Yesterday's Breakfast Ride

We went for a wonderful breakfast ride yesterday morning. Organized as usual by Henry, there were nine of us, including our friend Sandy whom we enticed to join us. She had an adventure! The route was up the West River Drive, over the Falls Bridge and into Manyunk. Up Main Street, up Umbria and down to River Road. I'd been afraid to try this ride with Annie, but she did great and I'm glad we were able to do it with others. The hill up Umbria was really a lot for Sandy. But we all waited for her and eventually she made it. Then we followed River Road instead of just using it to access the Schuylkill River Trail. I'd never done this. It is a lovely ride. Unfortunately, not five minutes after getting on River Road we heard a load pop. It really sounded like someone was shooting at us. But it was Sandy's tube blowing out, and I mean blowing out. Six of the group were already ahead of us and did not realize or stop. Larry and I stopped and luckily one of my tubes fit so we managed to change her tire pretty quickly and catch up with the group. Then we made it to the appointed breakfast location, ate and returned home with no further incidents. The day was glorious weather-wise and the roads, both on and off the trail, were crowded with cyclists. It was really great. I had to officiate at a wedding last night and we were out until midnight, so with the ride after the fast the day before and our regular ride this morning, I'm feeling a bit tuckered out. But the ride was worth it. It was just 30 miles round trip.

Here's Larry working on Sandy's bike (and Sandy.)



Here we are at breakfast. Henry is in black against the window. Next to him is Nancy.



Oh! And lest I forget: on the ride home a wasp become stuck behind my glasses, between them and my eye. I was "lightly" stung, before I could get my glasses off and let him out. It bothered me all day, but was really not a bad sting. Just a funny sensation that took until this morning to get rid of.

Catching Up

Rode on Friday and added the total to the monthly count, but had no time or psychic energy to write. I was completely taken up with preparations for Yom Kippur.

Meanwhile the blogosphere has been commenting on the Floyd decision, though not as manically as I had expected. There have been many fair analyses. Perhaps among the most succinct is this from the Fat Cyclist:


So, Is Floyd Innocent?

My natural tendency is to believe that most people have good motives most of the time. So I believed Tyler is / was innocent, and I’m inclined to believe Floyd is innocent, too. I sure hope so, because Stage 17 in the 2006 TdF was the most inspiring race in modern times.

Innocence aside, I think that Floyd made a strong case that the lab failed in its job to provide unimpeachable results. Strong enough to provide reasonable doubt. Which means, as far as my sense of justice is concerned, that he should not have been found guilty.

So, is Floyd innocent? I think so. Should he have been found not guilty? yes.


This morning Annie and I are joining Henry and the Sunday Breakfast ride again. A couple of our other friends are planning to join us. I'll report later today.

A Lovely Ride A Lousy Commute

Annie and I rode in the beautiful rising sun this morning. We encountered a train blocking the tracks both coming and going which has not happened in awhile. It doesn't seem nearly the pain in the neck it was when we first started; it is, rather, an opportunity to ride at least an additional mile in order to use the Chestnut Street access.

I took the bike to work in order to use it for a hospital visit. Yikes! Traffic in town was horrendous. Even on a bike getting through the streets was very difficulty and all the more nerve wracking since the cars were in a frustrated state of mind. I managed, but really for the first time, didn't enjoy myself. I was just glad to finish and get back on this side of Chestnut Street.

The big cycling news of the day is the arbitration ruling against Floyd Landis. I am saddened but not surprised. Not because I believe Landis is guilty. Obviously I don't know and having read his book can really see his point regarding the lapses in the chain of evidence against him. But unless the verdict is overturned on appeal, and I haven't heard whether Floyd will make an appeal, he has to be considered guilty and the cycling world loses a pretty great cyclist (or gets rid of a juiced up impostor - which is it? That's the problem.)

Too Gorgeous To Miss

I declined taking a long ride with a friend in order to conserve strength for the weekend, Yom Kippur requires a great deal of energy, fasting, and speaking all day. But after a quiet morning of working on sermons it was time for a little ride. The little ride turned into a 30 mile ride, just a triple loop around the Schuylkill, but I couldn't resist. The day was so beautiful. Perfect blue sky, perfect temperature and low humidity; a breeze but not too significant a head wind. Luckily I had just enough water with me for the ride, but hadn't brought any snack. So I stopped at the truck-stand that is always on Kelly Drive and used the opportunity to get a picture. I think the guys name is Dave who runs it. He is 80 years old and has been running that truck for close to 60 years I'm told! I tried to take a shot of one of the mansions on the ridge above the drive just to showcase the day; not sure it came out too well.





Took a shot of some of the activity that greeted me at the start of the Schuylkill River Park both coming and going. Looks like they're shooting a scene for a movie or commercial. We see more and more of that in Center City Philadelphia these days, which I guess is good.



Finished the afternoon with a visit to my Chiropractor, George Rhodes. George is also a very serious cyclist and I thought the old bike chained to the front of his office for use as a bike rack was worth a picture.

A Commuting Day

I rode my bike all over town today for different work-related errands and a few personal ones. The weather is perfect and it helps my spirits to be on and off the bike all day. I rode the loop this morning without Annie; she was very tired and we were up rather late after our bike class. It amazes me how few more miles I add on riding around town. My total today was 19.9 and 13.3 of that was the regular loop. So doing everything else that I needed to do, really going from one side of town to the other and back, a distance that some people would drive, others would take a cab or a bus all together only added 6 miles!

Nice comment on the blog from one of the guys in the bike class. I hope others in the class get a chance to check it out.

I've been really enjoying two great cycling information sites:Bike Radar and its sister site: Cyclingnews.com. They are great sites, though Bike Radar is much more sophisticated aesthetically. I am adding both to my site-roll for easy daily check-ins.

Last Bike Class

Our four session bike maintenance class ended tonight with a session on brakes, cables and shifters. This session was less hands-on than I would have liked, but I did learn a fair amount, especially about brakes and brake cables. The second part was too rushed and I didn't feel like I knew what was going on.

The ride back and forth was good and added a few miles to our otherwise regular ride this morning.

4000 Miles and Counting

The first phase of the holidays came to an end and Annie and I were out riding on what felt like a beautiful fall day. Perhaps a bit early, but the chill was fine and we road over 20 miles before I had to get to work. I took the bike for a variety of errands later on. It felt good to be riding today. A good way to decompress from the tension of the holiday services. Most particularly my mileage chart has now topped the 4000 mile mark, my original goal for the year. It is hard to tell the rate I'll be able to ride as the season gets busier and the weather begins to turn, but 5000 miles is not out of the question. It has been a great year of riding, a transformative year, really. That transformation and the role of the bike was the subject of one of my sermons during the holiday. Now if I can figure a way to create a link to it and store it as a pdf I'll make it available here. But it may take me a few days to figure it out.

I listened to the latest Fredcast today. David was offering an invitation to "joost" a beta program that has all kinds of TV content. Most importantly cyclingtv, so I asked for an received an invitation (its is an invitation only site in its beta form) they are being given away first come-first serve. I downloaded it and browsed around for awhile. Way more TV than I need, but the cyclingtv does make it worthwhile.

Pre-Holiday Ride

A gorgeous pre-fall morning; because of the holiday Annie did not go to New Jersey so we had a Wednesday together, however because of the number of things that we need to do individually and together to get ready we still only rode one loop of 13.3 miles. It was nice to ride in full daylight. I've found that as the season changes again I'm not enjoying the deep darkness that we ride in at 5:45 AM. Plus, I'm not satisfied with our lighting systems. I hate the thought of spending what it looks like we should in order to have a better solution, but I will have to look into that after the holiday. Meanwhile, that's all from me until Sunday

No Ride Today...But More Great Pictures

Last night Annie and I rode up to the Neighborhood Bike Works (known as Bike Church, as it is housed in the basement of a Church on the University of Pennsylvania campus) for the third of our four sessions in basic bike maintenance. It was the first time that Annie felt comfortable to ride in Center City traffic to get there and back. It was great having her make that step. This week's lesson was on headsets and wheel hubs. We took apart our headsets and greased the bearings and ditto for the hubs. The headsets on the Fuji's are threadless, integrated and sealed. We took it apart basically to show it as a comparison to the unsealed type which most of the other folks were working on. Then we took apart our front wheel hubs and took out the bearings and greased them up and put it all back together. Great fun and I'm beginning to get a little more confident about working on the bike, though I'm not sure how much I will do on a regular basis. Next week is the final class, on brakes and cables. Below are a couple of photos from last night's session.




This last one is my bike with the handlebars removed and the headset exposed.



So, this morning it was very dark and wet outside. Not actually raining, though it is right now, and we were tired from going to bed late after class last night. For one of the few times in the last year we just bagged the ride and got a little more sleep. It's a stressful week for me and I have to take care. I have the bike with me for things I have to do for work today, so I hope the rain stops or I may not get on it at all.

But we have been receiving various photos from friends from our last two adventures and I thought I'd just put them up here today. The first one was taken by Dineen at Bike Philly.



The next is a series taken by our friend Jake on the Hazon Ride. Enjoy!

A Quiet Ride

After all the excitement of yesterday a new week began with just a regular quiet ride of 13.2 miles. Humid but fine for riding and relatively empty trail made for a relaxing ride before a busy day. Counting down to the Holidays and to the waning riding weather. Not that the weather will be a factor for a few months yet, but the time for long rides and the number of organized rides will definitely be impacted. We are looking into some in October, but haven't decided.

Bike Philly!

We have just returned from Bike Philly. It was a great success. So far the estimates are that there were over 3000 people riding. More official numbers may be forthcoming tomorrow. We were at the start at 7:30 and took off at 8 AM. These first photos are of Annie lining up for the start (wearing our new Philadelphia jersey);



Mark, our companion on the breakfast ride a few weeks ago doing the same;



and the barrier behind which we assembled. We chose to ride with the "relaxed riders," but in such a crowd I'm not sure it made much difference. The pace was slow and occasionally hairy with all these bikes nudged together in places. But we didn't see any mishaps.



We rode down the Benjamin Franklin Parkway onto Arch street and down Arch to Delaware Avenue. We rode along Delaware Avenue to Christian Street and back up Christian around 4th and then over to Lombard. We rode up Lombard to 16th (almost past our house!) and along 16th back to the Parkway and then off into Fairmont Park for another 10 miles. In Fairmont Park we stopped at a rest stop by one of the great mansions,



and there we ran into Dineen from my office, whom we had tried to hook up with but missed at the start.





The ride through the Park was really pleasant. The spirit of the riders was wonderful. The organization and support for this inaugural event was terrific. The only little fly in the ointment was that we decided at the last minute to follow the 20 mile route rather than go for the 35 or 50. I was out very late last night for the services starting the Penitential season and have much to prepare for the holidays approaching. I was a little tired and tense and we called it a day pretty early. Still, it was a lot of fun.

We came to the Finish Line festival and dismounted, spending some time browsing the booths, getting our tee-shirts and grabbing some food.



Hopefully this will become an annual event and we will ride the longer routes in the future. We still managed to put 21.7 miles on the meter.

Ready For Bike Philly!

Annie and I had a pleasant morning ride. I seem to be getting more used to the clipless pedals, though I'm still a little nervous. Changed clothes and shoes and took the bike for running errands today, so added 15.4 miles to the total. We are psyched for the first Bike Philly this Sunday. 20 miles of streets will be closed for cycling; another 30 miles will be available for share-the-road riding, fully supported. Not sure yet how far or how long we'll ride. I'm guessing we'll do the 35 mile loops, but maybe the 50. It will depend, in part, on the experience of riding with close to 3000 people. That's the expected turnout with 2000 already pre-registered. It will be an event and I'm looking forward to it.

A Nun On Wheels

Today only time for another very quick post. This is going to be the way it is now that I'm back into busy season. We rode 13.4 miles this morning. I didn't feel so good on the bike today. Partly because it suddenly seemed quite dark at 5:45 in the morning; partly because now that school is back in session the trail seemed more crowded with more people who don't follow the rules of the road. And partly because I took another dumb tumble because I couldn't get out of my clips well. This time I wasn't even clipped in on the left, only on the right, and still lost my balance. Oh well, I had predicted four falls and this makes three.

We are on our way over to Whole Foods in a few minutes to pick up our registration packet for Sunday's Bike Philly! Should be great.

Finally, as a tidbit for the day, check out Biking To The Monastery a blog by a bicycling nun courtesy of Cyclicious.

Back On The Road

We took Tuesday morning off from riding after the Hazon weekend. Annie went up to NJ to visit Tamar and Shail and today would normally be my long ride day. But I didn't feel like taking a very long ride, partly because I had a million errands to do and two medical appointments late in the day. So I started out late, nearly 10 AM and stopped first at Bicycle Therapy to pick out a new helmet. My old one was shot. Then I headed for the Schuylkill path figuring on doing a loop or two. Actually only had time for one, but it was particularly fun as I met Jacob on the way and we did the loop together traveling at a pretty fast clip. Later in the day I was back at the bike shop. I really needed to get the tension in the pedals adjusted; it was just too hard for me to get out of the clips and I was getting really wary of using them at all. And while I was there I had to bite the bullet and admit that the bike shoes I bought were too tight. They had killed my feet on the ride. So I got a pair a size larger. With the better fitting shoes and the adjusted pedals, clipping in and out became as easy as it always appeared when others did it. I'm feeling much better about using the clipless pedals now. So, with the errands and the loop I added 16.5 miles.

What A Weekend!

There really isn't going to be enough space to describe the extraordinary experience we had this past weekend. Since this is a bicycling blog, I will focus on our ride, which was wonderful fun, challenging and satisfying almost beyond words. But the real meaning of the weekend transpired from Friday night until Saturday night: the experience of being with a multi-generational, eclectic and diverse practicing Jewish community inspired to use all of its resources to developing a healthy and sustainable Jewish community and thereby contributing to create a healthy and sustainable world. But if I begin talking about that part of the weekend I won't stop, and its not the topic of this blog.

So, that's me at 6 AM on Sunday morning just before we took off from Camp Isabella Freedman in Falls River Connecticut at 7 AM. I am wearing my full Hazon NY Jewish Environmental Bike Ride kit: socks, shorts and Jersey, all earned as fund-raising incentives. I was a couple of hundred dollars short of the jacket and a couple of thousand short of earning the GPS.



And that's Annie at about the same time. A few minutes later, obviously, as we joined the group for the mass start. There were three routes: 50, 75 and 100 miles from Falls River to Hopewell Junction NY. Annie and I did the 50. On my own I may have tried the 75; I doubt I would have tried the Century yet, but I was happy to ride with Annie and most of the group. The 75 and 100 mile routes all included the 50 miles we did and all agreed that the 50 miles we did were the hardest part of the ride. It was hard, but not too hard. Probably not as hard as the hills we did on the Lancaster Metric Century, but close. And then there was the killer, nicknamed "Frank," the final 3 miles straight uphill at about a 6 to 8% grade. Knocked the socks off us all.



Along the way we passed country as pictured above. Just beautiful! The roads were fairly free of traffic, though there were some exceptions on more major routes. In a few places local police directed traffic, which was very helpful. And the ride crew! Enough cannot be said about the support, the cheering, the Marshals and medics riding the route and the SAG wagons passing by. There was even a bike mechanic with a trailer-bike shop. I had my front hub bearings greased and new brake pads put on Friday afternoon - free - this was the mechanic's contribution to the cause! Annie's fender was rubbing the wheel the second morning, probably got pinched in the truck carrying the bikes, and he fixed it right up.



Speaking of support, that's our lunch stop on the first day. The food was plentiful and better than expected. (Except that they could have done a much better job of accommodating folks like Annie with wheat allergies. We will try to gently communicate this to the leadership. We know they tried, but it really does need to be more of a priority. It's a long way to ride without proper nourishment.)



Sunday night was spent at Camp Kinder Ring. Marvelous accommodations! Above is the view from our room at sunset.



I didn't take many photos the second day but here are the last two. Above we are all congregating at 79th Street and Riverside Drive for the ride en mass to the Manhattan JCC for the conclusion. And below is a shot of the group on the roof of the JCC at the concluding ceremony. All in all an awesome ride and an awesome weekend.

Off To Connecticut

A quick note before we take off. We will be at our daughter and son-in-law's home in New Jersey tonight. They live close by the pick-up point in West Orange N.J. where will catch the bus to Connecticut tomorrow morning. We are psyched for the ride!

This morning we did our regular loop of 13 miles. We will not expecting to ride tomorrow so my August statistics seem final today. 516.5 miles for the month is pretty good; my second best month of the year. September will obviously get off to a good start with two 50-60 miles days back to back. After that, after Labor Day, long rides will be fewer and more far between and even regular morning rides will be impacted by the many Jewish holidays in September and October. But I'm well on my way to meeting the 4000 mile goal.

A Golf Day

Before I started riding I used to play golf pretty often. I haven't played in a year and probably only once in the preceding year. Today I was invited to play and decided to do so. It meant giving up a big Wednesday ride, but I thought it would not be such a bad idea to forgo a 50-60 mile ride today knowing that I'm going to ride two 50-60 mile days back-to-back on Sunday and Monday. Besides, variety is the spice of life and the weather was perfect. Of course, having not played for a year, I played pretty badly, but it was fun. When i came home I took the bike out for a spin, just 14.7 miles on the day. another regular ride tomorrow morning and then no ride on Friday or Saturday. Friday we'll be traveling and Saturday is the Sabbath. Then the two big days. We are looking forward to the people, the learning and most of all the ride. Watch this space for a report and, hopefully, pictures. but not until Tuesday.

Annie's Back!

It was really nice to get out on the trail this morning with Annie. Here she is (and below) decked out in our Lancaster Covered Bridges Jersey. Despite having had x-rays only yesterday and not knowing the results yet, there seemed to be no reason to stay off the bike. The pain she has is only when the area on the side of the ankle is touched; neither walking nor riding seems to impact it (we hope!) Since she's already been spinning in the house all week and we are still psyched for our big Labor Day ride, getting back on the road today seemed important. We had a good ride, good pace until a train blocked our return. We lost some time going up the Chestnut Street ramp and home on the streets, but it gave us a few extra miles and some good work on the hill. No incidents, thankfully. In fact, the spinning workouts are clearly more strenuous than our usual ride and Annie's general fitness and leg strength seemed better today than if she had been biking all this week.

On another front: we decided to sell the Treks! They just don't seem nearly comfortable enough for where we are now. If we need fatter tires for trail riding next summer we can either buy something with less of a "comfort" set-up since that set-up no longer feels comfortable, or try to get fatter tires that we can change-out on the Fuji's. So, the first Trek, mine, was sold in an hour. The other one, Annie's step-through frame may take longer or may not sell at all. We'll see. Next to go will be the Citizen folders.

Last night we took our second of the four class series on Bicycle maintenance. We learned how to take apart, clean and re-assemble a bottom bracket. Great fun!

I've got the bike with me for some errands, so the mileage chart will be updated later.



Finally, just a quick report on a new book. I read Tour de Life, by Saul Raisin and Dave Shield. It's an unbelievable story. Raisin suffered a catastrophic fall that resulted in a coma and necessitated brain surgery just to keep him alive. His prognosis to live was not good; his prognosis to walk was not good; his prognosis to ride a bike was impossible and his prognosis to race at the professional level was beyond impossible. Never the less he will be racing in the U.S Championships coming up this weekend! The story is moving. The funny thing is that while he emerges as an inspirational figure, the recovery proceeds through personality changes that do not really allow him to emerge as a very likable character. One assumes that as time passes this will change. The writing is not as good as the writing in Dave Shield's novels. He obviously needed to create lot's of dialog where the actual conversations could not be recorded or remembered or were conducted in French and broken French. This accounts for a lot of stilted dialog that one has to just read with a grain of salt. In addition to the link above, I've added the link to the side bar book&movie section for your later consideration.

Countdown To Connecticut

On Friday morning we will board a bus in West Orange New Jersey, after spending the night with Tamar and Alan who live not far from there, taking us to Camp Isabella Freedman in Falls Village Connecticut. We will spend Friday and Saturday there enjoying the Sabbath filled with opportunities to learn and share with others around environmental themes and their relationship to Jewish texts, traditions and communities. On Sunday morning we will ride from Camp Freedman to Camp Kinder Ring in Hopewell Junction New York. There are various routes, but I think ours will take us between 50-60 miles. On Monday we will ride from Hopewell Junction to Manhattan along the Westchester Bike trail, another 60 miles. We are excited and have prepared all summer for this ride. The only problem is Annie's physical condition following Thursday's accident. She is still pretty sore, especially around her ankle. It does not appear to be broken nor particularly sprained and she is walking relatively well. But it is very tender to the touch and she did not bike today for fear of just knocking the foot against something. We thought about wrapping it in bubble wrap but it just didn't seem worth it. She is feeling disheartened and "picked-on" by fate. She did work out hard today on the spinner, so her fitness should remain good. I am hopeful that as the week passes her wounds will heal and her confidence will return. It would be a real shame if the highlight that we've worked toward for the whole summer was ruined because of that stupid dog walker!
So I rode on my own this morning again. I was up early and out quickly and rode with very good speed. I was able to do the loop three times for a 29.8 addition to the mileage chart. I didn't enjoy it as much as usual because I felt badly about Annie's not riding. But it was a good ride.

Riding Solo Again

Good news and bad news. Bad news is that, as expected, Annie could not ride today. Her ankle is making progress, the swelling is down, but she's not road-ready. So I had to ride by myself today. The other bad news is that the weather is not getting any more enticing. It is oppressively overcast today and though I've taken my bike with me to do hospital visits I am now seriously worried about rain.
The good news, such as it is, is that being on my own I was able to get out of the house a bit more efficiently and ride at a harder pace and therefore road 17.6 miles this morning instead of the usual 13. The extra pounding felt good. Since, as mentioned, I have the bike with me I won't be posting today's mileage until later.
Also, since I was alone, I wore my ipod. I know there is a lot of controversy about how safe this is, but I use a one ear piece headphone, only listen to podcasts which I think are not as distracting as music, and have found no problem in hearing everything along the ride: cars, other people, etc. For those offended, my apologies. I "discovered" a new bicycling podcast, which was lucky since I'm all caught up on the archives of my other favorites, The Fredcast, The Spokesmen, The Bike Show, Bikescape,etc. and after the intense activity around the TdeF no one has been putting much out lately. So I found The Two Johns and listened to my first show on this morning's ride. Nice stuff.

Annie Can't Win

After our great ride on Sunday Annie's confidence was just about all the way back and her lingering aches and pains were just about gone. But it seems she just can't win. This morning just at the end of our ride she collided with a dog. Said dog was not leashed and its owner was sauntering along the path some yards distant from the site of the crash. The level of inconsiderateness, stupidity, irresponsibility and self-centered-ness is astounding. The dog walkers, I've said from the beginning, are the worst offenders hands down among the various people who make sharing a multi-use trail difficult. They have no sense of where they are as long as their little puppies have the freedom to do whatever they need to do. We were furious, but, thankfully, it does not appear that Annie was seriously hurt. Her right side did take another hit and until we see how sore she gets we won't know for sure. Her glasses were bent, her head did hit, although not hard, so a new helmet may be in order and the bike will definitely have to be looked at again. The fenders, at the very least, look mis-aligned. I was so angry and so helpless. If it would not have taken hours I would have called 911 just to get a cop to cite the girl. It is, after all, illegal to walk a dog without a leash. We are amazed at how much we try to not only obey the rules of the path, but extend ourselves in the interest of politeness. Always calling out "bikes passing on the left" and so on and how many people just don't care. Cyclists who shoot by us on the left without a word, walkers walking 3 and 4 abreast plugged into ipods, skateboarders and dog walkers oblivious to everything. It really does suggest that the safest place to ride is in the road, but I'm not sure I could get Annie to go for that, especially since we ride when it is still dark and rush hour traffic is just getting going. What a bummer. And to top it off, the weather is still lousy.

I'm Clipped In!

The misty autumnal weather continued into today though I had hoped for a break. Not that it was raining hard, but misting and dark and very cool for this time of the year. That combined with being a little tired and I got off to a really late start for my Wednesday ride today. I didn't leave the house until around 10:30 and the dismal weather caused me to change my plans for the day. I had hoped to ride up the Wissahiken into and through Mt. Airy in hopes of getting all the way to Wynncote and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical college where I teach. I thought I had mapped out a route that might allow me to take my bike at least sometimes on teaching days. I was also carrying with me a new set of Shimano PD-M324 Pedals that I ordered. They arrived yesterday and my plan was to stop at the bike shop on the way home from the ride not only to have them put on, but more importantly, to see if I could find a comfortable bike shoe given my small, wide foot. These pedals are set up to use cleats on one side but a regular shoe on the other side. I figured this would allow me to use clipless when I'm just out riding, but still be able to wear regular shoes when I'm using the bike during the work day. But the unknown was whether I would find shoes that worked for me. But bummed out by the weather I decided to go to the bike shop first. Indeed I found a really nice pair of shoes, much less expensive than I had imagined, that fit fine. So I waited while they put the cleats on the shoes and the pedals on the bike. At that point I was going to start my ride (in regular shoes) but the weather had worsened. It was really kind of raining so I went home where, following the advice of the salesman at Bicycle Therapy, I stood over the bike in a doorway practicing getting in and out of one pedal at a time. I must say I felt like a jerk for awhile until I found the spot on the first foot and could get in and out reasonably well. Then I started on the other foot. By the time I felt, not exactly comfortable, but willing to give it a real life try, the rain had stopped. Still no sun and cool enough to wear a jacket (in August!) but I re-started my ride with the same destination in mind and wearing the new shoes and working the cleats in and out. Now, before I continue the saga, just let me say that I continue to ruminate on the inappropriateness of the term "clipless pedals." I know the history, that they are called clipless because they replace toe-clips (hence without toe-clips=clipless.) But it is really the only cycling term I've come across that is counter intuitive and, in fact, misleading. These shoes clip into the pedal. They should, by all rights be called "clip-in" pedals. Ah well, so much for logic. Anyway, I managed pretty well. I was told by someone to expect to fall four times while learning to use them. I only fell once. Very minor fall that I hardly felt. I am able to get into the pedals really well now, but getting out of the left to put my foot down is still a second or two slower than I want it to be. But that will come. Do they make a difference? It may be too soon to tell. I certainly felt the extra pull going up some of the big hills I took today and even felt a better level of efficiency on the flats. But I'm no racer and I'm not sure how much in the end they add. We'll see. Meanwhile, now I know what their like.

I rode into Mount Airy and realized that while I wasn't certain how long more it would take me to get to Wynncote and back, I'd already spent an hour and because of my late start didn't have the time to find out today. I had to be home before 4 PM and would need to eat and shower before that. But just riding around Mt. Airy is quite lovely. I passed this great house with this great piece on its front lawn. Took the picture and headed home only managing about 20 miles. Not much for a Wednesday, but I'm still a little tired from the weekend and my legs felt heavier than they have lately.

League of American Bicyclists

Hey, give this e-mail I received a read and consider joing the League. They do get work advocating for cyclists. and if you decide to join, cut and paste the link so that I get the credit! Who does it hurt?


BikeLeague: Be a Member, Get a Member Campaign - Win Prizes


Dear Ira:

Now, through October 19, 2007 you can help power the League across the country with new members … it’s 2,428 miles from San Diego to New York City, and we want to get there with your help.

Each new member that you refer pedals us one mile on our journey across America. Even better, each referral wins you a coupon for Performance Bicycle's on-line stores and when you refer three new members you are automatically entered in a raffle to win a new bike donated by our friends at City Bikes in Washington, D.C.

The process is simple:
This email includes a unique link that allows us to track your referrals. Forward this email to your friends and family. We have outlined the League membership benefits below. Be sure to add the reasons why you continue to support us in building a bicycle-friendly America.

http://www.bikeleague.org/cogs/join/nmgm/51202211

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Why Join the League?

1. We Protect the Rights of Cyclists
The League has been protecting your rights to safe and enjoyable cycling since 1880. What started as a movement by "Wheelmen" on high wheel bikes to get roads paved continues today with our Share the Road campaign to make sure cyclists are welcomed and respected out on the road.

2. We provide valuable education programs
Through our bike education program - BikeEd - we teach cyclists and motorist life-saving skills. Our national network of League Cycling Instructors set the standard in bicycle education and safety for children and adults.

3. We create better cycling environments
As the leading voice for cyclists in Washington, DC we advocate for more bicycle-friendly environments. Working with state and local bike advocacy organizations through events such as the National Bike Summit we education Congress on the benefits cycling and the needs of cyclists.

4. We promote cycling as the commuter option of choice
We introduce cycling to countless Americans each year, especially during National Bike Month and on Bike-to-Work Day. We believe sharing our passion for cycling with others is one of the best ways to create a bicycle-friendly America.

5. You can create bicycle friendly communities
When you join you'll have the good feeling of knowing that you're playing a crucial role in creating bicycle friendly communities. Town by town and city by city we are transforming how America moves.

6. You will receive all the benefits of membership
As an added bonus of joining, you'll receive great benefits such as 11 issues of Bicycling Magazine and six issues of our magazine, American Bicyclist. League members also get discounts on bike shipping, roadside assistance, bike tours and more!

7. We provide a charitable deduction
The League of American Bicyclists is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Membership dues are fully tax-deductible less $3 for American Bicyclist and $7 for Bicycling magazine.

8. We will use your donation wisely
We understand the trust you are putting in us when you support us with your membership dues. We strive to maximize the amount of your dues that fund our programs. According to our most recent financial audit (2004) we spend 80% of our revenue on programs and only 20% on fundraising, management and general expenses.

If your friends and family are cyclists, they should be members. Refer them to the League of American Bicyclists today!

http://www.bikeleague.org/cogs/join/nmgm/51202211

(If this link is not live, cut and paste it into your Internet browser)

Questions? Email bikeleague@bikeleague.org or call 202-822-1333.

Rules and Regulations: Only League of American Bicyclists members in good standing are eligible to participate. • All online renewals must be received between August 21, 2007 and October 19, 2007 • To receive credit for each new member must use the link from the existing member’s e-mail. • A new member will be credited to the existing member when the new member’s online application is successfully processed. • The existing member will have his/her name entered one time into the prize drawing after referring three new members and once for each new member there after enrolled by October 19, 2007. For example, if an existing member refers three new members, they will get their name entered one time in the raffle and if they refer a fourth new member, they will get their name entered a second time, and so on • Prize drawings will be held on October 26, 2007. Winners will be notified immediately. • Offer void where prohibited.

Still Soggy But Satisfied

I think I forgot to mention yesterday that we did not ride. When I woke at 4AM it was raining and generally ugly out. I felt like we both needed to sleep after Sunday's outing and with the weather being so uninviting I shut the alarm and we slept through until we had to get up for work. Annie used the Spinner but I skipped cycling altogether. Today the weather was much the same and Annie spun again, but I put on my rain gear and rode my 13 miles around a soggy loop. It felt good to be out on the bike and I really don't mind the rain, especially when I'm dressed for it, which I was not on Sunday.

Last night Annie and I attended the first of four sessions on Bicycle Maintenance offered by Philadelphia's Neighborhood Bike Works. There were five other students though we brought the average age up significantly. The others were all college-age kids. The instructor, Rickey was good. We spent a fair amount of time on "bike anatomy" and then each got to fix a flat. Next session is devoted to bearings, after that cables, and I forget what comes after that. I really enjoyed it and look forward to feeling more comfortable about doing my own minor maintenance preventitively, dealing with minor things that go wrong on the road, and just feeling like I understand the machine better. Who knows, maybe I'll be able to build up my own bike someday.

Successful, If Somewhat Soggy

The Lancaster Covered Bridges Metric Century has come and gone. It was a most successful and enjoyable day of cycling. We left our house at 6 A.M. and arrived at the start point in Lancaster at about 7:40. What with taking care of nature, setting up the bikes and checking in at the registration desk, we were on the road at 8:30. The "we," pictured here are Annie, Alan and Jacob. And, of course, me, not pictured, but you know what I look like.

It was a fantastic feeling, and our first experience of riding in such a mass. We later learned that there were 3,305 cyclists on the ride. Cyclists of all shapes and sizes with all manner of bikes: recumbent, tandems (a surprising lot of them) mountain bikes and very, very upscale performance bikes. It was really neat seeing them all gathered. And it was really neat riding amongst such a contingent. Of course, as the day wore on and we fell further and further to the rear, we were eventually riding quite a bit seemingly by ourselves, although even at the end we were always in sight of a group or two of other riders.

The first 34 miles, until the lunch stop were marvelous. Much more hilly than we'd expected. The lunch tent is pictured here. Not long before we reached the lunch tent we crossed the first of the seven covered bridges, also pictured here. By the time we crossed the other six the weather didn't allow me to stop and snap a picture. Also at about the same time or just before we reached lunch, the weather was good enough to stop and snap a few "candids" along the road. That's Annie and me. Then Annie, me and Alan; then Annie, Alan and Jacob.






After lunch things got messy. The rain became steady, fairly hard at times. I think we still really enjoyed the ride but there is no question that we would have enjoyed it more on a nicer day. We were, however, aware of the fact that more typically the weather for this ride might be sunny and very hot and humid. All in all we agreed it was worth the trade. A very hot and humid day would not have been easy, especially up the hills. Just as we hit the 52 mile mark we made our first and only mistake following the route. This resulted in our climbing a very steep hill that we later learned used to be part of the ride but had been taken off because it was too challenging. When we realized our mistake and went back down the hill we came upon the SAG wagon making its rounds. Soggy and tired and, I think, disheartened by the last unnecessary hill, Annie hitched a ride, her day of riding finished. She did a fantastic job! She had never ridden over 30 miles and certainly never on this hilly terrain and in this lousy weather. She really showed her stuff and I was very proud of her.

Alan and I continued (Jacob had already decided to ride ahead to keep a faster pace for part of the ride.) We made much quicker time and devoured the last 10 miles pretty quickly. I can't tell you how satisfied I felt riding back into the start/finish point, nor how good the ice cream provided there tasted. It was just great. It took us a few minutes to figure out where Jacob was, but then we packed up and headed home for dinner together being prepared at home by Tamar and Shuli. We were all famished!

Among the other highlights to mention in passing were, of course, the country itself. Just stunning. But more than just stunning, inspirational when you really looked and saw that people were still living on the land, working the land and living in small sustainable communities. Given my present feeling that cars are truly the root of all contemporary evils watching the Amish families pass by in their horse and buggies and their bicycles no longer looked like a quaint idiosyncrasy but a reminder of a road not taken. Congestion, people living in more and more isolation, people living too far from work, not to mention the environmental crisis, all can be attributed to the automobile. Maybe these Amish knew something we don't want to know? These pictures were taken while riding and didn't come out too good; one shows an Amish buggy passing and one tries to capture a couple of kids riding behind ion their bikes. It was fun seeing the Amish/Mennonite kids riding in their Sunday best as all of us passed in our Lycra. Also, none of them wore helmets!
































The other highlight was the incredible job that the Lancaster Bike Club does to host this ride. I couldn't believe the amount of work necessary and the number of volunteers manning the water stations, the feed stations, marking the route, riding the SAG wagons and generally providing a wonderful time for over 3000 riders. I will certainly write to them and express my appreciation ASAP.

Annie and I both certainly feel ready for our Labor Day ride with Hazon now. That will be 50 miles a day for two days. Piece of cake!

On To Lancaster!

We did our usual, and final, ride today before Sunday's Covered Bridges Metric Century in Lancaster. There were no mishaps, which at this point was really all I was worried about. That somehow something would go wrong with one of the bikes or someone would fall and we would not have time before Sunday to mend either machine or person. But all went well and we rode our 13 miles. Tomorrow we will rest on the Sabbath. Our daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter will join us for the Sabbath and then Tamar and the baby will stay and visit friends in Philadelphia while Alan joins us for the ride. Friend Jacob will meet us in the morning and we will caravan cars the 80 or so miles to the starting point. We are hopeful of arriving not long after the 7:30 opening of registration - we want to allow ourselves as much time for a leisurely ride as possible. The course closes at 4:30 PM and I don't expect we will have a problem finishing. I've got the bike with me today for some errands later in the day, so I'll add the total mileage later. Meanwhile, I look forward to reporting on Sunday night or Monday.
If you need something to read, try this:
from the mouths of babes also listed among the news stories in today's side bar.

Finally, I should mention the scandalous comments made by Transportation Secretary Peters regarding the "waste" of funds that she accuses Congress of spending on Bicycle trails and infrastructure! In contradiction to the law and stated policy of her department to build bicycle infrastructure, the Secretary intimated that the reason bridges and other road infrastructure was suffering in this country was because Congress was busy plying money into cycling. This is ludicrous. Would that Congress really would take bicycling infrastructure seriously enough. I won't say that Congress is innocent of wasting transportation funds on "pork" projects, but bicycling is not one of them. The League of American Bicyclists is asking folks to write the Secretary. I have done so and you can too from this site: do it now!

The Usual

After yesterday's great ride, today was back to business. I have a very busy day filled with appointments at my office. No opportunity even for a ride during the day. We did our 13 miles and I'll have to feel satisfied. I will say that after climbing up and down the hills yesterday, rather than feeling the least bit sore, my legs felt much stronger today. I was riding in bigger gears much more easily. We are all getting very excited about Sunday's Covered Bridge Metric Century.

A Great Ride...But No Picture Of Mindy

My friend Mindy invited me to ride with her today and it was fabulous. the weather is incredible, especially for August. It feels more like May. Our meet-up place was Old Rittenhouse town along the Wissahickon trail. The trail has been newly paved and is exquisite both beneath the wheels and from the perspective of the eyes. This first photo is of the falls just at the entrance of the path off Ridge Avenue.

















She led us out Wissahickon Avenue all through Mount Airy and into Chestnut Hill. This is an area of Philadelphia that I am not really familiar with. Despite having lived here 20 years I actually don't get out of Center City very often. The homes and estates we road by were incredible. Hard to believe we were still in the city. And soon enough we weren't. We crossed into Montgomery county, Whitepain township, I believe, and were riding past farmland. We stopped for this second picture by one of the farms. that's me in the foreground and horses in the background, in case you couldn't tell.(Actually, the horses really didn't show up in this one, I guess.)




















A little further on we passed a fabulous estate with a lake in its front yard and these fountains. The picture doesn't do the place justice, but I couldn't resist.

















We rode until just past Wings airport, a small airport in Montgomery County and then turned back. We traveled some beautiful roads, took some exhilarating descents and, of course, the necessary climbs to earn such descents.






Finally we arrived back at Wissahickon and had lunch at what Mindy says is a well known cyclist's eatery: Bruno's. Basic, but satisfying.









After lunch we rode back via The Forbidden Drive trail which I had ridden about a year ago with my Trek, but never thought I should take the Fuji on its packed gravel road. However, it turned out to be very manageable; only a few extra rough spots. We parted company back near Old Rittenhouse and I continued on the drive until it met up with the paved part of the path that I had taken in the morning. Soon back down to Ridge and the Schuylkill and home for a round trip of 40.2 miles. Great prep for Sunday's covered bridge ride, especially the ups and downs. And, come to think of it, we passed a covered bridge along the Forbidden Drive, but I didn't stop to take a picture. I did take a picture of Mindy, but it came out way to dark to publish. But thanks to her for a great day of riding.

Taking My Suits In

Our usual loop this morning and then I took the bike to work for a very busy day. After meetings from 8:30 until noon at my office, I rode to another local synagogue for yet another meeting. The ride between the meetings was a welcome respite. After work I brought the new suits I bought after last summer's weight loss following my taking up cycling to the tailor. I've lost at least as much since then, probably more and those new suits weren't looking to great. but I was able to bring them to be tailored and I hope they will look good when finished.

Tomorrow I am riding with a friend and student, Mindy. She is taking me to some of her riding haunts out past Mt Airy. I'm looking forward to a long ride and exploring new vistas. Check this space for details.

Meanwhile, I'm slowly getting pictures taken on the West coast to work. this one is of my two sons in LA, taken by their friend and loyal blog reader Jacob.

A Bit Of Local Touring

I had some errands to run, hospitals to visit and the like, and it was just too nice a day not to take advantage of getting in a few more miles today. So after the errands I continued down Pine to Delaware Avenue and turned southward. But I didn't get too far before I decided that riding around in the heavy traffic amid the big box stores just wasn't doing my spirits all that much good. So I turned back west toward home, but decided to go up Christian Street instead of one of the larger streets like Washington. I discovered a very nice route. Christian is a wide, two-way street lined with mostly residential, small and interesting commercial properties and is relatively lightly trafficked. It goes through the Italian market which was lovely, passes a number of notable Philadelphia landmarks included in these photos from my treo; The first is one of the many buildings by the mosaic artist

Isaiah Zager. Mr. Zager's work is all around Center City Philadelphia and is one of it's treasures.

The second photo is of John's Water Ice. A landmark of a different kind, but hands down the best in town. As I was on my way home for lunch I didn't imbibe.
All in all a nice break in the middle of a summer's work day. Before heading back for an afternoon of appointments straight through the day.

Enjoy!

A good solid ride this morning; Annie seems to have regained just about all of her confidence. There not being much more of anything interesting to report about us, I thought I'd share this fun video:



Courtesy of Velorution

Instructional Ride

Gorgeous weather set the scene for our second group ride under the sponsorship of the Bicycle Club of Philadelphia. This one was an instructional ride for new riders. I thought it would be a good idea though I don't think we qualify quite as new riders anymore. Just a way to meet some people, ride a new route, and, why not, pick up a few pointers. I also wanted to ride later in the day rather than getting up at the crack of dawn and then rushing to get to work. So I went to work; to services and then a couple of appointments and I was finished by 11:30 and picked up Annie and we headed out to the azalea garden behind the museum and there met up with about 25 people. There were three ride leaders and the total mileage was really nothing - 10 miles start to finish. but there were stops every few miles where the leaders talked about different aspects of bike maintenance, safety, etiquette etc. They were really nice people and very earnest in their desire to make bicycling more accessible and enjoyable. I would say there were a few real rank beginners, but most everyone was actually more like us, just out to pick up a few pointers and take a nice easy ride. The route was through Fairmount Park again, part of which we traversed on our breakfast ride two weeks ago (you remember - when Annie fell after we went off on our own in the rain.) This time we went through other parts of the park including crossing the Strawberry Mansion bridge which is a truly beautiful structure that I'd never had occasion to see before in my 19 years in Philadelphia. We had a great time and it was especially fortuitous in that Annie was still feeling pretty nervous after the fall and then riding and not being happy about the bike set-up after the ill fated tune-up. We actually took the bike in on Friday afternoon to a different bike shop, one much closer to our house: Bicycle Therapy - and were very happy with their service. They seem to have gotten the bike pretty much back to where Annie wanted it. Still, she was nervous. I think this paced ride with people through street traffic and park roads really built her confidence back.

After we ended the ride we took of for West River Drive and tacked on another 10+ miles before coming home. Not as many miles as we usually ride on a Sunday, but a successful, and I think, needed day of fun on the bike. I feel better about next week's metric century and the big Labor Day ride looming ahead.

Dark Mornings

The morning's are getting darker and darker. We are using lights again for the first two or three miles. Today, with storm clouds hovering, it was positively night-like for much of the ride. But we made it without rain. Annie's ride still needs some fine tuning and I'll work on that later today. I hope we can go on a good sized training ride on Sunday and that her bike will be as comfortable as it was before the fall and tune-up.

Meanwhile...

Just read on Triple Crankset blog about a new cycling movie. I'm psyched! Here is a picture and the synopsis from the web page. It is an IMAX film and according to the schedule in the publicity it will play in Philadelphia at the Franklin Institute in October 2007.But I haven't been able to confirm that information, so be forewarned.



SYNOPSIS

A jumpy home movie shows a six-year-old boy learning to ride his first bicycle with help from his father. The narrator tells us that with each moment, each new experience stimulates growing networks of cells in our brains. "We used to think these changes happened only in childhood, but now we know that our brains never stop developing — they keep wiring and rewiring themselves with every experience and every challenge." After several initial failed attempts — and even crashes — the boy begins to show improvement and confidence. Finally, he is riding alone in a seaside park, amazed at his own accomplishment.

Cut to a spectacular full-screen aerial shot descending the steep eastern escarpment of the Col d'Aubisque in Southern France. As the camera drops down the mountainside, we discover a ribbon of cyclists and vehicles streaming down a narrow, twisting, corniche road. This, says the narrator, is the legendary Tour de France – a 3,400-km, three-week bicycle race that has been called the world's most grueling sports event, and the ultimate test of the human brain.

Australian pro cyclist Baden Cooke and his French teammate Jimmy Caspar are two of the 200 riders competing in the legendary race. Just to finish in Paris, they will need to avoid danger, stave off crushing pain and fatigue, control their emotions, seize fleeting moments of opportunity, and stay highly motivated. It's the brain that controls all of this.

As the tightly-packed peloton speeds towards the first sprint finish of the Tour, the sudden crash of one rider sets off a horrific chain reaction, and nearly 100 riders are taken down. Jimmy Casper is one of the most severely injured. To everyone's astonishment, he opts to continue in the race for as long as he can. Meanwhile, Baden, one of the few unaffected by the crash, manages to win his first ever stage victory, thus becoming one of the favorites to win the coveted sprinter's green jersey.

As the race unfolds, the destinies of Baden and Jimmy diverge. Jimmy desperately wants to help his team by remaining in the race, while Baden becomes the unexpected team leader. As the race crosses the Alps and the Pyrenees, the film combines spectacular live-action footage with cutting-edge computer graphics and medical imagery to demonstrate how each brain responds to experience and challenge in ways we're only just beginning to understand.

"Our goals may not be those of pro athletes,” says the narrator as the remaining riders reach Paris at the end of the punishing three weeks, "but we're all wiring ourselves to win. Any activity that challenges us, and gives us a sense of purpose, will nourish and strengthen our brains."

The film ends as it began, with the home movie of the 6-year-old boy triumphantly riding his two-wheeler on his own. "We fall, we get up, we learn," says the narrator, "Powered by the human brain, there is no end to what we may achieve."