purpose. The bag is actually quite nice... it will act as my "handlebar bag" as it is very easy to access while on the bike and actually makes more sense because it puts the load lower in my center of gravity and takes the weight off the handlebars... im a freakin' genius... anyway.
Next I ordered a set of these trekking bars on ebay, which I have been wanting to try for some time... I have since wrapped these with bar tape and they have proven to be very comfortable with endless hand positions... these are great bars for touring... highly recommended. Another nice thing about these bars... they use mountain bike components... very inexpensive compared to road parts and very easy to find for replacement whilst on the road.
Lastly, so far, I picked up these old Cannondale panniers on ebay at a great price. I went uncontested. nice. I like the color of these bags, but I may either re-cloth them or make dark colored rain covers in order to be more discreet whilst stealth camping.
Well so far that is all for part one... I need racks and fenders yet, and i will eventually lace up some better wheels, but until next time...

True Temper!!!

Dont think of this as an advice piece, but don't cast it off as unintelligible angry rambling either. I do not wish to own a carbon fiber bicycle... ever. I heard today the angels sing of the glory of carbon fiber from a co-worker and I just cannot subject myself to this in the same way that I will not subject myself to the trash of modern sci-fi or romance novels. Carbon fiber is the equivalent of Nora Roberts and Micheal Crichton as Hemingway and Kerouac are to a good Columbus or True Temper steel. You see, I have never, ever, seen a broken steel frame bicycle... ever. Oh, sure, components break... but i have never seen a steel bicycle even one that had been hit by a car, that wasn't repairable... on the other hand... I couldn't count on fingers and toes how many broken carbon fiber components I have seen as a mechanic. Carbon is lighter than steel... but that is where the benefits end. Steel is a much more comfortable ride, it is stronger, it lasts longer, and it is actually possible to build a light steel bike. Dont listen to the hype... Steel IS real.

Bike Day Commute...

OK... not much to say... I rode to work on "Ride Your Bike to Work Day" and I took some photos with my phone to capture the moment... it was a nice ride... I was late too. :D

I really do.

Sometimes when one is left to his own devices for a length of time the absence of anything productive to do can drive one mad. It is harder to truly understand or appreciate this fact until you have not only been left to your own devices, but had a chance to recuperate and reflect upon the times when you were so severely bored with life that you were driven mad. Often it is not the condition that teaches us about life, but the rebound and the subsequent reflection through which we can gain an appreciation for the hard times that we had survived.
Boredom, or rather "a lack of something useful to do," often puts me into a depressive state that consumes and paralyzes me. Without both mental challenge and physical stimulation, both of which to take my mind off of the other, I get bored. For the first time in a while, full time employment and full time enrollment in school seems like a great idea. Wrenching on bicycles gives me a chance to sort out my personal thoughts and to think through the complicated ideas that often keep me awake at night. But being in school feeds me the idea that i wont be working on other peoples bicycles for the rest of my life. So in essence I have hope for the future whilst being able to take care of my immediate needs. Not just hope for the future, and not just the thought of living forever with a mediocre 9 to 5. Not that I dont enjoy working at a bike shop with some great guys... I really do.

Tales from the Emergency Lane

I have been commuting quite a bit the last few weeks, that is to say, riding more than I have all year. It is quite refreshing to feel like a cyclist again. I feel like referring to myself as one is no longer a lie, anyway. But it is also quite refreshing to be out there in the world again and on my bike. I ride across the Gandy bridge on my way into work and the view there, though I have seen it my whole life, takes on new meaning when you are that close and personal with it. Riding your bicycle feels quite different than being caged up in a box with windows going 70 mph past the blur of scenery.
When I ride sometimes the pelicans will float next to me as they scan the water below for breakfast, before they tuck into their dive and quickly disappear from view, I assume to bombard some unsuspecting fish. I feel like a part of nature... the cars screaming by me are loud and distract from this serene experience to some degree of course, but I'm able to block them out in favor of this day dream. I used to wear headphones, I'm starting to realize that just taking in my surroundings is a far more effective tool for distraction.
I have begun collecting things of sort from the bridge... the strangest things fly out of peoples cars and onto the side of the bridge; the other day I grabbed a Frankenstein's Monster lawn decoration, I also found a visor from some cheap car, and a small orange cone, I assume used for some kids game. They call it the emergency lane, but it is seemingly also the trash lane. I see the same bolts and piles of glass every time I ride the route. I think of it as MY lane... I rarely see anyone else along my route, even though the weather is great for it lately. I think of the car lanes as the "emergency" lanes, as in, people should only take their vehicles in an emergency. Either way, I'm riding again, and its making me happy.