My Bike Blog

A Different River Loop, and a Little More...

2008-10-07T15:52:00.002-05:00

Some friends from the Taconic Hiking Club were doing a rather lengthy ride today, and it actually motivated me to get back on the bike. We started at The Crossings, in Colonie, biked to the Niskayuna train station at Lions Park on the bike path and met some others, and then did a river loop, crossing first the Rexford Bridge and then the Crescent Bridge. We stopped for lunch at Stewart's on US9 near the Crescent Bridge, and continued back to Lions Park via the bike path. There, we left the group we'd met earlier and headed back to The Crossings, for a 43+ mile ride. It was relaxed and sociable, and a beautiful ride on a perfect, though cool, fall day.

Slowing down...

2008-10-01T15:12:00.003-05:00

The weather's been iffy, there's yard work to be done, and I just haven't been motivated to get out much on the bike. Played golf, went for a run, went hiking - all on days when I might normally have biked. Maybe I'm just getting biked out for the year, having done all the big stuff that was on the agenda.

Anyway, went out for another 21-mile river loop today. With temps near 70 in October, it would have been criminal not to do something. There were scattered showers around, and I got a late start after getting some other stuff done, so my choices were limited. I do still want to get in a long-ish day to either Indian Ladder or Karen's for lunch, and if the right day comes along, I'll do that. Today just wasn't it.

When all else fails, ride the river...

2008-09-24T14:50:00.004-05:00

I had thought I might get in a longish ride today, maybe to a lunch spot, but it was not to be. When I did my "ABC Quick Check" as I was getting ready to leave, I found (a) my rear brake was rubbing on a not-quite-true rim; and (b) there was a 3/4" gash in my rear tire, that I should not continue riding with.

So, off came the tire, and the wheel went into my newly acquired truing stand for some tweaking. I found a couple of seriously loose spokes, tightened them, and then tried to get the wheel as straight as I could and still have time for a ride. It ain't perfect, and still needs a little work...

Next, it was off to Scotia to pick up a new tire, a $40.00 Bontrager RaceLite Hard Case, an exact replacement. Considering I got over 5,000 miles on the originals, I really can't complain (much) about the cost.

When I got home, I didn't seem to have my wallet. Since I have a nasty habit of putting things on top of the car and driving away, I was understandably concerned. Called Bill, and yes, I had left it at the bike shop. Stopping back later to pick it up pretty much pre-ordained my day's ride route.

Put the new tire on, (mostly) got it correctly seated, readjusted the rear brake, and headed out. Quite a bit of spoke pinging from somewhere, but it seemed to improve as I rode. The rear brake is a little looser than I'd like, because of the remaining wobble, so that needs some work, along with the wobble itself and the almost-seated tire. Probably won't get to any of this tonight, and may or may not ride tomorrow. Rainy weekend ahead, so plenty of time for this kind of stuff.

Stopped in Scotia and picked up my wallet, and headed back to the car at SCCC, after an easy 21 miles up and down the Mohawk.

League of American Bicyclists Road I Class

2008-09-21T18:11:00.002-05:00

Last night and today, I took this class locally, from a couple of Albany instructors. I pretty much already knew most of it, but did glean a few useful things related to riding vehicularly, handling skills, and maintenance. Today, I biked to the class in Albany and back, and actually had my road test with the instructors on the way home, since they had also bicycled to class. Will send in the written take-home answers tomorrow (pretty easy), and get my certificate and reimbursement from MHCC.

The ride to Albany and back also pushed me over 2,000 miles for the year, so now I've raised the bar and will shoot for 2,500 instead. Lots of good riding days left.

A Long Hiatus

2008-09-18T15:07:00.003-05:00

After the metric century, I didn't ride for a few days, and then we left for a week in Maine. That was mostly a non-active vacation, including a pretty relaxing Windjammer Cruise, so when I got out today for a ride after 10 days out of the saddle, I could really feel the difference. I decided to just do the 14-mile river loop and see how it went, and that turned out to be the right idea. My legs were like lead and my butt hurt, and I was glad for the short mileage day. Of course, I also averaged just under 16 mph, so I must have been cranking pretty good.

Metric Century

2008-09-07T15:34:00.002-05:00

Finally, I managed to finish a metric century (100k = 62 miles) with no cramping or bonking issues! For the past two years, I've run into problems around the 55-60 mile mark, and had to limp to the finish. Today, I did a hilly course in about 4:25, averaging about 14.5 mph overall, and had no such issues. This course totaled just over 3000' of climbing.

Oh, I was pretty tired between the 30 and 50-mile marks, but the rest stop at 53 miles invigorated me, the last 10 miles were mostly downhill with some rolling, and I cruised in to the finish feeling pretty good.

A Basic River Ride

2008-09-04T13:15:00.002-05:00

Needed to test my adjusting of the front wheel spoke tension and its trueness before Sunday's possible metric century, and today was a HOT day, so I opted for the usual flat river loop, from SCCC to Lock 9, and back through Scotia. It actually seemed like the wheel was pretty good, but since I never seem to be able to get it right, I dropped it off afterwards with Bill Lewis at Adirondack Bicycle anyway, just to be sure. It felt pretty good to be back on the bike, and I didn't feel the leg deadness that I was noticing earlier in the week. Guess I just needed a little recovery time.

The weather for Saturday looks pretty bad, with the remains of Hanna blowing through with lots of rain, but Sunday may dry out enough that I'll decide to ride. It would be nice to finish a metric without the cramping and bonking in the late miles that I've experienced for the past two years.

Biking, Mini-golf, and Ice Cream

2008-09-01T17:18:00.002-05:00

Short relaxed ride today, 8+ miles R/T from Holly's house to a local mini-golf location. I won, as always, and got in an easy ride on the old Gitane just to keep the legs loose. I've only put about 80 miles (of 1800+) on this bike this year, and was continually fumbling for the downtube shifters. Good ride.

Back in the saddle again

2008-08-31T15:06:00.002-05:00

Home from Vermont on Friday. It was a great tour, and you can read about it at the link in the previous post.

Yesterday, I did a few local errands on the mountain bike just to keep the legs loose, and today, I biked to Holly's house and back to help her with some yard work. It sure feels different riding not loaded. Spent a lot of time today weighing EVERY item I packed, with an eye toward reducing the touring weight I was carrying. It was WAY over the top.

Annual mileage is now approaching 1,900, and with a possible metric century this weekend, 2,000 is well within reach in the next month or so. Best year ever!

Biking in Northern Vermont

2008-08-20T05:43:00.000-05:00

I'll be away for about 8-9 days, doing a bicycle tour of northern Vermont. I'm riding alone, carrying everything, and mostly camping when available and feasible. My tentative route is shown below:

I'll also be updating an online journal during this trip, and you can follow my progress here:

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/vermont2008

Feel free to sign the guestbook!

Another Test Ride - Steady As She Goes

2008-08-17T12:28:00.003-05:00

Decided I needed at least one more fully loaded ride before I leave for Vermont on Wednesday. I did the Kings/Old State/West Lydius loop, for 16+ miles, and this time the bike felt rock-solid. A few days ago, I tightened up the headset and rear brakes, and maybe that's what did the trick. Whatever I did, the bike feels much better now, and I can just ride, without fighting the bike every step of the way. A butt break (standing on the pedals), a drink while riding, and riding on the top center of the bars are still a little dicey, but those are all easily avoidable.

River Loop, With a Twist

2008-08-15T15:47:00.002-05:00

This afternoon's weather turned out better than expected, so I headed for the bike path to get in a quick flat 15 along the river. As I was heading westbound from SCCC, I realized I had a substantial tailwind, meaning a headwind on boring NY5 on the return. In a flash of brilliance, I decided to take the headwind out of play by climbing Rector Road to Ridge Road, and find my way back down through Scotia somehow. Rector starts out at over a 9% grade for the first .6 miles, and goes a total of 1.6 to Ridge, all of it uphill, so it's a good climb. Came down Closson to NY147 to Snake Hill to Spring, and back down to NY147, turning left on Vley, and ending up near Jumping Jacks, just before the bridge. It was a nice variation on a very common ride.

A Fast SWC Ride

2008-08-14T20:41:00.002-05:00

Tonight's SWC ride was in Clifton Park, and a lot of fast people showed up. These rides always make me ride faster than I really want to, but it's good training, so what the hey? We did 16-17 rolling miles at what felt like a pretty fast pace. Around the 12-mile mark, another person and I decided not to do some optional add-on miles that were mapped, and headed back to the start. Around 13 miles, a dog came after us, and I put the hammer down, and had to keep it down for a good quarter mile. This dog just wouldn't quit! Cruised to the finish after that, and the beer and pizza never tasted so good.

Grant Hill Loop - Loaded

2008-08-13T10:47:00.002-05:00

A nice morning, so it was time to take a loaded ride with some hills and some distance. With 45-50 lbs on the bike, it really handles differently, and I needed to see if yesterday's shimmy issue was adequately resolved.

As I started down Kings Road, the shimmy actually seemed worse then yesterday's final attempt. I stopped at the school and adjusted the weight distribution a bit, and continued on. I started getting used to the feel of the bike, and heading down the hills on Siver Rd, I was over 25 mph and there was no shimmy at all. Continued on to the climb up Grant Hill Road, and had to use ALL of the gears this time. It was an easy spin, but many more pedal strokes than when not loaded and in a slightly higher gear. Continued through French's Hollow, and again all downhills were fine. I did notice that the shimmy is worst when coasting in the 14-16 mph range. Pedaling dampens most of it, and knees against the top tube also helps. Other speeds are much more smooth, so I'll just need to be aware of that. I may need to tweak the weight distribution a little further as I go along, but it seems good enough for now. I also noticed that the headset has a slight wiggle and needs to be tightened, and the rear brake could also be a little more firm. Will take care of those this weekend. Tightening the headset may also help the shimmy problem.

I actually added on a couple of miles by going out US20 to NY158 and back via County Line Rd, for 23 miles total.

Pre-trip Test Ride

2008-08-12T16:37:00.001-05:00

I finally got everything packed and loaded on the bike for next week's departure for Vermont, the point of which was to get out for a loaded test ride. Glad I did - details here...

Another Grant Hill Loop

2008-08-08T10:02:00.003-05:00

50 miles yesterday weren't enough, so I got out for another 21 this morning before the weather went downhill yet again. I just did the same basic loop, and there's not a lot more to add, except to say that riding in the morning is really nice.

A 50-Mile Day

2008-08-07T20:35:00.003-05:00

Well, the SWC ride actually transpired tonight, despite a threat of imminent rain. That rain only materialized as a few drops here and there, and we did a hilly 17 miles, for a total of 50 today. I was glad I saved something by doing an easy morning ride, and I felt strong tonight even on the hills. Of course the 45-minute nap this afternoon probably didn't hurt either.

A Longer River Loop

2008-08-07T12:32:00.002-05:00

With the weather looking questionable for tonight's SWC ride, I decided I needed to spend some time in the saddle and make up for several weeks' lost time. Not wanting to completely toast myself in case tonight's ride did come off, I opted for the 33-mile ride to Amsterdam and back along NY5S and NY5. There was a strong westerly breeze as I headed toward Amsterdam from SCCC, but not so bad that it was a struggle. Once near Amsterdam, I decided to ride up NY5S to the junction with NY30, instead of taking the root-riddled bike path that parallels it. The climb wasn't bad, and I discovered a convenience store, motel, laundromat, and RESTROOMS. Bought a Pop-Tart for breakfast, used the facilities, and crossed the river on 30 into Amsterdam. The ride back on NY5 was uneventful and quick, with a good tailwind. Soon after I got home, the first of the day's showers arrived. We'll see about tonight...

B & B for a Day

2008-08-06T17:12:00.003-05:00

I hosted this couple last evening, after they called me looking for accommodations from the Warm Showers List. I've been listed there for a couple of years now, and these were my first actual guests. They were biking from Oregon to their home in Connecticut, and were passing through Schenectady at the end of a 95-mile day. It was a very interesting visit, and it was fun hearing about their trip and their various other travels. I hope all future contacts turn out as well as this one did.

This afternoon, the weather turned out better than predicted, so I got out for a 21-mile ride up and down the river. I also did a little more packing for my Vermont trip, and am now even more psyched about that trip after hearing all the tales from the road last night. I'll be starting on August 20, and the trip journal will be here.

Grant Hill Loop, Again

2008-08-03T13:16:00.002-05:00

It's been a long stretch of wet weather and other commitments, and not a whole lot of riding. Today I finally got out for another ride, doing the basic 21-mile Grant Hill Road loop again. I didn't extend it today, both because of iffy afternoon weather and the fact that I have tomorrow free, and the weather looks good at the moment. I'm hoping to get in a 40-something ride with some climbing tomorrow. Fingers are crossed. It's less than 3 weeks until I start my Vermont trip, and I need to be doing some big miles and climbing. And now that I'm finished with various camping and hiking stuff until then, it's also time for some serious packing. I need to get out for a test ride fully loaded, and hopefully more than one.

Grant Hill and More

2008-07-28T17:40:00.003-05:00

FINALLY, a day with a predictable late afternoon rain threat and no morning commitments, so I started out on a 20-mile Grant Hill Road loop. When I got to the bridge over the Normanskill at the bottom of the climb, the bridge was closed and under repair. I talked to the guys, and they're just doing a temporary repair to the steel deck, so it's only closed for 3 days. It's over 50 years old, and needs a more major rehab, maybe in the fall. They let me walk the bike across, and I started the climb. This seemed pretty easy today, and I cruised down into French's Hollow, where the Normanskill was VERY high going over the dam. When I got to US20, I decided to extend the ride, and headed west to Dunnsville Road. Climbed up that to West Old State, then back to NY158 and County Line Road. This added about 6 miles to the usual 20, and it felt good.

I'll need to ride this route loaded once I get everything packed for the Vermont trip, now scheduled to begin on or about August 20.

SWC Thursday Night Ride

2008-07-24T21:17:00.002-05:00

A humid evening, with rain always a threat, but it never materialized. Rode almost 16 miles in Clifton Park, Round Lake, and Halfmoon, at a very relaxed pace. Beer, pizza, and slides of an Alaska vacation in the host's garage afterwards.

A Quick River Loop

2008-07-21T15:55:00.002-05:00

Lots of storms around lately, so not very many good riding days. This afternoon turned out better than expected, and it looked like there was time to get out for an hour or two, so I headed to SCCC to do 15-17 miles along the Mohawk, as usual. Temps in the mid-80s and humid, but not bad while riding. Followed the bike path to the end, then out NY5S to NY103, and crossed over to NY5 to return through Scotia for 17+ miles. Passed two guys on their way east from San Francisco. They had stayed in St. Johnsville last night, and were heading somewhere past Albany today, TBD. Not very talkative, and there was too much traffic on NY5 to ride 3 abreast and carry on a conversation, so I bid them farewell and headed on.

A Day in Saratoga

2008-07-18T15:13:00.002-05:00

Some friends from Long Island were up at their Saratoga condo for the week, so we got together for a short ride and some lunch in town. We did a rolling, and very relaxed, 14 miles, and went to lunch at a crepe restaurant in the city. Good ride, good food, and good conversation.

Morning Ride

2008-07-11T15:50:00.002-05:00

The afternoon looked a little iffy, so instead of riding to Thacher Park as I was thinking, I cut that distance in half and rode the usual Grant Hill Road/French's Hollow loop. This ride has become my staple, with some good climbing, good scenery and variety, and a nice twenty miles from my driveway. It's time again for a longer hillier ride, but with lots of hiking coming up next week, it may be a while before I get to that.