Reverse toe-in!

Remember me mentioning that my front brakes were squealing? I tried the usual toe-in setup, roughing up the surface on each brake pad, cleaning the rim, and I even installed a brake booster. None of this worked.

Then I tried something that's counter-intuitive...reverse toe-in. This is where you adjust the brake pads so the rear of the brake pad hits the rim first. I adjusted the front brake pads in this manner, took it for a test ride, and I couldn't make it squeal!! This is huge, as there's nothing more frustrating than listening to your brakes screech every time you come to a stop. I like my ride to be stealthy quiet.

Karl - you should try this adjustment on your Surly, if you're getting the same problem I had.

Caitlin blowing out her 22nd birthday "candle", on her favorite lemon cake.

Tyler thinking of a wish before blowing out his candles on his 14th birthday

The first 5 minutes are the worst

Ride Stats:
distance (miles) - 13
average speed (mph) -
elevation climbed (ft) - 840
calories burned (kcal) -
temperature - 29

13 miles, 840 climbing feet, 29 degrees...okay, it looked nice and sunny out there today, so I decided to take a ride. I didn't realize how cold that wind was until I started heading north on Winton, approaching Empire. If you can get by the "face freeze" of the first 5 minutes, on a day like today, then you're fine. The tears that streamed out of the corner of my eyes, as I bombed down Empire Blvd, felt like they were going to freeze on my red face.

I headed over to Ellison Park, to climb a couple hills.

Here's a picture that my family will recognize...it's the 9th hole on the Disc Golf course at Ellison. 

Here's the Irondequoit Creek, probably teeming with Rainbow Trout!

I believe they call this Thomas Cove. There's a rock quarry over there, if you look close enough.

And, last but not least, this is my cat, Phoebe. She thinks she runs the household!

Work in progress

Ride Stats:

distance (miles) - 18

average speed (mph) -

elevation climbed (ft) - 820

calories burned (kcal) -

temperature - 27

Given the lovely return of winter here, this past week, my biking opportunities have been limited. I raked my lawn on Monday, and shoveled my driveway on Tuesday! Such is life when you live in Rochester. But, even though the weather has been cold, we've had sunny skies. So, I dressed up in all of my warm biking clothes and headed out yesterday morning to do my semi-annual ride around Irondequoit Bay, before they take the outlet bridge away on April 1st. As I was headed out the door, I was adjusting my pants (pulling them up so they were in place) and Lynn said to me "you need to lose some weight?!" I smiled and said, "they're stretchy pants, they're supposed to be tight-fitting." The reality is, we were both right. Yes, the pants are supposed to be snug so there's nothing flapping about in the wind when you ride. And, there's no doubt that I could stand to shed some weight. My personal philosophy about weight loss is that it's a "work in progress". I'm not going to get where I want to be over night. It'll take time and it's probably something that I'll need to focus on for the rest of my life. So, instead of panicking, I take a long-term approach to this.

Okay, back to the ride...I ended up riding 18 miles and climbed 820 feet in 27 degrees. My face and feet were the only things that were cold. There was a strong, icy NW wind coming off the lake. I rode through a few flurries. Other than that, it was a beautiful ride. I took a clockwise course around the bay, riding the hills along the bay on the west side. I stopped in to visit with Mom & Dad, who are both doing well. From there, it was an easy 7-mile ride home.

How did I get so lucky?

When I tell people that I'm going to ride my bike across the U.S., after they tell me that I'm crazy, they ask me "is your wife okay with this?"  I"ll be honest, when I started to think about doing this, I was nervous how to broach the topic with Lynn.  I knew that my absence would put a great burden on her already busy daily agenda.  But, when I talked to her, she was very supportive and encouraged me to do the ride as soon as possible (while I still have my health).  This support has made the whole idea much, much easier to move forward with.  So, I ask you, how did I get so lucky?!

This is Lynn and I, sitting on a bench near the Webster Park pier, last summer.

Here's Lynn at a winery on Keuka Lake, last fall.

My riding partner (and big bro')

Here's a couple pictures of my brother, Karl, getting fitted for his new Surly LHT.  Bob, the owner of Pedaller's Bike Shop, was rattling off instructions on how to tackle an extended tour like the one we're taking.

I'm counting on Karl to "pull" me up on all of the big climbs. I'll just throw a grappling hook around his seatpost at the base of each hill.  Do you think he'll notice?

Karl looks like he's having second thoughts...  

His thought bubble reads, 'What the heck did I get myself into?'

Cold ride!

Ride Stats:
distance (miles) - 13
average speed (mph) -
elevation climbed (ft) - 520
calories burned (kcal) -
temperature - 31

Rode to Mom & Dad's house - 12.6 miles, 31 degrees! (cold north wind...typical March day in Rochester), 520 ft., still a little brake squeal, even after I tried a number of different fixes last night. I may need to try a brake booster, as it only squeals when under a heavy load/high speed. Dad was making a pot of chili...smelled great!

I'm already used to the feel of my Surly.  Very comfortable ride.  I wonder how it feels with 50 pounds of equipment loaded in the panniers?

Ride #2

Ride Stats:
distance (miles) - 10
average speed (mph) - 11.7
elevation climbed (ft) - 780
calories burned (kcal) -
temperature - 62

3/17/11: St. Patrick's Day - Farnung-5 course, 0:54 duration, 10.3 miles, 11.7 mph ave., 62 degrees (wow, in March?!), 780 ft. ascent. Brakes still squealing. Almost wiped out...a dog-walker had his dog on a long leash, extended out across the road. When I came down the hill on a blind-turn (on "mini-Bopple"), I had to lock up my back wheel and just barely missed the dog and kept the bike upright! I better watch that spot, next time.  The german-shepherd was very calm as I made my evasive maneuver.  I wish I could say the same for myself!

My bike

Here are the details about the bike I'll be riding on this adventure.  Karl and I both bought Surly LHT's from Pedaller's Bike Shop in Henrietta, NY.  I then customized both bikes with the following:

• SKS P50 fenders (silver)...we'll be riding come rain or shine
• Kool Stop brake pads (salmon)
• Brooks leather handlebar tape (honey brown)
• Brooks B17 leather saddle (honey brown)
• Brooks leather mudflap (honey brown)...do you see a pattern here?
• Shimano PD-A520 pedals
• Schwalbe Marathon Supreme tires (700x35)
• Racktime TopIt front rack (black)
• Tubus Cargo rear rack (black)
• Elite Ciussi water bottle holders (silver)
• hand-built front wheel (Schmidt SON 28 hub dynamo, Mavic A719 rim, DT Swiss Competition spokes)
• Schmidt Edelux front headlight (black)
• Busch & Muller Toplight Line Plus rear tail light
• Ortlieb handlebar bag (red)
• Ortlieb Sport Packer Plus front panniers (red)
• Ortlieb Bike Packer Plus rear panniers (red)

1st ride on the new Surly LHT

Ride Stats:
distance (miles) - 10
average speed (mph) - 10.9
elevation climbed (ft) - 800
calories burned (kcal) - 736
temperature - 51

3/15/11: rode the Farnung-5 course (which is a course that features 5 climbs along the bay), 10.3 miles, 1:03 duration, 135 ave. HR, 10.9 mph ave, 51 degrees, 800 ft climbing, 736 kcal. Very smooooth ride!  I took my time today...enjoyed the first warm weather of the year. I love these big tires. Stopped to adjust pedal tension and computer. Need to adjust front brake (squeals). My Surly LHT is a truck (maybe that's why they call it the Long Haul Trucker?) It's built to haul heavy loads (ahem, like me!).  Very different from my other road bikes, in terms of how it handles.  I'm sure I'll be used to it in no time.