Yep, ‘s been raining outside for a few hours now. Was gonna go for a nice easy ride in the woods, but it also wasn’t too hard to stay home, drink tea, and do small things.
Like work on my project bike.
I knew before moving here that I’d want a beater townie of some kind, and on Monday night I got to work at Free Cycles here in town. It’s a cool idea, and a neat shop. Old hardwood floors, big space, fairly well organized, and massive bins of old crap laying around. Most of it is, predictably, junk, but there are gems in the piles.
I spent 2 and a half hours fixing up two donated bikes for the store to sell at the local outdoor consignment shop (one a Bridgestone MB-4 very much like the bike I had when I was 13), and then got to work on this baby.
Rules for the townie: spend no money. Well, I’ll probably buy a chain. The frame is old, steel, in good shape, and huge. I have no standover. Hardest part was finding a seatpost that fit. It took something like a 26.4. They’ve got a seatpost bin the size of our fridge, so it was only a matter of time. I was also lucky that, even though they had been separated, I was able to reunite the frame and fork. That’s one big headtube, that is. The existing bb is in fair shape, decent 42t 110 bcd ring, cobbled together a headset from odd parts, nice steel stem with a nifty cable guide welded on, the brake with the best springs I could find, and I was off for home.
I was very pleased with the tire clearance. Could fit a 42 if I wanted. I did find a flaw in the brake design, the unavoidable tendency for the (cyclists’) left to retract first. Fixed with a pair of zip ties. I added modern inserts and Kool stop pads, my own bars, levers, cables and housing, and a straddle from the shop, and I have a brake that has great feel, and a perfect monstercross cockpit. Bar tape (no $ spent!) is pieces of my yoga mat taped in strategic places, with some of M’s more hideous ribbon wrapped and shelacked on. Only thing left is the rear wheel.
I was very pleased with the tire clearance. Could fit a 42 if I wanted. I did find a flaw in the brake design, the unavoidable tendency for the (cyclists’) left to retract first. Fixed with a pair of zip ties. I added modern inserts and Kool stop pads, my own bars, levers, cables and housing, and a straddle from the shop, and I have a brake that has great feel, and a perfect monstercross cockpit. Bar tape (no $ spent!) is pieces of my yoga mat taped in strategic places, with some of M’s more hideous ribbon wrapped and shelacked on. Only thing left is the rear wheel.I’d like to keep it fixed, and for a while thought about getting a new rim and lacing it to one of the old multi-speed freewheel hubs to be had. But the dish would be poor. I may try to redish one of the craptastic full wheels to take a lock-tited fixed cog, or just run it singlespeed and add a rear brake. Again, it really cries out to stay fixed in true mc, scaffold style.
That is the fun, eh?
As for tomorrow: cool temps and day one of my life as a graduate student. Cannot, cannot wait! Likely have to visit M at her new evening job for a Cold Smoke, as sleep will I think not come easily.
Looking further into the future, I must stay organized. It’s transition time, and time to start laying out goals for the near and medium terms.
First of all, I’m re-forming the neglected google calender into a record on physical activity. This blog has been invaluable as a guide for what I do poorly and well in training and prep, and it’s time to take that up a notch. Secondly, I’m applying for Hardrock for next year. Between a thin resume and the sheer numbers, I don’t plan on getting in, but it’ll be a worthwhile ritual. 1/1/09, on the calender. More immediate goals include getting in foot shape for 90 miles and 3 days in Yellowstone with Pivvay next month. A few more big days, more short time trials up Sentinal, running during the week, etc. The bottom half of me felt like crap this morning, but all’s well now, a good sign in the Geoff Roes school of recovery. Fitness is ok, feet and legs need some toughening, all doable. Two weeks after that, it’s Bill’s 170 mile, 23+k of climbing Missoula Vision Quest. I’ve yet to firmly commit to a strategy for this one. I will not be in shape to race it in a stretch, which leaves me with a dilemma. Do I just go out for a long day ride? Set a goal before hand? Drive around and heckle? Ride 90 miles, go home and sleep, and ride the rest the next day? Haul all my supplies from the start and camp out? We shall see.
Longer term, I want to become a reasonable skier this winter. Reason number one to not spend money on a wheel, as per above, is to complete my kitting out process before the snow flies. It’d be fun to do some backcountry, and some winter touring in Yellowstone, but goal number one is to be able to link turns with confidence down most any area run, have fun, and keep the fitness up. As for spring, I’ve already been planning the ultimate 10 day Utah raid, as follows:
F: out of class, drive, sleep.
S: drive to Moab, inflate packraft, strap bike and good food to raft, float from town to Lathrop. Camp and drink and cook steak.
S: bust out White Rim, river crossing, and Maze to Spanish Botom.
M: cross river again, hike up, ride Lockhart back to town.
T: ride Green Dot-Blue Dot-Portal, drive to Escalante.
W-F: packraft Escalante River from Harris Wash to Coyote Gulch.
S: ride Cassidy-Casto-Losse- Tunder Mtn, drive to Zion.
S: packraft The Narrows!, celebrate.
M: ride Goose, flee north.
Doable, eh? I’m taking applications now. The Grand Confluence Circumnavigation ride will happen! I also hope to have an extra raft by then, so others (hummmmm) will be expected.
As for the summer, little has changed. Hardrock, perhaps. The JMT, perhaps. Adventuring up here, indeed. I’ve love to put together a lower-48 team for the AMWC, but that would likely stretch logistics and finances a bit.
I also intend to race the full TransUtah in 2010. My MSW celebration ride.
In short, in the next year I want to become a competent skier, a more experienced and disciplined hiker and runner, to have accumulated a respectable resume of fastforward multi-day wilderness expolits, and to have more fun on the bike. As well as be first in my class by a good margin.
Lets go.
I also have this new thing to type on. Back in the fold at last. Right click is a crutch!
Bedrock & Paradox 
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