Catastrophe and Triumph--My First Trip

So, almost everything changed in the plans for my after Turkey Day ride.

I wasn't able to get my friend's TNF tent because he had lent it out to someone else.  I changed destinations--twice.  Had a start-stop-start all over beginning.  And didn't sleep in a tent until the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

Gear--

As I said, I couldn't get the 4-season tent I had planned on.  Since I still didn't have the funds to buy the tent I want this almost killed the trip long before it began, as there was no way I was going to try to camp in sub-freezing weather with my Hubba-Hubba.  The HH is a great tent when it's warm out, and one that I would highly recommend to anyone looking for a cycling or backpacking tent, but it is almost all mesh.  My son and I spent the night in it once in February in Ohio, and while we were nice and toasty in our bags, the act of getting out of the bags in the morning was pure misery.




Room for Me and my Pack mule

Being the stubborn old fart that I am I came up with a compromise.  I used an Ozark Trail 9 x 7 tent that I had bought on a whim for car camping.  I used some velcro-tape and blue tarp material to close off the roof vents and whah-lah--4-season(?) tent.  Not ideal but it worked.  The tent weighs around 9 lbs so I was hauling the equivalent weight of the VE-25, although without the quality.  And, since it is a four-person tent there was room to put my Nomad inside.

Aside from the tent, the rest of my gear list was easy:  sleeping pad, sleeping bag, jetboil stove, clothes, food, medicines, bike maintenance, first-aid, etc. The bike performed as planned with no maintenance issues other than a lose kickstand bolt, and the trailer was the perfect little pack mule:  I will review it separately as it deserves its own post.

As for the route; well that changed before I got started, then again later.  Instead of going to Brown County State Park, I opted instead for a trip to Turkey Run State Park.  This decision grew out of a concern for my ability to climb hills towing a trailer full of gear.  Brown County is all hills, which makes it great for mountain biking, but also worried me in terms of my fitness.  Turkey Run however is in corn-country and the route to and from there is flat.  Since both parks are about the same distance from home (60ish miles) I decided I had better try flat ground for my maiden voyage.

So, Black Friday arrives.  I wake at 5 AM and leave the house at 6:30 fully confidant and excited about my trip.  I left early so I could ride in relatively low traffic until I cleared the city--this part of the plan worked perfectly, I had absolutely no problems with the idiocy I normally face when riding through Indianapolis.  The problems arose once I cleared the heavily populated part of my route.

You see, I had checked the weather, but not all of it.  All I was worried about was temperature, and precipitation.  Once I hit the wide open spaces of corn country I quickly discovered that my big enemy was not temperature or rain as I had the right clothing to protect me from both.  No--my big enemy was the wind.  10-20 mph headwinds gusting to 25-30 mph, to be precise.

I tried fighting the wind for quite a while, but they were unrelenting and brutal.  I had to get off my bike and walk for several stretches because the winds were pushing me back harder than I could pedal forward, or they were hitting me from the side pushing me off the bike.  My speed was averaging less than 5 mph.  After six hours and just over 30 miles I turned back, out of fear of being caught out after dark in unfamiliar territory in a 15 degree wind chill.

As I turned around I felt a horrible sense of defeat and was getting quite depressed, but the ride became a lot easier.  With 20 mph tailwinds I was able to coast for long stretches of road doing 10 mph with no effort other than sitting up and holding the handlebars; it was like sailing on a bike.  The thirty mile stretch that had taken 6 hours to cover one way took just over 2 hours the other.

During the two hour return trip I decided that I would try again with a different route, and destination.  So, after a few hours looking at maps (and wind forecasts) I opted for a ride to Mounds State Park which is only 45 miles from my back door.

This time things went great.

Once again I was up at 5 a.m., and out the door into the cold pre-dawn by 6:30. The route I chose kept me off of all the busy roads here in Indianapolis,  and on bike trails or country roads for most of the trip.  So, once I worked off the initial chill, the ride was quite pleasant.  The only city roads I really had to deal with were through Anderson, IN. 

I would like to take some time here talking about Anderson.  I was a little worried about going through the heart of this small city, due to its having a popular horse track and casino.  But I found out that my fears were extremely unfounded.  The drivers in Anderson were some of the most considerate that I have ever had the pleasure to ride around.  Despite my taking some of the major streets and going right by the local mall on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year, I had no problems with impatient or dangerous drivers.  In fact the drivers took great pains to give me room, and I never once felt like I was in danger.  Kudos to Anderson.

Camp Cold and Lonely

As for the park, it was an interesting place.  It is named for the 2,000 year old Native American earthworks which are at its center, and are quite interesting, as it s believed that they were for astronomical observances.  As it was quite cold and well beyond the 'normal' camping season I had the campgrounds to myself, except for a small herd of Whitetail Deer who roamed around the grounds taking no real interest in the lone guy sitting by his tent cooking dinner.  In the picture at right you can see just how deserted the campground was.  (My tent is the little blue dot left of center)  There was even a short bike trail around the small airport to the north of the park.  Once again--kudos to Anderson.

My Steed and Pack Mule

All in all this trip went as planned and served its intended purpose, which was to be a test of my equipment, my legs, and my heart.  In each case everything performed as well as or better than I had hoped.  And I am already planning my next excursion, as I am now quite hooked on this touring thing.

Next time though--I will pay very close attention to ALL of the forecast.

Sugoi Firewall 180 Pants-Review

According to the Sugoi site the Firewall 180 Pants provide:

"Powerful windproof coverage combined with the thermal warmth of ZeroPlus for enhanced comfort and protection during winter cross training."

They are also listed as breathable, and wind/water resistant.

For once I have found something that performs exactly as advertised.

While not technically a cycling pant (Sugoi lists them as running pants), I found them while searching for a good winter cycling pant which could be used in lieu of, or in addition to tights.  I wanted a pant that fit well, blocked the wind, looked good off the bike, and didn't sound like a potato chip bag when I walked in them--these pants fit the bill in every way.

I got a size small which was advertised as having a 30" waist and a 31" inseam--correct and correct.  The waistband is elastic in back and has a Velcro adjustment on either side.  I have worn the 180s with and without Lycra chamois underneath and in both cases they fit well without the normal "baggy butt" look that you get with rain-pants.  The fit is athletic without being tight and the fabric has a little stretch so they don't bind at all.  They also have zippers on the bottom of the legs which when opened make it easy to put them on or take them off over shoes.  When the legs are zipped they are loose like a pair of warm up pants, but not so much that they rub the crank.

So far I have worn them a dozen or so times in temperatures ranging from 31-50 degrees and have had no issues with temperature.  At the lower end of the temp range with a stiff wind they got a little chilly when I was waiting on lights, but not to the point where my legs got cold, and when it got warmer the pants were warm but, once again, not to the point of being uncomfortable, and riding with the front pockets unzipped seemed to pull the heat out much like pit-zips in a jacket.  I still haven't used them with tights, but it seems like they would be good for a few more degrees without needing to do so.

As for the water resistance, I haven't ridden in conditions yet that would test that, but I already have some rain pants, and didn't get these for rain protection.  That said, the material seems like it would stand up to light rain or road spray.

As you can probably tell, I simply love these pants.  If I had a five star rating system I would give these pants six stars

Time to Escape

Since I was a child I have loved being in the 'outdoors'.  Growing up in the Germantown area of Louisville my favorite place in the world was the small wooded lot  next to St. Michael's cemetery, which the last time I was there a few years ago had become a Krogers' parking lot, my favorite past-time was riding my bike through almost every part of the city.  When I went to live with my grandmother in Breckinridge county, KY just before high school I began spending every free moment wandering in the woods, exploring the caves, and scrambling around on the sandstone cliffs which were all within eyesight of her house.  When I joined the Army just out of high school the 'outdoors' expanded for me whether it was the Bavarian Alps, Central American Highlands, or the mountains of North Carolina I loved them all.

After the Army I moved back to Kentucky, met the love of my life, got married, and had two wonderful children, but I still came up with reasons to spend as much time as possible in the 'outdoors.'  My wife and I even spent our honeymoon hiking and picnicking in Cumberland Falls State Park.

Three years, five months, and sixteen days after the start of that honeymoon my wife died leaving me with two very small children to take care of and my days in the outdoors ended--for a while.



Atop the Natural Bridge Red River Gorge, KY

When my son was five and my daughter six, I took them on their first camping trip to Land Between the Lakes.  This was followed by several trips to Red River Gorge where I taught them to rock climb (a passion I had picked up in Germany), and took them on bike rides through the gorge.

For Christmas 2000 the children and I went to Gatlingburg.  During that trip we went across the mountains to Cherokee, and then Asheville.  I had visited the area a couple of times with a friend while stationed at Fort Bragg, NC.  During our little touristy trip I fell in love with the area, and on July 4th weekend of the following year we moved to Asheville.

Linville Gorge, NC

Our home away from home

Through the next six years, the children and I went camping, biking, and rock climbing in areas all around western North Carolina including Table Rock/Linville Gorge, Boone, and Looking Glass Rock.  Then in 2006 I lost my job to a merger and downsizing and ended up in Indianapolis.

I like Indy okay, but I really miss the ability to drive for a few minutes and lose myself in the woods and mountains.  I have been back to Western North Carolina/ Eastern Tennessee a couple of times in the last six years went to New River Gorge in West Virginia once, and my son and I took a Christmastime trip to Red River Gorge a couple of years ago. But it hasn't been enough.

Like I mentioned above I like Indianapolis, it's a nice sized city and, as far as cities go it's relatively peaceful, but for the better part of a year now I have really been itching to escape back into the mountains.  My children are young adults now, and have started living their own lives--as it should be, leaving me to sit around daydreaming about rocks, water, and trees.  I am rarely happy anymore except when I am daydreaming in such a fashion. Then after a series of heart attacks back in May left my heart in rough shape I figured that my days wondering through the mountains were over, and the time I have left for anything has gotten quite a bit shorter.

I have since learned that riding my bike could be a suitable replacement for back-packing, so long as I take it slow and easy, which, as it turns out, is the perfect recipe for touring.  I had begun planning small trips in the hope that these will sate my need for wilderness, but had also started to doubt that this will be the case.

I have come to the conclusion that what I really need to do is embark on one last great escape.  I have always wanted to experience some of our grand national parks and monuments out west, especially Yellowstone and Devil's Tower, and what better way to do it than to go by bike.  Through research I have found that the Adventure Cycling Association's Northern Tier route, and Great Parks route will take me to or at least near these and other wonderful places.


So, I vow here and now that I will as soon as possible, hop on my bike, head north to the Northern Tier trail then head west.  I don't yet know how I am going to finance my escape, and the logistics for the trip are, at present, quite daunting, but I know that I will do this--that I need to do this, so I will find a way before it's too late.

DIY Fork Mount for Lights

I really like the convenience of having a handlebar bag.  It is a wonderful place to keep snacks, a camera, sunglasses, maps, and anything else that I might want close at hand while riding.  But, there is a downside to this convenience--they tend to prevent the use of handlebar mounted lights.

There are ways around this problem, but they generally cost more money than I am willing to spend.  One such idea is the Paul Components "Gino" Light Mount this clever little device mounts to any M5 threaded hole e.g. the fender mounts on dropouts, or the mid-fork braze-ons for front racks, and allows you to mount your light just as you would on handlebars.

My issue with this guy is that it costs, on average, $15.00.  Since I like to use two lights that means $30.00 just to mount my lights.  Since I already spend a good bit of my money on my bike; this was unacceptable.

Enter DIY and Lowes.


Taking the "Gino" as inspiration I headed to Lowes.  After a bit of playing aound in the plumbing section I walked out (after paying) with a 1/2 inch inside diameter PVC cap and an M5-80 x 20 Socket head cap screw (see picture left).

I drilled an 11/64 inch hole through the center of the cap for the screw.  I chose this diameter hole so that it would be small enough to "screw" the screw through it.  This threads the hole and thus keeps the cap from rotating around the screw if it were to loosen up which would cause the light to move.  If you drill a larger hole you could probably just use super-glue or something similar to hold the screw in place.

Next I primed and painted the whole thing black, so it went better colorwise with my gray fork.  You could obviously paint it any color you wished, or just leave it white.

Then, with the ever-present lock-tite I screwed my new gadget into the midfork braze-ons on my fork and mounted the light wahlah--fork mounts for lights that cost a grand total of $1.15 a piece.

The Ron Fork Light Mount in Action

You could also use a 1/2 threaded PVC plug with the same result, but I think the cap looks cleaner when the light isn't mounted to it.  And, if you don't have mid-fork braze-ons you can also mount this gadget to the fender-mounts on the dropouts, but you may need to use a nylon spacer between the "Ron Fork Light Mount" and the hole due to the axle bolt or quick release.  If you don't have mid-fork or fender mounting holes then this idea won't work for you, but there is another gadget that I saw using a type of hose clamp, and another one that used what is basically a zip-tie.  Either of these just might work for you, or give inspiration for your own DIY.

Thanksgiving Weekend Route

Well I think I have finalized my route for Thanksgiving Weekend the map is here.  I'm starting at a friend's house to avoid some of the Black Friday traffic that I would have to go through from home.  I still have a bit of that traffic to deal with, but from there it will be on wider roads, and in some cases roads that have those "sub-division exercise trails" along side of them.

I am still playing around with packing and equipment lists, and in all honesty probably will be until I actually pack the trailer on Thanksgiving day.  I have ordered some pants for the trip, (I will give more details on them in a later post) and am hoping to get a GPS before the trip so I can log details of the route, but finances are fighting me a bit on that--we'll see.

Grumpy Old Men

I've been cranking out a lot of miles lately; some around the city, some for errands, but mostly on the Monon and Fall Creek trails, and an observation that I read in a touring journal a while back keeps flashing through my head.

In this journal the author was talking about a short three-day self-supported tour he rode near his home.  On this tour the author spent a lot of time on established trails and he made some quick observations about the people he came across on these trails.  The part of the observations that stood out to me was a short casual remark about how the least-friendly people he ran into were middle-aged men.

Now-a-days the term "middle-aged" can mean different things for different people, but to me it is the age group of around my age (46) to just before traditional retirement age.  I took no offense at his remark, because I consider myself rather friendly and have noticed that my age group can be kinda grumpy.  But, lately this "grumpiness" has begun to bother me a bit.

No doubt due to the tour writer's comment I have been paying a lot of attention to who returns my greetings when I am riding, and it seems that the writer and I have been seeing the same people.  I say this because, by and large, the least friendly group of people I run into are middle-aged men, and this gets to me for many different reasons.

The first reason these guys bother me in one of selfishness.  I am a middle-aged man, and these guys are making all of us look bad.  When they snub people, or give curt insincere replies to well wishes they reinforce negative opinions that younger people already have of us, and this hurts me.

Then there's the negative effect that the Buzzkillingtons have on the people they come into contact with.  People use these trails for many different reasons: some for exercise, some to walk their dogs, some to get from point A to point B, some just to get some fresh air and get out of the house for a while.  Whatever the reason, people are on the trail as part of their life, and coming across some grumpy old bastard who can't take the time to say "good day" or smile puts negativity into their life, which is not what a jaunt on the local trail should do.

But, I think the biggest part of why these people bother me in the sense of entitlement that they exude.  By far, I have run into the guys most on the Monon north of 54th street.  For those of you who aren't from these parts, this is the part of the trail which runs through some of the more affluent sections of Indianapolis: Broad Ripple (my neighborhood), Carmel, Fischers, and others.  In Indianapolis, the farther north you live (in general) the better off you are financially, and I have noticed that this clique of grumpy old men starts here in my neighborhood and expands with northern progression.  I have also noticed that they are riding nice (i.e. pricey) bikes and not the "lesser quality" rides seen farther south on the trails, which by the way are what the nicer folks seem to ride.

This combination of latitude and expense leads me to believe (possibly unfairly I admit) that this group of grumpy guys is not on the trail due to a need to get to work cheaply, or to save money on gas by riding to the grocery instead of driving, and I never see them with dogs.  Yet, they seem to be on the trail against their will--which runs contrary to their station in life.  So I have come to the conclusion (once again possibly unfair on my part) that they are just being snobs with the attitude that us lesser folk shouldn't be addressing them, or possibly tainting them with our presence on their trail.

Regardless of the reason for their crappy disposition, these guys have become an irrational irritation to me.  I have realized that this irritation has begun to spoil a part of my life that I otherwise thoroughly enjoy, so I have started taking steps to alleviate the problem.  I have begun to ramp up my geniality as a way to contradict the negative opinion others may get of my generation from these grouches, and have noticed that my increased friendliness has made me (if not others) happier in return.  I am especially exuberant in my greetings to those who seem to belong to the group who bother me, in the hope that my cordiality may in some small way rub off.

While I would never begrudge anyone the joy of a bike ride, especially in the lower stress environment of an automobile free trail, it seems to me that these grumpy old men would be better served emotionally and physically by exercising in an environment more suited to their disposition like the stationary bike section of their country club exercise lounge with others of the same disposition and status.

I know that these ramblings have little to do with touring or serious cycle training, but give me a break, I am part of the Grumpy Old Man demographic.

Stage 1--Short trip

For my first real test run I have chosen a Thanksgiving weekend ride to Brown County State Park and back.  The plan is to ride to the park on Black Friday; stay at the campground, explore Nashville and the park on Saturday, then ride back home Sunday.

So far I plan to use a route I found online here.



The trip is short, just under 43 miles one way, but should be long enough to test out my bike, trailer, gear, and legs/heart.

To many a trip of this sort at this time of year may seem a bit extreme considering the weather, but for me trips like this are usually taken at this time of year.  Since the death of my wife the holidays have been a little depressing, so over the years I adopted a habit of taking the children on various climbing, camping, biking trips to occupy our time and minds.  Now that the children are young adults they aren't quite as interested in spending time with Dad in a tent at the base of some cliff somewhere, so I have started doing my trips solo.

I still have a couple of weeks to tweak things a bit, but for now the following is a list of what I plan to take on the trip:

• Bike (duh)
• Bike repair--tubes, flat repair, multi-tool, spokes, nuts and bolts, cables, etc.
• Nomad
• Tent-I'm hoping to be able to get an REI ASL tent because I don't think my MSR Hubba Hubba will cut it in the cold.  But, if the finances don't pan out for it I can borrow a friend's North Face VE-25.  The VE-25 is an ideal tent for cold weather, but is a little overkill in altitudes under 14,000 feet and it weighs almost twice as much as the ASL tent.
• 15 degree North Face sleeping bag
• REI self inflating sleeping pad
• Foam sleeping pad
• Jetboil stove and coffee press
• Katadyn water filter
• Nalgene 48 oz water bladder
• 2 Nalgene bottles
• Voltaic solar charger with the USB battery charger and LED light
• Assorted stuff sacks and dry bags
• On bike clothing-pants, jacket, base layers, gloves, rain gear, etc.
• Camp/casual clothing
• toiletries
• First aid kit w/ medications
• 4 meals (some meals will be covered by Restaurants in Nashville)
• Camera, MP3 player. phone
• Misc. items--Clif bars (don't leave home without 'em), gel packs, Nuun tablets, spare rechargeable batteries, etc.

Obviously some of these things are completely unnecessary for such a short trip, but my plan here is to test out some of the equipment as well as get an idea on packing and carrying/pulling these things around on the road before I commit to longer trips where they will prove more useful.

I will, of course post updates to the plan and details of the trip.

Also, I haven't expressly stated this, but I am VERY open to critiques, comments, suggestions and encouragement, so feel free to engage in such things.

Finally-I Can Begin to Begin

I can now finally begin to start touring.

I have my bike, a trailer, most of my gear, and seem to have recovered enough to start training.

My steed:

My Ride

I haven't given her a name yet, but (to me) she sure is pretty.  She is a 2012 KHS Urban Xcel (supposedly short for accelerate).  I won't bore you with component details, but if you want you can get them here.  I picked this bike primarily because it had what I was looking for--steel frame, disc brakes, longish wheelbase, 9x3 drive train, and upright geometry all at a price I could afford.  I am already looking at potential upgrades in the components and wheels, but what I have now looks solid enough to get me going and keep me going through some initial trips.

Interim Cockpit

I have added some things to the basic bike to make her more trip worthy.  The first thing I did was change the handlebars from the mountain-bike style bars that came with her to a set of trekking bars.  (This picture is to show the bars;  The cockpit isn't complete and I plan on a seperate post on just the cockpit once it is.)




I love these bars for a couple of reasons the main one being multiple hand positions.  I have always had issues with hand numbness, and since my heart-attack this issue has gotten worse, so being able to move my hands around a lot while still maintaining control of my bike is a big deal to me.  The trekking bars accommodate this quite well while providing a lot of space for mounting all of the paraphernalia that I want close at hand--lights, computers, bar bag, GPS, etc.

The next addition was fenders.  I am not a big fan of road spray to the face, so fenders were almost mandatory unless I only ride on dry roads.  During drought season here this isn't an issue, but during the other 2/3 of the year it is, so I bought a set of Axiom Rainrunner Trekk Reflex fenders.  I will probably post a review of these later, but for now I will say that they were a real pain to install, but after installation they seem to be what I needed.

Then came the rear-rack.  This took me a while to decide upon.  I plan to use my Nomad for hauling gear, but I wanted a rack that could serve me for commuting/grocery duty as well as hold my solar charger and small things during a trip.  I settled on Topeak's Super Tourist because it seemed to fit the bill for everything I was looking for.  I also got the Trolley Tote for grocery runs.

I have mentioned commuting and grocery runs a couple of times now.  These are big in my overall plan, because they supply training miles.  I have decided to park my Jeep and use my bike for anything I possibly can, which is why I have tried to go for gear that fulfill multiple roles.  Since I am neither independently wealthy or retired I have to spend a good part of my life working to pay the bills and buy what I need for touring. So, in order to do the needed training for touring I use my bike to travel to job sites (when feasible) and to do my daily errands (grocery, recycling, post office, etc.) then on the weekends I ride farther and do practice runs with the trailer.

Some other things I have gotten for my new-found obsession include my Voltaic solar charger, a USB battery charger to use with the Voltaic, a new MP3 player, and a rain jacket.  There are still things I want/need, but they will have to come as I can afford them.