Friday, March 31, 2006

Possible group ride on Sunday, April 2.

Meet at Kye's in Jeffersonville at 11:00 a.m., then cross the Clark Memorial for a round-trip River Walk, then up into the Highlands for coffee or beer.

Currently, the cast looks like Tim Eads, Kevin Richards, Graham Phillips and myself.

Monday, March 27, 2006

Finally I Get A Ride In

After not being able to ride for who knows how long, I finally got a twenty mile ride in today just before the rain came. Cruised around NA, did some hills and sprints as my body reacted so familiar to the pace I put it through. Funny how the time off the seat and pedals made my body seem more rested and stronger, even though I had been working a ton of hours on the electrical grid over the last two weeks and was feeling so run down.

After about a couple of miles of warming up, I actually caught myself smiling and loving the exercise. There is something to say about true enjoyable exercise. Before my two weeks of hell and not riding, my body was starting to feel fatigued and I was really concerned about how it would react to my upcoming bike trip. Now I have no concerns and will keep up a training program to warrant the miles ahead for me in five weeks when I go out California.
b

Saturday, March 25, 2006

Gonzo Bicycling Strikes Again

*photo borrowed from the web
At the suggestion of my long time friend Roger, this is archived from my Parish blog.
PLEASE DO NOT TRY THIS!

Monday, October 17, 2005

On Sunday morning I rode my bike across the Sherman Minton Bridge that connects Indiana with Kentucky spanning the Ohio River, giving me yet another bridge conquered via my bicycle. It was early in the morning, near 0800hrs when I peddled up the ramp and approached the massive structure. Yes it is against the law to be on a bicycle on such part of the Interstate system, but I did it and had great fun doing so. Only one vehicle passed me and the look on the drivers face said it all: crazy. Well I am in a harmless kind of way. Maybe just my way of retaining my youthful rebel needs.

Saturday, March 18, 2006

The latest malfunction ...

... is a broken spoke on the back wheel, suffered today while peddling to work.

Teeth gritting.

It's wobbling fairly bad, so I won't risk a ride tomorrow. Instead, it'll be up to Clarksville Schwinn first thing Monday to have the wheel respoked.

I learned my lesson in Belgium two years ago. Break one -- don't wait; respoke altogether. It takes no time at all for the spokes around the broken one to weaken, and they'll start snapping, too.

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Cinna's Stage

It was appropriate to ride on the Ides this sunny afternoon, though not at war with myself like the Brutus of lore but rather pensively like a Beckett character. My yearly total on the bike has reached 22 miles and my ambition is three hundred, not much by the standards of my peers but double that of last year. If indeed we are inviting the inevitable global warming, it is fitting to enjoy it, even in an activity that itself tempers its proliferation.

Monday, March 13, 2006

Conrad J. Boisvert Bike Trails Books



These books are great. They have distance(miles) and elevation(feet) graphs, plus starting points and mile markers, as well as a brief description of each rides landscape. Included in each ride is also a detailed map. Each ride is given a difficulty rating, riding time, calories burned and the total elevation gain.

Saturday, March 11, 2006

But, In The CJ Today

Great news for bicyclist in the Dutchmans Lane area from the Louisville Metro government.
$3.5million to smooth way for bicyclists Improvements, new trails ahead

Bike Talk

At the request of Randy Smith at Destinations Bookseller I have found a gold mine in planning my bike trip in May to the Bay Area of California. Randy suggested an author by the name of Conrad J. Boisvert. This gentleman has written many books on bicycling in and around San Francisco, two of his books that I have chossen are making my riding routes so easy.

In one of the books I discovered a route through the mountain town of Woodside. After looking at Woodside's website www.woodsidetown.org I stumbled onto this shocking piece of information about a bicycling committee in that small town. What will it take to do this here in Southern Indiana?

Bicycle Committee

Meetings:
2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:30p.m., Independence Hall, 2955 Woodside Rd.

Appointment:
Nine members appointed by Town Council for staggered two-year terms.

Duties:
The Bicycle Committee advises and recommends to the Town Council on policies for planning, developing, maintaining, and usage of the Town's bikeways system, including reviewing and making recommendations on:
1.) applications for special bicycle event use permits for the Town's roadways,
2.) elements of the Annual Road Program relating to the Town's bikeways, and
3.) bicycle access to and parking at institutional, commercial and office facilities.

The Committee addresses issues relating to bicycle safety and usage of the roads and trails throughout the Town, including joint use by equestrians, pedestrians, and bicyclists; and educates children and the general public in State law pertaining to bicycling and safe bicycling practices.

The Committee provides an open forum for bicycle issues; offers communication links to diverse local, regional and state bicycle organizations and to bicycle clubs; and offers expert participation on the C/CAG Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee.

Council Representative :
Deborah Gordon
http://www.woodsidetown.org/bicycle_committee.html

Wednesday, March 08, 2006

Struggling ... not unlike the Clash.

Should I stay or should I go (out for a ride, when it looks like rain)?

Sunday, March 05, 2006

Another Universe Indeed

That was an appropriate comment in reference to my previous post on the new bicycle parking garage that Caltrain is building at the San Francisco Train Station. It is a safe bet that I will never see anything like that here in the Metro Louisville area in my remaining life span. Oh well, that is one reason why I vacation out there.

Attempted to ride yesterday, but was summoned to work just as I was getting ready to depart on a ride. So today I tried to make up for it. Rode down Spring Street Hill, and by the way it is clean. Someone has had it cleaned up and taken down the ugly barriers on each end making it user friendly again for recreation. So, after departing NA, cruised out Corydon Pike and up Edwardsville Hill. Took old 64 to Edwardsville-Galena Rd before making my way back over to Luther Rd and Hwy 150. Sprinted over to Scottsville Rd and up Skyline Dr, down Spickert Knob and Green Valley to downtown NA and then back up Old Vincennes to our Silver Hills home.

Real good ride on a gray Sunday, which will see a weather change this afternoon bringing rain for a day or two for this area.

Friday, March 03, 2006

Caltrain Kicks Off Bike Depot Construction at San Francisco Station

Caltrain is making it easier for San Francisco bicyclists to ride their bike to the train, with the long awaited construction of a new 1,600 sq. ft. bicycle parking facility at the train station at Fourth and King streets.
Funded with federal, regional and local grants, the new bike depot will have space to park at least 100 bicycles. Storage will be secure, and free of charge to users. Additionally, the operator, Warm Planet Bikes, will offer bike-related service and repairs, at a fee to patrons.
The kick-off event will take place at noon, Monday, Feb. 27, at the San Francisco Caltrain Station, 700 Fourth St. The event will feature speakers, including San Jose City Councilman and Caltrain Board Chair Ken Yeager, Muni Executive Director Nathaniel Ford, San Francisco Supervisor and Chair of the San Francisco Transportation Authority Jake McGoldrick, MTC Commissioner Sue Lempert, and SF Bicycle Commission Executive Director Leah Shahum.
Construction is scheduled to begin during the first week of March and will be complete in mid-summer. The facility will allow people to ride their bikes to the station and park it at no cost, as they take the train to their destination, while lessening the impact of overcrowding of bike cars on trains.
On average, more than 300 bicycle riders board at the San Francisco Caltrain station each day, with nearly 2,000 daily bicycle riders between San Francisco and Gilroy. Current trains only have capacity for up to 32 bicycles, and once the limit is reached additional bicycle patrons have to wait for a later train with room for them to board.
“We love our bike passengers, but we have limited bike space on our trains,” said Caltrain Rail Planning Manager, Michelle Bouchard. “This new facility offers them a way to keep riding their bikes, and frees up more space for other bike riders who may need their bike at the other end of their journey.”
Attendees at the kick-off event will view renderings of the new facility, enjoy music and refreshments.
02/24/2006 taken from
http://caltrain.com/

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

Did Everyone Ride Today?

Hopefully everybody took advantage of the great warm weather and made it out on their bicycles today. My trip was shortened due to an extended work day that got me home after five. Luckily made my way around NA for an hour and was making my way back home with my lights on coming up Cherry Street hill.