Chain Ring Cowboy

Riding a bicycle for transportation this time of year is about the best thing a person could be doing. The weather is perfect, the fragrances of spring blossoms are everywhere. The sun hasn't reached it's major burning stage yet. The UPS guy delivered my wheels to the bike shop, maybe Eric will get them built pretty soon. Resource fullness isn't always pretty but most always functional. Looks like this guy made use of a burned out BBQ and used the grill as a rack. Bungee cords and used inner tubes will hold it down as well as whatever gets to ride on it. Mark, myself, Bob (pictured with beard) met his nephew, Evan Holtzman , for lunch yesterday. The cause for this gathering is because Evan is getting ready to ride some 4,500 miles from Austin to Anchorage, Alaska for the annual Texas 4000 . Evan will be graduating with his Mechanical Engineering degree in a few days, which helps make this ride as a momentous experience. Check out the link if you get a chance. The route spli...

Today I drove....... BOOOOOO..Mumble and Grumble. When I rode my bike each day to the job I had in the early 1990's I rode because I really like riding a bicycle. When I rode my bike to the job I had in the middle 1990's, I rode because I cared about the planet. Then after a while I saw that it made a difference in my mental well being as well as my health. When I got a new job it took some time for me to begin bike commuting again. When I got the job I have now, it also took a while for me to start riding on a daily basis, and again, mainly because I care for the planet. I was reading books in the early 2000's about the whole energy business and politics and I was really getting angry. Angry at the system and angry at me for blindly playing within the system that I feel is wrong. You would probably yawn and stop reading this if I started ranting about my conspiracy theory of how the working masses are being played with this whole energy thing. That being the leaders of the...

Yesterday was the official Earth Day, maybe today can be another one too. The UT Austin campus had quite a display on the East Mall with tables and such promoting water conservation, energy management and of course a couple of new "Smart Cars". This Honda really look attractive to me, it runs on natural gas. It looks like it would carry 4 people comfortably but not much trunk room. A feature that I really like is that you can fill it up at home with that hand little filler upper sanding by the rear of the car. It taps into your household gas supply line. The demo person told me it held 8.5 gallons. I asked her that since my gas bill speaks in terms of cubic feet of gas how that works on gallons. Her answer was that it they have converted the real cost comparison to gasoline at about $1.25 per gallon. I still don't know what that means and since there were a lot of people there, I moved on to look at other exhibits. But she did tell me that car could commute around town fo...

Ricardo Vega's Store, Revolution Cyclery was the meeting place for the ride in West El Paso this past Sunday. This being my first organized group ride in El Paso, and me being a chronic early person, the parking lot was empty with a good view of the storefront Soon though, riders were showing up, unloading their bikes, pumping tires, putting on shoes, helmets and sunglasses; then off we went. I counted about 25 riders in all, with two recumbent bikes and one tandem bike. At the midway point, the lead riders were at this high point called, I believe, Anthony Gap. The view was spectacular, which made waiting for the rest of the group to arrive enjoyable. Pretty soon though we were off heading back in this out and back route. Going down the mountain was nice but a headwind made keeping a 25mph pace more like work. My computer shows that 30.5mph was my fastest of the day with an average mph of 16.5. All the folks I met were very friendly and welcoming. I look forward to doing this ride...

I had the rare pleasure if being able to leave the apartment later than usual yesterday. I think it was just after 9:00 in the morning when I raised the garage door and mounted the trusty touring/commuter steed. I seem never to diminish in appreciation for this awesome bike. Anyway I head towards work, but have to make a stop first, which is the reason I got to go to work in the first place. The way I go towards the north, the way to downtown Austin, I have to get on an interstate access road. The shoulder could be a little wider, but after doing this particular route for over 3 years now, it is perfectly safe to me. The rush hour traffic seems to be in its peak at 9 in the morning, the interstate was at a crawl and the access crowded with drivers who think they've found a way to bypass the clog, only to learn there is a traffic signal up ahead that has about a 4 light change wait. The first part of my ride out of the property is a short but steep climb which is rewarded with a lon...

*********** I take so many pictures on my daily walks around the UT campus, the vast majority of which are not much to look at, just like this one. I wonder where the sticker came from. If it's about the vegetable beets, then how did it become attached to something other than driving? If it the idea came from a play on words about cycling and the vegetable, then what's the connection. I know this is very trivial and really not worth pondering over the why, who, and what about this sticker on a bicycle, but sometimes I just seem to want to go there. I also like the sticker with a row of bikes. You may not be able to see them good unless you click on the picture to enlarge it. I wasn't really paying attention when I walked by this bike, but as I was passing it, it was almost like a whisper getting my attention. I once owned a Univega just like it. I looked it over really good and decided this could very well have been my old bike from back in the early 90's. It was a used...

I've heard it before and most likely you have too, that life, a project or any endeavor is about the journey and not the destination. The very first time I heard it many years ago I felt the truth of those words. During my lunchtime walk today I went to the post office. I was conversing with the gentleman behind the counter as we did our weigh envelope, put stamp, and collect postage routine. We were remembering how over two years ago I came in to mail some care packages to myself to some general delivery locations across West Texas on my route that I cycled. I enjoyed reminiscing about the preparation for that trip, and the trip itself. I remember that one I got to El Paso, I was in the mood to continue riding. But I couldn't because I had reached my destination, had other commitments and things to do. The likes of which were to attend a 40 year class reunion, meet my great grandson when he was born, and to see Marcy. I met her a month earlier at my uncle's funeral. Not a ...

Sometime early last week I got the common "right hook" at a major intersection on Congress Blvd. The lady who hooked me had her windows down in her hot rod 2000 Mustang, and as she went/hooked around me, and as I was applying the breaks and turning right to avoid her. I told her that she is being very dangerous and that I was going to report her. According to some safety publications staying out a little ways from the curb of the road allows for a better chance the cyclist to get out of the way, rather than getting pinned in and smashed in the middle of the turn. Lucky for me I was in that position. I already know that this is the number one cause of bike/automobile accident when cyclists ride in it, so I willingly shoulder the burden because I know it. It however doesn't sit well with me when it happens to me, but at the same time I am grateful. Grateful that I know this truism, grateful that I was aware enough this time to be paying attention for it's potential, and...

I had the guys at Austin Bikes tune up my handy commuter last week. In less than month I will have had that bike for two years. I don't want to exaggerate (too much), but I've put somewhere around 20,000miles on this awesome machine. machine. When I first got the bike I wanted to maintain an accurate mileage count, but with computer problems I lost track of some miles and gave up on the idea of exactness. But here's another way to look at it. I bought that bike solely for commuting and traveling/touring. But wait let me backtrack. I had a comfort bike before that as my commuter bike. It couldn't hold up to the demands of the road and I knew I was going to travel across the state one day and I know that I want to travel more in the future. So to get back on track, I live 10.1 miles from where I work, therefore I ride 20 miles a day in commuting and I won't count the other rides like to the store and an occasional recreation ride. If I were to ride 20 miles a day 4 d...

April is here. I wonder if there will be any unique or creative jokes played on me or anyone else close to me today? The riding weather in Austin is very humid this time of year, good sweat on the t-shirt. This past weekend we went to Ruidos New Mexico to hang out in the forest. We had a great time and the weather was good. Climb a mountain, climb a cabin roof. All the same kind of exploring Might as well climb a tree too