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dry run to the markets



 
 
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  #1  
Old June 20th 08, 04:00 AM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
bob syr
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Posts: 16
Default dry run to the markets

Cyclists -

Bike: Sun Retro-Alloy Cruiser. It’s a 3-speed with coaster brakes.
Today I took a dry run to the grocers and mall where I'll do most of
my shopping. There is one hill of which I still can’t get to the
top. I’d like to stand up to pedal, but I’m still quite large and I’m
afraid my chain will break.

Once I’m able to climb that hill, I’ll install my pannier baskets,
which weigh about 6 lbs and try a few more dry runs to the stores.
The baskets will be more or less permanently attached, so I might get
a used bike for exercise and fun riding. I like the 3-speed but maybe
I’ll try a 5-speed to get used to the up-to-date bike gears.

There’s another hill right by my house (at the top of the hill)
Lately I’ve been making it to the top of that one, but by then I’m in
the lowest gear and I’m almost to a full stop, not to mention out of
breath. I’d rather not get into that situation while away from
home.

Local buses now have bike racks and there’s a park in Liverpool with
great bike paths. And also you can ride along the Erie Canal for
endless water-level miles, from what I hear. I think the pannier
baskets will interfere with loading on bus and car racks, but I won’t
know ‘til I try it.

Happy riding,

Bob Syr
Syracuse, NY
Ads
  #2  
Old June 20th 08, 05:54 AM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
David L. Johnson
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Posts: 1,048
Default dry run to the markets

bob syr wrote:
Cyclists -

Bike: Sun Retro-Alloy Cruiser. It’s a 3-speed with coaster brakes.
Today I took a dry run to the grocers and mall where I'll do most of
my shopping. There is one hill of which I still can’t get to the
top. I’d like to stand up to pedal, but I’m still quite large and I’m
afraid my chain will break.


Have no fear on that score. Your chain will not break. Lots of large
cyclists climb very steep hills in very low gears, and their chains
don't break.

Once I’m able to climb that hill, I’ll install my pannier baskets,
which weigh about 6 lbs and try a few more dry runs to the stores.
The baskets will be more or less permanently attached, so I might get
a used bike for exercise and fun riding. I like the 3-speed but maybe
I’ll try a 5-speed to get used to the up-to-date bike gears.


Up-to-date?

There’s another hill right by my house (at the top of the hill)
Lately I’ve been making it to the top of that one, but by then I’m in
the lowest gear and I’m almost to a full stop, not to mention out of
breath. I’d rather not get into that situation while away from
home.


That's part of the fun. Really.

Local buses now have bike racks and there’s a park in Liverpool with
great bike paths. And also you can ride along the Erie Canal for
endless water-level miles, from what I hear. I think the pannier
baskets will interfere with loading on bus and car racks, but I won’t
know ‘til I try it.


I don't really get the bike-on-bus or bike-on-train idea. I mean, you
have a bike. What do you need with a bus or train? For now, bike where
you are, and go where you can on the bike.

--

David L. Johnson

"What am I on? I'm on my bike, six hours a day, busting my ass.
What are you on?"
--Lance Armstrong
  #3  
Old June 20th 08, 04:05 PM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Paul O
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Posts: 274
Default dry run to the markets

David L. Johnson wrote, On 6/20/2008 12:54 AM:
bob syr wrote:
snip

Local buses now have bike racks and there’s a park in Liverpool with
great bike paths. And also you can ride along the Erie Canal for
endless water-level miles, from what I hear. I think the pannier
baskets will interfere with loading on bus and car racks, but I won’t
know ‘til I try it.


I don't really get the bike-on-bus or bike-on-train idea. I mean, you
have a bike. What do you need with a bus or train? For now, bike
where you are, and go where you can on the bike.

I certainly get the "bike-on-bus or bike-on-train idea". Its fun explore
other places - places that are too far away to comfortably reach from
home by bicycle.

Bob just wants to check out some other places to ride. What's wrong with
that?

--

Paul D Oosterhout
I work for SAIC (but I don't speak for SAIC)

  #4  
Old June 20th 08, 05:12 PM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Leo Lichtman
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Posts: 767
Default dry run to the markets


"bob syr" wrote: (clip) There is one hill of which I still can’t get to the
top.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
It would have been okay to end that sentence with a preposition.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I’d like to stand up to pedal, but I’m still quite large and I’m
afraid my chain will break. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Not to worry. The chain tension cannot exceed what it takes to move the
bike up the hill. It matters not whether this comes from standing on the
pedals or sitting and using leg muscles.


  #5  
Old June 20th 08, 05:14 PM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
DennisTheBald
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Posts: 341
Default dry run to the markets

On Jun 19, 10:00 pm, bob syr wrote:
Cyclists -
I’d like to stand up to pedal, but I’m still quite large and I’m
afraid my chain will break.

Fear not... there are a lot of things that may go wrong... On a bike
with no derailleur and no lateral movement of the chain there are very
few chain failures, and most of them are maintenance issues (I have
jumped way out on a limb in my assumption that the three-speeds are
provided by a internally geared hub)



There’s another hill right by my house (at the top of the hill)
Lately I’ve been making it to the top of that one, but by then I’m in
the lowest gear and I’m almost to a full stop, not to mention out of
breath. I’d rather not get into that situation while away from
home.


Yeah, a recent change in routes has me going up a hill that made me
stop at the top and catch my breath the first couple times. But after
only a couple weeks I'm back to cursing at the motorists most of the
way up it, pretty soon I'll have enough wind that they might even hear
me. The conventional wisdom is that using lower gears and keeping
your feet going around quickly is a better long term strategy than
standing up... but if you've already shifted as low as it goes what
else ya gonna do.


Local buses now have bike racks and there’s a park in Liverpool with
great bike paths. And also you can ride along the Erie Canal for
endless water-level miles, from what I hear. I think the pannier
baskets will interfere with loading on bus and car racks, but I won’t
know ‘til I try it.

There are a lot of removable panniers, the makers of them tend to be
pretty proud of them and they price them accordingly. I like folding
wire baskets, I think Wald is the manufacturer. You may have to spend
some money but there is a way to make your inter-modal dream come
true, you bet. The biggest problem is getting the bus or train to
stand still long enough for you to figure out what's gonna work and
what isn't (you could shoot one of the tires out and then check out
the rack while they're making repairs). The one end of the spectrum
of options is the folding bike... Dahon & Green Gear (bike friday) are
a couple of the outfits that make these things, google will return
lots of hits.

Happy riding,

Bob Syr
Syracuse, NY


  #6  
Old June 20th 08, 08:29 PM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
EasyCompany
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 34
Default dry run to the markets

On Fri, 20 Jun 2008 09:14:03 -0700 (PDT), DennisTheBald
wrote:

There’s another hill right by my house (at the top of the hill)
Lately I’ve been making it to the top of that one, but by then I’m in
the lowest gear and I’m almost to a full stop, not to mention out of
breath. I’d rather not get into that situation while away from
home.


Yeah, a recent change in routes has me going up a hill that made me
stop at the top and catch my breath the first couple times. But after
only a couple weeks I


One thing you can do on very hard hills until you get them conquered
is to pull into a side street about halfway up, or when you feel
overexerted. Then ride down the side street a few yards (they're
usually flat) and recover and turn around. Tthen pull back out onto
the hill with a bit of momentum and complete the hill.

I have a long 4 mile hill that I sometimes get calf cramps riding, and
have had to use this tactic a few times. It usually only takes about
20 seconds to recover and get going again.

HTH

  #7  
Old June 20th 08, 09:04 PM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
peter
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Posts: 296
Default dry run to the markets

On Jun 20, 8:05 am, Paul O wrote:
David L. Johnson wrote, On 6/20/2008 12:54 AM: bob syr wrote:
snip


Local buses now have bike racks and there’s a park in Liverpool with
great bike paths. And also you can ride along the Erie Canal for
endless water-level miles, from what I hear. I think the pannier
baskets will interfere with loading on bus and car racks, but I won’t
know ‘til I try it.


I don't really get the bike-on-bus or bike-on-train idea. I mean, you
have a bike. What do you need with a bus or train? For now, bike
where you are, and go where you can on the bike.


I certainly get the "bike-on-bus or bike-on-train idea". Its fun explore
other places - places that are too far away to comfortably reach from
home by bicycle.


Agreed. Bikes make a great combination with bus and/or train transit
and allow for much greater flexibility of destinations. Where I am
there are also a number of bridges which don't allow bicycle access so
using a bus to get across opens up whole new areas for bike rides,
whether for transportation or for recreation. The bus bike racks that
I've used space the bikes pretty well so I'd think you could still use
them with the side baskets attached. Some bus companies have a demo
rack where you can try out the operation without any pressure from an
impatient driver (or passengers). Check with your local companies to
see if they have something conveniently located.
  #8  
Old June 21st 08, 03:26 AM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Brian Huntley
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Posts: 641
Default dry run to the markets

On Jun 19, 10:00 pm, bob syr wrote:
Local buses now have bike racks and there’s a park in Liverpool with
great bike paths. And also you can ride along the Erie Canal for
endless water-level miles, from what I hear. I think the pannier
baskets will interfere with loading on bus and car racks, but I won’t
know ‘til I try it.


Our local transit system (The TTC in Toronto) has bike racks on many
bus routes (including my local one) and also allows bikes on the
subways and streetcars outside of rush hours. However, the bus rules
require all removable items to be removed from the bike including
panniers (and water bottles, though that's up to the driver.) I don't
use the bus/bike racks that often, but always take my panniers off
while I'm waiting for the bus, when I do use them.

I use "bike buckets" that I make myself. They're great for groceries,
etc, as you can bring them into the store, either in hand or hooked to
the inside of a shopping cart, so you know when you're getting close
to capacity.

Here's a link to a 'how to" page about them: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/Buckets
  #9  
Old June 21st 08, 03:30 AM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Brian Huntley
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Posts: 641
Default dry run to the markets


By the way, the Erie Canal is a great ride for the most part, but
there are usually patches that are loose enough to be unrideable,
especially after rain. Fortunately, there are always local roads
nearby. A bonus is that there's a cafe near almost every bridge on the
canal

On my Lake Ontario trip, I met the same sailboat 3 or 4 times between
Rochester and Lockport. They kept putting along while I kept hopping
in and out of the diners.
  #10  
Old June 21st 08, 04:04 AM posted to rec.bicycles.misc
Tom Keats
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Posts: 3,193
Default dry run to the markets

In article ,
"David L. Johnson" writes:

Local buses now have bike racks and there’s a park in Liverpool with
great bike paths. And also you can ride along the Erie Canal for
endless water-level miles, from what I hear. I think the pannier
baskets will interfere with loading on bus and car racks, but I won’t
know ‘til I try it.


I don't really get the bike-on-bus or bike-on-train idea. I mean, you
have a bike. What do you need with a bus or train? For now, bike where
you are, and go where you can on the bike.


For cycling commuters, rack-fitted buses and commuter
trains which allow bikes onboard can be a boon for
shortening travel time to or from work. Sometimes
it's worth it, just for that extra (or only) cup o'
tea or coffee.

And if the weather suddenly turns inclement, it's nice
to have to option to take public transit most or all
of the way.

If you're lost out in the boonies (e.g: Cloverdale, BC,)
the bus can get you to some familiar spot where you can
at least regain your bearings.

But, yeah -- once awheel, I too generally harbour a
profound reluctance to dismount and relinquish riding
to adopt another mode. That's why I don't "get"
triathlon ;-) I mean, really -- how could anyone
just dump their bike and run away from it!? That's like
enjoying a few morsels of a nice steak dinner, and then
leaving it to scrub bathroom tile grout.

Perhaps triathlon would be improved if the running segment
was replaced with throwing darts at balloons tacked onto a
pegboard, or throwing baseballs at milk bottle pyramids,
or shooting BBs at moving tin ducks. Kinda like biathlon.

Maybe triathletes should, instead of running, use
public transit.


cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca
 




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