Boomers on Bicycles

handmade

The Shimano North American Handmade Bicycle Show takes place in Richmond, Virginia, February 26-28. Regardless of what kind of bike you ride, or the reason you ride, this show is rather nice. If you are anywhere around Richmond, go. Just seeing some of the bikes that are likely to be there makes me want to hop a train or plane and head east. These bicycles aren’t in the cheap column by any means. You don’t have to buy one. You may want to after you take a good look at all the handmade products though. Here is the link: NAHBS.

Enjoy a few dreams.

Bikes

Riding bicycles in winter generally means that you’ll be cruising through some mud and water. Mountain bikes are especially prone to this. Off road is messier than riding on a paved surface.

It’s a safe bet that most mountain bike riders have been through a puddle or two. It’s also a pretty safe bet that getting the dirt and grime off your ride hasn’t happened as regularly as it should. We’re deep into winter and the recent weather proves it. If you’ve been out riding, on or off trail, you’ve got some maintenance to do.

Here are some things to do, on a regular basis, during the winter, rains and mud:

• wash your bike after you ride: use your garden hose, get the big chunks off.
• stay away from the high pressure hoses: forcing water into your bottom bracket, or any other sealed portion of your bike will cause problems, either with rust or fine grained grit being forced in.
• after you hose your bike down, dry it off with a soft cloth.
• pay special attention to your chain, chain rings, and derailleur gears.
• oil your chain, after you hose it down, same with the gears.
• pull your seat post out, clean it, lightly oil it.
• check your brakes, adjust them if it takes too much pull to engage them.

This isn’t an exhaustive list, but it will keep your bike in pretty good shape during the wet and muck of winter rides. It may just prevent more expensive problems from popping up as well. Check with your local bike shop about the different types of chain lubes and cleaners that are on the market.

Have a great time riding this winter.

Read any bicycling magazine and you will find references to numbers: tire size, frame size, fork travel, bike gears. Except for bike gears, the numbers are easy to understand. Gears, for most riders, are what they hear about at the bike shop. But what do they mean? What difference does it make to you, the rider?

The numbers that you hear (52/39) refer to the number of teeth on the chain ring. The chain ring gears are a set of two or three numbers. A road bike generally has two chain rings, but can have three.  A mountain bike will most likely have three (52/42/30). Larger numbers have more teeth on the gear. Different sized chain rings and gears have different numbers of teeth. A compact double chain ring has two chain rings; a triple, three chain rings. The large chain ring is the outboard ring, the small one is inboard. If it is a triple, the mid-sized ring is in-between the large and small rings. Chain rings can have as few a 20 teeth and run up to 56 or more.

The gears on the rear of the bike (the cassette) can come in sets of 6, 9, 12, or 10, or whatever someone who is experimenting with gears can come up with. On the rear of your bike, the  big gear is in board, the small one, outboard. A compact double chain ring, with 10 gears on the back, is a 20 speed bike. Put a triple chain ring up front, and it turns into a 30 speed bike. More teeth on the chain ring gears means more revolutions of the derailleur gears, which accounts for the harder high gear–big chain ring, small cassette gear, and the easy granny low–small chain ring, big cassette gear.

As with so many things, the gearing on your bike depends upon some variable factors: where you are going to be riding (flat, hilly, mountains), your strength, your experience, mountain bike, road bike, or hybrid. When buying a bike, road, mountain, or hybrid, it’s a good idea to discuss with the shop tech what your main interest is and what the terrain is like where you will be riding the most. For the most part, new bikes, out of the box, have a good set of gears on them for most riders. If you are a racer, a ranked cat rider, or someone in the elite class, you’ll have different needs and will probably have a very specialized set of gears all around.

Your bike gears are an important part of enjoying your ride. The best place to take your questions about the gearing on your bike, or the new one you’d like to buy, is your local bike shop. Not only will you learn about the gears, you’ll get to look at all the great new bikes and gear on display. Just don’t drool too much on the new bikes.

Pay attention

A recent article in the Outbound section of the Sacramento Bee (Dec. 17) was devoted to the issue of mixed use trails and mountain bikes. Almost all of the trails in the Sacramento area are for mixed use. The biggest exception is motorized vehicles of any kind, which are heavily regulated on all the trails just about everywhere. The National Forest trails, except for those in designated wilderness areas are open to just about any kind of human powered travel. The exception in the wilderness areas are mountain bikes and anything that has a motor to propel it.

It seemed a good idea to wait a few days after reading the article to see what kind of response would be forthcoming in the Letters to the Editor section. It was, as it turns out, a good idea. In yesterdays Bee (Dec. 27) there were quite a few responses to the article and to one response in particular that appeared two days after the article.

The article in the Bee noted that the use of the trails has changed over time. It wasn’t that long ago that bicycles of any kind just weren’t seen anywhere except on the streets. The advent of mountain bikes changed that. Slowly but surely they began to show up in the forests and urban trails. The traditional users of these trails–hikers, runners, and equestrians–started to encounter more and more of the mountain bike crowd, and conflicts began to appear. Keep in mind that mountain bikes started to appear about 20 years ago.

The biggest complaint, according to the article, written by Sam McManis (mailto:smcmanis@sacbee.com), is that mountain bike riders do not pay attention to trail etiquette. The general rule is that everyone gives way to horses, bikes give way to hikers. There are signs, yellow triangles, with this rule in picture form on them, at the start of many trails, and along the trails. It’s simple logic and easy to follow. This rider always gives way to horses. They are big animals, and a startled or spooked horse is like a loose cannon on a rolling deck. It costs me nothing to slow down, or stop, to avoid what could be an unpleasant experience. This is true whether riding on a paved urban trail, or out in the forest.

It is easy to assume that out on the single tracks, far away from the city, that one may just ride full tilt without fear of bumping into anything except rocks and tree branches. This rider is also a hiker, and has been quite far into the forest, and come across mountain bikes. Now, the rule is that bikes give way to foot traffic. The reality is that it is easier for me to step off the trail and allow the bikes to pass. We are always polite when out in the forest, and have found that other hikers and bike riders are similarly polite. Some of the pictures you see in these articles are of mountain bike riders we have spoken to, out in the middle of nowhere. You never know when you might need some help out there. It’s best to act accordingly.

It is true that in any sport or recreational pursuit that there will be some who cause trouble for all. An attitude that “this is mine, all mine, so stay out of my way” is what generally results in behavior, regardless of being on a horse, bike, or hiking boots, that causes conflicts.

One hopes that the simple act of being polite, and understanding that sharing is a decent act, is the prevalent attitude out on the trails and urban bike paths wherever you live and ride. The whole thing starts with you.

Ride

Riding off the beaten path requires a different set of skills than one would use on paved paths or roads. That much should be obvious just by looking at a mountain bike. City bikes, commuter bikes, and road bikes are all different.

There are many ways to improve your off trail expertise and comfort. Riding with someone who is markedly better than you are is a very good way to gain experience and confidence. This rider has a mentor/riding buddy who has been into serious bike land for 50 years. He’s an expert, but won’t claim it. He is though. Riding with him, on or off trail, is always a learning experience, whether it’s on a road bike or a mountain bike. His suggestions and his “watch this” demonstrations aren’t possible to get any other way. As a result, this riders skills, comfort on and off trail, and expertise have increased greatly.

Another method to improve your skills is to take a class. As has been mentioned in this column before, REI and Total Body Fitness are good options for classes. Your local bike shop may have lessons or contacts for lessons. Ask them.

Watching videos, made by the experts, is another way to wet your appetite for learning. One of the more interesting aspects of these videos is the step-by-step explanation of how, and why, the rider is doing what he or she is doing. Of course, if it’s necessary for you to go through, in your head, all the steps of how you get over a log, you’ll crash while you’re thinking about it. It’s good to hear the how to, but then you must get out and ride enough so that doing it is automatic. After that, you become the teacher. Ride well.

How to Ride a Mountain Bike

Rider in the woods

Another fine weekend beckons in the your area. As of now, the weather wonks tell us sunny and nice are the words to describe this weekend, unless of course, your local weather wizards say differently. Around here, it’s a very nice looking weekend.

The trails are all open, the colors are in full burst, and the temperature is perfect for just about any length of ride. The off road trails in the forest and the urban wildlife interfaces are very good right now. The only caveat is that in some regions you might find some snow or ice, especially in the mountains,  and on the north facing slopes. In some mountain regions, you’ll need a sled to go out in the woods, not a bike.

The light is fading around 5:15pm, so keep that in mind as you set out on your ride. Light up if you are going to be out around or after dusk.

Visit your local bike shop for the best information on where to ride, and what the conditions are. Check with your riding buddies as well. Wherever you ride this weekend, have a great time. Leave a comment here so that other riders can enjoy the trails and paths in your area.

Today is Halloween. Just another day on the trails? Probably not. Here are some tips as you ride in costume today:

• If you are riding as the Headless Horseman, watch where you’re going, if you can
• Boy band, girl band singers, if you bring your microphone, you’ll need a very long extension cord
• If you are riding as: Drag queens and society mavens, do be careful to not get your spike heels caught in the pedals
• For the costumed Wall Street hedge fund managers, mortgage fund managers, none of the rules apply to you, so do what you want. If it all goes wrong, bailouts will appear
• Fairy Princesses, Tinkerbells: keep your magic wand tucked in tight. Snagging it on a tree branch would not be good
• Multi-armed creatures of any kind: remember which arms you are using on the handle bars
• Batman, Batwoman, Superman, Superwoman: tuck your cape in. If it gets tangled in your chain, or wheels, you might become engaged in unplanned flight
• Starwars enthusiasts please turn your light sabers off. They could really wreak havoc on a single track.
• Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: that’s a lot of people on a bike, so balance well. Stay away from apples
• If you are a ghost, gobblin, or among the undead, careful to not scare yourself into crashing into the nearest tree, bush, or pond
• If you are riding as a politician, well, who knows what you’re likely to do?

Last, not least by any means, ride early, ride safely. You need to get home in one piece. The trick-or-treat crowd is headed your way. Have a great Halloween.

Under-reported by the mainstream press, road, mountain, and cross bike races are in full bloom this time of year. About the only thing that has the media time it deserves in the US is Le Tour. All the rest, the Gran Fondos, Giros, tours of everywhere, downhill, cyclocross, cross country, are virtually ignored by the TV folks. It’s difficult to find consistent written pieces in the local newspapers. If it weren’t for the internet and the various magazines out there, it is entirely possible that the sport of cycling, in general, would be almost completely unknown in this country.

Here are some sources for you to check out, both print and internet:

• cyclingdirt
  
• velonews
  
• Mountain Bike Magazine
• Mountain Bike Action
  
• Bike Mag
  
• Dirt Rag
  
• Transcend Magazine-Downhill at its best

There are, of course, more ezines, print places, and websites to explore. These are a few, and should help you keep up with what is going on in the cycling world. You will notice that most of the sites listed above are related to mountain bikes. The video that comes next features mountain bikes as well. I find it very interesting to see what the more limber and adventurous among us are doing. I’ll follow up with some road bike news. I’ll ride anything, and in fact have both a mountain and road bike, and enjoy them both, for very different reasons. The important thing, as always, is the ride, not what you’re on.

Whether you are on a road or mountain bike, the basic rule is the same: you need to be seen. California state law actually specifies that your bike needs to be visible. That’s the basic reason there are reflectors on them. The reflectors are on the front, back, and on your wheels for all around visibility. Common sense works wonders here: the more visible you are increases the likelihood that motorists will be able to see you. This is a good thing. Professional racers don’t usually participate in the light experience, but then they are on courses that are fairly well protected, or, like the downhills and crosses, are all off road.

Why would a mountain bike need visibility? This rider goes off into the woods on a regular basis. Getting to the woods requires some time pedaling on the roads. Sometimes most of the ride is on a road, with a burst or two into the wilds. It is readily obvious that a car will always win a crash test with a bicycle, so the mountain bike is lit with flashing lights.

There are several options for increasing your visibility while riding. There are lights for your helmet, handlebars, seat tube or saddle. The bikes in this riders family have the reflectors plus front and rear lights. The lights on the bikes can be set to flash or just stay on. The intermittent flash seems to be a better signal to the car driving public that something is out there, so pay attention.

The light business has evolved and has much better offerings these days. The LED’s that are common now are brighter, last longer, and take less battery power to run. MTBR has a pretty good review and comparison of the types of lights that are available.REI is another place to look.  If you go with a lithium ion battery type, think about getting a re-chargeable one. It’s also possible to get a set that has a generator. In the rather olden days there was a light that ran off a generator that was powered by the bikes’ wheel, which probably slowed the rider down a bit, but it looked really cool. It was about the size of a grapefruit. Fortunately, the entire bike light business has moved pretty far beyond that. Check with your local bike shop for all this gear.

Reflective clothing is a must if your ride always encompasses some portion of dawn or dusk in it. A bright, eye catching jersey comes in handy too. Just keep in mind that it is best to be visible, so make a point of it, even if you’re in the woods on a single track most of the time. Sooner or later, you’ll be on a road, so keep it lit.

In the meantime, check out this National Parks piece:

Autumn rides, just about perfect

Lance Armstrong and Levi Leipheimer will ride in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California. The Tour will begin in Nevada City this year, and will cover 16 cities in 8 days. It should be quite a ride this year. It will be in May, and the weather probably will be better than the previous February starts.

Closer to home, it’s time to get out and ride. While there isn’t really a bad time of year to ride (although riding in the snow isn’t on my list of things to do), autumn seems to be a particularly nice time of year to ride. The weather, most of the time, is just about perfect, and the chorus of colors that the trees and bushes put on is just about the best you can ask for. When you do head out for a ride, take your camera with you.

I love the chaos of fall, the sound of my bike tires crunching through the leaves, and riding through leaves that are falling from the trees. The smell of autumn, and the sure bet that a good cup of coffee and tasty crumpet of some kind are waiting for me when I’m done is simply irresistible. Get out there and ride!