Posts tagged ‘Xtracycle’
rainy
It’s been strange weather. Very warm, pretty windy. Fronts coming through. Rain. It’s like the weather can’t commit to becoming winter-like. Sigh.
Days have been filled with errands, commuting, and not much else. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the weather will return to cold and crisp and sunny over the next few days. Also hoping there will be some Thanksgiving break rides with my boys, home for the holidays.
Meanwhile, wishing everyone a peaceful time with friends and family – and a very happy Thanksgiving.
rain puddles & threatening clouds
foggy mornings
a window of "nice"
hat
#CyclingCapTuesday ... before the rains came
things we carry
Xtracycle: carries anything and everything ... and more
I’ve seen several other cyclists post pictures and discuss the stuff they carry by bike – especially among my commuter friends. It’s interesting to see. The stuff of daily work, laptops, cell phones, keys, locks, cycling caps, spare parts, cameras, snacks, books, Moleskines … It’s as varied as the bikes they ride.
And I’ve recently been following a couple of very visually interesting sites: What Do You Carry and Things Organized Neatly. They’ve made me think about the things I carry every day, and the ways I typically carry all of this stuff I cart around – especially when I’m on my bike. I always have some bike “emergency” items (multitool, spare tube, levers, etc.) stashed in a small saddle bag – but for my daily-use stuff of every day life, I typically use a Rickshaw bag, a Chrome messenger bag, an Ortleib Back-Roller pannier … or, of course, any bag/purse/tote on my Xtracycle. They all serve me extremely well, form and function.
my Rickshaw custom poppy bag
my Chrome messenger
the things I carry ... every day
While the contents are not always so neatly organized, I thought I’d lay things out just to see what I carry nearly every day. It was an interesting exercise. Here’s the (rather ridiculous) list of the inventory:
- a snack (today it’s an apple)
- sunglasses (usually on my head)
- camera (varies – but today, my 7D with 24-70mm f2.8L and 50mm f1.8)
- iPad
- “Wreck This Journal” by Keri Smith (an ongoing project … long story)
- wallet
- keys
- stylus
- eyeglass cleaning cloth
- lip balm
- iPhone
- reusable shopping bag
- three Lamy fountain pens (different nibs and ink colors)
- Moleskine journal/sketchbook
- journal pen/brush assortment
- headphones
- Flapper Girl coffee cozie
- watercolor field set
- green tea mints
Sorry, no bacon. Or beer. If you have any interesting photos of the things you carry by bike, I’d love to take a look and share them on my blog. Neatly organized or not. :-)
bicycles and fireworks
Best way ever to celebrate Independence Day … family, friends, and Xtracycles packed for a picnic, concert and fireworks along the river. :D
Happy July fourth!
Coolidge Park & the Walnut Street Pedestrian Bridge, Chattanooga ... at dusk
let the fireworks begin!
critterpalooza
lens cleaner
(You can thank me now – despite the initial scare, this is a 100% goat-less post). 
There has been a lot of rambling around lately … because I am obviously honing my non-productivity skills. And because the weather is beautiful, and I’d rather be out on my bike goofing off, rather than, well … cleaning out the attic or mowing grass.
I’ve been drawn to long rides on the Xtracycle lately. As someone once perfectly described – it’s not the lycra-clad fast and furious stuff (as if I ever do that), but more of a “long, slow boogie”. Typical me. Carry a picnic lunch, stop and talk to cows, linger in the fresh green of spring.
So … a few of the sights of recent days, because there’s not much more to be said.
exploring un-named roads
... and always finding more cows
things that haul...
... and things that haul "better"
the curious ones ...
and the not-so-curious ones
pink-ness
the "end"
in a pickle(!)
who knew pickles could be so emphatic? ... (exclamation mark, really?)
Winding down, the last few days of #330daysofbiking, and I find myself “in a pickle”, so to speak. Nothing to do with my bikes or cycling, but rather my camera. While I am not exactly camera-less, my favorite camera, my best camera, my DSLR … has died.
From the symptoms and error message code, it appears the shutter has reached the end of its expected lifespan. While only the Canon techs can tell me the exact shutter count, I anticipated that I was probably past-due for this to happen. This camera has been a real workhorse, and while very well-loved, it has also survived an incredible amount of abuse. In fact, I debated getting another camera body for the Italy trip at one point, as I really didn’t want to risk technical failure on that trip. Fortunately, I’ve gotten through the past months without any problems … until now.
the very last shot from my beloved 7D
So, I have sent her off to the camera hospital and will hopefully have a diagnosis/prognosis by the end of the week. Sadly, it seems that everyone is temporarily out of stock on the same camera body (by itself), if I come to the point I need to shop for a replacement. And as much as I’m tempted to move up to a full-sensor body, there are too many features on the 7D (mostly fps) that I would have a hard time living without. Forgive my rambling.
I guess I had just looked forward to finishing up #330daysofbiking with some really nice spring shots, with the camera that is so familiar and so comfortable to me that it’s almost like another appendage. Yes, I get carried away with this stuff.
For now, the weather has been rather grey and dismal in recent days – a little bit like my mood. Hopefully the sun will re-appear very soon …. Today was day 327. Three days to go.
grey and dismal ... the day the camera died
Day 325: sticks ... and bike (Lumix)
today's tulips ... Day 327 (iPhone)
the gallon of milk
cartoon world of our local grocery store
Although I am tempted to rant about our local grocery store choices (or more accurately, lack of choices…), and the disappointing assortment of over-processed, over-packaged convenience foods within our horrid chain stores – we have no Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, EarthFare or anything remotely decent within a 25 mile radius – I will spare you my whining. My family is weary enough of my complaints. But I like to cook – and I like to cook real food. Food “from scratch” as we used to say, rather than out of a box or a freezer case.
And today as I was heading to the grocery store on my bike thinking about all of this, wishing I had a decent grocery store/market within riding distance, I was reminded of a wonderful 3-minute video I had seen earlier in the week by the amazing people at Streetfilms: Moving Beyond the Automobile (Vimeo).
Of course it features the incredible cycling infrastructure improvements of the Big Bicycle Cities (NYC, Portland, SF, etc.), but what really struck a chord with me were some of the statistics about the exponential increases in ridership when safe, protected cycling infrastructure is provided to the public. The old, “if you build it, they will come …” idea. Tenfold. One-hundredfold. Exponentially.
As (my hero) Rep. Earl Blumenauer so perfectly states:
“People shouldn’t have to burn a gallon of gas to get a gallon of milk … “
He goes on to talk about the need to give people safe and accessible transportation choices of all types – choices that will reduce the demand for using the automobile, which can ultimately save people time and money, while improving their health and “ultimately enriching their daily experience.” I couldn’t agree more.
So I cycled to my poor-excuse-for-a-grocery-store and got the gallon of milk. And a few other items of “real” food. And I dreamed about how wonderful it would be to have a bike lane, or even a little bit of road shoulder, to easily cycle to some Real Foods store … Maybe someday.
the enriching experience part ... "cartoon" Xtracycle, back home with the milk & groceries
karma Friday
- the hauling
Do you ever have days when a tiny voice inside says something along the lines of … “today is not the day”? The planets are not aligned, there is a feeling of bad karma, an inner hesitation, clouds overhead. And of course I completely ignore that little voice. Serves me right.
Rest assured – nothing truly bad happened. No crash/collision, no flat tire, no mechanical issue. Just a multitude of basic annoyances that began with getting rained on (and having no rain gear, of course), continued with wasting energy (Staples no longer carries the type of photo canvas I went to buy), and included a superabundance of discourteous Friday motorists (the left-hand turn cut-off, the texting-while-driving twenty-something passing too close for comfort, and the barreling log-truck driver apparently late with his delivery to the pulp mill).
There are not many days I am happy to get off of my bike and off of the road, but today was one of them. I should have listened to the little voice.
universe off-kilter ... but home again, safe and sound
the continuing tale …
waking up to snow ... #330daysofbiking Day 287
I figured it was about time for an update on the #330daysofbiking tally. The official numbers as of today: have ridden 287 of the past 317 days.
And I am happy to report that my legs haven’t fallen off. Yet.
While I never really find it a problem to be motivated to keep riding and ticking off the days for this #330daysofbiking business, I will admit that my daily mileage has taken a bit of a nose-dive lately. It’s been more commuting trips and riding close to home over the past week or so, rather than some nice long road rides. I will blame it in part on some crappy weather (cold and rainy), and in part on yarn. Yes, yarn.
I’ve suffered from a recent bout of knititis, and when it’s rainy and grey outside, I find that I’d rather be inside with some alpaca-merino “comfort yarn” and a cup of tea by the fire than outside with frozen fingers and a wet camera on my bike. It’s just how I am.
- a case of knititis
But this is not to say that there hasn’t been some nice riding lately – because we have had a few beautiful days. And when the sun pops out and the skies turn blue, not even a tempting skein of pink yarn can keep me inside.
obviously a no-knitting day
a great, big, bicycle-filled world
Freeloader transplant
evening glamour shot
Thanks to my awesome friend Rick and the great people at Xtracycle, I am now sporting a brand spanking new set of Freeloaders on Tenzing, my Xtracycle. (In Xtracycle-speak for anyone not familiar, the Freeloaders are the rear sling-type “bags” on the rear rack.)
The “transplant” was a breeze, and I am really impressed with the new and improved design features. Topping my list of favorite improvements:
- heavy-duty coated fabric, making the interior pocket quite waterproof
- easy on and off – thanks to clips on the tabs (see below)
- small weep-hole for drainage at the bottom of the sling
- end gussets in the heavy-duty coated fabric, rather than mesh
- sleek profile, uncluttered design
- removing the old, installing the new … and the bare bones
- can really feel a difference in the new coated fabric vs. the old fabric – very substantial and durable
- really, really like the new clip attachment vs. the old sewn down tabs; can now remove the Freeloaders without having to remove the rack rails – very quick swap
- transplant complete!
There are two small features of the old Freeloaders that I will miss. The old version had a small mesh zipper pocket on the face of the inner compartment. I really liked this little pocket for stashing small things I wanted to keep visible, and it was a perfect size for a spare tube. The other change is more cosmetic – rather than the red reflective patches on the back end flaps, the clip tabs have woven reflective stripes … not sure if this will make much difference with visibility/luminosity, but I’d be curious to do a night-time comparison.
the little pocket I will miss (old version)
When all is said and done, the improvements in the new Freeloaders make these another design triumph for Xtracycle, hands down. The fabric and the clip attachment system can’t be beat. Functionally, I expect them to perform even better than the old, especially with the improved water-resistance and interior weephole. And the cleaner, sleeker look/aesthetic is beautiful. Well done, gentlemen!! (And thanks again, Rick!) :)
I’ve spent the past two days “testing” them out – a grocery run, and hauling camera gear out among the Holsteins. Same amazing functionality, beautiful new look … I am a very happy hauler, but I’ll let you be the judge. ;)
yesterday's grocery run
... and on the old bridge today
... and looking for Holsteins (#330daysofbiking Day 274)
detours
sled 
The snow stuck around longer than most people expected, thanks to some nice cold temps. It was some amazingly beautiful riding – cold, sunny, snow on the ground. The kind of weather that stirs my blood. Too often, I find that I want to spend the entire day outside messing around – on my bike, with the camera and a coffee stop or two. And then the responsibilities of real life throw a detour sign in the road, and I find it unavoidable to have to park the bike and get on with it.
contemplating snow tires... ?
The past week was one of those detours – even though I was riding every day, the daily focus was on “the other stuff”. The mundane things like appointments and errands that had been put off a little too long. Projects at home that needed attention, trips that required me to use a car. Sigh.
brightness
I’ve had a few days this week where the riding was barely more than a 15 minute spin up the road, but I’ve come to really appreciate that benefit, that reward, of #330daysofbiking over the months. Taking the time, no matter how brief it may be, to get outside and pedal around away from the other necessary things – a detour in itself – is the great equalizer, the balance to the mundane.
she always makes me smile
slushy
As I write this today, the snow has almost all disappeared. And I miss it. I still have a sizable to-do list of non-cycling things to detour me during the next few weeks, but I’m always glad for the daily reward of #330daysofbiking. The official count as of today: have ridden 270 of the past 299 days, 66 days remain.
creekside
I always keep him waiting ... yes I do
the difference a week can make ... 14 January
... and then today, same road, same bike
