Motivation.

I went for a lunchtime ride again today at work. I had a bit of extra time so I decided to do the Verdun loop as I call it.(24km)


Today was a day for real cyclists. It was sunny but only 14c and pretty windy. I started off pretty easy averaging only 2o km/hr. I needed some motivation. At one point a squadron of "road freaks" passed me in formation. (like the yellow and blue shirts) I like to sometimes use other cyclists as motivation to work harder & go faster... but I do try and stay in my range.(middle age male, slight beer gut) Well lo and behold 10km in my ride I get passed by similar dude...(MTB & slight beer gut)Perfect. I noticed that he actually had to work to pass me & his pace had reduced once he believed he had cleared and gotten rid of me... Believed. Within a few minutes I caught up to him but stayed back. I established the same pace as him a waited for my move. I did not want to make the same mistake as him & run out of steam. After awhile he noticed I was tailing him... looking back every so often trying to figure out my intentions... he knew... he picked up the pace... so did I. I became a thorn in his side... he could not shake me... the pass was inevitable. I knew there was a slight hill coming up then a nice long downhill. Like Lance Armstrong... I would take him in the mountains.
I pulled up next to him... side by side in the hill. Both of us not giving an inch. Then a mistake... he changed gears (anticipating the downhill) too soon. His paced reduced... I passed him moments later... and then "click,click" off I went. I never looked back... (to afraid) to see my opponent. I rode hard for the next 10km... and never saw him again. Hey... motivation is where you find it.

"Kanawaki!?"

I have been doing my lunch time ritual everyday this week. (punishment for not doing a long ride in a while) I stopped halfway to read the sign with the map of bicycle paths on the Montreal Island... trying to find some secret area I may not have covered yet. On the top left corner I noticed a partial map of the South Shore... I had passed near it many times... just never actually crossed the bridge. I studied what you could see of the fractioned map and noticed there was actually a path that seemed to go along the the St Lawrence. It would go threw places like Brossard, La Prairie, Ste. Chatherine, Kanawaki... "Kanawaki!?" I actually said this out loud... "What if...?" You know that grin you get when you think of something completely diabolical?
(ok it's important that you start humming the Mission Impossible theme at this point... I did)

Kanawaki: Indian Reserve where one may procure illegal cheap cigarettes.

The government does not approve of us buying this merchandise... therefore may seize and confiscate you're car if caught. "CAR!!!" Are you guys paying attention? (Mission Impossible theme gets louder) Who would suspect a cyclist?... It was brilliant! ( I know it goes against all cycling morals... that's why I love it) I would go after work... penetrate the reserve disguised as a cyclist... load the booty in my bag and return to Montreal completely unnoticed. The excitement and the humming would build all afternoon.

15:45 : Departure from Westmount (humming Mission Impossible)
16:20 to 16: 40 : Had to wait for the suspended bridge to come down (stopped humming for 20 min.)
17:30 : Penetration of reserve ( actually pretty easy... it's not like going to Mexico or anything)
17:40 : Purchase of Smokes (I actually whore sunglasses)
20:00 : Arrival (booty successfully transported)



Distance: 77 km
Cost: $16 (carton of smokes)
Don't you love it when a plan comes together.




To any law enforcement officials reading this blog: carton of cigarettes was found by side of road... unknown origin.

Mid cycling crisis... of sorts

All is well with my ass... more specificly my legs. Took a break over the week end (again). The seat position seems good. I however (once again) feel I must regain my shape. I`ts not fair... just a few days off... & I feel all wrong... lazy... & fat (food, beer, wine & chocolate will do that to you). My lunch time ride (16km) wich is very benificial & time saving... has become very boring. Oh I still do it... use it as an excuse to not ride after work. Basicly... I beleive I need to plan something new... big... soon... but what? I guess this is mid cycling crisis of sorts.

Supercycle repairs have begun... I may however invest more in repairs than originaly planned... we shall see. (I like getting my hands dirty... what?)

What's wrong with the way I sit?

I have put about 450km on the Norco.
Lately however I have felt pain in my legs while riding... Am I getting old? (rhetorical... no comments)
Have I somehow over done it? (keep in mind I'm smoking a cigarette & having a beer while writing this) Perhaps some old football injury? (all that bench warming time finally catching up to me)

Apparently... seat positioning could be the cause. I adjusted the seat just like anybody would, for comfort. Well... after speaking to some experts... (guy at work who's biked longer than me)
Just having the seat a few millimeters different from what I had on the Supercycle... could cause this. So I've lowered it a bit & moved it back some... we shall see.

Haven't forgotten the Supercycle...


I bought a new (second hand) shifter. I will get new tire and inner tube over the weekend... maybe next week the repairs will begin.

97km... sound familiar

Friday I did the West Island... again... counter clockwise this time. Just as hot and humid as last time... could not find any yellow and blue shirts however. Just as well... I did not have the energy.

The Scrambler (just call the new bike that) has settled in nicely... still having some disc brake rubbing... but minor. I've done 360km so far on the new ride... so guess what? Over 2000km done this year... about 2000km more than I expected in April.

Responsibility...

I used to use plain old (bicycle/lawn mower/hinge/rusty stuff) oil.
I have now upgraded to this fine "midrange" product.

With a reasonable bike... comes reasonable responsibility...

200km break in...

Well here we are...
After spending allot... I mean allot of time adjusting everything... here are my first impressions on the new ride.

Positive:
- Shifters are great (one click done)
- Front suspension is handy (Montreal, the pot hole capitol)
- Disc Brakes are neat (can actually stop where I planned to)
- Cup holder... WOW! (Supercycle did not have the screws for it(insert macho innuendo here))
- Looks good (babe magnet... not me the bike)

Negative:
- Front & especially rear derailleur were a pain in the ass to adjust & need continuous check ups... (It's not me... just delicate is all)
- Quick release... (Quickly stolen...)
- Disc brakes scream like a banchy when wet (How do I know what a wet Banchy sounds like?...?)
- Fragile? (I haven't really ridden it rough yet... (insert more macho innuendo here))

Over all very happy...

Tomorrow is my day off... do I hear "DAY TRIP!"

Young "wipper snapper"

When I picked up my new bike... the young "wipper snapper" behind the counter was all excited to tell me that he had prepared the bike himself... that it was all "adjusted" and ready to go.

Well... ( insert rant here) Not only did the chain grind against metal at any flick of the shifter... Not only were the handlebars as loose as... (insert sexual reference here) Not only where the quick releases just about to release... Not only did the disc brakes grind at rub (perhaps another sexual reference) It took me a week to realize that the tires only had 30 psi. in them. (Actually that was my fault... I honestly thought I was just getting out of shape)
The "adjustments" for the front and rear derailleur where so far out of whack... I had to go to SHIMANO to get the specs in order to do it properly.


Anyhow... let's just say the the maintenance is going to be handled by me from now on... OK!

Yeah... I couldn't wait to get my grubby hands on it...

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...