New Fenders

UPDATE 3/1/13: I modified the fenders to accommodate new tires (click here for post).
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"Rock solid" is the way Scott Wayland described them to me. Indeed the Green Speed front fenders originally adapted for a Catrike by Dana Lieberman at Bent Up Cycles are solid. The fender system consists of Greenspeed fenders, GS bar ends (that comes with the fenders) and custom handlebar posts (purchased from Bent Up Cycles).

The GS bar ends are cambered and work fine but need to be cut down a bit for perfect alignment. I opted to use straight bar ends that did not need cutting. The installation was easy but required a little time to make adjustments to get everything lined up to my satisfaction.

They performed beautifully on today's ride. Unlike the Catrike specific fenders there was no rattle or going out of line. Catrike fenders are flimsy. The attachment system is a maze of cumbersome metal parts and are easy to bend and become misaligned.

The Greenspeed front fenders on my Catrike are "rock solid".

View from above with computer, Airzound horn (air bottle in the boom bag) and mirror mounted on the left post. iPhone Lifeproof cradle and mirror mounted on the right post.

MUPing It in Ojai

I decided to change things up a little today. I loaded up my Ford Escape and took a 45 minute drive to Ventura to cruise the Ventura River Trail (VRT) and the Ojai Valley Trail (OVT). The two trails make up a continuous MUP (multi-use path) up into Ojai. The two trails contrast each other dramatically.

Loaded and ready to go.

 Unloaded in Ventura and ready to ride.

The views along the VRT reflects the industrial nature of the area with a long history in oil. This is a clean, well used trail. It's unique in it's post apocalyptic feel along many it's sections. It's only five miles long starting close to the beach before becoming the OVT. Bring a camera for some interesting pics.

Leaving the VRT and entering the OVT for the ride into Ojai.

Entering Foster Park which marks the transition from the VRT to the OVT.

Libbey Park In the town of Ojai. 

Stop at Libbey Park for a picnic before heading back.

 Post apocalypse...not, just a last pic from the VRT on my way back.

 That's all folks!

CycleOps Time Again

The perfect day is cool, clear and sunny with a hint of a breeze. That day was not yesterday or today and the forecast says more rain tomorrow. I start getting anxious when to many days pass and I can't stretch my legs on a good ride. By noon today I had enough of doing nothing and went into the garage and set up the CycleOps on the 700 and started spinning.


The CycleOps is an awesome trainer. It's operation is smooth and simple.


All done spinning and flipping through gears. Time to rejoin Carrie, Byron and Betzi at the fire and listen to the rain. The only one missing is Leili who is spending the day dancing...of course.

Practicability and the 700

Here's the scenario...it's a cold and sunny winter morning here in So. California. It's a beautiful day for an extended ride on the 700. I'm loaded down with P&J sandwiches, fruit, cliff bars and whatever else may suit me on this fine day (at least 300 calories an hour). All the eats easily fit into the small Catrike side bags. But wait...it's cold and I'm layered up and soon those layers will be coming off and I'll need to stow them somewhere. I have a little room left in those nifty Catrike bags but I've learned the hard way it ain't enough. It's time to get practical and sacrifice a little bit of the dashing good looks of the 700 by adding a rack for extra storage. I had the rack all ready to go from earlier this year so installation was easy.

I moved some of the essentials like tubes into a semi-rigid bag thus freeing up some more room in the Catrike side bags. At the front of the rack is my new Braven bluetooth speaker. I also now have a place to easily mount my Spot Tracker. 

Inside the rack bag I keep a light weight Sea to Summit 4L dry bag for extra storage. 

Here sits the dry bag on top of it all.

Fully loaded rack. I prefer this method of storage on my 700 so I don't have to lug around a full size rack bag all the time. When I need the extra storage I have it, when I don't the bag is tucked neatly away and the 700 can retain a respectable low profile.

With the 700 it's not just about the great ride it's also about the looks!

Looking for Speed

While cruising around on the flats yesterday on my 700 I passed a street that looked to good to pass up for a self imposed speed challenge.

I put'er in low gear and started climbing. The street started to get a bit curvy as I got close to top and figured I wouldn't get much more speed on the downhill while negotiating the curves so I stopped a little short of the top. I did a U and started cranking downhill quickly spinning through all my gears until gravity took over and pulled me down to the bottom of the hill. All too soon I ran out of hill and the intersection was fast approaching and I shut the speed run down. I NEED A LONGER HILL.  The grade was good ( my rear tire occasionally losing traction going up) but it just wasn't long enough to break 60mph. I'm still stuck at 59mph as my fastest speed. It was a short sweet ride that maxed out at 45mph and once again proved how rock solid the 700 is at speed.

IT'S ALL GOOD ...ROLL ON.

Wave On

Hang in there and I'll get to cycling after I'm done going off topic for a little while by delving into my take on humans.

It's hard for me to imagine that the human civilization as we know it will make it into the next century. That being said...I hold out hope that I am wrong. I'm confident that humans have the tools at their disposal to work together to preserve and make better the human condition. Where I lack confidence is in the will of humans to proactively work together to to take advantage of these tools. A few things stand in the way such as hate, greed and jealousy. Time will tell and I hope I'm wrong. I will not give up on humanity. I'll continue to live my life in a way that I feel is responsible and benefits others.

Cycling and humanity ... what's my point you ask. While cycling I wave and say hi to all who cross my path. Being on a recumbent makes for easy eye contact. Being on a trike keeps at least one hand free to extend a friendly wave. Not all respond but I try not to pass judgement...I don't know their story. However I am only human so I do get a first impression about certain folks that is not always positive. To keep it real I know that there are clueless idiots out there and a few nasty folks who need to be put in a cell and marginalized. Overall I like to think that most everyone is good...not necessarily in touch with reality but good non the less. So I wave and say "hey" because that's what I do.

I'll hold out hope that those who are not paying attention to reality, not voting in elections or are distracted by their toys will one day wake up, pay attention and join the human race and "save" humanity or at least participate in it.

Regardless...I'm going to do my best to enjoy and participate in life. I'm going to speak my mind, pay attention, live responsibly and...WAVE!!!

Been Climbing

So far I don't have a whole lot of miles this year, only 1,250 miles. However 90% of those miles are with Betzi in tow. At least I've done a lot of climbing. I just added up my gain since January and I'm almost at 100,000 feet of gain.

Here's a typical ride I take with the ole girl. Between mile 13.0 and mile 13.7 and also the last 1/3 of a mile Betzi walks beside me. For the lack of quiet roads the rest of the time her 55 furry pounds is seated in her cushy 45 pound trailer.

Perfect Autumn Day

Sun shining, temperature hovering around 70 degrees and the park to ourselves. 

Finishing off the day sitting in my background with a cup of tea... 

...soon to be followed by a cold brew with my beautiful wife at Ladyface Ale Companie.