Porteurs and other bike obsessions.

The Bully Porteur

In February of 2009, we went to the North American Handmade Bicycle Show. With all the 2 wheeled eye-candy there, I was more than overwhelmed and came home with only a wool cap and a bunch of swag.

A few weeks later, I got a call from my erstwhile ride companion and mechanical guru, Christi, at Acme Bicycle Company. "Come see this."

She had put together a steel track frame. I said that I would like something that would t

Yaktrax Rule!

We had an icestorm last night, yesterday. Since I can, I took off work today and will work Saturday instead. I had almost forgotten about the Yaktrax I purchased nearly 2 years ago. With the delusions of reference that we all often seem to have, we haven't much of a snow or ice since then and I hadn't even taken them out of the box.

Of course, despite the icestorm, the dogs still wanted to walk this morning. Laurie had taken the 2 pair of Yaktrax out yesterday and I put on my boots and took the Yaktrax outside and easily put them on my shoes, probably could have done it with gloves on. Not a hint of slipping on the ice covered stairs, driveway or sidewalk. If only, I could have them on my bike.

On Job Hunting and Job Having

So... in January, I changed jobs leaving my position at Whole Foods Market. I simply had run out of things that I wanted to do there.

I always have wanted to work with computers or at least since the internet came into my life. In 2000, I pursued Java training with PVI, which closed its doors as I was nearing completion of my training and certification. I spent a few months trying to find a job and learning to write code again, ending up temping at an insurance company processing health insurance claims. I worked there until their claims backlog was caught up and then went to work at Sprint, also as a contractor.

I had a position lined up in the IT Department at Sprint, due to start one Monday in August. The Federal court had another idea, summoning me for jury duty that same day. I waited until the next week, to my chagrin, not getting picked for jury duty or the IT position at Sprint. I ended up working, as a contractor through the temp service, for the Fleet Administration department.

It happened that around the block from the Sprint office where I worked, Whole Foods Market, was opening their first store in the metro area. I applied and was hired as a cashier, part-time. I would leave Sprint a few months later to work at Whole Foods Market. I went full-time on the Seafood Team.

Years went by and I was elected the Team Member Awareness Group representative, applied for In Store Systems Coordinator a number of times, became a part-time shift leader, tried my hand at Produce specialist (buyer) and finally landed my dream position there as Store Systems Coordinator, where I stayed for about 5 years.

The company grew, merged with its principal competitor, acquiring a store about a mile from my house. I went to work there as Shift Leader/Marketing Coordinator/Back-up Systems Coordinator. I was in my own neighborhood, seeing my neighbors at work, in a human scaled store, supported by a the resources of a giant corporation.

Then the FTC stepped in, fighting the merger. WFM was forced to put a number of stores on the market, including my store. It was sold to the scion of a well-to-do architect, who didn't operate the store for an entire year. I returned to the suburban store in a deep funk, resenting many of the over-privileged customers who I served. I tried different positions, working as backup specialist in the Prepared Foods team and getting thrown under the bus by a team leader who resigned not long after that. I went to the Customer Service and was driven out by a sociopathic team leader.

Banh Mi, My Way.

So, I've been out for dinner a few times lately and had a vegan/vegetarian Banh Mi and thought "NAGAM" (Not as good as mine.) I make no claims to being anything but a decent home cook. I doubt that I could earn a living as a line cook at a decent restaurant, though, given enough reps, anything is possible.

But I do make a tasty Banh Mi at home and I thought I'd show my method. Here is the start, Central Soyfoods' Hickory Smoked Tofu, Portabello Mushrooms, Daikon Radish, Carrots and  Baguette from Farm to Market Bread. 

Mince a  good sized clove of garlic or a few small ones and  put into a shallow bowl or baking pan. Get a piece of lemongrass and beat it with the dull side of a cleaver or chef's knife. I once told a team member to use the back of a knife and found him holding the knife by the blade. Anyway, put the beaten lemongrass into the pan/bowl. Peel a knob of ginger and grate about the thickness of 3 nickels into the baking dish.

Slice the tofu as thin as you can, between a quarter and a half inch. Put the slices in the baking dish and sprinkle with tamari sauce. Stem and clean the mushrooms and sprinkle them with tamari too. You don't have to drown them. They'll manage to absorb the sauce and garlic and ginger and flavors. Grate a little extra ginger over the top of everything. Let it set at room temperature for the length of an album, go do something else for a while. If you want to let them go all day, put the dish in the refrigerator, covered, unless you want everything to smell like a

Chinese restaurant for a long time.

You should make the slaw or pickle at this time. I like the daikon and carrots grated on the large grater, not the one you used for the ginger. Add something green and cabbage-y, like cabbage or collards or kale. We had homegrown bok choy, so that went into mine. Chop it into small julienne strips, like you would for slaw. I also had some kohlrabi, so I grated that into the pickle. Sprinkle some plain rice vinegar or lime juice onto the mixed vegetables and let it chill for 

awhile. 

Split your baguette and spread on the top slice a mixture of Veganaise and Sriracha or hot sauce of your choice. Spread some Earth Balance on the bottom. Besides being tasty, they keep the bread from getting too soggy.

Grill the tofu and mushrooms over a hot grill until the mushrooms go soft. Slice them into thin slices as soon as you can handle them.

Put a layer of tofu and a layer of cooked mushrooms on the baguette. Top that with as much of the pickle as you like. A few sprigs of cilantro are nice, but not required, as are a few slices of jalapeno.

As you may observe, I couldn't wait to dig in before I took a picture. Enjoy.

My life without drinking lasted for 2 months, until I felt like I actually wanted a beer, rather than "this is the time I would usually have a beer, so I'll have one".  Fine distinction but one with which I am comfortable. I'm making some changes to my life gradually, shifting out of my comfort zone to make my self more comfortable.

Farewell

So a couple of weeks ago, I gave up drinking. I don't know if its going to be for the rest of my life or a little while but I had gotten to the point where it just didn't appeal to me anymore. I was drinking some when we were in Estes Park, some good, very good beers, and it almost felt like a chore. I'm not sure what precipitated this feeling. I know it has been coming for awhile.

Part of it is my dietary switch to the Engine 2 diet awhile back that has helped me lose weight and makes me a lot more sensitive to the second and third beer I was drinking. Without all the carbs and grease in my system, the sauce just hit me a lot harder, leaving me feeling lousy and I don't want to do lousy anymore. I want to soar. I want to run and bike and ski and be at my best. So  like Dean Wormer said, "Fat, Drunk and Stupid is no way to go through life, son."

I talked to a co-worker who quit drinking and he is half my age. I didn't talk to him in depth about it. (Not that I'm capable of in-depth conversation about anything, with anybody, without squirming.) I did ask him if he attends AA meetings, though and he said, (I may misquote) "My problems are my own, I don't need to share them with anyone." Pretty much my sentiments, too. I've had more than 30 years of drinking and I may be done, now. I've really honestly never felt like it was doing me any good, though. 

Sometimes, it's brought me out of my shell. My shell is thick. On the other hand, things that I've done under the influence, have made me feel ashamed. There was a time I was driving the wrong side of the highway and the only thing that saved me from being banned from driving was the then lax enforcement and a murder not too far from there at Kansas University Medical Center. Countless stupid drunken escapades and scrapes mark my life. I don't want to be that guy anymore.

So, I'm taking it one day at a time, like the cliche' goes but I think those days are behind me. The mystery that concerns me is what's ahead.

Late to the party, I purchased an iPod last month. After much consideration, I determined that the Classic 160gb best met my needs. As much as I'd like the internet connectivity of the Touch, I need the capacity of the Classic because our long term goal is to decumulate, to coin a word, so much of our stuff that takes up space. The beauty of it is that I can upload CDs seemingly at random and the iTunes interface will organize it for me.

Getting close to another year's end.

Lord, is it cold! It always comes as a rude shock when winter starts to come around here. I've ridden to work twice in the last week but come into the store with my hands barely functioning. Laurie has taken a knife to a couple apple juice bottles to make fairings. She's also modified a worn pair of wool socks to make hand covers. I'll get the Bully Porteur going again and be on the road.

My new position at Whole Foods entails being there in the morning, often at 6AM which means getting my ass on the road before 5AM. I'm going to try to make that work because I actually do enjoy riding that early and very much enjoy the ride home at 2 PM.

I made it.

Finally, in the big time.

I have been a fan of Patagonia for a long time. I like their environmental stance and general integrity. I love their catalogs but all the good publicity and green work is pointless unless the merchandise is good. I purchased some Capilene shirts back in 1987 that I can still wear regularly and a fleece hat that remains in constant use about the same time. Patagonia gear is expensive but easily a good value in the cost per wearing and per use equation.

About 5 years ago, my in-laws gave me a Critical Mass bag for a Christmas gift. I used it daily on my commute, on trips. It held at least 2 grocery bags full of stuff, beer, books, dog food,  what have you. I liked it because it rested on my backside for bike rides, not on my shoulders or my back.

Tossing it in my car one day, I neglected to buckle the buckles on the thing. (Yet another reason to avoid driving.) The plastic buckles were slightly cracked but still worked. When they finally gave out, I contacted Patagonia via chat about getting replacement buckles. They offered to ship them to me but when I considered trying to restitch the straps and so forth, I decided to mail the bag back and have their repair department handle it. I emptied my bag and put my daily needs into my Lowe Alpine daypack, which I love for hiking but was too small for riding and uncomfortable when biking.

I printed and completed the repair form and packed it up at the UPS store.3 weeks later, I got a call from Patagonia that they had received my bag with only the UPS label on the package, no instructions, no idea what to with it. I called them and explained that I sent it in to have the buckles replaced.

A few days later, it occurred to me that, if they didn't have the form, they didn't have my payment method. So I made another call to them.

They told me that the record showed they were sending a new bag out Monday at no cost to me. It wasn't my old bag or a new old stock version of my bag, but a brand-new updated bag. My old bag had a small pocket in the back so that objects inserted in there would sit at my back. It didn't have pen slots so that pens floated around the bag. There was no place for my phone. It had a built-in laptop pouch.

The new bag has a phone pouch attached to the shoulder strap. It has slots for 3 pens. The small zipped pocket is in the front of the bag. The new bag has a detachable, padded laptop pouch.
Despite constant improvements in bags, I was committed, in my mind, to using the old bag until it wore out. I'm thrilled, though, to have a newer, nicer bag and where I'm making a choice, I'll buy Patagonia.

Of Dog Food, Human Food and such

We had a moment of truth, an opportunity, last winter. Our longtime dog, Chester, who we've had since he was six weeks old and who has never lived anywhere but our block, had trouble walking one icy morning. It looked like a harbinger of a long decline. We took him to the vet to see if he'd had a stroke or something. Looming was a conversation that neither of us wanted to have, the one where we have to decide to spend a lot of money or to have him put down.

It turned out that he was fine, just old. A friend told Laurie that her dog had gone through the same thing and found help through Dr. Linda Faris. She is a veteranarian, and an accupuncturist.

 Her other recommendation was to start feeding him Urban Wolf, which we bought at Brookside Barkery. In my years at Whole Foods, we had sold the ground chicken necks and backs to customers for years but I had been skeptical of them. There was something of the Flat Earther about the raw diet. I gave it a try or rather had my dogs try it.

It was an instant success with them. As I prepared the first batch, they watched with great interest. Both Chester and our other dog, Mocha got a great deal more efficient in eating. Chester began waking us up, hungry at 6:30 every morning rather than laying about in his bed until 8:30. Their meal time took about 45 seconds max after eating. Also reduced was their weight. Chester went from 77 pounds to 61 pounds. Mocha went from 80 pounds to 62.

The villain, in this piece, was corn. Anyone who has read Michael Pollan's recent food writing will be familiar with the nefarious grain, grass, whatever. The fine documentary, King Corn, puts the origin of this back to Earl Butz. Corn is so heavily subsidized that we have to put it in everything. We feed it to cows. We brew it up to run our cars. We put it in dog food. The last use was killing our dogs. They were fattened up by it, just as cattle are but not getting the nutrients they needed so they were hungry all the time and overeating, just as we have been.

About this same time, I heard about The China Study by Dr. Colin Campbell, or it became part of our curriculum at Whole Foods. The nascent Healthy Eating Initiative was coming together, so, being the company man that I am, I read it and Laurie read it. It's a profoundly life-changing book. Following that I've read Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman and the Engine 2 Diet by Rip Esselstyn.

Being a Foodie, it's hard to accept that "Everything You Know Is Wrong". Olive oil is as much empty calories as white sugar and white flour. It's going another step further than we had been. We've had some intense discussions at the store among the team members and it's just begun.

Nevertheless, I am enjoying the changes in my life. I turned 50 this past year and I want to be as strong or stronger than I've ever been. I've failed to be as disciplined in my eating as I've forced my dogs to be but I've reconsidered my  relationship to food and I'm going to get back to the body I once had when I was running 50 miles a week.

Pump it Up

For years, it seems, I have fought with our bicycle pump. It's a decent pump, a Joe Blow Pro from Topeak. The top part of cylinder where the piston pulls up against is plastic and keeps popping off. It didn't screw on to the cylinder but was attached with a couple plastic tabs and the top of the cylinder was two parted that continually had to be snapped together. I am getting to a state in life where I don't want to make do with things that don't work on a regular basis.

When we rode the BikeMO last fall, I had an opportunity to use a Lezyne pump. It felt solid, well made.Velo-Orange sells them, which I find a reassuring recommendation. So, using a birthday gift, I bit the bullet and bought the Lezyne. I haven't been disappointed. The only thing it's lacking is a dual head. That is, you have to open up the pump head and switch around the mechanism to use the pump on a Schrader valve, a small amount of bother.

I still have the problematic Topeak pump for those bikes of mine that use Schrader.

Where we stand at the end of the Oughts

Or rather, where I stand. I went in to get my blood pressure checked this morning for my application to an immersion program for the Health Eating Initiative.110/54. My blood was drawn for my cholesterol, which was at 163 when I had it checked in May. According to the information I've read, 150 or below is best to avoid cardiac events. In the past, I've had it as low as 112. Anyway, I've read The China Study , Eat to Live and The Engine 2 Diet and we're on board.

So, I'd like to be one of the 300 team members selected. I'd like to be the ambassador for that lifestyle change. I'm not certain about giving up the occasional hamburger (once a month) but maybe I'll more often exchange the weekly fries for a green salad.

I also want to learn to sew with a sewing machine so that I can make some bike bags.

I need a goal for 2010. With no stated goal, I can't accomplish things. So, I'm aiming for 1000 running miles.
2000 cycling miles.

That's it.

Getting close to another year's end.

This is the deal, right now, my deal, at least.

Unfortunately, the Stella met an untimely demise a couple years ago, just after I'd gotten it right. I hit a parking lot wheel stop one night riding home in the dark and bent the frame. She awaits some sort of art project.


I replaced her with a curbside find, a Peugeot UO8

From My Pictures

My Picturesthat someone abandoned on 41st Street. Just the frame was there, along with a Raleigh and a Gitane and a Schwinn Mountain Bike. Anyway, I built up the Peugeot with the parts from the Stella and continued on fixedly.

In February, Laurie and I visited Indianapolis for NAHBS, guaranteed to incite gear lust in any red-blooded bicycler. The only catch is that there is so much great stuff, I could hardly fixate on any one bike. A 20 inch wheeled cargo bike from Hunter Cycles came close but I lacked $1500 to buy it so I bought a wool cycling cap from them.

A few weeks later, my friends at Acme Bicycle Company called me in and told me that it was time I rode an Acme. They had a handmade track frame in my size. I told Christi that I wanted to be able to use a rack like one of those from CETMA. We talked for awhile and I thought about it.

2 weeks later, Christi called me in to see something. There was a built-up track bike with a custom front rack. She had me ride it around the block. I took it up the alley to 17th Street and came downhill on Locust before I realized it had no brakes. No problem.

The plan was the have it painted whatever color the painter was using that day. Fortunately, it was bronze, about the color of a beer bottle. It took awhile for it to get done but it is definitely my bike now. I could not be happier.

Same story, different location

Here

Sad Day

I heard about it awhile back and it's like someone cut the heart out of our bicycle community. We're tough, we're resilient and we'll keep growing. Sometimes a business is like a play. You have a good run and then it's time to do something else. Sarah and Christi at Acme Bicycle has made a great difference in my life, connecting me to a new community, guiding me through the baby steps of fixed gear, teaching me to fix my bike, giving me a place to drink beer, and most importantly building the perfect bike for me.

When I should be thinking about something else.

I have to think if it's worthwhile to bail out GM.

On one hand:

All the jobs, GM, the steel companies, the tires, the freight people, the sales people, the service departments and those that depend on them for their living.

On the other hand;

We don't want their cars anymore. We're never going back to the days of buying a new car every year and might be better off if half the cars in the country were raptured or something.

They seem to think a bailout would just maintain the status quo. Not for R&D for better, more fuel-efficient, cars but for more of the same cars that we don't want anyway.

Couldn't we just pay them, like farmers, not to make anything?

Tag

If you could have any one — and only one — bike in the world, what would it be?
Probably my Panasonic Touring Deluxe, I can't imagine a better bike.

Do you already have that coveted dream bike? If so, is it everything you hoped it would be? If not, are you working toward getting it? If you’re not working toward getting it, why not?
I suppose if I went to Christi and Sarah at Acme with my bikes and tried to figure out what would make me like it better. Maybe disc brakes or a Rohloff hub, or the SA Three Speed Fixed Hub.I can't imagine.

What kind of sick person would force another person to ride one and only one bike ride to to do for the rest of her / his life?
Probably someone who holds the purse strings. I can imagine worse fates.

Do you ride both road and mountain bikes? If both, which do you prefer and why? If only one or the other, why are you so narrowminded?
Yes,
Have you ever ridden a recumbent? If so, why? If not, describe the circumstances under which you would ride a recumbent.
I've ridden someone else's, around the block. They just seem inelegant to me and hard to see in traffic.

Have you ever raced a triathlon? If so, have you also ever tried strangling yourself with dental floss?
I tried a couple times and I freaked in the swim. Training for a Triathlon is too much like a job.

Suppose you were forced to either give up ice cream or bicycles for the rest of your life. Which would you give up, and why? Ice Cream.
Could I still have Gelato?

If you had to choose one — and only one — bike route to do every day for the rest of your life, what would it be, and why?
I can't even ride the same route to work 2 days in a row. Forget that idea.

You’re riding your bike in the wilderness (if you’re a roadie, you’re on a road, but otherwise the surroundings are quite wilderness-like) and you see a bear. The bear sees you. What do you do?
Ride faster than the people with me.


Now, tag three biking bloggers. List them below.
Ok, I tag anyone reading this who has not updated their blog in more than two weeks. Everyone else, ignore this.

So Long Captain Bike

It was a beautiful afternoon to ride home and I had time to think about Sheldon Brown. What a wondrous time we live in now! I feel the loss of a cycling friend with whom I never got to ride, or to drink a beer or even talk face to face. Yet due to the internet, I was able to be friends with Sheldon Brown, through his postings on the BOB list, on the Bicycle Restoration List, on the KOG list and more that escape me right now.

If you ever had a bicycle question on the internet, you had to have encountered Sheldon and you couldn't help digging deeper and getting distracted from what you had come to look up. If you ever posed a bicycle question on a list or newsgroup, you stood a pretty good chance of getting an answer from Sheldon, directly and a reference to his page. His few podcasts about English 3-Speeds and recumbent bicycles were informed without a hint of condescension.

Left hand drive? Done it.

Build a tandem from two old bikes. Sheldon had done it.

He made it clear, for me, at least, that bicycles existed to be ridden not hung on a wall. His 1918 Mead Ranger was all the evidence anybody needed.

And to ride a fixed-gear, one couldn't build one up without consulting Sheldon once or twice.

He was opinionated, informed and I would have loved to have met him and drank a beer or two with him. He was also generous with his time, energy and knowledge, answering most of the 500-1000 emails he received daily. I recall he responded one time to a question about buying bikes at the Salvation with a diatribe about "monotheism" and had to be restrained by the moderator. His home page included these 2 lists, along with every book, movie and television show he watched or read.

Some Things I Believe In

* Democracy
* Duty
* Equality
* Exogamy
* Family
* Freedom
* Justice
* Kindness
* Law
* Love
* Loyalty
* Mathematics
* Science
* Space Exploration
* Truth


Some Things I Do Not Believe In

* Angels
* Astrology
* Death Penalty
* Devils
* Elves
* Faeries
* Faith
* Gods
* "Intelligent Design"
* Leprechauns
* Luck
* Magic
* Racial Purity


I often say that I don't, myself, believe in eternal life, physically, at least as religious people describe. I do believe that good people live on in our memories or in the good deeds we repeat after learning from one another. Sheldon will live on, everytime someone needs information about fixed gears or rebuilding a 3 speed hub.

Searching for The Holy Grail

There is always one more part that will make my bike perfect. For the Twenty there are several. Some day, all that might be left from the original bike is the frame and fenders. The most pressing is the fork. The original Raleigh-built fork will not fit a fatter tire that I want to use for winter commuting. Actually, it's a studded tire but the bike will not fit a tire over 20 by 1.75 inches. So, what I need is a BMX fork with a 7.5 inch steerer that also has cantilever bosses.

There is not such a thing out there or at least not easily accessible. I am beginning to search.