Miles: 25.6
Time: 1:54:50
Elevation: 608
Average Speed: 13.4
Max Speed: 37.2
Beautiful cool morning ride. About 82 when I left and 92 when I returned. Mild NW breeze. Still some pretty deep dirt on Pinto Mountain Road but I have learned how to get through it on 1" tires, just keep pedaling.
I put water bottles in freezer to cool while I got ready. When I got almost to Goodwin Road, 11 miles out, I realized I had no water. I was dried out by the time I got to park Headquarters at mile 20.2. I was lucky it was a cool day. This could be a nightmare on a 100 degree day.
A week ago I put knobby tires back on Fuji mountain bike. I also took off steering tube extender and adjustable stem and put stock stem back on which lowers the bars about 4 inches. Bike is all stock now except for rear rack.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Saturday, September 29, 2012
09/29/2012 - The Usual Loop on the Touring Bike
Miles: 24.2
Time: 2:07:38
Elevation: 539
Average Speed: 11.4
Max Speed: 38.7
A slow and easy ride on the touring bike to test my body and new Shimano SPD/Platform pedals in combination with my "touring" sandals. This is my first ride in 2 weeks. After my last JTNP ride with Doug I had to go to Northern California for family reasons. I came home via Los Angeles where I spent a couple of days with my oldest daughter and family. When I got back I had a new Google Nexus phone on a T-Mobile plan and a cold. I laid low for almost a week. The ride was uneventful and pleasant. I started late in the afternoon so the sun was not too intense and it was relatively cool, 93 out and 83 in. I did not hurry and just relaxed and enjoyed the evening. The touring bike is too heavy and not geared for speed so there even if one does want to rush it doesn't work out so well. I used the new pedals for the first time. I started the ride clipped into the SPD side. Within the first 2 miles the ball of my left foot started hurting where it had been badly blistered on a hike in early August. I was able to unclip and use the platform side which takes the direct pressure off the ball. This turned out to be pain free and I rode most of the remainder of the ride with the left foot on the platform side and the right clipped in. I did unclip the right foot for a few miles when I felt the ball starting to heat up. The ride turned out to be almost completely pain free. This is what I was hoping for when I bought these pedals. To the left is the SPD side of the pedal. You can see the raised mechanism which engages the cleats on the shoes. This type of pedal puts most of the pressure on the center of the ball of the foot. This can get quite uncomfortable on a hot day or if the foot is injured. SPD pedals were originally designed of mountain biking where long periods of more or less consistent cadence pedaling it not the norm. Many touring cyclists use SPD pedals because of the ability to walk normally in the shoes but they are just not as comfortable as so called "road" pedals. On the right is the bottom of the sandals with cleats. You will notice that the cleats are recessed which makes walking in the sandals off the bike almost like any other shoes. I say almost because the cleats are shallow enough that you hear the crunching of small stones and other debris that one walks through or on. Some SPD shoes have more deeply recessed cleats but these work fine for my purposes in that they feel completely normal to walk in. I have worn them around home and around town and they feel like any other good quality sandals. The most common alternative is road shoes and cleats. Road cleats are bolted onto the outside of a hard and slippery sole. The cleats are slippery and quite noisy on many surfaces and the whole package is a challenge to walk in, especially on tile floors. They are more comfortable on the bike though as they spread the load on the foot over a larger area, much like the platform side om my new pedals. I expect this sandal and pedal combination to contribute to a very comfortable and relaxed touring experience. Of course a lot of being relaxed has to do with attitude but it is much easier to be relaxed if one's feet do not hurt and he can walk like a normal human when off the bike. Abraham Lincoln said, "When my feet hurt I can't think." It is true on a bicycle.
Time: 2:07:38
Elevation: 539
Average Speed: 11.4
Max Speed: 38.7
A slow and easy ride on the touring bike to test my body and new Shimano SPD/Platform pedals in combination with my "touring" sandals. This is my first ride in 2 weeks. After my last JTNP ride with Doug I had to go to Northern California for family reasons. I came home via Los Angeles where I spent a couple of days with my oldest daughter and family. When I got back I had a new Google Nexus phone on a T-Mobile plan and a cold. I laid low for almost a week. The ride was uneventful and pleasant. I started late in the afternoon so the sun was not too intense and it was relatively cool, 93 out and 83 in. I did not hurry and just relaxed and enjoyed the evening. The touring bike is too heavy and not geared for speed so there even if one does want to rush it doesn't work out so well. I used the new pedals for the first time. I started the ride clipped into the SPD side. Within the first 2 miles the ball of my left foot started hurting where it had been badly blistered on a hike in early August. I was able to unclip and use the platform side which takes the direct pressure off the ball. This turned out to be pain free and I rode most of the remainder of the ride with the left foot on the platform side and the right clipped in. I did unclip the right foot for a few miles when I felt the ball starting to heat up. The ride turned out to be almost completely pain free. This is what I was hoping for when I bought these pedals. To the left is the SPD side of the pedal. You can see the raised mechanism which engages the cleats on the shoes. This type of pedal puts most of the pressure on the center of the ball of the foot. This can get quite uncomfortable on a hot day or if the foot is injured. SPD pedals were originally designed of mountain biking where long periods of more or less consistent cadence pedaling it not the norm. Many touring cyclists use SPD pedals because of the ability to walk normally in the shoes but they are just not as comfortable as so called "road" pedals. On the right is the bottom of the sandals with cleats. You will notice that the cleats are recessed which makes walking in the sandals off the bike almost like any other shoes. I say almost because the cleats are shallow enough that you hear the crunching of small stones and other debris that one walks through or on. Some SPD shoes have more deeply recessed cleats but these work fine for my purposes in that they feel completely normal to walk in. I have worn them around home and around town and they feel like any other good quality sandals. The most common alternative is road shoes and cleats. Road cleats are bolted onto the outside of a hard and slippery sole. The cleats are slippery and quite noisy on many surfaces and the whole package is a challenge to walk in, especially on tile floors. They are more comfortable on the bike though as they spread the load on the foot over a larger area, much like the platform side om my new pedals. I expect this sandal and pedal combination to contribute to a very comfortable and relaxed touring experience. Of course a lot of being relaxed has to do with attitude but it is much easier to be relaxed if one's feet do not hurt and he can walk like a normal human when off the bike. Abraham Lincoln said, "When my feet hurt I can't think." It is true on a bicycle.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
09/16/2012 Up and Up and Up then Down and Down and Down with Doug
Miles: 55.0
Time: 5:01:34
Elevation: 4,122
Average Speed: 10.9
Max Speed: 42.2
Doug came to 29 Palms Saturday evening after he finished his "Men's Retreat" near Idyllwild. He came to my place and after some bike talk and chain cleaning we went to dinner at a local Mexican Food place. He left here to go camp at Jumbo Rocks in JTNP and I went to bed and tried my best to sleep because I knew this ride was going to be rough. Sunday morning Doug arrived by bike at my home at about 9:00 and we got on the the road shortly thereafter. We stopped at park headquarters 3 miles out and drank some extra water and used the restroom. We took short breaks at the parking lot on the flat spot just above the park entrance kiosk and at the El Dorado Mine Road junction before stopping for snacks and fluids at Doug's campsite at the 15 mile mark. After our break we started out for Desert View and arrived there about 1 1/2 hours later. At the top we rested awhile and had a pleasant conversation with a French couple who had just come from Las Vegas where the husband had placed second in his age group (50-54) in the Iron Man Triathalon World Championship. We stopped at Doug's truck on the way down for a break. There was a young guy next door named Phil who had come on a loaded touring bike from Oakland, CA, via San Diego and the Low Desert. We compared bikes and talked. Since the plan was for Doug to ride back to my home and have me return him and his bike to his truck we offered to bring Phil a burrito and a beer. The ride to my place, mostly coasting, was uneventful. We loaded Doug's bike into my car and went to the Mexican place and got 3 carne asada burritos, stopped at a mini-mart for the beer then drove back to the Jumbo Rocks Campground. When we arrived it looked like Phil might have left but he had only moved to a shadier campsite in the rocks across the road. Doug was in a hurry to get home so he loaded up and left while I took the stuff, including a gallon of water I brought from my home stash, to Phil. Phil and I talked a bit. He was planning to return to Oakland via Highway 395 and across the Sierras. I did my best to explain to him a route he could take to bypass the town of Yucca Valley which would avoid some steep climbs. We also discussed his options for crossing the Sierra.I expressed the opinion that Tioga Pass might be the easiest in the long run. Even though it is steep it is short and sweet and then it is basically downhill to Oakland from the top. The passes farther north are either very steep and bicycle unfriendly and/or require a lot more climbing to get to.
Time: 5:01:34
Elevation: 4,122
Average Speed: 10.9
Max Speed: 42.2
Doug came to 29 Palms Saturday evening after he finished his "Men's Retreat" near Idyllwild. He came to my place and after some bike talk and chain cleaning we went to dinner at a local Mexican Food place. He left here to go camp at Jumbo Rocks in JTNP and I went to bed and tried my best to sleep because I knew this ride was going to be rough. Sunday morning Doug arrived by bike at my home at about 9:00 and we got on the the road shortly thereafter. We stopped at park headquarters 3 miles out and drank some extra water and used the restroom. We took short breaks at the parking lot on the flat spot just above the park entrance kiosk and at the El Dorado Mine Road junction before stopping for snacks and fluids at Doug's campsite at the 15 mile mark. After our break we started out for Desert View and arrived there about 1 1/2 hours later. At the top we rested awhile and had a pleasant conversation with a French couple who had just come from Las Vegas where the husband had placed second in his age group (50-54) in the Iron Man Triathalon World Championship. We stopped at Doug's truck on the way down for a break. There was a young guy next door named Phil who had come on a loaded touring bike from Oakland, CA, via San Diego and the Low Desert. We compared bikes and talked. Since the plan was for Doug to ride back to my home and have me return him and his bike to his truck we offered to bring Phil a burrito and a beer. The ride to my place, mostly coasting, was uneventful. We loaded Doug's bike into my car and went to the Mexican place and got 3 carne asada burritos, stopped at a mini-mart for the beer then drove back to the Jumbo Rocks Campground. When we arrived it looked like Phil might have left but he had only moved to a shadier campsite in the rocks across the road. Doug was in a hurry to get home so he loaded up and left while I took the stuff, including a gallon of water I brought from my home stash, to Phil. Phil and I talked a bit. He was planning to return to Oakland via Highway 395 and across the Sierras. I did my best to explain to him a route he could take to bypass the town of Yucca Valley which would avoid some steep climbs. We also discussed his options for crossing the Sierra.I expressed the opinion that Tioga Pass might be the easiest in the long run. Even though it is steep it is short and sweet and then it is basically downhill to Oakland from the top. The passes farther north are either very steep and bicycle unfriendly and/or require a lot more climbing to get to.
Friday, September 14, 2012
09/13/2012 Same Old Loop, Different Pedals
Miles: 23.3
Time: 2:00:49
Elevation: 408
Average Speed: 11.1
Max Speed: 19.1
I set out on this ride about 6:30 PM with the objective of testing my new "Commuter Sandals" with platform pedals with toe clips. Since these pedals were already on my Fuji mountain bike along with my good battery powered headlight I took it after strapping on my quick release phone mount and smart phone running the Strava bicycle tracking app. After going west on Amboy Road to Adobe into what I thought was a mild headwind I discovered the real wind was blowing from the East or NE... again. I plodded down to Valley Vista and then settled into tolerating the wind for 4.5 miles. At least it is mostly down hill to the end of Valley Vista. There is still quite a lot of dirt on Valley Vista and Pinto Mountain Roads and this bike handled it much more gracefully than my other two bikes even though it has 1.5" street slicks mounted. The first thing I discovered is that the strap on the phone mount will not clamp onto the thin mountain bike bars tightly enough to keep it from rotating on a rough road. I will try a slice of inner tube under the clamp to see if that will solve the problem. My other, bigger problem was that I did not think about how dark it would get before I finished the route. I did not take a backup headlight or my LED safety vest. By the time I got to the halfway point a bit before the airport it was dark enough to require the headlight. I stopped at the airport for a quick break and a photo or two then started west on Highway 62. About a mile before the turn north onto Utah Trail the headlight battery pack ran dry. The traffic was light and it did not present a serious issue at least on this stretch. The fog line is florescent and it was still glowing from stored sunlight and my taillight was working fine. When I turned onto Utah Trail it became a bit dicier. The new pavement was pitch black as was the sky and there was no fog line. I did OK until cars came in the opposing direction then I was more or less blinded. All I could do was steer towards the middle of the road to make sure I did not run off into the sand shoulder and also be sure to not get far enough to the left to get in the path of the oncoming car. This gave me a somewhat nerve racking 7/8 mile until I got to Luckie park where there are streetlights. From there the last 1 1/2 miles was no problem. As far as the pedals go, the toe clips seemed more comfortable than the SPD mountain bike pedals I have been using. The SPD pedals engage "cleats" attached to the soles of the shoes. This arrangement does not allow for any change in foot position during a ride. It is hard to know if tonight's test was "apples to apples" because it was quite a bit cooler than on the previous rides I have done in the sandals. I still got bad hot spots on the bottoms of my feet near the end of the ride. I got out of the toe clips and used the other side of the pedals the last mile or so. This was a great relief. I think the long term solution may be to use combination pedals which have SPD clips on one side and a flat platform on the other. The "cleats" are recessed on SPD shoes so there is a flat surface to walk on or use to platform pedals. With such pedals I can alternate between the two sides as needed. This option is not available for road bike shoes and pedals as the "cleats" are bolted on the outside of the soles which leaves no flat surface for walking or using standard flat pedals. The other issue is whether or not I had more time on the light than I realized or if the battery is dying. The light could run for at least 2 hours if all is well. It only made it about 1/2 hour tonight. I will have to watch this closely and see if I can tell what is going on. Also I need to consistently take a backup light and my LED vest when I suspect I may be out in the dark.
Time: 2:00:49
Elevation: 408
Average Speed: 11.1
Max Speed: 19.1
I set out on this ride about 6:30 PM with the objective of testing my new "Commuter Sandals" with platform pedals with toe clips. Since these pedals were already on my Fuji mountain bike along with my good battery powered headlight I took it after strapping on my quick release phone mount and smart phone running the Strava bicycle tracking app. After going west on Amboy Road to Adobe into what I thought was a mild headwind I discovered the real wind was blowing from the East or NE... again. I plodded down to Valley Vista and then settled into tolerating the wind for 4.5 miles. At least it is mostly down hill to the end of Valley Vista. There is still quite a lot of dirt on Valley Vista and Pinto Mountain Roads and this bike handled it much more gracefully than my other two bikes even though it has 1.5" street slicks mounted. The first thing I discovered is that the strap on the phone mount will not clamp onto the thin mountain bike bars tightly enough to keep it from rotating on a rough road. I will try a slice of inner tube under the clamp to see if that will solve the problem. My other, bigger problem was that I did not think about how dark it would get before I finished the route. I did not take a backup headlight or my LED safety vest. By the time I got to the halfway point a bit before the airport it was dark enough to require the headlight. I stopped at the airport for a quick break and a photo or two then started west on Highway 62. About a mile before the turn north onto Utah Trail the headlight battery pack ran dry. The traffic was light and it did not present a serious issue at least on this stretch. The fog line is florescent and it was still glowing from stored sunlight and my taillight was working fine. When I turned onto Utah Trail it became a bit dicier. The new pavement was pitch black as was the sky and there was no fog line. I did OK until cars came in the opposing direction then I was more or less blinded. All I could do was steer towards the middle of the road to make sure I did not run off into the sand shoulder and also be sure to not get far enough to the left to get in the path of the oncoming car. This gave me a somewhat nerve racking 7/8 mile until I got to Luckie park where there are streetlights. From there the last 1 1/2 miles was no problem. As far as the pedals go, the toe clips seemed more comfortable than the SPD mountain bike pedals I have been using. The SPD pedals engage "cleats" attached to the soles of the shoes. This arrangement does not allow for any change in foot position during a ride. It is hard to know if tonight's test was "apples to apples" because it was quite a bit cooler than on the previous rides I have done in the sandals. I still got bad hot spots on the bottoms of my feet near the end of the ride. I got out of the toe clips and used the other side of the pedals the last mile or so. This was a great relief. I think the long term solution may be to use combination pedals which have SPD clips on one side and a flat platform on the other. The "cleats" are recessed on SPD shoes so there is a flat surface to walk on or use to platform pedals. With such pedals I can alternate between the two sides as needed. This option is not available for road bike shoes and pedals as the "cleats" are bolted on the outside of the soles which leaves no flat surface for walking or using standard flat pedals. The other issue is whether or not I had more time on the light than I realized or if the battery is dying. The light could run for at least 2 hours if all is well. It only made it about 1/2 hour tonight. I will have to watch this closely and see if I can tell what is going on. Also I need to consistently take a backup light and my LED vest when I suspect I may be out in the dark.
09/10/2012 A Road "Trip"
Miles: 68.4
Time: 6:37:00
Elevation: 4,245
Average Speed: 10.3
Max Speed: 40.5
I got a late start on today's ride because I decided I wanted to Clean the chain on the road bike using the new Pedro's Chain Cleaning Kit generously given to me by my good riding buddy Doug. I knew the chain was a mess but I did not realize how bad it was. It took me over an hour to clean and wax it. I had to put Pedro and the kit degreaser on it twice and use a bunch of elbow grease and the special brush that came with the kit along with my Dollar Store Degreaser and Tub and Tile Cleaner. I finally got it to look decent and let it dry and then applied some of the "Ice Wax" from the kit. By the time I finished the chain and got myself together it was noon, I got away at 12:02. The ride down the highway to Joshua Tree was ugly. It was hot with erratic winds and the motor vehicle drivers seemed extra aggressive and rude, even the professional truck drivers who are supposed to know better. The rule seems to be that if you are on the shoulder than you are not entitled to any room or courtesy. It is not so bad in the few places where the shoulder is 8' wide but where it is 6-12" it gets a bit scary when these 2 or more ton monsters come by at 70 MPH inches away from my left arm. I actually get better treatment if I move out in the traffic lane but I do not like to do this if it is not necessary because all it takes in one person who is not paying attention to turn me into instant road kill. There are some stretches with absolutely no usable shoulder where this is the only option but I will not do it otherwise even though I am legally entitled to. Being in the right dos not help a dead person much. I finally made it to the community park in Joshua Tree where I took a 10 or 15 minute break, ate a granola bar and drank 2 bottles of water. I started up the hill towards the JTNP West Entrance Station. I was not so happy at first, the heat, the wind, being a bit rattled from riding the highway, all played on me but after a few miles I got a bit of shelter from the South wind, it cooled of a some and of course the traffic was considerably thinner, all of which added up to me starting to enjoy the ride. I stopped at the entrance and drank 2 more bottles of water then started up the hill onto the park plateau. Once on the relative flat of the plateau I started feeling much better and started toying with the idea of taking a side trip to Desert View which would add 10-12 miles and several hundred feet of climbing some of it quite steep. I stopped at Quail Springs and ate a Cliff Bar then got going again. At the road to Desert View I decided to go for it and stopped about 1/4 mile in at Cap Rock to drink some water and rest a minute or two. I started up the hill to Desert View. It went well. It took me about 45 minutes to get up. I parked and took a couple of pictures and got a passer by to take mine then got ready to descend. By now I had about 45 minutes of daylight left and 30 miles to go to get home. I migh have made it, barely, except that I still had about 4 miles of climbing to do to get over the two small passes between the road to Desert View and the beginning of he serious downhill back to town. Fortunately I had my small battery powered headlight with me so I put it on the handlebars and took off. I got to the top of the last climb near Jumbo Rocks just after sunset and made it almost to the North Entrance Station before it got really dark. My little light served me well the last 7 miles. I arrived home about 8:00 tired and hungry but well satisfied with the afternoon. .
Time: 6:37:00
Elevation: 4,245
Average Speed: 10.3
Max Speed: 40.5
I got a late start on today's ride because I decided I wanted to Clean the chain on the road bike using the new Pedro's Chain Cleaning Kit generously given to me by my good riding buddy Doug. I knew the chain was a mess but I did not realize how bad it was. It took me over an hour to clean and wax it. I had to put Pedro and the kit degreaser on it twice and use a bunch of elbow grease and the special brush that came with the kit along with my Dollar Store Degreaser and Tub and Tile Cleaner. I finally got it to look decent and let it dry and then applied some of the "Ice Wax" from the kit. By the time I finished the chain and got myself together it was noon, I got away at 12:02. The ride down the highway to Joshua Tree was ugly. It was hot with erratic winds and the motor vehicle drivers seemed extra aggressive and rude, even the professional truck drivers who are supposed to know better. The rule seems to be that if you are on the shoulder than you are not entitled to any room or courtesy. It is not so bad in the few places where the shoulder is 8' wide but where it is 6-12" it gets a bit scary when these 2 or more ton monsters come by at 70 MPH inches away from my left arm. I actually get better treatment if I move out in the traffic lane but I do not like to do this if it is not necessary because all it takes in one person who is not paying attention to turn me into instant road kill. There are some stretches with absolutely no usable shoulder where this is the only option but I will not do it otherwise even though I am legally entitled to. Being in the right dos not help a dead person much. I finally made it to the community park in Joshua Tree where I took a 10 or 15 minute break, ate a granola bar and drank 2 bottles of water. I started up the hill towards the JTNP West Entrance Station. I was not so happy at first, the heat, the wind, being a bit rattled from riding the highway, all played on me but after a few miles I got a bit of shelter from the South wind, it cooled of a some and of course the traffic was considerably thinner, all of which added up to me starting to enjoy the ride. I stopped at the entrance and drank 2 more bottles of water then started up the hill onto the park plateau. Once on the relative flat of the plateau I started feeling much better and started toying with the idea of taking a side trip to Desert View which would add 10-12 miles and several hundred feet of climbing some of it quite steep. I stopped at Quail Springs and ate a Cliff Bar then got going again. At the road to Desert View I decided to go for it and stopped about 1/4 mile in at Cap Rock to drink some water and rest a minute or two. I started up the hill to Desert View. It went well. It took me about 45 minutes to get up. I parked and took a couple of pictures and got a passer by to take mine then got ready to descend. By now I had about 45 minutes of daylight left and 30 miles to go to get home. I migh have made it, barely, except that I still had about 4 miles of climbing to do to get over the two small passes between the road to Desert View and the beginning of he serious downhill back to town. Fortunately I had my small battery powered headlight with me so I put it on the handlebars and took off. I got to the top of the last climb near Jumbo Rocks just after sunset and made it almost to the North Entrance Station before it got really dark. My little light served me well the last 7 miles. I arrived home about 8:00 tired and hungry but well satisfied with the afternoon. .
>
Saturday, September 8, 2012
09/08/2012 Night Manuevers
Miles: 24.0
Time: 2:18:13
Elevation: 507
Average Speed: 10.4
Max Speed: 31.6
I did the usual loop out to the airport and return on the touring bike and mostly in the dark. I got away about 6:45 and the sun set within the first 2-3 miles. By the time I got to the end of Valley Vista (about 7 miles in) where a lot of the road is covered with dirt from recent rains it was dark enough to turn on the headlight. From that point on it was definitely a night ride. It was a beautiful warm evening for a ride, 94 when I left home and 90 when I returned. The traffic was very light. There was an annoying 5-10 MPH east windgoing out to Goodwin Road but then it died out or became a mild tailwind which made the climb back from the airport much more pleasant than usual. I did stop at the airport briefly for photos and a drink but otherwise rode straight through. I left home wearing a flashing LED safety vest and a flashing ankle light. I also had the Planet Bike "Blinky" mounted on the rack and flashing. Did I look like a geek who gives bicyclists everywhere a bad name. Probably. Was I visible? Definitely and I did live to tell about it. How did the new gear work you ask? The Biologic Recharge Unit: I left the house with the phone battery at 92% and running the Strava app. I rode with the hub charging the Biologic and the Biologic charging the phone. When I turned on the headlight I turned off the charge to the Biologic battery and left it charging the phone with no input charge. When I got to the airport the phone was at 93% where it stayed until I got home. The Biologic reports that it is still fully charged. I am not sure what this all means, if the Biologic cannot gain on the phone's battery drain or if the phone is limiting the charge received from the Biologic. Either way it could make using the phone to track a tour and to keep other devices charged a bit difficult. More experience is needed to figure out how this setup is going to work. The Lumotec Headlight: My assertion of yesterday that the light makes maximum illumination at or above 5 MPH turns out to be untrue. The beam gets noticeably brighter around 10-12 MPH. It may get even brighter beyond that but it is hard to detect from the riders vantage. The beam is somewhat irregular in shape but it lights the road well and I was very comfortable riding in it up to my maximum speed of 30 MPH. As I was climbing a short very steep hill on Pinto Mountain Road at about 4 MPH with the light flickering and getting very dim a car came over the brow of the hill from the opposite direction. I was momentarily concerned about being seen but then realized my vest and other lights probably made me quite visible, perhaps even a spectacle! In the future I will carry my small battery powered headlight and run it in flash mode just to guarantee some light in situations where I am going too slow to power the generator light. All in all I consider the ride and the new equipment to be a great success.
Time: 2:18:13
Elevation: 507
Average Speed: 10.4
Max Speed: 31.6
I did the usual loop out to the airport and return on the touring bike and mostly in the dark. I got away about 6:45 and the sun set within the first 2-3 miles. By the time I got to the end of Valley Vista (about 7 miles in) where a lot of the road is covered with dirt from recent rains it was dark enough to turn on the headlight. From that point on it was definitely a night ride. It was a beautiful warm evening for a ride, 94 when I left home and 90 when I returned. The traffic was very light. There was an annoying 5-10 MPH east windgoing out to Goodwin Road but then it died out or became a mild tailwind which made the climb back from the airport much more pleasant than usual. I did stop at the airport briefly for photos and a drink but otherwise rode straight through. I left home wearing a flashing LED safety vest and a flashing ankle light. I also had the Planet Bike "Blinky" mounted on the rack and flashing. Did I look like a geek who gives bicyclists everywhere a bad name. Probably. Was I visible? Definitely and I did live to tell about it. How did the new gear work you ask? The Biologic Recharge Unit: I left the house with the phone battery at 92% and running the Strava app. I rode with the hub charging the Biologic and the Biologic charging the phone. When I turned on the headlight I turned off the charge to the Biologic battery and left it charging the phone with no input charge. When I got to the airport the phone was at 93% where it stayed until I got home. The Biologic reports that it is still fully charged. I am not sure what this all means, if the Biologic cannot gain on the phone's battery drain or if the phone is limiting the charge received from the Biologic. Either way it could make using the phone to track a tour and to keep other devices charged a bit difficult. More experience is needed to figure out how this setup is going to work. The Lumotec Headlight: My assertion of yesterday that the light makes maximum illumination at or above 5 MPH turns out to be untrue. The beam gets noticeably brighter around 10-12 MPH. It may get even brighter beyond that but it is hard to detect from the riders vantage. The beam is somewhat irregular in shape but it lights the road well and I was very comfortable riding in it up to my maximum speed of 30 MPH. As I was climbing a short very steep hill on Pinto Mountain Road at about 4 MPH with the light flickering and getting very dim a car came over the brow of the hill from the opposite direction. I was momentarily concerned about being seen but then realized my vest and other lights probably made me quite visible, perhaps even a spectacle! In the future I will carry my small battery powered headlight and run it in flash mode just to guarantee some light in situations where I am going too slow to power the generator light. All in all I consider the ride and the new equipment to be a great success.
Friday, September 7, 2012
09/07/2012 Rub a Dub Hub, Just Soakin' in the Tub
Miles: 5.8
Time: 0:41:11
Elevation: 206
Average Speed: 8.4
Max Speed: 30.9
I received my "Dyno" wheel and Lumotec N2 Halogen light this afternoon. These items along with the Biologic Recharge Battery Pack are to be the electrical system for my touring bike which will make me energy independent on tour. During the day I can switch the light off and use the dyno to charge the battery pack and consequently my cell phone, the smart phone I run the Strava bicycle tracking app on, my MP3 player and any other small USB chargeable devices I might care to carry. If I ride at night I will have a serviceable headlight always on tap. The wheel came in good shape. It has a Shimano Alfine "Dyno" hub, a Sun CR18 double wall rim and double butted 14/15 spokes. It is a machine built wheel and Harris Cyclery where I purchased it will true and tension the spokes for $12.00 which I had them do. Contrary to some reviews I had read I had absolutely no problem getting the tire on the rim. I did have a small bit of frustration installing the light and battery wires in the hub connector. The drill is to twist the light and battery wires together then plug them into the connector. This would have been a piece of cake with one device only but I had some trouble getting the wires from both devices twisted tightly enough to go through the small holes in the connector. This was a very minor issue and the connector arrangement looks like it will be reliable and durable and easy to unplug in the event the front wheel needs to come off. The Harris Cyclery Dyno Hub web page has a very good graphical depiction of the connector and how to wire it. One thing to notice is that the light, the battery and the connector are all polarized. One must make sure to get the plus and minus wires paired correctly and in the right holes. I mounted the light on the front cantilever brake bolt with the fender and zip tied the Biologic regulator and both light and battery wires to the fork then picked up the front and gave it a spin. The light came on instantly. A good sign. Next I switched off the light and turned the Biologic to "Charge In" and spun the wheel again. The green charge light on the Biologic came on. Success! I next spent some frustrating time improving the front fender installation. I ended up taking the fender off the bike to get the struts right. I will have to do the same with the rear when I get up enough gumption to take on removing the wheel. The front fender comes off with the wheel on but not the back. By now is was well after dark so I put on my helmet and new sandals and went out for a short test ride. The light appears to reach full brightness at about 5 MPH. Below that it dims and flickers. I did not spend the extra money to get the "Standlight" version which charges a capacitor and stays lit to some degree for several minutes after coming to a stop. I do not intend to travel at night except in dire circumstances and if I do I will use a small AA battery powered light set on flashing mode for visibility when not moving. The Lumotec light I chose is halogen and not LED. It makes a beam as good or better than my fairly high end NiCad or NIMH battery powered lights. It may not be quite as good as my friend Doug's expensive (~$100 or more) Lithium battery lights but it requires no charging an only cost $16. It is always available. I imagine some of the more expensive LED lights are fantastic! Eventually I may get a wired taillight but for now will use Planet Bike Blinky lights. I will comment further when I have had a chance to give the Biologic a good test by charging it from the Dyno.
Time: 0:41:11
Elevation: 206
Average Speed: 8.4
Max Speed: 30.9
I received my "Dyno" wheel and Lumotec N2 Halogen light this afternoon. These items along with the Biologic Recharge Battery Pack are to be the electrical system for my touring bike which will make me energy independent on tour. During the day I can switch the light off and use the dyno to charge the battery pack and consequently my cell phone, the smart phone I run the Strava bicycle tracking app on, my MP3 player and any other small USB chargeable devices I might care to carry. If I ride at night I will have a serviceable headlight always on tap. The wheel came in good shape. It has a Shimano Alfine "Dyno" hub, a Sun CR18 double wall rim and double butted 14/15 spokes. It is a machine built wheel and Harris Cyclery where I purchased it will true and tension the spokes for $12.00 which I had them do. Contrary to some reviews I had read I had absolutely no problem getting the tire on the rim. I did have a small bit of frustration installing the light and battery wires in the hub connector. The drill is to twist the light and battery wires together then plug them into the connector. This would have been a piece of cake with one device only but I had some trouble getting the wires from both devices twisted tightly enough to go through the small holes in the connector. This was a very minor issue and the connector arrangement looks like it will be reliable and durable and easy to unplug in the event the front wheel needs to come off. The Harris Cyclery Dyno Hub web page has a very good graphical depiction of the connector and how to wire it. One thing to notice is that the light, the battery and the connector are all polarized. One must make sure to get the plus and minus wires paired correctly and in the right holes. I mounted the light on the front cantilever brake bolt with the fender and zip tied the Biologic regulator and both light and battery wires to the fork then picked up the front and gave it a spin. The light came on instantly. A good sign. Next I switched off the light and turned the Biologic to "Charge In" and spun the wheel again. The green charge light on the Biologic came on. Success! I next spent some frustrating time improving the front fender installation. I ended up taking the fender off the bike to get the struts right. I will have to do the same with the rear when I get up enough gumption to take on removing the wheel. The front fender comes off with the wheel on but not the back. By now is was well after dark so I put on my helmet and new sandals and went out for a short test ride. The light appears to reach full brightness at about 5 MPH. Below that it dims and flickers. I did not spend the extra money to get the "Standlight" version which charges a capacitor and stays lit to some degree for several minutes after coming to a stop. I do not intend to travel at night except in dire circumstances and if I do I will use a small AA battery powered light set on flashing mode for visibility when not moving. The Lumotec light I chose is halogen and not LED. It makes a beam as good or better than my fairly high end NiCad or NIMH battery powered lights. It may not be quite as good as my friend Doug's expensive (~$100 or more) Lithium battery lights but it requires no charging an only cost $16. It is always available. I imagine some of the more expensive LED lights are fantastic! Eventually I may get a wired taillight but for now will use Planet Bike Blinky lights. I will comment further when I have had a chance to give the Biologic a good test by charging it from the Dyno.
09/06/2012 Out and About by Touring Bike
Miles: 23.7
Time: 2:28:56
Elevation: 535
Average Speed: 9.6
Max Speed: 347.
Rode touring bike on usual loop to Pinto Mountain Road, 29 Palms Airport, Park HQ then home through downtown. There is still a lot of dirt on Valley Vista and Pinto Mountain. The touring bike with its 35 mm tires handled it much better than the road bike. Per my log I have not ridden this bike since July 25 and I had forgotten what a smooth relaxed machine it is. Part of the experience is due to the geometry, seating, bar position and butter smooth drive train and part of it is the awareness when you get on that you are not going anywhere in a hurry so you might as well relax and enjoy the ride. This ride was the occasion to test the new fenders and the Keen sandals. I did have some issues with fender adjustment. I stopped a couple of times to make adjustments to the struts. As I was coming down Park Avenue on the way home I just finished congratulated myself on having worked the fender issues out I hit a big bump and knocked the rear completely out of kilter. I had to stop and tweak it again. I may end up having to Locktite it all. I noticed the right rear strut screw is not tight at the bottom eyelet. It is inside the dropouts and next to the cassette and there is no room for a regular hex wrench. I will either have to take the wheel off to tighten it or find a very short allen wrench. I do not relish taking the wheel off of this bike because of the rack and and extra dirty chain and now the fender to complicate things more. The left sandal seems to have aggravated my already existing blisters on the bottom of the foot. I think some or all of the problem is due to the mediocre socks I wore. I will try again with some decent bike socks.
Time: 2:28:56
Elevation: 535
Average Speed: 9.6
Max Speed: 347.
Rode touring bike on usual loop to Pinto Mountain Road, 29 Palms Airport, Park HQ then home through downtown. There is still a lot of dirt on Valley Vista and Pinto Mountain. The touring bike with its 35 mm tires handled it much better than the road bike. Per my log I have not ridden this bike since July 25 and I had forgotten what a smooth relaxed machine it is. Part of the experience is due to the geometry, seating, bar position and butter smooth drive train and part of it is the awareness when you get on that you are not going anywhere in a hurry so you might as well relax and enjoy the ride. This ride was the occasion to test the new fenders and the Keen sandals. I did have some issues with fender adjustment. I stopped a couple of times to make adjustments to the struts. As I was coming down Park Avenue on the way home I just finished congratulated myself on having worked the fender issues out I hit a big bump and knocked the rear completely out of kilter. I had to stop and tweak it again. I may end up having to Locktite it all. I noticed the right rear strut screw is not tight at the bottom eyelet. It is inside the dropouts and next to the cassette and there is no room for a regular hex wrench. I will either have to take the wheel off to tighten it or find a very short allen wrench. I do not relish taking the wheel off of this bike because of the rack and and extra dirty chain and now the fender to complicate things more. The left sandal seems to have aggravated my already existing blisters on the bottom of the foot. I think some or all of the problem is due to the mediocre socks I wore. I will try again with some decent bike socks.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Bike Werks
Yesterday most of the stuff I ordered to upgrade the touring bike and my kit came: German SKS "Longboard" fenders, Planet Bike "Blinky" rack mounted tail light, generic phone mount and Keen "Commuter II Cycling Sandals".
I had already put my mountain bike (SPD) pedals on the touring bike so I put the cleats on the sandals and went for a short ride up and around in the park. The sandals felt a bit tight and narrow per some reviews I had read but felt good to pedal in. I came home and set about to install the fenders. this proved to be a more difficult and frustrating job than I had anticipated.
The stays that hold the fenders off the wheel are "Vee" shaped wire of about 1/8" diameter. The bottom of the "Vee" is attached to eyelets at the bottom of the fork in front and the seat stays in back. They needed to be cut to the correct length to fit the bike. It was not easy to determine what the correct length was and I had to dig around in my tools and find cutting wheel for my Dremel tool. I had difficulty with the hardware that attaches the stays to the fender brackets on the front wheel. The stay is locked in place by a short stud threaded on one end and with a hole in the other which the stay goes through. The stud goes on the stay than a plastic end cap goes on the end of the stay then the stay and cap must go through a hole in the top of the bracket while the stud goes through a hole on the side. The stay and bracket have to be sprung a bit to get he stud in and then it is hard to get it in far enough to get the nut on. I found it much easier on the rear fender but the learning curve on the front was steep.
The front came out OK although I may have left the front most stays a bit too long. I had to take the rear wheel off to fasten the front half of the rear fender to the frame. The chain was a dirty mess and I got my right hand covered in gunk. I cleaned up my hand then fastened the fender to the frame and decided to take a nap before I tackled putting the wheel back on to mount the stays.
When I got up a couple of hours later my friend Doug and I started texting and he suggested I take the chain off and soak it in de-greaser overnight. This made a lot of sense on at least two levels: getting the chain cleaned up and making it much easier and cleaner to get the rear wheel back on. With the chain off and soaking in a tub of Dollar Store de-greaser it was fairly quick work to finish the rear fender.
I did notice this evening that the plastic stay end caps are asymmetrical and I have some of them on backwards. I will fix that tomorrow.
I already have one "Blinky" taillight. It came with a rack bracket and a seatpost or tube bracket. I have 3 bikes and I want a bracket on each so I can use the "Blinkys" which are very visible and easy to operate. Naturally the "Blinkey" mount is a different width than other lights I own so it will not fit their mounting brackets. Very annoying. Now I can leave one light on the touring bike and move the other between the other two bike as I use them and I even have an extra mounting bracket in case I want to get a fourth bike.
The phone mount is also a second one. The one I already have has a base that attaches to the handlebars with screws. This is good for security and theft prevention or at least obstruction but not good for moving the mount between bikes. The new mount has a quick release racheting strap mount which means it can be moved between bikes (or stolen) in seconds. It also has an enclosed case to hold the phone and came with a nice sturdy tether to secure the phone case to the bike. The old mount has an exposed phone holder and has a tether to hold the phone on the mount but not the mount to the bike.
I gambled that the ball of the new mount would be the same diameter as the existing one so I can use either phone holder on either mount and for once I won. I will use the exposed holder most of the time because it will allow the phone to run cooler and the controls will be more accessible. I will be able to easily move the phone and holder between bikes which is a nice convenience. I currently have the new tether attached to slots in the bottom of the old holder so I can easily clip the whole mess to the bike. In the event of a crash the phone my be broken but at least I will be able to find it.
Note: I wore the sandals around last night and on my excursions to the dentist in Apple Valley and the grocery store in town today. They are loosening up and breaking in very nicely and are very comfortable to walk in. If they work as well on the bike on longer rides they are winners.
Monday, September 3, 2012
Holy Smokes its Warm 09/03/2012
Miles: 22.3
Time: 2:05:20
Elevation: 409
Average Speed: 10.7
Max Speed: 24.5
I set off from home about 1:00 PM. It was 97 out. I could feel a NE or ENE wind while going north on Adobe Road. When I turned on to Valley Vista it was dead on in my face, 10-15 MPH. No fun! I had forgotten how much dirt there is on the road at the bottom of Valley Vista and around the corner on Pinto Mountain. I was more prepared and negotiated it better this time. Pinto is more suitable for mountain bikes than my road bike with skinny 1" tires with 125 PSI in them. Hopefully the county will sweep it soon. Naturally about 1/2 mile south on Pinto the wind shifted to the South and picked up. I grunted up to Amboy road and turned east expecting a head wind but it was cross only. I turned south again onto Goodwin into the teeth of the gale. It was a bad combination as there are a couple of pretty steep little rises on Goodwin. I stopped at the 29 Palms Airport which I have not done before. I wanted and needed a break and some pictures for this blog entry (sorry phone camera does not do justice to objects in distance). After a few minutes I saddled up and started west on Highway 62. There was a lot of holiday traffic returning from points east and too many of them were either oblivious or careless or both of me. I find it very annoying when people chose to pass me with a few feet of clearance when they have plenty of room to move over into the opposing lane. Call me a cranky old man but I really do not care to deal with the consequences of being hit by some silly drunk or careless yahoo in a 2 ton beast but I will not stop riding because of the risk either. Four of the last five times I have taken this route the wind has gone from East when I was going east to West when I turned west. Mercifully it did not today, at least until I got 1/2 mile from home. I was feeling the heat and did not relish the prospect of beating against the wind 6 miles back to Utah trail. It is bad enough that most of it is uphill. When I got to Utah I did not feel enthusiastic enough to take the short side trip to Park HQ for water and a rest, instead I turned north on Utah and came home. It was 100 out when I arrived For me temperatures around 100 in direct sun are a bit too much. I do much better below 90 or 95 or later in the evening when the sun is not so intense.
Time: 2:05:20
Elevation: 409
Average Speed: 10.7
Max Speed: 24.5
I set off from home about 1:00 PM. It was 97 out. I could feel a NE or ENE wind while going north on Adobe Road. When I turned on to Valley Vista it was dead on in my face, 10-15 MPH. No fun! I had forgotten how much dirt there is on the road at the bottom of Valley Vista and around the corner on Pinto Mountain. I was more prepared and negotiated it better this time. Pinto is more suitable for mountain bikes than my road bike with skinny 1" tires with 125 PSI in them. Hopefully the county will sweep it soon. Naturally about 1/2 mile south on Pinto the wind shifted to the South and picked up. I grunted up to Amboy road and turned east expecting a head wind but it was cross only. I turned south again onto Goodwin into the teeth of the gale. It was a bad combination as there are a couple of pretty steep little rises on Goodwin. I stopped at the 29 Palms Airport which I have not done before. I wanted and needed a break and some pictures for this blog entry (sorry phone camera does not do justice to objects in distance). After a few minutes I saddled up and started west on Highway 62. There was a lot of holiday traffic returning from points east and too many of them were either oblivious or careless or both of me. I find it very annoying when people chose to pass me with a few feet of clearance when they have plenty of room to move over into the opposing lane. Call me a cranky old man but I really do not care to deal with the consequences of being hit by some silly drunk or careless yahoo in a 2 ton beast but I will not stop riding because of the risk either. Four of the last five times I have taken this route the wind has gone from East when I was going east to West when I turned west. Mercifully it did not today, at least until I got 1/2 mile from home. I was feeling the heat and did not relish the prospect of beating against the wind 6 miles back to Utah trail. It is bad enough that most of it is uphill. When I got to Utah I did not feel enthusiastic enough to take the short side trip to Park HQ for water and a rest, instead I turned north on Utah and came home. It was 100 out when I arrived For me temperatures around 100 in direct sun are a bit too much. I do much better below 90 or 95 or later in the evening when the sun is not so intense.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Moonlight Fuji Mountain Bike Ride 09/02/2012
Miles: 4.7
Time: 0:33:59
Elevation: 0
Average Speed: 8.2
Max Speed: 13.3
Rode around the park and down the street and around. Started about 10:00 PM after I locked up the pool and hot tub. A beautiful late summer evening, nearly full moon, not cool but not hot either. It is fun to do a ride like this after the usual hurry hurry relatively heavy duty rides I do for conditioning.
Time: 0:33:59
Elevation: 0
Average Speed: 8.2
Max Speed: 13.3
Rode around the park and down the street and around. Started about 10:00 PM after I locked up the pool and hot tub. A beautiful late summer evening, nearly full moon, not cool but not hot either. It is fun to do a ride like this after the usual hurry hurry relatively heavy duty rides I do for conditioning.
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Up Up and Up (and up some more) 9/01/2012
Miles: 34.1
Time: 3:27:54
Elevation: 2814
Average Speed: 9.9
Max Speed: 41.0
I left home about 11:00 with the idea of going around to the north on Adobe to Valley Vista and then up Utah to JTNP Headquarters and perhaps up to the North Entrance. This ride was to be a test of my new Biologic Battery Pack which I can use on the road to recharge my smart phone which runs a bicycle app which records miles, time, elevation, etc. I also wanted to test a newly installed Android app which is to keep the phone CPU running while the screen is off which will allow continuous recording of GPS position data while conserving battery power. I got about a mile from home and realized I had put the water bottles on the wrong bike so I turned back and got them and then just went straight to Utah and up to Park HQ. I stopped there and drank about 2 bottles of water and did the best I could to explain to a Dutch lady who had poor English how to get to the gas station and then to I-40 and the Grand Canyon. It was a beautiful cool morning of about 85-90 and I felt good so I started out to go to El Dorado Mine Road, about 4 miles past the kiosk, or even Jumbo Rocks another 4 miles beyond. I had in the back of my mind the possibility of going all the way to Desert View which would have added another 25 miles (round trip) and 1400 feet of climbing beyond JR. I kicked myself a bit for not bringing another water bottle in my back pocket but I had had no thought of going so far when I started out. The climb to the kiosk went well and to El Dorado even better. After taking a short break at the El Dorado junction I encountered head winds going up to JR. This is one of thee steeper sections of the route and the wind did not help. When I got to Jumbo Rocks Campground I pulled in and parked at a camp site and stood in the shade a few minuted and finished my water. I was on the lookout for a tourist I could beg some water from but saw none. I decided to go to the top of the climb a few tenths beyond Jumbo Rocks then go home and eat. I was doing this on last night's late dinner and was getting hungry. As I started up I considered the possibility of going on down the other side to Joshua Tree, about 20 miles away, mostly downhill. I could easily have made it to the West Entrance about 13 miles down where there is water but decided the 20 mile ride home from JT on the highway with a bad shoulder and lots of traffic and 100 degree temps was not a good plan for the afternoon so I turned back. I could even have gone on to Desert View and begged water but, to be honest, got lazy. On the way down at about 35 MPH and a mile before El Dorado Mine Road I got a glimpse of something black flashing by and felt it brushing my leg. I cold see nothing missing from the bike but turned and went back up and found one of the claws from my phone mount on the road. It had vibrated out the side of the slot it sits in. Not good! I moved all 4 claws in as far as I could and kept and eye on them the rest of the way home. I will put a spot of silicone in the slot next to each one to hold them in place while still allowing for the possibility of removal or repositioning (hopefully). I stopped at Park HQ and drank a bottle of water or two then came home through town. All and all a satisfactory effort.
PS The Biologic unit and the new Android app both appeared to work very well. The main intent of the Biologic battery is to provide energy independence for touring by using it with the "Dyno (generator) Wheel" I have on order but that is another story. Sadly I did a sloppy job of putting on sunscreen and got a pretty good burn on my shins.
Time: 3:27:54
Elevation: 2814
Average Speed: 9.9
Max Speed: 41.0
I left home about 11:00 with the idea of going around to the north on Adobe to Valley Vista and then up Utah to JTNP Headquarters and perhaps up to the North Entrance. This ride was to be a test of my new Biologic Battery Pack which I can use on the road to recharge my smart phone which runs a bicycle app which records miles, time, elevation, etc. I also wanted to test a newly installed Android app which is to keep the phone CPU running while the screen is off which will allow continuous recording of GPS position data while conserving battery power. I got about a mile from home and realized I had put the water bottles on the wrong bike so I turned back and got them and then just went straight to Utah and up to Park HQ. I stopped there and drank about 2 bottles of water and did the best I could to explain to a Dutch lady who had poor English how to get to the gas station and then to I-40 and the Grand Canyon. It was a beautiful cool morning of about 85-90 and I felt good so I started out to go to El Dorado Mine Road, about 4 miles past the kiosk, or even Jumbo Rocks another 4 miles beyond. I had in the back of my mind the possibility of going all the way to Desert View which would have added another 25 miles (round trip) and 1400 feet of climbing beyond JR. I kicked myself a bit for not bringing another water bottle in my back pocket but I had had no thought of going so far when I started out. The climb to the kiosk went well and to El Dorado even better. After taking a short break at the El Dorado junction I encountered head winds going up to JR. This is one of thee steeper sections of the route and the wind did not help. When I got to Jumbo Rocks Campground I pulled in and parked at a camp site and stood in the shade a few minuted and finished my water. I was on the lookout for a tourist I could beg some water from but saw none. I decided to go to the top of the climb a few tenths beyond Jumbo Rocks then go home and eat. I was doing this on last night's late dinner and was getting hungry. As I started up I considered the possibility of going on down the other side to Joshua Tree, about 20 miles away, mostly downhill. I could easily have made it to the West Entrance about 13 miles down where there is water but decided the 20 mile ride home from JT on the highway with a bad shoulder and lots of traffic and 100 degree temps was not a good plan for the afternoon so I turned back. I could even have gone on to Desert View and begged water but, to be honest, got lazy. On the way down at about 35 MPH and a mile before El Dorado Mine Road I got a glimpse of something black flashing by and felt it brushing my leg. I cold see nothing missing from the bike but turned and went back up and found one of the claws from my phone mount on the road. It had vibrated out the side of the slot it sits in. Not good! I moved all 4 claws in as far as I could and kept and eye on them the rest of the way home. I will put a spot of silicone in the slot next to each one to hold them in place while still allowing for the possibility of removal or repositioning (hopefully). I stopped at Park HQ and drank a bottle of water or two then came home through town. All and all a satisfactory effort.
PS The Biologic unit and the new Android app both appeared to work very well. The main intent of the Biologic battery is to provide energy independence for touring by using it with the "Dyno (generator) Wheel" I have on order but that is another story. Sadly I did a sloppy job of putting on sunscreen and got a pretty good burn on my shins.
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