Even though David Auker's "chatty" pace is quite a workout for me, I still look forward to what has become his annual Thanksgiving fixie ride through the West Hills of Portland.
I don't know how long he's done it. My first Thanksgiving fixie ride was two years ago, where he and friends did his "traditional" route from River City Bicycles South through Milwaukie and back. (photo from Nov. 2007 above)
But last year, he and his wife Sarah started a "new" tradition of starting from his home near Dosch and Hamilton in SW Portland, and feeding everyone beforehand.
This year, though, I've been riding my fixed-gear bike a lot less. Ever since I moved to the SE part of Portland 6 months ago, I've been favoring geared bikes, particularly in commuting over the Sylvan Hill between Beaverton and home. Between that and randonneuring, my fixie's sat largely unused since last May.
And hills on a fixed gear bike are tougher than ever. Nevertheless, I more-or-less stayed up with David and friends. The group got separated around Sunset and SW 18th, but regrouped after a couple laps around the Fairmount loop.
As the group approached Patton Rd, my left shoe-pedal connection started to feel sloppy, but it never occurred to me the screws were about to completely come out. By the time I reached Hewett Blvd, the cleat had totally detached itself from my shoe.
It's hard to remove a cleat from a pedal when it's not attached to a shoe. My small Crank Brothers multi-tool didn't seem up to the task, until in the hands of passerby Lonnie (of Portland Velo).
John Forbes, and later David, were already returning back homewards on Hewett Blvd. when I finally got rolling. I continued over to Fairview, through Washington Park, and downtown. Started to rain by the time I crossed the Steel Bridge and returned home. Total distance: 35.5 miles.
a few more photos
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
hiccups from hell
It's never happened before ... at least nothing close to this extent. Seven hours of hiccups! Started 'round noon yesterday, and they got "stronger" (complete with reverberations) throughout the afternoon and early evening. Made the commute home tedious. I elected to take the Max part way rather than cycle over the Sylvan Hill. 'Twas also accompanied by chills and mild sore throat.
The hiccups didn't abate till 7:00 PM. I went straight to bed ... didn't pass "Go," didn't collect anything to eat ... barely got my clothes off. Consulted Scott and Joy on the phone, each of them coming back with doctor recommendations.
Glad it's over. I called in sick from work today.
The hiccups didn't abate till 7:00 PM. I went straight to bed ... didn't pass "Go," didn't collect anything to eat ... barely got my clothes off. Consulted Scott and Joy on the phone, each of them coming back with doctor recommendations.
Glad it's over. I called in sick from work today.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Olbermann on CA Proposition 8
I remember Keith Olbermann as a free-thinking, somewhat irreverent sportscaster back when I lived in LA (over 15 years ago; his hair's shorter and grayer now).
It's fascinating now (and good) to hear him deliver something so poignant and passionate.
:
Friday, November 14, 2008
Eleven down … one to go
Even though I ride most brevets alone (‘cause of my speed, or lack thereof), I am not totally by myself. There are people tracking the riders’ progress. There are people to call if I need to bail.
Less so on a permanent. I have only done one 200k permanent totally on my own. That was last February … from Clatskanie to Cape Disappointment and Astoria and back. Despite one mishap on the Westport Ferry near the beginning, and a scary return on Hwy. 30 after dark, the ride went okay.
I was prepared to do another solo permanent in November, as it didn’t look like my schedule was gonna coincide with Cecil’s and Lynne’s. But when they mentioned the Prairies & Wetlands 200k on November 11 (Veterans Day) as a possibility, I decided to jump on it, and take the day off work.
Mother Nature, however, put doubt into the plan. Weather forecasts predicted a particularly wet and ugly day. Unbeknownst to me, Cecil and Lynne conversed the night before about alternative plans. But since I didn’t hear from them, I showed up in Newberg well before the scheduled 6:00 AM departure time. As did they.
The weather turned out to be manageable, even though it slowed us down quite a bit. Last year (September ’07), I completed this same permanent in 10 hours and 30 minutes. This time, we were well over 12 hours.
The first info control was at the Gallon Bridge, followed shortly by the first timed control in Mt. Angel. The headwinds were stiff enough during these portions of the ride that we didn’t arrive till 10 minutes before cutoff. I didn’t bother to take any pictures until we verified our time at an ATM.
We got some tailwind relief on our return to Newberg, although our rest stop there was quite lengthy. While Lynne and Cecil went to the Thriftway, I checked in at Chapters Bookstore for a dry cappuccino made with Stumptown coffee. The 3 of us reconvened at the parking lot where we had left our cars, and then departed on the next leg.
Hwy. 99W from Dundee to Dayton is pretty abysmal. Lotsa traffic. Lotsa debris. Lotsa irregular pavement. I was amazed how thoroughly I blocked out this portion of the ride from my memory of last year’s adventure.
“Merkeley.” “Obama.” Left-over signs from last week’s election, seen on Gun Club Road (near Carlton). I guess street names have nothing to do with political persuasions or issues. Or perhaps nothing to do with anything at all.
Cecil rode in front most of the way to Forest Grove (actually for most of the ride), but got really hungry before finally arriving at Pizza Schmizza.
Up until this point, the rain was fairly mild, even though my gloves were sopping wet. I put on a dry pair as we left Forest Grove, but they wouldn’t stay that way long. The return to Newberg was probably the rainiest part of the ride. It got dark ‘round Springhill Road, and the traffic on North Valley Road seemed particularly busy. Cecil had a little spill on a crease in the one-lane bridge that was reminiscent of my fall on the ramp to the Westport Ferry nine months earlier. Later on, Old Yamhill Road was pleasantly quiet. And navigating the rest of the return to Newberg benefited from Cecil’s and my previous ride of this route last year.
I guarded Cecil’s and Lynne’s bikes as they had their brevet cards signed at the Thriftway in Newberg. After a quick pit stop and getting my card signed as well, we headed back to our cars, loaded our bikes, and had some dinner (and changed into dry clothing) at the local Burgerville.
The three of us are now one permanent away from an R12. Sounds like we’ll do the Three Prairies 200k on either December 6 or 13. Anyone care to join us?
a few more pictures
Lynne's account
Cecil's account
Less so on a permanent. I have only done one 200k permanent totally on my own. That was last February … from Clatskanie to Cape Disappointment and Astoria and back. Despite one mishap on the Westport Ferry near the beginning, and a scary return on Hwy. 30 after dark, the ride went okay.
I was prepared to do another solo permanent in November, as it didn’t look like my schedule was gonna coincide with Cecil’s and Lynne’s. But when they mentioned the Prairies & Wetlands 200k on November 11 (Veterans Day) as a possibility, I decided to jump on it, and take the day off work.
Mother Nature, however, put doubt into the plan. Weather forecasts predicted a particularly wet and ugly day. Unbeknownst to me, Cecil and Lynne conversed the night before about alternative plans. But since I didn’t hear from them, I showed up in Newberg well before the scheduled 6:00 AM departure time. As did they.
The weather turned out to be manageable, even though it slowed us down quite a bit. Last year (September ’07), I completed this same permanent in 10 hours and 30 minutes. This time, we were well over 12 hours.
The first info control was at the Gallon Bridge, followed shortly by the first timed control in Mt. Angel. The headwinds were stiff enough during these portions of the ride that we didn’t arrive till 10 minutes before cutoff. I didn’t bother to take any pictures until we verified our time at an ATM.
We got some tailwind relief on our return to Newberg, although our rest stop there was quite lengthy. While Lynne and Cecil went to the Thriftway, I checked in at Chapters Bookstore for a dry cappuccino made with Stumptown coffee. The 3 of us reconvened at the parking lot where we had left our cars, and then departed on the next leg.
Hwy. 99W from Dundee to Dayton is pretty abysmal. Lotsa traffic. Lotsa debris. Lotsa irregular pavement. I was amazed how thoroughly I blocked out this portion of the ride from my memory of last year’s adventure.
“Merkeley.” “Obama.” Left-over signs from last week’s election, seen on Gun Club Road (near Carlton). I guess street names have nothing to do with political persuasions or issues. Or perhaps nothing to do with anything at all.
Cecil rode in front most of the way to Forest Grove (actually for most of the ride), but got really hungry before finally arriving at Pizza Schmizza.
Up until this point, the rain was fairly mild, even though my gloves were sopping wet. I put on a dry pair as we left Forest Grove, but they wouldn’t stay that way long. The return to Newberg was probably the rainiest part of the ride. It got dark ‘round Springhill Road, and the traffic on North Valley Road seemed particularly busy. Cecil had a little spill on a crease in the one-lane bridge that was reminiscent of my fall on the ramp to the Westport Ferry nine months earlier. Later on, Old Yamhill Road was pleasantly quiet. And navigating the rest of the return to Newberg benefited from Cecil’s and my previous ride of this route last year.
I guarded Cecil’s and Lynne’s bikes as they had their brevet cards signed at the Thriftway in Newberg. After a quick pit stop and getting my card signed as well, we headed back to our cars, loaded our bikes, and had some dinner (and changed into dry clothing) at the local Burgerville.
The three of us are now one permanent away from an R12. Sounds like we’ll do the Three Prairies 200k on either December 6 or 13. Anyone care to join us?
a few more pictures
Lynne's account
Cecil's account
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
121 miles (including a 100k populaire & some sausage)
Okay … blame it on David Sedaris.
I was an hour late to the start of the Verboort Sausage Populaire last Saturday, perhaps in part because I made a spontaneous visit to the Schnitzer Concert Hall the night before. During my Friday morning commute, I noticed on the Schnitz’s marquee that Sedaris was to perform that night. So even though the show was sold out, I stopped by on my way home from work and scored a scalped ticket at face value. (BTW, I’ve enjoyed his books, listening to him on radio, and his CD’s. But I think he’s funnier in person!)
Attending Sedaris’s performance on Halloween night created a cascading lateness effect on everything else I needed to do before Saturday’s 100 km ride. Bike prep. Dinner. Sleep. Yadadada.
On top of that, I had decided to ride my bike out to Forest Grove, so to keep my longer distance endurance more-or-less in tact. While it may have been prudent to take the Max from Goose Hollow to Hillsboro when I didn’t leave home till 7:40 AM, I took advantage of the full hour that the start of a randonneuring event is usually open. Even then, I ended up putting my bike on a bus between Cornelius and the Grand Lodge to ensure getting there by 10:00.
And boy was I happy to see Kathy there, along with Joel, a rider who I hadn’t met before who was equally late getting started. It was coincidental that Joel and I were both wearing STP windbreakers.
I enjoyed Joel’s company for the first 20 miles or so. He’s a nice younger guy who rides a carbon Raleigh and who's lived some interesting (to me) cities (like Milwaukee, WI). He pulled away in North Plains when I stopped to buy two AA batteries, cuz my freshly charged rechargables apparently didn't hold a charge any more. Hence, my first picture of the populaire is of Marcello and Greg at the Snooseville control/turnaround. Greg had his own adventures on the way to Snooseville that involved going back to Forest Grove to get a new tire.
‘Twas funny to me to have forgotten about the yellow pom poms at Cedar Canyon and Jack Road. I didn’t pre-read the info control questions, so the surprise happened upon arrival at the intersection. There they were, sadly weather and water beaten, but still hangin’.
The pom poms were my contribution in hosting the Snooseville populaire 7 ½ months earlier. I remember driving out there well after dark last March and attaching those things by headlight. They were souveniers from a U of O football game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene over a year ago (the only football game I’ve been to since college).
On Kansas City Road I caught up with Beth, who I was happy to see pedaling strong with only 20-30 minutes to go. I was also happy to have a chance to talk to her … about bikes (xtracycles in particular) … and her blog (which I enjoy reading).
There was a nice little congregation at the finish that included Marcello, Kathy, Susan, David, and Kevin. After partaking of a sausage dinner (with a nice lemon cream pie!), I headed back home, through Cornelius, Hillsboro, Beaverton, and over the Sylvan Hill (where it got dark), to SE Portland. Total miles: 121. (195 km)
A few more of my photos of the populaire are here.
Cecil's pictures.
Beth's blog report.
I was an hour late to the start of the Verboort Sausage Populaire last Saturday, perhaps in part because I made a spontaneous visit to the Schnitzer Concert Hall the night before. During my Friday morning commute, I noticed on the Schnitz’s marquee that Sedaris was to perform that night. So even though the show was sold out, I stopped by on my way home from work and scored a scalped ticket at face value. (BTW, I’ve enjoyed his books, listening to him on radio, and his CD’s. But I think he’s funnier in person!)
Attending Sedaris’s performance on Halloween night created a cascading lateness effect on everything else I needed to do before Saturday’s 100 km ride. Bike prep. Dinner. Sleep. Yadadada.
On top of that, I had decided to ride my bike out to Forest Grove, so to keep my longer distance endurance more-or-less in tact. While it may have been prudent to take the Max from Goose Hollow to Hillsboro when I didn’t leave home till 7:40 AM, I took advantage of the full hour that the start of a randonneuring event is usually open. Even then, I ended up putting my bike on a bus between Cornelius and the Grand Lodge to ensure getting there by 10:00.
And boy was I happy to see Kathy there, along with Joel, a rider who I hadn’t met before who was equally late getting started. It was coincidental that Joel and I were both wearing STP windbreakers.
I enjoyed Joel’s company for the first 20 miles or so. He’s a nice younger guy who rides a carbon Raleigh and who's lived some interesting (to me) cities (like Milwaukee, WI). He pulled away in North Plains when I stopped to buy two AA batteries, cuz my freshly charged rechargables apparently didn't hold a charge any more. Hence, my first picture of the populaire is of Marcello and Greg at the Snooseville control/turnaround. Greg had his own adventures on the way to Snooseville that involved going back to Forest Grove to get a new tire.
‘Twas funny to me to have forgotten about the yellow pom poms at Cedar Canyon and Jack Road. I didn’t pre-read the info control questions, so the surprise happened upon arrival at the intersection. There they were, sadly weather and water beaten, but still hangin’.
The pom poms were my contribution in hosting the Snooseville populaire 7 ½ months earlier. I remember driving out there well after dark last March and attaching those things by headlight. They were souveniers from a U of O football game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene over a year ago (the only football game I’ve been to since college).
On Kansas City Road I caught up with Beth, who I was happy to see pedaling strong with only 20-30 minutes to go. I was also happy to have a chance to talk to her … about bikes (xtracycles in particular) … and her blog (which I enjoy reading).
There was a nice little congregation at the finish that included Marcello, Kathy, Susan, David, and Kevin. After partaking of a sausage dinner (with a nice lemon cream pie!), I headed back home, through Cornelius, Hillsboro, Beaverton, and over the Sylvan Hill (where it got dark), to SE Portland. Total miles: 121. (195 km)
A few more of my photos of the populaire are here.
Cecil's pictures.
Beth's blog report.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Marek Fire at Dawn
My niece lives in an area of Sylmar, CA (upmost Northern part of Los Angeles) that was evacualted because of the Marek wildfire. 70-mph winds pushed the flames across the 8-lane Foothill Freeway. Here's her message:
Hi Billy!
My neighborhood was definitely in danger at 5:45am this morning when we had a mandatory evacuation. As we left at 6am I could see flames at the end of the development on treetops and the hillsides just outside the area of the houses! Very scary. But they seem to have tackled it and got it doused, according to the news. The news video shots from the air show the hillsides behind the houses to be black as coal right down to the edge of the houses. The bulk of the fire crisis seems to have moved west down the 118 to Porter Ranch and Chatsworth now... Still it's all only 5% contained, and they're expecting more 70mph winds tonight. I'm staying at Omie's in LaCanada and hope to be able to go home soon, but maybe not till Wednesday when the weather changes... Keep thinking the good thoughts...
Hugs, Melissa
Boy I sure hope her place stays intact!
More dramatic photos are up at my other niece's blog.
Hi Billy!
My neighborhood was definitely in danger at 5:45am this morning when we had a mandatory evacuation. As we left at 6am I could see flames at the end of the development on treetops and the hillsides just outside the area of the houses! Very scary. But they seem to have tackled it and got it doused, according to the news. The news video shots from the air show the hillsides behind the houses to be black as coal right down to the edge of the houses. The bulk of the fire crisis seems to have moved west down the 118 to Porter Ranch and Chatsworth now... Still it's all only 5% contained, and they're expecting more 70mph winds tonight. I'm staying at Omie's in LaCanada and hope to be able to go home soon, but maybe not till Wednesday when the weather changes... Keep thinking the good thoughts...
Hugs, Melissa
Boy I sure hope her place stays intact!
More dramatic photos are up at my other niece's blog.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
R-12: guess I'm comitted (Bingen 200k)
I kinda backed into this R-12 business … didn’t even know what one was when I joined Cecil and Lynne on the Scio Covered Bridges permanent last January. (The R-12 award is given by Randonneurs USA for riding a 200-kilometer event for 12 consecutive months.) But I must have figured something out (or became less vague) by mid-February, when I rode the Clatskanie-Cape Disappointment 200k permanent, alone. (That's the ride that pushed me into getting an E6 light … the result of an dark and scary return on Highway 30 to Clatskanie.)
Several brevets and a permanent later, I’m now 83% of the way towards completing an R-12. Too bad I didn’t do 200k rides last November and December. I would have then finished an R-12 a couple months ago, upon completion of the Detroit Lakes 300k brevet. But alas, I was probably too much into cyclocross during the last two months of ’07 to be in that sort of randonneuring mind.
I think Steve Davis of Tacoma had the right timetable … starting his R-12 last November, so that when he finished the Bingen-Lewis River 200k, he also completed the R-12 … without having to worry about long rides for the next two months.
I am now definitely committed to finishing an R-12. Why else would I have driven to Bingen early last Saturday morning?...in the rain. Like Cecil (and others I’m sure), I came extremely close to sleeping in. It’s not hard to find other things that need doing on any given Saturday … things that can wait till after you’ve gotten a full night’s sleep.
And I ate my fair share.
Several brevets and a permanent later, I’m now 83% of the way towards completing an R-12. Too bad I didn’t do 200k rides last November and December. I would have then finished an R-12 a couple months ago, upon completion of the Detroit Lakes 300k brevet. But alas, I was probably too much into cyclocross during the last two months of ’07 to be in that sort of randonneuring mind.
I think Steve Davis of Tacoma had the right timetable … starting his R-12 last November, so that when he finished the Bingen-Lewis River 200k, he also completed the R-12 … without having to worry about long rides for the next two months.
I am now definitely committed to finishing an R-12. Why else would I have driven to Bingen early last Saturday morning?...in the rain. Like Cecil (and others I’m sure), I came extremely close to sleeping in. It’s not hard to find other things that need doing on any given Saturday … things that can wait till after you’ve gotten a full night’s sleep.
But once I started riding out of Bingen, I was glad to have made the trip. Paul Whitney’s company on one of the earlier legs was quite enjoyable, as was Nat Beagley’s a little later on. (They were the Richland, WA contingent.) And I particularly enjoyed getting to meet/talk with David Rowe for the first time at the now-famous (and much appreciated) FR-88 hot chocolate control.
It was also noteworthy to cross the Pacific Crest Trail. Seems like I’ve spent much of my life zig-zagging across that trail, be in the Angeles Forest (NE of L.A.), in the Sierra Nevadas, and at various points in the Cascades. Maybe someday I should trying hiking a significant part of it.
It was disconcerting to discover my pocket camera missing from my handlebar pack. So my only pictures of this brevet were taken in Bingen right before the start. But better to have left that camera in the car rather than my cell phone, which is what I did during the Desert River 600k. Fortunately, observant Cecil and Lynne got some good pix of this brevet.
I was so surprised to see Lynne’s Bleriot on the back of David’s car as it passed during the last stretch back into Bingen. Lynne DNF? Why…that’s crazy! But as it turns out, I’m glad she did (from a health/safety standpoint). Want her to be around for many more brevets.
And I ate my fair share.
My November schedule looks awfully full. I’m concerned that I may have to give up the Verboort populaire, and do a 200k permanent instead. Hmmm. We’ll see.
Thanks to John, David, and Trudy for putting on the Bingen Bikenfest! Even though it was wet, I enjoyed it just as much (if not more) than last year’s version. I only wish I had brought warmer gloves.
Links:
Cecil's blog
Lynne's blog
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