Since I don’t go out socially during the COVID-19 pandemic, a typical Friday night is spent with a bicycle ride and a beer. Not at the same time, of course, but hmmm… maybe I could fill a water bottle with an adult beverage, or throw a bottle of wine in the pannier and head to the park? An idea worth pondering. 😀
I hope you had a nice end of the work-week!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/10, 1/420 sec, ISO200 “Friday Sunset” Cedar Park, 2020Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 19mm, f/2, 1/100 sec, ISO2000 “Friday Refreshment” Cedar Park, 2020
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The northernmost boundary of my neighborhood butts up against a shopping/restaurant area, but there haven’t been an roads or trails that connect the two, even though they are a stone’s throw away. To get to the restaurants, you have to go a long way to the west or east, then north, then back east or west.
Tonight as I was riding around that boundary, I saw that there was a new neighborhood under construction, just a series of streets at the moment, being built in the no-man’s-land. The little bit of street connecting the neighborhoods had a temporary barricade, but plenty of room to walk or bike through, so I decided to check it out.
As hoped, I was able to get to the shopping area so I did a bit of exploring around that area, which included Torchy’s Tacos, Raising Cane’s and Dos Salsas. Traveling a little farther, I found my way to an older rural neighborhood that was populated with many deer. It was really cool to see them. In fact, a small group of them crossed the road in front of me, and I could hear their hooves clomping across the pavement. It was the first time I have heard that sound and it was really nice!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/100 sec, ISO800 “youngsters” Cedar Park, 2020
I also rode past a nursing home, some office parks, and a brand new apartment complex. And I came across a really old-looking abandoned building surrounded by all the new buildings. It looked really out of place, but super interesting. I wonder what the story is behind it?
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/100 sec, ISO1000 “Strange Building” Cedar Park, 2020
It was super fun to explore these new parts of town, all thanks to finding the “Northwest Passage”. I hope they keep that passageway open to pedestrians and cyclists, but I think it might not be so great to open it up to cars since it would make that quiet neighborhood a busy shortcut for commuters.
Wow, what an active day that I had! The weather was fantastic in the morning, so I headed out for a short 2.5 mile run. I often run (and bicycle) to the elementary school that Bay and Koa attended, and it is always a mental pick-me-up as I remember the good times watching them grow up. It seems like just yesterday they were attending Cox Elementary!
As I ran by the front, I took a photo of this sign, which shows the first phase of the re-opening during the pandemic. I hope this the the only time they will have a sign like this on display.
Photo info: motorola moto g(6), 3.95mm, f/1.8, 1/1200 sec, ISO100 “Reopening” Cedar Park, 2020
In the evening, I had to go for a bicycle ride around the neighborhood, and that included both Cox Elementary again and the other elementary school on the other side of the neighborhood and the football stadium that is used by the district’s high schools. At that time I was treated to a nice sunset:
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/1000 sec, ISO200 “Sunset” Cedar Park, 2020
On my way home, I received a text message from Koa asking if I wanted to throw the baseball over at the school, so I headed over to Cox for the third time today! We threw the ball until it got dark (and my arm was tired) and then came home to my second shower of the day.
It was a lot of physical activity (running, cycling, baseball) but I feel great! Thankful for my relatively good health as I approach age 52. Whee!
My new bicycle rim arrived and I got to work replacing the old one, which entailed transferring the spokes over to the new rim and then truing the wheel to make sure it’s straight. I followed this video’s instructions, which proved invaluable.
I also followed the advice in this video to true the wheel, and got it in good shape. Next, I adjusted the rear brake and it was ready to try it out on the road!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.2, 1/100 sec, ISO2500 “New Rim” Cedar Park, 2020
I only intended to ride around the neighborhood to test it, but I wound up hitting the hike and bike trail and riding several miles. It was just so fun! It seemed like I was able to ride faster, accelerate quicker, and cruise at a higher speed with the new wheel. It might just be that I am getting in better shape, but I have heard that the bicycle upgrade that will make the biggest difference it to replace the wheels. Well, I’m not sure if my new $33 Sun Ringle rim is an upgrade or not, but the stock Mavic rims are generally regarded poorly. So I’m leaning towards the opinion that the new rim helps out a lot. 😀
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4.5, 1/1100 sec, ISO200 “At Brushy Creek Lake Park” Cedar Park, 2020
Later in the evening, Mariko mentioned that the sunset was probably pretty nice so I hopped on my Kona again and headed down to the place where I like to take sunset photos. Turned out pretty good:
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5, 1/500 sec, ISO640 “Sunset” Cedar Park, 2020
I’m so happy to have my bicycle back, and working better than ever!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 19mm, f/2.8, 1/25 sec, ISO3200 “Clean Cassette” Cedar Park, 2020
While I await delivery of my new bicycle rim, I have been doing some research on how to replace the bent one with it. I’ve found this helpful video which I am going to follow. The process seems easy enough, but I am expecting it to take a while as I get the wheel straight, or true. Also, because it is the rear wheel, I think the spokes are not even – the ones that connect to the drive-train are more vertical as compared to the left side, which is more angled. At least I think that’s how it is on my bike.
Anyways, as with most YouTube searches, it’s was easy to find other related videos. One such topic I found fascinating is the different kinds of cassettes and chain rings. These are the parts that the chain actually interfaces with. The photo above shows the cassette, which on my 20-year-old bike has 8 different speeds. The chain ring (by the pedals) is 3 speeds. Therefore, my bike has 24 different speeds, with lots of overlap.
The trend on modern mountain-bikes is to have just one speed on the chain ring, and then an 11-speed cassette. By having just one speed up front, you don’t need a front derailleur, its cabling, and shifter. Much cleaner and simpler! On touring bicycles, there are typically 2 or 3 speeds up front to allow for a larger range, especially on the low-end (the granny gears). The thinking is that a touring bicycle will most likely be carrying a heavy load and needs to have those lower gears to tackle those long uphills a bit easier.
My bicycle is technically a mountain bike, but I have turned it into a touring bike with the addition of a rack and panniers (bags), a more upright stem and butterfly/trekking handlebars. I think even after 20 years, my 3×8 gear setup is still common on lots of bicycles, and I am pretty satisfied with it. Honestly, for the front, I never use the highest chain ring, and rarely use the lowest, finding that the middle chain ring and 8 speeds in the rear are sufficient. On a couple of steep hills I will shift it to the lowest speed on the front so I can select an “extreme granny gear”, so I think I can get by with a 2×8 but why not just keep it a 3×8 since I will still need a front shifter and derailleur, right?
In other words, no need to change the drive-train. Anyways, it’s still fun to think about.
Speaking of bikes, I really want to fix up the bicycle I rode on my one-and-only long-distance bicycle tour that I went on when I just started high school. It’s an old Peugeot road bike that currently resides at my parents’ house in California. Since I haven’t ridden it in almost 40 years, I’m curious to see what it feels like. Maybe one day I’ll take a road trip out west to visit family and pick up the bike. Sounds fun!
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