Happy Birthday Daryl

Today was Daryl's birthday. I think he must be around 20 or so years old now. Last night we had a party for both he and Nathan, whose birthday is this weekend.







I hope they had a great party. They are some great guys, so they deserve it!

Can We See Beyond the Basket?

I have been taking out my Pashley Princess every day since I picked her up a week ago. She gets lots of comments and compliments. The comments come from passers-by, from other cyclists, and even from people in cars (waiting to turn left at an intersection, I heard a man say to a woman in the car behind me, "Don't you want a cute bike like that with a basket?").

And this brings me to my point: Interestingly, 95% of the comments I get have something to do with the basket. "Beautiful basket," "look at that basket," "Oh, and she's got a basket!" Even when people stop and ask about the bike itself, their body language betrays an irresistible attraction to the basket -- they start stroking it lovingly, examining the wicker and the leather straps in great detail, with the actual bicycle clearly occupying only the periphery of their attention. Witnessing this, my husband joked that bicycle sales and usage would increase astronomically if shops made a point of attaching a basket to every commuter bike. It is as if the wicker bicycle basket -- much like kittens and babies -- is genetically pre-determined to evoke a cooing response from otherwise level-headed adults.

To what extent then are we able to see beyond the basket to the actual bicycle? The basket on the Pashley Princess is so enormous, that it does seem to both define and dominate the bicycle itself. And while I love baskets, I am not sure I want that. The beautiful lines of the Princess frame and its countless other charms deserve to be seen. I have now ordered a different basket, which I think will be less overbearing and more unique than the stock one. Will see how that goes. The allure of the basket is a force to be reckoned with!

PS: I know that I have not been very expressive about my impressions of the Princess since having gotten her. That is mostly because I am still not entirely done customising her and getting to know her. Soon she will be in her finished state and I will post a full photo shoot and review. She even has a name!

His Pashley Roadster Arrives!

[edited to add: There is now a review of this bicycle here.]



The end result of our frenzied search, was that both my darling Co-Habitant and I decided to buy Pashleys: he the Roadster Sovereign (which comes only in black), and I the Princess Sovereign in green. My Princess is getting some custom work done at Harris Cyclery (a coaster brake installed) and will be waiting for me when I return from Vienna. The Co-Habitant's Sovereign arrived last week and he has been enjoying it ever since. Lucky, lucky him!





My dandified Co-Habitant added Brooks leather grips and bags to the bike, but everything else pictured here came standard. This is an enormous bicycle and he absolutely towers over the traffic as he rides to work. I can't wait to see him ride it in person, and to pick up my Princess!





The saddle that comes with the Roadster is the Brooks B33 in black. The bags are the Millbrook and Glenbrook. The leather grips in black are pictured here. All of these are available at Harris Cyclery in West Newton, Mass.

The 2 Hour Commute

For the past week I have been spending every day at Mike Flanigan's workshop in semi-rural Holliston, MA. The place is 25 miles from my house and I decided to experiment with getting there by bike. This took about 2 hours, which is a pretty long commute. I then tried using other modes of transportation. To my surprise, the trip ended up being the same in duration. Here is a comparison:




Somerville-Holliston, via Roadbike (a loaded Rawland):

I left the house at 6:30am. The route I planned was a direct one, which I figured would be low traffic this early in the morning. And it was, for the first, suburban leg of the trip. After that I expected the road to get even nicer, as it grew more rural. What I did not count on, was that it would also become narrower and busier. Riding through Wellesley, Natick and Sherborn via Rt 16 in the morning was terrifying; I would not recommend it. The winding road is one lane in each direction with no shoulder. Lots of trucks drive at high speeds. I tried to stay calm, kept my line, and hoped for the best - but I would not repeat this trip intentionally. There are alternative routes that are longer and hillier, but safer. Once I entered Holliston, things improved and the last mile of the trip was pretty nice. I arrived 2 hours after I left the house, including a coffee stop along the way.






Somerville-Holliston, via Brompton + Train:

I left the house at 6:30am and cycled to the closest T-Station. From there I took the subway to South Station in Boston and the commuter rail to Framingham. The commuter train takes about 40 minutes. There is WiFi, and I used it to check my email. I disembarked in Framingham, and from there it was another 6 miles to my destination. I cycled on the main road again, simply because I had no time for a more circuitous route. This road actually wasn't too bad, save for one chaotic stripmall-esque intersection, which I walked across. There are a couple of climbs on the way, but they felt fine in my bike's lowest gear. I arrived at Mike's shop 2 hours after I left the house.






Somerville-Holliston, via Train + Car:

When a snowstorm descended upon us, Mike suggested I take the train without my bike, and he would pick me up at the station in his van. Weakened from all the sawing and filing I'd been doing, I wimped out and did just that. I left the house at 6:30am and walked to the T station, then took the subway and commuter rail to Framingham. The train was late and slower than usual, as tends to happen in bad weather. When I arrived, Mike picked me up in his warm and cozy van. There was some commuter traffic on the drive from the station to his workshop. We arrived over 2 hours after I left the house.Later, I spoke to an acquaintance who commutes from Holliston to Somerville by car. In theory, the drive should take about an hour. But in practice, the traffic in the morning and evening is so bad that it takes at least an hour and a half each way, sometimes longer.






If I had to deal with this commute on a regular basis, I think my preferred mode of transport would be train + Brompton. This would allow me to remain self-reliant, to carry a huge amount of stuff in my front bag, and to get some work done on the train while still squeezing in 12 miles of riding in the course of the day. Every so often it would also be nice to do the roadbike trip, but it would mean setting off even earlier in order to do the longer, safer route. Driving for 1.5+ hours in a car each way would be my least preferred method, but might nonetheless be necessary in winter: I am not tough enough to cycle on those hilly, narrow rural roads in snow and ice, especially in the dark.




A 25 mile commute is not abnormal in North America; in fact it is probably fairly typical. It's hard to believe that 7 years ago I was doing it myself, spending hours a day in my car.Doing it by bike would have been unimaginable back then, an absurdity. Now? Well, to tell the truth, it did not feel normal commuting for that long on a bike. But neither did it feel normal any other way. It's just too long of a ride/drive to be doing twice a day, every day, out of necessity, in all weather conditions. That's my take on the 2 hour commute. I am grateful to not have one these days.

Random Laurel Highlands trail running and training

The bearded Woodz Ninja @ Middle Fork overlook

The weeks are flying by and I've been running as much as I can. Training has been improving with my increased intensity. The last couple of weeks have been productive as recent runs reflect. I've begun light weight work on my shoulder without any pain. Lots of time to get it healthier before the ice begins to form later this year. I feel like things are setting up for continued running and a good winter climbing season (weather permitting).Running has been a lot of fun lately. Miles have been blurring together, each run more fun than the last. I've enjoyed sharing trail time with my wonderful girlfriend Laura. We spent a few days hiking on rest days from separate solo runs. Several days were spent in Quebec Run on the great trails that reside there. Hill training has become a staple once again. I love climbing, rocks, ice whatever. It's only natural that I like the climbs in running as well. My focus has been on the larger vertical rises in the region. I've spent a few heart pounding days doing hill repeats (4 mile laps) down and up "Heart Attack Hill" on the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail (mile 8 to 6 then back up to 8). Great for building hill climbing efficiency and endurance. "Heart Attack" along with many other up and down runs are helping a lot.



Statistics for July:

Miles - 185

Duration - 40:48

Elevation - Gain 39,362' - Loss 38,539'



Miles per week is down, but elevations have greatly increased.



Some run highlights since last post:

July 19

Bear Run Nature Reserve, I went and ran the super fun 5 mile trail sprint we call the "Tiny Tulip Traverse" This was my second time running this challenge. I lowered my record to 44:16 from 45:41. A slight improvement.



July 22


Ran 14 miles of the LHHT. Gate to 7 and back in 2:46 for a pace of 11:51. Elevation: gain 3700' loss 3700'





July 25

On a whim, I enjoyed a nice long run from Ohiopyle to Hickory Flats Road (38miles). Thursday night around 11:00pm I was talking to Laura, telling her I wanted to do a long run, but was uncertain where I wanted to go. Laura offered the idea that I should run as much of the LHHT as possible, she'd support along the way. I quickly accepted and stayed up a few more hours. With 3 hours of sleep, Laura lovingly dumped me in Ohiopyle the following morning. Early on I could feel my elevation workouts paying off. I starting slow and calm, but couldn't help kicking it up a notch on the long climbs. A 15 minute or so emergency bathroom stop and chaffing had me burning and doubting early. This was around Maple Summit. Luckily an emergency Vaseline tube kept things only slightly uncomfortable until Laura saved the day with some Mission Anti-friction cream and replacement shorts at Route 653 trail head. The rest of the run I ran at a comfortable pace enjoying the views, cooler temperatures and empty trails. I was expecting to get water at 7 Springs, but upon arrival the faucet was damaged and running. The continual flow was spewing nasty, orange iron water. Skipping the refill and stretching what I was carrying sent me to Route 31 parking area and Laura with clean water. My 50K time was 6:18 despite my breaks. A slight discomfort was developing in my left foot. I was aware, but not concerned. I refilled and continued on as did the pounding on my left foot. I met Laura at Hickory flats Rd. (MP 38) where my foot was considerably more tender than before. Fearing that continuing might lead to missed running days ahead, I finished there and ended with an elapsed time of 7:45. I was happy with how fresh and spry I was feeling, but disappointed random pain kept me from continuing. A good nights sleep and a couple easy days had my foot back to normal and doing "Heart Attack Hill" repeats again. In retrospect it was a good call! Here are some photos from my run. It was one of the sunniest, driest days in the last couple weeks. It was great to enjoy a long section of the trail on a glorious uncrowded weekday. Elevation: gain 7100' loss 5500'

Clouds over the Youghiogheny River valley

Overlook of Middle Fork at mile 21.3 on the LHHT

Turnpike bridge over the PA Turnpike mile 36.75

Trail sign at Firetower Rd., Rt. 31 intersection.

July 28



I recently signed up for Strava GPS run tracker and have been having fun with their "segments." Runtastic is my normal GPS of use. (I find both equally inaccurate, but help in tracking elevation). I'm new to using Strava so I don't understand all of it, but segments appear to be short challenges (segments) created by Strava based on runs by users. You can compete against all others that have completed each "segment." Many segments exist along the LHHT due to Laurel Ultra racers using Strava on race day. I decided to set my sights on some of the current Strava records for local "segments". The segment I was excited to try was named "Conn Rd Climb." This segment starts at Bidwell Rd. and climbs 1.6 miles and 1,264' of elevation to Conn Rd. It has an average grade of 15.4%. There have been 19 recorded users on the segment. The record of 25:27 was held by Jim Trautmann of Pittsburgh. He set the record on June 12, . Seventeen runners have done the segment since him. I would be number 18 to try. I parked at Conn Rd. and walked to milepost 8 to begin. I did 2 slow warmup laps of MP 8 to 6 to 8 repeats sans GPS. I used my watch to clock splits. On my way back up on repeat 2 (mile 7.25) I stopped and grabbed my phone. I started it at mile post 8. My third time down to 6 I picked up the pace increasing my cadence as well as stride adjusting to the high turnover about to commence for my record attempt up. I turned around at milepost 6 and started the long grind up with vigor. I ran close to red line for quite a while until I broke to a power hike. I kept attacking "Heart Attack." The grade backs off just before MP 7. I picked back up into a sprint at the shelf and continued past 7 and up to the next steep section. I ran all I could from MP7 up to the finish at Conn Rd. I wasn't sure where it ended, so I kept my effort up all the way to MP8 where I ended my lap. I uploaded my run and it was official. I squeaked by the old Strava record for Conn Rd. Climb. My time was 24:56. A minor record, but still cool in my eyes. I'm sure its been run faster by others. It would be cool to get a King of the Climb going on for "Heart Attack Hill" Mile post 6 to 8 which I officially clocked (with a watch at mile posts) 27:56. After spending some time looking around Strava I've noticed that Jim did quite a few quick trail runs on the trails in the Laurel Highlands. How cool! Hope to see you out there some day...



July 29

I decided to run the Route 31 to Route 30 section of the LHHT. Another glorious day with plentiful sunshine and temps around 68°. I had the trail to myself. I passed one lone hiker on this roughly 15 mile section. This time I went with limited water, no electro replacement capsules and only 1 gel as a slight handicap. The whole section went well and I cruised along at a good pace finishing the section in 2:35. Elevation Gain 2805', Loss 3202'. The trail was recently maintained in this section and is in wonderful condition where thick spots usually exist.




So many good runs recently, I could mention them all. To end this and save you from a longer post. I'll leave with some recent photos. Happy trails!

First Copperhead I've ever seen on the LHHT! I can't believe it...

Quebec Run, Hess trail

Quebec Run, Hess trail, Photo L. Hahn

Laura and Elmo
Grove Run Trail head, Linn Run State Park

Old Bird

this is a very old Christmas decoration that my mom gave to me when I first had my own home. She had the birds long before I was born, so I am not sure how old they really are. Maybe early 1940's.

The Randonneur Experiment: a Review

Throughout the Spring and Summer of , I collaborated with Royal H. Cycles to create a classic low-trail 650B randonneuring bicycle, then test rode it for 220 miles before it was delivered to the new owner. The project was inspired by Jan Heine, whose championing of this type of bicycle made some of us rabid with curiosity. This review has been long in the works. In parallel I've been preparing an article about the same bike for the Bicycle Quarterly, and needed to make sure that its content did not overlap too much with this write-up. Now that the BQ article is finally finished, I feel that the project is complete and would like to reflect upon it here.



If this is the first you are reading about this bike, then you may want to start here before proceeding:



.Making Sense of Rivendell's vs Bicycle Quarterly's Philosophies

.A Beautiful Experiment

.Lovely Bicycle x Royal H Randonneur

.650B Rivendell Sam Hillborne and Randonneur Compared



The posts above describe how the idea for the bike came about, as well as its construction and features, so I will not cover the same ground again here. At some point in the near future I will also write more aboutthe project itself - what it was like to work together with a framebuilder and what I learned in the process. But here I will describe my impressions of the bicycle itself - particularly the aspects that were novel to me. Of course being involved in the bicycle's design, it would be somewhat absurd to either praise or critique its aesthetics and such. The point of this experiment was to form an impression of how this type of bicycle handles, and that is what I will focus on here.





The Low Trail Mystique



To briefly summarise, the Randonneur is a lugged steel low-trail bicycle with 650Bx42mm tires, fenders, dynamo lighting, front and rear racks, and a handlebar bag - made in the style of the 20th century French constructeurs. "Low-trail" refers to the front-end geometry of a bicycle and it differs from the typical mid/high trail geometry of most roadbikes today. Among classic and vintage bicycle enthusiasts, there is definitely a mystique surrounding the low trail randonneur, and dramatic descriptions of its handling abound - made all the more dramatic, I suspect, by the fact that this type of bicycle is fairly rare and few have actually ridden it. Certainly that was one of the factors that made me want to try it. The other factor was that Jan Heine's description of the bicycle suggested a combination of speed, responsiveness, comfort, and all-terrain capability that I found attractive.



The biggest surprise about the Randonneur once I began to ride it, was how "normal" it felt. Based on all of the things I had heard and read about low-trail handling by the time the bike was ready, I expected to be blown away by a radically different handling, which I would either love or hate. Instead, the bike felt... like a bike! When I mentioned this earlier, some interpreted it as my implying that I was disappointed with the Randonneur. However that is not what I meant to express at all. I simply meant that I did not find low trail handling to be "difficult" or unusual. While the Randonneur did have some interesting handling characteristics, it felt intuitive to ride and I think that my experience of this is important to communicate. It seems to me that the mystique surrounding low-trail geometry needlessly intimidates people.



So what did feel different about the low trail handling, even if I found it within the range of normal? Mainly, it was the way the bicycle behaved on turns. At slow speeds I found that I had to be slightly more active when turning than on other road bikes I'd ridden, to pay more attention to the act of turning if that makes sense. Interestingly, this made tight turns easier as opposed to more difficult: I felt as if I were more in control of the turn. I also noticed that on high speed descents along winding roads it was easier to keep my line of travel along the road's curvature; the Randonneur did not "resist" turning at high speeds as I sometimes feel typical roadbikes do. That said, all of this was rather subtle - at no point did this difference alarm or shock me. I would notice the unique behavior on turns and think "Oh neat, so it wants to do this and not that" - as opposed to feeling as if there was anything wrong. It's a different feeling is all, and I rather liked it.



Another outcome of low trail (though this is not about handling per se) is that it allows even small bicycles with fat tires and fenders to avoid toe overlap without the need for an overly long top tube. For me this is a huge deal, because I strongly dislike toe overlap and I ride small bikes. The fact that low-trail geometry automatically eliminates it as a concern is very appealing.



While yet another aspect of the low trail design is said to be its superior ability to handle a front load, in this respect my experience is unhelpful. I rode the bicycle with and without the medium Berthoud handlebar bag pictured here, and did not notice a significant difference. It felt fine with the bag. It felt fine without. Perhaps this lack of a difference is the point - meaning, you can add a full handlebar bag and the handling remains the same. However, some believe that a low-trail bike is meant to be ridden with a loaded bag at all times and will feel unstable without it. This I did not experience.





Best of Both Worlds?



The Bicycle Quarterly's descriptions of randonneuring bicycles suggest that they are essentially fully equipped, comfortable racers - thus offering the best aspects of touring bikes and racing bikes combined.



For me, the speed of the Randonneur was not quite on par with that of a racing bike (namely, the Seven Axiom I'd tried over the summer). However, the Randonneur was faster than my Sam Hillborne.It was also faster than various vintage roadbikes I've tried.



The weight of the complete bicycle (including bottle cages, MKS Touring pedals and handlebar bag) was around 26lb (for comparison, my Sam Hillborneis 31lb with a similar setup), which is fairly light given all the stuff it is outfitted with, but not racing bike territory. The standard diameter tubing made it easier for me to carry the bike (my hand could close around the top tube, whereas with oversized tubing it cannot), which was much appreciated.



As far as comfort, the Randonneur was the feather bed of bicycles. While I have no complaints at all about the comfort of my Rivendell, the Randonneur felt even better, as well as less fatiguing at the end of a ride. In part this may be due to the flexible, standard diameter tubing. Of course given this lightweight and flexible tubing, bicycles like the Randonneur are not suitable for carrying as much weight as touring bikes.





Notes on Components



I won't go over all of the components this bicycle is fitted with, but would like to highlight the ones that were new to me or made an impression.



As mentioned earlier, I loved the Grand BoisMaes handlebars with their flat ramps and parallel drops. I am addicted to Campagnolo ergo levers at this point, and the Veloce model here (also on my Rivendell) is an economical option that works perfectly well for me. I prefer the Schmidt SON dynamo hub on this bicycle to the Shimano hub on my own bike, and the Edelux headlight is the nicest dynamo light I have tried thus far. The Grand Bois Hetre tires I love so much - both on the Randonneur and on my Rivendell - that I cannot imagine not owning a bike fitted with them. I was impressed with the Nitto lugged stem, truly a work of art. The Berthoud handlebar bag intimidated me somewhat with its beautiful styling, but the multiple sizes it comes in might make it a more convenient alternative to the enormous Ostrich handlebar bag I have on my own bike.



In the process of riding this bike I also discovered that I prefer the men's Berthoud touring saddle to the women's. I never wear skirts on roadbikes anyhow, and the longer nose and slightly narrower saddle feels even better here than the shorter, wider version on my own bike.



I am not certain what I think of cantilever brakes - not just on this bicycle, but in general. On fast descents, both the Randonneur and my own canti Rivendell are rather effortful for me to stop. These brakes are supposed to be very powerful and are the classic brakes to use with this style of bicycle, so I am not sure what the alternatives are. That said, almost everyone I know loves cantis, so I might just be an anomaly (I do have very weak hands).



If I were speccing out this bicycle from scratch today, the one change I would make would be to go with the new Rene Herse crankset (which was not yet available last summer). This would be a more aesthetically appropriate (albeit much pricier) option than the Sugino Alpina crankset we used, and its gearing versatility would have allowed us to use a short-cage rear derailleur for an overall more classic look to the drivetrain. None of this however would change the bike's functionality.



I was quite happy with how the Randonneur worked as a whole, including components and accessories. Nothing rattled loose or malfunctioned in the course of my test rides, which included road and gravel.





Verdict



Based on my experience with the Randonneur, my impression is that this type of bicycle combines some of the best features of road-racing bikes and all-terrain touring bikes, but does not replace either. If I owned this bicycle, I would still want a pure road-racing bike in addition. And for those interested in fully loaded touring, the Randonneur would not be the right choice for carrying that much weight. But for self-supported long distance events, endurance events, recreational and nature rides, and anything involving off-road trails and mixed terrain I believe this would be just the ticket - both for competitive cycling and for pleasure. The standard diameter tubing, wide 650B tires, fast and responsive handling, fenders, lights and moderate luggage make it an option worth considering for those who feel that touring bikes are overbuilt for them, while road/racing bikes are unsuitable for real-world conditions. In my view, the low trail geometry is not nearly as quirky as some suggest, and has the additional benefit of avoiding the dreaded toe overlap.



A question I've been asked a number of times now over email, is whether I plan to get a bicycle like this made for myself and whether I would recommend it to others. The first part of this question is tough to answer, because if I did get a bicycle like this then it would replace my Rivendell - I neither need nor can afford to own two 650B road-to-trail bikes! So I just don't know yet whether I want to go through that upheaval. That said, I do think that a bicycle like the Randonneur is extremely appropriate for my style of riding, for all the reasons described in this review. If I did decide to replace my Rivendell with a lighter and faster bike with the same wide tires and handlebar bag, something like this would be it. As for recommending it to others, I don't even dare go there. We are all so different, and only you can decide whether a bicycle like this is suitable for your needs.





Afterthoughts...



An important aside here, is that when designing a bicycle like this, geometry and tubing choice are crucial. If you decide to have a classic low-trail randonneuringframe built, be sure the builder fully understands your request. It is popular now to refer to all bicycles fitted with fenders, racks, and tires wider than 23mm as "rando bikes," but the bicycle I describe here is a very particular animal and the builder needs to understand that - unless of course you can supply them with the full geometry and specifications. There is now also a number of ready-made randonneuringframes (though none of them fully lugged, as far as I understand) that may be suitable for those reluctant to go custom, including the Box Dog Pelican and the Rawland RSogn.



The length of this review makes me realise just how much information I have stored up about this bicycle. Stay tuned for the write-up about the project itself - including commentary on the framebuilder's work, detailed descriptions of the geometry and all that. And for those interested in the Bicycle Quarterly article (which will contain different content still), look for the Spring issue.



My sincere thanks to everyone involved in this project: Bryan of Royal H. Cycles, Jim A. of Harris Cyclery, and Jim P. the bicycle's owner - as well as to Jan of the Bicycle Quarterly for the inspiration and advice. More pictures here and here!

Indian Paint Brush Wildflower

This orange flower is called the Indian Paint Brush which seems kind of weird as it doens't look like an Indian or a paint brush. It is common on the desert all over New Mexico.

Yodelin ..

It has been a while. I probably should do a year end recap, or a goals for the coming year before doing a new post for a new year. But that is not how it is going to be.



In a stroke of luck I had some time off. (we were slow at work) And Dan was in between jobs. So I lobbied to get out. Unfortunately, the weather didn't really cooperate and we weren't going to riding 12" of fresh. Bummer.



The forecast was somewhat miserable with sun and above freezing temps for the day prior to us getting out. No measurable snowfall in the previous few days either. This made us fall to the old standby of Yodelin.We both figured that a northern exposure, and trees would have protected what precious snow there might be. And as always, Yodelin never seems to disappoint.













We arrived in the parking lot to a light snow falling. The road in was horrible, an icy packed luge run with a dusting of new snow on it for the minimum in friction coefficient. As we went up, the snow fell harder and the snow underfoot was deeper. We started getting positive vibes. Up near the ridge, the snow was deep, and there was no readily detectable crust. We skinned through the cut and up into the trees to our transition point.







The first run was good. A little choppy and boney in sections where people recently laid tracks. We continued to the second road and really enjoyed the less tracked lower portion. So we skinned up again. Our track from the first run had a fair amount of new snow in it, making it appear a day old. This time we went further on the ridge to get out of tracked snow and had a nicer upper portion consisting of 4-8" of loose snow. (I hesitate to call it powder. But it was not concrete.) We once again continued past the first road and had a really good run through the trees to the final road where both Dan and I fell coming through the ditch by the road. At this point and elevation we were receiving some heavy wet snow and decided to call it a day as we knew the snow wasn't getting any better. We skinned back to the lift hut and transitioned back to ride the road out.

RAB GUIDE GLOVE REVIEW

Belaying Jess up Twin Runnels of theMoonflower, C.Popephoto


RAB GUIDE GLOVE REVIEW



By Craig Pope





I burn though 3-5 pair of gloves a season climbing on ice alone. When u log a lot of rappels, mixed pitches, endless gear and rope handling, gloves wear out.



There are three areas a glove has to excel: warmth, dexterity, and weatherproof. Naturally, compromises in warmth/weatherproof facilitate the dexterity used to climb M-hard, and visa versa.



When I'm out "cragging" mixed rock and ice, I almost always pack around at least a few pair of gloves, and the one pair I always make sure to have with me is the RAB Guide Glove. One pair took a beating fora whole year, including 3 weeks in AK.



With a warmer, more durable glove, comes the price of reduced dexterity. However, with the Guide Glove, the way RAB joins the insulation/liner to the outer fabric/leather eliminates slippage of the liner material - unlike the majority of warmer, thicker gloves. I hate pulling a glove off only to spend 5 minutes tucking the liner back into each individual finger. I climb PLENTY of hard, technical ice routes with these gloves on colder days. What little the RAB Guide Glove lacks in dexterity, it makes up tenfold in waterproof, breathable Event, a full leather palm and fingers for durability. I rappelled at least 350 ice/mixed pitches in the one pair last year, and only at the beginning of this season did I finally have to retire them...almost.



When climbing the Moonflower on the North Buttress of Mount Hunter last spring, I found myself wishing I had brought two pair of the Guide Gloves - especially when the other pair of gloves eventually became nothing but weight in my pack. From simul-ing lower angle terrain with knuckles constantly in the snow, to freeing M7 with a pack and managing gear, to being turned around by hours of mind numbing, hammering spindrift...my hands were sometimes cold, but dry and able to function on an 8 hr rappel in miserable conditions. All of my toes suffered frostbite - and I narrowly avoided amputation (tight single boots anddehydration the culprits), but there was no harm to my fingers.



When I can see the last dozen pitches in an Ice gloves future, it's always where the stitching of the grip material connects the sidewall construction, (generally fabric), And almost always on the last three fingers if not between the index and thumb... With the Rab Guide Glove, instead of stitching and sidewall construction, the pinky finger is wrapped on two sides with a continuous piece of reinforced leather - but, just the pinky finger is designed that way. I would love to c ALL fingers covered on three sides without stitching. When I did burn through some stitching on the two middle fingers, and the "almost retirement" consisted of sewing it back up, and continue wearing em!



Leather stretches, and glove insulation gets packed out. I was glad I bought my pair with a relatively tight fit. If I am climbing a route that demands a thinner glove, The RAB Guide Glove is always

clipped to my harness or in my jacket for belays and rope handling.






Always on the harness...photo Jenny Gaddy, at FA "licking Razorblades" banks last wk










.

Love Bike!

We stopped by DBC City Bikes (formerly the Dutch Bicycle Company) in Somerville, Mass. to see if they had some bike parts we were after. In the showroom, among many other things we saw this:

Yes, you guessed it: "Love Bike"! Clearly I had to photograph and share such a masterpiece on this magical day created for us by the greeting card industry.

This is the entire bike in its glory.

I imagine the handles next to the seats (love seats?) are for steering. The lovers are meant to share a bell. Magnificent! The Love Bike is for sale, but Dan (owner of DBC City Bikes) cautions that one should view it "as a sculpture," because as a bicycle it is not very efficient. Efficiet schmefficient! Just imagining this beauty rolling along Mass. Ave., taking the lane and being honked at by bewildered drivers, brings a smile to my face.

We saw more fun things at DBC City Bikes, but they can't possibly follow in the footsteps of the Love Bike, so I will report on them later.

Labor Day Red White and Blue

ED .. This post mentions problems with photos changing orientation & auto-rotating after being uploaded to Blogger. My flower photos kept being changed from horizontal to portrait and it drove me crazy! The problem was apparently with the camera settings. The facial recognition feature kept seeing flower faces as human faces, but it didn't like the proportion so kept 'fixing' them. There are more details in this post on my Annie's Addendum blog.


With plants still making new leaves, warm muggy nights and daytime weather just a few degrees under 100°F, it sure doesn't feel like autumn around Austin, but the calender says it's Labor Day Weekend, a short period of time set aside for relaxation. This year the holiday weekend is bookended by two national political conventions and threatened by two hurricanes, Gustav and Hanna. In Austin there are all sorts of events, including the Human Race 10 K , the Austin Triathlon and the 4th Annual Batfest. (Thanks to Austin Metblogs for keeping us informed.)

This weekend my Aunt Helen is celebrating her 98th birthday back in Chicago with our family. Helen no longer plays the piano - but until a few years ago was expected to provide the music when we sang Happy Birthday to her.

The family history we've gathered includes my aunt's memories of what it was like to be a school child at the end of World War One and she also told us about enormous family picnics on long-ago Labor Days.
Her phenomenal memory has made history alive for us.

Thoughts of celebrations, of people in danger, of national pride, of Katrina, of missing my family, of people living long lives and the importance of coming events tumbled around in my head, making me dizzy.

As usual, tumultuous thoughts send me outside, and I found myself looking around for some red, white and blue in the garden to signify the importance of this National Holiday.

Most of the other flowers have been in bloom for awhile, but the Oxblood Lilies, Rhodophiala bifidia, have been open just a few days - nothing is redder than an Oxblood/Schoolhouse Lily..

White will come from the 'Acoma' Crepe myrtles. They have no problem attracting pollinators, and the flowers go to seed faster than I can deadhead the branch tips. It's worth the effort to keep these fluffy flowers coming.


This Evolvolus 'Blue Daze' will keep blooming without deadheading, but it's in a hanging clay pot so needs a little water every day. The color is pretty but might be a little delicate to represent the blue in a flag.
The Blue Butterfly pea has a deeper color, seen here once again with the 'Fuji' Balloon Flower/Platycodon and the Blue Butterfly Flower/Clerodendrum ugandense . All three have been in bloom for weeks with many more buds developing.

Joining the crepe myrtle and white balloon flowers in representing the white stripes on the flag are these little Zinnea linnearis, which have been in bloom for months.


The flowers are pleasing, but the photo is making me see not white but red! What the heck is going on with Blogger? It uploads my photos, which have been formatted in the same way for years, and then chooses photos seemingly at random, rotating them 90º so the landscape photos are turned into portrait mode.


This keeps happening over and over. I've deleted photos, reformatted, deleted entire posts and started over with no good outcome. Does anyone else have this problem? Is there a solution? Help! [Edited Sunday night - check out a possible fix at Annie's Addendum.]

What should be something both attractive and delicious for the red stripes on the flag - 'Cherry Belle' peppers - once again looks ridiculous when the photo has made a quarter-turn to stand on end instead of the right way.


Up in the front of the house we have a Woodland Garden still in an early state of becoming. That's where I found all three colors next to each other - Pigeon Berry/Rivina humilis adds red from the berries and white from the tiny flowers to the small, deep blue blossoms of Ceratostigma plumbaginoides -or leadwort- an old favorite from Illinois that tolerates life in Texas.Here is one more look at the Schoolhouse Lilies as the sun moves down in early evening. The first flowers opened as the local kids returned to school last week. Philo and I rented a couple of movies for this weekend that suit the beginning of school in a twisted sort of way - Charlie Bartlett and Friday Night Lights... I have a feeling these movies will be fun to watch, but they'll also make us glad our school days are over.

Harris Hill in Elmira New York

Aric and I went with Nathan to help him work today, so I was able to see more of this area. It is just beautiful here. Here is a waterfall on the side of the road:

And Aric getting close to the action:

We drove all around the area, finishing up with stopping at a park. Nathan was looking for something on the GPS, so I got out to look around at the Rails to Trails bike path there. There was a gentlemen standing there looking at the lake. He seemed so sad, with the kind of heavy grief that is normally from losing a loved one. I told Nathan I wanted to go and just hug him and when I said that, he looked over and waved like he felt our love. It was so neat.



After that, we headed to Harris Hill, in Elmira. We had a client there, so we visited him first. Then we went up the hill to the Soaring Center Museum which was closed. There was an overlook there that was really wonderful. We sat in one of the swings there and watched the sunset.

Living the life in New York!