Category: Bicycles

It Was Cold This Morning

Somewhere around 2F. Thermal layers. Balaclava. I actually lost a few of my fingertips on the way in, but then got them back before getting to work. It’s funny sitting at a red light steaming. Today is also some kind of holiday, so most people have today off, so the streets were empty. Dry, salt washed, bitterly cold, desolate. Lit by the painfully brilliant morning sunlight, or cast in frigid blue shadow. Racing, racing, hoping the cookies don’t fall off the back of the bike.

So How Was It Riding Through The Snow This Morning?

What snow? Here in Albany, we got about an inch of slush. It’s not hard riding through that, it’s just wet. It was above freezing, which means the so-called snow was actually melting, and it was raining a little, too.

I had checked the weather the night before. Albany was a little green dot on an otherwise white and pink map. We fell into the T-2″ category, and temperatures were supposed to be on the warmer side. Which meant the “icy death” I had been warned of would not be lurking in my neighborhood, and more importantly I wasn’t going to have to put on my studded tires.

So I went prepped for wet conditions. And it was wet. I completely forgot that I got some sweet new dry sacks for Christmas. They would’ve been better than the plastic bag I used.

The only time I had any difficulty was climbing out of Washington Park. My back tire was spinning a lot. But you keep the bike upright, you keep moving forward, slowly, you’ll get there.

Side note. I was passed on State Street by a gray VW Jetta. The back window had not been cleared of snow. At all. They didn’t brush the snow off. They didn’t even turn on the rear-defroster. You can shake your fist at these lazy slackers all you want, but the important thing to remember is that no matter how many lights you have flashing, no matter how much reflective tape and dayglo you are wearing, there are people out there who will not see you. Look alive.

Riding in the New Year

It’s weird when it’s January 1st and it’s sunny and in the 40s. But I wasn’t going to lose the opportunity to enjoy some time outside. I thought maybe I’d go for a hike, but after a walk for some coffee I decided I’d rather ride my bike.

I wheeled out the XOXO and made some adjustments. I made sure all the bolts are tight. I tilted the handlebars and raised them a bit. I tweaked the front brakes. And then we were off.

We stopped at Buckingham Lake, pretty despite the scum on the surface of the water. Then we went down to Whitehall and rode the length of that, waving to other cyclists and wishing them a happy new year. Left on Delaware Avenue, which was light on traffic, clearly marked with sharrows, and perfectly lined up with the wind. A strong tailwind is a wonderful thing. We were hauling. A driver in a truck tooted his horn as he just barely passed me. At the next light I pulled up beside him with an enormous grin on my face. A new bike and a tailwind are a wonderful thing.

I cut down Holland to pick up the multi-use trail on Hackett, and cruised home.

I hope you rode your bike today.

Riding the XOXO to Work

It took a lot of work, but I was able to ride the Handsome Cycles XOXO to work on Monday.

I had ordered pedals, fenders, and a rear rack from Velo Orange. The pedals went on easily, no tools required. I had a tough time with the fenders. I was able to get the rear one on, but no luck on the front fender. The rear rack wasn’t going to work out at all, and it was too small for my panniers anyway, so I sent it back.

I ordered a bigger rear rack, a bell, and a bottle cage. The bell and the bottle cage went on easily. I struggled with the front fender. It was a repeating cycle of trying it this way, trying it that way, for hours on end. I kept finding myself without the bolts I needed. My LBS helped me out.

Friday Night I spent more than four hours putting it all together. Saturday I was able to ride it around the block. Sunday I prepped it for the ride Monday, with lights and air in the tires. I’ve never had a bike with Presta tubes before, so that was a couple of minutes of fun.

Monday it was cold but dry. I sped off to work. A new bike on an old route is a lot of fun. How will this bike take this hill? How will it take these cobblestones? Does this bike make me look cool when I’m stopped at a red light?

I got a few compliments on the new bike at work. They look at it and see something pretty. I look at it and see something pretty that I spent hours and hours and hours putting together. I like that personal connection.

The ride home proved interesting. On Pearl Street there are a lot of “fast breaks” between traffic lights. I’m learning how to pedal standing up on the XOXO. Once it’s up to speed it hauls. On the path through Lincoln Park I felt really good, like I often do- the endorphins have kicked in and there are no cars. You can just cruise through the shadows. Shift down for the climb out of the park, and by the time we’re working our way up the top of Morton Avenue we have a pretty good idea how the XOXO is going to fair in this city. The gearing is really nice. Smooth, subtle gradations make it really easy to get up a hill without feeling like your legs are going to break off.

A couple of things have come up since that ride. For one, the handle bars turned out to be loose. I had to stop and tighten them, and I should probably go back and make sure they are where I want them and tighten them up for good. I also noticed that my saddle has slipped down a few inches. I need to raise it back to where it was, and then tighten the seat collar. I’m sure there are other things I need to tighten, and it would be good to find and resolve these things before I get on the street with them.

For now the XOXO is going to sit quietly in the garage, waiting patiently for Spring. I could ride it in the winter, but I’m not in a hurry to mangle my new bike. That gives me time to work out issues, get a replacement tube, and install a kickstand.