Lucky May 07 2013, 0 Comments
Even though it has been a month (or more) of buried keeping the machine moving, there are still mornings that remind me how lucky I am and it is all OK, has been and will be.
Ocean Air Cycles
Even though it has been a month (or more) of buried keeping the machine moving, there are still mornings that remind me how lucky I am and it is all OK, has been and will be.
Stoves and General Safety May 03 2013, 0 Comments
This morning I went for a ride to make some sunrise pictures of the Springs Fire that is burning about 20 miles from our side of town. With wildfire season starting early this year it had me thinking about the fact that I am encouraging people to get outside and use camping stoves. This is a catch 22. The stoves, either the ones I am using or any stove for that matter, bear a certain amount of rink in their use. Just like the stove at home they can burn you or set stuff on fire. In some regards that is the point of using them. The thing is that if you are going to use one outside, you MUST be knowledgeable in how to use it safely. You may notice that even when I am up in the hills I find an area of wide open dirt, NOT all surrounded by dry brush 2 feet from the stove. Most of the time I prefer to set up down on the beach sand or a flat rock at the beach. Should something go wrong there is no shortage of water to throw on it. One point of the coffee rides is to give you a reason to get the knowledge and skills required to use the stove safely, making longer trips more approachable. If you have never used one before, practice at home with no wind and a fire extinguisher close by. Once that seems easy, move on to more exciting venues, but safety first, park benches surrounded by concrete or dirt make good sense. Always be prepared to put out a fire, have backup water etc. That said here are some pictures of todays ride:
It was in incredibly beautiful day to head out and shoot some photos, brew up a cup etc. When you are out there, and you should be, think about where you choose to heat up your water, your skill set, and always be mindful during the entire process. As with everything we do in life there is inherent risk, and risk often bares rewards. Twenty miles from me some people are having a very long day/weekend.
As an aside about being prepared this fire season, when I worked construction most of the guys had a fire extinguisher in their truck, and had all used it at some point, usually to help someone else. Most of my readers are on the west coast where wild fires are a real threat. It does not make sense to always keep an extinguisher on the bike, but know who to call in an emergency. You never know when you might be a first responder.
Wednesday Coffee Outside May 01 2013, 0 Comments
A bit of a false start to the day, but ended up making some time to brew up the second cup out side after rolling to some errands.
The fringe benefits of going later were the lack of fog and warm weather. A perfect day to get outside. Mission accomplished and back to work.
Sunday Standard April 28 2013, 0 Comments
Another Sunday ride to the farmer's market. It really is amazing the weather swings we get in the spring here in Ventura. In the last seven days we have had everything from rain to blue bird days and now back to the fog and gray.
Any day out on the bike is better than a day sitting at home. I was trying to time a closer intersection with the blue heron in the pic, these birds really are huge and the picture does not do it the justice it deserves. I also crossed paths with reader David and his wife, out on a bike no less. It really is awesome meeting folks out in the wild who have been reading my blog, if you see me out there stop and say hi.
Daddy Days April 26 2013, 0 Comments
Loving some time making memories with my little co-pilot this morning.
And friend and Rambler owner Ryan pointed to this in the last post's comments, and everyone should save or book mark this one for the next time you are about to use wrapping paper, or pack things up, and yes bandannas work for most of the folds.
Follow the link back to here for a bookmark in your browser.
Bandannas Added to the Storefront April 26 2013, 0 Comments
I believe Bandannas are the second most under rated thing everybody should have with them at all times, second only to a really good pocket knife. I always have one or more at hand, in the pocket, bike bag, or in the mess kit.
The Paisley bandanna is the traditional kerchief used by our grandpas and their's before them. A 21x21 inch square of 100% cotton being the most useful accessory you can keep with you every day. Like a pocket knife that is with you every day, you will eventually wonder what you were doing before you had these. Things I use mine for: Handkerchief, napkin, pot grabber, bandage, rag, shade for your neck, sweat band, bandage, stop that something from rattling in your bag.....on and on.
These are made in the Carolinas by one of the last remaining bandanna companies in the USA. 100% cotton, dyed, printed, cut and edges sewn here, keeping jobs here. The "Traditional" bandannas are mill fresh and start out crisp and stiff. A few trips in your pocket and through the laundry will get them soft. For that extra bit of instant gratification we also have "stone washed" bandannas that are silky soft right from the start.
Coffee Outside With Friends April 24 2013, 0 Comments
We, that's right, WE made it out this morning for the Wednesday coffee routine. My friend Mike is back in town and met up this morning with me on his Trek 650b conversion that I did for him a year ago. The weather was looking like rain, so we kept the ride close to home and headed up the coast just a bit.
I was using my Trail Designs Caldera Keg and he had a small home brewed wood stove. Both did exactly what you would hope for, boiled water quick and fun. His wood stove made from a salvaged paint can worked just fine, gear was no limitation.
I was able to put a bunch of cups through the silicone filter holder this week and am pretty happy with it. The trade-off for it folding flat is that it is heavy, and I am choosing portable for the moment.
It was really great getting to share the fun with another person real-time. Until now I have been heading out on my own in the mornings, then sharing the joy through the web. This was a welcome break in the routine of self employment. All in all a great way to set aside 30 minutes and make some memories. Then the mist started to shift to drizzle and it was off to work disguised as grownups for the day.
VP Vice and 001 Pedal Comparison April 22 2013, 0 Comments
I have been riding flat, non retaining system, pedals for a long time. Most of my youth, and for recent years thanks to Grant at Rivendell, I have been pedaling free. There are a variety of options at the full range of price points. At the lower end you can get very basic touring or BMX pedals with decent traction for $20. The upper end is dominated by very thin machined aluminum mountain bike race pedals these go well up into the $hundreds with exotic materials in the pursuit of weight savings and thinness. I have been testing a range off offerings in pursuit of offering a pedal that strikes a balance of performance and value. What are things I consider key?- Wide and long platform for maximum foot support. This puts much of the stiffness burden back on the pedal and reduces or completely removes the need for stiffness in the shoe.
- Traction pins that are integral to the design, easily replaceable and in useful places. The pins keep you foot from slipping off of the pedal. There are lots of types, from cast in to screws that come in from the top or bottom.
- Sealed Cartridge bearings. This is where the price can go up fast compared to basic pedals. While most pedals can be serviced and last a life time, good seals and bearings increase the time between servicing as well as the ease of the process.
- Thinness. As downhill and dirt jumping have dominated this pedal market segment the pedals keep getting thinner. Older pedals are generally 25-30mm thick. The newest versions are 5-15mm thick. Thinner pedals get you closer to the ground. The change of center of gravity is probably insignificant, but you are 5-10mm closer to the ground and that helps to get more than the tip of your toe on the ground at a stop while your rear is still on the saddle. The truly ultra thin pedals generally make compromises in the bearing and spindle design to achieve the thinness.
Red VP001 and Blue VP Vice[/caption]
Both are good pedals for about $65-70 street price. Both are a bit wider than some other common pedals, MKS Grip King (lambda) and RMX "sneeker" pedals, as well as have more aggressive pins. The following comparison pictures tell the story.
[caption id="attachment_3669" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
Red VP001 and Blue VP Vice[/caption]
The difference in thinness is remarkable. The MKS pedals are 26mm while the VP are 16mm. The means your saddle height will come down 5mm and your toe will me 5mm closer to the ground at a stop without bringing the pedal any closer to the ground or threatening a strike.
Red VP001 and Blue VP Vice[/caption]
There are also some subtle but important differences between the VP-001 and the Vice. For me the Vise is the clear winner. The VP-001 has a more traditional spindle that allows the pedal to be installed with a 6mm allen wrench or traditional 15mm pedal wrench. The Vise on the other hand requires a 8mm key. Why the difference? The vice allows the whole platform to sit closer to the crank arm, and thus your foot closer reducing the overall Q-factor. Q is the distance between crank arms, narrower Q generally feels more normal, and is used in traditional road biking designs.
[caption id="attachment_3668" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
Red VP001 and Blue VP Vice[/caption]
The platforms are both quite large compared to traditional pedals. Compared to each other the Vice has more supporting area at the outer corners as well as through the center of the platform.
[caption id="attachment_3670" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
Red VP001 and Blue VP Vice[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_3671" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
Red VP001 and Blue VP Vice[/caption]
The axle on the Vice is longer and the outboard bearing is placed a full 2cm further out board from the crank arm. This will reduce the loading on the bearing reducing wear and time between service.
[caption id="attachment_3678" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
Red VP001 and Blue VP Vice[/caption]
The last and a notable difference is the type and placement of the pins. The VP-001 uses grub or set screws that are inserted from the top. The hole for the wrench to remove and replace these can clog with crud and or be damaged from impact increasing the difficulty of replacement. The Vice uses a combination of M4 bolts that come in from the underside of the platform and the above mentioned grub screws. You can get rid of the grub screws and still have plenty of traction for touring and road riding. The M4 bolts allow a better platform for replacement or tinkering with different lengths etc. The stock M4 bolts are custom ground into pins, replacements are available, but an average M4 bolt from the store will work fine.
The things that I see as improvements in the Vice over the 001 do come at a price. The Vice is 28-30g heavier per pedal and the price is $5 more. For the truly weight conscious there are Ti replacement spindles that will shave 35g per pedal. Fine tuning the pins could sheave even more. While both pedals are well overbuilt for street riding and touring, the added value of the Vice makes it the standout in my mind.
Bottom Line....I have been loving my pair of vices, plan on riding the heck out of them for a long time and will be adding the Vice pedals to the storefront this afternoon.
Ride free in the shoes that you like to walk in, it makes it more fun to ride to the places you are going during the day. The change in riding speed really is insignificant from the majority of us, and did I mention that you are likely to have more FUN?
New Tools Shedding Grams April 19 2013, 0 Comments
It has been a busy run here, and this week had some more incoming tools I want to test out.
The easy one is the new silicone folding coffee cone. I have been looking for something a bit more portable that does not weigh a ton, and can squeeze into my cook kit. we will see how it goes.
The other tool is a bit more interesting. The Fix it Sticks are an interesting twist that I hope to have replace my long carried Alien tool.
They ran a successful Kick starter campaign to get these things out into the world. They have even more tool options, but I stuck with the basic 4/5/6 since that is what I needed. Hopes are high for these. The tool bits are press fit with an epoxy as backup. the body of the tool is aluminum and lighter than you night expect. For the range of torques needed on the bike they should be more than robust enough, time will tell. They take up about as much room as a set of tire levers and pack up neatly and rattle free in a upcycled tube
Thinking about how light they felt, and how heavy my decades old Alien tool felt I decided to pull out the scale (a task reserved only for shipping around here most of the time)
Comparing the pile of tools to the alien it looks like I will shave about 38 grams. While that is just a little bit, there were a ton of redundancies between the Alien and the rest of the tools in that pile I often carried any way. Whey these neat little sticks will really do is convince me to jettison the 305g multi tool and eventually the backup allen keys, shaving almost 3/4 of a pound in the long run.
While that may sound like no big deal in a world of weight be damned bike touring, it means that I can effectively add my camp stove and cooking kit to the bar bag at all times with no weight penalty. That is the point of counting the grams! it is possible to carry the things you want and need without massive panniers and or a super stout bike. With careful selection of your gear you can quite possibly have you comforts and not need a sherpa (or a car) to haul it around. I am not cutting the handles off of my tooth brush, yet, but I am starting to think more about the stuff I haul, and what it weighs.
Enter the Rambler, light weight touring, and some fun.
