Ani's new Felt

My daughter Ani wanted a new bike for Christmas, and said she wanted one just like Dad's. Nothing could have made me happier than seeing her getting into cycling on a more serious level than what her previous department store bike could offer.

Walt at Contees hooked us up with a 24" Felt. It's a sweet ride...much better than any bike I owned when I was eight. It has STI shifters and even a carbon fork. This was the first time Ani rode a bike with gears. After a few minutes she was shifting effortlessly, and wanting to pick up the speed. We maxed out at fifteen miles an hour...not bad for her first ride! We got one day of riding in before the blizzard dumped a foot of snow on Connecticut, but we're already planning our first long ride. Look out Lance...

Pittsburgh Walk and Bike

Check out this inspiring film about eco-friendly transport in Pittsburgh. It would be nice to see this kind of support for biking and walking in Newport News.

Hill Riding and Clean Bikes in Connecticut

Oh to be a bike in Stonington, Connecticut...

The semester is finally over, so as we do most holidays, my wife and I headed for Stonington, CT. This is a beautiful little town on the coast, right between Mystic (think Julia Roberts in Mystic Pizza) and the Rhode Island border. I always look forward to these trips...especially for the cycling. The roads around Stonington give riders a nice variety of everything from flat stretches to some serious hills.

The trip north was fraught with snow and ice though, so I was a little concerned about the cycling possibilities:

The bikes, being on top of the car, took a real beating. I wish I had taken a picture of them, as they were caked in some serious salt and road grime. The guys at the local bike shop, Mystic Cycle Centre, said they had never seen road bikes so dirty. I was actually really concerned they may have taken some permanent damage, but the guys at the shop did an amazing job cleaning them up.

I opted for the "deluxe tune up." The price seemed a little spendy, but damned if it wasn't deluxe. The bike was cleaner than when I bought it, and ran smoother and quieter than a fixed gear...I thought I was running Sram Red. The guys at MCC were super friendly, and had the bikes back to me in less than twenty four hours. So I did what any self respecting cyclist would do...I headed out for a twenty five mile test ride. It was beautiful, but after riding in Tidewater Virginia for the last six months, my legs weren't used to the hills. I felt like Jan Ullrich trying to catch Lance on the Alpe d'huez.

I was so inspired after the ride, I decided to take a few pictures of the clean bike with my new itouch:

Spoke View

Dead Powered

Not that impressive to most, but I felt like I was flying:

Rainy Ride

I'm certainly not the first to say that there is never bad weather, just bad clothes.

On this dreary rainy Sunday I hooked the Burley trailer up to my fixed gear, and headed out to the grocery store. The bike can even transform a day like this into something magical. It was a beautiful ride...the crisp December air, with drops of rain on my face, made the ride an invigorating adventure!

When I got home, the following get up kept me as dry as a bone, and I was much happier than when I left:

Salomon Gore Tex shoes

REI waterproof pants

fisherman's foul weather gear jacket (I got this for ten bucks at a thrift store in Beverly, MA)

Specialized skull cap (to keep the ears toasty)

Bike Nashbar waterproof helmet cover (the ole noggin even stayed dry)

fleece gloves

For a few bucks even the weather can't stop you from going by bike.

The caravan

The thing that is more interesting than an xtracycle pulling a baby trailer parked next to two sleek performance oriented fixed gear bikes (which is a combination that looks something like this video ) is that Chris "the ladies man" Putney is making eyes at my eleven month old daughter.

Saturday Morning Breakfast Ride

Tony and Chris joined Veda and me for a quick ride up to Panera for breakfast. It's amazing how such a short ride (about a mile and a half) turns a rather mundane weekend ritual into an exciting adventure. I ask this question quite a bit on my blog, but why would you take a car, when going by bike is this much fun? Here we are navigating through CNU's campus.

Note the absence of any students. With exams being over, and the holidays approaching, the sight seeing wasn't the best. There were, however, quite a few crappy Wal-Mart bikes left alone in the bike racks around campus...you know, the ones that have terrible geometry, look like some mix between a full suspension mtn. bike and the Millennium Falcon, shift like a 1980 Ford Pinto, and are heavier than John Candy after a Thanksgiving meal.

Track standin'

Gunslingers waiting for the green light....

Bike Bus

I don't know which is a cooler way to get around town...a fixed gear bike or a trippy looking Westfalia bus...though either one is sure to catch the ire of both soccer moms and the men in blue.

Wheels4Life

Check out the great work Wheels 4 Life is doing:

and if you feel like supporting a good cause this holiday season, go to http://www.wheels4life.org/

Tour de France Training?

I wasn't going to post anymore today until I ran across this picture of Andy Schleck doing god knows what to a poor sheep. Who could pass up the opportunity to aid this picture in its travels around the blogosphere?

Now I know why he was following Contador so closely up the Col du Tourmalet in this year's Tour de France. Alberto better watch out in 2011...that is if he can beat his own meat packing charges.

"She's the Schznit"

After that last post, depicting some arguably unstable youths in San Francisco speeding down Potrero Hill in San Francisco on fixed gear bikes, I bring you a real fixed gear rider. This looks like the future for my daughter Veda and her good friend Charlotte.

"...variable gears are only for people over forty five."

~Henri Desgrange (founder of the Tour de France)

Potrero Hill Bombing (SF)

Some crazy fixie riders have taken to bombing down Potrero Hill in San Francisco. I thought my legs spun fast trying to keep up with Tony on Snake Hollow in Newport News. I don't know whether to be impressed with their skills, or be disgusted at their flagrant lack of concern for their own safety (note that they have no helmets, no brakes- one of the dumb asses is surprised that he has a hole in his tire, and run a stop sign which results in one of them almost getting hit by a car). I found myself hoping the video would end like this:

Potrero Hill Bombing from Lester Lyons-Hookham on Vimeo.

Motorists Overwhelmingly the Problem

A new study shows that motorists were at fault in 87% of collisions, near-collisions, and "incidents" involving cyclists.

Keep your heads up out there...ride defensively!

Thanksgiving Fixie Ride pic2

Another shot of Tony's Cannondale Capo2. Beautiful bike...it's a limited edition run from Cannondale. The logo is reflective, but blends in with the paint until headlights hit it.

What a great way to spend the day before the orgy of food and drink!

Thanksgiving Fixie Ride

My buddy Tony sent me this pic from what looks like a gorgeous Thanksgiving Day ride. I don't know where this was taken, but I'm guessing it was by the lake on the "horse farm" loop behind Menchville High School.

I used to drive by this all of the time, and never realized how beautiful it was. It takes a bike to pick up on all of the gems like this in your town.

Chris and Vedagnome

Here Chris runs interference, and Veda is obviously not too enthused about the ride. Same view of Dad's ass, different day...

Smart Car

Now here is an excellent example of a studious driver taking precaution when she or he sees that a line of bikes is approaching. Notice the beautiful execution...giving plenty of space, and moving wide long before the bikes are within reach...completely opposite of what the jackass mentioned in a previous post did.

Dropped...

...and I was even riding an xtracycle and pulling a baby!

Rough Ride!

After being towed behind her Pops at a blistering pace through the urban jungle, Veda could do no more than chew on her hat string.

The Look

On the way back from Aromas, I got "the look" from Chris. If you're not familiar with what "the look" is, click here to find out. It's not good for the one (me) on the receiving end.

Aromas

Aromas has a great vibe, delicious food, but crappy coffee...go figure, it's a coffee shop?! Oh, don't forget to stop by Aromas on Wednesday night for T. Mata's open mic night...and bring an instrument. If you're lucky, you'll get to hear him pick a few tunes. He's without a doubt a world class player and jazz master. Your ears will thank you!

Stack O Bikes

Golf Cart Race

On the way to Aromas, we got into a race with a golf cart. Of course we pulled a Mark Cavendish on him...he didn't stand a chance.

Thanksgiving Eve Ride

With Thanksgiving tomorrow, and most of my friends being teachers, we all had the day off today. Tony, Chris, Deanna, Veda, and I decided to take advantage of the beautiful fall day and caravan it up to Aromas for some breakfast.

It was a damn beautiful ride...pretty weather, good friends, no timeline, and only one jackass car who almost took my daughter's trailer out.

The fellas met us at the house in Riverside and we trucked it up J. Clyde Morris Blvd, cut through the apartments behind the SPCA, and shot across Jefferson Ave. into City Center. The bike opens up so many areas of the city I never knew existed...just another reason to go by bike!

Here we are getting ready. Tony looks ready to put the hammer down...more pics to follow.

Pimpin' With Ya Helmet On

A little good advice about the benefits of wearing a helmet:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvPZ3LOwxYg&feature=player_embedded#!

Sunday Leisure Ride

My friends Tony and Myra brought their daughter Charlotte over, and we had a beautiful ride from Riverside to Fort Fun in Huntington Park. The kiddies loved the ride...and the baby swings!

The caravan is:

Tony's Cannondale Capo2 fixie, my wife's Civia Loring, my Cannondale T1000 xtracycle with Veda in her Croozer 737 trailer, and bringing up the rear is Myra's Townie with Charlie Bear in her Burley Bee trailer.

Why would you even consider driving a car on a day like this?

Morning Commute v.2

Another shot from the overpass in downtown Hampton. Notice the line of cars with brake lights on...it sure is nice to ride right past them.

Morning Commute

I have been meaning to post a picture from my morning commute, but I honestly just kept forgetting the camera. The sunrise is beautiful that comes up by the overpass in downtown Hampton. Most days I zip right past, but I decided to stop and take in the view today.

I usually ride the xtracycle, but my car had to be dropped off at the shop this morning, and the longtail bike won't fit in the car...so the fixie and the Burley trailer stepped up to the challenge. I knew I would have to use the fixie today, so I stopped over at Contees last night, and of course, Walt immediately threw the bike up on the rack, and removed my freewheel so I could tow the trailer. This quick friendly service was done at no charge...except the few bucks I gave him for a six pack...what a neighborhood bike shop should be!

Xtracycle info

If you have ever thought of going "car-lite," or just need a way of hauling a lot of stuff around that doesn't involve buying a gas guzzling SUV, then you NEED an xtracycle. I don't get a dime for saying this, but xtracycle changed my life, and my perspective on what a bike can do. I have moved everything from pumpkins to my wife to surfboards to a 20ft extension ladder just last night. Plus, xtracycle turns those errands into a fun adventure.

In the words of xtracycle:

We understand that the modern world operates at breakneck speed. Freeways are cluttered, errands are always looming, and there never seems to be enough time to get everything done. That's why we put simplicity first. By crafting highly customizable, cargo-friendly bikes we've set out to create a sensible and affordable alternative to automobile dependence. No fluctuating fuel prices, no traffic, and no handlebar balancing acts -- just get on and go..Xtracycle isn't just another bicycle company. It's a labor of love devoted to the evolution of simple, versatile, and sustainable transportation. After 15 years of development in locales like Nicaragua, Kenya, and Stanford University's engineering labs, we're proud to be producing a full line of bicycles and accessories fit for cargo, passengers, and everyday adventures.

If you want more info, check out their website here...or to see what an xtracycle can do, watch this killer video here.

Get one, carry stuff, have fun doing it...

High School Bike Bus

Check out this great video of kids organizing a bike to school group in Orlando, Florida. Killer initiative, and with it being a group thing, the message gets out that bikes are a wonderful way to get in shape, save on gas, and cut down a little on that carbon footprint...not to mention just a whole hell of a lot of fun!

We need something like this in Newport News. With all the fixed gears kids rolling around, you'd think it would already be happening. Maybe some high school teachers (cough, cough, guitar playing ones at Woodside, cough, cough) could get it organized.

I rode up to the cemetery today to see my Pops, and on the way back I decided to hit our local produce market, Dean and Dons. I think the picture says it all, but I had two more pumpkins on the other side...who says you need a car? Thank god for xtracycle!

Brooks Team Pro Alpe d'Huez Saddle

I'm stoked to get my new Brooks Alpe d'Huez saddle...thanks to the Contees' guys for ordering it so quickly! It is the standard Brooks Team Pro saddle with a topographical map of the famous Alpe d'Huez climb in France engraved into the leather. This one also has copper rivets, which are hammered by hand. They aren't kidding when they say it will take some time to break in...this thing is hard as a rock. But when they finally mold to your posterior, Brooks saddles are like Birkenstocks for your ass...you can't beat the comfort, and they'll last a lifetime.

Beautiful Fall Day

We decided to take advantage of the beautiful fall weather, and bike up to the Port Warwick Art and Sculpture Festival this weekend. Veda loved riding in her trailer. It was great passing by the swarm of cars, with stressed out drivers in them, as they circled for a spot in the over crowded parking lot.