Downtube Folder Upgrade - DEPLOY!

OK, so a set of road bars hanging around beckon... a set of brifters and the SRAM X9 rear DR go up for sale fetching a decent amount to get new levers, etc... a rummage through the parts bin nets some tape and a stem... BOOOOM!

Upgradeitis - a bad disease to be sure for cyclists. This latest bout of upgrade fever netted a conversion to road bars for the Downtube 9FS, and it's pure awesome. With a single bar end for the rear shifting, indexes are crisp and silent friction mode is pure bliss. Multiple grip points are great over the flat bar that came off the bike.

To match with the bar ends a Shimano rear DR was in order, so on went an Alivo M430. Not a very pricey unit, but it does the job exactly as it is supposed to and is a nice build. Not sure there is a reason to go fancier in this department.

For stopping power and hoods for the 'ol hands a set of Tektro RL520's went on the front. These match up great with the Avid disc brakes and have awesome feel. For added stopping in the urban traffic a set of Tektro RL720 cross levers complete the package.

Pop in a Sprintech drop bar mirror - which is "OK" in my opinion but gets the job done relatively well, and the hands are very happy.

Bike To School? SUSPENDED!

Simply unbelievable. Seems that once again, just as you thought it was safe to ride a bike to school, stupid raises its ugly head again.

Students suspended for biking to school

In this day and age of childhood obesity - are places like this going to continue to be idiotic hypocrites?

Absolutely stunning to me.

Buttery Smooth

Last month I posted about drinking your hot AM coffee after you infuse it with unsalted grass fed butter. Well coming up on a month of doing this I am SOLD on this as a great means to fuel up in the AM and feel great all morning. I thought I would update with a new post just to emphasize how great I think this is.

First steps first - find yourself a local store that sells grass fed unsalted butter. New Seasons is one. If you cannot find grass fed butter at a decent store near you, then its time to relocate.

Once you have butter in hand (I suggest buying several packages as you will find yourself going through a lot of it) then dish up several healthy pats straight into your mug.

Play with the amount. I typically do 4-5 pats for a 10 ounce cup. Perfect. I can already hear some of you - "Ugh" - don't knock it till you try it!

Now, pour your good strong brew over the top and give it a minute to melt. Now it looks a bit odd here, so the next step is critical. If you do not have one of those small handheld latte/milk frothing tools make sure you pick one up in advance. It will be seeing a lot of use I suspect so get a good one.

Give the butter a hit with the frothing tool. Let it spin close to the top as well - to get a nice buttery smooth head going on. By about now the rich smell of this is going to hit you and you are close to what I have deemed coffee nirvana.

Drink up and prepare to feel full, fired up, and GREAT all morning!

As a cyclist and Cross Fitter, I have found this combination to be excellent for long before rides and workouts. The fat is a great burning fuel and once its gone, my body seeks to continue the fat burn, rather than hitting me with the "Hey, insert more carbs in mouth!" signal.

Give it a try!!

Protect Your What What!

The good folks at Cruzbike have put together a great advertisement, not just for their own bikes, but for recumbents in general. Hits one of the "why do you ride that thing?" questions squarely on the head - comfort of the 'taint and not to mention - protection for your erection! (ha ha)

Having recently started riding the Downtube 9FS, for short distances, I can say that yes - the upright bike position is just simply NOT comfortable over the long haul. If it were, huge diaper-shorts would not be needed to go long miles.



Get a recumbent and protect your WHAT WHAT!

Dreams Of Last September

The last few days it has finally really hit me - no Cycle Oregon this year for me. Sigh...

Sitting here thinking about this sad fact - I decided to relive a few of the old times - knowing that yes I will make it again in the future.

Again the Big Apples Win

Nothing like a nice HOT (70's) day in Portland to wheel out the cycle for several loop rides. Decided to take the Downtube out and give it a spin on identical loops containing sections of flats and some nice rolling hills, with a few steep grades but nothing really that requires me to git the largest or smallest cog. The first loop was performed with the Duranos and then again with the Big Apples.

Of course, first things first - my conclusion is that the bike just looks better with the Big Apples:

Ready to ROLL!

The results are pretty clear here. Loop number one returned an average speed of 15.4 MPH. After a swap to the Big Apples, the same routs returned an average speed of 15.7 MPH. Hmmm. And before you think about it - each time I set the computer after a careful roll out of the tires to account for the different widths.

Just like on my recumbents, it appears that hard and skinny tires are not necessarily faster than their wider counterparts. Not only that, but the comfort level on loop number 2 was improved significantly over the Duranos. In addition, cornering was smoother and the overall ride was just better. The Big Apples are just so buttery smooth the bike just seems to roll forever with less effort.

A final observation that follows from my recumbent experience with these wider tires relates to safety. Inevitably there is that one pothole you are going to hit. Most of us after all ride 99% of the time on the streets and not groomed tracks. On the Duranos I never quite felt completely at ease rolling into unknown territory. With the Big Apples obstacles are less a mental burden and hitting that pothole is not near as frightening of an experience.

Looks like again I will be sticking with the "wider is better" mantra even on two wheels.

So there you have it.

Chocolate Covered Bacon FTW!

We Paleo eaters seem to have a love of the bacon. Indeed, it is hard to ignore the allure of a plate of just cooked just-right-crisp-yet-chewy bacon.

How to improve upon this wonderful food?

Chocolate!

After spending a long time wondering about this strange and oddly alluring combination, and reading online about its ultra-yum goodness, I decided to whip up a small batch of my own. Quick and easy baked up the bacon and melted a bit of semi-sweet chocolate to plop on top.

Sorry there are not very many pieces in the picture - a handful of the bacon slices never made it before the chocolate arrived - they were snatched by other family members and a few may have flew into my own mouth suddenly.

I got chocolate on my bacon... and bacon on my chocolate!

However, once the remaining pieces cooled - it was time for a taste test. Simply put: salty/sweet heaven here folks.

DO try!