"You've got something stuck in your spokes"

Yesterday, I picked up Fizz.

Twas a glorious day. I rode her back to base and began the enjoyable task of strapping and bolting accessories and gadgets to her.
I'm getting used to drop bars and the not-yet-tailored-to-me geometry. I hope to iron that out with a fitting with Adam next week.

The next day I went for a ride to see the new racks the Pirates have installed at PNC Park. I was stopped by a man who tried tell me that I had something stuck in my spokes. I explained it was intentional as well as explain what Yehuda Moon was. He introduced himself as an avid cyclist who hasn't been riding much recently due to a car-on-bike incident that left him with lingering concussion issues. He fawned over the bike (I mean, squatting next to it and giving a good look-over and everything) and we talked bike for a good 10 minutes while I tweeted my thanks to the Pirates for the new racks.

I also made sure to get some good shots of her leaning on stuff with a nice scenic background.

Friday evening brought me to the monthly Flock ride. I was reluctant to ride in a group being still wobbly on the new bike. I stopped at Thick to see if they could insert some spacers in my stem to raise it to a more comfortable level as a stop-gap measure before my fitting. Yes, at 30 minutes before closing time on a Friday, they gleefully accommodated me. My hands (which were in a fair amount of pain) felt a bit better, but Adam didn't like the angle of my saddle and adjusted it. I suspected I wouldn't make it a mile or so before my bits and pieces got angry. I was right. I stopped in Panther Hollow (new bike lanes!) to re-adjust it.

Sue was there and she snapped this shot:

The ride ended short for some reason. Odd. So, Marko and Yale and I tried to escort Sue back to her car, but we got separated in the Dead End that Saint Mary's cemetery is. My hands are killing me but I wasn't sorry to have gone, I did fine in a group even though I felt not entirely comfortable with the steering and braking.

Getting used to 26" tires and my brakes being in a different place: it'll take some time.

Opening Day makes for new, old routines

Monday was Opening Day.
Baseball... one of my other passions.

The view from our seats

Opening Day is a Holiday in the US, and in colder climes it represents the return of Spring and the end of Winter. Thankfully we were blessed with a Home Opener. Sometimes the Home Opener is plagued by bad weather, but this year we were doubly blessed with a sun-drenched day. I got a burn on one side of my face and one ear.

I like to ride my bike to the Park, it's only 3 miles round trip, but being forced to walk those 3 miles that might cripple me for days vs an easy ride on the bike.
Walking 3 miles vs those same 3 miles on a bike are vastly different things. One will kill me, the other is a breeze.
Least year, I was using a different bike with no pannier.
Now, I have decisions to make: do I leave the pannier and basket on the bike? They'll be stolen or damaged if I leave them, or someone will make off with anything I leave in the pannier. Decision made: leave them off.

So, I have to strip the bike down whenever I go to a game. This will be a routine I don't like. Should I convert the pannier to a waterproof camera bag? Maybe I should get a new camera bag that fits on the bike? Maybe a backpack?   Arrrgh! Decisions!

I was perfectly happy with my basket/pannier/bag setup and now I need new routine(s) and setups for Game Days and non-Game Days... one for dry days and one for rainy days.


This will take planning and at least one new bag. I'll probably have all the kinks worked out by mid-September.

Antici..... pation!

There's so much anticipation in my life right now. I can hardly contain myself.
I'm still waiting for the Strip trail to open; the Ballpark is such a flurry of activity, I couldn't even roll through to see how the yard looked on Friday. I've been checking on the grass almost daily this week. It's been covered with tarp every time I've checked. I want so badly to see the colors on Opening Day: neon green of the field, the bright white of new baseball uniforms, the red white and blue of the bunting and the sea of black and gold baseball fans. I yearn for those crisp, bright colors after such a harsh, cold, grey winter.

My home away from home. Soon. Soon, I'll be inside.

Friday was a fantastic weather day. Everywhere I looked on my morning ride, there was a bike commuter. I was stopped at a light when another cyclist rolled up next to me. He greeted me enthusiastically and spoke of how wonderful the weather was. We smiled as we agreed that it was Spring that was upon us... finally ...and it was good. This interaction was special and unique to those on two wheels. You just don't get that sort of thing in a car. The complete stranger in the car next to you isn't going to roll down his window at 8AM and celebrate the arrival of Spring with you.