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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
"Tim McNamara" wrote in message ... [...] Congratulations. A nice example that intense exercise is not necessary to show good benefits. I had a similar result- in 1990 when I had lapsed into a very sedentary lifestyle after moving to a new area for a new job, my total cholesterol was in the high 140s. Once I got over my inertia and got back on the bike, scouting out good roads to ride, I dropped 50 pounds and my total cholesterol went down to 99 by around 1992. It's crept up slowly over the intervening years to 113 a couple of years ago. Come to think of it, I am due for a recheck. Total cholesterol can be around 200 and that is not considered high. I think your cholesterol is too low for good health. I would only worry about high cholesterol if it were around 300. Regards, Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota aka Saint Edward the Great - Order of the Perpetual Sorrows - Minnesota |
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
dgk wrote: On Wed, 25 Oct 2006 16:39:45 +0100, Peter Clinch wrote: It's much cheaper, unless public transport in NYC is basically free or you are particularly prne to breaking your bikes. Public transit is essentially $3 a day for me if I take the bus and train. I just paid $20 to get a spoke replaced. There goes a week of commuting. I think I should be able to handle a broken spoke, except they're always the drive side of the rear wheel. I need to learn how to use a chain whip to get the cassette off. I'll do it next time. Look he http://tinyurl.com/ymjggc scroll down to find the appropriate info. (You might want to bookmark the Park Tool site, it's the most useful one on the internet for DIY service and repairs.) |
#23
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
In article .com,
"NYC XYZ" wrote: Peter Clinch wrote: Averages are only deceptive if you don't know what they mean. Averages are a fundamental part of a statistician's tool set. Yeah, in determining values which really mean something, like standard deviation. By themselves, they tend to create false impressions. They're in the same place breathing the same air. But they're not "in the same place" -- they leave that place instantaneously, and more importantly, they're typically in an enclosed environment! They are following in the tracks of thousands of cars in front of them. Air pollution levels have been measured inside and outside of cars in traffic, and are often higher *inside* the car. In urban traffic you're not running away from it, you're just moving through it. Unless we're talking gridlock, they're getting away from it. And most motorists drive with their windows sealed. And with the air intake fan on, pulling in all that crap and packing it into the interior of the car. That helps against particulates, but not against your basic poison gas. I'm not sure about that one. I do doubt that it's quite the same air as what's outside the vehicle. Unless the car is hermetically sealed in the garage and the seal is not broken until one's destination is reached, it's the same air. It's much cheaper, unless public transport in NYC is basically free or you are particularly prne to breaking your bikes. Yes, I do seem to be prone to wear and tear. And in absolute dollars, I'm sure it's much cheaper, but factoring in time spent and saved, as well as inclement weather, I suspect things start evening out rather dramatically. It's still helping the environment. Only in the abstract. Unless global warming starts dropping a few percentage points as a result, I don't see how it *is* (as opposed to the subjunctive "could"). It is helping. You can calculate your contribution. My 1990 Volvo 240 gets an average of 22 miles per gallon in mixed driving (25 on the highway). One gallon of gasoline produces about 19.6 pounds of carbon dioxide when burned. Americans drive a little over 200 miles per week on average and I drive just slightly less than average. In my case I would burn about 9.1 gallons and produce about 178.3 pounds of CO2 per week, or 9274 pounds of CO2 per year. Yes, that's a drop in the bucket but it's still worthwhile trying to reduce it. Riding my bike to replace my car usage is one option that is sure to reduce my CO2 contribution. With enough drops in the bucket, change can be made. Gotta start somewhere, the federal government has made it very clear that it is not interested. Heck, Democrat-turned-Republican poster boy Norm Coalman has decided to try to stop states from imposing CO2 caps (a la California) in a nice demonstration of the party's commitment to state's rights and the importance of local government; he has also decided that the EPA should be stripped of its power to regulate CO2 emissions and that CO2 should no longer be defined as a pollutant. Odd how the Republicans seem to forget that they created the EPA, and that the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act were signed into law by a Republican. It should be a proud part of their heritage, not something they keep trying to dismantle. The impact of the Clean Air Act was measurable in Antarctic ice cores within a few years of passage, that's how significant that legislation was. It had rapid global effects. During the no-fly days that followed 9/11, airborne pollutants dropped significantly around the world. There is no reason to believe that the quality of our atmosphere cannot be significantly and rapidly improved, given the political will to do so a will that is lacking in politicians everywhere. |
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
In article ,
"Edward Dolan" wrote: "Tim McNamara" wrote in message ... [...] Congratulations. A nice example that intense exercise is not necessary to show good benefits. I had a similar result- in 1990 when I had lapsed into a very sedentary lifestyle after moving to a new area for a new job, my total cholesterol was in the high 140s. Once I got over my inertia and got back on the bike, scouting out good roads to ride, I dropped 50 pounds and my total cholesterol went down to 99 by around 1992. It's crept up slowly over the intervening years to 113 a couple of years ago. Come to think of it, I am due for a recheck. Total cholesterol can be around 200 and that is not considered high. I think your cholesterol is too low for good health. I would only worry about high cholesterol if it were around 300. The current standard seems to be a total cholesterol below 200. Above 210 or so, and your doctor will start talking to you about lifestyle changes. Above 240 and you will probably get your first prescription for Lipitor. http://www.americanheart.org/present...identifier=183 My diet is nearly vegetarian, but even when I ate meat regularly my cholesterol was in the "good" range. For a variety of reasons I rode less miles this year than any year in the past decade and almost any year in the last 15. Well, the year isn't over yet I might squeak this one into the second lowest year. That remains to be seen. I'm due for a physical and it will be interesting to see what my cholesterol is now. |
#25
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
"Tim McNamara" wrote in message ... In article , "Edward Dolan" wrote: "Tim McNamara" wrote in message ... [...] Congratulations. A nice example that intense exercise is not necessary to show good benefits. I had a similar result- in 1990 when I had lapsed into a very sedentary lifestyle after moving to a new area for a new job, my total cholesterol was in the high 140s. Once I got over my inertia and got back on the bike, scouting out good roads to ride, I dropped 50 pounds and my total cholesterol went down to 99 by around 1992. It's crept up slowly over the intervening years to 113 a couple of years ago. Come to think of it, I am due for a recheck. Total cholesterol can be around 200 and that is not considered high. I think your cholesterol is too low for good health. I would only worry about high cholesterol if it were around 300. The current standard seems to be a total cholesterol below 200. Above 210 or so, and your doctor will start talking to you about lifestyle changes. Above 240 and you will probably get your first prescription for Lipitor. http://www.americanheart.org/present...identifier=183 My diet is nearly vegetarian, but even when I ate meat regularly my cholesterol was in the "good" range. For a variety of reasons I rode less miles this year than any year in the past decade and almost any year in the last 15. Well, the year isn't over yet I might squeak this one into the second lowest year. That remains to be seen. I'm due for a physical and it will be interesting to see what my cholesterol is now. There is some debate in medical circles as to just what cholesterol is a measure of anyway. Some think it is more of a reaction to inflammation in the blood vessels than anything else. I would not worry about cholesterol at all if it is at 200 or below. Most avid cyclists are into fitness and often confuse it with health. They are two different things entirely. You can have a deadly cancer and/or be due for a heart attack or stroke and still have perfect fitness. Of the two, health is about a thousand times more important than fitness. If you have good health, just be thankful for it and do not worry too much about fitness. Thus spake Zarathustra. Regards, Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota aka Saint Edward the Great - Order of the Perpetual Sorrows - Minnesota |
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
dgk wrote:
Public transit is essentially $3 a day for me if I take the bus and train. I just paid $20 to get a spoke replaced. There goes a week of commuting. So, do you lose the best part of 50 spokes a year? Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/ |
#27
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
dgk wrote: On Wed, 25 Oct 2006 16:39:45 +0100, Peter Clinch wrote: It's much cheaper, unless public transport in NYC is basically free or you are particularly prne to breaking your bikes. Public transit is essentially $3 a day for me if I take the bus and train. I just paid $20 to get a spoke replaced. There goes a week of commuting. I think I should be able to handle a broken spoke, except they're always the drive side of the rear wheel. I need to learn how to use a chain whip to get the cassette off. I'll do it next time. Or build your own wheels..like all of us that do that did once upon a time, start on your own wheels. If yer breaking spokes, it 'means' something. most likely the tension is erratic, cuz of a poor build, or the rim has become deformed, from hitting something or ridden with low tension. |
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
Cathy Kearns wrote: "NYC XYZ" wrote in message ups.com... I've yet to go to one LBS which gave me a good feeling. On the San Francisco peninsula there are many good local bike shops, with really friendly service. Our family has bought three bikes, from two different LBS's, in the last two years. At both bike stores they were happy to adjust the bikes to fit us (including changing pedals to test road bikes) and let us take as many test rides as we wanted without requiring us to leave even a driver's license behind. (We offered...) Recently I went into one of our LBS to get thorn resistant tubes for my daughter's bike. It's a big year for the thorny weeds, so they were out of stock. However, rather than selling me another solution (he had the tire liners and goo there, but he didn't recommend them) he called up other LBS's until he found one with them in stock, and had them hold them until I got there. These stores are in no way financially connected. That was just plain nice. And yeah, I'll go to him first next time too. Well, Cathy, calling another shop is really pretty common. We do it all the time and get calls all the time, " do you have widget A in stock"... |
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
Tim McNamara wrote: They are following in the tracks of thousands of cars in front of them. Air pollution levels have been measured inside and outside of cars in traffic, and are often higher *inside* the car. WHAT?!?! How come??? I mean, sure, once it gets in, it's likely to stay in, but again, unless we're talking major gridlock right behind an old Soviet-era Trabant or Yugo, I wonder why. And with the air intake fan on, pulling in all that crap and packing it into the interior of the car. Is that all? Can't you shut that off? I just haven't noticed such things myself. Unless the car is hermetically sealed in the garage and the seal is not broken until one's destination is reached, it's the same air. Semantics. I doubt it's really the "same" air. Sure, oxygen is oxygen, but overall that filter must count for something! It is helping. You can calculate your contribution. My 1990 Volvo 240 gets an average of 22 miles per gallon in mixed driving (25 on the highway). One gallon of gasoline produces about 19.6 pounds of carbon dioxide when burned. Americans drive a little over 200 miles per week on average and I drive just slightly less than average. In my case I would burn about 9.1 gallons and produce about 178.3 pounds of CO2 per week, or 9274 pounds of CO2 per year. Yes, that's a drop in the bucket but it's still worthwhile trying to reduce it. Riding my bike to replace my car usage is one option that is sure to reduce my CO2 contribution. With enough drops in the bucket, change can be made. Right, with enough drops you have a deluge. In the here and now, I don't think most people ride for the environment, and I don't think it's possible to ride for something so abstract as "the environment." The whole point of cycling is the visceral joy of it all. Gotta start somewhere, the federal government has made it very clear that it is not interested. Heck, Democrat-turned-Republican poster boy Norm Coalman has decided to try to stop states from imposing CO2 caps (a la California) in a nice demonstration of the party's commitment to state's rights and the importance of local government; he has also decided that the EPA should be stripped of its power to regulate CO2 emissions and that CO2 should no longer be defined as a pollutant. Odd how the Republicans seem to forget that they created the EPA, and that the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act were signed into law by a Republican. It should be a proud part of their heritage, not something they keep trying to dismantle. The impact of the Clean Air Act was measurable in Antarctic ice cores within a few years of passage, that's how significant that legislation was. It had rapid global effects. During the no-fly days that followed 9/11, airborne pollutants dropped significantly around the world. There is no reason to believe that the quality of our atmosphere cannot be significantly and rapidly improved, given the political will to do so a will that is lacking in politicians everywhere. Ditto! |
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"A Bicycle Shop" (163 w22nd st) totally full of sh!t
NYC XYZ wrote:
WHAT?!?! How come??? Aside from the "why" is a definte "what", and that is that levels have been measured higher inside the cars. I mean, sure, once it gets in, it's likely to stay in, but again, unless we're talking major gridlock right behind an old Soviet-era Trabant or Yugo, I wonder why. The air as a whole around an urban street won't change much just because you're driving through it quicker. It's basically the same air and cars aren't gas tight. They'll slow down rates of gas movement, but that applies to going out as well as coming in. And bikes aren't generating their own nearby cloud. Semantics. I doubt it's really the "same" air. Sure, oxygen is oxygen, but overall that filter must count for something! It's the same air. Filters remove particulates, not noxious gases. Right, with enough drops you have a deluge. In the here and now, I don't think most people ride for the environment, and I don't think it's possible to ride for something so abstract as "the environment." The whole point of cycling is the visceral joy of it all. While many of us enjoy it, the primary reason in many cases is to get where we're going quickly, cheaply, efficiently and healthily. Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/ |
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