After my chain-breaking debacle last weekend, I came down with a bad case of itchy hex wrench, and tore the P-38 most of the way down to bare frame. Ordered a new (11'!) chain and cassette from Hostel Shoppe; as per usual, it showed up two days after I ordered, without paying for expedited shipping.
Took the opportunity to rework rear fender mounts; I didn't manage to eliminate tire rub on sharp turns, but it's definitely less of a pain in my posterior than before.
Mounted and wired the SON dynamo wheel, an old DLumotec LED headlight, and a Busch&Müller Seculite Plus wired taillight. Took my time on the connectors this time around, and the taillight works without a hitch. (Unlike last year, when I rushed the job and ended up with a heavy, ludicrously overpriced fender-mounted rear reflector on the Pa 1000K...) I made heavy use of the spiral wrap used to bundle electrical cables to anchor the wires, as well as some velcro tie-wraps; in fact, the only place I had to use zip-ties was on the sensor mount for the cyclocomputer. All else is nicely secured in easy-to-modify fashion.
Also threw on the rear rack, and dug out much of the rando luggage. *sigh* It was nice when the bike ONLY weighed 26 pounds. Loaded for rando, it's gotta be near 40.
Rode it to work today, as the Rocket's seat is less-than-happy right now; looks like the P-38 will be okay for the scouting ride to Grove City tomorrow.
Showing posts with label accessories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label accessories. Show all posts
Friday, March 13, 2009
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Creeping Wool
No, this is not a reference to an unwashed jersey crawling away under its own power.
When I started cycling a few years back, I simply couldn't see the point of the lycra and spandex. Why would I ever want to dress up like a tubby superhero? Okay, the padded shorts kinda made sense, but I wouldn't be seen dead without a pair of cotton baggies on top.
Then, the clipless pedals led to cycling shoes. Arm and leg warmers made sense, 'cause they let me ride in greater comfort in varied weather. Wicking fabrics? Hey, whaddaya know, there's a reason for this stuff after all. Then, after the bee/hornet/EPO-enhanced horsefly flew up my baggy shorts on the MS 150, suddenly the idea of exposing my flabby thighs encased in bike shorts seems to make far more sense. Yep, now I'm a superhero.
Even then, with the overwhelming evidence that maybe, just maybe, others may know what they're talking about with regards to clothing, I still maintained my prejudices. Sure, I was a lycra boy now, but at least I wasn't wearing itchy, hot, un-launderable wool, right? Then, just out of curiosity, I tried a wool tee-shirt for a base layer. Huh...again, whaddaya know? It actually works...
To cut the blathering short, let me just say that, on my commute to work today, I realized that the only things on my body that weren't wool were the gloves, the arm warmers, the SPD sandals, and the helmet. And wool arm warmers sound like a really good idea...
It's amazing how one can find oneself doing/using/saying things that seemed quite unlikely a short time in the past.
When I started cycling a few years back, I simply couldn't see the point of the lycra and spandex. Why would I ever want to dress up like a tubby superhero? Okay, the padded shorts kinda made sense, but I wouldn't be seen dead without a pair of cotton baggies on top.
Then, the clipless pedals led to cycling shoes. Arm and leg warmers made sense, 'cause they let me ride in greater comfort in varied weather. Wicking fabrics? Hey, whaddaya know, there's a reason for this stuff after all. Then, after the bee/hornet/EPO-enhanced horsefly flew up my baggy shorts on the MS 150, suddenly the idea of exposing my flabby thighs encased in bike shorts seems to make far more sense. Yep, now I'm a superhero.
Even then, with the overwhelming evidence that maybe, just maybe, others may know what they're talking about with regards to clothing, I still maintained my prejudices. Sure, I was a lycra boy now, but at least I wasn't wearing itchy, hot, un-launderable wool, right? Then, just out of curiosity, I tried a wool tee-shirt for a base layer. Huh...again, whaddaya know? It actually works...
To cut the blathering short, let me just say that, on my commute to work today, I realized that the only things on my body that weren't wool were the gloves, the arm warmers, the SPD sandals, and the helmet. And wool arm warmers sound like a really good idea...
It's amazing how one can find oneself doing/using/saying things that seemed quite unlikely a short time in the past.
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