TT biking club

“big bike swap at the local velladrome here in Eastern PA. can't wait till morning!”

“This dog is particularly dangerous/at risk as I am pedalling uphill when I pass his home, therefore I can't outpedal him. This allows him to run around me in circles, into traffic and such. I try to avoid the urge to swerve.

Generally I swear profusely at the owners if they are outside, watching silently as their dog runs out into traffic to chase me. They seem to be shocked by my words of anger - this works particularly well if their small children are watching. Apparently it's ok for their child to witness the beloved family pet get killed by a motorist, but it's not ok for their children to hear profanities. I am a bad person if I dislike being chased by a dog while biking, but a motorist is a bad person if they hit a dog who runs out in traffic. I remember one poor woman was practically hysterical as she called in vain to her dog as he crossed two lanes of traffic to chase me.

I have pepper spray that I'll bring along next time, or rocks. I feel bad for the critter though, too bad to hurt the dog when the owner is really to blame.

Skeetah - I used to ask everyone I knew for pledges - I got lots of $5 and $10 pledges. I hate asking for pledges. Now I get my pledges through MSECCA (United Way for State Employees) that we are pressured into doing anyway, and people just assign their donation to ALAM and I claim it. Easy.

There are additional costs though - $50 to sign up, then you have to get to Newry. I usually get someone to drive me up Thursday night (a four hour drive for them), then I pay to stay over. I stay at the Sunday River Inn at the bottom of the mountain, and it's $30 per person for a room, $20 for a bunk (I did this my first Trek and did not sleep one single wink all night) and $10 to tent. $5 each for breakfast and they cart your luggage up the mountain to the Ryder trucks. Real nice people, and I always get a room there. There's also a spaghetti dinner at the top of the mountain for $8 and a bar. :)

The rest of the weekend is FREE though. You just need someone to come get you at the finish line. Can be Pain In The Butt. Although - there may be shuttles from your neck of the woods.

It's a blast, but for me that means down time - no worries for three days. Once I start pedalling on Friday until the time I stop on Sunday, I'm spoiled rotten.

Last year I knew some people who were apalled at the idea of tenting (not to mention porta potties - heavens!) and leaving their bikes outside and drove home to South Portland each night, and back again each morning. You can pretty much do what you want.”

“Hey Twigeater, suppose we really dislike raising pledges? How much would it cost us if we just pledged ourselves and bought our way in? I can't imagine driving back home every night. The down time is the biggest motivator to get out there, where ever "there" is.”

“The minimum pledge amount is $450, plus the registration fee of $50. The rest is up to you, you can drive up that morning and not spend the money to stay over.

I always get my bike tuned up ($40) something I should do myself, but heck, it's fun to see the bike guys once a year. We're required to have our bike inspected, but that's free.

Then there's training time - I spend most of April and May biking so the Trek is fun instead of work. We've had some hilly routes.”

“20 miles today, 10 of that into the wind, but it was a great ride. I felt great and took the back roads on the return route. I coulda stayed out longer, but was anxious to pick up my grandkids and spend time with them. :)”

“Wow...hardcore eh Twig...good for you!!! How, where do you find that many miles? Around here I run out of places to go...either that or I've just been there too many times, that I get tired of the same routes.

Hey I went to the LL Bean store and found some gloves that fit!! Now I just gotta get out there!

The Trek sounds like fun, I just can't seeing being able to get that much for sponsoring. I guess I'll just have to do my own thing.... :(”

“Finally got to do some moutain biking this year, up at Pontiac lake, rode about 35 miles yesterday. The trail there is great with some awesome downhills, litte scary the first time though. Im so tired and my legs are beat, but it was fun.”

“Yeah....finailly got a ride in today. Into Portland and back, by the Greenbelt Trail and the Harbor Walk Trail to see how long it will take to ride to the gym, only about 25 min each way, it's about 5 miles. Not too bad, I'm sure after a while we'll cut that time down. The gloves I bought at LL Bean worked great. As long as the weather holds, we'll try to ride every day now, increasing on the miles. I'm happy now we finailly got out :)”

“Glad to hear you got out and glad to hear you found some gloves! I don't blame you about getting pledges - if I was gonna pay for it myself, there's plenty of other great biking tours for that or less.

Skeetah there's lots of good riding around here.
After work I park on Rte 27 down the road past the Civic Center and bike various routes from there. I do most of my long (40-50mile) hill rides from my house. I live off 201 so that gives me lots of options.
I also like to take roads and see where they go, and I've found some really nice routes that way.

I used to bike to Round Pond harbor and I got lost along the way a few times. It's interesting when you get lost on a bike, lol.”

“Anyone use White Lightening chain lube? I switched from Pedros Synlube to it last year and it pretty much does away with the greasy mess of cleaning and lubing the chain. So far chain and chainring wear seems to be OK. I usually go through a few chains every season anyway. Now if they could come up with something similar for my motorcycles, I'd really be happy. I hate cleaning chains and the oily mess associated with it.”

“Richb, White Lightning is all I've used for years.”

“I don't use it, but have friends that do. Course my chain is a greasy mess. :) I did buy a chain cleaner recently though.

A few chains every season, wow! What are ya doing on that bike anyway richb?

30 miles last night, it was 60 degrees! We've still got ice on the ponds so it was nice to pedal past them and feel that chilly air.”

“richb, I use pedros cleaner and lubes (wet or dry). I actually cleaned the chain last night. I was reading the label itsaid "biodegradable" in bold font. On the back in small print it said " harmful to the environment" hmmmm.”

“Twigeater, I like to replace the chain before it gets 1/8" of play in 12" of chain. It helps the chainrings last longer, is more reliable and helps keep chainsuck from getting bad. Off road riding is harder on chains than road riding and they just don't last as long in the dirt.

Birch, I'll have to check the bottle of the White Lightening for nasty chemicals, but the stuff smells like it has bad things in it.”

“White lightning is amazing....”

“My coldest bike ride ever last night - 36 degrees and I can' t believe how nasty that wind was. I only had time for a 20 miles ride fortunately!
brrrrrr!”

“So I decided to go for a quick 15 miler tonite. It rained all day and finally cleared up about 7pm. So I decided to head out. I was 4 miles into my ride, just about to get in the park where its safer for cyclists when some knucklehead teenage girl drives right into me . I was obeying the trafic laws as I went through the intersection but some how she didnt see me. I actually dont know if she hit me or not. I went down but have no road rash or damage to my bike. My ankle (on the car side) is a bit sore and my leg has a small red spot but I honestly dont know if I was hit or not. All I remeber was asking her " do you know how to f@cking drive? You know you could have f@cking killed me!"

You really gotta love biking in suburban detroit. This makes me greatful I wear a helmet.”

“Wow! Glad you are all right. I haven't been hit by a car yet but if you ride long enough.... I try to make eye contact with the driver but it doesn't always work. I rode Sat. & Sun. without anybody getting close. That's an oddity here in rural Arkansas.”

“DANG, birch!! that is like my worst nightmare. it could have been even worse, though, i guess...i'm glad you're alright!

i mountain biked for the first time 2 weekends ago, and again over this past weekend...very fun! actually, i prefer biking on more path-like paths (if you know what i mean) than i do over roots and rocks and all that jazz. that's little TOO rugged for me.

i've been using one of Tarpy's old bikes, and when i told my mom i was into it, she said my dad just won a mountain bike that will fit me at some office party, and that i could have it! woo hoo! isn't that just lucky.”

“Wow, lucky you Lyra....yeah, I actually prefer road/trail paths rather than the extreme gotta use this mountain bike for what's it made for....roots, rocks, and such. Although we just did do a little yesterday, some of it I stopped and walked over, course Monkey Boy didn't.

Bought the mountain bike when it first became the thing to do and got rid of my ten speed, now I kick myself for not keeping my ten speed. Don't get me wrong I do like my mountain bike, just not into killing myself riding it. I actually changed the tires from fat tires to more skinner ones for the road.

Been riding bikes since I was a kid. Just like driving always looking out for the other driver/biker...been pretty lucky not having any encounters with others...just myself. Fell once off my bike(ten speed) going from the road to the sidewalk(trying to show my then 8yr old daughter safe habits).LOL Yeah that worked good, got scraped up and dislocated my shoulder. It was pretty funny after I looked at what happened.”

“Holy crap birch! Glad you're ok, sounds like that was close!”

“Tonight's ride was great! I did one of my favorite hill routes that gives me lots of hills including a mile long uphill and a short steep downhill. I've clocked my fastest speed of 43mph on that hill. For a chicken like me that's pretty fast - and what a rush! I only got 37.5mph tonight.
The ride is also interesting for me as I grew up here and I think about how much it's changed and all the memories.

On the way back, I pedalled up to a big fat beaver waddling along the side of the road, too cool!”

“twigeater, sounds like a nice place to ride. I am jealous...watch those speeds, you'll get a ticket lol!”

“I'm chicken too for going fast. I used to be fearless for going fast, but a few falls changed that. I don't like what happens after the fall. The doctor and hospital visits, the pain and the headache later on of dealing with the medical system when the paper work and bills start rolling in.
Now, my number one goal is to go out and get a good workout, but not get hurt in the process.”

“I've been 50 mph but only on good pavement. If you try to go that fast on chip & seal roads you are asking for trouble. Does anyone own a Litespeed? I am looking at buying the Tuscany & wanted to here any pros or cons anyone might have.”

“If anyone in the Salt Lake City area is interested we will begin Sunday morning rides at the Sandy REI beginning this Sunday (the 4th) at 8:00 am.

Recreational rides, non-competitive, for all abilities. Come join us.”

“Love the bikin' Keeps me ready to do the hard walks. Lucky to live in Williamson, Co, TN, road bike mecca of the southeast, miles of hilly backroads right out the back door (Natchez Trace Pky), etc. Have a hill on my road leading up to backbone ridge, routinely go up it at 5mph but down at 48, skeeeery, but fun.”

“Wow, Twig...good for you....what do you have for a bike? I think maybe I'd have a hard time keeping up with you with my bike.”

“BIKINI CLUB???”

“I see the skinny tire people on the Trek screaming down the hills - must be going 50mph anyway. That scares me, especially the thought of wiping out going that fast.

Skeetah don't worry about keeping up with me, I only get speeds like that pedaling like crazy downhill. My average speed on a ride is 12-16mph depending on the route.
I have a Cannondale Silkpath 300, crossbike.

I'm just the opposite mtman, if I've been biking I suck wind hiking.”

“arky, my buddies tri-racing bike is a litespeed. A guy at work is trying to sell me his litespeed mtn-bike frame, its a 97 but hardly used...I wish I could answer specifics but cant. I do know that my buddy loves his but just like any hobby, gear is very subjective.”

“Thanks Birch. Litespeed bikes are sooooo expensive. I am trying to decide if I want to drop that much cash for a bike.”

“Well, I took the plunge. I now am the proud yet somewhat poorer owner of a Litespeed Tuscany. Took it out for a short ride yesterday. I love it.”

“Holy crap, I am so far behind on my training! I rode two days last week, 35 hill miles and 30 flat miles, but haven't ridden for SIX days! Today is the first day it hasn't been rainy and windy and COLD after work, so I'm headed out tonight.
My butt is gonna be hurtin'... :(”

“On my ride last night I decided I was bored with the 30 mile out and back trip, so opted for some exploring instead. I headed down this beautifully shaded dirt road on a lake and saw what I first thought was the biggest grey squirrel I'd ever seen running up a tree. I only saw a flash of it's tail. I stopped and soon the cute little masked face of a young racoon peeked around the tree at me.
The Canadian Geese babies are out as well. This is one of the perks of biking, getting to see lots of roadside wildlife!”

“I agree. I usually see more wildlife riding my mountain bike than I do hiking. I think because you come up on animals fast and silent. If you really want to see creatures, go for a nightime mountain bike ride. Everything comes out at night and you will see eyes shining through the forest. It's harder to make out detail like the daytime, but those eyes are cool.”

“Sounds cool richb, I'll have to try that sometime!
I see more wildlife on the main roads than when I head out into the country. I think it's because there are more dogs on the back roads.
Once my route took me by an Osprey nest that had babies. Mommy or Daddy screeched and dive bombed me and I pedalled like crazy to get past!”

“Had my first crash yesterday. In-laws are in town, so I let them use my car and I ride my road bike to/from work, about 6 miles each way. I was on my way home, cruising down a slight hill at about 15-20 mph, and some a-hole in a big ol' honkin' pickup truck decided that would be a good time to pull out from a side street... and STOP, completely blocking my path. I hit the brakes and skidded. I steered a hair to the right, hoping he would move out a few more feet, then I could release the brakes and whiz by behind him, but no such luck. So as soon as I slowed down enough that the back wheel stopped skidding and grabbed the pavement, my momentum rotated me up and over the left side of my handlebars - splat! I hopped up pretty quick and shouted "You stupid son of a b___!!" He took off, of course.

Here's the weird part: somehow, and I don't really know how, I only ended up with a decent sized scrape on my left elbow (but with no road dirt ground in, as I was wearing a long sleeve T-shirt), and a small scrape on my left knee. Several passers-by asked if I was OK, and the looks on their faces told me they couldn't believe my answer was "Yeah." Of course, by nightfall, I was really sore - elbow, back (where I landed), and the muscles sort of under my left arm around to my chest. Sorer still today, but alive, anyway.

Good thing the guy took off, 'cause he'd probably be in the hospital now....”

“Dang, that sucks. Glad it wasn't worse.

I have fond memories of two bicycle crashes, one gave me a few chin stitches, the other gave my brother-in-law a serious road-rash and almost hung me out to dry on a barbed-wire fence.

(Both were my own stupid fault.)”

“Man, what a moron (not you, Marty!)!
Glad you're OK. I can't believe he took off after you went down; he should have at least stopped to see if you were OK then took off! That might have been illegal; leaving the scene of an accident.
Just add one more to the list of "Stupid Driver Tricks".

If anything like that ever happens again, and assuming you're OK, just scream, "My neck! Wait til my attorney gets through with you!"”

“One thought I had (in hindsight) was that I should have let up on the brakes and actually ran into his truck. As it was, he could have easily claimed he didn't know there had been an accident. But if I ran into him and he left, then we're talkin' felony hit & run. Besides, it woulda been nice to put a few scratches on his paint job....

Forgot to mention, not 3 minutes after it happened, a cop happened to drive by. I wasn't able to get a license plate, so there was no point in flagging him down, but wouldn't that have been great if the cop had come by just a few minutes earlier?!”

“Don't worry- the cop will be there next time you drive 5 mph over the speed limit.”

“Ouch! glad to hear you're ok, Martyb!”

“Hey, you'll like this one! My wife almost hit a bison while she was biking in Yellowstone one morning. She was zooming down the highway in the Lamar Valley and a very large bull ambled across the road. Her first thought was she could beat it across on the left, but it got to the middle, stopped and it was too late to go right , so she skidded, but didn't fall, about 10 feet from it.

She probably would have been ticketed for harrassing wildlife!”

“That jerk! Where's an (armed) ranger when you need one?!”

“Well, I'm biking more now and running less, so I'm enjoying all the idiot drivers as well. I bike to work occasionally and have a few close calls so I'm pretty defensive. I've had a couple drivers start to pull out in front of me but stop short. So, Marty, your accident was a good reminder to always assume they'll do something stupid!”

“I try to make eye contact, but that's not always possible.

I do my best swearing while biking. :) I can't keep my trap shut and my fingers wrapped around the handlebars where they belong, LOL, which will bring me trouble one day I'm sure. I'm especially prolific when people stand there and watch their dogs chase me.”

“Maybe we should all get bike shirts with "My Lawyer's Phone Number is 555-XXXX" in BIG letters on the back!”

“Marty- Were you clipped in or did you just have regular pedals? I'm using Shimano SPD clips on my good road bike, but for commuting on my old Mtn. bike I'm using Power Straps. I can be more "evasive" with those it seems.”

“I have ordinary toe clips and straps, although I typically wear regular sneakers or running shoes instead of bike shoes w/cleats (I bought some road bike shoes w/cleats at REI a couple years ago whe my old ones wore out, but have never gotten around to making them fit my pedals/clips). Not really sure how/when my feet got out of the clips - I guess when you're flying through the air you can't always absorb all the details....”