13.11 miles - Commute/Shady Oak Extension - 5/30/08

13.11 miles
avg 18.0
max 31.8
cal 495.3
0.43.33
Poprad

Great ride both ways....

8.07 miles - Commute - 5/29/08

8.07 miles
avg 16.6
max 30.5
cal 294.5
0.29.01
Poprad

Nice ride home in the rain....unbelievably, I had to replace my rear brake pads already, after only a few hundred miles...

20.18 miles - Commute/Williston Extension - 5/28/08

20.18 miles
avg 17.2
max 38.4
cal 728.3
1.10.06
Poprad

Williston Rd going north to south is awesome indeed - and fast. Hill climbing is getting easier for me, which is fantastic - it means my fitness level has improved. It is also cool that my total miles has exceeded 1000 this year so far. I am hoping to surpass my goal of 2500 miles and hit the 3000 mark....we shall see!!

1015 total miles (approximate) - 350 commuter miles (approximate)

13.13 miles -Commute/Shady Oak Extension - 5/27/08

13.13 miles
avg 17.3
max 32.7
cal 468.5
0.45.22
Trek Commuter

Great ride home at dusk...

15.41 miles - Errands - 5/26/08

15.41 miles
avg 12.9
max 22.8
cal 400.8
1.11.29
Greenpeace with ride-a-long

Rode down around Lake Calhoun and back to Trader Joe's for some dinner stuff....later a very short ride around the 'hood with Liam...

9.63 miles - Punch Pizza/Cruizin' with kids - 5/24/08

9.63 miles

avg 9.5

max 19.7

cal 164.5

1.00.42

Greenpeace with ride-a-long

Went with the fam to Punch Pizza in Calhoun Vilage via the SW Corridor....came home and later cruised the 'hood with my kids in the late evening...

23.81 miles - Errands - 5/23/08

23.81 miles
avg 13.4
max 35.0
cal 610.2
1.45.59
Greenpeace with ride-a-long

Liam and I hooked up the ride-a-long and ran all of our errands. First we went to the hardware store in Hopkins. We then went to the park on McGinty Rd, where Liam bossed around some younger kids and sold me some movie tickets at the "ticket booth." Then we went to eat at Ridgedale Subway - footlong meatball and vinegar chips of course. Then we went to Penn Cycle to grab my paycheck, pick up the heart rate monitor that Al sold me and get Liam a new "Incredibell" because he broke his old one. Liam also got a ride on Doug's motor scooter - very cool! Then we went to Trader Joe's to pick up some dinner, took a detour around Bass Lake and home....

19.68 miles - Commute/Errands/Lake Calhoun - 5/22/08

19.68 miles
avg 17.6
max 27.4
cal 692.6
1.06.58
Poprad

On yesterday's post I noted how these foolish testosterone idiots keep passing me and then slowing down in front of me because they expend all their energy catching me, while I am simply pacing myself and enjoying my ride...well, today, some out-of-shape dick (I hope I can say that on the Internet) on a yellow Kestrel tri-bike, with a yellow jersey and yellow cycling shoes was tailing me while I didn't now it...here I am riding along the trail between Lake Calhoun and Lake of the Isles and I think I here a chain that needs lubed behind me...I don't pay any mind for a while, then I look back and there is this dick right on my back wheel...so I swerve quickly and yell "just go around" and he slowly proceeds around me....why do people do that crap???

Other than that it was a cool ride home from work, around the lake and home again, with a stop at Trader Joes first....

36.84 miles - Greenway/Cedar Lake/ SW Coriidor - 5/21/08

36.84 miles
avg 17.3
max 31.1
cal 1288.2
2.07.31
Poprad

If you ever take the Greenway east and you have time, it is worth a stop at The Birchwood Cafe on 25th st in South Minneapolis. When you come off the Greenway, go north a couple of blocks on the River Parkway and turn left onto 25th st. Birchwood is only a couple of blocks west.

I make it a point every time I take a ride that way to stop at Birchwood. The food is fantastic and you get bottomless cups of java...

It was a very nice day for a ride...I have to tell ya that I am a bit tired of foolish dudes who think they are hot shit and catch me and then, since they exhausted themselves catching me, proceed to slow in front of me and then I end up passing them again....quite annoying...

13.11 miles - Commute/Shady Oak Extension - 5/21/08

13.11 miles
avg 16.4
max 32.3
cal 433.4
0.47.44
Trek Commuter

Advice....stretch regularly...every pedal stroke on my way to work was agonizing...I stretched at work and had a great ride home in the dark.

8.06 miles - Commute - 5/19/08

8.06 miles
avg 16.8
max 29.5
cal 287.6
0.28.41
Trek Commuter

Totally free of incident...

10 miles (approx) MTB - Murphy Hanrehan Park

10 miles

Kona Manomano

(stock photo from http://www.threeriversparkdistrict.org/parks/murphy-hanrehan.cfm where you download a PDF of the trail)

I got up early and christened my full-suspension Kona Manomano at Murphy-Hanrehan Park. There is nothing like jamming full speed on tight single track...now I know what it is like on a decent mountain bike....anyway, I flatted within the first mile or so and learned how to use my CO2 pump the hard way. All I had with me was a superlite tube, so I was on pins and needles the rest of the ride, hoping that I wouldn't flat again. I ended up taking an obstacle that I never would normally take - by accident!! It was a step obstacle that sprang up around a bend on a downhill. I ended up pretty much not using my brakes and just hanging on to the bike. I was shaken up for about 10 minutes afterward, but it was cool...

I did, however, wipe out - about .2 miles from the end of the trail. There were some knuclenuts standing with their back wheels on the trail chatting and in an effort to avoid them, I scraped a small berm and end up being thrown off my bike and sliding past them on the dusty trail.

Great time!

8 miles - Commute - 5/21/08

8 miles
Bianchi SS

22 miles total - Commute/YMCA - 5/16/08

14 miles
Greenpeace with ride-a-long

Took Liam to the gym after stopping for donuts and coffee at Dunn Bros in Minnetonka Mills...on the way home at the intersection of Hopkins Crossroads and the 394 frontage rd, a community police volunteer stopped us and gave Liam a certificate for a free ice cream cone at Dairy Queen - all because he was wearing his helmet - he thought it was the coolest thing ever...we had an awesome ride today...

8 miles
Bianchi SS

Rode to work on my Bianchi....very fun bike to ride, but I may have to replace the flip flop hub in the rear because it is making some creepy noises....

29.51 miles - Commute/errands/locked myself out of the house - 5/15/08

29.51 miles
avg 16.8
max 30.1
cal 992.3
1.45.07
Trek Commuter

Beautiful day to get home from work and notice that I can see my keys hanging next to the back door through the window...so I called my wife and went to trader Joes and fetched some dinner stuff - I took the long way to Trader Joes - around Lake Calhoun....great day, great ride!!

Vintage Trek Commuter

I purchased this frame from a friend for a six pack of brew.

I built it from the frame up...piece-by-piece.

It has:

• Bontrager Race Lite wheels


• Continental Gator Skins tires


• Bontrager saddle


• Bontrager Select handlebar - 44cm


• Shimano bar end shifter - 9 speed


• KHS removeable fenders


• Bontrager Race Lite cranks and BB


• carbon fiber seat post


• Shimano 105 rear derailleur


• Salsa Cromoto quill stem

I originally had a straight bar with an LX shifter but I wanted more reach so I installed the drop bars.

Now this is a great and confortable bike that is a true pleasure to commute with....

Kona Manomano - full suspension mountain bike

Here is my Manomano. I bought (an awesome deal - at 200 bucks) this used with very few miles.

The lady I bought it off of had it from new ad didn't ride it because it was too big for her, and she was going into the military and had to unload it quick.

It had a finagled crank setup. So I had to replace the bottom bracket, chainrings and crank.

I installed a used LX crank that is perfectly fine.

It's got an XT rear derailleur, LX shifters, Continental Supersonic foldable tires, Fox Vanilla Float rear shock, and a Marzochi Bomber front fork.

40.29 miles - Greenway/U of MN/Cedar Lake - 5/14/08

40.29 miles
avg 18.0
max 30.2
cal 1444.1
2.14.14
Poprad

Great day for a ride....just air conditioning...like the title says I took the Greenway to the U of MN and back across the river on Franklin (I think) and stopped for coffee and a cookie at Birchwood Cafe... took the parkway south to Lake Nokomis and then the Minnehaha Parkway to Lake Hariet and then past Lake Calhoun to the Cedar Lake Trail to Excelsior and home on the SW Corridor...not one rude driver today....everyone was very courteous - both on bikes and in cars...
The Poprad is doing very well with the Bontrager X Lite road tires. I will keep them on for awhile...I don't think I want to ride any nice bikes so early in the spring any longer. I am hearing the grinding noise from sand in the drive train. I tried cleaning and lube, but I may have to get more extensive in cleaning the Poprad and trying to be a bit more careful with road sand....

13 Miles - Commute/Shady Oak Extension - 5/12/08

13 miles
Bianchi SS

Maiden voyage on the Bianchi single speed...I rode it to work as a fixed gear, and rode it home as a single speed...although riding fixed gear is a really interesting and cool experience, I feel like I don't have much control and prefer the single speed version.

So now the Bianchi is set up with 39 tooth ring in the front and a 16 tooth freewheel in the rear.

Bianchi Single Speed

I finally picked myself up a decent vintage road frame for my flip flop wheel set. I came across this Bianchi road bike at a yard sale in the Fern Hill Neighborhood. The guy had it originally priced at 120 bucks, but I got it for 80 bucks.

Once it came home I stripped it down and installed the new wheel set. I replaced the brake levers, handlebar tape, saddle, cables and housing.

I still have to install the 14 tooth freewheel and take off the large chain ring....

The top photo is the most recent and the bottom three are during the strip down process...

13.19 miles - Commute/Shady Oak Extension - 5/12/08

13.19 miles
avg 16.7
max 29.1
cal 446.9
0.47.25
Trek Commuter

My old Trek is working great...Doug indexed the bar end shifter (which I could've done, but he is a great dude)...
It was pretty windy for the ride home, but it was a nice, warm and sunny day. Gonna take my new (old) Bianchi single speed to work tomorrow to get the freewheel 14 tooth cog attached (I have the wrong tool) and take off one of the front chain rings (I need a spacer set)...then I will be in action with a cool beater bike...

12.00 miles - Commute - 5/9/08

12.00 miles
avg 16.7
max 31.9
cal 435.9
0.42.59

Trek Commuter

12.20 miles - Cedar Lake quick loop - 5/7/08

12.20 miles
avg 18.5
max 23.0
cal 434.3
0.39.29
Poprad

Beautiful day for a ride. The leaves are starting to emerge on the deciduous trees and you can actually smell the chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides being sprayed on peoples lawns....its spring in the suburbs...
There were a few recreational riders on the trails....mostly just gramma's and grandpa's our strolling on their upright hybrid and cruiser bikes...which is cool anyway. I only wish I had more time to ride longer!!

720 total miles (approximate) - 250 commuting miles (approximate)

17.12 miles - Errands - 5/6/08

17.12 miles
avg 17.5
max 30.7
cal 625.0
0.58.38
Trek Commuter

Maiden voyage of my new and improved vintage Trek Commuter. I decided to give it a try and see how my upgrades work...turns out just fine!!
I took the SW Corridor to Excelsior Blvd to Shady Oak rd. Then I went onto Minnetonka Blvd and up Plymouth Rd to the library....then off to Office Max next to Home Depot in St. Louis Park via the 394 frontage road. Then back to Louisiana Ave and home...
Nice ride...

8.08 miles - Commute - 5/6/08

8.08 miles
avg 16.0
max 31.6
cal 274.0
0.30.10
Poprad

22.97 miles - Errands/Commute - 5/5/08

14.91 miles
max 36.7
Greenpeace with ride-a-long

8.06 miles
avg 16.2
max 31.5
cal 264.6
0.29.44
Trek Commuter

Rode on Greenpeace pulling Liam to lunch at Bruggers Bagels and then to the YMCA and back home just in time to go to work.

Then off to work with a quick switch of bikes....would've been an awesome night for a night-ride, but the wifey wanted me home ASAP....

Thatcher's Varsity coming along...

In this pic Thatcher is cleaning the bike. We have all the cables pulled off. Today I will pick up his tires and we can begin replacing all the cables, housing, brake pads, bar tape, and tires.

20.43 miles - Errands - 5/4/08

20.43 miles
max 27.7
Greenpeace with ride-a-long

Picked up Thatcher from archery at the Westwood Nature Center. Then rode with him over to the Jones' house. Liam and I stopped at Target on the way home to pick up some marshmallows for toasting...a fun Sunday of riding with the boys...

8.10 miles - Commute - 5/2/08

8.10 miles
avg 17.3
max 32.2
cal 300.7
0.28.04
Poprad

Very tired...steady downpour all the way home...cold and stinging face...but fun!

12.44 miles - Commute/Shady Oak Extension/Got Flipped Off for No Reason - 5/1/08

Note: This is an actual picture of Bush giving the finger. You can see the video here.

12.44 miles

avg 17.8

max 31.1

cal 476.4

0.41.58

Poprad

I way overdressed for this ride...I was roasting. I thought it was going to rain.

On my way in to work I was going north on Shady Oak Rd on my way to Minnetonka Blvd and as I was going down a hill there was a mail truck parked on the road. The lady moving up beside me slowed down to let me go...I waved my appreciation and she kind;y waved back in acknowledgement. I felt really great about that. 15 seconds later as I rode over the next hill and down the other side a truck with a small trailer stopped at the stop sign. The gray haired clean cut guy behind the wheel reached out of his winder and FLIPPED ME OFF. I totally and intentionally failed to react, because that is what he wanted me to do. He is obviously a coward and knows that as he has to do is push down on his pedal and I cannot catch him. He is obviously a dickhead and a bully and I am not going to give him the rise that he was looking for with his gesture.

Within 20 seconds I saw both sides of the coin and was a microcosm of the up and downs of respect and commuting to and from work.