Irregulars

Awhile back I posted on “regulars” you may encounter while commuting by bicycle. You know, the dog walker, the morning coffee and paper, the bum who smells awesome. Well on Friday on my ride home I came across a group of people I know but don’t encounter frequently while riding at least. It was the folks from the Richmond Cycling Corps, which if you don’t know, is a great group promoting cycling with youth in the city. As I crossed Belle Isle I saw a bunch of people riding trails in the woods, carrying on, and generally having the kind of fun you should be having on a bicycle. Only as I came close to crossing the southbank access bridge did I realized who it was and stopped to chat and take a couple photos. Looks like the kids were having a great time!

Monday, er, Tuesday Bike photos

As yesterday was a celebration of some sort my workplace allowed me the chance to be off for the day yet still receive payment. As such, I did not venture out of my house save to drop my car off for yet another bit of maintenance. Rant, ends there but I was able to use my bike this morning to travel to the workplace and as such I captured these photos for you to enjoy! Happy Tuesday!

Street Scene- Cannondale Commuter

Street Scene- Epikk FrankenSchwinn

Quick Panda Shots-Iphone 4

The Iphone 4 has a camera on both the front and back of the phone. It makes taking a panda shot so easy!

China-Making people actually pay for the roads they use.

Just watch the video.

Street Scene- Iron Horse

Why you need to carry stuff.

Normally I only bring breakfast with me but as bills can be tight at times I am also trying to make lunch at work as well. In the summer, we cycle down to Belle Isle to enjoy a view of the rapids while we eat so a friend of mine and I frequently eat together by cycling down there but this winter I have been venturing out (Juneuary) and enjoying the some tables available downtown. You’ll see in these photos that I’ve rigged up a basket to carry some things with me and having the ability to portage equipment is an essential aspect of a utility bike. Now I want to make sure that this doesn’t stop you from cycling and there are plenty of people who have no baskets or racks and carry things all day long (bike messengers for instance) but for me I don’t like to have a backpack or “messenger” bag on and in the summer it’ll make you sweaty even before you step into work. Here’s my basket set-up and a look at how I filled it up this morning.

Living the High Life.

Deals at Nashbar

Tires are one of those things that you rarely go through enough of to formulate a really good perspective on. I’ve found two types that I really enjoy after deciding the Vittoria Randonneur line (which are quite popular btw) which I had been using on several different bikes in different sizes were either too heavy for me or seemed to be really hard and not so grippy. I know a lot of people who like them but for my money Panaracer makes the best tires out there. Right now Nashbar has Panaracer tires (Pasela road) for $14 each! That’s a great price and they come in many different sizes. I have 32c sized on my randonneuring/S24O bike but for my upright handlebar commuter I have some 35c Vittorias I am planning on replacing soon due to the bead almost being visable on the rear.

Finally, the second set of tires I really like are Panaracers as well in a 28c size which my friend Jason turned me on to. The price is quite high but I really, really, I mean really love these on my “road” bike. They are the Panaracer Rivendell Ruffy Tuffy which are sold at Rivendell Bicycle Works for around $50 each (ouch!) but can be had elsewhere for closer to $40. Anyhow, the Pasela’s are really good so if you aren’t one to drop $50 on tires go that direction and spend the rest of your money on beer, but I did see this special out there and wanted to mention it.