Ridin': Lots of Water

[jerrykr]

Re: Ridin': Portland IS Bike Friendly and Fun

wow, thanks for the tour, looks like great fun!

 

[aka_locojoe]

Re: Ridin': Portland IS Bike Friendly and Fun

Looks like it was great time and trip. We were there a few years ago for the TDF. I remember being in awe at the amount of cyclists we seen. Wish we could have spent more time there.

 

[tvc15]

Re: Ridin': Portland IS Bike Friendly and Fun

Wow, I think you saw more of Portland than I have :lol:

 

[ifitsfreeitsforme]

Re: Ridin': Portland IS Bike Friendly and Fun

Great stuff. I would die for that black shaft drive bike in one of your photos.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: Ridin': River Ride gettin' faster

Thanks RatSphinx, We sure did have fun
Glad you liked the tour Jerry, thanks

Glad you got to see Portland and their TdF Randy
We would have like to spend more time there too

TVC15, Got take your bike into work some time and then work a little less :lol:
Thanks IIFIFM! Not sure if you meant the trike(?) , that one did look cool

So I'm backtracking a bit
I've been working on getting my Mississippi River Road exercise ride faster this summer
So trying to do it like a full-tilt ride with help from path racing road bikes
Here is my route that I've been doing a few years mostly with my Spaceliner

I can't quite get the full route mapped on Google but you get the idea (~8 miles)
So I've done 4 hard rides (over ~4 weeks) but only have one picture to show, kinda on purpose

Ride 1: stop-and-go ride down to the river then hit it hard
Saw a road bike behind me so I took off
Kept him behind for ~3 miles then traffic evened things up
Beat him up the hill but he passed me on the bridge
Caught up to him and made him get out of the saddle to get ahead again :lol:
first hard ride without water or pics and averaged 16.6 mph

Ride 2: no roadies to play tag so stopped for a quick photo, then again for water
Added 2 minutes so slower :? 15.5 mph avg

Ride3: took a more direct street so no warm up and just passed a few hybrids
No pics but water stop and got off my shirt (finally got hot weather ) 16.0 mph avg

Ride 4: Tonight, no warmup, shirt off while riding (a little tricky no handed but...)
Was going to stop for water but saw a road bike just pulling on to the path so kept going
Hit it hard and past him slowly then stayed ahead for ~3 miles

Got to the big hill and he was right behind then he slingshot past
I could help start laughing while he past me (low O2 to the brain :lol: )
He said "Not bad for a single speed" so I took it as a kinda comp
Hammered out the rest of the ride and got 17.8 mph avg :shock:

I've been running a little more and think it's helping
Been sure enjoying my Spaceliner for the last 2 years
Looking forward to finishing the Shelby build off bike
Then gonna take down the Spaceliner for a good rebuild and cleaning/shine

Forgot I've got some other rides from last month yet (MN Classic Bike swap, Beach Ride, etc...)
Promise more pics (and less jibber jabber) next time
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[jerrykr]

Re: Ridin': River Ride gettin' faster

wow, 17.8 mph AVERAGE on a single speed. You are Superman! We rarely ever hit the 17 mph mark on our roads!

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: Ridin': WaterBoy&Cheerleader Support Ride

Thanks Jerry, but most of the Roadies can maintain 20-24 mph on the Flats and I can't :lol:

Trying to catch up with all the past rides
This one is about 2 rides I had with my Wife as she trains for Twin Cities Marathon
Want to be her support for her great effort, It's on her "bucket list"

So a few weeks back I did her first longer run with her
I carried her water and be her cheerleader to make it a little easier
Took off in the morning for an expected 2 hour run/ride

The weather was cool and had some sunshine

Went by the old Ford plant (1920's to last year) Last vehicle was Rangers
Here is one of the turbines that had to be replaced in the Ford powerplant (on the river)

She was moving pretty quick and took some quick riding every I dwaddled for another pic :lol:

Tried to keep her hydrated and cheer her on like people did for me in TCM
Got a labored laugh out of her with this surprise shot

She did real well with her first 13+ mile run
She did a half marathon a few years back and had to reminded her she just accomplished another one
This is one of my favorite shots

Last weekend we did another one but a hotter and more humid
She knows the tricks to run in the most shade possible
And I got to ride on the walking path for the first time

Got a bit existential this time then stopped taking as many pics
She was having a tougher time but she got though it

Interesting to see that I'm getting tired just riding for 2 hours :?
Good to see her work hard at a great goal, I'm very proud of her
I'll add more updates as she ratchets up the miles

Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[aka_locojoe]

Re: Ridin': WaterBoy&Cheerleader Support Ride

Good luck to your wife. I can't imagine running for that long and far.
Sometimes on a paved road on my hybrid I'll be cruising right along at a good pace, thinking how fast I must be going, then I look down at speedo and I'm only doing 15mph :x

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: Ridin': Finally a true path racer

Randy, My Wife said thanks for your good luck, it IS an amazingly long distance!
I did support again today (15 miles about 2.6 hours) Surprisingly how tired I get from just riding :lol:
15 mph is a great and steady pace to ride, and you ride a lot farther then me

So I'm going to try and catch up here from month's of pics :lol:
But first I wanted to post a few about the BOB Shelby Path Racer
I went through a few things again before we go to Chicago

Changed up the rear gear from 18 to 16 so it's now like the Spaceliner (52/16)
It really changed the attitude of the bike and it feels more fun
at first, I was kinda disappointed with the performance (with the 18t) but now finally hauls!

Lots of standing to take off and it seems more solid and stable
I can tell when I pump the handle bars I'm moving less weight (25.6lbs vs Spaceliner 27.5lbs)

Had to stop for a few shots though too
Finally got a shot where the black parts seem to blend into the background and the frame pops out

I was chasing the sun that was left last night

Kinda like the industrial look to this one

It balanced surprisingly easily on my Allen wrenches (took them just in case :lol: )

Finished with a shot of Turtle Bread that has great treats and reflections

Thanks for all the nice comments people gave about the bike
I'm finally really happy with it now that I can really thrash on it

Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: Ridin': Last Days of Summer

Summer is short in Mpls so I have to get out and enjoy
Took the Shelby out last night

And watched the sunset tonight with the ducks and the Spaceliner

Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[naturephotoboy3]

Re: Ridin': Last Days of Summer

What a nice sunset photo. It's strange to see how other live in different parts of the country. Not strange..but it's funny how you say your summer is ending and out here in Arizona we are cheering on the end of summer so we can get to our perfect weather. Great photos and most of all..GREAT SPIRIT. Love to see people enjoying life

 

[Skipton]

Re: Ridin': Last Days of Summer

Love it Steve. Great bikes. Great pics!

 

[jerrykr]

Re: Ridin': Last Days of Summer

that Path Racer is a great looking bike! Beautiful sunset picture!

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Ridin': Last Days of Summer

Awesome work as always Steve! Bring on the weather change I say though! Sick of being cold down here!!! :lol:

Luke.

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: Ridin': Switched up the Shelby

Thanks NPB3! I used to test vehicles in AZ in the hottest part of summer :shock:
Can understand your cheering for the cool down

Thanks Skippy and Jerry!
And you, you're looking for a little more warmth now, I can't blame you for that

I appreciate the responses, I was feeling a little down
This time of year is hard for me; less sunshine and few days to ride the lake and jump in
Then Mother nature laughed at me
and gave us 5 days of weather in the mid 90's with heat index ~100 :shock: :lol:

We even had the power go out on Sunday and so with nothing better to do,
I went down the basement (cooler) and switched up the Shelby

The Shelby had a lot of drag with the back tire, Skippy confirmed it for me in Chicago (Thanks Bud!)
He mentioned that the Bontrager Hanks have a lot of contact area
and I remembered PUSHING my wife's Spaceliner with the Solanas for 15 miles a while back

I had a set of 700 wheels with Shimano hubs so I mounted a 32 mm (rear) and 28mm (front)
The coolness factor is way down but I had to check it out
I also swapped out some VO handle bars, the curved ones didn't have enough different hand positions
So it looks kinda a lot like the Spaceliner now :roll: but it rolls really great

Took it out for a small shakedown on Sunday and it seems more stable too
We have a lot of acorns dropping early so they are all over the road
Not sure how those slicks would have held up but the Conti Contacts are fantastic!

Can crank better now on the new bars too, grips are too hot so they have to go

So tonight (107F heat index :shock: ) I got a mondo hard ride in around Lake Nokomis and then jumped in
The water felt soooo good and there was at least a dozen other bikes there too

Sun is setting much earlier and won't be able to ride with my shades much longer
So I gotta enjoy it while I can, I sure did tonight Whopee!

Lots of great Fall riding ahead and the Mpls Messaround is this weekend so I can't get to down about it
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[aka_locojoe]

Re: Ridin': Switched up the Shelby

I like the look with the 700s at least from the side.
Man I thought it would be cooler up there.

 

[excelsior*steve]

Re: Ridin': Switched up the Shelby

Wow, great pics of your bikes and friends collection. I like that space liner! I too like when another rides my bike so I can get a look. I hope to get in some good fall rides around the twin cities soon and now that I have a bike for my wife to ride. Again nice pics...

this is my brother on my Schwinn...

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: Ridin': Labor Day Ride

Thanks Randy, they do look a bit odd from the back...
But I use almost all the length I have with the 700s
Yeah, we were HOT for 7 days not quite a bit cooler :roll:

Great hangin' with you, Steve, and your Brother at the messaround
Can't wait to see your Longhorn bike...

I kinda have a tradition and some of it is just luck
My wife was working today and nobody was around (It seems to happen more on holidays)
So I've been doing longer solo Labor day rides for about 20 years now

Friday it was 96F, today it was 58 and cloudy ( :shock: )
But the sun came out this afternoon and it warmed up to mid 60's

Earlier I lined up the Shelby and the Spaceliner and
I see now that the Spaceliner's fork has quite a bit more negative caster than the Shelby
That's got to be a factor in how it handles (duh to me ) Good Call Skipton!

I had to replace the 35mm Resist Nomad because it had a bulge (might have whacked it...)
It's weird because I beat the 42mm hard for 2 years with no problems (until I unavoidably ran over glass)
So I put a 32mm Conti I had and rebuilt the hub, it was black and gooy and sticky (ick)

It rides the best it ever has now! Tried the big/little tire combo but it just didn't roll as well as now
Headed out on the river road and got to go done mega steep hill
Figured I was pedaling ~90+ rpm so easily going over 45mph
The following big up hill wasn't as fun :lol: but it got me to the stone arch bridge

Hey Randy, this is considered a Rails to Trails so you can add it to your list!
It's part of the St Anthony Falls Heritage Trail and you rode it as part of the TDF parade
It was one of the only curve stone rail way bridges in the nation and it was built by James J Hill in 1883

Had to wait a bit to get the sunshine but the shade looked kinda neat too

Lots of people made nice comments and wanted to know about the bike while I was waiting
Finally the sun!

Headed over the my old college The UofMN, students were all over the place getting ready
Where's Waldo? I mean the Spaceliner? :lol:

Had to see how the my chrome bike look against the polished Weisman Art Museum

Found a cool new sculpture, think it's a BIG molecule

Decided to head home with one last stop at Lake Street bridge, sure felt like Fall...

The Spaceliner is still my favorite bike and I think I like it this way the best so far
Thanks for looking
Steve

 

[aka_locojoe]

Re: Ridin': Labor Day Ride

Hey Randy, this is considered a Rails to Trails so you can add it to your list!
It's part of the St Anthony Falls Heritage Trail and you rode it as part of the TDF parade
It was one of the only curve stone rail way bridges in the nation and it was built by James J Hill in 1883

Cool! Thanks.
Great pics.

 

[jerrykr]

Re: Ridin': Labor Day Ride

I've always liked that Spaceliner and the way you have it set up.