Ooooooo! Bells & Whistes!!!

I honestly was not planning on buying a bike before next spring. I wanted to spend a long time studying and getting information on what where the best brands & components. I also wanted the biggest bang for my buck. I had an idea of what I wanted... possibly an entry level mountain bike, something simple, strong & reliable... just the basics, no bells & whistles. I had also established a maximum price of $350 to $400.(tax included)

About a week ago I went to my friends place in Ste Anne des Plaines (small town) for dinner. On our way there he said there was a Norco retailer in town... would I want to check it out? "Shure... just a peak... not buying anything..." I had already researched some of the models... and had an idea of the price range. We went in... and I noticed there was still allot of 2007 models left. (very small town) They where all lined up in ascending order. I knew that only the first 3 (MTB) models where in my price range... after that well... I would be eating Kraft Macaroni for awhile. (not that there is anything wrong with that fine delicious product) As I was admiring the bikes, I heard my friend do a "Ooooo!... look at the red one." I knew which model he was talking about... and I knew it retailed at $489 before tax. I walked over to look at it, I noticed an error in the price... it said $429. That was the price of the model before it... seems that someone made a mistake with the tags. Even at that price I was hesitant. Then I heard the young lady say... "All bikes are 30% off..." to which I replied "Oh so they are already marked down then?... ... ... NO!?"



The Norco 2007 Scrambler
Front suspension, disc brakes, aluminum frame...




I like bells & whistles... what's wrong with bells & whistles?













$300... what would you have done?

Emotional day for the Supercycle

Friday was my day off so I planned yet another daily trip.
Thursday evening during the Supercycles regular time spent on the operating table... (grease the chain, adjusted the Rear Derailleur, repacked the bottom bracket, etc, etc) I had made a decision. I had found a new bike on on sale and was planning to purchase it Friday evening. My friend Julie who works in Laval was all part of the plan. After my ride I would go meet her at work... and would go pick it up together in her minivan. The Laval daily trip was just a ruse to keep the Supercycle busy for awhile... The Supercycle did not fall for it... It was hot, humid & windy... I had problems with the rear shifter & I also noticed a bump on the rear tire... everything seemed more difficult than usual. After 70 km... two blocks away from where I was to meet Julie... I had a blowout... not a flat... a bang! The Supercycle knew... just like a girlfriend you're about to dump... it knew. This was to show it's discontent... 45 min. later a shinny new sexier model was leaned up against it in the minivan. I felt guilty... this bike had changed my life... I would have never dreamed being able to do over 120km in one day, or over 1700km in less than four months. This blog was created in part for it's achievements... not only mine... it deserved better. The Supercycle will be repaired... I will eventually change the lower bracket, change the rear shifter & repair the the flat... but the next time it will be taken for a ride... it will be cold and dark, and will only be used to commute to work (that... it has done so well), the long days of sunshine and travel to new and far off places a distant memory.

Then again... you never know.

- Departure : April 27th 2007
- Arrival : August 24th 2007


Out of respect... the details of the new bike will only be revealed after a few days... to let the Supercycle enjoy the headline.

East end... done.

Finaly went around the east end of the island of Montreal. I saw where I zigged instead of zagged when I ended up in Repentigny.

It took 87km to go around... no incidents to report. The bottom bracket (new biking lingo) is begining to become loose again. I will probably have to do same repair that Ridi Bobo did on his.

- Departure 11:45
- Arrival 16:15

Just... fell off!?

The Bracket holding the kick-stand... just fell off... just like that.
It actually happened a few weeks ago... just wanted to share.

Oh by the way... I've done approx. 1600 km this year. Rarely without incident...
Check out The Bike of Doom... and you will see I got off easy.

Lazy... Me?

The week started well... with my usual lunch time rides. A dentist appointment, a computer crash, and smokehouse ribs... have however slowed my riding ritual. I will try and plan something for Sunday. (If I'm not too lazy)

Repentigny???

I wanted to go around the Est end of the Island... somehow I ended up in Repentigny!?
There is a bicycle path that goes around but...
SIGNS WOULD BE GOOD!
I still managed to do 94km... just saw allot more of the oil refineries than I would of liked.

- Departure 11:00
- Arrival 16:15

No coma or cramps to report...

Let's see... what's next...

I did the West end of the Island... perhaps I should give the East end a whirl...

Another "mini" trip into madness

After an aborted camping trip... suddenly finding myself with nothing to do on a Friday.
"Hey let's go for a ride!... It's only 35c in the shade... why not?"
I will go downtown, up the bike path to Gouin Blv. Go threw Montreal north, Pierrefonds, Senneville, St Anne de Belleview , Bai Durfe, Beaconsfield, Pointe Claire, Dorval, Lachine, Lasalle & back. ( 97km) piece of cake.

- departure 09:00
- arrival 14:30

On my way from St Anne's I ran into a group of cyclists with these fancy bikes and yellow and blue shirts. It was part of some sort of organized "Thingamajig". I rode non stop until Dorval... passing at least 40 of them with my Canadian Tire Supercycle. Was I showing off?... was I trying proove something?... was I insanely jealous of the cool shirts they had? It felt good either way. I was averaging 29km/hr... & I did this after 65km of riding... for about a distance of 30km. I was impressive.

Once I reached home... I got myself one of those really nice Sloche drinks from Couche Tard. (add a little vodka... hmmm)

One hour later I awoke from my coma on my couch in a pool of sweat with one of the worst leg cramps ever...( not so impressive ) with the thought of those yellow & blue jersey's laughing at me. After some soul searching... ( the cramp went away ) I thought to myself.

F*** you Yellow Dudes!... I still blew you're doors off!
Ouch!... still sore.

Another repair...

Tic... tac... toc... very annoying.
Took it apart... greased it... it's all good.

Ok ... time to plan something new.

After the trip I did not ride very often during my vacation. I have continued to ride to work however. I will now endeavor to regain my trip form. I will also look into another trip... where, when, how?, not known yet... stay tuned.

Day 4

- Departure 09:00
- Arrival 15:30

Beautiful sunny day with only 80km to do... easy right?
On day 1 I had noticed the the last 16km arriving at St.Jovite was downhill... a steady descent which was very much appreciated considering my broken spoke & wheel problem. I knew however that I would have to go up this 16km stretch on my return. I did it in one shot... no stopping. The "grimace" on my face during this uphill climb must have been quite a site. The bikers I met going downhill seamed to fear me. The rest of the day was quite pleasant... but when it was finally done... let's just say that staying off my bike for a few days was not a problem.

Day 3

- Departure 09:45
- Arrival at 17:45

A full day with absolutely no mechanical failures of any kind. WOW!
I only left at 09:45 because I had breakfast at the hotel & I was waiting for the local Home Hardware to open so I could buy an inner tube. I was taking no chances on a second flat today. During my search for the proper inner tube... I noticed my ass was a bit sore... actually very sore. So I also purchased a new bike seat.(gel very cumfy)

The weather however was a different story... rain, thunder, lightning & more rain... let's just say I felt very close to nature. I tried to wait for the heavy rain to stop underneath shelter, but I had no choice but to ride during the storms. The sun came out for the last 15 km. I was wet & hot... that's good if you're... never mind.

121km problem free.

More pics...

I added some more today...Flickr

I will tell you about Day 3 & 4 soon.

Day 2

- Departure around 07:00
- Wheel alignment problem around 08:00, 15km.
- Flat tire around 09:30 34km.
- Repaired and back on road around 10:30
- wheel alignment repair done manually 12:00 60km.
- Back on road 45 min. later.
- Arrival at Mt.Laurier 16:00, 121km.
- Beer & further spoke adjustments...in the hotel room, 16:45

Nice sunny hot day marked by heat, "the wheel" & a flat.
I discovered that the wheel the bike shop in St.Jovite sold me... had not had the spokes tightened or the wheel aligned. (Stupid C*** SUCKER) I also in my haste had not replaced the inner tube properly in the "new wheel"... which caused a "kink" and an eventual flat tire. All problems where more or less sorted by 13:00. However I still had 60km. to get to Mt.Laurier. I made it on fumes... stopping every 5km. for the last 20km.

Day 1

- Left St. Jerome at 07:30.
- Stop for a bite after 20km.
- Arrived at Val David around 10:00, about 40km.
- Broken spoke at about 64km.
- Arrived at St.Jovite at 14:30 with crooked bad wheel, 84km.
- Found bike shop around 15:30.
- Found cheap Motel around 16:00
- Drank first beer at 16:01.

The first day was marked by rain & the recurring wheel problem. As you will remember from my previous post:
"I was encouraged strongly by my friend Julie to have a "professional" repair it... something about my safety... women!?"

Well apologies to Julie...
However... I did have to repair the wheel myself again. The Bike shop where I purchased the "new wheel", had no repairman available.