non-fixie 

Apparently that's considered "art" in my 'hood ...

non-fixie 

Good-looking bike, Neal! So, how did you experience the difference between 650B and 700C?

Wildwood 

....it looks like a 'bounce house flight' away from mayhem.


Do they have inflatable bounce houses, intended for kids, on your side of the pond?
Not at an amusement park, but like backyard stuff that flies in a gale.

Wildwood 

That's vintage!

non-fixie 

It does, doesn't it? Yes, we have those here as well, although trampolines are what's really popular. Had one of those, steel frame and all, wrapped around a tree in my backyard a few years ago after a local freak storm.

I am a big cow lover, though, so I may go take a look next week.

Lots of cycle paths in my area cross meadows and are a lot of fun in summer. And cows are definitely into C&V:

nlerner

Thanks! Well, I don't notice much of a difference with this one. The 650B version felt a bit more sure footed on descents, but not quite as sprightly climbing. I did change the drivetrain as well as going from 650B to 700c, so perhaps there's a psychological effect from that (I like the 700c drivetrain mo' bettah')? Here's a pic of the bike with 650B wheels:

non-fixie 

Thank you. The reason I asked is that I've been looking for justification for a 650B build, but so far I'm having trouble finding it, as I have enough frames that will accept fatter tires on 700C wheels, and 650B wheels look somewhat awkward on the large frame sizes that I ride.

jimmuller 

Today I can claim no scenic vistas and no cows. However we did manage some miles, 55.1 of them in fact, on the ye old C&V tandem. And we did take a few pics.

One of my sweetie's favorite stops, Hutchins Organic Farm in Concord. Sharon checks out the plants:


And insists on taking a pic of me:


Of course we had to stop at New England Garden Center in Bedford (I think it is) on the return:


Then we finally got a pic of both of us:

non-fixie 

Nice picture! For some reason it reminded me of this:

jimmuller 

Thank you. I like it!

greg3rd48 

After taking a week long respite from anything bike related I took my older daughter out for the first "Bicycle Sunday" of 2017 where the Bronx River Parkway is closed to vehicular traffic from Tuckahoe to White Plains. Mom needed a break after having her little sister last week. Well we had a great time and rode a bit over 16 miles. No complaints, lots of chatting with each other and other folks and a picnic together after riding. It seems that my love of bikes and cycling may rub off on her.

Untitled by irishbx4th, on Flickr
Untitled by irishbx4th, on Flickr
Untitled by irishbx4th, on Flickr

nlerner

Nice job, Greg--and congrats to you and your wife on the new baby!

greg3rd48 

@nlerner Thank you Neal!

Sir_Name 

Nice, Greg! My buddy just found the same trailer for cheap on CL, gonna have to wait a while until his little guy is ready for it. In the meantime it gets use from some other friends' kids. Fun stuff.

Over the weekend a friend and I got out for not enough miles and not enough climbing, but it was something at least. A late night before and afternoon cookout plans after cut the ride down on both ends.

Climbing to the top of a local farm/orchard.


At the top we got a good look at a coywolf, thankfully he slinked into the woodline w/o further interest in us (as far as we could tell). No pic, but quite the animal.


Past the orchard we said hi to these guys on our way up to an abandoned road.




New construction on a dirt road leading to the powerlines.




The workhorse.

Spaghetti Legs 

Just got back from a quick out and back through my downtown. First ride on my Basso Gap (not quite ready for the official unveiling though). Came across this car with a modern Basso on the roof and thought I'd get a quick pic of new and old together. The new one also equipped with Campy, Super Record 11, so glad to know I'm not the only Campy-phile in town.

DQRider 

Raleigh International 650b conversion? Oh man... that's the bike I see in my touring dreams.

Literally, even down to the mini-racks. That is a very classy ride. Workhorse indeed!

Sir_Name 

Yep, thanks! It's a great bike, goes anywhere and has a nice comfortable ride. A great all-arounder.

Toolong2

Your daughter is gorgeous! I debated whether to go with a trailer or bike-attached seats. You can see our decision below. Yesterday was the first time we had the youngest (1.5 years old) on the bike. She's riding in the same front seat her older sister (3.5 years old) rode in before moving to the back seat. The youngest was a bit skeptical at first.





But we managed to get a smile out of her before we rode off.




And the dual setup worked OK. It wasn't as cramped as it looks in this picture, besides the issue I've had all along with this bike being too small for me. But just needed to splay my legs out a bit to keep my knees from banging the front seat and away we went.



They both managed to fall asleep on me during the ride (we went during their nap times to try to avoid some afternoon rain). The youngest in the front rested her head on the pad, with my arms tucked in to keep her head from sliding off. The oldest in back just tilted her head back and kept herself upright while old cold. Five minutes after we got back from an 8 mile ride on the West Side Greenway, a downpour hit.

gaucho777 

I went out for a reconnaissance ride following the route I planned out for the upcoming "Bay Area Welcomes Gugie" ride this weekend. Roughly 40 miles through the Berkeley/Oakland hills. Sorry no photos, but I can confirm that wildflowers were in bloom, streams were gurgling, lizards were scampering, and the views and redwood trees were majestic.

greg3rd48 

@Toolong2 Great photos and such adorable little ones. Your setup is nice and compact and exactly what Manhattan streets require when riding with little children. I really would not ride on any city streets with my setup unless they were closed off to traffic. I have considered getting a rear seat but was unsure if it would be compatible with a road bike. You never know, maybe we will cross paths one day on the Greenway!
@Sir_Name Great photos as always Bob. Tell your buddy that I really like the trailer especially for the durability and price point. By the way did you end up riding in a Populaire recently or is that coming up?

Sir_Name 

Thanks, Greg. The trailer does seem well built. The populaire is this coming Saturday, let me know if interested! Starts in Hartford.

northbend 

I just returned from an overnighter in Eastern Washington. I have been wanting to try some touring and am trying to make do with my existing stable of bikes so this has been a learning process for me..
Here are a few photos from my trip. I started in Wenatchee and rode North up n over Badger Mountain to Lake Chelan, camping overnight then returning the next day via the West side of the Columbia river.

This begins with a 9 mile climb out of Wenatchee up Badger Mtn.


Checking my progress, looking down on Wenatchee


Looking southwest


I eventually drop down off of Badger Mtn near the Town of Waterville


And ride northward on a high plateau thru dry land farming territory on quiet country roads


I first see a glimpse of Lake Chelan as I descend down McNeil Canyon


One more hill to climb on the other side of the Columbia River up Chelan Falls and I can stop for the night

northbend 

After a great nights’ sleep, I pack up and head back to Wenatchee in the morning, Riding out of Chelan following the lakeshore


Climbing up Navarre Canyon I look back at the Lake one last time


I drop down to the Columbia River and ride along it’s western shoreline on Hwy 97.
As I was passing thru the small town of Entiat, I decided to check out the Entiat River road.
It has piqued my curiosity for a while now and since I had a little bit of free time :-) I rode up it for a few miles. Very pretty valley!


Entiat River Road is nearly 40 miles long and eventually dead ends in the heart of the Cascade Mountains. There are several forest service campgrounds near the end that I will try out in the future.
It’s getting to be late in the afternoon and I needed to head back to Wenachee. I’d promised my wife I’d be home that evening.

I used the Bruce Gordon for the trip outfitted with rear panniers and a handlebar bag. Carried about 35LBs. It felt noodly with all that weight on the back the bike. I had to move the panniers back a little after this photo was taken in order to avoid heel strike. A concerted effort was needed to ride forward putting weight on the front end to keep it from wobbling at slow speeds. The handling improved with speed but with the weight I was carrying and the hilly route, speed wasn’t something I saw a lot of in the past few days. I’ll have to figure out how to balance the load with some from front panniers. My gearing was 32x47 with a 14-32 5 speed freewheel. It was just enough for the climbs. I found that I was generally using the middle ranges of the sprocket and evenly spending time with both chainrings on flat and rolling terrain which was good.

obrentharris 

Nicely done @northbend!

I really like your approach: Start with a 2-day ride and the equipment you already have in order to get the education needed to decide whether you want to keep touring and what changes in equipment you might need to make. I look forward to following the evolution of your touring rig.

Thanks for all the pictures of some beautiful country.
Brent

Drillium Dude 

Got in another 40 miles of steady MUP riding to Ballard from my place. I like hitting that 20 mile turnaround - one way or another, I'll double my miles by the end of the ride.

Unfortunately, I had to say goodbye to one of my fave saddles today: the tan Arius Carrera. I spent some time today in the drops and "on the rivet". Either I'm currently too fat or the drillium nylon shell just wasn't up to the task.

Lucky I have a spare 3ttt in the rapidly-thinning Box O' Goodies, otherwise I may have had to cancel one of my recent sales and pressed that Cinelli saddle into service!



DD