I was tired on the way to work. Then I had to work a 13 hour day. Then I had to ride home in the dark, after midnight, while facing a 15-20 mph headwind. So today I learned that cycling while exhausted is completely possible . . .
Apr 082011
Apr 072011
So I got the lights and gear transferred over to the Surly who I think is getting a new name. I haven’t been happy with any of the names I’ve tried out so far, but I’m trying out Ms. Billie Blue. No relation to the Australian convict.
In any case, today I learned how wonderful it is to ride your commute with a bicycle that you can count on. I didn’t really realize how much I effort I spent constantly checking the chain, listening to the derailleur for the slightest sound of binding, checking that the brake cable hadn’t slipped for the 50th time, etc. Just being able to really sit back and enjoy the ride was extremely pleasant.
Apr 062011
Well today is a sad day for #30DaysofBiking. I know I’ve been talking about it for a long time, but my old trusted Cannondale Touring Bike which I’ve had since I was 15 years old has finally reached the complete end of its life. On the way home tonight, the rear derailleur came into pieces tonight on the way home. The picture below doesn’t really show the complete extent of the damage, but it was a pretty catastrophic end considering I was doing about 17 mph when it happened, thankfully outside of several broken and bent spokes there was no personal injury.
Thankfully my wonderful girlfriend was able to come rescue me from the side of the road and feed me ice cream as moral support.
For the last couple of years I have poured money in to Smurfette to the point that my LBS mechanic had a pang of conscience and told me I should probably give up on the life support. Well, this is really it, time to let her go. Now I’ve got to go move all my commuter lights and gear over to my new Surly Long Haul trucker before tomorrow, but at least I have options.
In any case, I still got a great 20 miles in today and I got this really eerie picture of a water tower on my way home:
Apr 052011
The 45 mph gusts of yesterday convinced me to chicken out from the 60 mph gusts this morning. Therefore I waited till late after I got home from work and the wind had died down before hitting the road. Weekday nights are pretty quiet in Oklahoma City, especially after 10:30 at night on a Monday. I saw only two cars on my 30 minute ride. With the streets that quiet and the lights shining off the street, it’s like you are the last person left alive in the city. It’s at times like these that I truly remember how liberating biking can be . . .
Apr 032011
A 20 mile ride around Lake Overholser in an extreme headwind (25-45 mph) showed me how out of shape I am. But you have to start somewhere . . .
Apr 032011
I wanted to make sure to send out a great big thank you to all those who sponsored me for this year’s St. Baldrick’s Day event. Together we raised over $1100 dollars for this great cause. It was also wonderful to see many of you at the event. However, for all those who didn’t brave the chilly weather, here is a video of my shaving:
Apr 022011
Today was another incredibly beautiful day. This stretch of warm weather has caused all the flowers to bloom which always makes for a beautiful day . . .
Apr 012011
So, it’s time again for another round of #30DaysofBiking. I like this event because it gives me a chance to work on some aspect of cycling, and since I’m never in a hurry to improve my speed, I get to work more on just riding more. Last time I worked on being calm on the city streets and trying to just enjoy the ride. This time it has been a long winter and I wimped out through most of it and hardly rode at all. Well, because of this long delay, I’m going to take this run to remember how much I love riding and to remind myself of all the stuff I don’t get to see when I drive.
So today was a wonderfully warm day. I got to ride both directions in shorts and sandals. So for today, I’m remembering the joy of a warm night ride . . .
Mar 162011
Spring is upon us! Every day the sun shines a bit longer, the flowers bloom a bit brighter, the grass turns a bit greener and the Grizzly Adams jokes get just a bit older. So like last year, I again take up the challenge to remove the fur for the wonderful St. Baldrick’s Foundation. The St. Baldrick’s Foundation provides much needed grants for childhood cancer research and I’m gladly taking up their challenge to shave my head not only in solidarity with childhood cancer patients but to also help raise money for this wonderful cause.
Last year I was able to raise some $1400, let’s see if we can do at least that much this year! If you can help at all, please visit my donation page at: http://www.stbaldricks.org/participants/RW. You can also donate by calling 888-899-BALD (2253) and donate under participant #454268. Finally, you can download a donation form at: http://www.stbaldricks.org/file/get/f/91ac86c3-2402-43bd-8a55-820e2ab1b958 that you can mail in or hand to me personally. Please consider donating if you can. Even one dollar would provide much needed help for this critical research.
The actual head shaving will take place on March 27th between 2:00 – 4:00 PM at VZD’s (4200 N. Western). If you want to join in a great party, please come along. Thanks again for all of your generous support!
Feb 012011
In case you are really bored, not living in Oklahoma and would like to spend some time watching snow fall, I present Snowpocalypse Cam. You too can watch a really fuzzy image for hours on end, enjoy!
Watch live streaming video from radicalwacko at livestream.com