Long time, no post
Back to it. I've gone so far off track on my goal of daily posting I may as well forget it. The purpose was to keep me motivated to commute by bike through the winter. I haven't missed a day and the weather;s been ridiculously easy to deal with. I guess we've got some single digit days coming in the next week. I'm sure I've become a bit of a cold baby since then.
I've been thinking my winter Trek has treated me so well that it deserves a name. I'm thinking of calling it the Vanilla Pig. Vanilla because of the color and pig because of it's substantial weight. I'm not sure if it's the bike or all the crap I've hung on it. Those accesories do add up. I've neglected the Pig pretty badly this winter. The chain will definitely be trash by Spring. Perhaps a little lubrication is in order. Perhaps a mid-season tune up and once over.
I've put some time and money into the Surly Cross Check. So far I'm going the single speed route. I'm still too much of a wuss to go fixed gear on this bike. The option's always there so we'll see. I'm not sue I can explain why I'd want a singlespeed bike in the first place. The simplicity appeals to me and I don't do a lot of shifting so I figure why not. I don't have to be the fastest. I've managed to build it up on the cheap. Plenty of perfectly good used parts out there. The express Bike Shop in St. Paul treats me well. Their stock of used parts is amazing for such a small shop.
We've been busy at our house. I finally broke down and hired a carpenter to come and finish my many half complete projects. I'm left with a crap load of painting to do but it's nice to see some progress. My wife is a saint for putting up with the mess for so long. It looks like the project has expanded into kitchen cabinets so we have a way to go. We may evn end up with a house that looks like it's occupied by adults.
I've slipped some in the past month or so and started to spend entirely too much time at work. Got it under control this week and feeling much better. I need to keep in mind that if I died tomorrow my workmates probably wouldn't remember my name a year from now. It's fine to make a living but keep it in perspective.
Anyway, what's this blog about anyway. Oh yeah, my midlife crisis obsession with biking. Don't worry, I'll get back to it.
I've been thinking my winter Trek has treated me so well that it deserves a name. I'm thinking of calling it the Vanilla Pig. Vanilla because of the color and pig because of it's substantial weight. I'm not sure if it's the bike or all the crap I've hung on it. Those accesories do add up. I've neglected the Pig pretty badly this winter. The chain will definitely be trash by Spring. Perhaps a little lubrication is in order. Perhaps a mid-season tune up and once over.
I've put some time and money into the Surly Cross Check. So far I'm going the single speed route. I'm still too much of a wuss to go fixed gear on this bike. The option's always there so we'll see. I'm not sue I can explain why I'd want a singlespeed bike in the first place. The simplicity appeals to me and I don't do a lot of shifting so I figure why not. I don't have to be the fastest. I've managed to build it up on the cheap. Plenty of perfectly good used parts out there. The express Bike Shop in St. Paul treats me well. Their stock of used parts is amazing for such a small shop.
We've been busy at our house. I finally broke down and hired a carpenter to come and finish my many half complete projects. I'm left with a crap load of painting to do but it's nice to see some progress. My wife is a saint for putting up with the mess for so long. It looks like the project has expanded into kitchen cabinets so we have a way to go. We may evn end up with a house that looks like it's occupied by adults.
I've slipped some in the past month or so and started to spend entirely too much time at work. Got it under control this week and feeling much better. I need to keep in mind that if I died tomorrow my workmates probably wouldn't remember my name a year from now. It's fine to make a living but keep it in perspective.
Anyway, what's this blog about anyway. Oh yeah, my midlife crisis obsession with biking. Don't worry, I'll get back to it.
posted by Jim at Friday, February 03, 2006
3 Comments:
Obsessed by biking? That's no crisis!
Jim, Glad to see a new post. And I'm happy that you are still riding. I started a similar blog to yours back in December. I discovered yours soon after I started mine. I have a new Cross-Check and talk about it on my blog. Check it out at www.mnbicyclecommuter.blogspot.com/.
Don't be worried about going fixed. I didn't fall in love with fixed riding instantly like a lot of people seem to do but after a couple weeks I was sold - it really is great. I got a fixed-free, flip-flop hub with my bike last summer and never even tried the freewheel side. A couple weeks ago on a whim I tried to spin the freewheel and it was almost completely frozen. So, if you're looking for less that can go wrong, you might consider that aspect.
As for winter maintenance, I oil the chain once or twice a week and thoroughly clean it every two or three weeks with Simple Green and a toothbrush. The BB and rear hub get rebuilt a couple times over the season; I do the front hub in the spring.
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