Looking for a Road Bike
My new company participates in the Kansas City Corporate Challenge and I began thinking about competing in the Bicycle Road Race; however, when I saw last years results, I realized that the best in this competition are keeping a steady pace of 30 MPH on the 2.5 mile course. I'm going to need a better bike if I'm going to be even in the middle of the pack in this race. (There's not really a pack because it's a time trial event, so they space the racers out by 30 seconds.)I also found out that my boss's boss, Phil, usually wins this race in under 5 minutes. He's also bike the entire Katy Trail... all 224 miles of it... in one day!
So I decided to look for a new bike. The main thing that I will need is a lighter bike. I may be able to sustain speeds of 20-25 MPH on lighter bike. So I'm on he search for an entry-level aluminum road bike. I searched several places and the prices range from $650-800 for the entry-level bikes. One place I went was Trek because they are made here in America at Madison Wisconson. (Interesting that I use that as a criteria for buying a bike, but not a car.) The guy was very helpful and said that he doesn't even like selling their entry-level bikes because the components are not very good.
So after not finding a bike in my price range, I've got my RSS reader watching Craigslist for a bike that meets my criteria.
Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, January 30, 2010
2010 Ride Plans
After reading Cousin Brad's plans for 2010 road and MTB rides as well as runs, I decided to put our own biking plans down "on paper." Last year, we had planned on doing an organized ride every other month, but didn't do it. We realized that if we don't put it down on paper, it's not going to happen. So here's our 2010 ride list:
April
Cabin Fever Challenge (April 17)
June
Amelia Earhart Ride (June 27)
July
Lenexa Midnight Bike Ride if it's not in Shawnee Mission Park (July 10)
August
Cider Mill Century (no, we won't do a century; August 3)
October
Yellow Brick Road Ride (Oct 2)
- or -
Falun Classic (Oct 9)
- or -
Maple Leaf Ride (Oct 9)
- or -
Missouri Bike Federation's Fall Foliage Ride (Oct 16)
Labels: biking
posted on Friday, January 01, 2010
Tour of Missouri 2009
So, we didn't bike as much this summer as we wanted to. And we didn't watch the Tour de France (didn't want to watch Lance). But we certainly weren't going to miss the Tour of Missouri.
We left church early and headed downtown. This year the Tour finished in KC instead of St. Louis, so we would get to see the end of the Tour. That also means that it ended on a Sunday, so there were more people and more kids. They even had a kids' race.
I dropped Enid, Aspen, Ora 5 and the kids bikes at the event and then drove 15 minutes before I found a parking space 4-5 blocks away. Then Ewan and I raced down the Start line so we could see Ora and Aspen race.
For the kids' race, each age ran in a different heat and they started them 50-100 yards from the finish line on the race course and let each heat go. Every kid got a medal. Here's Aspen and Ora 5:
After the kids' race, we went to see the vendor booths. We always bring a wagon because they give you so much free stuff: bottles, noise makers, helmets, etc. The Jelly Belly booth is always a must because they give free Sport Beans. The kids spun a game wheel and the prize was a free jelly belly, but you couldn't tell if it was going to be Blue Berry or Toothpaste flavored; Popcorn or vomit; vanilla or rotten egg. They even had a bucket to spit the bad-tasting ones out.
Soon the race was beginning. The other difference in this year's race is that it started and ended in Crown Center instead of the Plaza and the circuit was longer. This meant we could see the first lap finish in front of the fountains at Crown Center. Then we moved into the link and watched the riders go under us as they finished the second lap. Then we took the link over to Union Station and watched them go by while we stood at the fountain in front of Union Station. Then we crossed the street and watched several laps from the hill in front of Liberty Memorial:
Last we went back to Washington Park and walked up Grand street until we found a good spot to watch the race finish. Zabriskie of the Garmin Slipstream team won the entire Tour!
Labels: biking
posted on Sunday, September 13, 2009
Biked to Work!
I've talked about doing it for a long time, but I finally biked to work today! It was 12.4 miles and took 58 minutes. It would have been faster, but my lungs are a bit out of practice and the hills were hard on me. My fastest speed was 35 mph.I was pleasantly surprised by the vehicle drivers. After hearing many horror stories and having my own share of people yell, curse and honk at me in my neighborhood, I encountered none of that on the roads today. All the drivers were courteous and many moved to the far lane.
I was also pleased with the roads in Missouri. The roads all have wide shoulders. 6-8 feet in some parts but at least 2.5 feet in most other places. The drains, which I often hear about as well, were well designed to accommodate bicyclists. In Kansas, the roads are nice, but there are NO shoulders. I was occupying a lane with traffic. For the most part this was not a problem, but in one section, there was construction and I had to ride 2 feet into the lane to avoid broken pavement. The vehicle drivers were still very courteous even during this stretch.
All in all I had a great experience and hope that when I do this in the future that this experience is the norm and not the exception.
posted on Friday, July 17, 2009
Cabin Fever Challenge 2009
Enid and I went on our first organized ride of the year - a 38-mile ride beginning and ending in Wamego, KS. It took us out to Westmoreland, KS and then back to Wamego by way of Flush, KS. (Appropriately, there was a rest room available to us in Flush.)The first part of the ride was pretty nice. It was hilly which typically means that I beat Enid on the downhills (I and my bike outweigh her and her bike) and she beats me on the uphills; although this time I was beating her on those as well. We determined that she was probably just in the wrong gears which we corrected. We had our first stop in Westmoreland. There were cookies and apples and grapes and bananas and water and on and on and on. It was a great rest stop. We peeked in on the elementary school gym and it looked just like every small Kansas school's gym.
We headed out of town, turned south and were immediately in a head wind. It felt like it stopped us. The next 20 miles were all into the wind and they were tough. It reminded me of several days on the BAK years ago and how hard a head wind can be mentally. We pushed through it and made it back to the finish.
We checked back in and then went to the small swap sale that was outside. Enid bought 2 new biking jerseys for $5 each. We then went to eat; Wamego could use some good eating establishments. They have about 4 fast food places and not much else.
The ride was well organized with wonderful rest stops and good support by volunteer HAM radio operators. The state and county police were driving the route to make sure everyone was okay. I hope we can ride the Yellow Brick Road Ride that the same group does in October. All proceeds to go build a bike trail from Wamego to St. George - a route I occasionally biked in high school.
posted on Saturday, April 11, 2009
First Organized Bike Ride of the Year
Through all the biking blog feeds, I found that there is a bicycle ride near my home town on the same weekend that we will be visiting my parents. So we signed up and are looking forward to a nice ride through the hills of Kansas. Yes, there are hills.Labels: biking
posted on Wednesday, March 11, 2009
2008 Fall Foiliage Tour
Enid and I have biked all summer in anticipation of an organized bike ride. Unfortunately our plans to ride the Octoginta fell through since that ride fell on the same weekend as our church's missions conference. Since we weren't going to be able to ride the Octoginta, our training had fallen off a bit until Enid found the Missouri Bike Federation's Fall Foliage Tour.The ride was just north of Jefferson City, MO, so we got up early and battled thick fog to make it there and the temperature started out at around 50° but warmed to 60°. About 150 riders participated in 30, 60 and 100 mile rides.
We did the 30-mile ride (actually 34 miles) and it was nice; however, it felt like we were always in a small town. Even when we got out of the towns there were still large houses on 5 acre lots. Enid commented that she enjoyed our training ride around Havensville, KS, more because we were out in the country. Here are some of the pictures:
This is taken from the first SAG stop. These bikers are all slowing down to stop and grab a snack:
This is one of the few places that didn't have any houses or towns. It reminded me of a stretch of road north of Havensville. That's Enid ahead of me.
Towards the end of the ride (at the bottom of a long hill) was this bridge. I stopped to get a picture of Enid as she crossed over it. One lady shouted to me playfully mocking: "Don't you know you're supposed to stop at the top of the hills not the bottom?"
When we got done, I stopped and talked to Brent Hugh, the organizer of the Missouri Bicycle Federation. We put our bikes onto our van and talked with a gentleman who rides a recumbent bike. He told us how much he liked it over his old "upwrong" bike. Then Enid and I had lunch at a local family-style diner.
It was a great ride and a great end to the summer season. The challenge now will be finding some time for some winter rides so we start out next spring in as good of shape as we are now.
Labels: biking
posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008
9-Mile Ride; 5 minutes trying not to puke
We enjoyed the Mill Creek trail ride that we did with my uncle so much we decided we wanted to try it again, but this time, we'd attack it from the north. We began near the Kansas River and headed south. We passed Johnson Drive easily; this is where I had died on a trip earlier in the spring. Our goal was to go far enough south that we would reach the point that we had ended with my uncle; we didn't make it. One mile from our goal, the trail makes a sharp incline. I was not able to get up the first rise because I was pulling the trailer behind me. I walked/dragged the bike up the second rise and stopped. I then spent the next 5 minutes trying to not throw up. Enid, who had been ahead of us, came back to find me laying on the trail.When I had recovered, I pushed the bike and trailer up the next rise. It was more level here, so we got back on and pushed ahead. The trail continued an uphill climb, but while it was still challenging it was not steep. Then we reached a part that was steep once again. We were a half mile from where the hill had begun and I estimated that we were only a half mile from our goal, but we couldn't make it. We turned around and headed back.
It was a tough ride and we got 9 miles in. We'll be back here next spring to challenge that hill once again.
Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, October 11, 2008
10-mile ride with my Uncle and Cousins
We had great fun tonight riding with my uncle and cousins. They took us out to the southern end of the Haller trail and we rode up to Shawnee Mission park. There are some tremendous hills on the route. They wouldn't be so bad expect that they are not gradual inclines but very steep which is hard with the trailer and kids behind me.We saw a lot of dear out beside the trail as well. At the end of the ride, Ora 5 and my cousin rode ahead. I think Ora 5 liked the opportunity to bike with someone else and to break away from the pack.
Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, September 20, 2008
30 miles, 6 miles, huge hills and gimped gears
Enid and I took our 30-mile ride today. We started out of Havensville on monster hills. They almost killed us in the first 3 miles and I discovered that my gears aren't working right: They're bent. When in my top gear my derailleurs are hitting the spokes. I suspect they got bent up when I took my fall on our 20-mile ride. We continued on over many more hills and made it our 30 miles, so we're satisfied by very tired.While we were on our ride, Oma took Ora 5 and rode from Havensville to Onaga. A 6-mile ride on-road. We haven't taken Ora on-road because he weaves so much on the trails that we have been afraid he will weave into a passing car. Oma said that he was very steady on his bike and when she would tell him "car back" he would move right over and stay on the white line of the road. Oma tells us that he also rode up every hill which is impressive because he is on a mountain bike and there are a couple of monster hills on that route, too. We're very proud of him!
posted on Saturday, August 30, 2008
My Birthday
Today is my birthday. Enid bought me new bike shorts and a CamelBak, so I'm equipped to ride. She actually gave me the shorts a day early so I could use them for yesterdays ride. I also received some gift money, so I'm looking at buying some clipless pedals.posted on Sunday, August 17, 2008
8.1-Mile Bike Ride and the End of the Trail
We drove to Rick's house this morning and he let us through his neighborhood to jump on the Indian Creek trail. We rode 8.1 miles and I took an extra 1.5 miles reach the end of the Indian Creek trail.The trail goes by the Nazarene college in Olathe where it begins to cross roads at awkward crosswalks. It can be difficult to follow if you don't watch for the road signs which are not posted to face those riders on the trail, but rather the traffic crossing the trail.
151st street is the busiest crossing and everyone went back, but I biked the last bit to see where the trail sends. The Indian Creek dwindles down to not much more than a ditch and the trail ends at a loop in a wooded park, but now I can say that I've biked the trail from end to end, just not all in the same trip.
Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, August 16, 2008
11.4-mile Bike Ride
Ora 5 passed the 10-mile mark for the first time tonight as we rode an 11.4-mile ride. When we stopped for a bathroom break part way, so I pulled out the GPS and saw that we had gone 5.6 miles. Ora 5 still seemed strong so we briefly considered going farther, but decided to turn back and not push it. We're glad we did because he began to wear out the last 3 miles, but we are still amazingly proud of him.posted on Tuesday, August 12, 2008
19.6-Mile Bike Ride
Today was our second milestone ride: 20 miles. Instead of driving to Longview Lake, we biked to it, around it and back. It was 2 hours and we had a moving average of 12 MPH.At one spot a snapping turtle was trying to cross a busy road. I stopped to move it off into the grass, but I was in for a surprise. I was thinking it would be like picking up a box turtle, but larger. I approached him from the back and picked him put by the back half of his body; however, he immediately took is back legs, grabbed my hands and pushed my hands off of him. I hadn't expected the clawed feet so I dropped him out of surprise. He fell on his back and I thought Well, he's dead now, but he pushed himself upright using his head. He then turned towards me and opened his mouth wide and snapped at me.
"I don't think he wants to be messed with," Enid observed.
"Ok," I replied.
I walked around the turtle back to my mike and he did a full turn keeping his head facing me the entire time with his mouth ready to bite if tried again.
We pushed on. There was also organized run around the lake that day, so we saw many runners as well as the usual bikers.
Here's a picture of us after our ride:
Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, August 02, 2008
Bike Maintenance according to YouTube
Cleaning Your Bike Chain:Brake Maintenance:
Adjusting Rear Derailleur:
Front Derailleur Adjustment:
How to Remove a Bicycle Wheel:
How to Repair a Flat Bicycle Tire:
Build Your Own Bike Part 1:
Build Your Own Bike Part 2:
Labels: biking
posted on Tuesday, July 29, 2008
7.4-Mile Ride
The thermometer read 101 degrees when we left tonight for our ride. We had waited until the evening hoping it would cool down, but it didn't, so we went. Despite the heat, we did 7.4 miles.Labels: biking
posted on Sunday, July 20, 2008
10-Mile Road Ride
Today was our first milestone ride: 10 miles. Some friends watched the kids while we drove to Longview Lake and biked around it. It was also our first ride on-road. We road the 10 miles in an hour and saw lots of other bikers.I began to wonder if they knew something that I did not because they rode around the lake clockwise while we rode counter-clockwise. Later I realized that by riding their direction, they are actually riding a shorter path; like being on the inside ring of a track instead of the outside.
Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, July 19, 2008
Enid's New Bike
Enid found a bike on Craigslist! The owner was a KC cop who is occasionally on the bike patrol. He had a shirt on that said "God made cops so fire fighters would have heroes." I thought that was funny.When Enid knocked on his apartment door, he answered and brought the bike out for her to try. When he opened the door, Enid could see his gun and holster hanging from the dining room chair. I wondered if that's where he normally hung his gun or if that was a way of telling strange people who contact him through Craigslist "Don't mess with me."
He bought his wife a bike, but she didn't enjoy it, so the bike is barely ridden. We bought it and here she is on it:
Now the bike needs a name.
posted on Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Ora 5's New Bike
We went shopping for a bike for Enid and ended up with a bike for Ora 5:
We had noticed that Ora would spin out his single-speed bike, so we felt that he could go farther on our rides if he had a bike with gears, so now he has it. He's very proud. Aspen is asking for a new bike now.
posted on Saturday, July 05, 2008
12.5-Mile Bike Ride from Havensville to Onaga
We're in Havensville for the Independence Day celebration and we brought our bikes, so Enid and I got up early and rode from Havensville to Onaga (6.25 miles) and back. We are still on our mountain bikes so we were slower than we would be on road bikes, but we had an average moving speed of 9.7 MPH which we felt pretty good about especially since we also hit 3 good hills. This was Enid's first experience with those, but she did fine, but her gears need adjusted a bit.Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, June 28, 2008
7.75-Mile Ride
After yesterdays interrupted bike ride, we decided to go out tonight. Right now we are riding walking/biking trails and they all run next to rivers, so we wondered what the conditions of the trails would be. I heard that many of the rivers has overflown their banks and on the way home from work I saw parks that were completely flooded.We began our ride at Mission Park in Leawood and took the trail south to Tomahawk Creek Trail and rode it to the end of the trail at Nall & 124th. The trail was remarkably good, but we could see where the rivers had flown over the trail and left debris on even the tall pedestrian bridges. There was lots of mud and in a couple of places large puddles of water covered the trail.
Enid and Ora 5 enjoyed splashing through them, but I had Aspen and Ewan in the trailer and tried to take muddy spots and puddles slow so that they would not be sprayed by my back tire. At first they enjoyed the water, but once the mud started they tired of it quickly. When we stopped for a break, I had to use wipes to clean both their faces and baths were required for everyone tonight.
Labels: biking
posted on Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Aborted Bike Trip
After dinner I began loading the bikes onto the van, but noticed that clouds were rolling in. I went into the house and Enid had the weather radio on which was reporting that there were already severe storms in the city, so I unpacked the bikes.Less than 30 minutes later, the rain was pouring down. We'll try again tomorrow.
Labels: biking
posted on Tuesday, June 03, 2008
7.9-Mile Bike Ride
We went for a 7.9-Mile bike ride this afternoon. We started on the Missouri side of Indian Creek Trail which currently ends at Holmes & 99th. (They'll be extending it in the future.) We rode it past State Line and into Leawood Park. From there we rode it south until it connected with Tomahawk Creek Trail and rode south on that trail for about a mile.When we stopped for a break, it was at a small pond. Ora found a large frog and then noticed that dozens of tiny frogs were all around. He picked up one and brought it to us. It was small enough that its whole body could have fit on a dime. Aspen was unafraid to pick them up either.
We rode back and completed almost 8 miles with no chain problems on Ora's bike.
Labels: biking
posted on Sunday, June 01, 2008
6.5-Mile Ride and 9 Chain Derailments
We biked along Longview Lake Bike Trail again tonight, but this time we started at the north end. Ora 5's bike chain fell off 9 times during our ride!Labels: biking
posted on Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Scouting Turkey Creek
Over my lunch break today, I scouted the Turkey Creek Trail for a future bike ride.Later I created a Google Map for it: http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=110458830198340812249.00044dc1c392a5b8ee0c4&z=13
Once we get over to ride it, I'll add any other details I find to the map.
Labels: biking
posted on Wednesday, May 21, 2008
First Work Out at the Y
Worked out at the Y this morning before going into work. On my first few bike rides I have been winded and had trouble pulling the trailer, so I decided it was going to take more than biking to get in shape.I did a round on all the machines and then got on a bike and went 4 miles, hitting my target heart rate in the process. When I was done, I wasn't worn out, winded, no chest pain, etc, so apparently the biking has done me some good already.
Labels: biking
posted on
Looking for a Bike with Gears for Ora 5
I stopped by the Trek store today. My main goal was to see what size bike frame I needed. I aired up the tires on my road bike yesterday and took it for a spin, but I felt very ungainly on it. I wasn't sure if I had grown slightly in the last 12 years and it was the wrong size for me now; or if it was the 40 pounds I've gained; or that I'm too used to riding a mountain bike yet. Turns out it is the perfect size for me, so I'm guessing it's a combination of the last 2.While there I asked about bikes with gears for boys. Ora 5 has been spinning out the gear so I started looking for bikes with gears, but only found bikes that were 20-inch bikes or larger had gears, but Ora is not ready for a 20-inch bike.
The Trek salesman confirmed that I would not find smaller bikes with gears, so I began to wonder about making one. Could I not buy a 20-inch bike with gears at a garage sale, remove the gears and place them on Ora's 16-inch bike. Then I began to wonder if there is a market for that. I would guess there is not since no bike manufacturer is doing it. But they are looking at how much profit they can add to their bottom line by adding a 16-inch bike with gears, which is probably not much. I'm looking at having no bottom line and adding income from the sale of niche bikes, so the economics for the "little guy" are slightly different.
Something to also consider is can a small boy learn gears. I think he can. When we bike Ora has done a great job. While we ride, I am constantly giving him directions: "Stay right. Go slow around this corner. Speed up this hill" etc. Following the same process I think I can teach him to use gears.
posted on Tuesday, May 20, 2008
A 6.5 Mile Bike Ride And How to Go Farther
We went our riding again tonight. This time to Indian Creek Trail. Here's the kids at the beginning:
And Enid:
Ora 5 as he leads the way:
At the end of the ride we found a waterfall:
Enid rode a little further and found that parts of the trail that were closed for highway construction have reopened, so now there is a continuous trail 11 miles (one way), plus a few more miles on the Missouri side.
We also found that Ora 5 seems to be hitting a wall at 3-3.5 miles into our ride, forcing us to head back. We decided that on future rides one of us will ride with Ora and the other will ride ahead and get some long mileage riding in.
Labels: biking
posted on Sunday, May 18, 2008
7-Mile Bike Ride
We went biking today at Longview Lake. The first half was a hard ride into a strong wind today. We made lots of stops and took lots of breaks, but the ride back was a quick and enjoyable.Labels: biking
posted on Sunday, May 11, 2008
A 4.5 Mile Bike Ride and Octoginta Goals
We went out biking again today, this time along long north/south trail in Kansas. The trail is 14.5 miles, but we only did about 4.5 miles. Although Enid and Ora 5 could have gone longer, I gave out after pulling the trailer (with Aspen and Ewan inside) up a small hill. It's time for me to get on a regular exercise plan!Afterwards Enid and I sat and talked. I had expressed interest in riding the Octoginta in Ocotober as a possible preparation ride for the Bike Across Kansas in 2009. Enid asked if she could join me so we started making plans for a spring and summer filled with biking to prepare for the Octoginta.
Labels: biking
posted on Sunday, May 04, 2008
A 6.3 Mile Bike Ride
This weekend was going to be beautiful weather, so we dusted off the bikes, aired up the tires and went to Longview Lake. I took along my Garmin GPS and we biked 6.3 miles. Ora 5 kept up the entire time. I pulled Aspen and Ewan in the trailer and they loved it.Labels: biking
posted on Saturday, May 03, 2008
Pro Biking Comes to Missouri
According to the KC Star, pro bicycling is coming to Kansas City and the rest of Missouri this fall (Sept. 11-16). Look for me and my kids to be on the roadsides watching. Now if there was just someone to cheer for.Labels: biking
posted on Friday, February 09, 2007
